We talk about the unique aspects of LinkedIn as a social media platform and the importance of having a mission in your business. When we appreciate the significance of embracing a larger mission and how it can positively impact one's coaching business. The conversation also focuses on starting out on LinkedIn as a new coach, creating a compelling profile that reflects one's mission, and building relationships through engaging content and conversations.

Highlights:

1. LinkedIn is distinct from other social media platforms, offering various features and opportunities.
2. Having a mission in business can be empowering and make a positive difference.
3. Embracing and openly expressing one's mission is more effective than keeping it a secret.
4. Coaches often have hidden missions and can benefit from utilizing LinkedIn to amplify their impact.
5. Starting early on LinkedIn and engaging in conversations can lay a strong foundation for future business growth.
6. It’s important to write a compelling profile that highlights one's mission and evokes emotion is crucial.
7. Rather than focusing on website creation and branding initially, coaches could prioritize building relationships and having conversations on LinkedIn.
8. Creating a body of work through articles, case studies, and featured sections on LinkedIn helps showcase expertise.
9. Interacting with commenters and likers on posts is essential for building relationships and fostering deeper conversations.
10. LinkedIn conversations may take longer than face-to-face conversations, but understanding the platform's dynamics can lead to better outcomes and stronger connections.

Featured on This Show:

• Click here to find out how to work with me
• Click here to see my new online shop
• Click here to access valuable free resources for coaches
• Click here to access my secret podcast: Unlock Coaching Success

Sophie Lechner 

After 25 years in corporate, Sophie found The Global Growth Experience. She help solopreneurs on a mission to find their audience on LinkedIn and engage with them so they can spread their message and grow their business. 

Over the last 18 years, her activity on LinkedIn has led to speaking engagements in the US and abroad, podcast invitations, finding clients and JV partners, and even an interview in Forbes.

She created the MAGNET Method to help solopreneurs build the authentic relationships that will propel their mission forward. She works with clients one-on-one and via courses, group programs, and workshops.

Website: https://themagnetmodel.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophielechner/

Free resource: https://g2experience.involve.me/what-kind-of-linkedin-user-are-you?

Hey welcome to she coaches coaches, I'm your host, Candy Motzek. And I'm going to help you find the clarity, confidence and courage to become the coach that you are meant to be. If you're a new coach, or if you've always wanted to be a life coach, then this is the place for you. We're going to talk all about mindset and strategies and how to, because step by step only works when you have the clarity, courage and confidence to take action. Let's get started.

Hey, everyone, and welcome to this episode, I have a special guest with me today. Her name is Sophie Lechner. And let me tell you a little bit about Sophie before we dive in, she has 25 years in corporate behind her. And she founded the global growth experience. And with that she helps solopreneurs who are on a mission to find their audience on LinkedIn, and engage with them so they can spread their message and grow their business. Now I've invited Sophie specifically because of her LinkedIn expertise. I know that so many of you coaches and consultants and online entrepreneurs, you're always wondering like, how do I create relationships with people that could be part of my audience? How do I start to create those warm connections? And I know LinkedIn is a topic that I've never discussed yet on the show. So I'm looking forward to hearing all about it from Sophie. So welcome, Sophie. So glad you're here.

Thank you. It's wonderful to see you and to be here. And hopefully I can help your audience.

I'm sure you can, I know that I know that you've got everything ready to go. So let's start. Just tell us a little bit about how you went from corporate to helping solopreneurs on a mission specifically in the LinkedIn environment?

Well, you could say that my audience kind of shrank in a way because I was talking to big corporations. And then when I created the global growth, growth experience, it was really deserved midsize companies. And later on sort of around the time of the pandemic, I pivoted and started really focusing in on the LinkedIn component. And then recently, I focus even more on solopreneurs on a mission because I just I just get really energized by people who have this big vision of what they want to do. And I find that it gives them that, um, and that action orientation, and it helps them to get over themselves and and get over whatever challenges they might have. So I'm loving this audience, it really energizes me.

I love that. And LinkedIn is such a different platform. You know, yes, it's a social media platform, but it has so many different aspects to it than Instagram, or Facebook or Tik Tok, or any of these other social platforms. Before we talk a little bit more about LinkedIn, there is something that I think is really, really pertinent here about this shift to solopreneurs on a mission. And I really liked that you said that, you know, kind of lights you up. And I also wanted to know if there is I'll just call it an ulterior motive. And here's what it here's what it sounds like, Is this, like, with my expertise, and helping solopreneurs who are on a mission, I can really make a difference in this world. You know, like your you can really impact so many people by supporting that group of people. Is that That's something Yeah, that's an

ulterior motive that, I would say yes, absolutely.

