Jodie Mykaels

[00:05:06] So I really did have to find my own way. And obviously it took us so much longer than what it would nowadays. And,In one way, I like to say that I’m quite proud of being old school. Because sometimes old school beats new school any day, even though everything that’s done online now.

[00:05:25] With your Facebook, your Instagram, even web websites really. Cuz I certainly didn’t have one for many years after I started my business.

[00:05:32] Audra: it’s, that was like a luxury back then. exactly.

[00:05:39] Jodie: Do Instagram or your Facebook goes down, people are like, oh my God, they freeze.

[00:05:44] They’re like,what do I do? And I’m like, you get your shoes on and you go and knock on the doors, you go to doors, Yeah. I like to say I’m a mix of both old school and new school. Bringing it together so that youngsters today can have a really strong business.

[00:06:00] Audra: Good. I mean, looking back, we are that last generation.

[00:06:06] That knows how to market that had to learn the hard way. Cuz there you’re right, there wasn’t anybody really out there laying the path for us, teaching us how to run a business, teaching us how to do it faster. that really didn’t exist. We just had to learn it. And the generation today is benefiting from all the hard work that we’ve done over the last 20 years to be able to get business where it is now.

[00:06:34] of course, some of that fast track because of tech technology, but, we had to figure it out. Now, if you [00:06:40] think about people starting a business today, they still run into that same thing. So say they’ve got an expertise, they work for somebody and now they’re ready to spin off and start their own business, they don’t know how to do it.

[00:06:58] And they just, I’m really good at cutting hair or changing oil in cars or, I’m a fitness person or whatever. They’ve got some kind of skill, but I think where they run into that challenge is they need to be able to say, okay, I’ve got the expertise to sell or deliver results of whatever my widget is.

[00:07:19] I’ve got that part nailed. That’s why I wanna start my own business. But really the energy and the time and the investment needs to go into how do I set this up properly? How do I do things according to a little bit more of a direct route? What I find is people will, start working on the business, then build the website, build a custom app, go all the way out, set up a bunch of automation, come back, and then they’re like, I don’t have any customers.

[00:07:49] so it’s really slowing down for a second and say, okay, just like I learned my trade, I started with step one. How do I do that in business? And start with step one. What does that look like? What should that be? And then how do I build on top of that? way back when I first started, we didn’t have to build a community.

[00:08:11] We didn’t have to build a market. We didn’t have to do any of that. We could build a website and go out there and sell. Yeah, no problem. [00:08:20] Today. There’s so much noise and so much competition. You can’t do it that way anymore. You’ll be sorely disappointed.

[00:08:29] Jodie: You’ve really gotta make yourself stand out significantly in that domain.

[00:08:35] If you wanna go down that route. It’s as you said, social media and that is just so busier and there’s so much of it. And if you can’t find. your niche and your tribe and really stand out to them, you’re just gonna get blown away, People just aren’t gonna find you, they’re not gonna interact with you.

[00:08:56] I get a lot of clients say to me, I’m posting on Instagram, I’m posting on Facebook. Why is nobody interacting with me? and then I look at their. Business pages, and I’m like, because you don’t even know who you’re talking to. you have gone down the basic route of. Who is it you want to talk to?

[00:09:16] How are you talking to them? I personally, I’ve got, a va, a virtual assistant who is in her early twenties. And do you know what? I find her so invaluable because she knows how to talk to the youngsters. And obviously I’m a bit older now and a bit old fashioned in that respect. So she helps me translate almost the old school into the new school.

[00:09:42] I just love to help people go from, I haven’t got a clue. To, oh my goodness, that’s where I’m going. That’s the road, that’s the direction. And that initial excitement. And then obviously trying to teach them to keep that excitement and keep that [00:10:00] passion and if they build their business properly, then they keep that throughout the years.

[00:10:06] And then it doesn’t become like work or a job as I call it, you’re just going to do your passion every day. And that’s what I wanna promote with people.

[00:10:16] Audra: So if you start working with somebody, are they typically already in business or are they brand new?

