The Biggest Mistake Coaches Make When Building an Online Business

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Welcome back to Deep Dive Dialogues with yours truly, dan Warheide.

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I am excited to share episode two with you.

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This is a brand new podcast and if you haven't listened to the intro episode, I give a bit about my background and the premise of this podcast and sort of how it came about.

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It's really a personal mission to improve the writer's block syndrome, I guess you'd call it I still don't know what to call it when it's recording a podcast.

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I wanted to do a solo podcast and here I am.

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We'll see.

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I probably will include some interviews coming up, but for now I want to share some things that I think are extremely important in building an online business.

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So today's episode, I want to talk to you about one of the key things maybe several of the key things that I think many coaches and consultants building an online business tend to overlook when they first get started.

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So before I jump in with today's content, today's episode I want to ask you one question Now.

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I asked this at the beginning of my introductory episode, but I want to ask it again.

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I would love to hear from you what is the single greatest frustration that you have when it comes to building your coaching business?

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I want to learn from you and, in return, I want to be able to provide you with the content that you're going to find relevant to your situation and your business.

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You can easily send me a note or leave me a voice message, or sign up to receive updates and reply to that email about the podcast by visiting podcastdanwus.

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I look forward to hearing your answers Now.

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If you listened to my intro episode, like I said, you already know a bit about my journey, kind of where I started, how I got where I am today, and I shared that I've built several iterations of my business.

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I wouldn't say I've built different businesses, but I've shifted gears a few times.

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So different iterations, including in my coaching business, and, honestly, I made some of these mistakes I want to talk to you about today.

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I've invested a lot of time, a lot of energy and a lot of money on the things that I originally thought were most important to creating my business, by looking at what others were doing and listening to the different people that are out there.

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But what I learned often the hard way was that those things don't matter nearly as much as I thought, and I want to help you avoid all of that frustration, all of that time and money spent by focusing on the wrong things first and getting to the right things.

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So let's get into it Now.

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When you think of building an online business as a coach or a consultant, you probably are thinking, like I did, that you need to have your online presence established, right?

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You look around.

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You say, okay, what's the first step to building an online business?

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Well, set up a website.

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That's the normal response and there's nothing wrong with that.

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You do need to invest in your website, but I don't think it's the first thing you should be focused on.

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You think you need to invest in your website, your logo, your branding, maybe even some business cards if you're going to go do some in-person events or networking, and to some extent, those things, like I said, really might seem reasonable.

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But are they necessary?

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Is the question I would ask, and the answer at this stage is not really.

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Now, there's some exceptions and you know, depending on your relationships that you've already built, maybe you can spend a little time and energy on those things without letting them become a distraction.

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The problem is that most people who've decided to build this business or coaching, they attend a training, they get a certification, and I don't want to mislead you.

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There's nothing wrong with pursuing those things.

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I firmly believe in lifelong learning and continuing your education and coaching, but that's it.

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I haven't really seen any coaching programs or training programs yet that go into beyond that.

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Right, they go to the how-tos and the education around coaching, but they don't ever extend into the actual how-tos of starting, running and growing your business as a coach.

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So that's what I'm hoping to communicate here today.

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Again, I want to help you avoid as many mistakes as possible so you don't have to spend the same kind of time and experience the same things and the same lessons and frustrations that I have.

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I want to save you some of those hassles.

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I also want to address some critical elements, like I said, that are often overlooked.

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So most people look at this world of online business and it's easy to believe that the first steps to success is to have all of those shiny objects your website, the online presence and, again, there's some value in that.

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But as far as platforms are concerned, I'd encourage you to start, if anything, start building an email list now, versus later.

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You'll want to get an email list started pretty much as soon as you start working.

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But, even more important than that.

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The first step in building your business is crucial to addressing roadblocks that haven't yet happened.

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When you focus on the wrong elements first, like the things I've just discussed, in too many instances it can quickly lead down a path of adding confusion and adding more and more frustration, burnout, and a lot of people tend to get so frustrated that they quit.

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They think it's not for them.

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All they really did was put things a little out of order.

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So I don't want you to be discouraged, and if that's where you're at right now, one, I'd love to have a conversation with you, but two, I hope that this episode will help you.

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What most people want when building an online business, of course, is really clients.

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Now, from that perspective, it may seem logical to establish that online presence so you can get clients, but if you fail to address the foundations of your business, you'll end up falling flat.

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So what is the first step to building your online business?

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I believe the first step is to design your dream and to create the vision for what you really want for your life and for your business.

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First, it's all about defining your vision.

