Ep #84: 6 Money Leaks Costing You Clients + Cash

Welcome to a Greatest Hits episode. This is where I occasionally like to reintroduce you to one of the greatest hits of the podcast. Now the truth is, after doing the podcast for long enough now, there are a lot of great episodes that, if you're a newer listener, you may not have heard at all. Or if you're a loyal longtime listener, then you're going to love hearing again because you'll hear it even more deeply this time round.

This Greatest Hits episode is one of my favorites because it is impactful and has a ton of insights built into it. And it's one that we have definitely received the very best, highest feedback about from you, our listeners. So even if you've heard this episode before, I really encourage you to listen again and enjoy picking up new insights because you're in a different place in your evolution with money today than you were before. And if you have not heard this episode yet, then you are in for a treat. Enjoy.

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Hey, Coach. Did you know there are six ways that I've spotted where most coaches are leaving money on the table? And that by missing these opportunities to make more money in your coaching business, you're also missing out on opportunities to bring your coaching to more people.

I'm Kendall. Tune in this week to hear a bit of tough love as I share with you 6 ways you may be leaving coaching money on the table. And even more importantly, how to stop inadvertently thinking of making money as something separate from doing your great work in the world. Because once you see the connection between making money and making a difference, first of all, you can't unsee it. And then you also give yourself permission to step into your next level of success in your coaching business, wherever you're starting from right now, today. 

It's all here for you in this episode of The Money Coach School Podcast. Let’s dive in.

Welcome to The Money Coach School Podcast. To really excel at coaching women, you have to be skilled, confident, and even fearless at money coaching. If you're passionate about women holding genuine money power and love supporting women entrepreneurs, then this is the show for you. Now, here's your host, money feminist Kendall SummerHawk.

Hello, beautiful coaches. Welcome again to the New Year. I so love this time of year. So, yes, I say Happy New Year the entire month of January. We are diving right into today's episode because I want this year to be a money-making one for you in your coaching business. And that comes down not to tactics or posting on social and hoping someone responds.

This year being a money-making one for you in your coaching business originates with one decision, one money goal, and then the habits, mindset, and actions that are foundational to the success of you achieving that goal. Sounds simple, and it actually is. One decision. And the one decision is that this is a money-making year for you. Good. We've got that done and out of the way.

And if you have any thoughts that stand in the way of that, like the economy, or the state of the world, or people's spending patterns right now, just stop. Just stop. I mean it. Stop. You experiencing a money-making year this year is not dependent on any external circumstances.

Those things are always present. And yes, you may need to adjust your marketing or your offers or your messaging in response to those external factors, but you don't shift your decision, which is that this is a money-making year for you. All right. Next is the one money goal. One money goal. This is the amount of revenue you want to bring into your business in cash this year. One number that you don't hedge or equivocate about.

And you don't negotiate it with yourself, and you don't shame yourself if it's maybe not as big as you see other coaches on social talking about. And conversely, don't choose a number that is so big it feels pie in the sky and you can't emotionally connect to it. Just choose your number and write it down. No drama here is necessary. And no hedging.

Hedging is when you know that income goal, but instead of committing to it fully with that all-in energy, you find yourself hedging. Hedging is making a plan B right from the start, which often sounds like, "Well, my money goal is $100k in my coaching business, but I'll be happy with just $60,000." No, don't do that. Just choose your number, write it down, and then let's move on to making it happen. Which, by the way, means joining me here every week for every episode because I'm going to be talking about money a lot. And you don't want to miss it. You want to be a student, take the concepts and the actions that I'm giving you, and use them every single week.

So one decision, one money goal, and then the habits, mindset and actions that are foundational to the success of you achieving that goal. Now, I could talk about that part forever because I geek out on it. I love it. But for today, I want to dial in on the thinking and habits that go into not leaving coaching money on the table.

This was inspired by one of my students inside Sacred Money Archetypes who asked if I would teach on how to renew clients. And of course, I said yes. But it also got me to thinking how renewing clients is one of the key ways that too many coaches leave money on the table. And that led me to sharing what I'm about to cover here in this episode. Because what I've seen happen so often is that women segregate money from the good work that they want to bring into the world.

They hold money as separate and energetically push it off to the side as if it has nothing to do with the transformation they want to bring to the world. And this is true for the person who does not want to think about or deal with money at all, but it's also true if you're someone who does often think about money.

So the problem with separating money and keeping it apart and away from the amazing coaching that you want to be doing is that then there's no connection. And that's a problem. You can't separate money away from your work and then expect to meet your money goal. The key is connecting or integrating money with your coaching. Because then you are creating cohesiveness, alignment within yourself, within your business, and certainly within the specific habits and actions that make up your business.

So that's the concept: You're creating connection. Now let's look at how this applies to leaving money on the table and how to stop doing that. Coaches leave money on the table when they, number one, don't prepare a client from the very beginning for renewing and then make that renewal offer when the time comes. 

