269. Be it an Evergreen or Launch Model -- Being Ready is a Choice with Caitlin Bacher

Being ready is a choice. If you've been on the cusp of something new -- you hired a new coach. You tried the new course. You did the thing. And then you hit this invisible wall that seems to say, "No more for you!" And you believe it? It's a really common experience.

You can create an online course about anything. That's where the fun and power lie. And being ready is a choice. Are you ready to choose business success or not? That's the question I want running around in the back of your mind as you listen today.

Caitlin Bacher is the CEO of Scale with Success, a company dedicated to teaching coaches and course creators how to turn their online courses into a 7-figure business without launching. She's learned this lesson the hard way after years of being trapped on the launch roller coaster, which resulted in inconsistent revenue and sleepless nights wondering where her next sale would come from. 

"As entrepreneurs, there's always a million reasons why we can't do something," says Caitlin. "It's really up to us to think about how we can. On any given day, anything that we have to do, a million reasons why we can't do it, but that doesn't matter. It's so important that we remain focused on figuring out how we can."

No magic checklist will tell you when you're ready to start a business. It's a mindset shift that asks the business owner to recognize you are ready to start. You are willing to make mistakes. You are willing to encounter unexpected challenges. But it's a choice to get started and keep moving forward.

Launching typically requires two to three months of intense list building and content distribution, which leads to an open cart. The open cart can be for your services, one-on-one, or enrolment in your course—whatever it is. That open cart lasts anywhere from five to seven days, and no one can buy until your next launch.

"What most course creators find is that when that launch ends, so does all of the momentum that they've been working so hard to generate," says Caitlin. "Then it's radio silence for your business until you begin the launch cycle all over again."

Using an evergreen model allows you to enroll new students in your program on an ongoing basis, not just a couple of times a year, enabling you to grow over time.

You can continue to collect data on what marketing messages resonate with your audience. You can make little pivots as needed, and you're putting less pressure on yourself to make this one big thing go or else—evergreen doesn't have to be all or nothing, which is a feeling that comes up when you're launching.

"I think that a lot of times people, they get caught up in feeling like, 'you know what, I'm launching and I really don't, I just don't like it. It doesn't really mesh with my lifestyle and my personality, but I feel like it's the only way to do it,'" says Caitlin. "And so I'm here to basically shed light on another approach that may be more fitting for someone."

For anyone considering selling a course, Cailin outlines three key steps to keep in mind.

You have to love your topic.
Teach what you know.
Connect with your audience.

Caitlin notes that when she's working with clients who scale past six or seven figures, they've learned how to manage their emotions and measure their results.

"It's just like this constant iteration," says Caitlin. "Every second that you spend stuck in the drama of it all is taking you further and further away from your goal."

When your head's down and focused on your goals, nobody's there to applaud you. Nobody's there to tell you, "Good job". They don't even know what you're doing. And that's why it is so important that when you are choosing a topic, when you are figuring out what it is that you want to do with your business, that it's something that you're very passionate about and connected to, so you have that to pull yourself forward. 

Watch Caitlin'