🎙️ Grit: The Secret Ingredient to Growing a Thriving Coaching Business 🚀

🚀 What’s the REAL secret to growing a thriving coaching business? It’s not talent, luck, or fancy marketing—it’s GRIT. 💪

Grit is what keeps you going when things get tough, and it’s the key to scaling your business to six or seven figures.

In the latest episode of The Lifestyle Business Quest Podcast, I’m diving deep into:

🔥 How grit helped me rebuild my coaching business after nearly losing it all

🔥 Stories of 3 incredible coaches who used grit to overcome their biggest obstacles

🔥 Actionable steps YOU can take to develop grit and grow your coaching business

If you’re ready to level up your business and break through the noise, this episode is for YOU. 🎧💥

- Travis

To Learn more about growing a Thriving Lifestyle Coaching Business, grab your FREE Masterclass Training Today! www.LifestyleBusinessQuest.com

Transcript

What separates coaches who thrive from those who struggle? One word: grit. If you’re tired of spinning your wheels and ready to break through the noise, today’s episode is for you. I’ll share how the power of having the attribute of grit helped me build a multi-seven-figure business—and how it can do the same for you.

Welcome to The Lifestyle Business Quest Podcast! I'm Travis Greenlee, your host and I’m excited you’re here because today, we’re talking about one of the most important traits every coach needs: the virtue of grit. If you’ve been in the game for a while, you know building a successful business isn’t all sunshine and rainbows. It takes resilience, determination, and the ability to keep pushing forward even when things get tough.

In this episode, I’m going to share my personal story—how grit helped me turn my coaching business around during one of the hardest times in my life. I’ll also tell you about three incredible clients—Sue, Stacy, and Melanie—who used grit to transform their businesses and their lives.

Plus, we’ll explore the groundbreaking research of Angela Duckworth, who wrote the book Grit, and how her findings on grit directly relate to building a successful coaching business.

By the end of today’s episode, you’ll understand how to cultivate grit, apply it to your own business, and start scaling to six or seven figures. Let’s dive in!

Before we get into the stories, let’s talk about what grit really is.

According to psychologist and author Angela Duckworth, grit is defined as a combination of passion and perseverance for long-term goals. It’s the ability to stay committed and focused, even when progress seems slow or obstacles arise. Duckworth’s research shows that grit, more than talent or intelligence, is a key predictor of success in many areas of life—including business.

Grit, Duckworth argues, is not about intense, short bursts of effort. It’s about sustaining that effort over long periods, continually striving toward a goal, even when things get hard. She found that people with grit are more likely to achieve their long-term goals because they don’t give up when they face challenges—they keep going until they reach success.

Now, how does this apply to growing a coaching business?

Building a successful coaching business requires not only a passion for what you do but also the perseverance to navigate through the ups and downs of entrepreneurship. There will be moments when clients don’t sign up, when your marketing efforts fall flat, or when things feel stagnant. But grit is what keeps you going. It’s about sticking to your long-term vision, learning from your failures, and continually improving your systems and strategies.

For example, in my own business, I’ve faced times where I wasn’t sure if I’d make it through the next month. But the drive to keep pushing, to continually refine my approach, and to stay focused on the bigger picture—that’s grit. And it’s the same quality that has helped my clients break through their own barriers to success.

In short, grit is the secret sauce to building a thriving coaching business. When you combine your passion for helping others with the perseverance to keep pushing, even when the road gets tough, success is inevitable.

Let me take you back to 2008, during the financial recession. Before the downturn hit, I had what I thought was a bulletproof business. My coaching practice was flourishing. I had a full calendar, a waiting list of clients, and a dream lifestyle. I was skiing in the mornings, working in the afternoons, and traveling to Maui whenever I wanted. Life was good.

Then, the recession hit. Practically overnight, my business went from thriving to collapsing. The phone stopped ringing, my calendar dried up, and I went from being booked solid to having zero appointments. I vividly remember staring at my empty schedule, feeling the weight of failure. My wife and I had sleepless nights, worried about how we were going to get through this.

