When I was just 22 years old, I decided that I wanted to be a coach.

I had just graduated college and moved into a tiny studio apartment in Washington, D.C. with my girlfriend.

It didn’t take long to realize that the consulting job I had taken after college wasn’t what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. But I wasn’t exactly sure what I wanted to do instead.

Then I remembered a moment as a kid when I told my mom that I wanted to be a best-selling self-help author when I grew up (crazy, right?). The more I thought about it, the more I realized that my main passion had always been personal development.

So one day I was talking to my girlfriend and I said, “Hey, maybe I’ll be a life coach.”

And do you know what happened next? She started laughing. It wasn’t that she was trying to be mean. She probably just thought I was joking.

It was the first time I realized how misunderstood coaches can be. After that, I decided it was probably a dumb idea and I didn’t mention it again.

Still, every once in awhile I found myself thinking about what it would be like if I could actually get paid to help people achieve their potential...

I fantasized about being a trusted advisor for influential people, seeing my name on the cover of a book, and flying all around the world to speak.

It wasn’t until something happened at my job that I finally took coaching seriously...

One day, when I was moving a number from one Excel spreadsheet to the other and feeling bored out of my mind, a partner at the firm walked by my office.

He said, “How’s it going, Greg?”

I told him I was feeling brain dead from moving numbers around.

He looked at me for a moment, smiled, and said, “Yeah, well, you can’t go to the board room right away.”

Even though he made the comment in an offhand way, those words lit a fire inside of me.

As he walked away, I found myself thinking “Do I want to do this job for ten years just so I can do what my boss does every day?”

In that moment it became crystal clear that each minute I spent in that job was getting me further and further away from the impact I really wanted to make.

So I worked up my courage, marked my calendar for one year later, and promised myself that I would be working full-time in my own coaching business by that date.

Then I got to to work (unfortunately, things didn’t go exactly as planned)...

I started waking up everyday at 6am to work on my business before going to my job.

Sometimes I would even try to squeeze in business stuff during work hours (I still feel a little bit guilty about this).

The bottom line is that I spent countless hours every day searching Google for information about coaching, obsessing over my niche, writing my blog, and working on my website.

And can I tell you something? It was totally overwhelming.

There were way too many conflicting opinions about how to build a coaching business.

There were way too many pieces of technology to set up, let alone figure out how to pay for.

There were way too many shady “gurus” claiming to have a magical formula for getting clients.

I was supposed to be building my coaching business, but I was actually spending all my time questioning my life purpose, doubting my ability to help people, and hiding behind my computer.

So when that didn’t get me anywhere, I put myself out there a little bit more and started going to local networking events. This failed miserably and only made me feel worse about myself. No one understood what the heck I did and they sure as hell weren’t interested in hiring me.

After a few months of this, I was forced to admit the truth: This wasn’t working. I was saving money at a glacial pace. If I didn’t start making some money, I wasn’t going to be ready to leave my job by the date I had committed to.

It got so bad that I actually started avoiding conversations about my business.

Whenever I met someone new and they asked me what I did, I tried to change the subject.

Whenever friends asked about my coaching business, I’d smile and pretend that it was going well. But deep down I felt like a complete fraud. I was too ashamed to admit that after months of work, I had almost nothing to show for it.

And all along, I had these nagging questions in the back of my mind like…

Am I really meant to be a coach?

Is it okay to be a coach?

Does coaching actually work?

And the more I focused on all of these doubts, the less time I was spending getting clients.

Meanwhile, I would look online and see all of these other successful coaches and think - what are they doing that I’m not?

And that’s when I tried something totally counterintuitive...

Nothing I did was working and I was sick of trying to explain what coaching was. So I decided to say “screw it” and take a different approach.

Instead of trying to present what I did in a more compelling way, I started focusing on who I wanted to help and what challenges they were facing.

Instead of focusing on getting clients, I focused on building trust and providing as much value as I could upfront.

Basically, I tried to be so helpful that people couldn’t ignore me.

And it actually started working...