[00:10:23] Jodie: most of them are probably within the first year.

[00:10:26] So first year. quite early on. So either they’ve just been puddling along, not really knowing what they’re doing, like I said, putting a few posts out. They’ve set up an account and, and they’re still messing around with family and friends and trying to go down that route of finding new clients.

[00:10:43] and really not sure. What it is. All they know is they want to do their trade that they’ve trained in and Right. That’s it really.

[00:10:52] Audra: And that’s it. Yeah. Typically. Yeah. That’s what I find as well. Small businesses, they don’t wanna be marketers or salespeople. No. They just wanna do whatever they do. The challenge with that, yeah.

[00:11:03] Is without the marketing and the sales, they don’t really have a business. They just have a hobby and yeah. generating a few bucks here and there is not a legitimate business as far as I’m concerned. It’s just

[00:11:15] Jodie: not right. No, and that’s it. And whether they want a part-time business or a full-time business,

[00:11:20] you’ve gotta make, like you say, make that decision. It’s either a hobby or a business. What do you wanna do with it? and obviously if I can help differentiate, I had a conversation with a lady once before, she was like a makeup artist and did spray tanning and things like that. And I said to her, I said, What are you doing with your business?

[00:11:39] And she went, [00:11:40] actually I only do it part-time cause I’ve actually got a full-time job. And I said, if you’ve got,intentions to leave that part-time job and make this your real work, your real business. And she went, do you know what actually thinking about it? No. Said, I actually like my job.

[00:11:54] I like having that employment and I actually really enjoy my job. So we discussed what she was wanting to do and in the end she was like, do you know what I, I love the beauty, but there’s parts of it I actually don’t like. And I don’t know why I’m doing them. So I’m like, why are you, if it’s not making you happy, why are you doing this?

[00:12:14] and she did this, I think it was the spray tanning. I think she decided to actually drop it in the end and just focus on doing her makeup at the weekends for people’s weddings and things like that. going into a full-time business isn’t for everybody. as I said, it’s not for the faint hearted.

[00:12:28] Audra: No, it’s not. It’s definitely not. So do you find when you go in to start coaching somebody that everybody is a fit or, maybe you have to have that hard conversation of, you’re just not gonna, be able to pull this off. The commitment’s not there, the knowledge isn’t there.

[00:12:46] Jodie: Yeah, no, definitely. I think I’m very much, the type of person that feels I can talk to most people. Yeah. And I can get on with most people, but if there is something that doesn’t feel right, then I won’t pursue. That contract with that client and for whatever reason. and it might just be that I feel my program isn’t a right fit for them, or like you said, what they’re trying to achieve, I can’t get behind for some reason.

[00:13:18] But they’re not willing to [00:13:20] maybe. Do the work. Yeah. And or change their expectations. so no, I will have that conversation with somebody if I don’t feel it’s, a good fit. but I think if people are willing to put the effort in, and my particular program is very, is an interactive one, so they have to physically do the work to get through it.

[00:13:43] And I do. Not helicopter parent kind of thing, but I do check in with them, how are you getting on with that? How did you find that module? And because I want them to physically be, do something. And if it’s out of their comfort zone, I want to be able to support them. In getting through that.

[00:14:00] So I do do say to people that, are you willing to put the work in here? Because if you are. Then I will match it. but it, the only way to build a business is to work it. You’ve gotta put some work into it somewhere.

[00:14:14] Audra: sure. so your program is online and in person, or how does it work?

[00:14:19] Okay, so

[00:14:20] Jodie: it is mainly online. I do two sessions, one-on-one, so one at the beginning so I can find out exactly what they want and what their direction is and where they’re gonna go. then they’ve got the six modules to work through, and then I do another one at the end. So I don’t wanna sort of them to finish the course and then go.

[00:14:41] Now what? So I want to make sure they’ve got a really good plan, and if that’s continuing to work with me in a membership way or just them having a plan of, I know where I’m going, I know what I’m doing, and then they run with it, that’s absolutely fine. And then obviously they can contact me in between.

