Async Coaching 101

Your cozy guide to doing async client work that loves you back.

“I can’t do Zoom,” she said, “it makes me so nervous and it’s impossible to have quiet here when you’re awake.”

Katie lives in Amsterdam, I’m in Arkansas. She hates video calls but she needed help with her launch. Digital product develop had her at a standstill, and I was the freelancer she hired from Upwork to help take her from stalled engine to crossing the finish line. Together, Katie and I got her product launched. In record time too, way faster than we would have working in hour long blocks on Zoom.

Look at it from a practical perspective, most of us:

• struggle with anxiety and dread live calls

• have life demands that exceed our available time

• have a million things come up every time we commit to a time slot.

This makes scheduling collaborative work anything but cozy. And y’all know, I’m all about low stress work with a side of cookies. Here’s how I’ve changed my work model to love me back. And, love my clients too.❤️

Ditch the Calls

You don’t have to do sales or work calls. It isn’t necessary no matter what growth gurus tell you. Katie never saw me other than my profile photo, we never spoke or met in person.

All of our work was done via Google Workspace in an async fashion, she worked when she was at her best and so did I . . . those times never aligned and it was beautiful! It turned to be the most effective consulting/coaching project I’ve ever worked on and it changed how I work with clients going forward.

Setting Up Async Work for Success

I’m seeing a lot of content popping up here on Substack and other platforms talking about using direct messages for async client work. Many are teaching the use of video and audio messaging as the primary means of coaching asynchronistically. Direct messaging, and even email, seems great in the beginning but stop and think it through.

• How will you keep track of the messages and access them in the future? How will you securely store them?

• How will you search to find an old message? How will you know what each video or audio message says? Do you plan on rewatching them all to find what you need?

• What about files and deliverables? Are you going to have your client attach assets to a DM?

They tell you about this great new way to work, but they fail to show you HOW to work this way and WHY it’s truly better.

Fortunately, I’m here with the deets and the donuts.

Substack + Google Drive for Async Consulting & Coaching

Here’s how I use free tools to run my entire async consulting and coaching pipeline.

All Roads Lead to Substack

All external touch points redirect potential clients and readers to Substack. Substack is my website, lead generation, community management and content delivery ecosystem all-in-one free tool to run a profitable cozy business.

Onto a Private Google Workspace

Once a client hires me, everything moves to Google Workspace (or Google Drive if you’re on the free version).

Every client gets a folder with 4 sub-folders: Agreements, Resources, Communications and Deliverables.

1. Agreements: SOP and any contracts. If you aren’t using scope limiting work agreements yet, I encourage you to have one for every project, no matter how small. This prevents scope creep and manages expectation without the friction. You don’t need it until you do, and then it’s too late. Make it a practice, not an afterthought.

2. Resources: this folder holds client provided branding assets, notes, documents, etc.

3. Communications: This is where all the interaction takes place. The heart of the system is a simple Google doc with chat attached to it. Here’s what it looks like.

   

   This is a sample of a client work document with chat baked into it.

   This folder also holds any video or audio messages we exchange with the transcripts for search ability.

4. Deliverables: This folder holds the things I build. My client work typically consists of making something for the client, like a book template, an async client system or a prototype for a digital product.

This system is simple, but incredibly powerful. I can search and sort everything. It’s all inside one folder I can access from any device. And it’s secure.

Love them or hate them, Google drive is one of the most private, secure places to do this type of work. And it’s FREE.

You don’t need to spend a ton of money or cobble together a dozen apps to run your coaching or consulting business. Substack + Google is the best combination I’ve ever used. I cancelled everything else and saved $200+ a month in subscriptions for my business.

Async Coaching is Effective and Scalable

At the end of the day, it’s about getting better results in less time. Async work cuts out the coordination lag windows. My clients get their part done much faster, which allows me to close out projects in half the time and work with more clients, with lower stress for both of us.

I use the master document like a client work bible. Everything is right there at my fingertips while I’m working. Written coaching IMO is 10x more valuable than video. Video is performative, writing is transformative. Writing engages a part of the brain that speaking skips over. Corresponding through writing allows you and your client time to think before you answer off the cuff.

BONUS: This system gives your you and your client a valuable deliverable at the end of your work together. The master document is becomes a book at the end of your work together. A book that can printed out, read over and over again and used to reflect on progress.

ANOTHER BONUS: You don’t have to ask for quotes anymore. I pull quotes from the master document (with client consent) to use in my promos & marketing material.

Async Results Beat Zoom Calls

Zoom calls feel too much like therapy to me. I’ll own that I’m a bit on the neurospicy side, but I dislike the tendency for video calls to devolve into tropes. When we feel pressured by a question on a live call, our natural urge is to come up with an answer as quickly as possible to fill the void.

We instinctively draw from our bank of go-to expressions when we feel pressured to provide on the spot answers. It’s difficult to comfortably mull over a question with the other person staring at you from the screen. This phenomenon inhibits both the coach and the client from deep reflection.

With my system, I can go into my office with a cup pot of tea and the sole focus of providing thorough, deep work on behalf of my client. They get my all, when I’m at my best. And vice versa. It’s a win-win with bigger, faster results.

And that’s the real reason I embraced async client work.

What about you? Are you using async methods? How are they working for you and your clients? If you want help setting up a system, you know where to find me.