I put on a free local workshop about positive psychology. At the end, I offered to talk with people about how they could apply what they learned to their specific situations (also for free). Those conversations eventually led to me doing my first paid, one-off coaching sessions.

I put out a free conversation challenge on Facebook where I offered to help people get clarity around what they wanted in their careers. Over 50 people signed up. The conversations that I had and the referrals that came from them ended up getting me my first 5 high-end clients.

And each time I got a new client, I focused on providing an amazing customer experience for them. This allowed me to keep signing them up for bigger packages and capture amazing case studies to use in my marketing. Suddenly, lead generation started getting easier and easier.

Turns out I had been doing things backwards the whole time.

I thought it was my job to convince people that they needed a coach. I thought if they just understood more about how important personal development was they would hire me.

No wonder my business was failing.

Here’s what I learned:

Clients don’t care about coaching. They care about results.

If a potential client perceives you as someone who can help them move closer to the specific things that they want, they will do pretty much anything to work with you.

If they don’t, then no amount of certifications or logical explanations will convince them otherwise.

Most clients don’t care about how old you are, how fancy your marketing is, or even how high your rates are. What they care about is finding one of those rare people who they can trust to really make a difference in their lives.

Your job is to become that person.

If you do, you won’t have to go looking for clients anymore. They’ll find you.

After that discovery, I started doing things very differently (and it worked).

When I shifted from focusing on what I had to offer to what my clients wanted to achieve, my business started to grow (and quickly).

I left my job at the 8-month mark and more than doubled my income the next month from coaching alone.

I started getting thank you cards from my clients, including a CEO twice my age, telling me how grateful they were to have me as their coach.

I even had the opportunity to interview Seth Godin (one of my heroes) for a podcast that I did.

And because I had structured the business to be location-independent, I was able to move from D.C. to the 80 acre farm where I live.

Oh, and remember the girlfriend who laughed when I talked about becoming a coach? Well, she’s my wife now and she is 100% on board with my coaching (she’s seen the impact that it has and the money it’s made for us).

It wasn’t long before I started getting emails from other coaches...

They wanted to know how I was getting clients. And even though none of them said this directly, I suspect that a lot of them were surprised that someone so young was getting hired as a coach.

At first, I was hesitant to start coaching coaches. It felt very “meta” to me. But I also knew that it had taken blood, sweat, and tears to figure out how to build my business and I didn’t want anyone else to have to go through that unnecessarily.

So, without ever planning to, I began helping other coaches build their businesses. Just a few of them at first, one on one. Then I started a group program.

I’m going to be honest - I wasn’t perfect at first. It took a little while for me to reverse-engineer what I had been doing and teach it to others. But I became a little bit obsessed and, eventually, I boiled it all down to a reliable system.

This is the same system that allowed my client Shaughn to enroll his first three paid clients at $500 dollars a month within the first few weeks of us working together.

It’s the same system that allowed my client Liz to raise her rates by 300%, make 5k in one week, and then launch her first paid retreat.

And it’s the same system that allowed my client Lana to go from working a full-time job with just one or two paid clients on the side to regularly having 10k months and a full client roster.

I’m not saying all this to brag. Or to make you feel bad about your business. To be honest, these clients are superstars and what they did took a lot of hard work.

But here’s the real reason I’m telling you this...

You don’t need to struggle like I did. You just need to follow a step-by-step process.

If you’re reading this, then you’ve probably already taken some steps towards building a successful coaching business.

Maybe you’ve worked with a few clients already and loved it. Maybe you got some great feedback from them, but you weren’t sure how to sign them up for longer packages or attract more people like them.

Maybe you’ve even tried some different courses and programs before but they felt dishonest and awkward, or they just didn’t work.

Wherever you’re at in your journey, here’s what I want you to know…

You can build your coaching business much faster (and much more easily) than you think.

Is the course live?

Only the monthly Q+A calls are live. Otherwise, the course is made up of pre-recorded videos, which means that you can move through it at your own pace and watch the lessons as many times as you’d like.

When are the live Q+A calls?

