Welcome to the Rich Coach Club, the podcast that teaches you how to build your dream coaching practice and how to significantly increase your income. If you're a coach and you're determined to start making more money, this show is for you. I'm master certified life coach Susan Hyatt, and I'm psyched for you to join me on this journey.

It’s no secret that the COVID-19 pandemic has been brutally tough on so many people’s lives, households, and income. People are applying for unemployment in record numbers. In some states, so many people are applying, the websites are literally crashing and can’t even accommodate the load. Many businesses are closed or partially closed or offering online services only. There’s just so much upheaval. 

And look, I’m sure I don’t need to remind you of this. You’re fully aware. It’s on all of our minds daily. And yet, amidst all the disruption, many industries are booming. Some industries, services, and products are seeing explosive sales, record numbers like never before.

Okay, you might be thinking, “Which ones?” Well, some are pretty obvious, like Clorox Bleach for example. There’s a no-brainer. Cleaning products are selling like hotcakes right now. No real surprise there. But some of the top-selling industries might surprise you.

Today’s episode is all about sales amidst the pandemic. We’ll look closer at these questions. Number one, which industries and services are selling really well right now? And why? Number two, as a coach, how can you take a cue from these top-selling industries and use this information to boost your own sales? And number three, what’s the difference between exploiting a situation versus responding intelligently to a situation? Because there’s a big difference and it’s important to discuss this.

Oh, and that’s not all. On today’s episode, we’ve also got an interview with Leah Neaderthal, founder of Smart Gets Paid. Leah’s here to share her personal story and share her hot tips on how to get sales rolling in, even during the pandemic or any other economic challenge that may arise. Boom. This is a million-dollar episode, for sure. Let’s dive in.

We’re starting with the segment that I call your Two-Minute Pep-Talk; a dose of positivity, motivation, and smart ideas to get your week started off right. Which industries, services, and products are selling in record numbers right now? And what does this mean for your coaching practice?

Let’s look at a couple of industries where sales are booming and talk about how this relates to you. Number one, online dating, y’all. Salon Magazine reports that there’s a big uptick in conversations happening on Tinder and the length of conversations are longer.

NBC mentions that Bumble, another dating app, is noticing a 21% increase in sent messages. Interesting. Makes sense though. People are stuck at home and craving connection. They’re sick of staring into their fridge and they want to find love.

As a coach, what does this mean for you? Well, if you’re a dating and relationship coach, hello, golden opportunity. You could run a program about how to navigate the online dating world without losing your mind. You could offer services to help people reenter the dating world, like a get ready for love course, helping people heal, release past trauma, and step into the dating world feeling confident and fresh and open-hearted.

Or offer a cool package where you offer coaching plus photography and writing services to do a makeover on someone’s dating profile. Make that profile sizzle and pop. So many possibilities here.

Alright, let’s discuss another industry where sales are booming. Number two, alcohol. Amidst the pandemic, alcohol sales in the US have jumped 55%. And then, for stores that offer online ordering and home delivery, alcohol sales have surged 243%. Holy crap.

So, these numbers come from a Nielson survey as reported by the Associated Press. It’s clear that people are bored, stressed lonely, and turning to alcohol to cope with these emotions. I don’t know about you, but to me, a 243% surge in alcohol sales is pretty alarming.

So, sure, I enjoy a nice glass, really more like a half-glass of champagne or a fancy cocktail now and then. But I know that too much alcohol means I’m going to have perimenopausal hormone drama y’all; poor sleep, sluggish energy the next day. It’s just not worth it to me.

I’m busy running this empire. I don’t have time to feel like crap. Not worth it. That’s why I definitely go light on the alcohol. For me personally, abstaining from alcohol is not particularly difficult. It’s not something I struggle with. But for others, this is not the case.

Many people really struggle to cut back or quit. And as a coach, that’s where you come in. If you’re a coach and you specialize in helping people to cut back on drinking or quit drinking, now is the time to rollout an offer. People need this.

Or, if you’re a coach and you have a more general focus, like releasing old habits and building new ones, maybe you offer a mini class focused specifically on alcohol. Or maybe you don’t specialize in alcohol issues but you do specialize in food issues, eating issues, body image issues. A lot of people are struggling with emotional eating right now; stress eating, binge eating, using food to cope with boredom, anger, loneliness, all that kind of stuff.

