Why You Need To Start Getting More No's

Have you ever gotten rejected by a potential client who you know would have been really well served by your coaching?

I certainly have. And it can be an incredibly frustrating experience.

Especially when you feel like that person has a high likelihood of staying stuck if they don't get the right type of support.

But here's the truth: it's okay to get No's. In fact, each No that you get can represent massive forward progress in your business.

Here's a Quick Story To Explain What I Mean...

During the summer between middle school and high school, I went to a wrestling camp that really challenged me. It showed me how big of a jump I was going to have to make in order to be competitive in high school. I remember that on the last day of the camp there was a tournament, and I got beat multiple times.

My dad had taken the day off of work to watch me, and I remember going over to him after that final loss. He could see from the look on my face that I was upset. And here's what he told me:

"It's okay to be upset. If you weren't upset, it would mean that you didn't care."

This was exactly what I needed to hear in that moment and the same thing is true of building a successful coaching business.

The fact that you get frustrated by those "near misses" — enrollment calls that seem to be going great and then slip away from you at the last minute — just means that you care about the person you are talking to and you feel invested in their success.

What to Do Immediately After You Get a No

It sucks to see someone's fear or stubbornness lead them to make a decision that will ultimately hold them back from their goals.

There are lots of ways that people react to this rejection. Maybe you get frustrated, mad, or deflated when you get a No from a great-fit client. Whatever comes up for you, here's my advice:

Use it as fuel.

Once you've processed the most intense part of that emotion, I want you to right away figure out one thing that you might have done differently during the call that would have helped that client move past their concerns.

Maybe it's a question that you could have asked. Or a perspective you could have offered. Whatever it is, be sure to make note of it for next time.

If you need help with this, I've put together a free PDF with some of the most common concerns that a potential client can raise and how to alleviate each of them:

The Truth About Enrollment Conversations

The outcome of an enrollment conversation isn't personal. It's not about how good of a coach you are. It's about how hungry the other person is for a change, how well your coaching fits their situation, and how good you are at demonstrating that fit.

Assuming that you did a good job exploring their concerns (again, check out my PDF for help on this) then you don't have to beat yourself up about getting a No. If anything, they've let themselves down. It may be that this person wasn't an ideal client after all if they weren't able to make the decision to really take action and invest in that area of their life.

The truth is, enrollment is a numbers game. You typically need to speak with three or four potential clients in order to get a paying client. Which means that if you're not getting No's, you're not getting Yes's.

Remember how frustrated I was after losing those wrestling matches? Well, the season after going to that camp, I ended up winning my league championship. Those later wins were a direct result of all the losses that I had to go through in the offseason.

Similarly, the best predictor of your success as a coach is the number of No's that you are willing to go through. So keep your head up and continue learning from your "near misses".