Ep #82: The Mastermind – Behind the Scenes

You are listening to The Life Coach Business Podcast, episode number 82.

Welcome to The Life Coach Business Podcast, a show for coaches who are ready to up-level their business and take their impact, leadership, and results to a whole new level. If you’re ready to start taking powerful action and become the leader your business needs in order to grow and thrive, this show is for you. I’m your host, Amanda Karlstad, certified life and business coach, and entrepreneurial leadership expert. Now, let’s get down to business.

Hello and welcome everyone. So glad to have you with me today. I hope you’re doing well. I am doing amazing. It’s a beautiful day here. We are headed into spring. Actually, we’re already in spring. And everything’s turning green, and plants are starting to sprout up, buds on the trees again, and it just feels wonderful.

I have had a great couple of weeks. And it’s been an intense couple of weeks. But it’s been a really wonderful couple of weeks. And the reason that it has is because I’ve been working on some big projects behind the scenes in my business.

And I have been observing and witnessing so many client wins, and it’s been just such an exciting time. So last week I held my in-person quarterly retreat for my high-level mastermind clients. So these are the clients that typically have gone through my foundational program, The Mastermind, and who have graduated from that program and have moved into that next program where we really take things even deeper, where we really in most cases are scaling their business.

And so one of the things that I do that I love, and I know my clients love in that program is that we do quarterly retreats. And so last week we had an in-person, it was so great to be in-person, quarterly retreat. And as we were wrapping it up, one of my clients, she asked, “Okay, so when is our next one and my vote is that we just do this again because it was so good.”

And I’m chuckling at that because it really – I’m just so proud of the work that my clients are doing. I’m so – it was so wonderful to be able to spend that time with them in person. And to go so deep into their business and so deep into what’s going on with them from an inner game perspective. And really help create some massive shifts.

And so for me, being able to connect with my clients on such a deep level is so, so important. And it’s a really special thing. And it’s something that I’ve been really intentional about as I’ve created my program, as I’ve developed my program, as I bring on new clients into my program is that I’m really able to maintain that level of intimacy.

And so it’s just a very special thing and I think that having that time especially to be away from the kids, from the family, from whatever that looks like, and being able to spend that dedicated time on your business, to work on your business, and be in a room with other like-minded, driven, successful coaches who are doing really big things, I think that’s one of the most valuable things you can do for your business.

And so on that note, I’m excited to have a little bit different conversation with you all today. So I decided that for today’s episode, I wanted to do it a little bit differently because I get a lot of questions about how I work with clients, about what my programs are like, about what’s included, what’s involved in my programs, the results clients get, all sorts of things.

And so because I haven’t really dedicated a full episode to explaining this and to really going in-depth with this, I decided to do that today. But before we dive into the episode, I want to give a shout-out to a recent review of the podcast. I want to give a big shout-out to Ninu352 who recently left a five-star review of the podcast.

And she said, “Insightful exploration towards creating value. I really appreciate listening to Amanda’s podcast as she’s sharing such genuine insights and practical tips to bring value as a coach.”

Ninu, thank you so much for your review. I really, really appreciate it. I want you to know that you taking the time and giving me that review really means a lot, and I’m so glad to hear that you’re getting so much from the show.

That really is my goal with this podcast and has been from day one is to deliver as much value to you all as I can every week. And to deliver value that is really going to help you build, grow, and scale your business. So thank you again for taking the time and for providing that review. It really, really does mean a lot and I do appreciate it.

And I will say that for those of you listening, if you haven’t left a review but you’re finding value in this podcast every week, if this is helping you in any way, if what I’m bringing to you each and every week is helping you, I would love to hear from you. I would love if you would be so kind to leave a review and I’d love to give you a shout-out. It really does mean a lot.

Because for those of you who maybe aren’t podcasters, when it comes to podcasts, reviews really are in many ways – they are what fuel the show, meaning it’s really a way for the show to reach more and more people. And it helps keep the value coming from a creator perspective in a way that’s meaningful to you.

It’s so valuable. I can’t tell you as a creator of the podcast to be able to read these reviews and to see the benefit and to see the value that you’re really getting. It really does help also fuel me.

So if you find value in this podcast, especially if you’ve been listening for a while, I want to really encourage you to leave a review. I would so appreciate it. And I promise, I will give you a big shout-out and thank you publicly on the show. And really let you know how much that means to me.