[00:14:59] If [00:15:00] they need help with anything.

[00:15:01] Audra: Okay. Do you see some kind of pattern with where they’re stumbling?

[00:15:07] Jodie: To be honest, the kind of things that they get stuck on is generally anything to do with the mindset. Okay. So for some it’s a money mindset, so asking for money, feeling comfortable knowing the work they’re worth and That they’re charging the correct price and or just things like, Having a cancellation policy and being strong enough to say, this is why I do this charge and this is what I’m gonna charge you.

[00:15:37] But it’s amazing how many people have a real money block About asking for money. they really, It’s quite often something they’ve been brought up with. you’ve gotta work hard for your money, you’ve gotta give value for your money. talking about money is rude. so to then say to somebody, that’s gonna be 30 pounds for a manicure, for example, they then find that really uncomfortable.

[00:16:03] So again, it’s teaching them different ways to come to terms with that and talking about what. Their block around is where it came from. So I like to deep dive into that a little bit and try and figure that out. but again, sometimes it’s really daft because it’s a very personable industry.

[00:16:24] when you are doing A massage or facial, you are very in very close proximity of that person. And yet some people really struggle with communication. And they’re like, I’ve got this person in front of me and and they’re looking at me [00:16:40] to do something. And again, it’s almost like they freeze and it’s They’ve come to you because they’ve warmed to you and they’ve seen what you do and they like what you do and they’re coming to you because they want to. And again, it goes back to that belief of am I good enough for that client to come and see me? And Of course these people are good enough, but it’s having that self-worth, and this is why I’m very much about building sort of a strong foundation.

[00:17:07] So I go back to what their values are because if you’re not working with people that you want to work with, and if you’re not asking for what you feel you are worthy of and you haven’t got a strong business, Yeah.

[00:17:21] Audra: There’s a really great book out there. It’s been around probably 10 years called Secrets of the Millionaire Mind.

[00:17:28] By, oh, okay. Thar ecker. very good money book and mindset where he breaks it down into some of the basic stuff of, is this a childhood thing? How do you connect to money? Is it abundant? Is it scarce? how do you feel about it? How are you brought up with it? very good book I would recommend, you tell clients that are, or customers that are struggling with that.

[00:17:53] To grab that online and read it, it will change your life. and especially,knowing what to charge and feeling your worth. he went through that. But, definitely one of the money books that have stuck with me and there’s quite a bit of training out there on YouTube about money and mindsets.

[00:18:11] so it’s definitely worth exploring because once they get through that, it won’t be so awkward for ’em to think about or to ask for it. [00:18:20] Because they’ll get rid of that mine garbage that’s going on that’s preventing them.

[00:18:25] Jodie: Absolutely. And it’s about creating good business habits right from the start. So you know, being comfortable so that every time you have a new treatment, you don’t go through that mindset hassle of, oh my God, what am I gonna do?

[00:18:38] You know what my charging, they just go, no, this is what I’m charging. This is what it’s worth. This is what my time is worth. That’s what I’m doing. Okay. So they don’t have all that hassle and keep going through it. So I try to make sure that’s all sorted right at the beginning. Yeah. because it then just, otherwise it just blocks many different things.

[00:18:57] Audra: so if you think about if they had jobs beforehand or they just came straight outta school, this isn’t something they’ve had to deal with yet. So I think another mind shift would be it’s not that, I have money issues, I just don’t know yet. It’s something that I haven’t learned and I can’t implement it in my business if I haven’t learned it.

[00:19:19] So maybe coming more from a perspective of I’m a student learning this and I’m practicing, versus I’m not worth it. I don’t know what to do. Of course you don’t know what to do. Yeah. How would you, so yeah, give yourself a break and say, somebody teach me. That’s the whole point of having a coach. Somebody teach me what this is supposed to look like and then just evolve through

[00:19:42] Jodie: it.

[00:19:44] Absolutely. And I love being able to give people options or helping them come up with the options because again, what I might do in business might not align with what they want to do in business, right? So I don’t like to [00:20:00] preach what I’m doing as. that’s it. That’s the way it’s gotta be done.

