Hey, this is Lindsay Dotzlaf and you are listening to Mastering Coaching Skills episode 189.

To really compete in the coaching industry, you have to be great at coaching. That’s why every week, I will be answering your questions, sharing my stories, and offering tips and advice so you can be the best at what you do. Let’s get to work.

Hey coach, I’m so happy you’re here today, as always. And I’m going to talk about something super specific today. And I’m just, like full disclosure, I’m just going to tell you, it’s going to be a little bit of a pitch for something that I am running right now, an offer that I have open right now. But as always, it’s not just going to be a pitch because that’s not normally what I do on here. I don’t normally do pitches on my podcast.

Just full disclosure, that is coming. But it’s also going to be about doing a project, completing a project in your coaching practice, why it’s important, all the things that come up, why it’s great to have support. And as always, you can think of this through the lens of what would this look like for your clients? Like what would your version of what I’m talking about today, what would it be? I always think that’s such a powerful thing to think about.

I use this often when I’m inspired by other coaches or I see other entrepreneurs doing things. I actually love to use entrepreneurs that aren’t coaches as inspiration because normally they’re doing something so different than I am and it helps me with some creativity or just kind of wrapping my mind around something that I’ve been thinking about and not wanting to do it just like everyone else is doing it. But just seeing how other entrepreneurs are just operating in the world, I get a lot of inspiration, a lot of creativity from it.

So whether you’re a coach or not, I assume most of you probably are, but you can use this episode as, I mean, you can hear the sales pitch and you can decide you might want to join. But you can also use it as so much inspiration for your coaching, for your business. And you may even be listening to this in the future, right? This is like, I say it’s a sales pitch, but it’s only going to be a sales pitch if you’re listening in real time.

If you’re listening, maybe years from now, who knows, this won’t maybe be applicable to you unless it’s something I’m still offering at the time. But I just think there’s so much power in hearing things like this. You’ll see what I mean in a second.

So what I want to talk about today is why working on a specific project in your coaching practice is super useful. Now, not all of the time, of course. Sometimes you’re just like business as usual. I worked on the things. I did the things. And right now I’m in kind of a business is running just as it’s running phase. Those are great. You don’t always want to be in hyper project mode, hyper creativity mode. That can be sometimes exhausting.

And if you find yourself, if you’re like a person who’s like, no, I’m always in that mode, sometimes your work might be to dial it, right? And to not always have new creative ideas and new whatever.

But what we’re going to talk about today is why sometimes it can be very useful to focus on a single project in your coaching practice. It just so happens that this is an offer that I have right now. It’s called The Summer Project where we’re going to take three months and spend it working on you, a project of your choosing in a group with your colleagues, with your friends, with breakout sessions, with accountability, with coworking, and with my project skills that I’ve developed over the years of taking many coaches through projects in my advanced certification and in a mastermind that I am not currently running, but I used to run.

This is some of my favorite work to do. And here’s why, I’m going to give you all the reasons. What I think happens when you choose a specific project, and when I say project I mean something that you know, okay, this is going to take a dedicated chunk of time, dedicated chunk of mental energy to think through all the pieces of it, all the strategizing, all the figuring out of the parts that I don’t know how to do now, all of the overcoming every obstacle that comes up, right?

Like doing all of those pieces there’s so much growth that happens. What it feels like is you’re just getting the project done, right? You’re just doing the project. It’s great. It’s done. Now you can release it into the world, whatever the project is. And maybe it’s even just a project for you and you’re not even releasing it into the world. But all the things that come up along the way are growth for you in so many ways. And I’m going to give you a couple examples.

So in my advanced certification it’s required that everybody works on a project. And basically for this new offer, I’ve just taken that piece out and it’s now a standalone thing. But the reason I require it in the advanced certification, first of all, I have them pick a project that’s going to move their coaching practice forward in some way.

And that’s the same as this offer, the standalone offer. But what ends up happening, some people come in with very specific projects that they know they want to work on. And some people are like, I’m just here for the advanced certification and for some of this other learning, but I guess I’ll pick a project. And it maybe feels a little arbitrary in the beginning.

