You’ve experienced success, and you are the person that others come to for answers. The problem is that sometimes this very success becomes a trap, stopping us from dreaming new dreams and taking on new challenges. Today’s conversation dives deep into permission. What does it mean to give ourselves permission to be a novice again and to start small when we are used to thinking big? How can we permit ourselves to step into the unknown when we are already successful problem solvers? Today’s show will be incredibly valuable for you! Join us to be inspired to break free from whatever is holding you back from your next level of success. 

Mitch Matthews is a success coach, speaker, and serial entrepreneur. Since 2015, Mitch has hosted the Dream Think Do, a podcast with the perfect title to sum up what he’s all about. He’s interviewed Olympic athletes, NY Times bestselling authors, and top business leaders, all while helping entrepreneurs and coaches dream bigger, think better, and do more. The podcast is rated #1 by the Huffington Post and is in the top 1% of all podcasts. As a speaker and elite success coach, Mitch has spent the last 20 years helping organizations like Nike, United Airlines, NASA, and Disney. His training program has helped thousands of life coaches from around the world build successful and profitable businesses they love. Most importantly, Mitch is a husband, dad, and lifelong learner living a highly caffeinated life with his family in Des Moines, Iowa. 

Show Highlights:

• The dangers of success for high achievers
• Permitting yourself to dream big again
• Being “bored out” vs. “burned out”
• The “brain’s bodyguard,” the amygdala, and how it reacts when we try to be a novice again (Take the Annual Novice Challenge!)
• Feeling small again after feeling very big
• Getting clear on your “leap number”
• Identify your tribe: Who do you know?
• Collaboration and competition: “Your competition is not another coach; it’s the couch.”
• Mitch’s #1 takeaway: “What if”?

Resources:

Connect with Mitch Matthews: Website, Dream Think Do podcast, and LinkedIn.

Discover 44 Proven Ways to Find Your First Life Coaching Clients (And Keep Them Coming) Guide

Faith & Focus: 11 Prayers for Building a Coaching Business You Love Guide

Connect with Meg:

ENROLLING NOW FOR FALL MENTOR PROGRAM beginning in September. Click here!

Explore past episodes and other resources at www.STaRcoachshow.com. 

Explore the STaR Coach Community and see what’s available there for you!

Visit the STaR Coach Show YouTube Channel! Subscribe today! Join our live show taping on the 3rd Thursday of every month at 1 pm CT. 

Mid-level managers are sandwiched between C-suite executives and everyone else in their companies. Coaching them presents unique challenges to meet them where they are while helping them expand their lens through creative options in a very competitive coaching market. We are exploring these relevant topics and focusing on the work of mid-level managers, often referred to as the “unsung heroes” of the corporate world. Join us!

Loretta Stagnitto is a certified executive coach and president of Loretta Stagnitto Leadership Associates, an online coaching and training company specializing in leadership development for executives, mid-level leaders, and high-performing teams, along with workplace wellness and mental health first aid. LSLA provides individual and group-based leadership development based on its trademarked “I Know System” and the “Assess. Act. Achieve” methodology. With over 20 years of executive coaching experience, Loretta empowers professionals at all levels to drive their development and team growth. She offers C-suite-level insights and fosters new work approaches, enabling leaders and teams to enhance inspiration, operations, and collaboration, ultimately strengthening relationships, developing talent, and accelerating organizational change. 

Extensively experienced in healthcare, tech, finance, and biotech, Loretta has coached in diverse corporate and start-up settings. The 2020 pandemic spurred her focus on workplace anxiety and burnout, leading to expertise in related remedies. Through her non-profit, Invest in Mental Health, Loretta provides free or low-cost adult and youth mental health first aid certifications to a variety of communities. The non-profit is dedicated to breaking the stigma around mental health disorders. To help encourage and build advocacy for women’s leadership, Loretta serves as a guide for CHIEF, the nation’s largest membership-based executive coaching organization for executive women. Loretta has raised two amazing adult children with her husband in their northern California home, and her hobbies include biking, indoor rowing, Pilates, weight-training, silent walking, and sewing. 

