The Coach's Journey - build a coaching business with integrity

In this episode, Robbie walks you step‑by‑step through how he leads the first conversation with a potential coaching client - with authenticity, honour and integrity, and without being salesy or pushy. Packed with clear guidance and real‑world examples, you'll learn how to:Prepare clients in advance and set expectations before the callModel leadership in the first conversation to build credibility and trustGuide the conversation through contracting, coaching, and honestyLead naturally toward a decision: no pressure, just clarity about what comes nextIf you’re tired of ‘discovery calls’ or ‘coffees’ that feel awkward or wind down without clarity… this episode is for you.Download Robbie’s ebook, An Introduction to The Coaching Business Flywheel, here.Buy The Coaching Business Flywheel Booster Pack - including all the emails Robbie sends to his clients at every stage of his business, plus a flowchart, coaching agreements and his favourite emails for creating clients. For more information about Robbie, visit https://www.robbieswale.com/Read more about The Coach's Journey at www.thecoachsjourney.com.Music by My Good Man William: listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4KmeQUcTbeE31uFynHQLQgTo support the Coach's Journey, visit www.patreon.com/thecoachsjourney and to join the Coach's Journey Community visit www.thecoachsjourney.com/community. THINGS ROBBIE MENTIONED THAT YOU MIGHT BE INTERESTED INThe Coaching Business Flywheel: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/the-coaching-business-flywheel The Coaching Business Flywheel Booster Pack: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/the-coaching-business-flywheel-booster-pack The video version of this episode: https://youtu.be/ub_gFNZ8bsY Episode #8, containing this and lots more nuts and bolts of coaching: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/robbie-on-structure-first-conversations-marketing-price My video about contracting as a coach: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhjuhKWx9iA Phil Bolton on The Coach’s Journey Podcast: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/episode-2-phil-bolton-from-forensic-accountant-to-the-go-to-career-coach-in-london-and-on-to-work-with-ceos-mds-and-founders Rich Litvin: How To Coach Someone You Don't Yet Know - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1mBCDWOX-I Jamie Smart on The Coach’s Journey Podcast: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/episode-16-jamie-smart Giovanna Capozza on The Coach’s Journey Podcast: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/episode-20-giovanna-capozza Rich Litvin: The Art of the Proposal: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BjwzfLIA8w0

What does it really look like to take your coaching practice on the road?In this short episode, Robbie and Alex Swallow get together to explore the possibilities and challenges of coaching as a digital nomad — or simply working remotely and flexibly as a coach.They talk about their experience working from Costa Rica, Dar es Salaam, cafés in the UK, and the practical and emotional realities of taking coaching work on the move. This conversation is filled with candid reflections, personal stories, and valuable tips for coaches curious about location-independent work.Together, Robbie and Alex discuss:What it’s really like to coach while travellingThe difference between remote work and being on holidayThe impact of environment on coaching conversationsEnergy management, internet mishaps, and time zone headachesWhy solo digital nomad life might not be as dreamy as it soundsThe power of experiments — like working from a different UK city — to test what worksHow being in new places can boost creativity and reflectionIf you're a coach who’s ever dreamed of working remotely, coaching from anywhere, or building a location-independent coaching business, this episode offers encouragement, perspective, and a few gentle warnings…Download Robbie’s ebook, An Introduction to The Coaching Business Flywheel, here. For more information about Robbie, visit https://www.robbieswale.com/For more information about Alex, visit https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexswallow/Read more about The Coach's Journey at www.thecoachsjourney.com.Music by My Good Man William: listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4KmeQUcTbeE31uFynHQLQgTo support the Coach's Journey, visit www.patreon.com/thecoachsjourney and to join the Coach's Journey Community visit www.thecoachsjourney.com/community.

Selling coaching by the session can limit impact. A shift to time-bound packages enhances client engagement and fosters deeper commitment. Explore how this approach builds trust, accountability, and real transformation. Robbie shares insights on having candid money conversations, setting ambitious goals, and avoiding a session-counting mindset. Learn to view coaching as a partnership on a journey rather than just a service transaction. Plus, discover resources for creating a sustainable coaching business.

