“Have you ever had a client walk through the door and your gut screamed, “They’ve got the wrong person”?
That was me. Over a decade ago. Standing in front of a tall, imposing lawyer and his equally articulate teenage daughter, convinced I wasn’t “enough” for them. Not experienced enough. Not posh enough. Not educated in the right way.
But what unfolded across the next ten years… was something I never could have scripted.
When the Client You’re Intimidated By Comes Back for More
Back then, the daughter had a very specific phobia that was stopping her from being independent – particularly when it came to travelling. I explained how I could help. The father nodded, but warned me that his wife – a doctor – was anxious about NLP. She’d need reassurance.
So I did what many of us have had to do with tricky or sceptical clients. I went into due diligence mode. Safeguarding. Insurance. DBS. Paediatric First Aid. Data protection. All the certificates. The works.
He seemed satisfied, and although they didn’t book immediately, they came back.
I began working with his daughter. And she was tricky – not rude, just intelligent and, frankly, a bit objectionable. Every intervention I suggested was met with questions, challenges, and eyebrow raises. At times I doubted myself.
“Sometimes the tricky ones aren’t tricky – they’re testing if you care enough to stick around.”
A Coaching Franchise Means Long-Term Trust – Not One-Off Fixes
Years later, I received a postcard. She was on the other side of the world – alone, empowered, and travelling. Her anxiety had lifted. Not because I had a magic wand, but because I stayed consistent. Human. Professional. Present.
Then came the next call.
They had another daughter. And this time it was the mum who booked in. By now, I’d shed a layer or two of imposter syndrome. The session went well.
A few years after that, the dad called again. But not for one of the children – this time, he wanted to book in for himself.
This man who once intimidated me. Who once handed me a luxury fountain pen to sign a form, making me feel like the working-class imposter in a world I didn’t belong in. That same man sat across from me again – now not as a client’s parent, but as a client himself.
Turns out, under the big coat and expensive pen, he was a creative – a writer, trapped in a legal suit.
Coaching Franchises Aren’t Just About Clients – They’re About Evolution
There’s something beautifully full-circle about this story. I started out feeling like an underdog. And now, years later, I see that I wasn’t being tolerated – I was being trusted.
When you’re building a coaching franchise, moments like these are gold. They don’t happen from one-off sessions. They come from building something real, consistent, and reliable over time. They come when you operate not just as a coach or therapist, but as someone who shows up – yellow tights and all – as you.
That’s what People Building stands for.
We’re not the slickest, most sanitised brand. We’re human. We’re heart-led. And we’re building a coaching franchise that supports real transformation – the kind that starts small and shows up again, and again, and again, when people need it most.
If you’ve ever doubted your worth, your status, or whether “those kinds of clients” are for you – this is your sign. You belong.
The Clients Who Challenge You Might Be the Ones Who Change You
Tricky clients aren’t always difficult. Sometimes, they’re mirrors. Sometimes, they’re testing your commitment. And sometimes, they’re just scared to trust you… because deep down, they desperately want to.
If you’re dreaming of building a coaching franchise, remember this: your people will find you. But only if you show up first.
And when they do? Be ready. Even if they hand you a pen that costs more than your first car.
by Gemma Bailey (with the help of Ai)
https://www.peoplebuilding.co.uk/franchise “
