What do you do if your personal coaching clients are draining your energy?

Be honest with yourself of your limits before you even get into a client relationship. Give yourself permission to say "no" to onboarding new clients when you identify you're at your max. All money is not good money, and what you gain financially you'll trade off in peace.

If coaching clients make you feel tired, set clear rules. Take care of yourself, and talk to someone if you need help. If a client is too hard to work with, it's okay to ask someone else to help them, or stop working with them if needed.

Making space for feelings is an integral part of any good coaching process. But it's not always easy to receive and process difficult, raw emotions. In my experience setting clear boundaries at the start goes a very long way. I list the expectations I have for my client (and vice versa) in our coaching agreement. That way it's clear what is and isn't expected during our program. Flagrant offenses rarely occur but, if they do, you can simply remind the client of the expectations that you both agreed upon earlier.

When personal coaching clients exhaust your energy, it is essential to set boundaries. Communicate clearly about the duration, frequency and availability of sessions. Practice self-care techniques such as mindfulness, exercise and hobbies to recharge. Assess client-coach compatibility and consider referring clients to other professionals if necessary. Finally, seek support from mentors or colleagues and prioritise your well-being to continue coaching effectively.

It's extremely important to prioritise self care as a coach because working with people is mentally, emotionally, and physically draining. Creating and maintaining self care practices like meditation, journaling, doing your own inner work, exercising, engaging in creative pursuits and taking adequate mental, emotional and physical rest is crucial for the well-being of a Coach. You can't pour from an empty cup so you need to keep filling it up!

When I first started coaching I made myself as available as humanly possible. I thought that the more available I was the better I would serve my clients. What I realized is that allowing calls too early cut into my morning workouts, and calls too late cut into dinner time with my wife and our four kids. I love what I do and I care about my clients, but nothing is as important to me as time with my family and time for myself. Those are non-negotiable. And I'm a better coach because of it.

No matter how good you are at coaching, not every person will be a good client. The first call with a potential client is the time to conduct this crucial assessment. If you do not click, they are not coachable, or their needs are outside your professional scope, it's best to refer them elsewhere or simply tell them that you're not a good fit. About coachability, I often ask potential clients if they think that they are coachable. Coachable people don't hesitate, but it's the ones who say "Hmm...not really" that you should watch out for. If they don't think they're coachable, they're probably not ready for coaching.

Do a fact based and scientific driven personality assessment like a Birkman personality assessment, to know your stress behaviors, your usual behavior and what motivates you. Knowing your stress responses are like a warning light on your cars dashboard, either you act or you’re getting into trouble. If you know what rejuvenates you, your motivation boosters use them proactive to get back into your best version of yourself to put your strength into your coaching. Besides having self awareness, wise planing and scheduling is also key. If you know you’ll have a draining session try to plan smart and have margins around to do things which will fill your energy levels and or to decompress.

Talk to a more experienced coach to get feedback from a different point of view. Knowing your weaknesses in coaching or struggles in dealing with a certain kind of personality is key for growth. Look for trainings or coaching tools which will help you to deal with difficult clients. In the reflection process, be aware of your own emotions, take a step aside and let them flow by without giving them too much control, but put into words what you feel. Keep breathing and do relaxation exercises and explore where these feelings come from. Difficult clients and the accompanying emotions can help you to grow in your own personality.