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I, early on in my journey, I didn't do this either, and it's one of the biggest mistakes that I've made.

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I got so focused on the day-to-day tasks, creating the website and all the other things.

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I didn't have a clear picture of what I actually wanted my life to look like in three, five, 10 years from now, and I think that this is key, because it's your vision that keeps you on track.

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It keeps you focused when things get tough, when distractions come up or when that frustration sets in.

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So I really want to encourage you to do this.

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I want to encourage you to take time to dream.

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I want you to forget about how for a minute.

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I want you to just focus on what is it that you want?

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I was recently given an exercise recently relative, I guess, but not long ago I was given an exercise that I think really helped me find value in this approach, and it was.

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They're fairly simple in theory, and it's creating a list of the 50 things that I want Now.

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This includes everything from financial goals to lifestyle dreams living a debt-free life, having the freedom to travel, hosting my own retreats, or even something as simple as buying a Jeep for my daughter.

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These dreams help to bring me and you clarity and consistent motivation.

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Now the next step is to divine.

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Let me back up.

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I don't want to get into the next step yet, and it's not divine, it's define.

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So but just I want to urge you to take the time to sit down to write out that list of 50 things I want.

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Now I will also say that initially, when I sat down to do this exercise, I struggled with it.

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I was like I came up with like 33 things and I went to my coach and I said I'm struggling with this, this is hard, and he stopped me and reminded me that it's hard because I've told myself it's hard If it were easy.

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That were the words he gave me.

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So try that If you find yourself getting stuck, not being able to come up with 50 things.

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Some of you are going to experience this and it's going to be super simple for you and I applaud you.

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I have a tendency to think about things, more often than not, that lead me down a path of what some might identify as overthinking.

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I prefer to choose different words because I used to be an overthinker and suffered from that mindset as well, and sometimes I recognize that my thinking leads me down a path and keeps me from being able to achieve the thing that I'm working on and by shifting my language around, that it's really helped me to simplify some things and not spend as much time in that overthinking space.

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So I digress the 50 things list right?

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If you find this is difficult, think about that phrase.

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If it were easy, I would.

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What would it be?

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I came up with things at that point like having lunch with some people I really would like to sit down with.

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There's some people I've been connected with for a while in the online business communities that I've been a part of, and I'd really love to sit down and buy them lunch and pick their brain for an hour or ask them to share with me what were the single biggest frustrations that you experienced in building your business and what were some of the real challenges that you might have labeled as mistakes that have led you to being able to share the lessons you're sharing now.

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Those are things I'd really love to learn from some people and help me avoid other mistakes in the future.

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I think that'd be a wonderful way to do business.

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So include things like having lunch with people over the next year or two years or three years that you would really like to have lunch with and pick their brain.

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You know it can be as simple, as extravagant, as unachievable as it may seem.

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I want you to keep your mind out of that space.

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I don't want you to think about how selfish it is or how unachievable or attainable it may really be.

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Just write down the list of what it is that you want.

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Now you've got these lists.

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You've got this list of 50 things you want.

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You've defined, really, where you see yourself and your business in the next two, three, three to five years and what that looks like for you right now.

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Don't worry, it can change, that's okay.

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The idea is to help overcome those questions that come up, the frustration and the energy as it gets hard.

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These things help you to remember why it is you're doing what you're doing and what it is you're trying to build, what it is you're trying to achieve and maintain some positive motivation and influence in your work and your life.

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You've got this list.

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The next thing you're going to want to take time to do is to define the value that you bring to your work, to your clients and to your business.

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Now this has come up a couple times.

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I heard my coach speaking about this recently in a podcast episode I believe it may have been in a coaching session, but he was sharing that the question of value had come up who are you to charge these prices?

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Or the question to yourself who am I to charge these prices?

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Why do I think I'm able to do this?

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The imposter questions that may arise.

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This next step is super important.

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I can't stress that when I skipped this step early in my journey, I found myself feeling all of those things, feeling the imposter syndrome, questioning whether I had what it took, whether I was actually able to provide value to people.

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Could I raise my rates?

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All of the things it's you know.

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But the truth is I had years of experience and I had real results.

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I wasn't fully acknowledging the value that I bring to the table and it wasn't until recently that I did this exercise myself.

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And it is game changing.

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If you don't understand your value, then it becomes super easy to start doubting yourself at any point.

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So the one thing that really helped me was asking myself key questions like what are my unique qualities?

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What do I bring to the table that others might not?

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I had nearly two decades of experience in the military, in the intelligence corps.