So again, you can do that at any of the major podcast platforms, you’ll be able to find where to do that. So with that, I want to give you all a behind-the-scenes look at my mastermind program today.

And the reason that I decided to focus today’s show on this is because I know all of you listening are right now in the process of either launching or growing or scaling your coaching practice. And I want to be able to give you a behind-the-scenes look at my program and how I work with clients and talk about some of the foundational things that I teach in this program and why my clients make such quantum leaps in their businesses, and why many of my clients have been able to grow their businesses beyond what they originally thought was possible when, quite honestly, we started working together.

And so I want to be able to offer you some more in-depth insight into the process that I teach and also my thought process as I’ve developed this program and as I approach this program.

So I think a good starting point here is for those of you who may be newer to my work, I have two programs that I run. One is my foundational program, which is called The Mastermind. So this is the foundational program that I will say most clients when they come to me, this is the program that makes the most sense for them.

And this program in particular is a business accelerator program. And so the idea with this program is it’s really designed to build the foundations of your coaching business. It’s really built to help my clients reach their first six figures in revenue in the most accelerated way.

And so the reason I decided to build this program is because it’s literally the program I wish I would have had when I was first starting out. And as I look back on the evolution of this program, it was really built through my own experience of building my own practice and also now having mentored and coached so many coaches through the same process.

And I think one of the most important things that I want to convey and I want all of you to understand about this program is it’s a very holistic program. And what that means is what I teach, what I mentor, what I coach my clients on in this program is not just based on the latest fads.

What I teach and what I coach my clients through and what we ultimately implement in their business is founded on solid business principles. And I think it’s really important to understand this because for those of you listening who are working to build your business right now, or some of you who might be scaling your business right now, I know you know what I mean when I say bright shiny objects.

And I know that every one of you listening right now has experienced what I call bright shiny objects, which in most cases tend to be just fads. So I want to give you some examples of this. So one of the things that I see that’s very common for newer coaches especially, but I think in the industry in general and for some of the clients that come to me is that they’ve spent some time trying to build their business using some of these tactics.

Meaning they’ve tried some of the bright shiny object approaches. And what happens is at the end of the day, they’re not much farther along than they were before they started. And I will say for the vast majority of them, in fact, really with all of the clients I’ve worked with, they also have had the experience that these types of approaches are just not sustainable in their business.

And so let me talk for a minute specifically about what types of approaches I’m talking about. So one of the things I’m talking about are approaches like cold DMing. So I don’t know about you, but I know for me, on a daily basis, seven days a week, I am getting cold DMs, cold outreach from people that have literally – that have no agenda, other than to really sell me whatever it is that they’re selling.

And I got to be honest about this, it is – in my opinion, this is not a good look. And so I have never purchased, nor do I ever anticipate purchasing from anybody that is blatantly cold DMing me. And so I know that there are approaches being taught out there, I know that this is a tactic, I know that this is something that is being taught out in the market.

Not saying that it can’t work. I particularly don’t think it’s a very useful approach. I don’t think it’s an effective approach at all. And I say that with my own experience being on the receiving end of that.

So another example of one of these fad approaches I would say would be spending time in Facebook groups. So I know that there are teachers out there, there are approaches out there that are coaching people to spend time in Facebook groups “adding value.”

And the idea here is that the hope that someone will respond to this value or perhaps get into the DM. I’ve literally seen coaches teach this where you’re kind of taught to lurk out, hang out in these Facebook groups and like I said, “add value,” but the intention really being to get clients.

And so I know for my clients especially, especially the ones that have tried these approaches, very quickly they have realized that this is not how I want to build my business. And I want to be clear that these are not the types of things that I’m teaching in my program.

And so another example would be when we’re talking about social media. So if you haven’t noticed, recently there’s a lot of people that are dancing all over the place on social media, that are in a way selling their soul, dancing to their iPhone, creating tons of social media content and trying to work the algorithm in a way so that they can gain as many followers as possible, and fingers crossed, hope that they can maybe schedule some consults, or hopefully fingers crossed they can get some clients.

And so here’s what I want to say about that. I do think it’s important to establish yourself on social media, I do think it’s important to be visible. I also don’t believe that you have to be on social media 24/7. I also really encourage you all to not build your business solely on social media.