I’d built my business primarily on one-on-one coaching, and I hadn’t set up any automated systems or scalable processes. When the economy tanked, so did my ability to attract new clients. I felt lost, and for the first time in years, I seriously considered giving up.

But there was something inside me that refused to quit. Grit. I wasn’t ready to throw in the towel. I knew I needed to pivot—fast. So, I immersed myself in learning. I studied the leaders in the coaching industry who had built automated, scalable systems that allowed them to keep growing even in tough times.

I got to work. It wasn’t easy, and there were plenty of days where I questioned whether it would work, but I kept pushing. I built automated client acquisition systems, transitioned to group coaching models, and started implementing marketing funnels. Little by little, the tide began to turn.

Eventually, I not only rebuilt my business but scaled it far beyond what it had been before the recession. Today, I have a thriving multi-seven-figure business that runs on systems I built during those tough years. And I can honestly say, I owe it all to grit.

Your business will face setbacks, and there will be moments when quitting seems like the easiest option. But it’s in those moments that grit makes the difference. If you stay committed to your long-term vision and keep pushing through, success is inevitable.

Now, let’s talk about Sue. Sue came to me completely overwhelmed. She’d been coaching for a few years, but despite her knowledge and passion, she wasn’t getting the clients she needed to make her business sustainable. Like so many of us, she’d invested in multiple courses, programs, and tools, but none of it seemed to stick. She was spinning her wheels, feeling like she was doing everything right but getting nowhere.

What Sue needed wasn’t more information. She needed to simplify. We stripped her business down to the essentials and focused on creating a client acquisition system that would consistently bring in leads. The process was tough. Sue had to let go of strategies she had spent years on but that weren’t serving her. She had to focus on just one thing at a time, and that required incredible discipline.

There were moments when she wanted to quit, but her grit kept her going. Sue showed up every day, even when progress seemed slow, even when things didn’t go according to plan. Slowly but surely, her efforts began to pay off. Within a few months, Sue went from inconsistent income to a steady stream of clients. Her business was growing, but more importantly, she felt empowered and in control of her future.

Simplifying your business and staying committed to one strategy, even when it’s hard, requires grit. But when you stick with it, the results are undeniable. Sue’s story is proof that the key to overcoming overwhelm isn’t doing more—it’s doing less but with consistent effort and focus.

Stacy was another coach who had all the right ingredients for success but was struggling to break through the noise in a crowded market. She felt like she was doing everything she could—posting on social media, networking, running ads—but nothing was working. It was like she was invisible in a sea of other coaches offering similar services.

Stacy and I worked together to craft a message that resonated deeply with her ideal clients. But here’s the thing—crafting the right message is only half the battle. Once we had the messaging dialed in, Stacy had to commit to showing up consistently. And that’s where her grit came in.

There were months where it felt like nothing was working. She wasn’t getting the engagement or the clients she had hoped for, and it would have been easy to throw in the towel and go back to her old methods. But Stacy didn’t quit. She kept putting herself out there, refining her message, and trusting the process.

Eventually, all that effort paid off. Stacy started getting noticed. Her messaging connected with her audience, and suddenly, the clients started rolling in. Today, Stacy has a thriving coaching business with a steady stream of clients coming to her, instead of her chasing them.

Breaking through in a crowded market requires grit. You have to keep showing up, even when it feels like no one is paying attention. Stacy’s journey is a testament to the power of consistency and perseverance.

Another client of mine Melanie’s story is one of personal transformation. She’d been coaching for years but had never fully believed in her ability to scale her business. Self-doubt was her biggest obstacle. She had a handful of clients, but she was afraid to put herself out there in a bigger way. Like many coaches, she believed that growing her business meant sacrificing the personal touch she prided herself on.

Melanie and I worked together to reframe her mindset. I helped her see that scaling her business didn’t mean losing the personal connection with her clients. Instead, we created systems that allowed her to serve more people while maintaining that one-on-one feel.

