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Kristina God's avatar

Many thanks for your lovely DMs, email and comments somewhere else ^^

Would you mind replying to this post, as I see it has already more than 3,000 views and it would be lovely for Celia to get some feedback, spark a discussion and answer questions.

Many thanks and have a GREAT day,

Kristina

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Kim Van Bruggen's avatar

Hello Kristina and Celia.

I love learning from and sharing with people--especially when it comes to life, writing, careers, mental health, burnout, adult children, etc. So, not surprisingly, I've been drawn to (or fed through an algorithm??) many of you who are coaches in some form or another. One thing I noticed recently is I have been inundated with coaches reaching out to me over the last few months through DM's, email and Notes. I'm not sure if it's my About page or short descriptor or some other weird algorithm that seems to be drawing me to them like flies, but I began to feel like I was being looked at ONLY as a potential sale ($$) as opposed to someone to build community with. It felt extremely icky and off-putting. (I have a draft post about this that I'll get around to finishing at some point.)

I found my way to Celia through Sarah Fay's Writer's at Work co-hort group when we were asked to introduce ourselves. I was attracted to her because a) she's a fellow Canadian (ish!) b) something she wrote resonated with me and c) that smile!! (who wouldn't be drawn in by her gorgeous warm smile?!) Her story about her own work/academic life, workplace bullying, burnout, grief were all ringing my bells. You go sister! I want to support and promote.

I subscribed and followed and said hello on the 'thread' and at some point, found a great video clip that mirrored something of my own experience and was inspired by it, wrote about it, promoting her and the video clip along the way. There wasn't a like, share, acknowledgement or a comment. Crickets. The same happened with another therapist/coach who's actively trying to get subscribers and clients. Suffice to say, your advice about engagement is critical. Especially if you want to be authentic on here and have us (potential clients) feel like we're part of your community--whether we can afford to be an active client right now or not. I share this with you as you both have asked for others' experience with coaching here. This has been mine and if it's been mine, it's likely been others'.

While I am not formally a certified coach, I have worked with a few and can attest to how amazing and magical it can be (and I've actively encouraged and helped them get onto Substack to write and promote their own corner of coaching). I am also a woman who's been in a position of leadership so I've had the opportunity to mentor many women over the years. I enjoy it immensely.

So, while I am not officially in your ranks, I do want to add something to all this wonderful advice.

1) If you are looking to build your coaching business on here, don't make us (potential clients) feel like we've been targeted into the fish net and cast off if we don't show immediate promise as a paying client. Play the long game. At some point, I may wish to buy what you're offering, but I want to be part of the community you're building too. Not just as a client to be coached, but as a subscriber to your writing. Just a thought.

2) If people are connecting with your writing, promoting your newsletter, or sharing something you've written--acknowledge it, it doesn't take much time or effort to hit the like button. It's part of building your community. We're telling you we really like what you've written and shared. We've been inspired by you. That's a great sign of what's to come.

3) When there is no engagement, yet we start to see coaches then ask for support, subscribers, feedback, etc--it creates a dissonance. Like, where have you been?

I love Celia's newsletter. I love how she gives us little nuggets we can use even if we aren't able to be paying subscribers at the moment. I can see she's the real deal. It keeps me interested in more. She is going to be a rockstar here because she knows her shit. I look forward to one day being able to engage more AND be looking for coaching when I'm ready for it.

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