Are you on the fence about starting your life coaching business?

Maybe you’ve been holding on to a certification, providing services practically for free, or wondering if a life coaching business could ever really be as rewarding as it seems…

The truth is, starting your own business is like going on an exciting adventure where you learn lots, help others, and even make good money. It’s about taking your dreams and making them a reality, all while having the freedom to live your life your way.

But taking the “entrepreneurial leap” can be scary! So to help you start your own adventure as a coach, this post will cover:  

• 6 things to do before you start your own business (these are the REAL first steps you need)
• The top 10 reasons to become an entrepreneur & start your own business
• 4 most common blocks to becoming a successful entrepreneur
• Additional business resources for aspiring and growing life coaches

If you’re ready to play full out, let’s get started!

6 Things to Do First If You’re Thinking of Becoming an Entrepreneur

Franklin D Roosevelt once said, “Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the assessment that something else is more important than fear.”

To pursue your dreams of starting your own business and becoming a wildly successful, full time coach, you don’t have to release all of your fears…

But you do have to prepare enough to know that your goal is bigger than any fear you may have.

That being said, here are a few things to check off your list before jumping into the deep end:

1. Identify a problem you’re passionate about solving.

Have you ever thought, “I want to start a business but have no ideas?” This is where your passion and values come in!

Where is there a need or a gap in the industry/market you’re a part of? As a life coach, think about the people you’re most passionate about helping and the type of transformation you’d love to help them achieve to guide this decision. 

Not sure what kind of life coach you want to be? Click here to explore 21 types and choose what’s best for you!

2. Get clear on your idea.

Your imagination is powerful, so use it to build a vision of the business you’d love. Be as specific and clear as possible about the services you’ll offer, the promise you make for your clients, and even the goals you have for yourself!

By taking the time to create a clear vision of your dream business (even if you don’t know how to get there just yet), the more confidence you’ll have as you make decisions along the way. 

3. Get familiar with your audience.

Who will you serve, why do they need what you offer, and what will their life look like if they never get the support they need? 

The better you know your target audience, the better you’ll be able to design solutions to deliver on your promise as a coach and solve their pain points.

4. Invest in a Mentor.

If your dream requires you to grow, you’re on the right track. One of the most crucial paths to creating success is seeking mentorship. I encourage you to check testimonials, as good questions, and ensure that the mentor you choose has active and recent evidence of their success.

More importantly, check for alignment. Is your mentor living in the results you would love for yourself? 

5. Start Small & Grow Bigger.

When starting a new business, one of the most common mistakes people make is trying to do too much too fast. When you’re starting out, I recommend focusing on getting the basics before adding anything else. 

And remember: no matter how small the action, baby steps will still lead you up Mt. Everest.

6. Expand your Education and Skills.

If the last five elements have you scratching your head, you’re not the first to feel overwhelmed or confused. It takes time, tenacity, and resiliency to make it on your own – but it’s not impossible.

But, if you’re interested in skipping beginner mistakes and taking an accelerated path to success, you could save time and money with a coaching certification program. Since not all programs are built the same, I encourage you to find a coaching program that matches your values, supports your goals, and has a proven track-record producing results.

By providing the most advanced business-building systems, we help life coaches start, sustain, and scale successful businesses. All of our systems have been carefully tested and fine-tuned by our expert faculty and packaged to make it as easy as possible for you to use.

In addition, our coaching certification program teaches you more than coaching skills. Our faculty guides you through every aspect of starting and operating a profitable, impactful life coaching business – everything from billing to best practices to scaling.

Top 10 Reasons to Become an Entrepreneur | Why Become a Life Coach?

1. Be Your Own Boss

When you start your own business, you get to call the shots! This means you decide what product or service you want to sell, how you sell it, and who you sell it to. It’s like being the captain of your own ship. You’re navigating through the sea of business with your map and compass, making decisions that you think are best for your adventure.

2. Work When You Want

One of the coolest things about running your own show is setting your own schedule. Need to take a day off for a family birthday? No problem! Want to work late and sleep in because you’re a night owl? Go for it!

This flexibility helps small business owners and coaches create work life balance however is best for them.

3. Do What You Love

Ever dreamt of making a living from your hobby or something you’re super passionate about? That’s what entrepreneurship is all about! You get to build your dream around what you love doing most, turning your passion into your paycheck.

When you start a coaching business, the type of business you start, the potential customers you reach, and the way you choose to help them are all up to you!

4. Potential for Big Income

Any business venture comes with risk, but the financial rewards can be much bigger than what you’d earn working for someone else. The best part? Your hard work and smart choices directly boost your earnings – the sky’s the limit!

5. Learn and Grow Every Day

Running a business is like a roller coaster ride that teaches you something new at every turn. You’ll learn tons about the market, dealing with customers, and even about yourself. This journey will make you smarter, tougher, and ready for anything.

As a life coach and entrepreneur, you’ll not only learn how to grow your business, but you’ll be immersed in personal and professional development every step of the way.

6. Build Something from Scratch

Imagine creating a brand or product that’s totally yours, from the initial idea to the final touches. It’s a chance to put your stamp on something and share a piece of yourself with the world, improving your life and the lives of others in the process.