I know one woman who jokingly said she’s gaining the COVID 19 kind of like the freshman 15 that college students say they gain at school. As a coach, you could offer a program to help with this. Quite frankly, I’m like really disgusted by all the people who are – I mean, we’re in the midst of a pandemic and you know that you’re harmed by diet culture when the biggest fear is gaining the COVID 19. As coaches, we could offer programs to help with this.

There’s just so many possibilities, whether it’s changing alcohol habits or any habits. Habit change is an essentially hot topic right now. There’s a smartphone app, The Daily Shifts, which helps people build positive habits. This app experienced a 2000% increase in downloads when the pandemic began; 2000%. Hot damn. Even more proof that people want to build better habits, especially right now.

This is great news for coaches and for anybody else who works in the personal growth, mindset, and wellness space. Get out there and give the people what they want.

Okay, here’s another industry where things are booming. And this might be my favorite. Number three, pets. When the pandemic began, one animal shelter in New York went from receiving around, say, 140 adoption applications per month to 3000 applications. 

People are purchasing, adopting, and fostering pets in record numbers. So, this makes total sense, right? People are at home. Many people have a lot of unexpected free time. What better time to get a furry friend?

Okay, so as a coach, what does this mean for you? Maybe you’re a parenting coach. You could do a special program about how to successfully bring a pet into the household or how to get your kids to help out with pet care, or make a checklist to help parents decide, are we ready for a pet, something like that.

Or maybe you’re a wellness coach. You could do a fun Zoom meeting with your clients to talk about health and self-care tips and invite everybody to bring their dogs to the meeting. Oh my god, so fun. My dogs and cats frequently attend my Zoom meetings, even when they’re not invited.

On a more serious note, you could offer a coaching program about pet loss and grief, reintroducing a new pet into the family after losing one who has died. Recently, my cat Apollo went missing and it’s absolutely devastated my family. We’re still holding onto the hope that he’ll turn up, but it’s been tough.

There have been moments when I was so distracted and distraught about Apollo that it was hard to focus on meetings and writing and coaching and all the things I’ve got to do. I’ve got to self-coach myself daily to keep my mindset on track. So, there’s yet another program idea for you. You could run a program about how to focus on work and be productive, even when life is really stressful. Whether you have pets or not, that’s a topic that everybody needs to deal with these days. As a coach, I bet you’ve got some tools to help people out.

Okay, I just mentioned a few industries that are booming right now; online dating, alcohol, pets. But seriously, peeps, that’s just the tip of the tip of the iceberg. There are lots of other industries that are booming amidst the pandemic, including do-at-home workouts.

Brands like Peloton are exploding, virtual workouts, virtual wellness retreats, online gym memberships, all that kind of stuff. Anything related to cooking and baking – you literally can’t buy flour at many local stores. It’s sold out. People are baking up a storm.

The radio show Marketplace reports that sales of Blue Apron, the meal delivery service, have surged up during the pandemic. People are eating at home a lot more than usual and want services to whip up beautiful meals. And speaking of that, one of my agency’s clients, Makenna Held, she owns Julia Child’s home in the south of France. She purchased it and was running an in-person cooking school that was also an Airbnb.

The home is called La Pitchoune. So, obviously with the pandemic, 100% of her business tanked. What did she do? She started the Courageous Cooking School. You guys, you can take all kinds of classes, everything from sharpening knives to how to cook a beautiful French meal. I’m going to put the link in the show notes for you because you’ve got to check this out.

Not only is it amazing, this really well-done cooking school she created in the midst of a couple of weeks, but you get to see the inside of Julia Child’s Kitchen. Amazing.

Okay, anything related to working at home – homeschooling, successful video meetings, looking and sounding great online, setting up a virtual office. Netflix is booming. So are the sales of cannabis and CBD products. People want to be entertained and chill out.

So, your job as a coach and entrepreneur is to look at what’s booming right now and then ask yourself, “Alright, if this is what people are craving right now, how can I satisfy that craving? What could I offer? How could I be of service? What could I create to meet people where they’re at and give them what they want and need?”

Identify a problem. Come up with a solution. Deliver that solution to the marketplace. That’s what being an entrepreneur is all about. Look for the areas where sales are surging and then tweak your online business accordingly. That’s how you’ll get through this pandemic and not just survive, not just break even, but significantly increase your income.

