Make Money as a Life Coach® with Stacey Boehman | Creating a 300K Business Before Leaving Her Career with Brig JohnsonThis week, I have my client, good friend, thought leader, and coach extraordinaire Brig Johnson on the show. Brig has been on the podcast several times before giving us all the mindset goods, but we’ve never sat down to talk about her money story and her personal business journey. So, she’s telling us her story this week of how she created a $300K business before she decided to leave her career.

Brig is a life and mindset coach who works with high-achieving Black women, and her story is incredible. She left the first 200K Mastermind without having made a dime, but what she’s achieved since then will truly blow your mind. And she did it all while working more than full time.

Tune in this week to discover what it takes to create a huge income-replacing business before you leave your job. Brig is sharing how she went from making $10K in seven months to making over $300K in a year, all of the thought work that got her there, and how she provided amazing value for her clients while also working two demanding jobs.

Click here to sign up for the waitlist for the next round of the 200K Mastermind!

If you want to start making serious money as a coach, you need to check out 2K for 2K. Click here to join!

What You’ll Learn from this Episode:

  • Brig Johnson’s experience being in the very first 200K class while working full time.
  • Why Brig decided she wanted to become a coach, even though she didn’t think of it as a career at first.
  • The thoughts Brig was dealing with when she considered replacing her multiple six-figure income as a coach.
  • How Brig managed a full-time job and a part-time job while she started her coaching business.
  • Why every rejection is a learning opportunity on your coaching journey.
  • The perfect mantra for anyone in the business of serving people.
  • How Brig grew to be grateful for every dime she made as a coach, even though she was already a high-earner.

Listen to the Full Episode:

Featured on the Show:

Full Episode Transcript:

 

Welcome to the Make Money as a Life Coach® podcast where sales expert and master coach Stacey Boehman teaches you how to make your first 2K, 20K, and 200K using her proven formula.

Hey, coaches, welcome to a very special podcast interview episode. I have a good friend, and client, and thought leader coach extraordinaire here with us today, Miss Brig Johnson. Brig has been on the podcast several times, but we’ve never sat down to talk about your money story and making money, and your personal business journey. You’re always on here giving us all the goods and teaching them when you do come on. So, I thought this would be fun to talk about your story of making money.

And how you went from the first 200K Mastermind class having made no money yet, I think it was no money, we’ll have you introduce yourself, all the way to where you are now. So, I think this is going to be a really fun episode. But let’s start first, introduce yourself, master certified coach, Brig Johnson, tell everybody about you.

Brig: That’s it. I’m Brig Johnson. I am a life and mindset coach. And I work with high achieving Black women.

Stacey: So good. And just the rest of the coaching industry.

Brig: Just the whole, yeah.

Stacey: You coach for a lot of coaches.

Brig: I do. I’m a master coach instructor. I’m an advanced feminist instructor. And I coach and deep dive with them. I love coaching and I love teaching coaching. I love the art and teaching the art of coaching, yeah.

Stacey: We were just talking before this episode before we actually started recording that I told Brig that I do not like teaching coaching. I am going to do an advanced business certification. I’m working on creating that now. And I feel very excited about that because it’s business. I’m curious and it’s going to be interesting to get in there. I do think that that will hold my interest. And I will be excited to get in there and I feel very passionate about how business coaches coach. And so, I feel really excited about that.

But for the most part I was telling Brig that I did a coach training for LCS one time. And I was like, “No, this is not for me.” So, anyone who teaches coaches how to coach I was like, “That requires a level of patience that I just do not have.” I feel myself, I just want to tell them how to do it instead of letting them get there on their own. I’m like, “Wait.”

Brig: I think the reason why I like it is because it makes me slow down my process. How do I do that? Why do I do that? It’s like if you want to learn it, teach it. So, it’s like I teach in the communities that I want to learn it even more. So, if you want to learn it, teach it because it’s like why do I just naturally do that and get my concepts down of, I get that. And it just makes me a better coach for my clients.

Stacey: Yeah, so good. Okay, so let’s talk about because when I was thinking about this episode, one of the things I was thinking about is when you got your 200K award, you made well over 200K. But when you accepted your 200K award on stage and even actually throughout the whole last 200K live event. It felt like a reoccurring theme that we were reassuring people with your story. And it was such an inspiration for so many people to see you making the level of money that you’re making now.

And for you to constantly like, “Listen, guys. I was in the first class.” So do you want to talk about that experience of the first class, where your business was and at the time, it was my first 200K class. So, we didn’t have any income requirements, we didn’t have. It was just, I’m going to get in there. We spent three days coaching on niches, and positioning, and your goals I think. I mean it was very basic. So, tell them where you were in your business and let’s kind of start there. And then maybe we’ll bridge the gap to where you are now.

Brig: Okay, great. I think when I started I was I mean literally just got certified. So, I finished certification in December, and we started in January.

Stacey: Oh, dang, okay, yeah.

Brig: Because I started whatever, August or September, or whenever. So, I finished certification and then I was in the apply track. And then I used you for how to build my business. So, I think that was one of the best decisions I made is knowing that I wanted to work on how to do this as a business. And so of course, I’m going to join your mastermind.

Stacey: And tell me, okay, so in that round, did you do one or two rounds?

Brig: I did two rounds.

Stacey: Okay. And then I created the standard, and you were still working full-time. I want to talk about that too because everyone’s going to be very curious. Because you had a really high income earning job before becoming a coach. And when people make a lot of money in their industry, it’s very hard for them in their minds to switch over too. Because it’s like if you make more than a 100K then your first 100K as a coach you’re like, “I’m still not replacing my income.” So, I want to talk about that too.

Actually, maybe let’s just dive into that. So, tell me about that experience, kind of walk us through what that was like. Because you made multiple six figures in your full-time career in anesthesia, is that what you call it?

Brig: Anesthesia, yeah, nurse anesthetist, nurse anesthesiologist, yeah, anesthesia.

