Rookie Coaching Mistakes: Burn-Out and Burn-Up

by | May 1, 2019 | How to Become a Business Coach

Today, I’m going to talk about a couple of problems that are closely linked. Burn-out and burn-up.

Just read the descriptions below and see if you don’t recognize yourself or someone you know…

Burn-Outs are short on courage and persistence. They expect to have a strong, healthy coaching business within 3-6 months…and then they quit if it doesn’t happen right away.

When they hit that big, discouraging bump in the road, instead of driving through it, they’re off to the “next big thing.” And when that doesn’t work out, they’re on to the next big thing, then the next, and the next…

Their core problem?

They never stick with the process long enough to see a return on their effort and investment.

As a result, they never succeed.

The solution?

STOP NOW if you’re not committed to the long haul.

Realize that success never happens overnight, but is the result of deliberate and incremental steps
forward. You’re going to have to pay your dues. Be patient. Be persistent. And when things get difficult — that’s when you kick it into overdrive.

Realize that success never happens overnight, but is the result of deliberate and incremental steps forward. You're going to have to pay your dues. Be patient. Be persistent. And when things get difficult -- that's when you kick it into overdrive.

And how about Burn-Out’s counterpart? One that’s almost as common as the first:

Burn-Up

Running recklessly, ferociously, and in every direction when you start…and never getting anywhere as a result.

As opposed to Burn-Outs, who never make much effort, Burn-Ups work their guts out for the first few months of the start-up phase.  But inevitably they run out of working capital and go down in flames.

It’s because they plan poorly and execute haphazardly.

They never set aside a sufficient amount of time and revenue for marketing, and wind up creating that vicious feast-or-famine cycle we’ve all experienced.

Look at it this way. If you were the commander of a platoon of soldiers responsible for eliminating a terrorist cell in a nearby town, you’d make darn sure you had everything you need to get the job done well and come back in one piece. Right?

That’s because if your life was on the line, you’d take extra care to plan…and plan WELL.

It’s the same thing in business coaching–to win, you need a “marketing war chest” to establish momentum, and then keep it rolling month after month.

If you don’t have that, you’re risking your “business life” every single day.

The solution?

Pace yourself with a well-crafted plan.

When I started my coaching business back in 2001, I committed to investing $2,000 per month in marketing–and I never looked back.  Six months later, I was billing over $10,000 a month.  Three and a half years after that, I was billing over $85,000 per month and adding 5 new clients to my firm every month as well!

Of course, planning can be difficult when you’re not sure what to do–and, in fact, that insecurity is part of the panic that fuels Burn-Up in the first place.

So be smart. Start with a system. I outline a comprehensive one in my FREE ebook, How to Become a Business Coach. Give it a look, and avoid both burn-out and burn-up as you build the business coaching practice of your dreams.

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