Show Highlights:

• The biggest challenges for mid-level managers, the “unsung heroes”
• Loretta’s theory on what coaches can do for mid-level leaders
• Creative solutions for mid-level leaders (because companies are not investing in them):
• Short programs delivered in smaller bites
• A convenient, online coaching program 
• Putting cohorts together for peer group coaching and camaraderie
• The impacts of coaching within organizations around self-awareness, proactive feedback, communication, and self-advocacy
• Shifting perspectives around empowerment, awareness, and choice—to see ourselves differently and do things differently
• Assessing The Stress Factor--and how it shows up for leaders
• Positioning coaching as an investment, not remediation
• For external coaches: Position yourself for profitability with differentiation strategies such as a niche focus, collaboration, and investment.
• Loretta’s focus on burnout, anxiety, and wellness in the workplace
• The bottom line for coaches: Loretta’s advice to coaches about working harder, figuring out your clients’ problems, and being creative in developing solutions in a competitive market

Resources:

Connect with Loretta Stagnitto: Website, LinkedIn, and Facebook

Connect with Meg:

ENROLLING NOW FOR FALL MENTOR PROGRAM beginning in August. Click here!

Explore past episodes and other resources at www.STaRcoachshow.com. 

Explore the STaR Coach Community and see what’s available there for you!

Visit the STaR Coach Show YouTube Channel! Subscribe today! Join our live show taping on the 3rd Thursday of every month at 1 pm CT. 

Are you a purpose-driven coach who wonders why you’re staring at an empty calendar? Are you unsure about getting those first crucial clients? If you’re caught in the frustrating cycle of needing experience to get clients and needing clients to get more experience, you are not alone. More importantly, you are closer to breaking through than you think. Join me in today’s solo episode to uncover the key to a new coach’s biggest mountain to conquer: landing those first few game-changing clients. We’re diving into this essential topic right now with practical strategies you can implement today. Your first client is waiting for YOU!

Show Highlights:

• Make a mindset shift around the “experience paradox.”
• Three permission slips to give yourself:
• Permission to be a beginner
• Permission to start before you feel “ready”
• Permission to charge for your value
• Concrete action step #1: Write down one instance when you helped someone create a solution for an issue. 
• Strategies for inviting clients into your space:
• Think of your warm market as your gold mine.
• Determine your three circles of influence. (“You cannot be a secret and a success at the same time.”)
• Build your Know-Like-Trust factor by providing value. Be clear and specific!
• Use your warm market as an opportunity to offer barter coaching.
• Concrete action step #2: Identify 10 people in your warm market who need what you offer or might know those who do. Reach out to one person today.
• Using the Beta Client Approach:
• Position yourself as someone launching a beta program for your coaching methodology. (This reframes your newness as exclusivity.)
• Take on a limited number of beta clients for a specified time frame.
• You can build your client base and clarify your offering to achieve exceptional results. 
• Concrete action step #3: Consider your ideal client and develop a simple beta program tailored to your coaching niche.
• Building credibility without experience: Where to begin:
• Leverage your training and certifications.
• Share your personal transformation story.
• Connect your professional background to coaching.
• Gather micro-testimonials from informal helping situations.
• Create consistent, valuable content. 
• Concrete action step #4: Create your own credibility stack. (Check out SCS 336, What’s Your Value Proposition?)
• Meg’s 7-day challenge: Are you up for it?

Resources:

Connect with Meg:

Explore past episodes and other resources at www.STaRcoachshow.com. 

Explore the STaR Coach Community and see what’s available there for you!

Visit the STaR Coach Show YouTube Channel! Subscribe today! Join our live show taping on the 3rd Thursday of every month at 1 pm CT. 

You are in for a treat as we discuss current trends in the coaching industry in today’s episode. You’ll learn strategies for stepping up and standing out in a highly competitive market. Join us to hear practical insights from today’s expert guest!

Joanna Lott is a business coach who helps qualified coaches attract clients with honesty, not hype. As the host of the Women in the Coaching Arena podcast, a top 2% globally-ranked show, she provides practical strategies to help coaches grow thriving, sustainable businesses. With a track record of successfully selling executive and career coaching services to organizations and individuals, Joanna has supported hundreds of coaches in building profitable, integrity-driven businesses through strategic marketing. She is the co-founder of the One Stop Coach Shop, which offers instant access to templates, tools, and resources specifically designed for coaches. As an ICF Associate Certified Coach holding an ILM Level 7 Certificate in Executive Coaching and Mentoring, Joanna brings a wealth of practical experience and professional expertise to her work. 

Show Highlights:

• The return of in-person coaching, even as a hybrid model of connection, is impactful.
• Your marketing should show who you are and attract YOUR kind of people.
• Leverage opportunities (like a podcast) to stand out and bring value. 
• Joanna’s tips for standing out in a competitive coaching environment: use “bots” and tools, differentiate yourself with a catchphrase, run immersive workshops, be authentic, and be different
• “Coaching with purpose” means finding a mission or social justice issue that people want to get behind with you. (Figure out your mission by asking, “What makes me angry?”)
• Shine your light by unapologetically claiming your space!
• Joanna’s advice to young coaches who fear the haters
• Key takeaways from Joanna: “You’ll gain so much by going on a visibility mission as far as learning your own voice, building your confidence, and gaining self-esteem. There is so much to gain in the biggest personal growth journey of your life.”