Stacey: I’m no good with the medical terms. So, you made multiple six figures. So, what were some of the thoughts that you had when you were thinking about replacing that income, becoming a full-time coach, transitioning into that? What kind of came up for you there?

Brig: Well, first of all I want to say I didn’t even have those thoughts.

Stacey: Okay, okay. No, but it’s super helpful.

Brig: I didn’t have those thoughts of replacing my income and becoming a full-time coach, no, that wasn’t ever. When I started it was never, I’m going to do anesthesia. I never even thought that that was possible. I didn’t have those thoughts. Those thoughts came probably – it started loosening up in your mastermind. Maybe, other people are making some money, maybe. So, it started loosening up. But I just literally wanted to coach and learn how to coach because I was working – anybody who does anesthesia or any kind of medical field, we know we have one, or two, or three jobs.

We have our full-time job, and our PRN job, and our part-time job. All the nurses understand what I’m talking about. I took the same thing to anesthesia. So, I was like, I’m 50, how about we not do anesthesia as the part-time job, not let’s not do any part-time job. That wasn’t my thinking. I was like how about we not do anesthesia as a part-time job and let this be the fun thing. So that’s the only reason why I started coaching was to replace my part-time job.

Stacey: That’s so great.

Brig: Which let’s you know I had a full-time and a part-time job and building my coaching business at the same time. I kept that part-time job for the first year.

Stacey: Wait. So, everyone’s going to be like, “But how did you do it?” Because everybody has a lot of drama about how you work a full-time job and I will say, everyone has a thought of it’s harder because I work the standard 40 hours nine to five. And then the other half of people are like, “No, it’s harder because my schedule isn’t the same every week.”

Brig: Right, it’s always something.

Stacey: So, talk about that. How did you manage it?

Brig: I think you just decide that you’re going to manage it, that’s it, that’s how you manage it, just whatever it is, you decide you’re going to manage it. Because for me it was, I can’t do it on the same day. And people want it like, “Well, I want every Tuesday.” I was like, “I can’t give you every Tuesday because my schedule changes.” And so, my days off were actually days that I had worked post call.

So, I’m coaching on days that I’m post call, meaning I could have been up the entire 24 hours. That wasn’t very likely but there was chances that I got called in to do an epidural a couple of times at night. So, it wasn’t a good night’s sleep and then I woke up and coached all day. I was coaching on my days off which were post call days for the most part.

Stacey: So how did you position that when you were selling on consults, when people were talking about, “I’m a yes, and I want mine every Tuesday”, how did you work that out with them?

Brig: I didn’t even give them the option. That’s not a problem. So, I never even considered it as a problem so there was nothing to work out. It was this is the way, I guess because my positioning was, this is the way I coach. If you want to coach with me, every week we would set up when you’re going to meet the next week. That’s just the way I did it. I didn’t even have a calendar for them to go do it in. I didn’t get a calendar for people to go self-schedule themselves until a year and a half later.

I was just like, “When you want to meet again next week, I have this day, this day, this day.” And we would set it up. And my people were totally fine with that. It was never a problem. No one went, “Oh my God, we’ve got to do this again.” No one did that.

Stacey: And you didn’t run into people not scheduling consistently or anything like that?

Brig: No. I didn’t have those thoughts. So, if I didn’t have those thoughts people didn’t come in with it. It was this is the way I work.

Stacey: Okay, everybody that’s listening, if you’re like, this is an unintentional smackdown that they weren’t prepared to get on this episode. But it’s so good to hear. I’m always telling people, they get stuck in, even if it’s offer drama, three months, or six months, or whatever. And I’m like, “They don’t know, they’re not in the coaching industry. They don’t know how it’s done. So, whatever you tell them is how it’s done.”

Another good example of this is follow-ups. People will be very weird about follow-ups. I’m trying to think of how they’ll say it. But it’ll be kind of like, “Well, when can you do a follow-up?” It’ll be very kind of making it up as they go. And I told them the reason that my follow-ups were always so successful, if I didn’t get a yes or a no on the first call was because the way I presented the follow-up was this is just standard how you do it. So, here’s where we go from here. Let’s get our calendars.

We schedule a call 20 minutes within the next 48 hours. So, it can be tomorrow, or it can be the next day. We do it within 48 hours. It’s just 20 minutes but we need to touch base, and we need to close the decision cycle. You’re either in or you’re out. If you have additional questions I answer them then. Tell me when you’re available, I’ll make it work. The way I set it was there’s no other option, this is just how it’s done. It’s how we do it with everyone.

And so, I want everyone to just kind of hear what Brig said is whether you have a changing schedule, whether you don’t have a scheduler and you just reach out and text them, when you’re going to meet this week. Whatever it is, whether you’re stuck in indecision about your offer, or you’re confused on how to present a follow-up, whatever it is. You communicate to them the standard and how it goes. And in their mind that’s how it always is with everyone. They have nothing to compare it to.

So, the only thing that you have to be in your mind is just decided in your mind, and clear, and not have thoughts of they should be meeting every single week at a certain time, or anything. They’re going to want six months instead of three months, whatever it is. You tell them what to want.

Brig: Yeah, totally. It was like, “If you want to work with me, this is what we do.” And it wasn’t like I was being mean or anything. That’s how I coached. So, there wasn’t any other option. You want to work with me, this is how we’re going to do it.

Stacey: Yeah. And how did you manage your energy? Because you are working long hours in your full-time job and now on your days off you’re coaching clients. What was that like? Because people will also post in 2K a lot and they’ll say, “I don’t know how to do it. I get off my full-time job and I’m exhausted. I don’t have anything left for clients.” What would you say to them about that?

Brig: I think for me there was a period where I was working a lot and when my client load got at 20, I think at one point I maxed out at 23 and a full-time, that’s when I knew it’s time to quit.

Stacey: Holy smokes. Okay, that’s impressive. That’s impressive, full-time, that’s two full-time jobs.

