A Ten-Step Self-Care Guide For Coaches

As coaches, mentors, and guides it’s our job to hold space for our clients journey’s of discovery and growth.

So much of this work is an exchange of energy; we give of ourselves so our clients can thrive.

It’s beautiful, meaningful, soul-fulfilling work, but after seven years now of doing this work in the world I’ve learned how easy it is to burn out along the way too.

Because if all we do is give, give, give and forget to fill up our own tank we’ll find ourselves exhausted and drained and unable to actually deliver our very best work too.

So how do we support ourselves to sustain the energy we need for our work?

And how do we hold space for ourselves to recharge and steer clear of burnout along the way?

It has to be a daily choice of showing up for ourselves as much as we do our clients.

Of prioritising our own needs and our business’s needs too.

Because our clients can’t thrive if we’re not thriving too.

1. Schedule in regular time off

I take 18 weeks of a year from client work, spread out pretty evenly throughout the year. I can’t be the very best version of me for my clients if I’m not also taking time away from the work we do together to rest, recharge, and refill my tank.

My biggest encouragement? Build your business in a way that facilitates you taking time off. Map out your pricing and availability in a way that means you're still reaching your financial goals even with time off throughout the year, that way you will feel supported enough to actually schedule that time off in your calendar.

2. Schedule in client free workweeks

Some of those 18 weeks off are spent just resting and living my life, others are spent having the time and space to dive deeper into other areas of my business like content creation and product development for other offerings.

Your business needs your energy, focus, and time but it’s hard to give it that when you’re so busy showing up for your clients that you have nothing left for the rest of your business. Protecting time throughout the year just to focus on your work is one of the very best ways I know to steer the ship that is our business without getting lost in the client work along the way.

3. Set clear email boundaries for you and your clients

Whether you offer email support or maybe Voxer support in-between calls, being available 24/7 for our clients is a one way road to burnout. You are allowed to define the terms of your client communication, to have time when you’re available for them and time when you’re not.

Ask yourself: how can I be available for the ways I want to support my clients while still honouring my need for space too? What can I offer without sacrificing my own needs in the process?

4. Whatever you think your client capacity is, try and take on 20% less than that

The biggest mistake I’ve made in my business over the years is taking on more client work than what was truly sustainable for me. I both struggled to say no to enquiries and wasn’t charging enough to make my business sustainable with the client capacity that would work best for me.

I’ve learned that I need more breathing room in my schedule than I first thought to be able to not burn out on client work, and to navigate any unexpected dips in energy or personal distractions throughout the year too.

My encouragement? Whatever you think your maximum capacity is, take on at least 20% less than that. Give yourself enough breathing room to rest, recharge, and navigate your life too. And once you know what your idea capacity is then you can look at how you can price to facilitate that, and introduce secondary income streams if you want to, too.

5. Build your village

We don’t have to walk this road alone. Whether it’s a blend of your own coach, therapist, business besties, and members of your own team too, build what you need to build to truly thrive in your journey along the way.

If you’re not sure where to start with building your village? Ask yourself: in what ways am I craving more support in my business in this season? What would it look like to ask for and welcome in the support I crave?

6. Start and end your workweek and workdays focused on you

Breathing room is essential if we’re going to thrive in our business. I protect Monday’s and Friday’s in my schedule just for me - whether that’s time I spend working on other areas of my business, or time I spend just resting and living my life too. On my client days I have calls between 12pm and 4pm - that way I have space in the morning and late-afternoon just for me.

You don’t have to squeeze your needs around your clients, instead build your client time around a schedule that truly works best for you.

7. Take the sick day if you need the sick day

This is something I have really struggled with over the years - being comfortable rescheduling client calls when I’ve been too unwell for the call. I never want to feel like I’m letting my clients down and I have really been so hard on myself the times I’ve had to reschedule due to being unwell.

I wish someone would just have given me the permission slip to say: take the sick day if you need the sick day. Show yourself the same kindness and grace you would your clients if they had to unschedule due to their health. The world won’t end if they have to wait an extra week or so for their call. You are worthy of being taken care of, of resting when you need to rest.

8. Build a financial buffer

There are two funds I find to be so powerful as business owners: our emergency fund and our freedom fund.

Our emergency fund is where we save a buffer of living costs and expenses for if we navigated an unexpected slow season in our business. And then our freedom fund is an additional financial buffer on top of that so that we have even more breathing room to make decisions in our business - whether that’s saying no to a client enquiry who isn’t a good fit, letting go of a client that is no longer a good fit, or perhaps taking unexpected time off if needed.

It can take time to build up these financial buffers but once we have them we have even more freedom and space to make the decisions we need to make in our business to truly thrive in our work and life.

9. Put your business blinkers on

Nothing good comes from comparing ourselves to others in our industry. We can learn from others and be inspired by others, but once we start comparing ourselves and feeling less than in comparison to their achievements and work we lose our own momentum and alignment along the way.

This is where putting our business blinkers on comes in, on being so focused on our own work that we don’t care what everyone else around us doing. It’s such a drain on our energy to let our peace and clarity in our business be distracted by other people’s work, that we owe it to ourselves to put on those blinkers and stay focused on what matters most to us.

10. Build your recharge toolkit

For some it’s walks in nature, for others it’s yoga or a good long run, for others it’s time spent with friends or unpacking things with your own coach or therapist. Sometime’s it’s just switching off in front of Netflix, or doing something creative just for you. Pay attention to what recharges you, to what refills your tank, and then make space for it in your schedule each week. Prioritise yourself as much as you do your clients - you and your business will be capable of so much more joy and momentum when you do.

Are you feeling stuck in this season of your coaching business?

And don't worry, I'm not just leaving you stuck in your roadblock. I also have a four-part roadmap video to walk you through how to get unstuck and moving forward too!

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Jen Carrington27 April 2021