How to navigate the "Wild West" of hiring a business coach

How to navigate the Wild West of hiring a coach

"I'm worried that if I hire a coach, it won't pay off."

"I've heard horror stories about coaches who give you the same generic advice you can get from a podcast."

"I don't want to get into that situation with a sketchy 'coach' taking all my money and then telling me to post 5x a day on Instagram."

"I've taken programs before that didn't deliver on their promise... It's disappointing when they don't live up to the hype, and now I don't know who to trust."

"I'm very picky about what I pay for. Wading through fluff is annoying! How do I know a coach won't give me fluff answers?"

"I've often let myself down in the business department, and am scared that if I sign up I'll once again drop the ball at some point and end up back at square one."

"I'm worried about adding more to my plate. I want to make sure I get the most out of hiring a coach, but don't want to overload myself in the process."

Are you thinking any of these things?

To be frank, the coaching industry feels a little like the Wild West sometimes! It's unfortunately an unregulated industry — so you need to be discriminating when hiring a coach (and that can feel like a lot of work to try to do all of that research!)

This is EXACTLY why I share *so much* about my 6-month 1:1 coaching program, Solopreneur CEO, with you ♥ I want you to have ALL the information you need to make this decision with confidence that it's the best choice for YOU!

And today, I want to address each one of those above 7 hesitations you might be having...

...because every single one of those concerns is absolutely, 100% VALID.

Let's address each of the 7 hesitations you might have right now about the idea of hiring me as your coach...

...so you can more easily navigate the "Wild West" of the coaching industry!

1. "I'm worried that if I hire a coach, it won't pay off."

I check in with you at every single coaching session to make sure you're still fully satisfied.

If you tell me that you're feeling overwhelmed or nervous or uncomfortable, we'll take extra time to work through that. And if I see that you're struggling, or if I get the sense that something's not quite working, I'll suggest pivots!

Plus, in addition to getting the chance to provide feedback on each of our coaching sessions, you can also submit your feedback in an anonymous survey at any time; you also get UNLIMITED access to me via email or voice/text messaging in between sessions for additional support, feedback, pep talks, and more.

If at any point throughout the program you're dissatisfied, we will 100% figure out what needs to change in order to resolve the issue. (I genuinely want the absolute best success & experience for you, for one thing; and it's in my best interest to keep you happy and satisfied, for another!)

2. "I've heard horror stories about coaches who give you the same generic advice you can get from a podcast."

You are not getting copy & paste content from me.

My clients are highly self-aware and ridiculously smart people, and they have shared that they really appreciate that what they get from our sessions is refreshing and very different from much of the usual advice they've heard (which typically hasn't worked for them, anyway).

Besides that, I also use a hybrid blend of coaching, consulting, teaching, and mentorship in Solopreneur CEO — making it a very unique way to maximize your experience. Your coaching experience will NOT look exactly like any other client that I have, because all of my clients' wants and needs are different. I'll customize each coaching session and provide you with additional customized supports (e.g. EFT tapping sessions, thought exercises and guided self-coaching thought experiments, and more).

I also have over a decade of experience as a solopreneur and I'm passionate about this business model. My main goal is always to work with you (not "at" you) to create the best possible strategies that fit what YOU want from your life and business.

3. "I don't want to get into that situation with a sketchy 'coach' taking all my money and then telling me to post 5x a day on Instagram."

I promise I won't force you to be on any platform you don't want to be on!

Our coaching sessions are a co-created, collaborative experience: Everything is fully customized to YOUR unique wants & needs.

BY THE WAY: I did NOT start my business as a coach 😉

I spent YEARS in business before becoming a coach for others in business: I began my business as a freelance writer over 12 years ago. A lot of my freelance writing projects were in the health sector, so I became a Certified Holistic Nutritionist to build my understanding and professional expertise (and after that, I spent a period of time doing nutrition consults for clients on the side from my freelance business).
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Then, in 2016, I created my first couple online courses to support other freelancers (and wrote a book on the topic), and soon after began some consulting & coaching for freelancers. I’m also an internationally board-certified Success & Life Coach (as well as a certified Practitioner of Emotional Freedom Techniques).
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Nowadays, I still do some freelance writing, but my primary work is coaching other solopreneurs in the 6-month 1:1 Solopreneur CEO coaching program (and teaching in my signature anti-hustle e-course, Productivity Powerhouse).
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
I also write novels (7 published so far) and do presentations (I’ve facilitated workshops & given presentations since 2012-ish), I have background as both side-hustler and full-time freelancer, experience in business partnership, podcast host, blogger (health blogger starting in 2008 which turned into a lifestyle blog 2014-ish which turned into a business blog 2016-ish)

...Again, I did NOT start my business as a coach! I spent YEARS in business before becoming a coach for others in business — Literally over 6 years as a freelancer before I ever coached someone on business, and then it was several more years before *solopreneur life & success coaching* became the main core of my business (And because I also have that background as a Certified Holistic Nutritionist, my coaching experience itself started quite a few years back!)