And so those are just some examples that I see that are very, very common that when I’m doing initial calls with clients, that either they’ve tried these tactics or they’ve heard about them, and they just know that they don’t feel in alignment with them.

And so I would encourage you if you’re feeling that way right now, if you’re doing some of these things, and it just doesn’t feel right, I would encourage you to really lean into that and to listen to that. Because the truth is that you don’t have to be building your business with these trends.

You don’t have to have a fear of missing out, you don’t have to have FOMO about not doing the Instagram reels and all the things that are out there. And you definitely don’t need to be throwing spaghetti at the wall and hoping something will stick.

So for those of you that might feel like that’s exactly what you’re doing right now, I want you to know there’s hope. In fact, it’s something that is really, really important to me that I incorporate into my program, that I have a very specific process that I teach all of my clients that we then implement in each of their businesses so that they don’t have to sell their souls on social media, so that they don’t have to spend their lives in Facebook groups and trying to, again, “add value” when the real intention behind that is to get clients.

And so we do this in a way that’s very, very holistic and in a way that honestly is founded on sound business principles. And so no matter what type of business you’re building, no matter if this is a coaching business or any type of business, the holistic growth method that I’ve developed that I teach, the process that I teach all of my clients does ensure that we build an ecosystem within their business.

It ensures that we build a solid foundation that they’re able to build on for years to come. And when I step back and I look at my clients and I look at where their businesses are after they’ve gone through this process and where we started in many cases, it’s very clear that it’s absolutely one of the reasons why they create such massive results.

It’s why I have clients that literally go from zero or a handful of clients to making their first six figures and in some cases more in a very short amount of time, and in some cases months. And it’s because we build such a level of clarity in their business, it’s because of the foundational work that we do that what that does from their mindset is it gives them such a level of confidence in what they’re doing.

It gives them the ability to go out and honestly show up with such a level of certainty, with such a level of authenticity in their business that ultimately what happens is that their ideal clients are attracted to them. Their ideal clients and opportunities come to them.

And so this program and the process that I teach, the process that I’ve developed is really near and dear to my heart. And I have to tell you that while it’s evolved over the last couple of years, as I’ve mentored and as I’ve coached so many coaches through this program, it’s also why I can have this conversation with you today and be so confident in the results of this program.

And I will tell you that this program was built with the intention to get my clients results. That was really important to me when I developed this process. And the reason that that was so important to me was because in my own experience, as I was very early on in my business and I was trying to piece everything together, I was investing in the courses, I was investing in lots of different programs.

And while I learned a lot through that process, what happened was in every case, I always found that they were so often just addressing one piece of the puzzle. So maybe it was sales, maybe it was consults, or maybe it was focused on organic growth, or in some cases, it was just purely mindset, which I think can be great in some cases, but the truth is that when you’re building a business from scratch, when you’re looking to launch a business, when you’re looking to build a business like this, it takes more than mindset.

And trust me, I am all about the mindset each and every day. It always comes from that. But there comes a point in time where you need strategy, where you need some of the how-to. And so that is why I created this program and it’s why I believe that this process, whether you’re just starting out or maybe you’re even more seasoned, that it’s the process that ultimately you have to go through, whether you want to launch your business, or you’ve already experienced some success, you have some clients, but you’re just ready to take things to the next level.

So I truly believe that if you’re building a coaching practice, no matter what niche you’re in, if you want to build a highly successful and sustainable business, that this is the foundation that you need. And so I want you all to know that everything I create, everything that I share with you on this podcast, everything I include in my program, which I’m going to talk in detail in a minute, everything comes from the lens, I filter everything through the lens of what is going to help you, what is going to help my clients be most successful.

And I will say that it’s not always about what’s creating the success right now, but it’s also in addition to that what is going to help my clients create success in the long term, and I think that’s really, really important.

So I want to share that just earlier this week, I was thinking about the fact that there’s a real difference between a program that teaches you one piece of the puzzle versus a program and having a coach that’s truly invested in helping you get to the finish line. There’s a big difference between that.