7. Help Your Community

As your business gets bigger, you can start hiring people, which means creating jobs and helping your local economy. Many of our coaches love that they can give to their favorite charities and support local causes that are important to them.

Being an entrepreneur is a great way to give back and make a positive impact right in your own backyard.

8. Meet Awesome People

Being an entrepreneur means you’ll meet lots of other business owners, just like you. Whether it’s at networking events or online, these connections can turn into friends, mentors, or even partners who can help you along the way (like the incredible people in our Life Coach Facebook Community! Join us here).

9. You’re in Charge of Your Future

Ever wanted to take charge of your destiny? That’s what entrepreneurship is all about. You get to make the big decisions and steer your life and career in the direction you want. It’s all about creating the future you’ve always wanted.

10. Support Your Loved Ones

Running a successful business doesn’t just feel great; it can also be a big help to your friends and family. Whether you’re offering jobs, support, or inspiration, your success has a positive effect on the people you care about most.

4 Most Common Blocks to Becoming a Successful Entrepreneur

Whether this is your first attempt to start your own coaching business or one of many, I want to encourage you. Failing, whether in the past or in the future, doesn’t mean that coaching isn’t great after all.

It also doesn’t mean that you’re doing it all wrong.

It’s about deciding to learn from every failure. Only this mindset will help you challenge limiting beliefs and take action towards success!

Here are 4 other mindset shifts that can help you avoid the most common blocks to creating success as an entrepreneur: 

1. To Become a Successful Entrepreneur, You Must Challenge Your Beliefs

If you want to become a successful entrepreneur, then you must challenge long-held beliefs that may be holding you back. There are a lot of thinking patterns and limiting beliefs that are rooted in your childhood, school, media, and other critical influences.

These limiting paradigms keep you locked into your comfort zone and dissuade, distract, and delay you from taking action towards your dream.

Therefore, the key to success on your entrepreneurial journey is about thinking and acting outside of your comfort zone. When you allow yourself to release the how and focus on your dream, it results in a paradigm shift that opens up unlimited possibilities. 

2. Overcoming Money Paradigms as an Entrepreneur

One of the most common money paradigms I see among life coaches who are considering entrepreneurship is that they believe “It’s wrong to take money to help people.”

This is a mindset that focuses on money as the end result. When really, life coaching is about the results your clients will create while working with you.

And people love to invest in results. 

If you think about it, in any business sector, people get paid lots of money for results!

So, I challenge you to consider how valuable it is for someone to create a life they love.

People work with coaches to hold their feet to the fire and help them achieve what might otherwise be impossible to do on their own. Life coaches accelerate results and create lifelong transformation for their clients.

Clients who are ready and willing to live their dreams will see the opportunity to work with you as an opportunity. And by “getting to work with you”, it’s not about “taking” their money.

It’s about your clients putting skin in the game and taking their dreams seriously.

3. Trust Yourself & Your Intuition

You’re not alone in your experiences with imposter syndrome, the voice of your inner critic, and pressure from external factors and influences.

But the truth is you are more powerful and contain more potential than any of your circumstances, situations, or conditions. 

This doesn’t mean you won’t ever feel down or have to pretend your emotions don’t exist. 

You can have these mistakes, failures, and other negative experiences without those experiences having you!

4. Successful Entrepreneurs Visualize their Goals

Everything is created twice. First in thought, then in form.

This is called “the results formula” and it goes like this:
Thoughts > Feelings > Actions > Results

What most people don’t know is that your thoughts carry a vibration. Collectively, those vibrations create a frequency that attracts “like things” into your life. 

So, when you think about lack and scarcity, you attract more of the same negative experiences into your life. But if you’re thinking on a frequency of abundance, you’ll also attract more abundance in your life.

Your vision is the blueprint for your success. It’s where you get clarity around what you’re meant to accomplish.

That’s why your vision is one of the foundational elements in our coaching certification program here at the Brave Thinking Institute. This is especially true when you’re just starting out! And after training thousands of successful coaches for over a decade, we believe it’s a non-negotiable element to any profitable, sustainable life coaching business. 

Life Coaching Business Resources for Entrepreneurs 

If you’ve gotten this far, I have a good feeling you’re serious about taking the next step in becoming an entrepreneur. The transition may seem daunting at first, but with the right process, system, and mentorship, you’ll be on your way to success faster than figuring it all out on your own.

Remember that the real first steps in your entrepreneurial journey are all about your mindset. Without the right energetic foundation, it’ll be much easier to stop short of reaching success. Let’s recap:

1. Get specific about the “what” and release the “how”.
2. Take risks and learn from your failures (learn how to avoid the most common costly mistakes here).
3. Align your thoughts, feelings, and actions around your intended vision.
4. Invest time in asking questions, creating, and networking.
5. Embrace the baby steps and stay focused.

If you’re interested in becoming an entrepreneur, there are many resources available to you. But those resources tend to be scattered in so many different places.

So, if you’d love a one-stop shop for building a sustainable, profitable life coaching business, I invite you to download our free resource: The Thriving Coaching Business Checklist.

Inside, you’ll discover how to create positive change as a coach, building an ethical coaching business, and how to structure it for success right out the gate.