EP 365 - Think You're Not Qualified to Coach? 5 Signs You Are (2026)

MarketingCoaching Lifestyle
Written By Debbie Shadid
 

Could I be a coach? If that question keeps circling in your head, stay with me. The qualification you think you're missing is almost certainly one you already have. You just haven't recognized it yet.

If you're new to my channel, my name is Debbie Shadid. I'm a Business Growth and Life Coach and the founder of the Business Building Boutique. For over two decades, I've helped women learn how to become coaches, get clients, grow their businesses, and create meaningful income doing work they love.

When you stop waiting for permission and start seeing your life experience as the offer it actually is, everything opens up. Your hardest seasons weren't a detour. They were the preparation.

In this episode, we'll walk through:

  • Why your life experience isn't a gap on your resume, it's your entire coaching offer

  • Sign one: you rebuilt a relationship after a divorce, a loss, or a heartbreak you weren't sure you'd survive

  • Sign two: you changed careers in the second half of your life and walked away from what felt safe

  • Sign three: you came through a health crisis and figured out how to feel good again

  • Sign four: people naturally come to you when they're struggling, and what that's really telling you

  • Sign five: something in you keeps saying you're meant for more, and why that isn't wishful thinking

  • The one thought that's holding you back, and why it's a lie

  • The single simplest way to get your first client, and it isn't a website or a certification

Imagine finally understanding that the thing you've quietly called "just my life" is exactly what someone out there is searching for right now. You're not too late. You're not too old. You're not under-qualified. You were made for this.

Wondering if coaching is your next step? Let's talk about where you are and what you've been through. Book a call with me here: debbieshadid.com/schedule

