We are in the middle of Women’s History Month, bringing you great content covering different aspects of our coaching work. Today’s show highlights social media marketing, which most people find challenging. My guest shares key takeaways about how we create freedom through structure in social media.

Megan Winkler is a spiritual business coach and marketing specialist who works with female entrepreneurs to build sustainable, authentic, and energetically-aligned businesses. She’s known as The Good Business Witch and has a podcast by the same name. Megan incorporates strategy and spirituality to create one-of-a-kind business and marketing plans for her clients. We can learn so much from what Megan does with social media, and she’s here to share some of her secrets to success. We’ll explore the ideas and intent behind a content calendar and learn tips and strategies to best utilize Facebook, Instagram, and other social media platforms.

Show Highlights:

●     Megan’s long and winding path to where she is today

●     How Megan helps women entrepreneurs become more visible through authentic marketing

●     Megan explains what a content calendar is, why you should have one, and how it can be a beneficial framework for your business

●     How video and images promote your content on Facebook and Instagram

●     How to structure your message to grab people’s attention and create connection

●     Why you need to finish up your social media post with a call to action

●     The goal of social media is to get people to engage with you

●     Tips to make your Instagram bio stand out:

○     Let them see your face first.

○     Make sure your handle has a searchable term in it.

○     Make your bio all about your followers and what you do for them--not about you

●     Why social media is all about having fun while you interact with your peers and ideal clients

●     Why saving posts on Instagram helps business owners

●     Megan’s advice about following people on Instagram

●     How to leverage direct messaging

●     What NOT to do on social media

●     How to use Instagram stories to get conversations going

●     How to practice and learn how to do Instagram stories

●     Why you should always be yourself on Instagram

●     Megan’s final tips

Resources:

Website: The Good Business Witch 

Facebook: Good Business Witch 

Instagram: The Megan Winkler

Instagram:  @themeganwinkler

LinkedIn: @meganwinkler1

Twitter: MegWinkler 

Mentioned in this episode:

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If you’re a coach who wants to grow—not just check a box—this is for you.

We are always looking for different ways to leverage our small businesses to create the impact we want. One way to make that happen is with a membership site. I met today’s guest at a conference, and I knew I had to have her on the show to share her expertise. We are covering the things you should know about a membership site for your business. Join us!

Meghann Conter sprinkles laughter dust and butterfly kisses all over the world. She has created a fabulous membership site for her community to bring added value. Meghann is on a mission to elevate more women in business to the seven-figure mark and beyond. She empowers women-led organizations to leap over revenue targets, grow professionally and personally, get out of serious as often as possible. She focuses on forming meaningful collaborative relationships as founder of The Dames, an international community that celebrates women running and leading 6 & 7-figure companies or divisions.

Show Highlights:

●     Meghann’s path to where she is today, from a corporate career that sucked the joy out of her

●     How Meghann felt blocked in building her business because she was trying to copy what others were doing

●     Why she craved connection with like-minded, high-caliber women

●     How Meghann lives today in the space of ease, flow, and FUN

●     How to better understand a membership site, like Meghann’s The Dames

●     Steps in creating a successful membership site:

○     Get aligned so you know where you’re going

○     Get clear about who it is that you serve

○     Focus on your packaging, pricing, and positioning to accomplish your goals

○     Realize that your membership site can be a lead generator

●     How Meghann’s membership site is structured with virtual and chapter-based memberships and events for her target audience

●     How to utilize talented, creative people to help you accomplish your goals

●     The #1 advantage of a membership site is recurring income and compounding revenue

●     What Meghann realized about her strengths and her “sweet spot”

●     Meghann’s parting advice:

○     Keep it simple in all ways

○     Allow yourself to morph and innovate with what happens next

○     Listen to your members and ask them what they want

Resources:

The Dames 

Free Gift 

LinkedIn 

Mentioned in this episode:

Join Mentoring Program!

If you’re a coach who wants to grow—not just check a box—this is for you.

Today’s show brings a unique perspective about the coaching journey. Our topic is timely as we wrap up Black History Month with a conversation about racism, bias, and the primary need for curiosity.

Genena Armstrong is a highly sought-rafter ICF-certified professional and personal development coach, Diversity and Inclusion Consultant, and best-selling author. She has over 25 years’ experience in human resources and is currently an executive coach with Building Champions Inc. Prior to that, Genena owned and operated her own coaching and consulting practice, Metamorphosis Coaching. She has also served as a Diversity and Inclusion Consultant for various Fortune 500 companies. Join us to hear Genena’s perspective on how we can honor diversity through our coaching practice.