That's what I thought, too. I was like, she's gonna kind of wonder what, where I'm going with this. But it's like it really is. We always think an ulterior motive has a little bit shady. But in fact, it doesn't have to be and they're even more fun when these are like, let's make the world a better place. Help people do what they love to do and the impact that they're supposed to have like when that be a great business that we all have that kind of ulterior motive.

Absolutely. And it's funny, because when I first started coaching on LinkedIn, I used to say, Oh, I have a secret mission. I have a secret, you know, agenda. And then one day I was like, why would it be a secret agenda?

This is what I'm all about. Right? Just embraced it.

Yeah. Oh, I love that. Yeah, so that's that's almost the same kind of thing, isn't it? And, and I, and I think that there is a lesson there. You know, primarily the audience for the show is coaches. But there is a lesson there. But you know how many coaches actually are kind of on a secret mission. And then if they came and found out more about how to show up on LinkedIn, many of them would just skyrocket their business because they wouldn't move past that. What do you think that's

exactly the topic of the book I'm writing? So that's exactly right. I may actually use ulterior motive in there, at some point, but yeah, it's it's the ability I love doing this work is to help people to and like discover, and identify and embrace this bigger mission that they have, they might not have, you know, really spotted, or, or put that word around. And I hesitated initially with on admission, because I feel like some of my audience probably don't think of themselves as on a mission. But I think it's worthwhile pushing them a little bit too, outside of their comfort zone to go there.

Yeah. And sometimes we think on a mission has to be like, it's not worthwhile if it's not world peace, right? Right. But a mission could be something like, I just want to be able to make money, make a difference, and live a life of freedom. And help my clients like that is a mission in and of itself, right? It doesn't have to be world peace. All those things actually lead to world peace. However, however, it doesn't have to be. So if I was a new coach, and I was coming out of corporate now, you know, that's sort of my history as well. And I was just starting out, how would you suggest they start on LinkedIn?

Great. So first of all, I would be, I would compliment you on thinking about LinkedIn early in your journey. Because a lot of coaches start with all the mechanics, and the branding, and this and that, and build all these things before they actually get themselves out there. And I believe that's a big mistake. So I would say great job starting on LinkedIn ASAP. Because even if you don't have all your ducks in a row, it doesn't matter, you can start having the conversations, you can start talking to people, you can start sharing your, your, your coaching your expertise, and build relationships that will then be useful when you're actually ready with your offer. And, you know, ready to get out there with your message. So that would be the first thing, then I would tell them, write your profile. And the key thing about the profile is, you know, there's all the different pieces, but you can find information on whatever Google on, you know, the different pieces. But the key thing with the profile, is exactly what we were saying is to really get in touch with your mission. Find your why, and make sure that it stands out that it really shines. So that you can grab people on an emotional level, decisions are made emotionally first, and then we're justifying with the, you know, the data. So really make sure that this this passion comes across, besides of course, being clear on who you help, what you do, etc. So those would be the initial two big, well, main piece of advice, I guess.

Right? And I really, I really, I agree with you, like 100%. When I'm thinking about working with new coaches, I always say don't, don't do any of the build your website, get a logo, do your brand saying, Get out and start talking to people and actually start inviting them into coaching conversations. And that's exactly what you're saying this is the lead into creating those relationships. And I do know of people who use Instagram in this way, but I don't know if you can do this on LinkedIn as well. I sometimes recommend that if they want to start creating messages and small articles and many blog posts and that kind of thing to almost make the social media platform, their initial website. You know, that's where you start talking about things. What do you Think about that, do you think that that's a good way to go?

That is exactly what I tell people. In fact, I tell them use your profile, to create a mini customer journey for your reader. So, you know, I see a lot of people who take their banner, and they put their, their, their, their Calendly link, or whatever to book a call or their website. And I say no to this is the first impression. You don't want to grab people like that, you want to be very gentle. And take them gradually, from there, the banner, to the headline to the picture to the about section and the featured section, and really make sure that there's a little bit for each of the stages of your customer journey. So yes, I completely agree. And I always advise people to, to the extent they can keep people on their LinkedIn profile as long as possible. So rather than take the person immediately to their website, is keep them there, because you can sort of take them down a rabbit hole, which is a good rabbit hole, because it's one that leads to getting to know you, and like you and trust you. And that's what you want. You want your clients to know, like and trust you or your prospects. And so I am so on board with you on that, right.