And so this program is a highly transformational experience that does combine the strategy, it combines the actual how, which I know so many of you struggle with, but it also goes very deep into the inner game. It’s a container that creates massive shifts from an inner game perspective that really help my clients step into and evolve into those next levels of themselves, both as business owners and also as coaches.

So because of that, one of the things that I want to share with you that I think is important to know about this program is that it is a combination of both group coaching and high-level one-on-one support.

So in this program, we have weekly group coaching calls, and we also have one-on-one calls. We have one-on-one sessions, so every client gets one-on-one time with me. And so every client that goes through this process and is in this program also has the ability to mastermind with all the other group members, and I think that’s really important.

So there’s also a community aspect to this. So we meet as a group every week, everyone gets one-on-one coaching with me throughout the program, there’s full support each and every week. As you’re building your business, you do get personalized reviews, personalized feedback, all the resources.

I have a vast library of resources and trainings that I do include in this program. So whether that’s website copy, whether that’s a funnel, whether it’s branding, whatever it is, I’m always providing feedback, I’m always providing highly customized feedback to each and every one of my clients to help them continue to build that momentum and continue to hone every part of their business.

And so the other thing that I want to mention is that one of the things that I am really proud of is that I do help my clients fully build out and optimize their marketing funnels. So I know for those of you listening, I’m going to make an assumption here that you’re all familiar with the term funnel.

And some of you may already have a funnel in place, some of you may not, and some of you might have already thought about the types of funnels or a funnel that you want to build. No matter where you’re at, what I want you to know is that this is absolutely something that we work on through this process.

And so I’ve got a ton of resources and a ton of trainings that I’ve included in the program that are step by step, walk through, step by step that are swipe files, all sorts of things that help shorten the learning curve for you. I’ve been really intentional about wanting to help shorten that learning curve for all of you.

And so what this does is it really helps you implement faster, it helps you really get out there and start taking action on the things that you’ve likely been wanting to take action on for a long time. So it’s really important I think to utilize these resources and to have these resources because I know for me, those have been super important to my own development, my own growth is being able to have roadmaps and to be able to have some guidance as far as what to actually – how to actually build out some of these things. And so that’s a really, really important component of the program.

The other piece that I want to talk about is the initial deep dive. So one of the first things I do when I bring on a new client is I schedule what I call an initial deep dive. And what that is is that’s a session where we go deep into your business, where we look at everything that you currently have in your business, where we really develop the game plan, where we look at what’s needed, where are the gaps, what’s working, what’s not.

And what happens from that point is there’s a very customized strategy that I put together for each and every client. And so every client has a very specific strategy with 90-day goals that are built around what they really want to create long-term in their business.

So right off the bat, when you join this program, the first thing that we do is we’ll create the strategy so you’re clear on your next steps, so you’re clear on some of the how’s, so you’re clear on what needs to be implemented and what we need to focus on to create that success.

And so there’s group coaching, the one-on-one coaching, weekly reviews and feedback, we also have bonus masterclasses that I’ve created. And so this is something that I am absolutely in love with where I deliver different masterclasses, different bonus essentially trainings and classes throughout the program on things like how to become a high-level coach, how to become the leader your business really needs.

So in each of these masterclasses that I’m offering, which are essentially mini courses within this program, I’m teaching very high-level concepts. I’m teaching very powerful concepts that are designed to help my clients make these quantum shifts, that are helping them make the shifts both internally and also from a strategy perspective.

So it’s a very, very powerful container. And so the other piece that I want you all to know about is that some of you I know when it comes to things like how to market your business, so specifically what does that look like, that’s one of the biggest questions that I get from clients, and I think it’s one of the biggest challenges that I know all of you have is how do you best market your business.

And so one of the things that I teach all of my clients and one of the big components that I mentor my l clients through is implementing a real marketing strategy in their business. So for some, and for most of my clients, it does include some paid advertising. Not in every case, but in some cases, it does.

So one of the courses that I’ve created in this program does teach all of my clients how to create, launch, and really optimize any paid advertising campaign. So it truly doesn’t matter if you’re advertising on Facebook or Instagram or LinkedIn or Pinterest, YouTube, whatever platform you’re trying to advertise on.

What I teach in this process is relevant to all of the platforms. I do focus first on Facebook and Instagram. Typically that’s the best place to start. But everything that I teach is extremely relevant to every other platform. So this alone, what I teach in terms of paid advertising has literally been the product of me investing tens of thousands of dollars over the last few years in learning from the best of the best in the field. The best of the best in the industry.

