The Most Profitable Nutrition Coaches Do This

If you’re a nutrition or fitness coach who is running your own small business, I wanted to share a helpful analogy of a plane to help professionalize your operation. If you’re struggling to be profitable, this week’s reflection exercise is for you.

Happy 2-Tips Tuesday!

Here are two ideas to consider this week.

By Jennifer Broxterman, RD

1. Six Ways to Be More Profitable

*Credit for this idea comes from the book How to Grow Your Small Business by Donald Miller - a great read while I was sitting in the hospital emergency room this past weekend to ensure I didn’t break my leg (full story below).

✈️ Picture an Airplane:

1. Leadership is the cockpit of the airplane. The leader is like the pilot who is put in charge of getting the plane to its destination, safely and efficiently. The pilot needs to confidently know which direction and final destination they are flying the airplane to.

2. Marketing is the right engine which gives the airplane power and thrust. To grow a business you will need to clarify your marketing message so it is clear, direct, and speaks to the right people you want to attract.

3. Sales is the left engine, which along with marketing propels the plane forward. Even if you don’t have a sales team, you likely are involved in countless sales conversations, whether that’s in person, on the phone, via email, or through social media DMs. To sell your stuff, you need to get comfortable talking to people and sharing how your products and services will solve their problems.

4. Your products and services are represented by the wings of the airplane. If what you sell is in demand and profitable, it will give the business lift and support the weight of the airplane. Thrust is provided through marketing and sales (your 2 engines), but the wings (profitable and in-demand offerings) make the airplane soar.

5. Overhead and operating costs are the body of the airplane. If your overhead spending gets out of control, the plane will become too big and heavy and will ultimately crash.

6. Cash flow is the fuel tank. Your cash flow must be managed so there is enough money (fuel) to operate the airplane, plus a little extra in case of emergency.

👉 This week’s reflection exercise:
Give yourself a score out of 10 for each area - leadership, marketing, sales, products & services, overhead, and cash flow.

What’s dragging your airplane down?

===

Quick Story:

Nearly breaking my leg this weekend turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

I was helping a friend chop down a tree for firewood when, despite our best safety efforts, things went sideways. As we were using the ATV winch to haul a large log up a steep hill, the log got stuck, creating tension that snapped a fallen tree branch lying on the ground.

*CRACK*

A baseball bat sized branch snapped in half, went flying, and struck me square on the shin bone.

OUCH!! 🤬

Bruising, swelling, and a funny angle in my tibia sent me to the hospital ER for an x-ray. Fortunately, strength training has given me bones of steel—so no broken bones!

But here’s the twist.

During triage, I mentioned a red and itchy spider bite that was spreading up my arm. 🕷️ Turns out, it was poisonous, and the infection was moving up my vein that required antibiotics immediately.

So, in a strange turn of events, I didn’t break my leg, got treated for a poisonous spider bite, and had some downtime to read a great business book. All in all, a pretty great weekend!

2. Maybe So, Maybe Not, We’ll See
(The Chinese Farmer Story)

After the hospital, this fitting Chinese proverb popped into my mind, and I thought I’d share it with you.

Once upon a time there was a Chinese farmer whose horse ran away.

That evening, all of his neighbors came around to commiserate. They said, “We are so sorry to hear your horse has run away. This is most unfortunate.” The farmer said, “Maybe.”

The next day the horse came back bringing seven wild horses with it, and in the evening everyone came back and said, “Oh, isn’t that lucky. What a great turn of events. You now have eight horses!” The farmer again said, “Maybe.”

The following day his son tried to break one of the horses, and while riding it he was thrown off and broke his leg. The neighbors then said, “Oh no, that’s too bad,” and the farmer responded, “Maybe.”

The next day the conscription officers came around to conscript people into the army, and they rejected his son because he had a broken leg. Again all the neighbors came around and said, “Isn’t that great!” Again, he said, “Maybe.”

Maybe, maybe not, we’ll see.

===

We’re quick to label things as “good” or “bad” in the moment. But binary thinking doesn’t always serve us well.

You win a big contract, a key employee quits, market conditions shift, your laptop stops working, a pandemic happens. Is it good? Bad? Maybe.

One thing you can count on is that life is unpredictable and will throw surprises your way. We never really know what situations may bring us–good, bad, or otherwise.

So remember:

Maybe, maybe not, we’ll see.

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Jen Broxterman
Registered Dietitian
Prosper Nutrition Coaching

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