Brig: Yeah, it was two full-time jobs and I think I was…

Stacey: But how did you manage that? Because people are like, “There’s no way I could do that.” That’s 80 hours a week.

Brig: I wasn’t telling myself there was no way I can do that. Those thoughts were never in my mind.

Stacey: What were the thoughts?

Brig: I wasn’t saying, “I can’t do that.” I wasn’t saying. I would say, “I’m tired.” But I kept telling myself I’m building my dream. This is what I’m creating. This is what I wanted to do. I kept myself in – I’m like, I can’t believe I get to coach all day. Yeah, am I tired? And I fucking have 10 clients or how many clients, I never had 10 clients in one day to coach. But I’ve got five or six clients to coach today. And I just kept myself in their transformation and they were reveling in their experiences.

So, I don’t care how tired I was, I’m like, “Oh my God, that was a great coaching call.” I kept myself there on purpose too because I knew if had of went down the rabbit hole of, I’m tired and poor me, I would have came up with those results of that I’m tired, and poor me, and I can’t do it, and this is hard. I think a couple of times I did allow myself to say, “This is hard.” And my answer to that was always, and we can do hard shit because your dreams are worth it.

I just kept directing my brain as opposed to letting my brain drag me. Because my brain will have me dragged down some one lane alley.

Stacey: [inaudible] 100%. That’s so good. Yeah, that’s how I felt too. I had a thought that was like, I’m in the middle of my dream right now. I’m building it. I’ll never get this moment again. I loved the hustle, I remember being in Michigan six hours from home, I would load up my stage, and my buckets that smelled like onions, and my little slicers in my trunk.

Load up my dog in the backseat, all my luggage in the front seat, drive my little Toyota six hours to Michigan, it would be freezing. I’m staying in a Super 8 motel, going to the store, pitching, going out to my car, taking a coaching call. Getting up in the morning taking a coaching call. Getting off work taking a coaching call. And that hustle, I was tired, that one thought, I do remember that, I felt tired. But tired in the sense of I am using all of me right now. There is not a drop of me unused. And I’m still between shows posting stuff on Facebook to market to new clients.

And doing consults, and that’s really what it felt like is I am just using every drop of me. And the other thing that I think was really useful is I told myself it wasn’t permanent. I knew it was a season, a season of being really hard, and hustling, and grinding. And also, this is something I had to work on with my coach a lot, every day, especially when I was working Walmart’s, those were the worst. In Michigan I got to work these grocery chains called Myer and they’re a little bit fancier and so I felt a little bit just a nicer setup than Walmart.

But I would have to tell myself, this is my choice, I’m choosing to come to work. I could quit. I’m making some money in my business. But I’m choosing to use this money to invest in my business and to keep moving forward and be able to pay my bills. For me it was mostly, it wasn’t even as much about investing, it was but it was 50% investing, 50% I just wanted my bills to always be covered and not needed to be covered by coaching. So that I was never being super graspy on the phone with what I’m selling, coaching.

Which is why I’m always encouraging people not to do this. There is this kind of romanticizing of doing the big leap and just quitting your job cold turkey, jumping off a cliff, going all in. And you have one client or no clients. And I’m like, “Why would you ever put that level of stress and dependency on your business and every single consult call?” So those things I think I just want to say to everyone listening, I think those might be valuable too. We’re offering you the best thoughts ever. But I’m building my dream right now.

I used to say this a lot is, “I’m never going to have this opportunity again. I’m going to work by choice. Here are my reasons.” Every day, I would have to pump myself up 20 minutes in the parking lot to get out of my car. Here are all my reasons why I’m coming to Walmart today. And just knowing I’m tired but this is a good kind of tired, using all of myself up.

Brig: Yeah. I think while you were saying that another thing came to me is, when I was in anesthesia training, the way I got better was by doing lots of anesthesia. So, it was someone would come and was like, “We’ve got a crany coming in. You want to do it?” Yeah. We’ve got such and such, do you want to stay late? Yeah. So, I think I took that same approach, not even a think, I know I took that same approach to coaching. It was the more I’m in the seat the better I’m getting. That was it. The more I coached the better I’m getting.

So, it wasn’t a problem because I was thinking, I was like, that’s easy to say if you don’t have the self-concept of I’m a good coach, or I’m amazing, or whatever. If you don’t have that self-concept that can get in the way of this is just what I do. And I’m building this and whatever, if you don’t have the self-concept. So, I was thinking about it while you were saying, and it was like I didn’t have the self-concept, but I knew I was building it.

Stacey: That’s so good.

Brig: I knew me not having a self-concept of I’m an amazing coach because I tell people all the time. I started saying, “I’m an amazing coach”, at the beginning long before I was an amazing coach. But I also knew how to build that self-concept which was, I’ve got to coach. So, it wasn’t a problem that I didn’t have it. It was like, I’m just going to keep coaching, I’m building my dream. I’m building my self-concept. And that’s why I was all in for, it was almost like, do you want to do a crany? Yeah. It was like, do you want to coach? Yeah.

Stacey: That’s so good. I’m thinking, that’s one thing I think I had now that I’m thinking about it because for me just coming from Walmart’s and no money. And just never having anything, to me it was my self-concept of when I walked into the LCS room, I just remember. This was back when it was – Kara and I laugh because I was so impressed with the Holiday Inn Express in El Dorado Hills. And Kara’s coming from Harvard and she’s like, “Did I sign up for a cult? What’s happening?” And I was like, “It’s so fancy.”

My self-concept was like, I went to the best school ever and this fancy woman taught me all these fancy tools. And so, I had such a strong self-concept very early on of I have these tools that no one else knows, and I know I can help people. And even people who make a lot more money than me, they don’t have these tools. So, I had that self-concept. So, I’m so glad you said that because I don’t think I’ve ever talked about that before. Just that I’m in this period of building my self-concept and doing those repetitions.

