Building a Thriving Coaching Biz with Jessica Finnigan

(The video at the top of this post features a conversation with Jessica Finnigan.)

Several of the coaches who have come through my training program started out as parents who wanted to help their own kids—and then realized they were developing skills they could use to help other people’s kids, too.

In the video above, I introduce you to Jessica Finnigan, who started out as one of those parents—and then quickly built a successful academic coaching business that has sustained her and her family for several years.

If you’re at all curious about what it’s like to be a coach, or about how to build a thriving coaching business, this interview is worth your time.

Jessica shares a lot of wisdom about how she’s found clients, how she sets boundaries so she doesn’t burn out, and the unexpected rewards she’s found along the way. She also gets refreshingly honest about her rates and overhead expenses. It’s a true, behind-the-scenes look at what it’s like to run an academic coaching business, and I think you’ll find it both engaging and enlightening—especially if you’re considering executive function coaching or building a private practice as an educator.

If this conversation sparks curiosity about the coaching path, the training ecosystem I now run lives inside the Anti-Boring Learning Lab. That’s where I support educators, parents-turned-coaches, and professionals who want to do this work thoughtfully—without burning out or turning into someone they don’t recognize in the process.

If you’re in an exploratory phase and want to browse free learning resources, tools, and examples of how academic coaching and executive function coaching actually look in practice, you can start in the Visitor’s Center of the Anti-Boring Learning Lab.

And if you’re a family looking for support right now, you can also explore our directory of trained coaches here: Trained Coaches page

A version of the following article was originally published here on May 16th, 2022.