Show Highlights:

●     What lights up Genena about coaching

●     Genena’s experience as an African-American female on the coaching journey, which was shaped by what her mother taught her about racism and bias

●     How racial tension hits differently when you see its effect on your children

●     Genena’s advice about educating ourselves about racial issues

●     How Genena begins her executive coaching in organizations

●     How to manage bias--even if you’re unaware that they exist

●     How Genena realized her own bias regarding Asian men early in her career--and how she overcame that bias

●     Genena’s hope for the coaching community and society as a whole

●     Why we, as coaches, need to learn and grow

Resources:

Connect with Genena: Linkedin  

Mentioned in the show:

White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo

Think Again by Adam Grant

Mentioned in this episode:

Join Mentoring Program!

If you’re a coach who wants to grow—not just check a box—this is for you.

Today’s show brings us information about taking a closer look at how we can build our business. As always, we are bringing strategies, tools, and resources to take your coaching business to the next level!

Bryan Kramer is the co-founder of H2H Companies and a renowned business performance coach, global keynote speaker, executive trainer, two-time bestselling author, TED speaker, and Forbes contributor. He’s also the former president and CEO of a Silicon Valley global marketing agency, an experience that he shares with us in the interview. As a business-performance coach, Bryan teaches speakers, executives, and entrepreneurs how to up-level their storytelling and create more business opportunities through the H2H Method.

Show Highlights:

●     Bryan’s journey to the coaching world from his global marketing agency

●     How he walked away, took a year to find and heal himself, and found his people by becoming a coach

●     Six steps to help coaches with business growth:

○     Mindset--Reset your mindset by having a mentor or coach hold you accountable

○     Niche down (and then down again)--Niche down enough to stand out in your field

○     Create your irresistible offer--Deliver your value--and prove it

○     Connect with people--Use simplicity, empathy, and embrace imperfection

○     Build your relationship platform--Nothing is as important as your community!

○     Increase the momentum--Take everything you’ve learned and refine your processes

●     Final words from Bryan: “We aren’t all built the same. We are unique, and our journey isn’t like someone else’s. Your time is coming. Be kind to yourself.”

Resources:

Website:

Bryan Kramer

H2H Growth

Bryan’s TED TALK

Books by Bryan Kramer:

There is No B2B or B2C: It's Human to Human #H2H

Shareology: How Sharing is Powering the Human Economy

Today’s show covers the one thing I wish I’d known earlier and done better. We are learning about lead magnets: what they are, how to create them, and why you need them. Bringing value to your clients in the work that you do will build an engaged, interactive, warm audience.

Nancy Fields loves “teaching people how to fish” with WordPress, which is a platform for building websites without having to hire a web designer. She builds websites and teaches others how to do it for themselves. Nancy began her design business over 28 years ago. As a graphic designer, web designer, calligrapher, and botanical illustrator, Nancy loves color, light, and design. Her appreciation for these elements was enhanced at an early age as she grew up with an aunt who was blind. In today’s show, we talk about creating lead magnets that people actually want, along with Nancy’s tips and strategies to grow your business with a high-converting website.

Show Highlights:

●     Nancy’s journey into the work she does today

●     Why we want to build an email list and let people know that we can solve their problem

●     Why your free offer--your lead magnet--should answer the question and solve the problem of the person who will be your ideal client

●     Nancy’s most popular lead magnet--all about website images and pictures

●     Nancy’s #1 lesson learned: “Don’t give out too much information in your lead magnet. Less is more.”

●     How to know what your audience wants, and how Google Analytics or even a simple Google search can help)

●     How to align your creative offerings with what people want

●     What Meg wishes she had known about her first lead magnet

●     Why you can’t wait until everything is perfect

●     How to use Canva in your lead magnets--even the free version!

●     A checklist for lead magnets:

○     Offer what the customer wants--in their own language

○     Decide what you will create

○     Use an email host to build your list

●     Why your lead magnet has to be perceived as high-value

●     Why your free offer shouldn’t be something you spend more than one hour creating

●     How Nancy works with coaches to help with websites and lead magnets and offer workshops and courses

Resources:

Nancy’s website: Fields Graphic Design 

Giveaway: Get my free resource for totally FREE high-quality images for your website or any project.

Email hosting sites:

MailChimp

AWeber 

Constant Contact  

Mentioned in this episode:

Join Mentoring Program!