Resources:

Connect with Joanna Lott:

Website, Women in the Coaching Arena podcast, The 2025 Coaches Planner, LinkedIn, and Facebook

Book mentioned in this episode: The Art of Gathering by Priya Parker

Connect with Meg:

ENROLLING NOW FOR THE FALL MENTOR PROGRAM beginning in August. Click here for more information and sign up now! 

Explore the STaR Coach Community and see what’s available there for you!

Visit the STaR Coach Show YouTube Channel! Subscribe today! Join our live show taping on the 3rd Thursday of every month at 1 pm CT.

Today’s show focuses on values. How do we get clear on our values, and how do we best help our clients get clear on their values? Our starting point is to understand the crucial difference between needs and values. Join us to discover the transformative power of values-based coaching!

Alma Weaver Jones is an executive coach who recently rebranded her company to Soul Weaver, focusing on the positive power of coaching and synergy. As a coach, facilitator, and leadership catalyst, she has coached, inspired, and motivated thousands to build lives and careers that are energizing and fulfilling. With over 20 years of experience as a professional coach, Alma’s portfolio includes high-profile leaders, non-profit organizations, and Fortune 500 companies that recognize the value of developing their human capital as they work toward a shared vision. Alma’s varied background includes executive roles in the staffing industry and the nonprofit sector. She has been on staff at the University of Texas at Dallas since 2005, where she trains and mentors students in coaching programs and coaches leaders in the research department. 

Show Highlights:

• Alma’s impetus and inspiration to rebrand after many years
• Alma’s experience with Thomas Leonard, “the father of coaching” (founder of the ICF)
• “Everyone is being chased by a need.” (Needs are different from values. Are you running FROM something or TOWARD something?)
• Finding clarity about your values and getting your needs met (Learn to ask yourself the right questions.)
• Working from a place of values with organizations with strengths in psychology and soul fulfillment
• Alma’s best advice for creating a thriving, sustainable coaching business: Find connection, cultivate collaboration, and allow yourself time to build your “runway.”
• Considerations in weaving a tapestry of values (“What I value” and “what my values are” aren’t the same!)
• Key takeaways from Alma: “Look at how you, your clients, and your clients’ companies can find ways to live their values. It goes beyond profitability.”

Resources:

Connect with Alma Weaver Jones: Website, Email, and LinkedIn

Connect with Meg:

ENROLLING NOW FOR THE FALL MENTOR PROGRAM beginning in August. Click here for more information, and sign up now! 

Explore the STaR Coach Community and see what’s available there for you!

Visit the STaR Coach Show YouTube Channel! Subscribe today! Join our live show taping on the 3rd Thursday of every month at 1 pm CT.

Do you feel stuck in the mindset of creating new lead magnets over and over again to grow your email list? There is a better way! The most effective email list-building strategies today focus on genuine value exchange. Are you ready to learn six proven strategies for building your email list beyond the traditional lead magnet? Join us to learn more!

Marci Rossi is a business strategist who helps new and growing coaches build a business that is strategic, streamlined, and set up for real growth. With a background in law and corporate business, Marci is known for her ability to cut through the noise, simplify decisions, and create smart workflows that make business feel a lot lighter. She’s the creator of The Shortcut, a 12-week done-for-you setup and coaching program that helps coaches go from overwhelmed and stuck to clear, confident, and fully up and running. Marci blends strategy with structure to help her clients move faster, focus on what really matters, and make progress they can feel. When she’s not working behind the scenes in someone’s business, she’s usually hanging out with her dogs, watching Friends reruns, or saving recipes she’ll probably never make.

Show Highlights:

• Taking a NEW path to success through your email list
• AI has changed the landscape. It takes more in today’s world.
• Components of a genuine value exchange: (Think “MAGNET.”)
• Micro-offers
• Access
• Group projects
• Nurturing content
• Events
• Things (the tangible templates, tools, and tests) 
• Never violate the trust of someone who gives you their email address. Be a good human!
• “We aren’t here to convince people to like us; we are here to serve the people who are already paying attention to us.” –Marci Rossi
• Key takeaways: AI can help, but your authenticity must come through; and we can only serve when we put ourselves out there. 

