3 Important Steps You Need to Take to Scale Your Coaching Business
Updated: Aug 2, 2022
You did it! You climbed your Mount Everest and have grown your coaching business to multiple six figures. Maybe you've become the king or queen of social marketing or your course curriculum is strong. Maybe you've built a stellar reputation and have grown completely by referral. Whatever the secret to your success so far, you know it's time to scale your coaching business up.
And you know what got you here isn't going to get you there.
If you're ready to scale but don't know where to start, it's time to really drill down on three important aspects of your business: your mission, vision, and strategy.
Why Mission, Vision, and Strategy are so Important
These are the why, the how, and the what of scaling. They are the essential elements that set you up for success as your business grows.
When you boil it all down, your mission is why you exist (what you do and who you serve) . While your vision is like a word picture of your future. And your strategy is the set of all of your broad priorities.
Along with your mission, vision, and strategy, to scale your coaching business you'll also want to outline your objectives and the key results you're expecting. Your objectives are what you will focus on in the near term, and your key results are basically how you will achieve your mission, vision, strategy, etc...
Your Mission
As a coach, you probably feel like you're on a mission. Well, your business has a mission, too. A company's mission is essentially why it exists. It's the purpose that drives everything you do.
Think of your mission as a north star. It's what guides all of your business decisions and actions (big and small).
When you're clear on your mission, it becomes easier to scale because you have a defined set of values and goals to work towards. If you scale without a mission, it will be chaotic and all over the place. Your coaching business could end up like a ship without a rudder, going in circles instead of moving forwards.
So, how do you develop or refine your mission?
Start by asking yourself some tough questions like:
What problem are you solving?
Who are you solving it for?
Why do your clients need this problem solved?
What effect do you want to have on your clients' lives or even your community?
How does your coaching business fit into the rest of your life?
Once you have your mission, make sure to review it often (at least annually) and with your team. Be sure to communicate your mission so they know where this voyage is going and can help crew the ship!
As you scale your coaching business, you can even use it to hire the right team members to grow with you.
If your mission is to grow and scale and have more time for family and loved ones, hobbies and self-care, that's important to know, especially as you begin expanding your team. However, if your mission is to improve your processes and keep your business small and intimate, maybe hiring, and even scaling, looks different for you.
The key is to define what your mission is so you can create an overall strategy (we'll talk about that more below) that supports it.
(Here are some examples of mission statements to get you started.)
Your Vision
Your vision for your business is your big dream. Mission are public, something you can proudly publish on your website. Your vision is private, just for you. Instead of it being the why of the business, like your mission, it's your personal why.
It's the end-game, the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, if you will. So feel free to dream big, believe that anything is possibility, and shoot for the stars!
Your vision should be something that inspires and excites you. It's what gets you out of bed in the morning and keeps you going when things get tough.
Creating your vision can be as simple as sitting down with a piece of paper and a pen and brainstorming what success looks like for your coaching business.
Start by asking yourself:
What do I want my business to look like right now?
What does my business look like in 5 years?
In 10 years? In 20 years?
How do I want my business to function alongside my life?
What does my life look like?
What do I want to be known for?
For example, are you taking three months off for vacation with your kids every summer? Do you take Fridays off? Is this a lifestyle business that allows you to spend more time with your family? Is this a legacy business that you're building to sell in the future?
Most coaches I work with start their business with a vision. It may not be clear or super defined, but it's a cornerstone of their why. So ask yourself how long it's been since you reviewed your vision.
As you're working to scale your coaching business, create a process where you're reviewing it annually. Communicate your vision to your team regularly and make sure you're all on the same page. Bring them into your vision.
Because it's absolutely crucial for your success, especially as you're scaling your coaching business up.
Your Strategy
The strategy you develop for your business plays a few important roles. For one, it's the overarching goals and objectives for your business. It's what you're working towards.
But it's also the roadmap you use to get there. It's the how of your business. How are you going to scale? How are you going to achieve your mission and vision?
Your strategy is what ties everything together and helps you make decisions along the way.
Creating a strategy can feel daunting, but it doesn't have to be complicated. There are 7 Strategic Objectives in every business (no matter the industry or if it's online or brick and mortar):
Business Growth & Financial Steadiness
Product Development & Innovation
Operational Efficiencies
Visibility
Customer/Client Experience
Scaling/Team
Professional & Personal Growth
This is how you can anticipate and plan for potential hurdles you encounter along the way. So you can be Road Runner instead of Wile E. Coyote.
My top 3 tips for creating a strategy that'll take your coaching business to the next level:
Take on a maximum of 2-3 projects per quarter. Don't overwhelm yourself with initiatives!
Map our your ideal day. Use a tool like Toggl to track and log the time you spend on various tasks. Then choose what's most important to delegate!
When you do hire and delegate, give yourself realistic timelines to onboard team members who can start to take some of the pressure off of you.
If you want to scale your coaching business, it's important to have a clear vision, an over-arching mission, and well-defined strategy. By paying attention to these important steps as you scale, you'll be on your way to achieving success faster and with more freedom.
(Want a one stop mom & pop biz shop to help you scale your coaching biz? Click HERE to learn more about our Map to Millions® VIP Day.)