And what I’ve done is I’ve created an entire course inside of my program that teaches my clients and coaches specifically because there is a difference from creating campaigns, whether you’re a coach versus whether you’re in e-commerce or a service, other service-based business. There are some nuances to it.

And so what I think is really powerful here and again, one of the reasons why my clients get such great results is because everything is geared towards coaches and building a coaching practice. And so from an organic perspective, some of you might be also wondering about what that looks like from an organic perspective.

And that’s a great, great question. So from an organic perspective, I also teach various strategies on how to market yourself organically. So again, you can see that there’s a lot when it comes to this particular program and I want to be honest with you all that this is a very intensive program.

And I will say that I’ve designed it very intentionally that way because I know what’s required to really build your business. I know what’s required to really get results. And this is it.

And so hopefully you can see by what I outlined that we’re not just focusing on one thing here. We’re not focusing on fads in this program. What we’re focusing on is very intentional sound business principles.

And I often like to say it’s kind of the difference between playing amateur versus playing in the major leagues. So I kind of look at this program as being in the major leagues. You’re stepping up and you’re actually stepping up to the plate in the major leagues versus some of the fads, some of the trends are what I would consider very amateur approaches.

So I want to talk for a minute about one of the biggest pieces of the puzzle here and one of the biggest areas of focus that I have in this program, and that’s in the inner game, which is the inner mindset.

And it is absolutely the most important aspect to all of this. And I want to say that while I focus a lot of my work on mindset, when I say mindset, I want you all to know that I’m talking about mindset on a very deep level, and here’s what I mean.

So when I talk about mindset and when I look at just the coaching industry in general, I think there are a lot of programs out there that do focus on a conscious level, that are really focusing on the conscious thoughts, that are focusing on the conscious aspects of mindset.

And I think that that’s fine and that’s great. I think that can be very, very powerful. But one of the things I go very deep on in my program and in my work that I think has been one of the reasons again why my clients get such great results is because we go very deep when it comes to also the subconscious level.

And the reason that this is important is because the truth of the matter is this; we could sit and coach all day and focus on the various conscious aspects of our minds and that will get us to a certain point. But what I’ve learned in my own experience is that the majority of how we operate and the majority of what actually holds us back is our subconscious.

And it’s something that I do a lot of work on. And there’s been studies that have proven this, that 95% of what we do every day, 95% of the decisions that we make on a daily basis, 95% of the thoughts that we think are all tied to what’s actually happening in our subconscious.

So this is why I put such an emphasis on this because by the way, this is something that to access this by yourself, to access what’s actually going on with you on a subconscious level is extremely difficult. And I believe it’s something that you really need a coach for, you really need support in being able to access these deeper and hidden blocks that you have.

And fortunately, it’s something I’ve got a pretty good track record of. And I’ve got a pretty good track record of in helping my clients with the shifting and really helping them to release the subconscious blocks that can be so hidden, yet make such an impact in their life, that have such an impact on their business that they aren’t even aware of.

And so again, one of the reasons why I think my clients make such huge progress is because they are able to create such momentum in their business. Because they can release these blocks on such a deep level. We can uproot what’s actually holding them back.

And when we can get to that root cause, we’re not just playing on the surface level here. And it really frees them up to do their work and to show up in the world. And so some important things happen when we do this, and not only are we releasing those blocks, are they able to show up in such a different way, in such a more powerful way in their business, but it actually creates new neural pathways.

And these new neural pathways are literally the hardwire of their brain. They’re literally the hardwire of their brain that then they can go out and they can create new decisions, they can show up more powerfully in their business.

And so as you can see here, there’s a lot of support, there’s a lot to this program. There’s a lot of growth that happens for clients in this program and I truly believe this, that it’s really the starting point to their million-dollar businesses.

And I think about this a lot that it’s really the incubator to their seven-figure business. So I know for so many of you listening, you might feel like that’s so far away for you, but I’m telling you, when you’re in a powerful container like this, when you’re fully supported, when you’re stepping into who your business really needs, you’re able to collapse time and you can create such a successful business.