And then while you were talking another question that I had which I’m just curious is you said something about crany something, something to do with the brain and it freaked me out. And then I was just thinking, if you’re doing that level of anesthesia, did that in any way impact your – not nervousness, so your assuredness, when you’re on a consult in those moments talking about money where most people, the pressure freaks them out? But you came from a place where there’s no higher pressure probably than anesthesia.

So, did that translate at all and help you in your selling, and your coaching, to be able to? You’ve been in higher stress situations. I’m thinking about when I skydived, that was my biggest fear and once I overcame it that was one thought that helped me start my coaching business and get things off the ground. Was, well, this isn’t scarier than skydiving. So, I’m just curious of that, was it impactful at all?

Brig: Yeah, it was. It was helpful in a sense that I had something to anchor myself to. It’s like, well, if this was anesthesia, how would I be thinking? It was something like, because in anesthesia, I’m a G, what are you talking about? They call me in the middle of the night and there’s an emergency, and the whole room is freaking out and you walk in, anesthesia. That’s just the coolest job ever when we do that. Anesthesia, and everybody’s like, parts the red sea, because they only call you until they need you.

And in anesthesia you never let them see you sweat. You just show up and it’s like, yeah. You may be going, “I don’t know how I’m going to get this airway.” But you’re like, “Yeah, I’m going to get this.” Because we know that it doesn’t serve a purpose. I know it doesn’t serve a purpose for me to freak out, the whole room freaks out.

Stacey: Yeah, and the patient freaks out if they’re aware.

Brig: Yeah. So, I just kind of use the same thing. If I’m thinking I can’t help this patient, this patient doesn’t need me, this patient needs somebody else, oh my God, this is a real bad problem. While I’m trying to put them to sleep and throwing blood in, my patient suffers. So, I just use that same thing. I never think those thoughts in anesthesia, why would I think that, I don’t know if I can coach them, this is going to be difficult. I’ve never done this before. I would never do that with a patient whose dying, I would never do that to them because it doesn’t serve the patient.

I need to be at my best. That doesn’t mean I don’t ask for help or I don’t get a consult. But my mind is not, I’m the only one here and I’m what you’ve got and we’re going to go.

Stacey: Yeah, so good, okay. So, everybody hear that and maybe write that down. I’m going to try to say exactly what you said. It was like, there’s no one else here, I’ve got this, let’s go. I think sometimes we compare ourselves to other coaches in the industry and we’re like, “So and so would probably do so much better at this.” And you have to think when you’re talking to someone, when you’re marketing, when you’re on the phone directly with someone, you are all they’ve got.

And their physical life may not be on the line, but their emotional world and their entire experience of their life is on the line. And you’re all that they’ve got. So, you have to be enough in that moment. You have to become enough. You have to decide you’re enough. You have to decide, this is exactly what the person needs, I’ve got exactly what they need. I can deliver and I’m going to.

Brig: Yeah. There’s no room for anything of me doubting myself. Imagine me in a difficult situation, momma’s going in, they need to get the baby out and I’m like, “I don’t know, which one should I do?” It’s like, no, I am it, I’m here, let’s go. And so, I think that’s the same thing with coaching is she’s right here in front of me, she signed me, let’s go. I’m an amazing coach. And I know I’m going to get even better by the more I deliver this, the more I practice this, the more I work on my technique. So even if I’m like, “I could have done better.” No problem.

That’s what an amazing coach does is continue to refine their skills, continue to look at it.

Stacey: Yeah. And I would say for what you just said, for everyone listening, borrow that thinking if you get in a consult rut. Or you’ve gotten lots of consults and you just have never signed clients. We have people that come in and they’re like, “I’ve done 20 consults and every one of them has been a no.” Or “I’ve gotten in a rut, and I’ve done seven in a row after I raised my price and they’ve been a no.”

I find that we only get really distressed about no’s on consults when we’re thinking about the only benefit of that consult was getting a yes, getting a client, and getting money. Instead of it was an opportunity, just what you said, to refine my process to get better. I always say, everything you learn about what you did wrong on a consult is worth what they would have paid you for the entire coaching relationship if you learn from it. You will become so much better.

And then over the years that will accumulate and compound in your talent of selling and coaching if you’re willing to sit there and learn from it. But it’s really hard to learn from it when you’re pitying yourself, and shaming yourself, and being mean to yourself, and feeling sorry for yourself, and all of those things. Or blaming other people, and blaming the industry, and all of that. When you’re in that un-useful thinking you can’t get to what you just said. You can’t get to that place of this is for me and I’m just putting in the reps and I’m getting better.

Brig: Yeah, totally.

Stacey: So good. Okay, let’s change the direction. But I did write this down, and I just want everyone to adopt this mantra. I feel like I’m going to see this everywhere when this podcast comes out because it’s so good. I am here, I am it, let’s go. And if we want to add an eff in the middle of that.

Brig: You know, I’m the eff bomb queen.

Stacey: I am here, I am it, let’s fucking go. That, I want you guys to make that your mantra when you are thinking about serving people and any time you’re feeling like you’re not enough, or someone would do it better. I am it, I am here. Wait, I am here, I am it, let’s fucking go. It’s so good. Okay, now let’s changes subjects. I have another question for you. I don’t know if we’ve talked about this before on the podcast. But I do think it’s really profound and maybe you’ve never even thought about it.

But specifically, now we’re having a lot of people, I’m actually going to do a whole podcast about this. But we have had a lot of people that have been very distressed, and angry, and have lots of thoughts about the 200K standard. And having a 25K minimum and not being able to join if you still have a full-time job, especially the high money maker professionals. I’m not going to call any one industry out. I’m thinking of it. But there are a lot of people that think it’s very unfair that you have to be a full-time coach, that you haven’t made the minimum.

And you were actually in the mastermind and then couldn’t continue because you hadn’t left your job yet. And what I always found was really – two things that really blew my mind. It was you and a bunch of other people. There were a ton of doctors in that class. And a lot of you couldn’t continue on because you hadn’t left your jobs yet.