If you’re a coach who wants to grow—not just check a box—this is for you.

There is no more relevant topic in today’s social setting than cultural diversity. As coaches, we need to continually examine how we partner with our clients in cultural respectfulness and responsibility. Join us to learn more!

Dr. Rebecca Eldredge is a licensed psychologist who focuses on facilitating guidance and support for aspiring allies and anti-racists and providing culturally-sensitive therapy for adults. She’ll share with us the road she walked in her doctrinal training in counseling psychology and why she decided to have a multicultural specialization. Since then, she has been blessed with a variety of meaningful opportunities, including teaching Multicultural Counseling graduate courses, developing and offering support groups and home visits for female refugees in Houston, TX, and providing cultural training and consultations to individuals and groups. Over the last 19 years, she has been deeply honored and humbled with the trust of hundreds of therapy clients from diverse identities and backgrounds. Last year, she began creating new programs to offer guidance and support for aspiring anti-racists who want to break free from the status quo and speak up against bias.

Show Highlights:

●     How Rebecca observed differences, cultural diversity, and injustices on the journey to where she is today

●     How we can be more in tune with how we show up with others

●     Five Cultural Hacks:

○     Cultural humility

■     Say, “I don’t know it all, and I will make mistakes.”

■     Create spaces to explore and ask questions when you don’t know

■     Don’t have the “my-way-is-the-right-way” attitude

○     Cultural awareness

■     Say, “I don’t want to operate on assumptions.”

■     Be aware of your thoughts, feelings, identities, and places of privilege

■     Recognize others in ways that don’t define their identity

○     Cultural compassion

■     Ask, “How do I self-soothe and other-soothe to create a space of safety?”

■     Realize that you can’t show up with compassion for others if you are critical and judgmental of yourself

○     Cultural knowledge

■     Ask, “How can I learn about traditions and norms of different cultural groups?”

■     Knowledge helps us grow and change our perspective

■     Go to events and listen to lectures and podcasts, but don’t rely on only one source of knowledge

○     Cultural skills

■     Ask, “How do I set an example for others in the way that I live?”

■     Your skills are dependent on the other foundational pieces

■     Your skills involve communication, action, and internal processing

Resources:

Feel Deeply Live Completely 

Linkedin: Rebecca Eldredge PhD  

Mentioned in this episode:

Join Mentoring Program!

If you’re a coach who wants to grow—not just check a box—this is for you.

Today’s show is all about new possibilities for 2021! When we make changes to our business, we know that there is an impact on our home life and work life. After going through 2020, it’s a great time to consider a unique opportunity to include in your services offered to clients. We are talking about retreats in today’s episode because they are a great way to continue to build your brand and strengthen relationships with clients. So, the question is: Are you retreat ready?

Tamara Golden is the owner, founder, and CEO of Journeywork Retreats, a full-service retreat planning, and strategy company. Tamara takes her unique experience as a certified coach and travel/event planning expert and combines them to create this unique company that serves the US and the world. She offers do-it-yourself courses all the way to done-for-you services within the context of supporting entrepreneurs, coaches, healers, the transformational leaders. She crafts custom retreats that grow their brand and accelerate outcomes for their clients. Retreats create a unique transformational experience in a concentrated, focused time together. Tamara shares what you should think about when planning and incorporating retreats strategically into your service offerings.

Show Highlights:

●     Why Tamara decided to work with business owners in creating and facilitating retreats

●     The two-fold purpose of a retreat should be to grow your business and to do deeper work with existing clients

●     The first two steps in being retreat-ready:

○     To get started, you need two things: clients and teaching material

○     Decide how you want to strategically embed the retreat into your offerings

●     Why you have to have your proof-of-concept in place and then decide how to attach it for profitability

●     How to navigate the retreat-planning tasks

●     Tamara’s tip: ask your clients where they want to go, when they want to do, and what content they want to cover

●     Keys in deciding the when, where, and kind of venue

●     How to look at retreats with client retention in mind--and not client attraction

●     Tamara shares an example of a recent retreat in Belize

●     Why you should consider a local or regional retreat before going overseas

●     How to move forward confidently and successfully in your planning

●     Timeline tips for planning ahead for local and overseas retreats

●     Why your retreat needs the three key elements of teaching time, bonding time, and downtime

Resources:

Find out more about Tamara’s work and take her Retreat Ready Assessment: Journey Work Retreats

Find Tamara on LinkedIn: Tamara Golden Journey Work Retreats 

Today’s show will make you think in new ways about the systems in your business. We know that systems are important and relevant to all of us in achieving the freedom we want as business owners. Join us to take a fresh look at the vision, organization, and processes that will make your business work!