People need you. Go serve them. You can do this. Pep-talk complete.

You’re going to love this conversation with Leah Neaderthal, founder of Smart Gets Paid. Three quick facts about Leah. Number one, she specializes in teaching people how to sell effectively and confidently. But she was not a naturally gifted salesperson. This is a skill she’s had to learn and master over time.

Number two, Leah survived a stroke in 2016 and it was an experience that radically changed how she works, how she takes care of herself, and clarified her priorities in life. And number three, she’s the cofounder of Lesbians Who Tech, a global organization to foster more LGBT women in technology. How cool is that? Let’s hear more about Leah’s story and her tips on how to keep sales strong.

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Susan: Alright, welcome to the show, Leah Neaderthal.

Leah: Thanks so much for having me.

Susan: I’m so excited to have you here because any woman who likes to talk about money and sales is somebody I want to shat with and put in front of my people.

Leah: Well, I’m so glad to be here.

Susan: Tell me a little bit about – your website is smartgetspaid.com. First of all, I think that’s the sexiest URL I’ve heard in a long time. So, how did you come up with that, Smart Gets Paid? What do you even mean by that?

Leah: So, I talk to so many women who come out of either corporate or working for somebody else and they’re so good at what they do. And just like you do, some of the smartest women I’ve ever come into contact with. And so good at doing what it is they do.

Then, when we get on the topic of selling, it’s almost like all of that expertise, all of that confidence sort of evaporates. And they feel uncomfortable or lack that confidence and it’s preventing them from getting what they actually want, which is, of course, the sort of life ambition, but that takes money.

And what’s so frustrating for the women I talk to is that they are so smart. That’s why it’s so frustrating. If I’m this smart, how come I can’t figure this out? And so, I wanted to show them that there’s a path. You can be that smart, you can be that good, and you can use that to get yourself paid.

Susan: You know what’s interesting about what you’re saying is that I used to tell myself that I was too smart to worry about, like, frivolous things like self-care, you know. So, I think being smart, for a lot of women, can turn into this really interesting excuse that, well, “I’m too smart to go down this road of trying to sell myself,” when it’s quite the opposite. It takes a lot of intelligence to effectively sell something.

Leah: Absolutely, and I think that it’s a combination of – think about the people that we’ve interacted with who sell. Sometimes, they’re doing it in a way that is almost distasteful and nobody wants to be seen like that. But I think you’re right that there is some sort of, “I’m so good at what I do, I shouldn’t have to sell.” And then you’ve got a lot of women who are just sort of quietly awesome but nobody knows about them.

Susan: Oh my god, let us all shed the skin of being quietly fucking awesome, okay. Let’s be loudly awesome.

Leah: Loudly awesome. And I have to credit one of my clients, Betsy Talbot, for coining that phrase. But it is so perfect; quietly awesome. When we worked together, she said, “I’m going to stop being quietly awesome,” and her business totally changed.

Susan: Oh my god, I love that so much. If Rich Coach Club members are listening right now and they’re like, “Okay, I’m going to stop being quietly awesome, even during this time of COVID-19…” I know there’s some stuff that you’re going to tell us that could be applicable anytime, but especially right now, what are you telling your people?

Leah: Oh my gosh, there’s so much. I mean, this is actually – I know that our tendency right now is to maybe be a little paralyzed, shrink back a little bit. But what I’m telling everyone is now is the time to put yourself out there because clients actually need you now more than ever.

All of us are going through this for the first time. There’s no pandemic expert. And clients are trying to figure out how to navigate this in their own lives, whether it’s on the personal level or within their company they’re being asked to navigate this. And they need help.

And so, I think that if you’re somebody who is, sort of, service first and all of that, now is the time to really be of service. And you can’t do that if nobody knows about you. So, the first thing is to be seen, get visible on whatever platform you like and your clients are. So, the first thing is to just get yourself visible.

Susan: That one is, I think, one of the most important. So much comes up when we say, “Okay, get visible,” because I think people overcomplicate it or then, in a lot of the work that I do, their body issues come up, their money issues come up. So, be visible, pick something and do it because your message is more important than whatever shitty story you’ve got about it.