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Transcript

Could I be a coach? If that thought is running through your head, I want you to stay right here because today I'm gonna walk through the five signs that your life experience, your story, your struggles, have prepared you to become a coach. And I'm not just talking about life coaching. I am talking about relationship coaching, career coaching, health coaching, wellness coaching, all of it. And here's the thing, the qualifications that you think you're missing, you probably already have it, you just don't recognize it. Am I talking to you? Let's find out. I'm Debbie Shadid. I help women just like you build beautiful boutique-style coaching businesses. If you are in the second half of your life, maybe you are ready for something more, this episode is for you. Now, before I go into the five signs, I want you to stay until the end because I'm gonna tell you exactly how to get a client. It is so much simpler than you think. It's the one way that you can take action. It's not what most people tell you. It's the difference between the women who are gonna actually sign clients and the women who stay stuck getting ready. So don't leave early. Here's the deal. When most women think about becoming a coach, they think,"I gotta get a certification." They think they need official credentials. They think somebody needs to give them permission to do it and say, "Hey, you're ready." And I'm gonna tell you what, today you're gonna find out that you are ready. The people who become great coaches, they become great coaches because they have life experience that they have lived through. They have accomplished something. They have transformed their own life. Think about it in this way. If you've been through something really painful, a divorce, and finally rebuilt your life, who would you rather learn from? Somebody who went to coach school or somebody who actually walked through that fire of a divorce and came out the other side, in a beautiful way? I know you know the answer. Your life experience is your entire coaching offer. And today I'm gonna show you exactly what I mean. Let's talk about the five signs that you are prepared to be a coach. All right, sign number one, you rebuilt a relationship after a challenge. Now, that could be a divorce, Maybe you lost your partner. You went years in a relationship that was making you feel smaller. You finally found your way out. Maybe you have even rebuilt yourself after a heartbreak that you weren't even sure that you were going to survive. Instead, you thrived. And here's the thing, you didn't just survive, you did the work. You learned how to set boundaries. And you've built a life that actually feels like yours. I know you are like, "But Debbie, that was just my life. That was just what happened to me." Please hear me on this. This is not just your life, it is your qualifications. You are not the only one in the world who has had your circumstances. The people who are going through a relationship crisis right now, they desperately are searching for somebody who's already been there. Not just some generic advice from somebody who has never felt that kind of pain. Not somebody who is telling them just to get over it. They want someone to look them in the eye and say, " Look, I know exactly how you feel, and here's how you're gonna get through this." That person might just be you. If it is, you are a relationship coach in the making. Sign number two, you've changed careers, especially over 50, 60. If you've done that, my dear, you have made a career change in your second half of your life. or maybe you left a corporate career that was making you miserable. Maybe you walked away from a salary, a title, and everybody around you was like, "She is crazy." Maybe you started over completely in a whole new path that you had to figure out. Here's what I want you to know. There are so many women who are sitting in jobs they cannot stand right now. They are counting down the days until they can retire, wondering if it's gonna be too late to do something different. They need a career coach who has gone through what they've gone through, who is their age, who understands what they're up against, especially the women need that. They need somebody who's had the courage to walk away with what felt safe and build something new. That could be you. Your reinvention story, the way that you did it, that could be your entire coaching offer. Career coaching is one of the most in-demand things, and I will tell you, especially for women over 50 and 60. People are working much later, and they are looking to do something more meaningful, and you might be the very woman that they are looking for. Sign number three, you transformed your health. If you have been through a serious health crisis, and you have come out the other side, maybe you've lost weight, maybe you've had chronic illness, maybe exhaustion, burnout, hormone changes. Listen, if you're over 50, there are so many things that you might have faced. Every day, people are dealing with all kinds of situations. if you have gone through it and come out the other side healthier, stronger than ever, and you figured out how to feel good again. That transformation is powerful. The people who are still there struggling with it, still stuck, they've been to the doctor, nobody's helping them, they are looking for a guide. Here's the deal. You know what actually worked. You know the mistakes that you made along the way. You know all the things that people told you that were wrong. You know the shortcuts that were actually not shortcuts, that were really a waste of time. And the women who need you right now, they're already searching for solutions. Okay, I wanna stop for just a second because I know some of you guys are like, "Yep, yep, yep." But in the back of your mind, you're saying, "But Debbie, my story is not that special. Other people have had it much worse. Who am I to coach anyone?" I'm gonna be honest with you right now, that thought right now is the thing that is holding you back. Not your lack of experience, not your lack of credentials. That one thought, catch it, because it is a lie. Keep going anyway.Sign number four: people naturally come to you when they are struggling. Are you that person? The person who somebody is always saying, "Hey, can you help me?" People in pain naturally find you. Is that you? You know exactly what I'm talking about if this is you. You're the friend who gets the text at 2:00 AM, right? That one. You get the text and it's like, "Please help me." You're the one at every family gathering where somebody pulls you aside and they're like, "I need to tell you what's going on." You're the person that the coworkers come to and they're like, "Help us." "I'm going crazy here. I need some help." People find you, and then they spill their guts, right? You know what I'm talking about. This is not just about being a good friend. This is a gift. This is one of the clearest signs that you were built for this work. Here is something I want you to sit with. It is a gift. It really is a gift. The people who naturally come to you, they are coming to you because they know that you are wise, because they know that you hear them, you understand them. The thing people already trusting you, that is what you are meant to coach around. Maybe it's always relationships, maybe it's health, maybe it's career. Whatever that one thing is, that is your thing. And here is what I want you to notice. You are already coaching. You're just not being paid for it. You're doing it for free. You're already having those conversations. You are already helping people think through those problems. You're already making a difference, You just don't have a business built around that yet, and that is the training gap, You have the talent, right? We know that already. You've proven it time and time again. You just haven't been taught the business side, and I think you probably didn't know that it was actually possible for you. Sign number five, something in you has a story that you know you are meant for more. This one something, it's been in there just stirring around. You're like, "I know I'm supposed to do something with this." Something in you knows that you are meant for more. maybe you've had a really hard time in your life, and for years you've known,"I need to help somebody else," but you're not sure what that looks like. You know exactly where somebody else has been, and you've gotten to the other side, and you see it. You can just see people who are struggling. You're like, " Ooh, if I could just say something, I know I could help them." you know what you've gone through and how you've come out the other side. I know that you might be a person who says, " I am meant to do something with this. This thing that I've been through, I'm gonna turn it into good and change, change the world through what I have to say." I believe that with everything in me. I am 62 years old, and I feel like I'm just getting started. I look back on everything that I have walked through and I think, "Wow, I can't just sit on this. I have to share it." Every hard season, every transformation. For me, it's all business. All of the business things that I've accomplished, that I have gotten through, because I was able to understand how to do it in a different way, I have to share that. I can't hide that. The same should be true for you. I figured out how to build something from scratch. It is a business. It is something that you can do, too. So let me ask you again: Is there something in you, that story that you know you need to share? You know I'm not done. That is supposed to be what you help somebody else with. Listen to that. Listen to your own intuition. it is your calling. Okay, let me bring it all together. I am gonna share that last strategy with you, but first, let's review the five signs that you were made to be a coach. Number one, you've rebuilt a relationship challenge. That means you're a relationship coach. Number two, you changed careers. You could be a career coach. Number three, you transformed your health. Yep, you're a health coach. Number four, people naturally come to you already. Yep, that means that you could be any kind of coach, a relationship coach, a parenting coach, a coach helping somebody deal with their aging parents. There are so many opportunities. number five, something in you knows that that story that you've been through, is meant to be shared, that you are meant for more, That you have a calling on your life. It's not just a feeling, it is your calling. Here is what I want you to notice. not one of those signs says you have to be certified. Not one of those says wait until you're ready. Not one of those says I think I'm too old. Am I talking to you? So I'm gonna wrap this up. I promise you this one last thing that matters most when you are ready to take action, and here it is. It is not a certification, not a website, not even a social media following. It is one conversation. One real human conversation with somebody who is struggling with the exact same thing you overcame, and I can bet you know somebody. I can bet you already know lots of somebodies. That is how coaching businesses are built. That is how I built my business. That is how every successful coach that I know actually gets their business started. Everything else comes from that. You don't build the website today. You don't do the research for certifications. You pick up the phone and you have one real conversations with one real person who needs help with the thing that you've been through. That is the work. If you wanna have a conversation with me, I wanna invite you to do that. Let's talk about where you are. The link is in the show notes. Let's talk about what you've been through and whether coaching could be the right next step for you. Now, when you are ready to learn about the business side of things, the marketing, the offers, The pricing, how to sign clients consistently, that is exactly what we do inside the Business Building Boutique. I wanna invite you to join us. The link is in the show notes. And if you are not ready for that, if you're like, "Okay, Debbie, I don't wanna go there yet," there is a growth checklist. This is something that will show you what your next steps are. I've got that link there, too. I have built a business that has done over $10 million in sales with a very small following. No bro marketing, no twisting arms, no complicated funnels. I did it with my story, my experience, and real human conversations. Here is what I want you to know for sure. The women who are going to change other people's lives, You know who they are? They're not sitting around waiting for somebody to say, "Hey, you're ready." They're not waiting for permission. They are watching the video right now. I think I'm talking to you. You are not too late. You're not too old. You are not under-qualified. You were made for this. Have a beautiful day. I cannot wait to connect with you. The links are in the show notes.

Debbie Shadid https://www.DebbieShadid.com
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EP 364 - Coaches: The Real Reason You're Not Getting Clients (Hint: It's Not The Algorithm!)