But the real shift happened when Melanie embraced her grit. She committed to pushing through the fear, even when it felt uncomfortable. She stepped out of her comfort zone, trusted the systems we put in place, and focused on growing her reach.

Today, Melanie’s business is flourishing. She’s serving more clients than ever, but more importantly, she has the confidence to scale even further. Her self-doubt has been replaced with a strong sense of determination, and she’s just getting started.

Self-doubt is one of the biggest barriers to success, but grit is what helps you push through it. Melanie’s transformation shows that when you commit to growth, even when it feels scary, the rewards are incredible.

As awesome as these stories are, Let’s shift to some practical steps you can take to develop grit in your business. Here are three actionable ways to apply grit and grow your coaching business:

1. Commit to Consistent Client Outreach, Even When It's Tough

Client outreach is one of the most critical aspects of growing your business, but it’s also where many coaches stumble. It’s easy to feel discouraged after hearing a few “no’s” or receiving no response at all. But grit means sticking with it. If you’re not reaching out consistently, you’re missing opportunities.

- Set a target for outreach, whether that’s reaching out to 10 potential clients a week or hosting three discovery calls per week. Whatever your number, commit to it.

- Automate where possible: Use tools to schedule follow-ups or send reminder emails. Automation helps you stay consistent, even when life gets busy.

- Shift your mindset around rejection: Every “no” brings you closer to a “yes.” Consistency builds trust over time, so keep putting yourself out there.

Consistency is the key to client acquisition. While it might feel discouraging at first, your persistence will eventually pay off. Every outreach is a step closer to landing the clients you want. Grit is what keeps you going when responses seem few and far between.

2. Master the Process of Building Systems to Scale

Systems are what enable you to scale your business without working 24/7. But here’s the thing—setting them up can feel overwhelming. Many coaches get stuck at this stage because they feel like they have to do it all at once. That’s where grit comes in.

- Break down your system-building process. Focus on creating one system at a time, such as client onboarding or automated lead generation.

- Dedicate time each week to work on building your systems. Even just an hour a week can lead to massive results over time.

- Seek support: Don’t try to figure everything out on your own. Invest in tools or coaching that can help you set these systems up faster and more efficiently.

Systems allow you to leverage your time and resources, enabling you to serve more clients while maintaining a balanced lifestyle. Grit ensures that you keep working on these systems, even when it feels tedious, because the payoff is huge. Once they’re in place, you’ll have more freedom and less overwhelm.

3. Embrace a Mindset of Continuous Improvement and Adaptability

One of the biggest challenges coaches face is dealing with failure or setbacks. Launches that don’t go as planned, marketing campaigns that flop—these moments can either discourage you or make you stronger. Grit helps you see failure as feedback, not the end of the road.

- After every major project—whether it’s a product launch, a marketing campaign, or a client enrollment drive—review what worked and what didn’t.

- Make small, incremental changes based on feedback. For example, if your discovery calls aren’t converting, tweak your script and try again.

- Stay open to new strategies. The business landscape changes constantly, so be willing to adapt and pivot when necessary.

Continuous improvement is the key to long-term success. Grit ensures that you don’t give up after a few failures but instead learn from them and make adjustments. This adaptability will help you thrive in a constantly changing market.

So, there you have it—grit is the secret sauce to growing a thriving coaching business. Whether you’re just starting out or looking to scale, the ability to stay consistent, build systems, and adapt to challenges will be the driving force behind your success.

If today’s episode resonated with you and you’re ready to take your business to the next level, I invite you to grab your FREE masterclass at lifestylebusinessquest.com where I’ll walk you through the exact five steps I used to build a multi-seven-figure coaching business. You don’t want to miss it.

Thanks for tuning in today! Make sure to subscribe to the podcast, and remember—grit isn’t just about pushing through; it’s about staying focused on what matters most. Keep showing up, and your business will thrive. Until next time, keep chasing your dreams with everything you’ve got!