And so, the one thing that really struck me, if I’m remembering this correctly, you guys all banded together and kept coaching each other on the 200K process even afterwards. I think it was you, and Jennifer, and Cezanne, and Sonia. And then the other thing that was really impressive to me was that you didn’t use it, maybe you did at some point and just worked through it. But you didn’t use it to join, I hate Stacey, and I hate 200K club. You were placed on income, and you left that full-time job and you came back.

And so, I’m just curious what was that process like for you when you knew you weren’t going to be able to continue on because I added the standard and then the time in between, and then coming back and your thoughts about it? And you can be totally honest. If it was like, I don’t care, I’m just very curious because we get a lot of people very angry about the standard. And I feel really strong about it. It’s not meant to keep people out. But I’m just kind of curious how you worked through it.

Brig: Okay, that’s interesting.

Stacey: And I know I’ve never asked you before.

Brig: Right, that’s so far back. But first of all, to clear up, we just developed the friendship, me, Cezanne, Jennifer, Dr. Sonia. I don’t think we actually formed a group to say, “Hey, we’re going to keep coaching ourselves.” But that when you think about it that’s kind of what we did but not really what we did. It wasn’t formal, we’re going to coach other. It was never stated at that. It’s like we were just friends and friends just, we kind of help each other.

I’m always about – Jennifer calls me Harriet because I’m always about let’s go, let’s get the other people, come on. I always know I’ve got to get free first and then we’re going to get everybody else, let’s go.

Stacey: I love that so much.

Brig: But I think because I coached myself the first time, you want me to be transparent. The first time when I didn’t qualify the first round and then later you told me I can come back. I coached myself so hard on that one which was I can do this with or without Stacey. And then I went on with the second round. So, after the second round when you were like, “It has to be full-time.” It was no big deal to me. So, for me it was no big deal. I don’t remember having any drama, or any FOMO, or anything. It wasn’t my time and I’m not going to quit my job.

So, it didn’t even occur to me to be upset about it. So, when you’re talking about it, and I think because I had done that coaching before which was…

Stacey: Okay, so now I’m remembering. So, the first time was I had made a minimum, that was the first standard I made. Or maybe you hadn’t made your money back, it was something. But then I coached you and you made a ridiculous amount of money after the fact from a 30 minute coaching session. Because I remember we used that 30 minute session in a funnel for a long time. This 30 minute session produced, I don’t remember how much money it was, but it was a lot.

Brig: I think it was 13K, it was 13K.

Stacey: Yeah. So, do you remember that coaching at all? Because you were like, “I coached myself so much through that that the second time it wasn’t a thing.”

Brig: I think it was you get to run your business. It was getting rid of the attachment. I was attached to how you ran your business. And I was like, “Wait a minute, I wouldn’t want anybody attached to how I run my business because if it’s my business I’m going to run my business however the fuck I want to run it.” And so, if that was it then I had to allow you to do the same thing. So that was the thought that helped me take my hands off. She gets to do this, it’s her business. So, when you invited me back I was like, “I think it will be fun, okay.”

Because I knew I was going to make it no matter what. So, then it was a question of, I think I did tell you just because – I’ll just be honest. I did tell you, “Let me think about it.”

Stacey: Did you? I don’t remember that.

Brig: I did. I was like, “Let me think about it.”

Stacey: So good, I love it.

Brig: I did, I got coaching with Lindsay and then so it was a matter of if you’re going to make it either way, how would you want to do it? And I was like, “I would want to do it with 200K because it’s fun.” It’s a group of women who are all doing the same thing and coaching themselves on the same thing, who would not want to be in that room? So, it was fun. So that was it. So, when you changed the standard, for me I had already taken off hands on how you should run your business.

Stacey: God, that’s such a good thought. I always think that we recently – I haven’t talked about this on the podcast either. And I don’t want to do a whole discussion about it because it’s very triggering for people. But when this past January event came along we were getting so many emails about, “Are you going to require COVID things, are you going to do testing? Are you going to require vaccines? Are you going to require masks?” And then we got so many emails after we decided to do the testing that were like, “I can’t believe you’re doing this.”

So, so many people had so many opinions on both sides. We like to think that our opinion everyone agrees with. So why wouldn’t Stacey just require testing? Obviously everyone wants that.” Or why would she require that? Obviously no one wants that. That’s our thought. And I had this thought, I’m like, I really wish people – it was something similar to what you said, is I really wish people put themselves in my shoes to think about. And I told my team, “I don’t want to know either way. I don’t want to hear who was upset, don’t tell me. I don’t want to have that thought in my head.”

And if they are upset I understand. I understand both sides of it. So, I get it. But I remember having this thought, if you had 100 people’s health and lives, and money, because they’re coming to think about money, if you had that in your hands, you don’t know what decision you’re going to make until you’re in that moment. But I wish you had that ability to put yourself in my shoes or the ability to say, “It’s tough to run a business.” I don’t know what that answer would be, but I could imagine that could be a tough decision.

It was such a tough decision, but I do sometimes think that we forget with our coaches because we’re so intertwined with them in our personal growth. That we forget to think that they’re business owners too and so are we. And what can we learn from that? Which is what I was taking from what you were saying is you put yourself in my shoes. And were like, “Wait a minute, I might want to do that one day or something. And I want people who will totally understand and not try to manage how I run my business.” So, I think that’s so brilliant.

Brig: Yeah, totally. I was like, “No. I want to run my business the way I want to run it. So, then people get to run their businesses the way they want. If I don’t like it, ownership is on me. I don’t have to sign up.

Stacey: Yeah, so good. And I also love the thought, I’m going to make it anyways. Because I do think that the more detached you come into 200K I think the harder it is to succeed for a couple of reasons. But the attachment to being in the room, the attachment to being coached by Stacey and having Stacey’s eyes on your business, and being Stacey’s teacher’s pet sort of thing, being the star student. Any type of that attachment keeps you out of just focusing on getting what you came for, for you, getting the work for you.

