You've worked on your messaging. You've used AI to help clean it up. You've rewritten your bio three times. And still, the right people aren't responding.

Here's the problem Adam and Jess zero in on in this episode: most coaches are writing from where they are, not from where their people are. That gap is costing you conversations, clients, and trust.

This is Part 3 of the Maslow Mountain series, and it's probably the one you've been waiting for. Parts 1 and 2 built the foundation of understanding your avatar and nailing your payoff. This episode is where it all lands, because if your messaging doesn't meet your person on the level of the mountain they're actually standing on, none of the rest of it matters.

The conversation gets specific fast. Jess flags the "I help blank do blank" formula as the single most common messaging mistake coaches make, not because the structure is wrong but because the language is always too generic, too aspirational, and too far from where the person actually is right now. Adam pulls in the psychographic lens: what does your avatar think, feel, and need at this exact moment? Those are the three questions that need to drive every piece of messaging you put into the world.

They also get honest about AI. It's a great thought partner. It's a lousy content creator unless you've done the foundational human work first. And in a world where people can now feel the difference between a real person's message and a generated one, leaning on AI without that foundation isn't just ineffective. It actively erodes trust.

What you'll take away from this episode:

• Why "I help [avatar] achieve [outcome]" is killing your conversions and what to replace it with
• The specific question you need to answer before writing a single word of messaging: where is your avatar on the mountain right now?
• Why aspirational language repels the very people you're trying to attract
• How to remove ego from your messaging without removing yourself from it
• The difference between specificity and complexity (and why your audience wants one, not both)
• What Taki Moore gets right that most coaches get completely wrong about authentic messaging
• Why storytelling outperforms information dumping every single time, on social, on stage, and everywhere else

The big idea:

Your messaging has nothing to do with you. It has everything to do with them. The coaches who land clients consistently aren't the most credentialed or the most polished. They're the ones whose words make their ideal client think, "How did they know that's exactly where I am right now?" That feeling is trust. And trust is what closes.

Notable quote:

"Stop the peacocking and just really start being you. Even if you're a manatee." — Jess Webber

Resources Mentioned:

• Building a StoryBrand by Donald Miller (referenced: guide vs. hero positioning)
• Taki Moore — go watch his recent reels for a masterclass in authentic, avatar-first messaging
• ILC Community: ilovecoachingco.com
• Instagram: @ilovecoachingco / @adamrroach / @thejesswebber
• YouTube: youtube.com/@ilovecoachingco

Timestamps:

[00:00] Opening: Episode 3 of Maslow Mountain and the messaging problem

[00:29] Why AI is a copilot, not a content creator

[02:37] What happens when you rely solely on AI for messaging

[04:10] The "I help blank do blank" trap

[05:30] Think and feel: the two messaging filters that build trust

[06:36] Why specificity is the trust builder (and it doesn't mean fancy language)

[08:26] Push pause: your one action item from this episode

[09:01] Active cringe face and why aspirational language misses the mark

[11:00] Social media is not about you, full stop

[12:53] The hero vs. guide shift (Donald Miller reference)

[14:00] Jess's keynote story: what happened when she removed the info dump

[15:50] Taki Moore as a case study in authentic positional messaging

[18:28] Authenticity vs. ego: the distinction that changes everything

[20:57] The peacocking problem and the permission to stop

[22:43] Preview: Part 4 is coming, and it's about letting your message work without you

Join the Community:

Ready to build a coaching business where the right people actually find you? The ILC community is where coaches stop guessing at their messaging and start building something that works. Head over to ilovecoachingco.com.