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I have years of coaching under my belt.

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I have a track record of solving complex problems for people and breaking down complex ideas into simple language that's easy for others to understand and grasp as a trainer, as an instructor, but I wasn't sharing those things boldly enough before and when I started to embrace these, that's when I started to really see some changes and again, it wasn't until recently that I have doubled down on that, I guess you might say and really done this exercise to identify and clearly articulate to me the different levels of value that I really do bring to the table.

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But I did have some coaching along the way that really helped me to start bringing those things up and I did start seeing those changes and the impact that it made.

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So take the time to sit down and create a self-inventory.

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There's no set length, no set time limit.

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If writing is not your strength, lock yourself in a room with a light and commit to one hour.

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I'm going to sit down for one hour at the start and I want to write down all of these things so that I can have this inventory for myself.

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What are your strengths personally and professionally?

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How do you already add value to people's lives?

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Again, once you know these things, it is a game changer.

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Be sure to include things like your professional experiences, your education, both formal and informal they definitely count.

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What other unique experiences do you have that you bring to the table that others may not have experienced?

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Once you've created this list, I think you'll see the importance and the value and the impact that it will have on your confidence in your coaching, in your home, in your work, especially in the early stages of building your online business.

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Now the one thing you've probably been asking all along is okay, what about clients?

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So let's talk about clients for a minute, because the next thing I want you to think about is also extremely critical, and it's something that many people struggle with.

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It's defining your ideal customer.

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Now, notice, I didn't say niche or niche, however you choose.

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It's a French word.

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The proper pronunciation I have learned is niche, so it doesn't matter what you call it, and there's really a couple of schools on the thought of defining your niche, so I'll probably will share more about that in another episode in the near future, but I digress Early on.

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I made the mistake of thinking, like many, I can help everyone, and, while that may be true, it's not realistic.

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You want to spend some time getting crystal clear, or as clear as you can, about who it is that you desire to help, the kind of person that they are.

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Are they a coach?

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It can be as simple as that.

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Are they working to build an online business?

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So you have to get crystal clear on who it is that you want to help.

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It's not about defining your target audience.

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It's also about knowing who it is that actually has the money to pay for the problem that they have to get help with overcoming it or addressing it right.

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That you're passionate about helping them solve, that's key right.

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Being passionate about helping them solve, that's key right.

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Being passionate about helping them solve the problem is really going to help you grow your business and connect with the people who have that challenge.

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But I think the key in this is they also have to have the money and the desire to solve the problem.

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The pain has to be bad enough for them to want to pay someone to help them solve that challenge.

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So for me, I realized that my ideal clients were new and or transitioning coaches, people that want to leave their full-time jobs.

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They want to transition and build a successful coaching business, and they either didn't know where to start, or they were wondering what the next steps were, or they were stuck overwhelmed.

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They lacked confidence, and once I got clear on these things who it is that I wanted to help, the other pieces started falling into place, much like building blocks.

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So I recommend you sit down and ask yourself some questions who is it I'm trying to serve?

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What are their biggest frustrations?

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This will keep you from wasting time creating content and offers and products, or whatever it may be, that don't resonate with anyone or, worse, they resonate with people who don't have the means to pay you to help them solve the problem.

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So then, once you understand that, then you really want to be able to dig into that ideal customer's problems.

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And I'll tell you early on again, I didn't spend enough time understanding how this related.

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I didn't take time to actually get to know the real pain points that my clients were facing.

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I fell into the trap of the curse of knowledge.

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I was a story brand guide.

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I knew the language.

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I knew the language of the online business world, the online marketing world, but not the actual language and the real pain points of my clients.

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Specifically, I didn't listen well enough and I certainly didn't ask the right questions.

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I assumed that I knew what they needed, and it's not that I wasn't asking the questions necessarily.

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It's more that I didn't even know where to ask.

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If you don't know who you're asking, it's harder to find where to ask them.

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Hence the reason you want to do your best to define who they are.

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Now, one thing that helped me here was having real conversations with real people by asking the questions, like I started out this show with, what is the single biggest frustration you have when it comes to starting your business, and the answers will be revealing.

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You know they'll talk about the feeling of overwhelm, the lacking in clarity, the feeling of being stuck in a miserable job that you know they only look forward to going home on Friday afternoon because they get a break and away from that space, but they have no idea how to move forward.

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So those conversations will give you the insights you need to create offers that actually help people solve their problems.

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So talk to them, ask them what they're struggling with, listen to their language and pay attention to what really, really frustrates them.

