This blog post has been authored by Cherene Francis, Cherene Francis Inc.
Are you wanting to start your coaching consulting business and your brand spanking new, so you feel a little bit like an imposter? Do you feel like you’re not ready, you’re not the expert, who am I to …? If that’s you, then you’re in the right spot because I’m going to share how to overcome imposter syndrome.
Feeling imposter syndrome is normal for a new coach because, as a coach, you’re stepping into this world of leadership where people look up to you, and there’s this whole idea of you knowing the answers to everything. I think the life coaching or consulting industry is very much misunderstood.
When you announce yourself as a coach or a consultant, it’s not that you’re saying you know it all. When you announce yourself as an expert, it’s not that you’re saying you know it all. It’s just that you’re saying, I know a little more about something than you, and I can help you. That’s what it’s about. Or if you’re a life coach, it’s not that you’re saying you know everything about life. You’re actually saying, look, I have a couple of great tools and ways that you can harness your greatness. Let me show you how to use those tools so that you can navigate life. That’s really what it is when you become a consultant and a life coach. The titles of life coach or expert tend to be all grand. We look at it as an identity that’s really big and even bigger than what we may already see ourselves to be. What’s important is that you really put your title in perspective. You put all of those labels in perspective. They are just labels. This is not about your label of self, and it’s not how other people understand that label. This is about you stepping into leadership and really impacting the people that could use your help.
Tip #1: Put Your Title in its Proper Perspective
My first tip then is to stop caring or thinking about how people will perceive you. Don’t focus on the perception of yourself. Focus on them and who you need to help. Start by really thinking about your avatar or your target market. If you don’t know this, you can join my mentorship program to learn more.
Once you know your avatar and the person you feel really called to serve, you want to just visualize and zone in on their problem, their challenge, vision, and what they want to create for themselves in their life and focus on that. Focus on what if they didn’t get to know you? What if they didn’t know you had these fantastic skillsets to help them get to their vision? Wouldn’t it be harder for them to get there? Wouldn’t it be more challenging? Or would they remain in pain or struggle due to not hearing about you and knowing about you? When you think about your consulting business or coaching business this way, it gets your whole image and imposter and identity conversation out of the way, and it puts what matters most at the forefront.
What matters most is that I help you see why you need to get over yourself and put yourself out there. The first key is to stop worrying so much about yourself and start focusing on the mission. Start focusing on what it is you’re here to do and how you want to help people. What tends to minimize this whole idea of you being the grand God that everybody comes to for coaching advice.
Tip #2: Do The Mindset Work
The next tip I have to get over this imposter syndrome because you got to do the mindset work. I’m sure you already know this because you’re a coach, or you should know this. Do the mindset work, do the motivational work. Become more aware of the more in-depth work that’s required.
There may be profound embedded beliefs, not just in your mind, but in your unconscious mind, your body, your nervous system. Maybe you weren’t told that you’re amazing, or that you’re incredible, or that you can do all these great things. Maybe you didn’t grow up with a lot of attention, so now when it comes to your business and marketing yourself, it is new and unchartered territories for you, and what you really need to do now is recondition your mind and your body to get comfortable in front of people and get comfortable with talking about yourself, and talking about the skill sets you to have. It might feel a little selfish or self-promo or sales when you talk about all the cool modalities you have, or the cool courses, or all the things that you have learned and that you can teach people. However, if they don’t know, then it comes right back to what we talked about before, which is if they don’t know that you can help them, then they will continue to stay stuck, or they will continue to wonder, or they’ll continue to be at a place that is not where they want to be, and this is why you’re here.
Tip #3 Unleash Your Gifts Now
The last tip I have for imposter syndrome is shame on you for holding yourself back, holding your gift back. Your gift is for you absolutely, but it’s also for the many people that need your help. You are doing a disservice to those people by playing this story in your head. I know that you know that you have something unique and that you can make a mark somewhere. It doesn’t need to be a big gigantic footprint that everybody in the world sees, but it definitely can be a footprint, and you need to honor yourself. You don’t need to compare yourself to what all the other experts are doing. Honor your footprint, honor where your beginning is now, whether it’s small or big, or not even there all together, honor your small beginning. It is big stuff, powerful stuff, and when it is nurtured, and when you continue to grow your business, it will continue to expand.
If you continue to play this story of I am an imposter, I’m not good enough, or I can’t do this, or I just don’t have the I don’t know, you are dishonoring, you are not grateful for what you do have and how you can serve today.
Cherene Francis is a Multiple Award-Winning Entrepreneur, Actor, Motivational Speaker, #1 International Bestselling Author, International Television Show Host & Producer inspiring thousands of viewers through stage and media.
Cherene Francis has formal education and experience in the Performing Arts, Film/TV Media, Communications, Personal-Brand Marketing, Religious Studies, Philosophy, and Spirituality.
She is also an Internationally Board Designated Institute and Trainer of Hypnosis, Master Practitioner of Neuro-Linguistic Programming, Master Practitioner of Time Line Therapy, and Master NLP Coach.
When she isn’t teaching in business circles, speaking on stage or acting on camera, you can find her watching Netflix at home with her husband and two daughters in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.