But what happens is, over time as they start working on it, one thing I tell them is it’s not about just finishing the project. I actually don’t care if you finish the project. Now, in this new offer, it’s much more focused on the project is the goal. You don’t have to turn it into me. Again, I mean, I guess I don’t really care if you finish the project, but it is like that’s the offer, right? But in the certification, it’s not about finishing the project. It’s not about getting the gold stars, although we all love a gold star here and there. But it’s more about just all the things that come up that you have to work through along the way to make it happen. All the insecurities that come up, all the blocks that come up, all the questions.

And I’ll give you a couple examples. Right now, for me personally one thing I’m working on is, I don’t know if this would be considered like a giant project. Actually, I’m going to take that back, it does feel like a project. One thing I’m working on is being more in my communication with people on my email list. So that might be you, if you’re listening. Like writing emails or writing communication, writing in a way that people want to respond to me or people want to read it, right?

If it’s like Tuesday or Thursday or whatever day it’s going to come out, I want people to think, I can’t wait for this email. Like something they look forward to. So it’s more in the form of a newsletter is what I’m thinking right now. But the overall goal is to just put more value into the world. Not more selling. Not more like buy this thing from me.

But just more like, here are some things that are interesting and helpful and some strategies. Maybe something funny, right? Like just something that’s like, I can’t wait to hear what Lindsay has to say today, or what my coaching business has to say today. And so that’s kind of a project that I’m working on.

And along the way, as I work on it, as I think through like, what does that mean? What does that look like? I have to work on some really specific things for myself. I don’t love writing emails. If you’re on my list, maybe you’ve picked up on that before. But I don’t love writing emails, and so for me it’s working through, well, why don’t I love it, right?

Like how can I communicate more naturally? How can I feel like not only is it something that people look forward to reading, but how can it be something that I look forward to writing, right? Or sharing or recording. Maybe I’ll include videos or voice memos or just thinking outside of the box, how can I make this more fun for myself?

So that part, how can I make this more fun for myself is a theme in general in my business right now, right? So it’s kind of one of those things where it’s like a thread that weaves through so many pieces of my business, of my coaching practice. And I think about this for all of the projects.

So for example, in my current certification I’ll give a couple examples of projects that people are working on, that my clients are working on without sharing names because I didn’t ask for their consent. But I do plan on having a few of them on the podcast to talk through these things in the future. So you’ll hopefully get to hear some of this.

But for example, someone is creating a specific program for her clients. It’s kind of a new offer, a new program, and she’s recording a bunch of videos. And some stuff has come up, not necessarily about the content, although that’s a thing too, but some stuff has come up around seeing herself on video, right?

It’s the first time she’s done something like this. There’s some insecurities. And I remember so deeply working through this when I was first recording videos for The Coach Lab, which is my lifetime access coach offer where I teach foundational coaching skills, right? I’ve recorded all these videos. I talk about foundational coaching skills in a way that is different than I’ve heard it talked about in other spaces. I was nervous. I was insecure about what the videos looked like. I was insecure about it, like am I doing it right?

I kind of was taking ways that I’ve seen done before and trying to copy that and just copy like the style or the format. Now what’s interesting is currently I’m redoing some of The Coach Lab content. I’m just doing it my way. It feels so different. I’m seated. It doesn’t feel like a presentation. I’m not using a lot of whiteboards. I do share my screen, pull up some notes and some Google Docs and share some stuff like that. But I’m not putting on a show, right? I’m just like, this is me sharing some things and it feels very different.

But all the things I had to work through the very first time I did all of that, they’re all things that have created growth for me in my coaching practice. And this is the same thing I see happening with my amazing client who is going through all the things that I went through when I very first created The Coach Lab and filmed all the videos and created the content for it.

There’s also someone who is creating her signature program, right? Like a 12 week program that she walks her clients through and thinking through like, okay, what does every one of the calls look like? What do we do on each call? And instead of just having her clients show up and like, okay, what do you want to coach on today? She’s working through a very specific kind of protocol for her clients through the 12 calls, right?