So what I'm hearing so far, is start early, like before, almost before you do anything else, you start on LinkedIn, decide that this is your platform, and then create a bio that reflects your mission, your passion, something that really pulls up people to make them interested. And then now it's time to start building a little bit of I know this isn't the right phrase, but the words come to me a body of work, it may be an interesting quote, it may be a little video that you've done by me a mini blog post, even something that's only four or five sentences long, just speaking to that potential client and start engaging them at different points in their customer journey. That's got a question to it. I'm not quite sure what you think about that. So

yes, I absolutely agree. And it's interesting, you say body of work, and that it may not be the right phrase, because that's actually the phrase that I do use quite frequently, because I advise my clients to create articles, which I call pillar articles. So something about you know, like the first question you asked me, right, how did you get to be who you are, and where you know what you're doing now. So you can touch on that in your about section, but of course, you have a much longer story to tell. And so I tell my clients write an article about this, you know, nice and long, it's the person who reads it are, at this point ready to go down the rabbit hole, they're, they're doing it voluntarily. And so take them take them on the on the story. One article also that can be really useful is explaining what your process is, how you work with clients, why you work with them that way, one of the steps and all of that. So, if you have these pillar articles, it is a body of work, right? It really is a body of work, you can have case studies in there. And you can feature that you can include that in your featured section. So you can see how this really becomes your website. At this point. You've got the all the different pieces, you've got the about you've got the stories that no sort of blog page, if you will. So yeah, absolutely.

And then what about interacting with people? What do you suggest for that? How do you connect with people? How do you interact with them? And I have another question. And that is what to do about all those darn messages that you get that say, I saw you and your profile kind of looks like we might like to do business together. What like so how do you how do you create relationships with people? Easy in person, but on LinkedIn specifically, it's a little bit different.

Yeah, and unfortunately, there are those pesky people who will you know, continue listening to the so golden can LinkedIn gurus that tell you to send a lot of messages and you'll get 3% response rate and I'm like, Why did they get excited about that? I get 100% You know, on a smaller number, but it's much better. So in terms of of reacting to those those messages, I you know, the the main thing is just don't let it bother you and just ignore that. I don't even bother to click the button ignore I just My mind just ignores them. So that's my advice on that. Connecting, you know, the, the first you connect with all the people that you already know, in real life, because that's how your content will start being visible to them, but their connections, importantly, it and so you want to start with that. And then as you grow your eyes, you, you know, post your content, people will comment on it, people will like it, then their connections will see it. And when you engage with the commenters and the likers, then that's how you start to build a relationship. You want to always respond to all the comments on your posts, and preferably start engaging in a conversation, the whole point to me of LinkedIn is getting into conversations, conversations on the platform, and then deeper conversations off the platform. So you post you see your comments, you interact with that comment, you tag them, you respond, you ask another question. And after a couple of interactions, you maybe message them, you know, you've you connect with them, then you can message and then you can say, hey, let's get on a call. But it needs to be very natural can't be in the mindset of of, you know, trying to find a client, I mean, you really have to disengage from the outcome, to enjoy LinkedIn and to make it work.

And I really, as you're describing this, it really reminds me of it is just like a conversation that somebody you would have with somebody. Yeah, except the difference is that in time, it's a little bit longer. So conversation that you might have in 10 minutes, might have been over a span of a few days. So if you engage, you ask one question, of course, it's going to take time for them to think and respond to you if they do. And then again, you're responding. So you know how you and I could have a quick conversation in five minutes might take many back and forth interactions on the platform. And so I think the place to point people here is it is a conversation. These are real relationships, you start with your people that you know, in real life, and that there's no there's a bit of a fallacy that you might feel impatient that it's not happening fast enough. But if you know that it's a conversation that takes place over a much wider time span, just because of the platform. And it'll probably help you feel much better about what's going on. Right?

Yeah, exactly. I like how you've how you phrase that? And, yeah, like I'm so used to it, I'm having to actually re frame in my mind, you know, the expectation that could be of an immediate converse, conversation, like a synchronous conversation, I'm so used to this asynchronous setting. But that is what it is. So rather than think of each conversation as one person at a time, I guess I see it as, you know, how do we explain this even like, you're having conversations here, they're in there, and they're today. And then another day, I would come in? And I'd say, Oh, right. There's that conversation. And then you continue that, but you know, does it make sense of it feels like it does?

