If you’re a coach who’s already attracting clients but you’re starting to feel a bit stuck, chances are you’ve been eyeing up some kind of support to help you move forward. Maybe you’ve seen an ad for a shiny new course that promises to be the thing. Maybe you’ve already bought it. (Maybe it’s sitting in your library next to five others you haven’t opened yet.)

If that’s you, I want to start by saying this: there is nothing wrong with you. Not finishing courses, struggling to implement them, or not getting the results you hoped for doesn’t mean you’re lazy or that you’re not cut out for this. Very often it just means a course wasn’t the right format for what you actually needed.

So let’s talk about how to work out what kind of support is the right fit when you’re further along in your business, and how to be more discerning with where you put your money, time and energy.

Listen to this episode on The Wholehearted Business Show Podcast: Listen on Apple Podcasts / Listen on Spotify

Why you have loads of courses you’ve never finished

I’ll level with you. I have spent a lot of money on courses over the years. Lots and lots. I have a massive library of courses and trainings, and some of them I’ve done and some of them I haven’t. A few of the ones I haven’t touched were very expensive.

I’m also someone who can absolutely get shiny object syndrome. It’s really easy to see the way someone presents their offer and feel pulled towards it, hoping it’ll be the thing that magically changes everything. And fair play to them, that’s good marketing! But if we’re not discerning, we can end up investing in something that just isn’t the right fit for where we are.

My business is now fourteen years old. It’s well established and I have clients every single week. And what I’ve learned is that, unless it’s something super specific, a course isn’t the thing that grows my business at this stage. It can still be the thing I feel drawn to though, and I think it’s worth shining a light on that pattern. Especially if you know something needs to change to get to the next level, but you’re not sure what.

Why courses stop working at this stage

When we’re early on in business, the problems standing between us and the next level tend to be knowledge-based. We need to understand how to do something, how to implement it, how to put it in place. Courses can be brilliant for that, because they teach you a specific thing and guide you through a way of doing it.

But further on in your business, the issues become less about what you know and more about what you should do with that knowledge. That’s where one size fits all support starts to fall short, and nine times out of ten, that’s exactly what a course is.
This is a big part of why pretty much everything I offer these days has some 1:1 support built in. I genuinely believe that unless it’s a very specific skill, one size fits all just isn’t going to do the trick anymore. Everyone’s business is so different.

So if you’re at a bit of a bottleneck, you know something needs to shift, and you’re scrolling through self-study courses, it might be worth pausing and asking whether that’s really what you need.

Three types of support and when each one fits

Generally speaking, when we invest in ourselves and our coaching businesses, we’re choosing between three formats: courses, group programmes and 1:1 support. Here’s how I think about each one.

Courses: brilliant for specific, practical skills

Courses can be amazing when they’re very specific. The most recent ones I’ve done have been around using AI (and Claude in particular) in my business, and honestly they’ve been fantastic investments. That’s a specific, teachable skill with a fairly linear path, which is exactly where a course shines.

So if there’s a clear, practical thing you need to learn, a course might be perfect.

Group programmes and live rounds: brilliant for structure, accountability and momentum

Group programmes and live rounds are great when you still need some structure and a proven framework to apply to your business, plus the accountability and community to actually follow it through. They tend to suit bigger outcomes than a single course can deliver, a string of results rather than one specific skill. They can also be a more accessible investment than fully 1:1 support.

My 12-month group programme, Wholehearted Business®, includes 1:1 support whichever option you choose, because I really believe people do better with some individual guidance alongside the group.

Whatever group programme you’re considering, look at what’s included and whether it actually gives you what you need. And depending on the investment level, I’d always recommend speaking to the person running it to check it makes sense for you and will get you the result you’re after.

1:1 mentoring: brilliant when there are lots of moving parts

1:1 mentoring is where I love to spend so much of my time, because everyone’s business is so individual. If you’ve already implemented a lot of things and there are lots of moving parts, sometimes you just need someone else’s eyes on your stuff. Someone who can give you honest feedback and use their discernment and experience to advise you.

When I’m on a call with a 1:1 client, I’m weighing up so many different elements of what’s going on, asking questions, listening to their feedback and making an assessment. It’s a really complex process, and as a coach you’ll know exactly what that’s like from your own work. So use that as a gut check. Is this something a course can fix? Or do you genuinely need someone who can see how all the pieces connect, including the ones you can’t see yourself?

Questions to ask before your next investment

Before you buy the next thing, try asking yourself these:
What problem am I trying to solve, and can I say it in one sentence?
Is this a gap in knowledge, a decision I need to make, or something that needs another kind of discernment?
Have I fully used the last thing I invested in? (Bit of a scary one, I know. Be honest with yourself!)
Will the person teaching this actually look at my business as an individual, or are they just teaching me their way of doing it?
What do I need to stop doing to make time for this? What needs to shift for me to actually show up for it?

Next steps

A lot of business support gets presented as a quick and easy fix. Just do this one thing, focus on this one area, and everything will be sorted. When you’re further on in your business, that’s rarely the case. There are usually lots of moving parts that need tweaking and fine-tuning to make things shift.

Deciding where to invest in your coaching business is genuinely difficult. But if you ask yourself those honest questions, get really clear on what you think isn’t working, and get another person’s eyes on it (whether that’s a business bestie or a coach), you’ll be in a much better place to get unstuck and move forward.

If you’d like that second pair of eyes from me, you can find out more about 1:1 Mentoring or Wholehearted Business®. And if you just need a one-off session to talk it through and make a plan, a Clarity Call might be just the thing.

I’d love to hear how you decide what to invest in for your business. Come and tell me over on Instagram.

Laura x

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