You can do it in a way that serves you, that can serve your life, that can serve your family, that truly serves your clients. And ultimately, it serves your future and your future business. And so I like to think of it as kind of an executive, or kind of a mini-MBA if you would for online coaches.

And I think for those of you that are listening and want to build and are in the process of building your coaching practice, I think it’s really important to think about the things that I talked about here as you’re looking at where you’re investing your resources, where you’re investing your most precious resource, which is your time, and where you’re investing your energy.

Because again, and I’ve learned this the hard way, that unless you’re truly implementing all of the things, unless you’re really going through a holistic process like this, inevitably what will happen is you can build your business to a certain level, you can certainly build your business and have clients, there will come a point in time though that you will be forced to go through a process like this because your business will not be able to scale without it.

So unless you do have these foundational things in place, it’s going to be extremely difficult to build momentum in your business, and to be honest, it’s going to be impossible to scale your business.

So I want to end this by saying one of the things that I think is – one of the more intangible results of this process, I was actually having a conversation with my high-level clients about this earlier this week is it’s actually about the calibration of you. It’s actually about the calibration to your next level.

And so last week as I mentioned, we had our high-level retreat in person and clients actually came into Minnesota. We spent two full days together. We went super deep into their businesses, into their inner games and I was able to teach some new content, some extremely powerful teachings that quite honestly, I could see the physical shifts happening in the room as I delivered the content, as I taught my clients these concepts.

And so earlier this week when we were on our high-level mastermind call, just three days after the retreat, one of the clients said that she just wanted to share how in just three days after leaving the retreat, literally in a matter of hours actually, she had three major opportunities and I mean major collaborations seek her out in her community.

And she had over 700 potential clients registered for one of her events just this week. And she went on to say that because of the retreat, because of the two days that we spent together, how much different she was feeling in her business, how much clearer she was about her strategy, how much lighter she was feeling just in general, how much better she was feeling.

And it kind of clicked with her that it wasn’t just by accident that these opportunities sought her out. It wasn’t just by accident that she had the results that she had for her event this week. And the truth is that it’s not.

And so this is coming from someone who literally only eight or nine months ago came to me and was having a hard time selling her one-on-one packages. She was really struggling with knowing how to build her business. She had so much self-doubt, such a lack of confidence in everything she was doing, to now, again, fast forward eight or nine months later, she’s already over 100K in her business.

She’s growing a group program, she’s launched a podcast, she’s doing some major collaborations within our industry. And literally, it’s just the starting point. And so I want you to all understand the power of calibration, of understanding the power of putting yourself in a container like this.

And if what I shared with you today sounds like exactly what you need, if you’re wanting to build and grow a very successful and profitable coaching business, a sustainable coaching business that gives you the freedom that I know you all want and also allows you to make a huge impact with your work, and make a lot of money while doing it, I want to encourage you to apply to the next cohort of The Mastermind.

So we have another cohort coming up. There is an application process involved and I’ll link that up in the show notes as well, but you can go to amandakarlstadcoaching.com/the-mastermind and there’s a few buttons on that page. It will lead you to the application and you’ll have the opportunity to also book in a call with me.

And I’d love to have a conversation with you and put a strategy together to help you either build, launch, and grow your practice, or possibly even scale your business from where you are. So again, that’s amandakarlstadcoaching.com/the-mastermind and I want to encourage you, if you’re ready to really end this year strong, if you’re ready to create real results in your business, if you’re done trying to piece things together in your business and you know you’ve been throwing spaghetti at the wall and you don’t have clarity, you don’t have momentum, and you know you have the potential but you know you don’t have a real business strategy that you’re working with and you know that you need high-level support and you’re ready to build to your first six figures and beyond and you’re ready to do the work, I want to invite you to apply.

I’d love to help you achieve your goals this year and I want you to know that it’s possible. Alright my friends, have an amazing week. I’ll talk to you all again very soon. Take care. Bye-bye.

Hey, if you’re ready for a real breakthrough in your business and want to grow and scale your business to at least six figures or more in annual revenue, I invite you to apply for my exclusive program The Mastermind at amandakarlstadcoaching.com/the-mastermind. I look forward to seeing you there.

Thank you for listening to this episode of The Life Coach Business Podcast. If you want to learn more about how to build, grow and scale your business and accelerate your results, visit amandakarlstadcoaching.com.