Entrepreneurship

When You’re Freaked Out, What’s Your “Bird”?

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I looked out my sliding door the other day and saw my cat slowly scuttling towards me. He was outside, something had clearly freaked him out and he was low to the ground, slinking towards me to dash inside as soon as I opened the door.

As I started to get up to open the door, he caught sight of a bird and instantly became a blur of movement and enthusiasm. (birds are his favorite thing!)

All the fear, gone in an instant.

What is that thing in your life? Your “bird” that frees you from your fear, sparks your joy and unleashes your boldness in the world?

Don’t Describe the Plane, Describe Hawaii

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One of the first things I ask my clients is, “What coaching programs do you offer?”

Inevitably, they launch into the number of sessions, how long they are, how many months they work together, assessments included, and so on.

This is basically like trying to explain why they should go on vacation to Hawaii by describing the color of the seatbelts on a plane.

Can you imagine? Your listener would be completely baffled.

“Why is this person waxing on about the color gray?”

You see the problem.

Instead, you should talk about the stress of work that they would love to escape and the sunshine and warm waters that await.

Ok I’ll admit, Hawaii is an easy sell.

So how would you like an easy formula to describe one of your services or programs in a way that intrigues your ideal client instantly?

You got it!

To describe a service or program without getting into the weeds with all the details, simply use this three-sentence formula: Promise, Obstacle, Solution.

1. PROMISE: What’s your ideal client’s top of mind problem and/or desire?

Think of your ideal clients’ desired outcomes and challenges and use one or two of them to create your sentence. Here’s an example using my Client Attraction Engine program:

“Stop worrying about where your next client is coming from and wasting time on marketing strategies that don’t work.”

2. OBSTACLE: Why haven’t they solved the problem yet?

You’re not giving them new information: this is something they will recognize as an obstacle they are currently dealing with. For my example, the biggest obstacle is consistency.

Client Attraction Engine example: The #1 reason coaches fail to get clients is they keep trying new things in marketing – the “throwing spaghetti against the wall” method – and they end up just spinning their wheels.

3. SOLUTION: What needs to be done in order to succeed?

Following the same order of ideas, find the simplest way to explain how they can overcome that obstacle and what they need to do.

Client Attraction Engine example: In order to finally have a steady stream of great clients, you must put a structured client generation plan into action… a plan that streamlines your efforts, leverages your strengths and current network so you spend less time marketing and more time coaching!

Try this out and let me know how it goes for you!

Don’t Describe the Plane, Describe Hawaii

by

One of the first things I ask my clients is, “What coaching programs do you offer?”

Inevitably, they launch into the number of sessions, how long they are, how many months they work together, assessments included, and so on.

This is basically like trying to explain why they should go on vacation to Hawaii by describing the color of the seatbelts on the airplane

Can you imagine? Your listener would be completely baffled.

“Why is this person waxing on about the color gray?”

You see the problem…

Instead, you’d talk about the stress of work that they would love to escape and the sunshine and warm waters that await!

Ok I’ll admit, Hawaii is an easy sell.

So how would you like an easy formula to describe one your services or programs in a way that intrigues your ideal client instantly?

You got it!

To describe a service or program without getting into the weeds with all the details, simply use this three-sentence formula: Promise, Obstacle, Solution.

1. PROMISE: What’s your ideal client’s top of mind problem and/or desire?

Think of your ideal clients’ desired outcomes and challenges, and use one or two of them to create your sentence. Here’s an example using my Client Attraction Engine program:

“Stop worrying about where your next client is coming from and wasting time on marketing strategies that don’t work.”

2. OBSTACLE: Why haven’t they solved the problem yet?

You’re not giving them new information; this is something they will recognize as an obstacle they are currently dealing with. For my example, the biggest obstacle is consistency.

Client Attraction Engine example: “The #1 reason coaches fail to get clients is they keep trying new things in marketing – the “throwing spaghetti against the wall” method – and they end up just spinning their wheels.”

3. SOLUTION: What needs to be done in order to succeed?

Following the same order of ideas, find the simplest way to explain how they can overcome that obstacle and what they need to do.

Client Attraction Engine example: “In order to finally have a steady stream of great clients, you must put a structured client generation plan into action… a plan that streamlines your efforts, leverages your strengths and current network so you spend less time marketing and more time coaching!”

Try this out and let me know how it goes for you!

Coaching with Metaphors – Lyssa deHart

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To celebrate International Coaching Week, I’m delighted to announce that Lyssa deHart will be sharing “Coaching with Metaphors” at no cost to my community!

We will delve into the role metaphors play in lighting up our clients.

She’ll share with you the role metaphors play in activating our clients’ brains and a bit of the neuroscience that links metaphors to brain activity and somatic anchoring.

She’ll highlight how a coach might tune their ears to metaphors, leveraging and harnessing your client’s metaphors to foster deeper engagement and insight.

She’ll ask for a volunteer, and do a 15 minute demo, then we can Q&A what people notice. This session is designed to be enlightening and fun, blending serious learning with the playful art of metaphor.

14th May – 3:00pm Pacific Time

Enroll for free!