Every village and every community throughout human history has relied upon people who can facilitate conversations, allowing sacred truths to be passed along generations. In a modern world gripped by a process of massive transformation, this vital, ancient work now falls to coaches.That is the view of Bob Singha, a master coach who has spent 28 years helping people connect the day-to-day reality of their lives with the eternal teachings of their ancestral heritage. In conversation with Alex Swallow, Bob reflects on his evolution as a coach and as an elder, which he sees as a process of remembering rather than one of learning.Across decades of work with young people around the world, facing lives blighted by trauma and violence, Bob has found that communities everywhere face similar problems, and that the solutions to them lie in the deep wisdom of our ancestral memories.Using stories as medicine and as conveyors of wisdom, Bob helps people to remember something about themselves.In this conversation, Bob and Alex acknowledge the call being sounded for coaches who don’t feel at home in the standard business models that commodify and separate us. They also illustrate the remarkable role coaches can play in connecting communities with the intelligence that gave birth to them.In this episode, Bob and Alex also talk about:- How studying something as if you’re going to teach it leads to accelerated learning- Our connection with the sages, the rishis, the sadhus and fakirs who throughout history have integrated spiritual wisdom and worldly responsibilities- The power of the question: what are the whispers of your ancestors saying in this moment?- The relationship between the way we play games and the way we live our lives- A hilarious story that revealed to Bob at a young age the importance of language, and how we can use it to speak to both the temporary and the eternal.THINGS WE TALKED ABOUT THAT YOU MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN:- Timothy Gallwey https://theinnergame.com/ - John Whitmore https://www.performanceconsultants.com/about-us/sir-john-whitmore/ - Tony Robbins https://www.tonyrobbins.com/- Stephen Covey on interdependence https://challengingcoaching.co.uk/stephen-covey-interdependence-the-deeper-facts/ - Spark Inside https://www.sparkinside.org/ - The Coaching Inn https://thecoachinginn.podbean.com/ - It Takes A Village https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llpz6bADkZU - Gladeana McMahon http://gladeanamcmahon.com/ - Anthony Eldridge Rogers https://uk.linkedin.com/in/anthonyeldridgerogers

How do we keep working when tragedy shakes our lives? If seismic events disrupt our foundations, is it possible to build something new with confidence?For Ellie Scarf, suffering a heartbreaking loss led to profound changes that have moved her from her zone of excellence into her zone of genius, where she draws upon her experiences to offer her coaching clients an approach and a service that is uniquely her own.In this episode of The Coach’s Journey Podcast, Ellie recounts the steps that took her from working as a lawyer in top tier legal firms to becoming a national sales coach for a billion dollar company. She describes how her coaching work was in the midst of a booming resurgence after the COVID-19 pandemic when tragedy struck.In conversation with host Ruth Saville, Ellie explains how she integrated her profound emotional experiences into a new way of working, turning her pain into a point of connection that deepened her client relationships.Now, alongside the client work that brings her joy every day, she also runs the Corporate To Coach Accelerator, building foundations for people on the runway to launching a business, and supporting coaches who are pivoting to leverage their skills in new ways. She is also CEO of Lucent Global coaching consultancy, which supports leaders and companies through significant periods of transition.She also has her own podcast, The Business of Executive Coaching Podcast, where she is just as inspiring a host as she is a guest in this episode.In this episode, Ellie and Ruth also talk about:·      A brilliant strategy to solve the problem of building business development into your schedule·      How to meet your clients where they’re at on their particular developmental journey·      What happens when non-directive coaching comes into conflict with a knowledge gap·      How many coaching programmes selling quick pathways to success prey on people’s fearsEllie also shares one crucial tip for anyone coach who is struggling to bring in business at the moment, offering a tried and tested way to make progress during lean times.Things and people we mentioned (that you might be interested in):- Tony Grant https://www.sydney.edu.au/science/news-and-events/news/2020/02/07/vale-professor-anthony-grant.html- Dr. Suzy Green https://instituteofcoaching.org/suzy-green- Masters course in Coaching Psychology at the University of Sydney https://www.sydney.edu.au/handbooks/science-pg/coursework/psychology-coaching.html#:~:text=The%20Master%20of%20Science%20in,working%20with%20non%2Dclinical%20populations.- The Positivity Institute https://thepositivityinstitute.com.au/- The Positivity Prescription https://thepositivityinstitute.com.au/product/the-positivity-prescription/- Dr. Susanne Cook-Greuter https://instituteofcoaching.org/author/cook-greuter-susanne- Robert Kegan’s theory of adult development https://aliveandthriving.substack.com/p/kegans-theory-of-development-framework- Bill Torbert’s development theory https://developingleadership.net/bill-torbert- The GROW model https://www.performanceconsultants.com/resources/the-grow-model- The House of Change model https://www.thevirtualtrainingteam.com/articles/change-management-models-the-change-house/- Dr. Louise Kovacs https://au.linkedin.com/in/louise-kovacs-9ba55a- Myers Briggs overview https://www.myersbriggs.org/my-mbti-personality-type/myers-briggs-overview/- Dr. Saba Hasanie https://www.linkedin.com/in/saba-hasanie-dprof-mcc-icf-1747572?originalSubdomain=sg- The Big Leap by Gay Hendricks https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-big-leap-gay-hendricks?variant=32205677625378- Lucent Global https://www.lucentorg.com/about- Corporate to Coach Accelerator https://www.elliescarf.com/cca- The Coaching Business Flywheel https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/the-coaching-business-flywheel- Ellie’s podcast episode on metrics for coaches https://www.elliescarf.com/podcasts/the-business-of-executive-coaching/episodes/2148566834- Tim Ferriss’ billboard question https://medium.com/@podclips/the-top-25-answers-to-tim-ferriss-famous-billboard-question-3f19fba1a49c- The upper limit problem https://melodywilding.com/are-you-unconsciously-afraid-of-being-happy-why-we-self-sabotage-with-the-upper-limit-problem/