I’ve had to clean lots of that up over the years with my thoughts about wanting Brooke to like me and being the best student and all the things. But I think it’s like when you just own, I’m going to make it anyways, it’s so brilliant.

Brig: Yeah, totally, I love that one.

Stacey: Okay. So, let’s talk about where you are now. Tell everyone how much money you’ve made in the last 12 months or last year, I mean if you feel comfortable to share.

Brig: Yeah. I think, what was it, 320 or was it 323? I can’t remember. Somewhere around there, $320,000 give or minus 3,000.

Stacey: I just remember whatever we had at the board of the award ceremony I’m pretty sure was not accurate. You’ve made more money since you reported the number. So good. Yeah, that’s so great. How much money are you going to make this year?

Brig: My goal is 440,000.

Stacey: Is that more than you were making with anesthesia?

Brig: Yeah, because last year since I worked half the year, because I end up finally, end up quitting the job. We need to talk about that journey, how I did that decision process, how I went from [crosstalk].

Stacey: Yeah, we should. You can talk about it.

Brig: But yeah, and so I made – I can’t remember but combined between anesthesia and coaching I made 440. So, my goal was this year is I don’t want to make more. I just want to make it all in coaching. That’s it, keep my income the same.

Stacey: That’s so good, I love that. Okay. Also, I love that you’re like, “I don’t want to grow, just 440, it’s not a big deal.” It’s so crazy.

Brig: Who is this woman? I am the same person.

Stacey: I mean just all of us, coaches are so crazy, we’ve lost all concept of money at this point at least in the 200K room.

Brig: I think so, because I am the same person that in 2019 was sitting in your room oohing and aahing over Elizabeth, and Danielle, and Lizzie, and they’re making 20,000. And I’m like, “How the fuck am I going to do this? What is this?” It took me six months, no, seven months to make 10K, seven months. I think about my first clients, and I tell people this all the time and they laugh. And I think I’ve said it before. My first clients I charged $46, it was supposed to be for a 12 week program. And that ended up, I loved coaching so much.

You want to get in the chair, you want to get in the chair. So, I ended up coaching them one-on-one for six months and I charged them $46, and they did not want to renew at $600 for six months and I was crushed. I was crushed.

Stacey: I can’t handle that story. For everyone listening, it’s never the price.

Brig: It’s never the price. I was like, “You don’t want to renew.” So, I had two choices, I can make that mean I didn’t give them value. But I’m like, “No, I was there.” That’s like when a guy is gaslighting you, you know how guys like you such and such, and I didn’t really love you. And I’m like wait a minute, was I in this relationship? I was there. So that’s kind of what I did with my coaching clients. I had to think, I was like, “Wait a minute, I was there. No, they got transformation.”

I can decide that they didn’t want to pay $600 but it wasn’t because they didn’t get transformation.

Stacey: So good. I love that. Seven months to make your first 10K, so everybody hear that. That’s another big one. I just think, if you could compile all the excuses of people and I don’t want to say excuses, all of the things that people believe coming into the industry that they think make it very hard for them to succeed, or that it’s very challenging, or their past story of failure, or how long it’s taken, all of it. If you could add up their list of things I feel you had all of them.

Brig: I did. I was so upside down at the end of the year. My accountant was like, “What are you doing?” I’m just like, “Don’t worry about it.” And then I went to him and took money out of my retirement account. So, for me it was everything I asked my clients to do I have done first. There’s nothing on a consult that they could be like, I’m like, “Well, I’ve done it.” We go first, I’ve had the transformation first. I remember putting money on coaching like I don’t know what I’m doing. This is crazy but I’m doing it anyway. I’m choosing to do this.

I know all those thoughts so I think that’s how we can coach on them is because we transform first.

Stacey: Yes, so good. Okay, so tell us – can we talk about really quick, you said that the transition to decide to leave, you were like, that was a whole thing. So, let’s talk about it.

Brig: It was a whole thing. First of all, I want to talk about, you coaching me on 100K is not a lot of money, because I remember snubbly looking at you and everybody else in 200K Mastermind. I remember sitting there. I remember exactly where I was sitting, on a right sided thing and I was like, “100K is not going to do nothing for me.” And you were like, “It’s the start to everything.” And what I got from that coaching was, is if I reject some money I’m rejecting all money.

Stacey: Oh, snap. My brother says snap so much that now I say it all the time. Dear Lord. But I’ve got to say it, oh snap, that was a good one. If I’m rejecting some money I’m rejecting all money. Yes, you can try that on at 2K too. I’m rejecting 2K. I’m rejecting 200K.

Brig: Yes. I had to be appreciative of every – can I say eff again?

Stacey: Yeah.

Brig: Every fucking dime I made in coaching I grew to be so grateful for. And it took me almost a year, you know how you do that 10K challenge and then it became a 25K challenge in a month. It took me a year to have my first 10K month. And every month I’m like, okay. And some people, I’m like, “What do you mean, you’re frustrated?” “Because I’ve been doing it two months.” I got accountants calling me. I got people telling me, “You’re crazy.” I got people at work like, “You’re in anesthesia, what are you doing? Just work extra.”

And I’m like, “Yeah, I’m still putting them round. And I’m just going to keep putting my butt in the seat.” I’m just going to keep doing this and working on my crap and believing. So that was it, the first thing. So, I was having a lot of mind drama of when I finally realized, it is possible for me to replace my anesthesia income, I’m like, “People are actually doing this. Are you crazy?” Then I had to work on my self-concept of a life coach, I’m a life coach. I had to work on that self-concept.

And then as opposed to I’m anesthesia because that carried more weight in my brain. And I realized that.

Stacey: Probably more safety, more safety in consistent money coming in always.

Brig: Yes. And so, I knew I had to work on that. So, I was like, “Okay, that’s not a problem, I’m just going to start building my self-concept as a life coach and I’m an amazing life coach.” And so, then when I started having some success people started asking, “When are you going to quit your job?” And I decided that I wasn’t going to worry about it. I created a worry window, and I don’t like telling myself I’m never going to worry. I just tell myself when I’m going to worry.