Leah: Totally. And so, one of the things that actually makes getting visible easier is making sure that your messaging is really dialed in for right now. So, I talk to a lot of women who say, “Well I’m just going to pivot my whole business and I need to be more relevant,” and all of that. You actually don’t need to pivot your whole service set or anything like that.

But think about your messaging. I’m encouraging everyone to think about what they do in terms of a painkiller not a vitamin. How are you the thing that solves your clients’ top three problems, or one of the top three?

If you are something that’s more of a vitamin, people can go a long time without buying it or taking it, it’s going to be harder to sell. But this is only a messaging exercise.

So, the first thing to do before you get visible is think about how you’re describing your work. And when you can really see how your work really does solve people’s top three problems in their life, that’s not only empowering to them. That’s empowering to you.

Susan: First of all, I love painkiller versus vitamin. That is so fascinating. I’ve not ever heard anybody talk about it like that. But it’s so true that sometimes what you’re offering could be amazing, but it could be more aspirational, they don’t really need it right now, or they’re just not struggling with that enough that it’s something they’re going to buy.

Leah: Right, so put yourself in the shoes of your clients. Why is what you do the most important thing, not for you, but for them? And then, if you can sort of translate your messaging to speak to that, not only will it make it easier to have something to say online, when people do come into your orbit, it will help them say yes and say yes faster because you’ve aligned yourself with the things that are actually their real pains.

Susan: Awesome, alright, I like it. And I like that you said, you know, “Hey, you guys, you don’t have to pivot everything.” What you want to do is make sure you’re dialing up your message right now, not changing necessarily every single thing you’re doing. 

For example, I had already recorded a bunch of podcasts, I had already written a bunch of blogs. I had all this content ready to go for the next couple of months and then the pandemic hit and I was like, “Well this, some of it, this is post-pandemic conversation. And then this stuff, I’m still going to run it but with the caveat of, like, even now this is important. Here’s how this is relevant even in the face of COVID-19.” So, I was tweaking some of my language, but I didn’t all of a sudden become a grief counsellor.

Leah: You know, and I think for the women that you and I work with, it takes work to put these things together, right? When you think about, “Okay, what am I doing over the next couple of months?” what’s really frustrating I know, for a lot of women right now, is the plans that you made two months ago are not really applicable. But how can you be nimble and not try to do all the things but pick one thing?

For example, when you’re putting yourself out there, pick one platform. Don’t try to do all the things. But just acknowledge that the work that you did before isn’t gone. You can still use it. It’s just, right now, it’s about being more relevant to your clients.

Susan: Right, so if I’m going to be a painkiller right now and not a vitamin, it’s like, “Okay, are they really thinking right now about whatever, Summer of Yes? Or are they trying to figure out how to work from home?” There’s lots of different things we can do to pivot within the niche that we already have.

Leah: And I think that one thing that, early on when this all started was, “I don’t want to mention the pandemic because I don’t want to add fuel to the fire.” And I don’t know what you’re seeing, Susan, but I feel like, in the early weeks, it seemed sort of tone-deaf to mention it, but now it seems tone-deaf to not.

Susan: Yeah, I agree. I mean, I think that it’s interesting, many coaches, I think, struggle with this, that there’s a way to acknowledge negative circumstances happening in the world without becoming the negative circumstance. So, you can acknowledge that there is pain in the world while also being a bright light for people. I think, right now, if there’s not reference made to it, people are sort of like, “Are you living on the same planet as the rest of us?”

Leah: Exactly, I know.

Susan: So, I know many of the members of Rich Coach Club and people who listen to this podcast are really interested in selling. And so, let’s say they’re like, “Okay, I’ve got my platform, I’m committed to shedding this skin of being quietly awesome. I’m going to put myself out there. What now?”

Leah: Another thing to think about is your pipeline. And sometimes, that word even feels weird because it feels like a salesy word. But pipeline just refers to the potential clients that you’re talking to, and then, of course, the value of each of those opportunities. So, if you sell a program that is $2000 and you have 10 people that you’re talking to, then you have $20,000 in your pipeline.

So, when you think about approaching selling, the pipeline is super-important. That tells you how healthy your potential revenue is going to be. So, when you think about not just putting yourself out there, it’s how many people do I need to be talking to at a time that are real opportunities? People who not just sort of download something, but who are actually evaluating you as a service provider?

