Speaking my Way through 2023 (Year in Review)

By JenniferGoal Achievement
global speaker Jenn Espinosa-Goswami

Since 2022, I have been conducting a simple 3 step year-end review process. The 3 step process reviews Income, Impact and Intention. Read on for how I reviewed my business this year as a certified coach and international speaker, as well as free gifts for your business to succeed in 2024.

Income

If you don’t have income in your business, it’s a hobby. That idea used to wound me, especially in the earlier days when I had more time than clients. By the way, I am not one to share specific numbers publicly- whether it’s my weight, age, or income. However, I am sharing numbers that directly impact my ability to earn income in my business.

I did NOT reach my money goals in my business with either coaching or speaking. I did set some quarterly goals around booking clients and number of Discovery calls, which increased 20% from last year. In an interesting departure from my year in 2022, I actually earned more from coaching than speaking this year.
 

What went well with income: I updated my pricing after obtaining my ACC through ICF back in February, and kicked off two new programs: Speaker School and Speaker Launch. I introduced new clients into both programs, both of which launched later in 2023 (Quarter 3 and 4, respectively).

Speaker School did not bring in as much income, and I am not sure if I will bring it back in 2024. If you are interested in receiving presentation skills coaching in 2024, feel free to drop a comment below or email me at jegoswam@bweightless.com.


My quarterly masterclasses continued to bring in new clients, though the topic of Crafting a Signature Speech does not resonate as well as Filling your Calendar with Speaking Engagements.

Speaking of masterclasses, I decided to offer these bi-monthly instead of quarterly in 2024. Registration is now open for Filling your Calendar with Speaking Engagements on January 23. You can purchase your ticket directly below for this virtual event.

Register on Eventbrite


What didn’t go so well with income: I did not book as many speaking engagements as I would have liked, as I intend to speak on how to grow your business through public speaking for coaches, consultants and authors. Also, in general, my health seminars were not requested as frequently from my corporate clients this past year.

However, I did receive some affiliate income for my 90 Day Speaker Plan training as part of an online summit. Because this “proves” the model, I will continue to offer this program for affiliate models (including one coming up in January 2024.

When you look back at the income you made this past year in your business, was it what you had hoped for? This can be challenging to face, and was my least favorite part of my year-end review. However, you cannot improve if you don’t learn.

One of the gifts that keeps on giving is getting paid to speak. If you would like to explore this for yourself, get started with this free resource on 5 places to find speaking engagements.

Impact

Unlike income, measuring impact can have little (if anything) to do with numbers.

This year, I participated in a number of collaborations and summits with my online colleagues. I also stepped away from consistent video creation, and offered a VIP affiliate of my 90 Day Speaker Plan training.This increased traffic to my email community significantly.

I continued to appear as a guest on podcasts, though I slowed down on how many appearances from the previous year (from 12 appearances down to 11). After several years of booking podcast appearances, I have determined how to select which podcasts offer the most return for me. It’s not based on followers or subscribers, and often smaller podcasts offer higher ROT (return on time) for me.

By the way, a number of new clients have requested that I support them with their guest podcast launch strategy. This is something I am offering in 2024 as a mini-coaching program. My typical program is 12 coaching sessions, but guest podcasting can be accomplished in as little as 3-6 coaching sessions.

Podcasts I’ve appeared on:


Templates

One of the administrative improvements I made in my business was creating more templates to share with my coaching clients.

If you’re still reading, make sure to grab this Speaking Leads template, so you can keep your applications and contacts in order as you pursue your stages in 2024. Please click the link, and make a copy.

Because the fortune is in the follow-up, this spreadsheet is helpful for reminding yourself to keep top of mind.

Book Launches

I was also honored to participate in not one, but two book launches! The first was Sam Horn’s Talking on Eggshells. I have been following and learning from Sam Horn for years, through magazines, NSA, her LinkedIn newsletter and amazing books. Joining her book launch team was a no-brainer for me.

The second book launch was Sheryl Green’s You Had Me at No. Sheryl and I met in Las Vegas last year through International Association of Women. We stayed in contact, and I was one of her pre-readers. She is an amazing speaker on mental health topics.


Last, I was highly involved as the Communications Director for ICF-Minnesota. Part of my work there was interviewing coaches for the YouTube series called Meet the Coach. I completed 12 interviews, and participated in my own as well! I am rolling off the board for ICF-Minnesota this month, and am happy to participate in other local coaching opportunities.

The interviewer becomes the interviewee!

What comes to mind for you when you think of impact? It could be a word, an action, or a service. No matter how you view impact, you can choose to start fresh each day (especially today!)

