Recently I’ve been meeting a lot of “lifestyle coaches” that run “lifestyle businesses.” I didn’t get it at first, but now I think of got a grip on how this works. Simplifying completely, this is how you can become a lifestyle coach:
1) Quit your job and do what you love.
First you have to spend a few years doing what you hate, racking up debt to buy crap you don’t need, and be boring. Then you can have a ‘conversion experience’, where you quit all that and start over fresh, chasing your dreams and passions, doing whatever you want, having adventures and being awesome.
2) Encourage people to quit their jobs and do what they love.
Charge them for 1 to 1 counseling. Put out an ebook or a series of videos. Inspire and encourage.
Maybe you need one too?
I may be coming across as skeptical, but recently I’ve grown to appreciate the validity of this business model. The fact is, everybody needs encouragement and inspiration. Having somebody know what you’re trying to do, and check in and follow up, and affirm that “You can DO it!” is really pretty powerful.
Maybe invaluable. A lot of mega super business people have coaches. Having somewhere there to support you is probably worth paying for, because it can really force you to get off your ass and DO something.
I’m always on the lookout for somebody ahead of me on a similar journey, because they know the territory that I’m just entering into. And if I really want their help and their time and guidance, I should pay them for it.
Why I’m not inspirational
One thing about myself that I’ve discovered, however, is that I’m not inspirational. I have no patience for coddling or hand-holding.
I can tell someone within 5 minutes of meeting them how they could turn their passion into a profitable freelance business, and give them dozens of brilliant business strategies to make it happen. But I’m not going to stick around to watch them do it. I’m not going to babysit them.
Mostly, I’m not going to waste my time convincing them that they should take action, when all they want to do is complain about their current lives. I can’t stand to watch them ignore my advice and keep making the same poor choices that don’t lead anywhere.
That’s just me. I’m not saying it isn’t valuable, just that it isn’t my greatest skill.
On the other hand, some lifestyle coaches can probably motivate you and convince you to live your passions, but they can’t give you any practical first steps… because the only business experience they have is selling inspiration and coaching (they can teach you how to do that, if that’s what you want to do… but maybe it isn’t!)
My motivational speech in 6 words
You can do anything you want.
Yes, I believe it. Set your mind to it, know where you’re going and what you want, then keep working at it. You’ll get there. Get some lifestyle coaches. Get some business coaches. Learn the practical steps that will allow you to make something people want and get them to buy it. Rinse, refine, redo. Find a way to do it faster, make 10x as much of what you’re selling, get it in front of more people, and make them really really want it. Then double your prices.
Now you’re in business!
I’m a philosophy dropout with a PhD in Literature. I covet a cabin full of cats, where I can write fantasy novels to pay for my cake addiction. Sometimes I live in castles.
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