And it’s bringing up all these things of like, does it need to be this structured? Do I want it to be this structured? What happens if a client comes and it’s outside of this structure? Just answering all of those questions, all of the answers to those are more important than the actual end product. The end product I think of as just a bonus. Of course, it’s amazing.

And especially if, like I said, I have this offer right now that’s happening that you are welcome to join if you have a project that you’re wanting to work on. You might have a very specific thing that you’re like, no, you don’t understand, I need the end product, right? Like it’s a very specific thing. Great. Of course you want that. Of course you’re going to get there, but all the things you have to work through in order to get to that end of the road, like the finish line, are things that are going to come up over and over and over in your business.

So it just creates this growth that is different than if you just kind of put it off or kind of work on it here and there. It creates a very specific focus. And when you have a very specific focus, it just bubbles up all of these things to the surface that you’re like, oh, I didn’t see that coming, right? It’s kind of like, I’m going to make up an analogy on the fly, so I don’t know if it’s going to be great.

But it’s kind of like, let’s say you have a little ankle injury, but it’s not that big of a deal. Like every once in a while your ankle hurts and you’re like, what is that? Like, why does it hurt? But then you’re not using it that often. It’s not, I mean, you’re walking and it doesn’t hurt that bad to walk and it doesn’t always hurt, right? It only hurts in certain situations. So you’re like, I don’t know, like is it important? I’m not sure.

But then you decide that you’re going to train for a marathon and in that training, what happens is that you realize the ankle soreness is actually really important. That you have to fix it in order to accomplish this thing that you want to accomplish. You have to pay attention to it. You have to give it some attention. You have to figure out how to heal it and what’s wrong with it.

This is kind of the same thing, right? So you pick a project and then it kind of puts a very specific focus on, okay, but now I’m serious. Now I’m going to complete this thing. So all the things that come up, they actually are important, just like the ankle pain. They are important to figure out in order to complete the project. But just like the ankle pain, if you think about that, it’s also just important for your quality of life.

Even if it wasn’t bothering you that much, the fact that it was every once in a while forcing you to focus on it, like over years, over decades, it can become a really big deal. This is kind of the same thing. So a lot of times for the projects, what happens is these things that were like, no, put that off, I’ll put that off, I’ll put that off, it just forces you to focus on it and work through it.

So what I am currently offering, this is some of my truly favorite work to do with my clients. So what I decided to do is take that piece out, the part I do in my certification, just the project piece and make it just a standalone offer of just a project.

I’ve had so many coaches say I love that you do this in your advanced certification. I don’t know if I need all this other stuff, but if you ever offered a space where we’re just working on a project, because they’ve heard it from other clients that they completed this thing or whatever. And I just decided to do it. And so far, as I’m recording this, people are already joining. I could not be more excited for the coaches that are joining, the projects that they’re kind of mentioning that they maybe want to work on.

And just for this, I already know from the people that are joining, from my clients that are joining, because I did offer this early access to inside The Coach Lab. So I know most of the clients that have joined at this point and the quality of the work that is going to be done in this space, I already know is going to blow my mind. It’s going to blow everyone’s mind.

So what it will look like is three months or 12 weeks of weekly calls where the very first thing we do, obviously, is decide what is your project. This might be, like some examples might be very content focused, like something that’s like visibility, marketing, putting your content out into the world. That might look like a podcast, a YouTube channel, a LinkedIn newsletter, writing some chapters of a book.

I don’t know if you can finish a whole book in three months, but maybe you can. Maybe it’s like a short book, right? Or an opt-in sequence, a private podcast that’s a bonus for your clients. This is one of my favorite things. Anything. Any way that’s you putting your genius on display, putting your magic out into the world.

It could look like planning something that you know you’re launching in the future. Maybe it’s a live event. Maybe you don’t currently do live events or retreats, but you really want to create one or you want it to be an ongoing thing. Or maybe you do host them, but you completely want to reimagine something that you’ve never done before.

Maybe it’s creating a new program. Like I said, like The Coach Lab like some of my clients have created in the advanced certification, right? Like really thinking through what are all the pieces of the program? What’s all the content that I need to record or film or any of that?

