​

Hey Reader,

I’ve been working on a little side project (very slowwwwwwly) in between my client work lately.

I want to use this week's newsletter as an opportunity to put words to something I've been thinking about a lot lately: the way we’re taught to buy business support in the online space.

Because if you're currently eyeing a coaching container that costs more than what you're currently making in a year, I want to tell you to step away from the checkout page.

Don't do it. Not yet, anyway.

Here’s what nobody tells you before you sign that contract: doing the actual business IS the inner work.

You don’t need a $20k program to find your blocks.

They show up the exact second you have to vulnerably show your face on video, or when you’re paralyzed by the fear of "being cringe" in front of the people you went to high school with.

The inner work is the terror (and excitement) of investing thousands of dollars into a side project that currently only exists inside your own head.

It’s learning to trust your own intuition over all those beautiful boss babes out there...because you're looking for permission (you can give that to yourself!).

And the self-worth stuff? That's what therapy and spiritual guidance is made for.

But what if you actually do need business support?

I'd argue that you are better off hiring a service provider. Or joining a mastermind or online community. Or maybe you just need to book a one-off strategy session...

There are so many incredible ways to get support built around the actual problem you have, without dropping your hard-earned cash on someone else's generic framework.

Look, I’m sure there are great business coaches out there who charge the big bucks because they actually have the "cred" to back it up.

But if I’m being completely honest? I’ve never heard a genuine success story about dropping $20K on a coach...unless it was from another coach trying to sell their own $20K program.

For real.

My first experience with a business coach was valuable, but not for the reason you’d think.

Truthfully, I should have stuck with the initial strategy session instead of signing up for ongoing support. Because after the first two sessions, the red flags were waving and I knew I'd made a mistake.

Don't get me wrong...it’s great to have people who challenge you to think outside the box. The first session did that for me. But after that? It completely shifted to being about what worked for THEM.

They weren't listening, even when I pushed back. When I said a strategy didn't fit my business, I was told it was just my "fear" talking.

But here’s the thing: I’ve done a lot of personal development. I know my own heart, and I know the difference between feeling outside my comfort zone and actual misalignment.

It wasn’t the most expensive coaching program out there, but it was still four figures down the drain.

In the end, the best lesson I got was learning to trust myself more. I trusted my intuition enough to call it what it was...wrong for me...and every move I’ve made since that moment has come from my own internal compass.

There IS a place for business coaches, but I truly don't think anyone should be charging ridiculous sums of money without providing actual services (like copywriting, design or some form of done-for-you support).

Everything else is just mindset work. And like I said, you can hire a therapist or an spiritual healer for that.

This year, I've spent over $15K working with service providers and it's moved me further along in my business than anything else could (seriously 20K for mindset support?!).

I want to take a second to shout these experts out, because every business owner needs people like this in their corner:

• Gerry Tait (Email Writer Extraordinaire): Hired her to review and tune up my welcome sequence. Because yes, your automated emails always need a second pair of eyes. → Visit her website here!
• Rebecca Caldwell at Three Groves Marketing (Analytics Wiz): She sells a killer template that actually makes data easy to understand for people who hate the technical stuff. → Grab her template here!
• Jess Creatives (SEO Wiz): Hired her to clean up my keyword strategy after a previous provider couldn't get me the results I wanted. Within a month, I was ranking on the first page of Google. → Get SEO help here!
• Lucy Bedewi at My Write Hand Woman (The Flash of Copywriters): Booked her for an intensive to simplify my website copy. Because even a trained copywriter needs outside eyes on her own sh*t. → She makes you want to buy from you here!
• Sprout Law & Mason PC (Trademark Experts): The legal muscle helping me secure my business name and tagline across the US and Canada.
• Jocelyn Phillips (GTA Photographer + Hype Woman): The genius behind the lens who captured all my favourite new brand photos. → Get your brand photos done here!

Again, I'm not knocking working with coaches who provide REAL value to your business growth.

I simply want you to remember not to fall for the promise that a massive price tag equals a guaranteed six-figure breakthrough. They lovvvve to claim that their container is the missing link to your next revenue milestone, but nobody can guarantee that.

You have to figure out what works for you!

So before you sink five figures into another container, ask yourself: is this actually a mindset problem? Or do you just need an outside expert to look at one specific thing?

Usually, it’s the expert. And when it comes to your brand, that’s almost always the case.

Ready to get some real support? Pick your path!

👉 Brand Intensive — Perfect if you need real human eyes to uncover what’s holding your brand back, giving you an immediate, clear plan to stop being embarrassed by your website and finally take up space.

👉 Custom Branding — The full transformation. Deep-dive strategy, messaging, and bold visuals that finally catch up to who you are, so your outside matches your inside.

Emily 💋

xo Emily Lauren (she/her) Missed a previous email? Catch up here!​