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Then it's time to validate your business.

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Now, notice we haven't said anything about building your website or launching a podcast or any of these things you want to validate your business.

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Now, this is where I see a lot of people, including myself, getting caught up.

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It's tempting to jump into those things, to building the website, designing the logos, because really it feels productive, but it's risky If you skip the foundational steps.

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You end up spending a lot of time, energy and money without ever seeing the results that you want to see, or no results at all.

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I made that mistake early on.

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I thought if I had this website or the perfect logo, clients could more easily find me, and while there may be some truth in that, it's absolutely the wrong place to start.

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What really matters is being able to build relationships, especially as a coach.

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You've got to get really good, get granular with building relationships and getting your first paying clients first.

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That's how you validate your business.

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Everything else will fall into place and everything else can come later.

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I suggest, if you're going to do anything, like I said, an email list start there and start building relationships.

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So here's my advice Before you spend a dime on building a platform, building anything online, validate your business, get your first paying clients through one-on-one coaching or by offering a simple workshop.

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That's where you should focus your time and your energy.

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And maybe now you're saying, okay, great, dan, I know I need paying clients.

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That's the challenge.

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So you're telling me to skip all these other steps that everybody's telling me I need to do, telling me to skip all these other steps that everybody's telling me I need to do.

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Where do I get clients?

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So think about this who do you know?

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Who do you know already right now?

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Who are you connected with?

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What groups are you plugged into?

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Where do you go to network in person?

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Where do you go to network online?

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The likelihood of finding someone who has a problem that you can help them solve is pretty high when you start looking around at who's around you.

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Now.

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Show up, build the relationships, contribute a high level of value and serve people.

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Then, when and if the opportunity arises to invite people to experience your coaching and how it can help them, invite them.

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I will share more about my approach to creating clients that I have been working on, learning and growing in and continuing to build on in future episodes as well.

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But that is the essence Building relationships, connecting with people, is the first step to creating clients.

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Now, I've already said a few times, I've learned these lessons the hard way.

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In many cases, I've spent a lot of time and money on courses, on programs, thinking that they're going to help me get clients, only to realize that I had skipped the most important steps.

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I wasn't doing the real work to create the relationships and to understanding my value.

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I let the distractions get in my way too, whether it was perfecting my website, which is a never-ending process, or trying to master some new marketing tactic, and what I really needed to focus on was building that solid foundation, defining my dreams, defining what I want.

00:23:42.641 --> 00:23:45.230
In the military, we always had a clear mission and a plan.

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We didn't jump ahead without laying the groundwork first, and business shouldn't be any different.

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You need to have that solid foundation your vision, your value, your ideal client before you build all the external stuff.

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It's why skipping these steps can be so risky for you, for me, for anyone that's working to build their business.

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They're extremely risky.

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It may feel like you're making progress, but if you don't have that footing, that foundation, you'll end up frustrated, you'll end up burnout, and too often I see people quitting because they just feel like they were missing something, like it's not for them, like they didn't have the value to bring to people, like they didn't know what was next.

00:24:28.521 --> 00:24:33.804
There's so many reasons, and I don't want to see that for you, so I know again.

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It's tempting to skip these foundational steps and jump to building the online platform so that you can market, so you can do all the other things.

00:24:40.986 --> 00:24:46.567
It feels like progress, but, trust me, it's more important to build that foundation.

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Otherwise, you're just spinning your wheels Really quickly.

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We covered some basic steps that are critical for your long-term success Dreaming, dreaming big, creating that vision for your life and for your business, understanding your value and what you bring to the table, defining your ideal customer and understanding their problems and their language.

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And then validating your business before focusing on the external things like the websites, the logos, the marketing platforms, whatever it may be.

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Here's my challenge to you Pick one of these action steps and start right now, today.

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Whether it's writing the 50 things you want, doing the self inventory of your strengths and what you bring to the table, or speaking to your ideal customers, pick one of those and take action today.

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In the next episode, I'm going to dive into what I think is the next step, and that's getting more into the online platform and creating those clients and that process of what that looks like, but first make sure you have this solid foundation.

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Thank you so much for joining me today.

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I'm excited for this podcast Again.

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This is episode two.

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I would love to hear from you what is your single greatest frustration with building your coaching business.

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Where are you getting stuck?

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Shoot me an email, send me a voice message one of those options or and I absolutely would appreciate it if you'll sign up for the email list to get updates from me about the podcast and maybe any other things that I'm working on.

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Again, you can do all of that at podcastdanwus and until next week, I hope it's a great one.