Wednesdays at 10am Eastern Time. The dates depend on when you join the course but they are always announced in advance. Also, every call is recorded and you can ask questions in advance so no worries if you can't make it live.

Do you teach us coaching skills?

Nope. This course focuses exclusively on the business side of coaching. However, I’ve found that the best way to become a better coach is to get out there and have conversations with real people. You’ll get plenty of opportunities to do this in Week 2 of the course. I also give you a template on how to structure your coaching sessions. That said, this isn’t for you if you feel like you can’t go any further until you get training on how to be a more powerful coach. I suggest doing both at the same time, since even the best coaches have trouble getting clients.

Will this work where I live?

A lot of people worry that because they don’t live in a big city, they won’t be able to find clients. I understand - the closest major city is 90 minutes away from me and I live on a farm. That’s why I’ve chosen to build my business primarily online. You can do the same if you choose. The strategies I teach work equally well for building a location independent business as they do for building a local one. We've had people who live outside of the U.S. be just as successful so don't worry if that's you.

What other expenses will I incur as I build my business?

The only things you really need are a website (I recommend Squarespace, which is $8/month) and an email service provider (I recommend Mailchimp to start, which has a free version). Everything else is optional.

How much time will this take?

If you follow along with the course, you’ll spend about an hour each week going through the modules and 1-2 hours of homework on your end. Once you start booking enrollment calls, add an additional 90 minutes for each potential client you talk to. The course includes 6 weeks of training but you’re welcome to go at your own pace if time is tight.

What if I don’t know my niche?

That’s okay! In fact, most people who start working with me aren’t clear on who they want to serve or what they should specialize in. That’s why we spend the whole first week of the course getting clear on all that. And even if you you’re not 100% sure that you’ve chosen the right specialty by the end of Week 1, the rest of the course will help you get clients as you hone in on your sweet spot.

What if I don’t have an email list?

There’s a crazy myth out there that you have to have a certain number of subscribers or give out free content for years before you can make any money. But the truth is, most of my clients and students don’t have an email list when we start working together. There are many coaches who have built six-figure businesses with no email list, and the tactics I’m going to teach you won’t require one. I will, however, help you build an audience during Week 5 of the course so that lead generation becomes easier over time.

If that’s the case, I just have one more piece of advice for you:

Don’t wait.

Don’t wait until you’ve been podcasting or blogging for a certain amount of time.

Don’t wait until you figure out the perfect niche.

And definitely don’t wait until someone else decides to give you permission.

Obviously, you can take the time to build your coaching business on your own. But if you’re looking for a way to get clients as efficiently as possible, enroll in Coaching Business Bootcamp today. I’ve done everything I can do make sure you can get paid and change lives ASAP.

With gratitude,

Greg

This course is for you if:

• You know you want to build a coaching business and you want expert guidance to help you do it right the first time. If you're just getting started, this course will help you avoid the most common mistakes that end up costing people time, money, and energy.

• You’ve already worked with some clients, but you want to make more money and fill your client roster. If you've been coaching for a little while but you still don't have process that helps you consistently get new clients, this course will help you with that.

• You’re willing to dedicate a minimum of 2 hours per week of focused attention to make all of that happen. Coaching Business Bootcamp isn't for the feint of heart. But if you take action on what you learn, your hard work will pay off.

This course is NOT for you if:

• You just want help becoming a better coach. This course is focused on the business of coaching. If you feel like you need to get more training before doing any marketing, this isn’t for you.

• You’re looking for a system that will magically make new leads appear in your inbox without any effort on your part. With Coaching Business Bootcamp you’re signing up for a straightforward, step-by-step process for building a professional coaching business. But it won’t work for you if you act like a victim, make excuses, or don’t take action on what you learn.

• You’re not interested in actually providing value to the clients who hire you. If you’re only in it for the money, please don’t buy this course. My stuff works, and I don’t want anyone using it to get clients if they aren’t going to do their best to take care of those clients.

If this still feels like a fit for you, I'd love to have you be a part of Coaching Business Bootcamp. Just sign up below to get instant access to the course.