And when I’m going to worry is when I have all the things to do with it. If I don’t have all the shit I need to do with it then I’m not going to worry about it. And so, at that point I was like, “I will worry about it when I get to a 100K. Let me focus on a 100K as opposed to when I’m going to”, because it was just taking up too much cognitive load of thinking about when I’m going to quit, when I’m going to quit. Especially as a high earner because we already know a 100K is, but I will address it when I get to a 100K.

So, when I got to a 100K I was like, “Okay. Our window is up now we can worry about it. What do we want? What do we need?” And this is when I literally went inside and just asked myself, what would make me safe? What do I need? I literally, “What do you need? What is it that you would need in order to feel safe and secure?” And yes, it’s my thoughts but what else, what do you need? And for me my answer to myself was when I know anesthesia is costing me money. And so, I was so clear with that answer because it was the answer from me.

It wasn’t anybody else’s answer, and I waited for that answer. So, I was willing to work the 24 hour shifts, coach, coach the 20 people because I had given myself that answer. I wasn’t going to leave until I fulfilled, I told her, that part of me, I got you. We’re going to keep doing this until we get there. And when I got there it was so amazing. I was like, “Yeah, I’m losing money.” And it was so easy for me to let go because it came from within.”

Stacey: I wrote so many things down.

Brig: I hope that makes sense.

Stacey: Yeah. I wrote so many things down. It was so good. First of all, you said it, I know we’re running out of time. But you said it so like it’s just what it is. And I just need to stop and come back to it, and have you explain a little more because this is so brilliant. And I know coaches experience this in the 2K room, in the 200K room. This is something I’m constantly bringing people back to is the idea of the worry window.

Where you’re like, I don’t let myself worry about something until I have – I don’t remember exactly how you said it but basically I have all the components that I need to make the decision or I’m at a place where it makes sense to make this decision or to think about this decision. And I think that so many coaches, they get so far ahead. I remember coaching someone from stage in the 200K room on maybe her fourth or fifth iteration of her group coaching and where it was going. Her three year plan, year three. And that’s not what we do the three year plan for.

But our minds go there of I have to make all the decisions, I have to know exactly how year three is going to play out to make any decisions in year one. And all that creates is a bunch of drama, and worry, and decisions that you don’t actually have the proper information or you’re not at the proper place in your brain, and in your experience, or in your business to make that decision yet. So, you spend your time thinking about that and it does create an insane amount of cognitive load. So, I’m just curious if you can expand just a little bit more on that.

Brig: Yeah. It was just knowing, I wasn’t even going to be a good coach. Use an anesthesia example again, if I’m worrying about something else I’m not there for that moment for that patient. And so, for me for my business, I always would look at make decisions on what was best for my business. And sometimes what was best for my business was, okay, we’re going to be here for a little bit. And we’re going to be working 24 hour shifts and we’re going to be coaching people.

Because I knew I didn’t want to be that graspy, I’m not going to do that. I wasn’t going to do that to myself. I’m going to jump off the ledge and hope I fly, I’m just not going to, no.

Stacey: Yeah. And you made markers, so you asked yourself, when will I know I’m ready to make this decision which is such a beautiful process. I like to think of that as, I also like to just write down things if I have to do a coaching call and something’s bothering me. I’ll write it down or get it off my chest and then be like, okay, I can come back to that later so that I can be fully present here. And I think it’s something similar where you’re like, okay, so when will I make this decision? How will I know it’s the right time?

What markers or indicators will prove to me that I’m in my worry window or I’m at my worry window? And then I can finally think about it, and I can consider it and make the decision, or even worry about it.

I was coaching with Bev actually recently on something, and something that we were talking with our lawyers about. And I was getting coaching from her and she’s like, “But you don’t even know what the lawyers are going to say yet. So, let’s get that information back and then let’s coach and see what we’re working with. And then for now can you let that go, the things that you need. There are other things we could coach on and other things that we could think about. And can you let that go until you have the answers, and you know exactly what you’re working with.”

And so, I think that is an art that I don’t think a lot of people think about or know about in the realm of mindset. That’s a really powerful tool.

Brig: Yeah. I think it’s about being okay with uncertainty and being certain in uncertainty. It’s like, yeah, I don’t know. And when it’s time I’ll make that decision but it’s not time. But our brain is like, we need more, we need more, we need more information. As if more information is going to make me feel any better. It’s not.

Stacey: Yeah, so good. And it just eliminates the things that you’re focusing on because it kept you very focused on the now of what your business was which is what helped you grow and get where you are now, 100%.

Brig: Yeah. My focus was becoming an amazing coach, that was it. I was all for my clients, I was like, “Black women need the best coach ever and I’m giving it to them.” That was my thought, I’m going to do it. So, if this certification was I felt necessary for me to do what I needed to do for my clients, then I did it. If not, fine. But I’m just going to keep being in this seat. That’s how you got good at anesthesia, that’s how I’m going to get good at coaching.

Stacey: It’s so good. I want everyone to think about that’s listening, how much of your brain space truly if you’re being very honest, or you could even watch it for an entire day or a week. How much of it is going to the past and what has happened yesterday, last week, last month, last year, the last three years, or the future, what hasn’t happened, a month from now, two months from now, three months, six months, a year? And how much of it is actually in what’s happening right now?

Because every ounce that you spend in the past and the future means you have less energy, less critical thinking, less strategic thinking, less brilliant ideas, less energy, to give this moment that you’re in. And I just think the more moments, that makes you a better coach, it makes you better at selling, connecting to your people, everything, that is the work for sure.

Brig: Yeah, totally, I love it. I absolutely love it.

Stacey: Okay, so you have a group coaching coming up, have you announced that yet?

Brig: It’s announced. It’s announced. I’ve been ceding it according to the 200K way, I’ve been ceding it.