Intention

The last step of the 3-step annual review process is the intention I started the year with. By the way, Intention is very different from Resolution. If you’ve been with me since I started this website, you know that I am strongly anti-resolution. I mean, we all know that resolutions die a short death around February 8, right?

A resolution is defined as “a firm decision to do or not do something”. An intention is defined as “something you want or plan to do”.

You may think, “But, Jenn, doesn’t that make it wishy-washy and something I won’t actually follow through on?”

That depends on you. If accountability is something you struggle with, you may consider what tools or people in your life may support you with following through. For accountability with public speaking, I got you. By the way, the single best way to follow through is to write things down. That is why I am giving one final gift- my free Signature Speech template (BONUS! You also get first dibs on my offers and events).

Now, back to how Intention led to Impact and Income.


I set my annual intention through my Word of the Year, then create a vision board that I keep in my workspace to remind me of my intention. (That is also why I took the week off between December 25-January 1).

This is a more flexible solution than setting concrete S.M.A.R.T. goals and has served me well since I became a coach. Plus, when I had a setback or challenge (many in 2023), I was able to review my intention and determine what the next best step was.

Intention Goal 1: Journaling

Outcome: I love writing, and had paused on creative or consciousness writing for too long. I started a weekly JEM (Journal, Exercise, Meditation) tracking with an intention of completing all 3 at least 3 times a month. I also participated in journaling exercises/livestreams with journaling expert Amanda Stern at least quarterly.

I ended the year strong when I joined an Alignment reboot program from November-December with inner alignment coach Jennifer Ally, which included daily journaling.

Lesson Learned: I feel better when I journal, though I could benefit from a more focused practice. Sometimes, I didn’t “feel it” or only completed tracking of habits. This does not help with creativity. I just found out that Gretchen Rubin will be offering a Write 24 in 2024 challenge. This may be just the boost I am looking for.

Intention Goal 2: Update prices

Outcome: I became an Associate Certified Coach through ICF in February, and raised my prices shortly after. My new pricing of $4500/$8000 per 12/24 sessions feels more aligned with my experience, and is slightly higher than the average for business coaches and lower than many speaking coaches.

Lesson Learned: An experience with a private coaching client also revealed that coaching timeframes are less important than number of sessions. This is a departure from how I normally operate, and is helpful for those who wish a “lighter” version of my programs. What this means is I will be offering ways for clients (especially those looking to book podcast guest appearances) to book mini-coaching options of 3-6 sessions (pricing between $997-$2500).

My intention in 2024 is to create immersive experiences for my clients, whether in 1:1 coaching, masterclasses or “retreats”.

Speaking of immersive experiences, the biggest stumbling block for many of my clients is creating a Speaker Sheet (aka Speakerkit). If this describes you, download my free Speech Template, where you are provided examples to uplevel your ideas, including Canva templates you can brand for your business. Once you have this tool in your Speakerkit, you are one step closer to booking speaking engagements.

Intention Goal 3: Be More Playful

Outcome: I tried a few new activities, such as painting with my husband, watching some shows at the Chanhassen dinner theater, improv coaching, as well as visited Seattle for the first time to celebrate my 20th anniversary and brought the family back to Indian Rocks Beach, FL. We also got into archery and kayaking this past year as a family activity.

Lesson Learned: Being playful is hard for me, and I am not always as spontaneous as I could be. Trying new things is very important to me, as well as having solo time to myself during family vacations or trips. For some reason, I prefer to be playful by myself (the risk is less of being rejected) then with others. This is something I can work with in 2024.

Intention can be intangible, and thus hard to define. You can set an overarching annual intention, as well as include intentions within your months, weeks, or even days. What’s most important about intention is that you clarify what it is for you and not overcomplicate it.


One process I have found that helps me immensely with my annual intention is the Word of the Year. The time has come to reveal my WOY for 2024. No, it’s not “authentic” or “rizz”, which are Merriam Webster’s and Oxford’s words of the year. I have been choosing one word as my focus of the entire year since 2016, and it’s based on the “one word” idea by Mike Ashcraft and Rachel Olsen. Last year, I chose W.E.L.L. which stood for “wealthy”, “exciting”, “laughing” and “loving”.

This coming year, I hope to integrate all of these practices and steps into a comprehensive support system that makes me feel alive.

What better word for 2024 than VIVA!


May you take the time you need to reflect upon what was a challenging year for many (including myself).

May you celebrate each step that brought you to where you are today.

May you enter 2024 with a powerful intention (and maybe a WOY) that will sustain your actions throughout.

If you liked this blog, please share away. Happy 2024 to you.