[00:20:03] It’s, I come up with this is the way I’ve run it in my business all these years. and again, I’ve got that personal experience to say to them, I’ve been there, I’ve done this. But for you, you can take that option. Or what other options do you think you could take, what about this one or this one?

[00:20:20] and obviously exploring that with them. And sometimes it’s trial and error, You try something and it doesn’t work and they’ll come back and go, that just didn’t feel quite comfortable for me. So it’s okay, so let’s try a different option. Or how can we,swap that round a little bit?

[00:20:35] And, Yeah, I like to think of myself as like a brainstorming board with them, It’s Chuck, whatever you want at me, I’ll brainstorm it and then throw the options out at you, and then you can decide what works for you. and, I find that works really well with my clients.

[00:20:50] They like having that, to and fro of ideas and conversation.

[00:20:55] Audra: So how do you feel the coaching industry is right now? Do you feel like there’s still a lot of room for growth or do you feel like it, things are pivoting? I know the UK will be a little bit different than the US, but I.

[00:21:09] What are your

[00:21:09] Jodie: thoughts? I think the UK is definitely exploding in the coaching world. Nice. I think, I think Americans are, way ahead of us when it comes to like therapy coaching. Those talking practices. You are definitely way ahead of us. us Brits, we don’t talk about anything. it’s.

[00:21:30] When I say to people, I’m a bit beauty business coach. a lot of people are like,what is that? what do you do? I don’t understand, you don’t coach football. They understand that, but [00:21:40] don’t understand it in a business sense. So it really is explaining kind of what it is you do and how much value that can actually bring to a business.

[00:21:49] Having that non-emotional person That can look at a business from the outside and go, this is why it’s not working. this is what you need to be doing or need to be thinking about. Or,If you’re willing to make changes, maybe this is an option for you. but yeah, I think it’s ex exciting times.

[00:22:10] Definitely good. There’s a lot more out there. but yeah, the Brits are just gradually getting used to it all. Good.

[00:22:17] Audra: that’s good because that means you still have a lot of opportunity in front of you. Absolutely the coaching thing is super saturated in the us Everybody and their brother is some form of coaching.

[00:22:27] I know that a good chunk are still doing really well, but as the economy shifts, people are looking to get a little bit more creative and what they offer, is it membership? Is it monthly support? Is it an expansion on the program that they had? especially if they wanna stay in the coaching industry.

[00:22:47] So say I was with a business coach and they were creating a marketing strategy for me, I can use AI now to do that for me and not have to pay somebody $5,000 to get that program. yeah. It’s people getting more creative and really going back to the human right, what value do you add?

[00:23:07] Absolutely. Besides a system or a process, or something that I can ask AI for. What is that human component that you’re bringing? Is it support? Is it my cheerleader? Is it mindset [00:23:20] where you can really get into the mind and help somebody evolve? if you’re in coaching, those are things you gotta consider right now.

[00:23:27] What do you, what’s that value that I can’t get anywhere else that makes you unique? And if you have that on top of the result on the back end, then you still got a viable business right now.

[00:23:41] Jodie: Yeah, just from the research I’ve done, there are some people that do the really loud, amazing kind of packages and you are just like, oh my God.

[00:23:50] it’s that looks stunning, but. I don’t think you just don’t need all of that. I’m quite a down to earth kind of person myself. And I just think simple is sometimes best. And again, having that human contact, having somebody that you can be accountable to. Someone who can offer you the emotional support, but also be really unemotional when it comes to your business, but in a business way.

[00:24:16] Because I think that just really helps, whereas AI can’t do any of that. and as I’ve said, my principle thing is working with people’s values and making sure that business is in alignment with them. AI can’t do that. yeah. And again, not yet. And obviously a lot of businesses out there, they’re still, I find.

