The Business of Executive Coaching

If you’ve been wondering how exactly you should announce the starting of your business on LinkedIn, this episode is for you. I was asked this very specifically this week, and I realised that it was a question that people ask me in lots of different ways so I wanted to capture my thoughts here. Many coaches get a bit hung up on doing this “right,”which usually results in not doing it at all, or perhaps sneaking it in and not capitalising on the business potential that comes with an official launch. So if you are about to make the leap and make the announcement, or think you might need to re-introduce your business, I hope this is the practical help you need to take action.  If you’d like to discuss whether the Corporate to Coach Accelerator could be a good move for you as you launch your business, you can book a call here: http://elliescarf.com/bookacall

If you’ve ever felt like you could offer everything as a coach but don’t know where to focus, this episode is for you. I discuss why having too many offers can hold your business back, even when you have the skills and experience to deliver a wide range of work. Saying yes to everything often leads to overwhelm, unclear messaging and makes it harder for clients to understand how you can help.  Instead, I share why refining your offers down to a few core areas is more effective, along with four simple questions to help you decide what those offers should be based on your preferences and market demand. If you’re ready to grow your coaching business with clear offers and a consistent flow of corporate clients, you can learn more about the Corporate to Coach Accelerator at elliescarf.com/cca or book a call at elliescarf.com/bookacall to explore whether it’s the right fit for you.

If there’s one idea that can make selling your services to corporate clients significantly easier, it’s this: It’s easier to sell a painkiller than a vitamin. In this episode, I unpack what that means for executive coaches and why you might struggle to gain traction with your offers., Not because they aren’t valuable, but because they’re positioned around potential future gains and achievements instead of solving current challenges. Listen in for my take on how you can use this idea to make your offers sales-ready. Plus, I share a personal example of where I got this wrong and what it taught me about marketing my offers more effectively without changing the work itself. If you’re ready to grow your coaching business with more structure, strategy and consistent corporate clients, you can learn more about the Corporate to Coach Accelerator at elliescarf.com/cca or book a call at elliescarf.com/bookacall to explore whether it’s the right fit for you.

If there’s one planning interval that I really love it’s quarterly planning. You can achieve something meaningful and significant - but it isn’t overwhelming. What I see for many coaches though, is that this is exactly where things start to drift, somewhere between big annual goals and the reality of day to day work. In this episode, I walk you through an ‘essentials-only’ quick and dirty simple six step process to reset, refocus and move into your next quarter with what really matters front of mind. From reflecting on what’s worked and what hasn’t, to reviewing your sales data, recommitting to meaningful targets, and identifying the key priorities and blockers that will truly move the needle, this approach is intended to be practical and to fit amongst a real life and a real business. If you’re ready to grow your coaching business with more structure, strategy and consistent corporate clients, you can learn more about the Corporate to Coach Accelerator at elliescarf.com/cca or book a call with me at elliescarf.com/bookacall.

If there’s one action that consistently leads to new coaching opportunities, it’s warm outreach. Yet it’s also the task many coaches delay the longest. In this episode, I explore not only why warm outreach is your biggest opportunity, but also why it is so often avoided. To help you move into action I’ll share what we have been doing inside the Corporate to Coach Accelerator this month to prioritise and embed outreach as part of your business plan, and the results that we are seeing already.  If you’d like support growing your coaching business with more corporate clients, including building a warm outreach strategy that works, you can learn more about the Corporate to Coach Accelerator at elliescarf.com/cca or book a call with me at elliescarf.com/bookacall.

Prior to building business plans and hanging out your shingle comes a big (the biggest!) question in your business journey. Are you suited to being in business? And is it a path you should go down? Being in business is sadly not for everyone. It requires more than just loving coaching. It asks you to embrace a dual identity of coach and CEO, and a willingness to tackle challenges you can’t anticipate. In this episode I walk you through the green flags, the red flags, and the key willingness factors that will shape whether business ownership is right for you. If you’d like support building your corporate coaching business, including stepping fully into your CEO role and growing sustainably, you can learn more about the Corporate to Coach Accelerator at elliescarf.com/cca or book a call at elliescarf.com/bookacall to explore whether it’s the right fit for you.

In this episode, I’m talking about proposals, and specifically why they matter so much when you’re working with corporate clients. Proposals aren’t just a document you send after a conversation. They’re an asset. They create shared clarity, they build trust, and they’re often what gets circulated internally when your sponsor is trying to get funding or buy-in for the work. So the way you put them together really matters. Listen in as I walk through some of my key tips for your proposal writing process. If you’d like support building your corporate coaching business, including strengthening your proposals, offers, and sales conversations, let’s talk! You can learn more about the Corporate to Coach Accelerator at elliescarf.com/cca or book a call at elliescarf.com/bookacall to explore whether it’s the right fit for you.

Every now and then, I like to gather a selection of questions I’ve been asked and share an ‘ask me anything’ style episode. So buckle in while I talk through the issues that are on your mind. In this episode specifically we are looking at some fundamental topics. We dive into a challenge almost every coach will have to grapple with - namely, how to approach outreach when it feels awkward, including practical strategies to build consistency and realistic expectations around what actually converts. I was also asked how best to share our corporate work (such as testimonials and success stories) in a way that builds credibility without feeling braggy. And I’ve been asked this one quite a few times - what is the difference between legal contracts and coaching contracts in organisational coaching work?  The last topic I cover is a conversation about visibility, including having professional photos taken and why they might help in more ways than having a bank of images for websites and socials!  If you have a question you’d like to answer in my next AMA episode, please do get in touch on LinkedIn or drop me an email!  If you’d like deeper support building a sustainable coaching business with more corporate clients, you can learn more about the Corporate to Coach Accelerator at elliescarf.com/cca or book a call at elliescarf.com/bookacall to explore whether it’s the right fit for you. I’d also love to hear what resonated most from this Q&A episode, so connect with me on LinkedIn and let me know your biggest takeaway.

In this episode, I’m unpacking the subconscious expectation many coaches have, that our business should deliver not just income and meaning, but also excitement and novelty. The challenge is that when we start chasing dopamine through new ideas, offers, or strategies, we often lose consistency with the fundamentals that actually grow a coaching business.Things like outreach,conversations, and showing up visibly over time may not always feel exciting, but they are what support sustainable success. If you’ve noticed yourself getting pulled towards the next shiny idea, this episode will help you rethink what your business is really all about, and how to create your excitement outside of it. If you’d like support building a consistent, sustainable coaching business with more corporate clients, you can learn more about the Corporate to Coach Accelerator at elliescarf.com/cca or book a call at elliescarf.com/bookacall to explore whether it’s the right fit for you.  I’d also love to hear if novelty seeking is a pattern for you, so connect with me on LinkedIn and let me know where you stand!