It might be a total rebrand or a big photo shoot that showcases something very specific that you want to work on. Maybe it’s recording videos for your clients, for your signature offer, or creating something that’s more backend process focused, like a company handbook or a client workbook. Something that you’re just like, I need to set aside some time to do this and I just haven’t done it yet.

I think there are so many benefits to working on this in a group. So, surprise, this is the offer. Three months, weekly calls with me, with the group, with co-working space, accountability, breakout sessions, and complete support along the way. Strategizing, making a plan of how to finish the project, overcoming every obstacle that comes up.

Some of them will require coaching, right? Some of them will be like mental obstacles, like I don’t love the way I look on camera, or I freeze when I start filming this thing or whatever it is. All those obstacles that are like mental, that need coaching, that need kind of mindset work or just like, yeah, this is how it is. It does sometimes feel uncomfortable to do these things, right? Like sitting with it.

Or maybe it’s more strategy. I don’t know how to do this thing, does anyone else know how to do it? Maybe it’s planning a launch and you’ve never just launched, officially launched, I’m going to say launched in quotes because that can mean many different things to many people. But maybe you’ve never officially planned out a full launch before you go into it.

Anything that is on your heart, that is on your mind, that you want to put into the world, I can help you create. And if you’re like, I don’t know, you didn’t mention this thing or anything like this, just shoot me an email or find me on Instagram and shoot me a DM and just ask me. I’ll be honest.

I’ve helped so many clients with so many projects because it’s more about the process for finishing the project, not about my expertise in every single thing that you might be creating. But if it’s something completely outside of the box that I have no idea about, I will tell you.

Someone recently just emailed me saying, here’s my idea, I want to create this. I actually don’t remember exactly what it was, but part of it was like, I’m using Kajabi. I was super honest. I just responded and said, listen, I don’t use Kajabi. So if you’re looking for expertise in just that piece, it’s not me.

But if you feel confident that you can use all the Kajabi support and create, like do that part on your own and maybe networking, talking to, co-working with other people in the group, maybe there are other people that use Kajabi or that are familiar with it. Great. But just know that’s not my expertise. She responded. She said, oh no, I don’t expect you to give me that part. It’s all the other pieces that I want help with.

So I’ll be totally honest if it’s something that I think is outside the realm of what I could even help you with. And this also is an opportunity for those of you that listen, that maybe you aren’t coaches, but maybe coach adjacent.

I say coach adjacent, I don’t know if you know what that means. But if you have a business, you’re an online entrepreneur and maybe you’re a copywriter or a marketing expert or something like that, that’s like you’re running a similar service-based online business as a coach, this is also an offer for you.

This is like the one offer that I’ve had in a long time that you don’t necessarily have to be a coach in the very specific way that I talk about coaching. Maybe The Coach Lab isn’t a great fit for you, but you’ve been wanting to do some work with me, this might be your chance.

So we start in June. I believe June 26th, calls are on Wednesdays, and I cannot wait to do this work. Some questions that I’ve been getting, I’ll just go through a couple really quick. Can my project be focused on something that isn’t business? My short answer for that is, yeah, sure. You can use this space for any type of project that you want. Just know that most people probably will be working on something that is focused on their coaching practice or their entrepreneurial journey.

But there might be something that’s in your life that’s more like life-focused, health-focused, relationship-focused, anything like that. Being on a more strict schedule. I hate the word strict, I don’t even know why I just said it. Anything like that, that to me, it’s like we don’t run a coaching practice in a vacuum. We don’t live our life in a vacuum. Everything affects each other. So of course, why would I say no to that?

Do I have to know what my project is ahead of time? Definitely not. I’ve helped so many people come up with projects. The only thing I would say is that you might want to have an idea or maybe you have multiple ideas you need help narrowing it down, great. And maybe you don’t know exactly what the project is, but you know what the result you want is. That’s also fine.

I can help you brainstorm. And you can start brainstorming before we even get started so that you bring ideas. But for example, if you have a result you want to create, like more visibility, more of your work out in the world, something along those lines, okay, what could all the projects be? That could go back to some of the examples I gave, a podcast, a YouTube channel, a regular social media content calendar. Any of those things can create that. Maybe there’s something else I haven’t even considered.