It does? Yes, yeah. But for me, even now, and when I was a new coach, that would have been really helpful me, for me to have that kind of understanding that it really is a conversation, but it's just at a different pace. Right. And that, and then I think that there's a lot of it could actually be an even better conversation, because you have time to think a little bit before you reply. Really ask an interesting question. Something that really is that you really care about, as opposed to just nice weather today. Hmm. Right, like a real conversation as opposed to a surface level conversation. Yeah. So you've told us so much already, what, what? We've talked about exactly how to start. We've talked about the purpose of how LinkedIn can be that stand in for your website, especially early in the journey. You've talked about the importance of the bio importance of the conversation, gave me a great tip on what to do with all those pesky DMS and what So what am I missing?

I think the biggest piece is the mindset, and just disconnecting from the outcome. And that's, you know, very hard to do. But it's also absolutely critical. And it's critical for your business, not just on LinkedIn, but in general, right? Like your sales conversations, once you're able to have sales conversations where you can detach from the outcome, and really focus on the person and how you can help them in this moment. Everything changes. And on LinkedIn, it's very important to do that. If you go in looking for, how can I sell to things, I think, How can I help people in general, so in other words, do your coaching now ahead of somebody signing up for anything. So Coach, people in general, think of LinkedIn as your clients, you know, you who and how you would coach them. And also, it's just a place to have interesting conversations. So I think coaches, by the very nature of their work, enjoy deep conversations. And so I find that LinkedIn offers you that opportunity to do that to really get into thoughtful conversations, again, because of the asynchronous nature as well. And you can get into these conversations, and it just feels Enriching, I feel that it's, it doesn't have to be always about your work and your coaching, it can be just in general. And people see this rounded person and their interests, you know, your interests, your opinions, your responses, how you respond to people. And that increases the know like, and trust factor. And my opinion, the important piece, too is if you enjoy being on LinkedIn, it will come across, and it will feed everything else that you do on LinkedIn.

This is really interesting. So you know, this mindset piece is a big piece about going on the platform, to create relationships and have conversations, not going on the platform, because you're hunting for clients, and you want one today, right? Like from that place of desperation is never going to work. And there was something else that you said, Sophie, that really struck me as you were doing, as you were describing the mindset piece of it, and that there's a very different feel for this kind of conversation and relationship building and using the LinkedIn platform than I've ever heard. For something like an Instagram or a Facebook, very, very different. You know, so these conversations that are thoughtful, and extended, and more connected. To use social media as a place for that, instead of for surface. Here's what my breakfast looks like today. Yay, yay. And then it's done. That is a very different mode of social media. And I agree, I think that that really will appeal to people who love coaching.

Yes, yeah. Yeah. I think it's a perfect platform for introverts. I mean, there's extroverts on there as well, right. But the fact that you can have these deep conversations, as opposed to surface is something that appeals to introvert, right? And that you don't you can dispense with the chitchat. So there's no need, you can go straight into the heart stuff. And the fact that it's asynchronous, once again, is really something that works well for introverts. So I see, I have, I have conversations sometimes just on and off over several months with someone. I'll respond to something they wrote, and they'll respond something, you know, response to my comment, and, and they're absolutely not a client. I'm absolutely not a client of theirs. But it's just interesting. And we've never spoken. But it's just very rich.

I love that. Thank you so much for sharing all these things. And as I look at the screen, so for those of you who happen to be listening to the audio version of this podcast, and you know, audio is my prime method, you could go over to YouTube and have a look. And when I see Sophie's signature, that says LinkedIn coach for solopreneurs on a mission, it feels like you could almost add LinkedIn coach for introverted solopreneurs on a mission.

Maybe that's My next niching exercise.

Thank you so much for joining me, Sophie, can you tell me a little bit more about how people can get in touch with you, so they can learn more about being in your world and learn more about the kinds of ways that you can support them?

The easiest way is to look me up on LinkedIn. There's a couple of Sophie learners, but not that many, you'll know very quickly if you're with the right one. And so, Sophie, I guess you'll have the links in your in your show notes, right? Well, yes. Yeah, I think finding me on LinkedIn is just the simplest way. In fact, a lot of my clients, you know, when they can't reach me on email, they come and DM me on LinkedIn, like, yeah, we knew we'd find you here.

That's wonderful. Thank you so much. And I think it's great, the best place to find you is the place that you help people with on LinkedIn. So any last words before we wrap up the episode for today,

I have really enjoyed this. If any of your clients prospects, listeners want to get in touch with me, I would be very happy to give them a free coaching session, you know, like a strategy session to see if LinkedIn would be good for them. I really enjoy working with coaches who are passionate about their work and their clients and what they want to change in the world. So if we can change together if I can be a small part of their success, then I'm very happy.