Resources:

Connect with Marci Rossi: Website, LinkedIn, and Facebook

Connect with Meg:

ENROLLING NOW FOR THE FALL MENTOR PROGRAM beginning in August 2025. Only a few spots remain! Click here for more information and sign up now! 

Explore the STaR Coach Community and see what’s available there for you!

Visit the STaR Coach Show YouTube Channel! Subscribe today! Join our live show taping on the 3rd Thursday of every month at 1 pm CT. 

Explore past episodes and other resources at www.STaRcoachshow.com.  

In today’s episode, I’m going solo to explore a question I’ve been asked dozens of times: “Should I take notes during my coaching sessions?” As with many things in life, this is not a black or white issue, and the experts are divided over their answers. It’s a simple question that doesn’t have a simple answer! Join me to weigh the ins and outs of the “great notes debate.” 

Show Highlights:

• There are two sides of the coin with strong opinions on both:
• Side 1: Taking notes during sessions:
• Note-taking can make you a better listener. (Are you distilling the info down to the essence of the conversation or trying to capture EVERY detail?)
• It gives the coachee a “break” from being stared at.
• My personal experience in documentation 
• Taking notes helps track details, progress, and accountability. 
• Side 2: Minimal note-taking (or the “less is more” mindset):
• Our job is to hold space for the client to process through the session; note-taking is not necessary.
• Note-taking can slow you down to the point that you won’t “end up” at the same place as your client.
• Note-taking can cause you to miss nonverbal cues from the client. 
• The big question around taking notes: What is the purpose of your notes?
• Grounding with ethical principles in coaching around legality, records, privacy, etc
• What seasoned coaches say about their notes regarding transparency
• Finding middle ground in the Great Notes Debate
• The science of what happens in our brains: 
• Divided attention vs. deep, empathetic listening
• Deciphering body language
• Is note-taking truly about helping the client move forward?
• Workable solutions to find middle ground: use appropriate forms, practice strategic note-taking (the two-layer approach, ABC framework, and technology tools)
• Meg’s advice: “Craft your own approach and find what works for you to serve your clients best and maintain the integrity of the coaching relationship.”
• To beginning coaches: “Give yourself permission to experiment while building your curiosity and presence muscles.”

Resources:

Connect with Meg:

ENROLLING NOW FOR THE FALL MENTOR PROGRAM beginning in August 2025. Click here for more information and sign up now! 

Explore the STaR Coach Community and see what’s available there for you!

Visit the STaR Coach Show YouTube Channel! Subscribe today! Join our live show taping on the third Thursday of every month at 1:00 p.m. CT. 

Explore past episodes and other resources at www.STaRcoachshow.com. 

The important question every coach asks is, “How do I attract great clients?” We all want more amazing clients without having to invest in more marketing. Are you spending too much energy on building visibility and credibility? Learn to spend less time on daily content creation and more time on strategic relationship building and direct client generation! That’s our focus in today’s episode. Join us to learn more!

Mary Cravets is an award-winning client generation expert and international speaker who helps coaches grow their businesses without working nights and weekends. She’s heard all the confusing and conflicting advice, and she’s not surprised that most coaches struggle to establish a sustainable business–but she’s here to change that. Using Mary’s methods, the majority of her clients quickly increase their income by 50% or more. Her clients range from the former CFO of Microsoft North America to coaches in their first few years of business. 

Show Highlights:

• A story from Mary: How 20 minutes of coaching can be transformative
• What keeps coaches stuck? Confusion about visibility vs. lead generation (Credibility/visibility should be 10-20% of your time, and lead generation 80-90%.)
• “Lead generation is all about sparking, building, and nurturing genuine relationships.” –Mary Cravets
• Identifying strategies vs. action steps (not dependent on competence!)
• What things lead to success for coaches? Referrals and speaking engagements
• Break down your discomfort; where is it coming from?
• “More clients, less marketing”: What does it mean?
• The skill set of client generation is not intuitive; it is challenging.
• Magnetic messaging is the key to client generation.

 Resources:

Connect with Mary Cravets: Website, Free program: Uncomplicate Your Marketing, and

Facebook

Connect with Meg:

ENROLLING NOW FOR THE FALL MENTOR PROGRAM beginning in August 2025. Click here for more information and sign up now! 

Explore the STaR Coach Community and see what’s available there for you!

Visit the STaR Coach Show YouTube Channel! Subscribe today! Join our live show taping on the 3rd Thursday of every month at 1 pm CT. 

Explore past episodes and other resources at www.STaRcoachshow.com.  