The question that new coaches ask most often: do I need a niche and how do I choose one?We don’t know why that idea is so pervasive among new coaches, but it is, so when Robbie got a question about it from a subscriber recently, he thought he’d make a short episode about it.Excuse the audio - he recorded on his phone - and see below for links to a few things he mentions in the episode.For more information about Robbie Swale, visit https://www.robbieswale.com/Read more about The Coach's Journey at www.thecoachsjourney.com.Music by My Good Man William: listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4KmeQUcTbeE31uFynHQLQgTo support the Coach's Journey, visit www.patreon.com/thecoachsjourney and to join the Coach's Journey Community visit www.thecoachsjourney.com/community.HERE ARE LINKS TO SOME OF THE THINGS WE MENTIONED: Katie Harvey (a coach with no niche) on The Coach’s Journey Podcast: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/episode-1-katie-harvey-14000-hours-of-coaching-being-part-of-the-uk-coaching-vanguard-and-being-a-generalist-coach The Coaching Business Flywheel: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/thecoachingbusinessflywheel The Coaching Business Flywheel Booster Pack: https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/the-coaching-business-flywheel-booster-pack

Celebrate a transformative coaching journey! Discover how the host transitioned to full-time coaching in under two years, sharing valuable lessons on the power of content and client referrals. Learn key strategies for attracting clients and creating space for business growth. Get inspired by personal stories of successes and setbacks, and understand why persistence in coaching is essential. Dive into insights that resonate with aspiring coaches at any stage!

