She let out a huff and said, “only one person signed up for my webinar.”

She’s a mental performance coach and has gone through an all too familiar experience many coaches have relayed to me: Running into a brick wall getting clients. Several coaches have told me their clients can point to the differences their mental training brought them like composure under pressure, effective management of emotions, and more. The testimonials are real, the conversations all make sense to the person interested in mental training.

Yet, the willingness of stakeholders (parents, coaches, ADs, etc.) and clients to invest is met with an unarticulated skepticism.

They get it, but something is holding them back that they can’t quite name. For the mental performance coach, this can create a sense of unease.

And there’s one big reason coaches feel this pressure.

You’re Arguing for an Outcome People Can’t See

It’s hard for people to see the immediate outcomes of building character.

Far more people understand what it means to lose 10lbs, to ace their SAT’s, or to land an interview. These are pleasures with a definite end. It’s far easier to imagine what your body looks like without the larger belly, your grade on the paper, or receiving your acceptance letter.

Mental performance coaches are tasked with linking tangible outcomes to immaterial things. What’s funny is what sits underneath goals like these. Your mindset.

Building character is the foundation for a good life. There’s no higher ROI than sound judgment, mastery of your emotions, and wisdom. Linking mindset to decision-making is a key part of making the intangible tangible.

All goals point back to the habits you develop.

But without making outcomes explicit, coaches are subject to one major barrier.

You React to Pressure Instead of Respond

When potential clients aren’t getting it. It’s tempting to do things that aren’t even aligned with what you stand for.

As a result, you start throwing spaghetti at the wall hoping something sticks. This often looks like showing up on multiple platforms, posting anything and everything because you need something, anything, to work. It’s aimless. Nothing it points toward, no strategy behind it.

It’s frantic energy going anywhere it can.

You start to care about things that may not really matter.

Like paying too close attention to the likes you receive on a post when the real metric you should pay attention to is conversations started, leads, or profit for example. The thing about pressure is that it disrupts your clarity. And when a lack of clarity enters your mind it impacts your confidence making you feel doubtful about the path you’ve chosen or your abilities.

You wonder “is it worth it?” “Should I just give up altogether?”

Control What You Can Control

You’re far more effective when you can approach your work with a sense of calm.

You’re more likely to make progress without burning out. You’re able to see events for what they are and adjust. For example, for the mental performance coach who only had one person attend their webinar, that event is feedback, nothing else.

When people aren’t getting it. When they don’t understand what character gives you, it’s not a reason to force it and become bitter.

It's the same as you would tell your athletes, executives, pilots, financial advisors etc.

Be in the moment and serve, teach, coach the best you can when you can and where you can and how you can.

​I put together a worksheet for this one. 10 situations that come up when you're building a mental performance business. Sort each into controllable and not, then keep it somewhere you'll actually see it.​

As always, thanks for reading.
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Until next time,
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- Marcus W.

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P.S. - If "sharing your work" still feels like the hardest part of growing your practice, that's fixable. I build email courses and newsletters for coaches who'd rather do the work than write about it. Reply and tell me where you're stuck, and I'll point you in the right direction.