Just an FYI in case you were wondering.

4. "I've taken programs before that didn't deliver on their promise... It's disappointing when they don't live up to the hype, and now I don't know who to trust."

See my response to point #1 above! I am deeply committed to your success and satisfaction. Plus, you get lifetime access to the Productivity Powerhouse e-course, which gives you ongoing support as a solopreneur using anti-hustle productivity methodologies.

Please feel free to reach out and ask any questions at all at hello[at]saganmorrow[dot]com — I'm happy to help you decide whether this is the right program for you!

You can also check out what others have to say about working with me in a 1:1 capacity in these case studies: 

5. "I'm very picky about what I pay for. Wading through fluff is annoying! How do I know a coach won't give me fluff answers?"

I have clients who are thrilled to discover that we can work through an issue & resolve it within literally just 3 minutes! How to navigate the "Wild West" of hiring a business coach

Solopreneur CEO is a straight-to-the-point program so you can experience transformative shifts within a single session. (And keep in mind, we work together for a full 6 months in Solopreneur CEO... so just imagine how much we can accomplish in that timeframe!)

Plus, once again, I WANT you to be fully satisfied with your experience. As such, I do ongoing professional development and continuing education as your coach, to make sure that I can always provide you with the highest-quality experience.

One of the reasons why space is so limited in Solopreneur CEO is because there are a lot of *extras* that take place outside of our coaching calls, themselves. In order for me to best give you the full extent of a high level of service, I can only take on a limited number of clients.

I don't just hop on the call with you, hop off, and call it a day! NOPE.

I DO show up to each of our sessions fully prepared:

Between our sessions, I'm thinking about you (your work, your frustrations, your struggles, your goals, your wins), doing research for what will best support you (continuing education and ongoing professional development, plus keeping up to date on your online platforms), and planning out coaching strategies & techniques based on your unique situation (coaching processes, somatic techniques, guided self-coaching thought exercises, actionable strategies — all fully customized for YOU).

...and if you have updates to share, want feedback on your work, or need a little extra email-based coaching between our sessions, I provide that for you, as well. That's why space is limited!

6. "I've often let myself down in the business department, and am scared that if I sign up I'll once again drop the ball at some point and end up back at square one."

Solopreneur CEO helps you stay on track and accountable! If at any time you're struggling, feeling overloaded or overwhelmed, or feeling like you're dropping the ball, we can work through that together, reassess how things are going, and pivot or adjust strategies as needed to resolve those issues so that you're feeling really good about the direction things are taking and your progress.

I'm here to support you along the way (and that's also part of the reason why the program is set up for 6 months — you don't need to worry about losing steam!)

7. "I'm worried about adding more to my plate. I want to make sure I get the most out of hiring a coach, but don't want to overload myself in the process."

That's okay! We can sort through and manage your priorities, and help you navigate both the business side of things along with developing your craft (and supporting your family). Solopreneur CEO is designed to integrate all of those different parts together, even if they seem like they're currently competing for your attention.

...And Solopreneur CEO actually REMOVES things from your plate! You only need to spend about 1-2 hours/week actively doing "homework" from our sessions (which we'll both agree on, by the way — this is a co-created experience, so I'm not going to assign you any action steps that you don't WANT to do), and because it's fully customized to your situation, we'll add or reduce the amount of time you need to spend on this program based on your needs.

Here are a couple blog posts I wrote that will support you during your coaching experience...

  • About that time I did NOT get the coaching experience I wanted. You are not alone in being wary about hiring a coach — I've been there, too! This article shares a quick story about my own frustrations with getting a less-than-stellar coaching experience, plus what I do differently so you don't run into the same disappointment when *you and I* work together.
  • 7 ways to get the BEST results from your coach. This is a must-read for everyone thinking about hiring a coach! It'll help set you up for a lot more success with your coaching experience.

Do you have any other questions or concerns about hiring a coach? Email me at hello[at]saganmorrow[dot]com and let me know!

...And if you want to join my Solopreneur CEO 6-month 1:1 coaching program, then you can click HERE to book your spot today.

We are currently booking Solopreneur CEO for a January 2023 start date — which means that by booking your spot now:

a) You do NOT need to worry about adding more to your plate before the holidays, *and also*...

b) You can still know that you're going to begin the new year to an AMAZING start. Win-win!