So, in normal times, I like to encourage everybody to have between two to three times what’s called pipeline coverage. So, let’s say you want to make $50,000 over the next six months, you need to be talking to people and clients that represent not just $50,000 of potential revenue, but two to three times that, so between $100,000 and $150,000.

So, what does this mean for right now? And let me back up. The reason why you do that is because inevitably something happens. Somebody pushes it off or somebody decides that they can’t do it yet, or somebody just happens to say no. So, you have 2X to 3X, two to three times that in your pipeline so that you’re covered. That’s why it’s called pipeline coverage.

Right now, what we’re going to start to see is that the sales cycle is going to get a little more fraught. It’s going to be a game of green light red light. You know the game, kids play it? So, it’s going to look like that. And the sales cycle is going to take longer. So, I’m encouraging everybody to have between 3X and 5X in their pipeline. Make sure that you’re talking to the number of people that represents potential revenue that you’ll be covered no matter what happens.

Susan: I think that’s such a smart and important point to make because I do think that so many people aren’t recognizing – so, if we go back to some of those limiting beliefs you mentioned in the beginning, that my stuff is so good, I shouldn’t have to do any of this stuff. 

But even people who are exceptional at what they do, especially while they’re building, you know – I’ve been doing this 13 years and I definitely, when COVID-19 hit, upped the sales activities because of what you’re saying, that it’s only natural that there would be this green light red light situation happening and it was helpful for us to determine, okay, people are still spending money. And it may surprise you which things are selling among your client base.

And so, by doing what you’re saying, you know, 3X to 5Xing the number of conversations you’re having with people, then you’ll have so much information to determine, like, “Oh okay, my people are really worried about this piece of what’s going on. So, what could I do about that?”

Leah: Absolutely. It’s great data and you’re just making sure that you’re going to be okay revenue-wise. And I think you’re right, this whole, like, “I shouldn’t need to sell,” I think that where that really limits people is not everybody’s going to say yes and that’s okay.

There is a bit of this that’s kind of a numbers game. But it’s not personal. It’s not a personal thing against you. It doesn’t mean you’re not smart. It doesn’t mean you’re not good at what you do. It means that there are other things going on and you have to make sure you’re covered in light of that.

Susan: I think my real estate experience prior to starting this company really helped me understand that sales is not personal. When people say no, it is not about you. It is not about your services. And so, coming into building this company, I already had training where that’s concerned. And so, many entrepreneurs, especially first-time entrepreneurs love their work and love their people so much that when they receive a no or crickets when they launch something, it feels devastating. It feels personal.

Leah: But I totally appreciate that because I don’t come from that – I didn’t have the benefit of the real estate background. So, I definitely felt like it was personal. I mean, listen, when I first started doing this, I didn’t know how to sell. I’m a total introvert. I’d much rather be doing the work and much rather be in the background and I couldn’t sell to save my life, even though my whole corporate background was in marketing.

And I did take it personally, and so I know what that feels like. I mean, somebody might say no because of whatever reason and sort of current-day Leah says, “Okay, rationally I guess that’s just what’s going on and that’s the decision that was right for them.” But 12-year-old Leah on the inside is, like, freaking out.

Susan: Right.

Leah: 12-year-old Leah is wondering why this client didn’t want to sit with me at the lunch table. And I think that’s something that we all have to acknowledge that we carry with us, but also acknowledge when that’s coming out and when it really is that we have to see it in a way that’s not personal.

Susan: And I think it’s just paying attention to, what are you telling yourself about this conversation you had with a potential client, an email you got, maybe lack of sales with a launch. It really, over time – and let me tell you something. There are things that I always think should sell better. 

I’m always like, “Why didn’t more people buy this? What’s wrong with people?” But, it’s interesting what we do internally about that. We make it mean that something’s wrong with us, something’s wrong with our work, when it’s really just a sales and marketing issue. That’s it.

Leah: You know, I think that, in this world of coaches, a lot of the conventional wisdom or a lot of the stuff that you hear in the marketplace is just like, “Put it out there and sell it. If it’s a good offer, it should sell.” And I think that we forget that people do have to go through their own education process and their own sales process internally.

And I’m not sure that, you know, what is that process on your client’s side? And the truth is that when you’re selling, especially that higher-ticket offer, you have to think through what would make this a slam dunk for them? And what are the things at play that you can’t see?