[00:24:37] They throw a lot of, beauty adverts into their coaching pages, and I’m like, I don’t wanna see what everyone’s selling and what they’re doing. I want my clients to know what I’m doing and how I can help them. And they know that my time is, oh, we’ve got a little friend. and that my time. He’s directed [00:25:00] at them and what they need, not messing around with adverts for different equipment and Or I’ve even seen one coach, he’s, he almost like yells in his posts at people like, you’ve got to do this and this is the way to do it, and if you want clients, this is what you are gonna do. And it’s just it scared me just looking at it and I was like, no, I’m totally not in alignment with, Any of that at all.

[00:25:26] I am, quite simple. I have a very easy program that people could follow. So even if they are working full-time and trying to build up the beauty on the side, or whether it is their whole main thing that they can fit in little activities every day, that will create really good business habits and that they’re all gonna feel totally good about what it is they’re doing.

[00:25:50] Audra: and you know that’s the great thing about us being human though. The man that is super, I don’t wanna say aggressive, assertive, some that’ll resonate with some people. They need somebody to be that powerful, loud voice to overcome whatever challenges they have.

[00:26:08] that’s what makes, us having multiple businesses so worth it is we don’t need to resonate with everybody. We just need to find people that we can help that we attract that the energy’s right, that we can benefit them. So that’s actually a great thing. He’s different.

[00:26:25] Yeah. He’ll have a different audience that works for. And you find yours and get it going. What would you say to somebody that is going through this process? They know what they wanna do, but they can’t quite figure out w [00:26:40] why they can’t get clients. What do you typically tell them?

[00:26:43] First

[00:26:44] Jodie: of all, I would. Ask them who is it they’re looking for in a clientele now? a lot of them might say, for example, Mostly women obviously have their nails done, obviously. I know there’s a lot of men that do nowadays as well, but mainly it’s a kind of female kind of thing. But if I’ve got somebody like myself, I don’t necessarily attract the clients that want all the really posh, really long.

[00:27:16] that’s not my tribe. For me personally. Most of mine are just the classic, nice color, just nice and simple. and it’s finding out. Who you are attracting, because if you want all the elaborate nail art kind of clients, but you are looking at people in their sixties and seventies, chances are they’re not your people.

[00:27:37] You need to go and find the youngsters and where do they hang out? Is it in particular Facebook groups? Is it. Instagram TikTok, find out where your clients actually hang out and make sure they’re in alignment with you because again, if they’re not, the kind of people that you are looking for or that are gonna be attracted to you, You’re not gonna go there. So it’s really making them understand that what they want and what they’re looking for need to be in alignment. And I use that word a lot. but to me that’s what’s most important. So if you’ve got a young mum that’s doing this, then go and look for young mums because They’re gonna relate to you on [00:28:20] so many different levels. But yeah, I think it’s, excuse me. I think it’s about trying to find the right people and making sure that they’re happy with who they’re talking to.

[00:28:33] Audra: I think that’s a great first step here’s the other challenge I see often is they go out with a wide net.

[00:28:40] Saying I just need to get started. I just need money. I just need to get revenue coming into the business. And then I’ll niche down and then I’ll find my specific tribe. But what ends up happening is because there’s so much noise and their message is so generic, they don’t wanna attract anybody.

[00:29:00] And so they continue to struggle. They’re better off to do it the other way around. Just pick one to start, dig in a little bit and give it, set a plan in place for 90 days. So 90 days, I’m gonna focus on this specific audience. This is what resonates with me. These are the people I feel like I can help.

[00:29:18] Let’s do 90 days and see what happens. if you’ve gotta generate revenue somewhere else, then do it. If you have to have a job while you’re going through this, then do it. But it’s worth it Cuz I guarantee you at the end of 90 days if you’ve not picked one target audience to go after.

[00:29:37] You’re still gonna be broke. Yeah. You’re still gonna be struggling. You may make, yeah, $10 today and then nothing for three days and make another $10. it’s not that you won’t see any clients, but it’s super challenging and at the end of the 90 days, nobody’s clear on who you’re serving.