Michael Mills is one of the founders and managing directors of Business Design Corporation. Michael was a Master Certified E-Myth Consultant for many years, delivering Michael Gerber’s E-Myth Mastery Program to hundreds of entrepreneurs. He decided to focus on creating a tool and process to make it easy to systemize businesses. Michael’s career spans 35 years from where he started out as a sales manager in his father’s company. He went on to own his own company, which he later sold, and then he focused his attention to helping entrepreneurs build their businesses. He’s written a book on how to systemize businesses, and he’s a frequent speaker at conferences in the US and Canada. In 2004, Michael’s business was so systemized that he and his family took 14 months to travel the world in a once-in-a-lifetime experience; his business ran smoothly and profitably during his absence, all because of the systems he had put in place. Get ready to view your business systems with a brand-new perspective!

Show Highlights:

• A glimpse into Michael’s journey to where he is today
• Five Simple Steps to Systemize Your Business:
• Vision--know where you’re going
• Create your organizational structure with an org. chart--”You won’t know how to grow without an organizational chart.”
• Process identification--List each step in your business that requires a process
• Linking--Link your processes to boxes on your org. Chart
• Prioritizing--Prioritize, write, implement, and repeat
• Don’t think of systemizing your business as a one-time project, but an ongoing thing

Resources:

Michael’s email for handout:

Michael Mills of Business Design Corporation

Website: Business Design Corp

• LinkedIn page
• Business Facebook Page: Business Design Corp

Facebook Group: Business Systemization

Mentioned in this episode:

Join Mentoring Program!

If you’re a coach who wants to grow—not just check a box—this is for you.

As in many of our episodes, today’s show focuses on a unique aspect of business-building. If marketing is an unwelcome task on your to-do list, then join us to learn about heart-centered marketing. Find out more about the new revolution that my guest has begun!

Sarah Santacroce is all about heart-centered marketing. Her revolution is the Gentle Marketing Revolution. You’ll learn about marketing genuinely and authentically, tapping into Sarah’s 7 P’s of Marketing. She comes from Switzerland and will share her unique marketing perspective, along with helpful resources that you can use in your business.

Show Highlights:

●     Sarah’s Gentle Marketing Revolution

●     How Sarah was led into her work as an Online LinkedIn Consultant

●     The process of devising the Gentle Marketing solution

●     Why people want to build their business with kindness and integrity

●     7 Pieces to the Gentle Marketing Revolution:

○     Passion: What is the story of the WHY behind your business?

○     Personal Power: Who am I, and what do I want?

○     People: Who are the people I want to serve?

○     Product: Do my products and services align with my values?

○     Pricing: What feels good to me and creates a win-win-win relationship?

○     Promotion: What platforms feel right to me?

○     Partnership: How can I benefit from collaboration?

●     Final words from Sarah: “Give yourself permission and listen to your intuition.”

Resources:

Find Sarah: Sarah Santacroce 

Get Sarah’s One-Page Marketing Plan at Sarah Santacroce

Linkedin: Sarah Santacroce  

Mentioned in this episode:

Join Mentoring Program!

If you’re a coach who wants to grow—not just check a box—this is for you.

As we move into a new year, I wish you good health, wellbeing, peace, and prosperity. The challenges of 2020 remain, so we must commit ourselves to constant improvement in our coaching practice. Join me to learn more.

In this solo episode, we consider key components of our preparation and mindset as we show up as a coaching partner for our clients. How do we embody a coaching mindset? That’s the focus of today’s show as we explore the commitments we can make to mindset work that will make us the best coach possible for our clients.

Show Highlights:

●     A brief history of the ICF core competencies and the four domains of foundation, co-creating the relationship, communicating effectively, and cultivating learning and growth

●     How to embody a coaching mindset that is open, curious, flexible, and client-centered:

○     Acknowledge that our clients are responsible for their own choices

○     Engage in ongoing development and learning

○     Create and maintain an ongoing reflective practice

■     Remain open and aware of the influence of context and culture on ourselves and others

■     Use awareness of self and intuition to benefit clients

■     Develop and maintain the ability to regulate emotions

●     The benefits of mindfulness and reflective practice in our lives and coaching practices

●     How to prepare for sessions mentally and emotionally

●     How we connect our clients with other sources for additional help