Because 90% of selling happens when you’re not even there. Your client is thinking about it. They’re talking to their spouse. They’re talking to their business partner, what have you. All of that happens when you’re not there. And so, it’s not just about putting something out there and making sure your checkout page looks good, especially if you’re selling something that requires conversation.

You really have to think about, what is the decision process that your clients go through and how can you not only understand that, literally ask the questions, how do decisions get made? But sort of lead your client through that. Because you might have sold this many times, but your client only bought it this time.

And so, I want to encourage everyone listening to this to understand that you’re actually the expert in your own sales process. It might not feel like that, but you are. And so, it’s your job to really help your client through that because they might not actually know.

Susan: Yeah, I think that’s such a good point that you make. You really do have to think through, what are the things that may pop up that will slow down a yes? What are the speedbumps, either in their mind or in their world? And think through all those things so you can address those things. 

And whatever kind of sales process you have, whether that’s a consult call or you’re selling off of a webinar or whatever it might be, you really want to think about – you mentioned spouse or partner. And I do think that that’s a big one, thinking through, like, how are those decisions made? Are there additional conversations that need to happen? And here’s the information you might need for you, the client, to have an educated conversation with either spouse or partner or business partner about this investment.

Leah: Absolutely. Think about, if you are uncomfortable selling and you’re offering your services or your program or what have you to a persona and they have to go and sell it to their spouse or partner, if we, business owners, are uncomfortable and feeling like we don’t know how to sell, how do you think they feel? And so, really arming them with the tools in terms of language, messaging, all this other stuff to help them have that conversation because you’re not going to be there for that.

Susan: You know what, Leah? As we’re talking through this, I’ve had, and my team has had so many conversations with – I certify BARE coaches and it’s interesting with my mastermind programs, even though my mastermind programs are more expensive than BARE coach training – BARE coach training is still $9000, $10,000 – the BARE coaches need the most help arming themselves with information to talk to a spouse or partner bout why they want to invest in this coach training.

And now that we’re talking through it, I’m like, “I need to create a spouse partner checklist,” like things you can say or mention, a script for them. You know, I think sometimes, and I do understand it because Scott and I – let me just say this and I’ll tell you the funny part of it.

Scott and I have always had an agreement our entire married life that if we spend above a certain amount, we would discuss it with one another. And what’s funny is he always discusses it with me and I never discuss it with him. I am the worst offender. I’m like, “Oh yeah…” But he’s so good about it.

So, it has nothing to do with – I think a lot of sales experts really come down on people and will say things like, “Oh are you not the decision-maker?” And it really had nothing to do with that. Scott’s just being very considerate, like, “Hey, this was our agreement and so is it alright with you if I go buy this whatever?” And I’m always like, “Yeah, whatever, sure.” And then it’s like, “I didn’t clear shit with you, sorry.”

But your client, especially if they are unsure, they can’t really say so many return on investment – coaching ROI, a lot of the time, is emotional. so, being able to say to a spouse or partner, there’s not a guaranteed ROI other than I’m going to feel great or I’m going to get over this thing. But helping them paint the picture of what their life is going to look like, feel like after experiencing this program.

Leah: Absolutely. I love your idea of a sort of partner conversation checklist. I don’t know if you’ve ever visited an event website and they have a whole page, like, how to talk to your boss about this event. That’s exactly why they do that. Because they have to get funding, you know, they have to get budget approval for the event.

And you can do other things too. It really depends. But for example, so my sister is a [inaudible 0:35:53.8] and she [inaudible 0:35:56.4] cheffing, she works with families to help them get food on the table and have dinner together every night. It’s called Gather Round Chef.

Susan: Oh my god, amazing.

Leah: And naturally, there is more than just the one partner involved in that conversation. And so, she was running up against, you know, the conversations – she would have a partner and they would go to their spouse or partner or whatever, and sometimes they would say yes and sometimes they wouldn’t. Well, they can have that conversation together, and she started getting a lot more yesses that way.

Susan: I think that that is such a smart way to approach that and, you know, I think that if any of you listening get that objection a lot, like, “My spouse or partner said not right now,” or, “My spouse or partner doesn’t get it,” I think it could be interesting to think about, “Alright, how can I empower this potential client to have a better conversation with the fellow partner decision-maker and maybe offer to hop on the phone. I know Patty, who does sales calls for my company, has hopped on the phone with a couple of spouses to talk about what’s possible. So, it is an interesting point.