In a world so focused on productivity, Coach’s Journey founder and host Robbie Swale is interrogating what this word really means.His work on the concept of meaningful productivity explores up questions like: “What do I need to do in order to be at peace with myself?” And: “Do I want to be more productive or simply not feel like I’m failing all the time?”In this episode of The Coach’s Journey Podcast, Robbie joins Joey Owen for a conversation that gets to the very heart of Robbie’s work as a leadership and careers coach with over 2000 hours’ experience, and as an author whose decade-long writing practice has led to valuable contributions to the field, such as The 12-Minute Method and The Coaching Business Flywheel. Robbie and Joey tackle fundamentally important questions about how coaches can make a difference in a world ravaged by conflict and division, how to stay humble in our work, and how to ensure we feel at peace with ourselves.You will hear Robbie and Joey speak about the importance of living and working with a code of honour, about learning to trust the strange and unexpected things that arise in coaching sessions, and how to integrate spiritual practices into your life through the rituals, hobbies, passions and habits you already do.If you would like to be doing more of what really matters to you, feeling better about the work you are doing, and living a rich life regardless of your financial situation, this episode is for you.Robbie and Joey also talk about:- How to cultivate a practice of trust that conversations happen at the right time- Not lying to ourselves about what we “have” to doThe places in our lives where we can practise presence and connection- How to manage your focus, attention and attitude in order to actively work towards the goals that matter most to you- The power of telling a story twice to embed an idea in your memoryThey also explore practical ways to keep yourself in the energy possibility, and Robbie shares the story of how “crashing and burning” while running a coaching event taught him powerful lessons about group dynamics, scapegoating and the importance of contracting.THINGS WE TALKED ABOUT THAT YOU MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN:- Episode 45 of The Coach’s Journey Podcast, with Raquel Ark https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/episode-45-doing-the-right-thing-even-when-its-hard-raquel-ark-interviews-robbie- Rich Litvin https://richlitvin.com/- The 12-Minute Method https://www.robbieswale.com/the12minutemethod- Workshop with Robbie and Claire Pedrick https://www.3dcoaching.com/artful-coach-soulful-business/- Robbie’s article about leading with honour (A Man Got to Have a Code) https://www.robbieswale.com/writing/2024/10/11/a-man-got-to-have-a-code-leading-with-honour-iii- The Meaningful Productivity Blueprint https://www.robbieswale.com/meaningful-productivity-blueprint-download-page- Gay Hendricks, Zone of Genius https://www.robbieswale.com/the-12-minute-blog/2022/2/3/the-zone-of-genius-the-most-powerful-thought-experiment-for-personal-transformation- Robert Holden, questions about purpose https://www.robertholden.com/blog/9-questions-help-find-purpose/- A Warren Buffet story about how he helped the pilot of his private jet prioritise more https://passionateaboutoss.com/the-story-of-mike-flint- Seth Godin on setting fees https://seths.blog/2024/11/understanding-pricing/- Parkinson’s law https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parkinson%27s_law- Douglas Hoffstatter’s law https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hofstadter%27s_law- Ramit Sethi’s podcast https://www.iwillteachyoutoberich.com/podcast/- Ffelyn Uchaf https://www.felinwales.org/- Jim Dethmer and Joel Monk on Coaching from Sourcehttps://www.coachesrising.com/podcast/jim-dethmer-coaching-from-source/- Frank Turner, The Way I Tend to Be https://frank-turner.com/tracks/the-way-i-tend-to-be/- Frank Turner, The Gathering https://frank-turner.com/tracks/the-gathering/- Frank Turner, Journey of the Magi https://frank-turner.com/tracks/journey-of-the-magi/- Internal Family Systems (IFS) drama triangle https://www.stroudtherapy.com/news/2024/02/25/dramatriangleifs- David Gemmell https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Gemmell- The Wheel of Time novel series https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wheel_of_Time- The ‘Yes, And’ teambuilding exercise https://openpracticelibrary.com/practice/yes-and/https://www.radicalagreement.com/post/yes-and-and-improv-teamwork- David Deida https://deida.info/- Freedom to Learn https://freedomtolearn.org.uk/- An Introduction to The Coach’s Journey Flywheel https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/the-coaching-business-flywheel

Being made redundant 18 months after moving to America transformed Ashana Crichton’s life because, in her own words, when you take away the security blanket you have to leap into something new.In this episode of The Coach’s Journey Podcast, Ashana fondly recalls having the rug pulled from under her feet, because it set her on the path to becoming a certified Master Executive Coach and the founder of Arc Growth, which cultivates spaces of shared belonging for influential leaders and under-represented mid-career professionals.Having returned to her native London after five years abroad, Ashana issues a plea to remove the stigma around the term ‘life coaching’ in the UK, which she sees as a barrier to inclusivity and accessibility, and she shares reflections from her groundbreaking work with the Diverse Executive Coaches Network.Ashana delivers coaching and consultancy to businesses wishing to progress diversity, equity and inclusion, and here she offers crucial insights on the way biases and power imbalances can impact coaching relationships, along with practical guidance on how to address them.This episode is a manifesto for the power of working in true partnership with our clients, as Ashana illuminates the vast potential of knowledge, experience and inspiration that can be shared when we create the conditions for coaching’s unique value exchange.In this episode, Ashana and host Alex Whitton also talk about:• How to allow time for context to emerge before asking questions that can overwhelm our clients• Unexpected responses and how to harness them in supervision• The benefits of doing a lot of things and not expecting anything from them! • Reverse-mentoring programmes, where leaders are signed up to be mentored by a team member with a different lived experienceTowards the end of this episode, Ashana shares the tools, skills and approaches she uses to continually further her personal and professional development, and expand her already broad horizons.THINGS WE TALKED ABOUT THAT YOU MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN:- The Association for Coaching https://www.associationforcoaching.com/ - Alex Whitton on the Coach’s Journey Podcast https://www.thecoachsjourney.com/podcast/episode-64-alex-whitton-balancing-the-being-and-the-doing - The Bridging Project https://www.thebridgingproject.co.uk/ - The Diverse Executive coaches network https://diverseexecutivecoaches.co.uk/ - Hay, J (2007) Reflective Practice and Supervision for Coaches. Open University Press https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=lV-wefs6JoUC