This isn’t about me telling you what to do. It’s about you letting those creative juices flow in an environment where I will really foster that and allow you to hopefully flourish and just really create something that feels amazing to you.

A couple of other questions I’ve gotten are, is it a problem if, you know, it’s summer, maybe I’m going on vacation, is it okay if I miss a call? Of course. The calls will always be recorded and you will have your own client portal that you can log into to access calls at any point.

Do I have to turn the project in? Does it have to be finished by the end? No, of course not. So depending on what your project is, kind of the scope of it, how big it is, and how much time you’re willing to put into it over the 12 weeks. This project is obviously not for me, right? It is for you. It’s for your coaching practice or your entrepreneurial journey and of course I don’t care if you’re finished. You’re not going to turn it in, you’re not going to get a grade, but you will get all the support that you ask for in those 12 weeks.

So, does it have to be finished? No. Do I think you should decide ahead of time? With my help, of course, I will help you with this. Should you decide ahead of time, maybe how much would you love to complete? Sometimes we start working on something and we realize, oh, this is a way bigger project than I expected. That’s okay, I’ve seen this happen. Not a problem. I can support you through that. And sometimes the opposite happens. Oh, I just made this really big in my head, but it turns out I’ve just been putting it off and growing it. It grew in my mind. It got exponential where really the actual project doesn’t take as long as I thought. No worries. I’ll help you figure out what are the next steps.

So my goal for you would be over the summer, over the 12 weeks, you work very specifically on this project so that in September the project is ready to reveal to the world or whatever that looks like for you. If it’s something that’s like a company handbook, maybe that’s not something you’re revealing to the world, right? But just being ready to put into practice and being put into use in whatever form you intend with all of the growth that comes along with it.

So, yes, like I said, this was a little bit of a pitch and I really hope that you join us. The other thing I’m offering, I don’t know if I’ll do this again, this is like an experiment to see how it goes. It’s not an experiment on the value. I know the value is going to be incredible. It’s an experiment on maybe my capacity, my energy, like how many of these can I deliver? Will I do it again? I’m not sure.

But for this specific project, there is an upgrade option available where you get 90 minutes one-on-one with me. That might look like 90 minutes one session, like one long session. You can use it however you want for your project, or you can split it up into two 45-minute sessions. So that could be 45 minutes of something really specific that you really want to talk through with me that you either want coaching on, or you want expertise, like strategy. We can break it down, go through the whole thing.

So maybe there’s like a planning session, and then more of like an implementing, or how do I use this session. There’ll be lots of options of when you can use those calls. So that’s an upgrade that’s happening with this offer.

But I am really excited for this. The coaches that have already joined, they know because I’ve told them, I can’t wait for this to start. So we start June 26th. If you’re listening in real time or any time before then, please let me know if you’re interested. Let me know if you have any questions. We will obviously put the link in the show notes so you can find it there. You can always find it on my website. You can find it on my Instagram or my social media.

And I think that’s it. That’s all I have for you. And if you, like I said, this was a little bit of a pitch, but it was also the importance of kind of all the things that come up when you are focused on something very specific like this. So I encourage you if you’re like, I have no interest in this right now, or if you’re listening in the future and this has come and gone, and here we are, really think about what could this be for your clients?

It doesn’t matter, you don’t have to be a business coach. You do not have to coach coaches. You don’t have to be any specific type of coach to do something like this with your clients, right? To really think like, what’s one thing we can focus on? It’s not right for every situation, but with your niche, what is something like this that might be really useful for your clients that might create that really zoomed in focus that makes all the stuff bubble up to the surface? It’s a great question. So consider it. Can’t wait to see what you come up with. And if you’re interested, I cannot wait to see you inside The Summer Project. All right. See you next week. Goodbye.

Thanks for listening to this episode of Mastering Coaching Skills. If you want to learn more about my work, come visit me at lindsaydotzlafcoaching.com. That’s Lindsay with an A, D-O-T-Z-L-A-F.com. See you next week.