Number two, when they don't offer a VIP or an upgrade option to their coaching program, either one-on-one or group, doesn't matter. Number three, when they don't reconnect with past clients, going back as far as two years ago. Number four, when they don't reconnect with someone who did not say yes to coaching, as far back as two years ago. Number five, when they don't charge what they're worth. And Number six, when they don't raise their fees.

Are there more than these six ways coaches are leaving money on the table? Absolutely. But we're going to call it at these six for today. If you create a habit and take action on even just two of these six, you can easily add thousands and thousands of dollars to your coaching business, even if you're newer. And like everything, creating a new habit starts with mindset, which brings me back to the concept of connecting money with the amazing work you want to do with your coaching. Because every one of these six areas isn't really about the money.

It's about serving your clients, being there for your clients, making sure they are supported, caring about people in the way that coaches are uniquely able to do. So, for example, I mentioned that VIP or upgrade option. It's not just about the additional revenue flowing into your business. It's about how your client can get results more deeply or faster. Or preparing a client from the very beginning for renewing and then making that renewal offer when the time comes. That's not just about the money; it's about letting a client know their success is a journey, and you're not just going to drop them at the end of your original coaching agreement.

But I bet for nearly all of these 6 areas where coaches leave money on the table, you might have a mindset that says you can't make that additional offer. Or that you don't want to be seen as pushy or being all about the money, or that you're thinking it might feel uncomfortable to reconnect with people from going back as far as two years ago. So these are all money mindset issues that are costing you revenue flowing into your coaching business and, just as importantly, keeping you from serving and coaching clients in ways that you really and deeply value.

The mindset that you want here is one that supports you in making offers, in reconnecting with people, in charging what you're worth, in preparing clients for renewing—all the things, right? And it's really a very simple overarching mindset of this: “Clients flowing in and paying me means I am helping people.” Now, I personally love the word 'help', but if you don't like that word, you can modify this mindset, and you can change it. So, for example, you might say, “Clients flowing in and paying me means I'm making a difference,” or “I'm being a changemaker.” Whatever feels good for you to end that mindset statement with.

So, to stop leaving money on the table and to make a bigger difference for people, all you need to do is put into place a few simple, repeatable habits. 

Habit number one: Prepare a client from the very beginning for renewing, which means updating your onboarding process to make sure that you're mentioning that you have options available at the end of this initial coaching agreement, and then making a note in your calendar to discuss renewing at the appropriate time. 

Habit number two: Always have a VIP or an upgrade option for your coaching program, whether it's one-on-one or group. This VIP option will accelerate or deepen your client's results. So this could be a VIP day, or it could be a special coaching session on a specific topic. It can be a lot of different things. You don't need to offer 5 different things. Just pick one or two and be good with that, and then offer it regularly. 

Habit number three: Reconnect with past clients from as far back as 2 years ago. And you can do this twice a month by putting it into your calendar and then just doing it. It's like 15 minutes. 

Habit number four: Reconnect with someone who did not say yes to coaching, again, going back as far as 2 years ago, and again, by putting it into your calendar. The 15 minutes that this will take to accomplish, if you do it say twice a month, can be worth thousands for you, and you get the joy of coaching a new client. 

Habits five and six I put together. This is evaluating what you're charging every 4 months, evaluating it and making adjustments. Are you charging too little for your top-tier offer? Are you still charging by the hour when that's always a no-no? Has it been more than a year since you've raised your fees? You want to put your pricing evaluation on your calendar so that it doesn't just slip by you.

You know, I feel like today's episode was dishing out a little bit of tough love, but I am your money coach. My mission is to create genuine money power for women, and separating out money from the good work that you want to do in the world is the opposite of empowered. Being empowered with money is you being wholly and fully integrated with money. No separation, only connection. Because then you'll make decisions that align with you meeting your revenue goal and you doing your best work in the world. One does not take a backseat to the other. And in the process, the level of personal growth that you're going to experience by reinventing your relationship with money is going to be life-changing for you in all of the best possible ways.

Now, we're going to be talking a lot more about money here in the podcast because, hey, this is my zone of genius. And there just aren't that many people talking about money in both the practical and the energetics, you know, together in a way specifically focused for women like you, small business owners with a big desire to make money and make a big impact.

All right, my beautiful soul. Remember that coaching changes lives, starting with yours. Thank you again for listening. Thank you for your loyalty, and I can't wait to see you here next week in our next episode.

Thank you so much for tuning into this week's episode of The Money Coach School Podcast. If you enjoyed this podcast, make sure you follow so you never miss an episode. Also, I would so love and appreciate if you would leave a 5-star review. Your review supports women just like you in discovering all of the juicy tips and insights I’m sharing here on how to coach women on money.

And if you want to learn how to excel at coaching women on money, definitely go to KendallSummerHawk.com and check out the wealth of money coach trainings that we have for you. Thanks so much for being part of this money coaching movement and for tuning into the show every week.