Growing up with a father and brother who were “never wrong” left Yannick Jacob seeking a life that wasn’t about right answers. That led him to coaching, and more specifically to existential coaching, a space where humanity’s oldest and most profound questions – and the plethora of answers to them – can be explored at a deeper level.Yannick is an existential life and leadership coach, a positive psychologist, and the programme director of the Accredited Certificate in Integrative Coaching (ACIC) at the School of Positive Transformation. In this episode of The Coach’s Journey, he shares what he learned about himself in order to hear his calling and live his truth as someone driven to explore the whole spectrum of what life has to offer.Host Neil Mackinnon helps Yannick to illuminate the links between his many passions, such as existential philosphy and DJing, and to demonstrate how integrating his variety of interests enriches his all areas of his work.Yannick also discusses his groundbreaking Coaching Lab, which offers the chance to witness highly experienced coaches live at work, and Rocket Supervision, which provides coaches with the support they need to practice at the top of their game.This episode will resonate with anyone who wants to feel empowered to shake up traditional coaching paradigms and create a practice that feels authentic and energising, as Yannick brings his remarkable breadth of experience and expertise to bear on some of the most fundamental questions we face as coaches and as human beings.In this episode, Yannick and Neil Mackinnon also talk about:Courageous choices, and how embracing discomfort can help to build meaningEnlarging your sphere of influence to enable people to connect with youThe power of being financially committed to something, and the benefits to your clients of raising your feesWhen we should be brave enough to challenge the traditional frame and share more of ourselves with our clientsYannick issues a rallying cry to everyone in the coaching space to frame their space, sculpt the approach that works for them, and lean into their passion for their own way of doing things.THINGS WE TALKED ABOUT THAT YOU MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN:Rocket Supervision www.RocketSupervision.com Coaching Lab www.GoCoachingLab.com Yannick’s Nuggets (mailing list) https://gocoachinglab.com/nuggetsDr Nash Popovich https://www.personalwellbeingcentre.org/nash-popovicMartin Seligman https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_SeligmanRS Lazarus on the Positive Psychology movement https://www.researchgate.net/publication/232977091_Does_the_Positive_Psychology_Movement_Have_LegsSoren Kierkegaard https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S%C3%B8ren_KierkegaardJean-Paul Sartre https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Paul_SartreNew School of Psychotherapy and Counselling https://nspc.org.uk/Christopher Neubert https://human-edge.com/team/christian-neubert/The Academy of Executive Coaching https://www.aoec.com/An Introduction to Existential Coaching: How Philosophy Can Help Your Clients https://www.aoec.com/Yannick’s book, An Introduction to Existential Coaching: How Philosophy Can Help Your Clients Live with Greater Awareness, Courage and Ownership https://www.amazon.co.uk/Introduction-Existential-Coaching-Philosophy-Awareness/dp/0367139995Albert Bandura’s Social Learning Theory https://www.simplypsychology.org/bandura.htmlCoaching Starter Kit https://rocketsupervision.com/coaching-starter-kit/Erik de Haan http://www.erikdehaan.com/Peter Hawkins https://thoughtleadership.org/staff-member/peter-hawkins/Montessori https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montessori_educationThe Coach’s Journey Flywheel https://www.animascoaching.com/about-animas/our-team/nick-bolton/Nick Bolton, Animas https://www.animascoaching.com/about-animas/our-team/nick-bolton/Heron’s six categories of intervention https://challengingcoaching.co.uk/herons-six-categories-of-intervention/Nancy Kline https://www.timetothink.com/nancy-kline/ICF https://coachingfederation.org/