[00:29:54] Jodie: Yeah. Absolutely. And as I said to you when we first spoke, one of the,[00:30:00] issues I came up with is obviously I’ve been in the beauty industry For such a long time and I know how to talk to those clients. I know I’ve got my tribe and I know how to advertise to them and I know how to speak to them.

[00:30:14] And then when I transferred over to the coaching, I almost went in with the same strategy and it did not work. It, And I really had to stop and think, okay, I can’t sell to people like in that way because that’s not what they’re looking for and that’s not how they are gonna respond to me.

[00:30:34] And also at the, again, at the beginning, I didn’t quite have a niche and I was widespread and. Like you say, was thinking, why am I not getting anywhere? What, what isn’t working here? But obviously in coaching I realized that sort of finding your niche and concentrating in one area more It’s so much more important in the coaching world. And it’s all a learning curve. But it’s all about, again, finding those right people. And even though I’ve got my niche now, I’ve still got so many different varieties of people within that sector, and it’s still trying to find how to connect with each and every kind of, Type of person, cuz not everyone’s gonna, bond to me.

[00:31:24] And that’s fine in business and people have to understand that. That’s fine. not everyone’s gonna lie. It’s not personal. Yeah. No it’s not. it’s business. Yeah. And I feel quite harsh when I say that to my clients. I’m like, look. This isn’t personal, this isn’t about you, it’s business.[00:31:40]

[00:31:40] take the emotion out of it and then think about the problem that you’re having

[00:31:45] Audra: and, it might have been a Brit in another life. cuz I am all about that. it’s not personal. Don’t make it personal.

[00:31:52] Jodie: Yeah. And I think

[00:31:53] Audra: you can take that outfit. Yeah, I was gonna say, sometimes it is personal just cuz you just don’t connect or don’t resonate together.

[00:32:01] But it’s not personal. I don’t like you. It’s just, we just didn’t really connect. We didn’t have anything, any

[00:32:08] Jodie: kind of connection. There’s nothing and there’s nothing wrong with that. There really, people seem to think that you have to like everyone and everyone has to like you and. You really don’t, you can be friendly with people.

[00:32:22] Respect. Respect. But you don’t have to be their friends. Yeah. Yeah. So you can be friendly. You can be respectful, you can have a working relationship with them. But they don’t have to be your friends. You don’t have to see them away from work. You don’t have to sit and find out all their personal problems.

[00:32:38] You don’t have to, pop around for a cup of tea or send them birthday cards, for example. But, A lot of people really struggle with that difference between a friend and being friendly. Yeah. And I think if you can get your mind around that again, that takes out a lot of emotion around your business and you, I mean I’m, a lot of my clients have actually turned into my friends, but that’s cause I’ve known them for so many years now.

[00:33:04] But it’s just a different step, right? But they still know where I am with my business, and they do, and we still have that business relationship. They know if they mess my appointments around, they’re gonna get cancellation fee. I don’t care if we’re having a glass of Prosecco at the same [00:33:20] time, they know that’s the way it goes.

[00:33:23] but no, definitely when you are starting out, it’s, you are not looking for new friends. You’re looking for clients that you can be friendly with. Good

[00:33:32] Audra: point. So what would be one last, piece of advice that you would give somebody that is maybe, a year into their journey but is still struggling?

[00:33:42] What would you advise ’em?

[00:33:43] Jodie: I would probably say be patient and be kind to yourself. Okay. It’s not that you are not necessarily doing things wrong, but don’t be shy to ask for guidance. there are many of people that have done this before you, and they’re out there and they’re successful for a reason to seek that advice and that help.

[00:34:07] And yeah, just, I said, just be kind to yourself. Don’t beat yourself up. Yeah. Just because you’re not where you think you should be.

[00:34:15] Audra: that, that comparison thing is death. Man, cut that stuff outta your life. It is

[00:34:22] Jodie: not a good co comparison. I should be here. I should be there. I should have done this.

[00:34:25] Should is not a, not your friend. No.

[00:34:28] Audra: No. All right, Jodie. thanks so much for being here. This has been a great episode, and, until next time you guys keep moving through the middle.