I was recently interviewed by John Ray on The Price And Value Journey Podcast, and I thought it only fitting to return the favor. I’ve loved spending time with John and getting to know him and his work. Today’s topic is an important one: pricing. We will discuss what we tell ourselves about pricing, how we underprice ourselves, and what needs to change about our pricing mindset. John has extensive experience and valuable wisdom to share, and every coach needs to hear what he has to say! Join us!

John Ray is a consultant and business coach who advises expert service providers, including consultants, coaches, attorneys, fractional executives, and other service professionals, on two of their biggest challenges: pricing and business development. He is passionate about how changes in mindset, positioning, and pricing change the trajectory of a business and the lifestyle choices of a business owner. John’s #1 bestselling book, The Generosity Mindset: A Journey to Business Success by Raising Your Confidence, Value, and Prices, was published in 2023. John is a radio enthusiast and fellow podcaster, hosting The Price And Value Journey Podcast and North Fulton Business Radio. 

Show Highlights:

• Red flags of inadequate pricing: pricing by the hour and working too hard for too little money  
• “You need a certain number of clients who are saying NO because you are too expensive.” –John Ray
• As a service provider, YOU are the product.
• Mindsets that get in the way of success for service providers: impostor syndrome, inadequacy, and helping
• Generosity Mindset: Getting in the head of your clients and understanding where they see value in what we deliver
• An example of the generosity mindset at work in the intangibles
• “The effectiveness of your pricing is constrained by your willingness to have a value conversation.” –John Ray
• Sales vs. serving people in understanding their needs, wants, hopes, desires, and fears
• Considerations in offering differentiated options to clients with a “good, better, best model”
• Advice about creating long-term clients
• Don’t turn yourself into a commodity!
• Messages about pricing across the lifespan of a business 
• Pricing adequately will help you achieve the ultimate goal of working less and earning more. 
• Abundance vs. scarcity mindset

Resources:

Connect with John Ray: Website, Facebook, Emaill, The Generosity Mindset: A Journey to Business Success by Raising Your Confidence, Value, and Prices book, and The Price And Value Journey Podcast 

Connect with Meg:

ENROLLING NOW FOR THE FALL MENTOR PROGRAM beginning in August 2025. Click here for more information and sign up now! 

Explore the STaR Coach Community and see what’s available there for you!

Visit the STaR Coach Show YouTube Channel! Subscribe today! Join our live show taping on the 3rd Thursday of every month at 1 pm CT. 

Explore past episodes and other resources at www.STaRcoachshow.com.  

As service providers, it’s imperative that we emphasize our own well-being before we can be there fully to help others. My guest is the ideal person to help us understand this concept of transforming sabotage into success. Join us to learn more!

Carol Look is a psychotherapist, Founding EFT Master, bestselling author, and international speaker. In creating The Yes Code, her signature coaching method, she combines her traditional training as a psychotherapist with clinical hypnosis and advanced applications of EFT for unprecedented results. Known for her laser-like focus and state-of-the-art approach, Carol has utilized EFT tapping for over 25 years to help clients release their limiting beliefs and emotional conflicts, enabling them to enjoy lives of exceptional success and fulfillment. Carol is a world-renowned EFT workshop presenter and is a regularly featured energy medicine expert on leading global telesummits and documentaries. Her book, The Yes Code, was just released in late 2024. 

Show Highlights:

• Carol’s journey to create The Yes Code, her three-step coaching process
• “Taking care of myself consistently is what changed my life.”--Carol Look
• The importance of asking the right questions to address the core issues
• Understanding the emotional expense of sabotaging yourself with the fear of visibility and success
• Questions to ask yourself to understand your behaviors (the real issue vs. surface behaviors)
• Being neutral about our reactions
• Tapping (EFT): the ultimate stress-relief technique (that rewires your brain)
• An example of using Carol’s technique around the fear of being visible
• Carol’s takeaway from our conversation regarding calming down your stress levels (A tapping technique will help in only 10 minutes daily!)

Resources:

Connect with Carol Look: The Yes Code Website (free resources), Carol’s Website, and The Yes Code book

Connect with Meg:

ENROLLING NOW FOR THE FALL MENTOR PROGRAM beginning in August 2025. Click here for more information and sign up now! 

Explore the STaR Coach Community and see what’s available there for you!

Visit the STaR Coach Show YouTube Channel! Subscribe today! Join our live show taping on the 3rd Thursday of every month at 1 pm CT. 

Explore past episodes and other resources at www.STaRcoachshow.com.