So, alright, we have, “Get visible.” We have, “Think about the obstacles when you’re selling.” We have, “Don’t try to pivot your entire business right now.” Any last thing, any point you really want to impress upon people who are listening who really want to show up better for the sales process right now?

Leah: Absolutely. Well, I think, you know, a lot of people are thinking about how they want to get better at this because I think in normal times, you can sort of get by with not being great at selling. I talk to a lot of women who clients sort of stumble upon them or find them or get referred to them or what have you. I love referrals, so I’m never going to tell you not to do referrals, but it’s been very reactive for a lot of women.

And so, I’m really encouraging everybody to do what I’m calling buy a ticket. You’ve probably heard this story, or kind of a joke, about this woman who goes into church every day and prays to her saint, “Please, please, please let me win the lottery. Give me the grace to win the lottery.”

And she does this for months, every day, “Please, please, please let me with the lottery.” And after months, finally, one morning she’s in church and the statue comes to life, the saint comes to life and says, “Please, my child, buy a ticket.”

And so, I would encourage anybody who’s listening to this, if you want to win the lottery, you have to buy a ticket. If you’re on the fence, if you feel like you can’t get started, try something. Something is better than nothing right now. So, I’m encouraging everyone to start buying a ticket.

Susan: I love that. It’s so true. My mom – I was raised in the south – used to always say, “God wants you to pray with your feet,” meaning I definitely combine spiritual grease with elbow grease. And you can hope and wish and vision board away, but you really have to do something.

So, Leah, if people want to learn more about you, obviously we’re going to have all the links in the show notes. I know you’re very active on LinkedIn. Is that where people should find you?

Leah: LinkedIn is my jam. Yes, find me on LinkedIn.

Susan: Awesome. Thank you so much.

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One more quick thing for today. There’s a lot of confusion about the difference between exploitation and being a smart entrepreneur. These are two very different things, okay.

What’s exploitation? It means harming someone in order to achieve financial goals. So, if you are lying to your clients, if you’re promising things that you absolutely cannot deliver, if you’re emotionally abusing your clients in some way, like belittling them or frightening them, or if you’re abusing or underpaying the people on your business team, that is exploitation and that’s fucked up.

Now, on the other hand, if you notice a trend that’s happening during the pandemic, if you notice problems that people are experiencing and then you create something awesome to solve that problem and you launch it and sell it and you make a lot of money and you help you help your clients get awesome results and you pay your team a great wage, that is not exploitation. That is smart entrepreneurship.

That is you responding creatively and intelligently to the situation. That is service. So, bottom line, are you harming people, like your clients, employees, or both and making money doing it? That’s exploitation. Are you helping people and making money doing it? That’s entrepreneurship. There’s a difference, folks.

So, I want to make this point very clearly because I know a lot of coaches are freaked out right now because you don’t want to be perceived as someone who’s exploiting the pandemic for your own personal financial gains. So, let me clear this up once and for all.

If you are solving a problem, if you are helping people have a better life, if you are earning money and paying your team a fair wage while doing it, then you are not an exploiter. You are an entrepreneur. You are running a business under challenging circumstances and that is something to be proud of.

Thank you for listening to today’s episode. We discussed several industries that are having explosive sales right now, even despite the pandemic. In fact, not just despite the pandemic, but because of the pandemic. I want you to take what you’ve learned in today’s episode and apply it towards your own coaching practice. Tap into what your clients need right now. Get out there and deliver it.

And just a quick update; Crystal, who I featured in last week’s episode, remember I mentioned that she was on track, she had made $15,000 in the past three weeks and she thought she’d hit 20? She hit 25K, y’all, in 30 days. 25K for the first time ever in 30 days in her business during the pandemic. Get out there. See you next week.

Thank you for listening to Susan Hyatt's Rich Coach Club. If you enjoyed today’s show, please head over to susanhyatt.co/cash where you'll find my brand new money magazine. Now listen, we designed this magazine to be entertaining, educational, and help you make serious bank. 

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It’s pretty robust, y’all. So head over to susanhyatt.co/cash to get that magazine. And you’ll also find a link to join my free Facebook community, especially for coaches called Rich Coach Club. So bring your coaching practice and your income to the next level at susanhyatt.co. See you next week.