Coaching Plan | Coaching Business Plan

Life Coaching Plan 101 for New Businesses

Welcome to Life Coaching Plan 101 – the starter class for new life coaches. This isn’t about how to plan your client sessions. This is about how to create a clear and comprehensive business plan for your life coaching practice.

Coaching Plan – kasto © 123RF.com

Yes – You Need a Business Plan

Don’t take the easy way out and skip writing a business plan. Sure, you can get by without one, and you may even succeed in the business without composing a plan. But, why take that chance when it really doesn’t take too long or involve too much work to write a good plan?

What is Your Coaching Plan?

What are your plans for the business? Do you know? If so, you should write them down. What are your goals? If you know them, you should put them in writing.

Having a plan is more than just dreams in your head. A plan means you can articulate a systematic way you will start and operate your business. It also details the manner in which you will treat clients and the values you will display as a coach.

What a Good Coaching Business Plan Doesn’t Have

Here are things to leave out of your coach plan:

Fluff and filler. Don’t just write words to make it look longer. No one is going to see this unless you add a partner or apply for financing – things most starting coaches don’t do.
Vague goals. I want to be a great coach is not a measurable goal. Your goals should be specific and measurable. You can certainly dream big, but you also need to be realistic.
Too much detail. Writing a coaching plan may seem like a daunting task before you start. However, as some people get into it, they start writing everything down. Too much detail, like too much fluff, is bad. You don’t have to include everything!

What a Good Business Plan Includes

When writing a business coaching plan for your life coaching practice, here are a few essentials:

Administrative section. This is where you include everything it takes to start your business and operate it indefinitely. Licenses, permits, accounting methods, office space, type of software, website development; everything that runs your business and pushes it forward
Values, Vision, and Mission. Every business plan must have these sections. A values section lists the values with which you will coach and run your business. A vision section is an inspirational description of what you want to achieve or accomplish with your practice – think BIG! A mission statement is the purpose of the business or the reason it exists.
Goals. Goals matter and you should list several – make sure they are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-based.
Market analysis and market description. Who will you be coaching and how competitive is it in your area (or online)?
Marketing. Yes, you must take some time to consider marketing. Your coaching plan for business needs a section on marketing and promotion. Most people hate marketing, but if you take some time to consider the possibilities, and also the ways to measure promotional effectiveness, you will be one step ahead of many other coaches.

By the way… you’re invited to claim your FREE step-by-step “ Master Coach Blueprint” video toolkit. Just go HERE now to get your master coach blueprint videos.

Fred Philips
Business Coach
Writing Team, Coaches Training Blog Community

Do you have a coaching plan? It’s not the same thing as a business plan – it’s in addition to a business plan.

Coaching Plan – Le Moal Olivier © 123RF.com

Don’t Skip the Business Plan

All businesses need a business plan – and that includes you coaches out there! Don’t skip it merely because you are a one-person shop and believe it to be unnecessary. It lists your mission, values, target market, administrative duties, and marketing plans. It is vital to the success of your coaching practice – don’t skip it!

But, I suggest you write something in addition to the business plan – something that is more detailed and commensurate with the daily operations of your business. Something that will guide you from start-up to build-up to success.

Writing a Coaching Plan for Super Success

A good plan for your coaching practice will cover those things that will define, shape, and enhance your practice. It will include whatever you feel is pertinent to the success of your coaching business. Here are a few ideas to get you started:

Build Your Brand

An important consideration in the long-term success of your business and the super-sizing of profitability is building a brand. Your brand should be able to cover all aspects of your future business – from one-on-one coaching, website branding, seminars, article writing, community outreach, to products such as books and DVDs. Having the right logo, slogan, or image is vital – one that can be used for any and all products.

Engage Your Community

You usually start out coaching locally. How can you engage your community and get the word out about your coaching services? From marketing to community groups to family and friends, you need strategic plans to reach out and get noticed.

Outcomes for your Clients

To be a successful coach, you must have the outcomes your clients seek. Your coaching plan should detail those outcomes. They will obviously change as you move through your career, and your coach plan should keep up with these changes. Without the desired outcomes, you won’t be coaching for long!

Brainstorm Alternate Income Ideas

When you first start out, you will be focused on one-on-one coaching, but that doesn’t mean you can’t dream just a bit. Create a section for services and products you would like to offer in the future. What type of book would you like to write? What would your coaching DVD contain? What type of seminar would you offer? How would you create an online coaching business so you can expand your services to the nation and the world? Your coaching plan can be innovative, creative, and optimistic.

What Kind of Philanthropist Would You Be?

Pretend you are so successful that you become rich. Now, how would you donate money to help the world? Would you focus on children’s charities? Or disease prevention? Once you have fantasized a bit, you can scale it back and think of ways in which you can help right. Perhaps you can’t donate large sums of money at the moment, but you can surely offer your coaching services for free to a needy group. Your coaching plan can give you great ideas on how to help when you become wealthy, but it can also help you determine who you want to help, and how you can lend a hand right now.

By the way… you’re invited to claim your FREE step-by-step “Life Coaching Business Blueprint” video toolkit. Just go HERE now to get your life coaching business blueprint videos.

Fred Philips
Business Coach
Writing Team, Coaches Training Blog Community