rketing costs. Although marketing can be done very cheaply, a budget does need to be set aside for this. Marketing is the one activity that is going to bring you new business, so it is a priority. If marketing isn’t your forte you may need to allow in your budget for hiring outside help or learning to do it yourself. When estimating these investments, always make them higher than you think they need to be because inevitably they will be higher.

If your financial plan has your income underestimated and your outgoings overestimated, you're likely to end

The majority of coaches start their coaching business because they love coaching and with the right training have developed their skills to a particular level. It is one thing to love what you do and be good at it, and another to take this and turn it into a successful business. Whether you want your coaching business to be part-time, full-time or to grow into a much bigger company, you need to make money.

In order to make money, you need to clearly evaluate the financial side of the business and whether what you want to do is viable. This is going to vary for each of you as individuals. Some coaches would be looking to make a high income, perhaps because that's what they used to, for some they want a more reasonable income because they don't want to work long hours and there's the coaches who can just enjoy the extra money.

So, one of the first steps is to have a clear idea of the income that you want. Set your income goal and think about realistically, how long this will take you to achieve it. Layout your month by month financial plan so that you can see any shortfalls in your income needed. Once you can see these gaps, you can now choose how best to fill them. Perhaps with a loan or a temporary job. When you're estimating your income, always err on the side of caution, because often the income doesn't happen as quickly as we hoped for.

The next step is to take a look your target market and the niche that you want to work within. Make sure to define this specifically, and then research the niche. You need to have an idea of the potential, i.e. is the market big enough? What fees are this market willing to pay? What value will you offer to this market? Why should they buy from you? Some markets are willing to pay more than others, so you need to ensure that the market you have chosen fits in with the income goal that you have. Although one-to-one coaching works well for a lot of niches, it may be that the niche you have chosen lends itself better to lower-priced products.

You also need to consider the resources that you’ll need to build your coaching business. These resources could be, the time you need to invest, the people you'll need to hire, the equipment you need to buy and your marketing costs. Although marketing can be done very cheaply, a budget does need to be set aside for this. Marketing is the one activity that is going to bring you new business, so it is a priority. If marketing isn’t your forte you may need to allow in your budget for hiring outside help or learning to do it yourself. When estimating these investments, always make them higher than you think they need to be because inevitably they will be higher.

If your financial plan has your income underestimated and your outgoings overestimated, you're likely to end

vary for each of you as individuals. Some coaches would be looking to make a high income, perhaps because that's what they used to, for some they want a more reasonable income because they don't want to work long hours and there's the coaches who can just enjoy the extra money.

So, one of the first steps is to have a clear idea of the income that you want. Set your income goal and think about realistically, how long this will take you to achieve it. Layout your month by month financial plan so that you can see any shortfalls in your income needed. Once you can see these gaps, you can now choose how best to fill them. Perhaps with a loan or a temporary job. When you're estimating your income, always err on the side of caution, because often the income doesn't happen as quickly as we hoped for.

The next step is to take a look your target market and the niche that you want to work within. Make sure to define this specifically, and then research the niche. You need to have an idea of the potential, i.e. is the market big enough? What fees are this market willing to pay? What value will you offer to this market? Why should they buy from you? Some markets are willing to pay more than others, so you need to ensure that the market you have chosen fits in with the income goal that you have. Although one-to-one coaching works well for a lot of niches, it may be that the niche you have chosen lends itself better to lower-priced products.

You also need to consider the resources that you’ll need to build your coaching business. These resources could be, the time you need to invest, the people you'll need to hire, the equipment you need to buy and your marketing costs. Although marketing can be done very cheaply, a budget does need to be set aside for this. Marketing is the one activity that is going to bring you new business, so it is a priority. If marketing isn’t your forte you may need to allow in your budget for hiring outside help or learning to do it yourself. When estimating these investments, always make them higher than you think they need to be because inevitably they will be higher.

If your financial plan has your income underestimated and your outgoings overestimated, you're likely to end

e you can see these gaps, you can now choose how best to fill them. Perhaps with a loan or a temporary job. When you're estimating your income, always err on the side of caution, because often the income doesn't happen as quickly as we hoped for.

The next step is to take a look your target market and the niche that you want to work within. Make sure to define this specifically, and then research the niche. You need to have an idea of the potential, i.e. is the market big enough? What fees are this market willing to pay? What value will you offer to this market? Why should they buy from you? Some markets are willing to pay more than others, so you need to ensure that the market you have chosen fits in with the income goal that you have. Although one-to-one coaching works well for a lot of niches, it may be that the niche you have chosen lends itself better to lower-priced products.

You also need to consider the resources that you’ll need to build your coaching business. These resources could be, the time you need to invest, the people you'll need to hire, the equipment you need to buy and your marketing costs. Although marketing can be done very cheaply, a budget does need to be set aside for this. Marketing is the one activity that is going to bring you new business, so it is a priority. If marketing isn’t your forte you may need to allow in your budget for hiring outside help or learning to do it yourself. When estimating these investments, always make them higher than you think they need to be because inevitably they will be higher.

If your financial plan has your income underestimated and your outgoings overestimated, you're likely to end

this market? Why should they buy from you? Some markets are willing to pay more than others, so you need to ensure that the market you have chosen fits in with the income goal that you have. Although one-to-one coaching works well for a lot of niches, it may be that the niche you have chosen lends itself better to lower-priced products.

You also need to consider the resources that you’ll need to build your coaching business. These resources could be, the time you need to invest, the people you'll need to hire, the equipment you need to buy and your marketing costs. Although marketing can be done very cheaply, a budget does need to be set aside for this. Marketing is the one activity that is going to bring you new business, so it is a priority. If marketing isn’t your forte you may need to allow in your budget for hiring outside help or learning to do it yourself. When estimating these investments, always make them higher than you think they need to be because inevitably they will be higher.

If your financial plan has your income underestimated and your outgoings overestimated, you're likely to end

rketing costs. Although marketing can be done very cheaply, a budget does need to be set aside for this. Marketing is the one activity that is going to bring you new business, so it is a priority. If marketing isn’t your forte you may need to allow in your budget for hiring outside help or learning to do it yourself. When estimating these investments, always make them higher than you think they need to be because inevitably they will be higher.

If your financial plan has your income underestimated and your outgoings overestimated, you're likely to end up in a better position than you thought for. It allows you clearly to see where you're going and what you need to do financially, so that you can make choices before hitting the critical stage of needing clients and needing money. If you hit this stage it’s harder to be objective and make good strategy decisions for developing business.

So, whatever stage your businesses is at today, I invite you to take a careful look at the financial side, consider all of the above and layout a financial plan that works for you.