Top 3 Things You Need To Start Your Life Coaching Practice

Guest blog by Pam Covarrubias

Pam Covarrubias is a Liberation Business Coach, EFT Practitioner, Podcaster, and Recovering Procrastinator. She primarily spends her time elevating first-generation business owners by helping them remove the shame around making money and connecting to their inner voice so they can create liberated business practices.

Pam is honored to have been named one of the best Latinx Podcasts to listen to by Oprah in 2020 and 2021. When Pam isn't guiding her clients to create liberated business models, you can find her drawing or getting lost in the woods with her partner David and dog Thor. You can learn more about Pam at spreadideasmovepeople.com and @cobiux on all social channels.

You Graduated - Now What?

You’ve completed your last class and we can now say that you’re officially a life coach. Now what? What comes next? 

‍The list of questions is endless and the sources of information are vast.

‍To start, let’s name the basic components of a business: Systems, Money, and Visibility. For a small business, these are the basic departments you want to focus on to make sure your business has a solid foundation. 

‍As your business grows, you will be able to hire and delegate some of these tasks, but for now we will focus on the basic foundation so you can handle running a smooth operational business and get your coaching practice going.

‍Systems

‍We want to first and foremost make sure you are legally operating a business, which means you might have to register your business with the City, State, or even County. These requirements vary depending on location. Check your local offices for requirements so you can properly operate from day one.

‍The systems that support you will eventually become part of your operations department. When you start your coaching practice you want to make sure you use tools that make your life easier so you can focus on serving your clients. For some ideas about the options that are available, check out: Business Resources To Jump Start Your Coaching Practice. 

‍‍Money

‍Since we have covered how to become an official business, you want to also make sure you get paid properly. By properly, I mean make sure your payments are trackable and added to an accounting system. This could be a spreadsheet, or a more robust system like Wave Accounting (it’s free). Whatever system you use, make sure that you are immediately tracking your expenses and how much money you are making in your business.

‍Another important factor to consider is to open a business bank account. Even if your business account balance grows slowly at first, having a separate account makes things so much cleaner and easier to manage come tax season. 

‍Visibility

‍In the beginning, you want to pick a channel where you will show up. When you are in coaching school, you are coaching your peers and your friends. Now that you’ve officially registered your business, opened a bank account, and completed your certification, it’s time to focus on bringing in clients.

‍Think about where your potential clients are hanging out (online or offline) and focus your visibility efforts in those channels for now. Once you have a stronger foundation in your business, you can start venturing out into multiple channels. For now, tell everyone you are a certified life coach and you’re looking for clients.

‍If you have a little budget, you can start building a website and an email list, to continue the relationship and communication with prospects and clients. 

‍Putting It All Together

‍Above all, keep it simple. The three main things you want to keep in mind when you start your business:

• A way to get booked. Also known as a calendar scheduler, this saves you lots of time and makes it easier to stay organized within your calendar.
• A way to get paid. You want to start tracking your income and expenses as soon as you open up shop and begin charging clients.
• A way to get found. Showing up and telling people about your business is one thing, having a virtual place to send them builds credibility and supports you in capturing those leads. This could be a website or a simple landing page with a lead capture form.

‍I know starting a business could be daunting and complicated, but it doesn’t have to be. Take it slow, enjoy the steady growth, and remember to rest in between. When you create a strong foundation, you will be able to build upon it as your business grows instead of fixing things while growing, those will be true growing pains.

‍Now that you have graduated, you have three things to do next. Get that business foundation strong and have fun coaching!

‍If you’re looking for additional tools to help build your practice right, check out our comprehensive guides:

• Legal 101 for Life Coaches
• ULTIMATE GUIDE: Getting Your Life Coaching Practice Off the Ground
• How to Set Your Rates and Create Coaching Packages

Want to Become A Coach?

One of our values at Lumia is that we dare to be different. Our coaches ignore the expectations society tries to impose on them, and seek to live from their own truth instead. If you are ready to step into your power and you’d like some partners in the process, come check out Lumia Life Coach Training. Grounded in science, our ICF accredited program features authentic instructors, a robust curriculum, and business instruction to prepare you for liftoff.

Lumia Coaching: Vibrant community. Evidence-based life coach training. Lifetime support.