Stacey: I love it, yes, alright. So, tell people about it, if they’re listening and they’re like, “I need some Brig in my life.” And I don’t know, maybe my people aren’t, I don’t know. Tell everybody who it’s for, what you’re going to be coaching on, that you know you’re going to be coaching on and how they can get information on it.

Brig: It’s definitely for high achieving Black women, women who identify as Black and high achieving. It’s a container for us to create epic shit because what I’ve realized in these last three years is I was always in the room going, “I know I’m smart. I know I can do this.” But there was always something in the way. And so, it’s what I use, it’s the process I use to end up creating epic shit, which was creating internal safety, creating internal security, and becoming a self-coaching master.

I think in order to create epic shit you’re going against the grain, so you have to have good self-coaching skills.

Stacey: Against the grain of your brain, of the world, but also your own brain.

Brig: Yes. And also, so self-coaching is definitely it. We’re going to do it through self-coaching, self-regulation, meaning we’re going to dress that part of you that’s like, what the fuck are you doing, why are we doing this? And befriend that and partner with it as opposed to trying to force it to do something. No, we’re going to do this through kindness and compassion. And then I like the fact that we’re going to create epic shit, we’re going to have a goal, a big stretch goal because that’s when your stuff comes up.

And then the reason why I wanted to add the epic shit in is because if I was just coaching and loving all of this and I didn’t have the goal of I want to be an amazing coach, I don’t think I would have self-coached to the level that I did. So, it’s bringing in something that I have to evolve to, and I want to coach them through that. And that’s when they’re not enough and this is going to come up. Well, I can’t do this, or I can’t shine is because they’re going to be pushing the barrier.

Stacey: So good. Okay, how do they get more information on it?

Brig: Yeah, brigjohnson.com/group and they can get on a waitlist.

Stacey: Love it. And here’s what I want to offer for anyone who’s in 200K, or thinking about joining in 200K and you’re like, “Well, I really want to work with Brig.” We have a rule that you can’t work with other business coaches and other business masterminds. But this is not something that competes with 200K in any way. This is something you can do alongside that. I just want to say that because sometimes people ask, is like, “Wait, can I do this program”, and whatever?

And the only reason we have that rule is just because we guarantee the 25K and so people will come in and want to do the whole like, “Well, so and so said this or coached me on this.” We get that in 2K a lot. Where people will be like, “Well, I have this other coach that’s telling me this.” But I do think that this could be a really powerful program to be in to work through this, to work through all of that. To grow that self-concept, to grow.

Seriously this episode, all the thoughts that you’ve offered people are so brilliant. And it shows that you are the living, walking proof of this group that you’re launching. And I mean just a living example of it, you’re so sure of yourself, so confident in your decisions. What’s the word I’m looking for? It’s the verb is you direct your mind very well. So, I don’t know what the adjective is of that but very, very well, you can tell. You’re self-coaching is very mastered. And I think that there are a lot of Black women that could really benefit from that, benefit from that extra.

Brig: For me it’s like it was all the thoughts that were coming up to me that other people wouldn’t have. And it’s like, I wouldn’t listen to you. That whole year experience with you coaching and I’d be like, “How come I don’t think that?” And that’s what I would coach myself on. It was like, oh. And I would pull up all the internalized conditioned thoughts that I had that I didn’t even know I had. Because as high achieving women and Black women we think. We are like, “No.” I was like, “No, we’re still conditioned, and we have to go in.”

That’s why it’s just for Black women because I think we need to go in and voice what we’re thinking so that we can coach on it. Not just talk about it as victims but coach on it, take our power back and then understand why we’re holding onto safety so much, or just like our history informed that. And we get to rewrite our history and rewire our brain.

Stacey: It’s so good. Yes, I love that so much. I did that a lot with Brooke when it came to money. I just came from, not just having money but from a family who had lots of thoughts about people who have money that were repeated over and over through childhood. And I would often think, oh, interesting that she has this thought or that thought. And I just think that work is so brilliant. So, I can see that you have 100%, your work, you did a lot of internal work. And I think that it’s just showing, it’s shining so through this podcast episode.

I love when I record them, I’m like, “Fuck yeah, people are going to get so much from this episode.” So, I want to encourage everyone if you’re listening and Brig has lit a fire in your heart, soul, and ass, get over to brigjohnson.com/group. And they have to apply. What’s the process?

Brig: Yeah, there’s going to be an application. Yeah, but information will be all given through if they get on a waitlist.

Stacey: Alright, so we’re going to link that up in the show notes. So, if you can’t remember brigjohnson.com/group it will also be in our show notes. So, you can access it there. And then they can also find you, do you have Instagram, podcast, where can they find you?

Brig: Yeah. I have a podcast, Breakthrough with Brig, and I have Instagram, Johnson Brig. There is actually another Brig Johnson.

Stacey: So crazy.

Brig: I know. I’m like, what?

Stacey: Apparently now there are lots of Stacey Boehman fake accounts coming up. It’s so weird. I’m like, what’s happening? Alright, thank you so much for coming on. I haven’t laughed this hard on an episode like this in a long time. I always know if I’m going to be around Brig I am in for some laughs.

Brig: My coaching is similar too. They laugh and they cry at the same time.

Stacey: Yeah, so good, thank you so much, I really appreciate you sharing all your wisdom. I wrote down so many nuggets. So, we’re going to share those when we advertise this episode. I’ll be coming out several weeks after we record this I believe. But when we do, I already have my notes, and this is going to be a really good episode. So, thank you so much for coming on. I really enjoyed it.

Brig: Thank you.

Stacey: Alright, bye.

Brig: Bye.

Hey, if you are ready to make money as a life coach, I want to invite you to join my 2K for 2K program where you’re going to make your first $2000, the hardest part, and then $200,000 using my proven formula. It’s risk-free. You either make your 2K or I give you your 2K back. Just head over to www.staceyboehman.com/2kfor2k. We’ll see you inside.

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