Hi friend,

I’m coming up on a year of coaching full-time, which damn! is such a milestone in itself.

Thank you for being a part of my journey. Whether it's been reading this newsletter (I see you!), referring people to work with me, or encouraging me to keep going. I value you so, so much. Thank you.

This newsletter is a review of the past year and my biggest learnings.

I can’t tell you the number of coffee shops I’ve written at, the number of Zoom calls I’ve had, or the amount of money I’ve made.

Or maybe I can.

Much like “Seasons of Love” in RENT, how can we measure the seasons of coaching?

• 342 decaf coconut flat whites. I’m SO embarrassed to disclose my extra-complicated coffee order, but there you have it. I am a difficult customer and one of those lactose-intolerant people who also gets way too jittery with caffeine! Some days I was extra sneaky and ordered this twice.
• 3.4 Zoom calls a day. This is a lot. I’m intentionally trending downwards but wow oh wow, you should have seen me in May, sprinting to the bathroom between calls.
• Disclaimer: In the spirit of transparency, I like to be very candid about money. If this makes you uncomfortable, skip this bullet point!
  ​I’m on track to make around $200k this year and last month I made $28k. Which is huge! 200k was my goal and it feels good to be meeting it. Over the last 4 years when I was coaching part-time I made around 10k/yr so wow, what a difference it makes to be full-time vs part.

My biggest learnings which were both helpful & surprising:

• It’s human nature to recreate the familiar. ​
  And for me, I found myself creeping back to my schedule of busyness. Blank space? Let me fill it! ​
  Previously as an engineering manager I was constantly in meetings and in my own business, I started doing the same.
  It took super exhaustion and wondering “hey, why did I schedule each one of these things?” to realize I was going to burn out again.
  I added in some scary “blocked out time for no calls” to allow myself rest and creativity.
  ​What helped me - I use tools like Reclaim.ai to build around my tendencies and ensure I could work at my highest energy.
• More time building, less time tearing it down.
  Even when they mean well.
  Being an entrepreneur?
  Being a coach?
  Leaving a cushy tech salary?
  All the “these are risky options” boxes were checked.
  I could have listened to people’s warnings, my own insecurities, or looked at statistics, like the likelihood of success when running a business.
  I did, admittedly, lurk on Reddit for the first 3 months.
  And then I realized all of the naysaying wasn’t helpful.
  Did I want to go after my dreams of being a highly-impactful coach with a business, which can take care of me and my loved ones?
  Ok then.
  ​It was time to focus on building that, rather than tearing it down.
• Hiring a coach was one of the best things I’ve done.
  ​I spent 10k on a coach this year as a birthday gift. It was a lot of money and I was terrified!
  But, I truly couldn’t have gotten where I am now as quickly (if I’m honest, it would have taken me at least 3 years) or as enjoyably, without working with my own coach.
  ​What helped me - I set intentional goals and showed up vulnerably. I asked for help and fully utilized the support, wisdom, and accountability from my coach.
• Getting curious about my reluctance and fear​
  I dragged my feet on giving talks for the first 8 months of this year.
  Like, a half-blown tantrum type of reluctance.
  It wasn’t until March that I gave my first talk and now I’ve done 6 talks for over 1000 people.
  That’s kind of wild, right? I’ve spoken at LeadDev in NYC, ran a workshop for CreativeMornings, and hosted my own talks online.
  ​And I love it! ​
  ​What helped me - I got curious about why I was so scared to give a talk (the pressure to be an expert and be perfect) and then brainstormed how I could add my own flavor to it.
  You’ll usually catch me asking people to make a silly sound at the beginning or playing a newly beloved song to set the tone.
  I also hated getting my photo taken but have since, made it a silly, low-stakes thing!

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Exhibit A:
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My clients make waves

I love to brag about my clients and here are some of the incredible things they’ve accomplished this year:

• A senior engineer who landed a job at a super cool robotics company with a 40k raise and a sure path to leadership. We worked together to create an outreach strategy and craft her background story, which felt authentic to her and easy to implement.
  I saw a robot at the NYC airport lounge last week and it was her company! So. neat.
• A founder who closed a multi-million dollar deal. Within his first year of business! Full stop. 👏
  We worked together on setting clear boundaries with his co-founder, prioritizing high-impact business decisions, and building his vision in alignment with his values of abundance and integrity.
• A senior engineering manager who received a promotion and raise.
  We navigated building trust again after a re-org, built her personal brand, and created opportunities which got her out-of-the-weeds and into high-visibility.
• A senior product manager who launched her own coaching business and signed paying clients within the first 3 months.
• A data scientist who ate her way through Spain after landing a dream job in FemTech with a boss who fully supports her.
  All this while also getting a Penguin book deal for spooky cocktail recipes!

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Looking forward

The year isn't over and there are so many magical things we can create together. More momentum and transformations!

Here’s how you can support:

Forward this email to any senior leaders in tech who might want to explore working with me:

• I'm opening up 2 more 1:1 coaching spots for the rest of the year before taking a December hiatus (ahem, vacation! Woohoo.)
• The 4th cohort of AuthenTech starts on October 15th. Get on the waitlist before I open it up to the public!
• Speaking opportunities. If your organization could benefit from me running a workshop or talk, let's chat about it.

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It’s been one fantastic rollercoaster of a year and some day, I’ll draw you a diagram of all the highs and lows.

Writing this already is already a great reminder of all the wonderful progress and momentum we’ve made in this world. What a difference a year can make, huh?

Thank you for being a part of it with me.

Write me back with your own hopes for the next couple months!

Rooting for you,

Sarah