Looking for a life coaching business plan? You're in the right place.
A solo coaching practice looks cheap to start, and that is the trap. How many packages must you sell before the practice covers its own costs? What should a session, a group seat and a workshop day cost? How much of your week can you actually deliver before the calendar is full? A blank template won't tell you what a believable answer looks like.
In this article we'll walk through a complete sample plan for a one-coach career and life coaching practice in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, section by section, ending on the financials: the executive summary, the SWOT analysis and every number behind them.
Here's what you'll take away:
- The executive summary: put the whole practice on one page, with the price, the funding and the first-year loss stated plainly
- The offer ladder: see how packages, retainers, group programs and workshop days fit together, and why each is priced where it is
- The capacity table: check how many sessions and hours one coach can carry each year, so the revenue line never outruns the calendar
- The first year, month by month: spot the slow months before you reach them and size your cash reserve to match
- The marketing budget: see what a new coach might spend to win 17 packages, and what each one costs to win
- The five-year profit, cash flow and balance sheet: understand when a practice with one part-time hire turns a profit and how much it can pay its owner
- The stress tests: see how price, wages, workshop days and a late opening move the result, and have an answer ready for "what if bookings run 20% light?" along with the questions a lender would still ask
If you're planning a coaching practice, read this before you write your own. The practice is fictional, so keep what fits your market and change the rest.
In this plan
If you need a life coaching business plan template for your own plan, start it in the Toolkit.
Maple Lane at a Glance
Maple Lane is a one-coach career and life coaching practice that opens in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on January 1, 2027. Founder Nora Whelan works with mid-career professionals who are changing direction, returning from a break or reassessing a role, and sells workshop days to employers that want a facilitated session for a team. She owns 100% of the business.
The practice needs $85,000, all of it Nora's savings. Of that, $17,200 buys equipment and covers one-time start-up costs, and $67,800 stays in the bank as a reserve for a first year in which she is the only person on payroll and draws a salary before the client base has formed. There is no loan.
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $65,015 | $123,380 | $160,280 |
| Net income after start-up costs | ($49,134) | ($471) | $26,722 |
| Closing cash | $31,419 | $30,628 | $57,443 |
Year 1 loses money because Nora's salary is paid from the first month while the client base is still forming. It sells 17 twelve-session packages, runs two group cohorts and books four workshop engagements, and monthly operating profit appears only in June, October and November. A part-time administrator joins in January 2028, the first month of Year 2, and Year 2 ends close to break-even with a loss of $471. Year 3 is the first year with a margin worth the name, at 16.7% of revenue.
The model also tests itself. With bookings 20% below forecast, Nora's pay falls 20% from July 2027, the administrator starts six months later, marketing is cut 20% from Year 2 and the Year 5 payout shrinks to $10,000. The practice then ends every year with at least $24,636 in the bank and is profitable from Year 3. The same shortfall with no response leaves it overdrawn by the end of Year 2.
Coaching is a structured conversation, and the figures treat it that way: how many people buy, at what price, and how much of one coach's time that takes. Nothing here says a client will find a job, win a promotion or earn more.
The Practice and Its Offers
Legal name: Maple Lane Coaching, LLC, a Pennsylvania limited liability company (entity type and tax election to be confirmed with an accountant). Owner: Nora Whelan, 100%. Premises: a coworking membership in Shadyside, Pittsburgh, with a dedicated desk and bookable meeting rooms, at $450 a month. Opening date: January 1, 2027. Stage: pre-launch. The coaching agreement is in draft with counsel, the website is being built and nobody has signed. Five people have asked Nora about working together, and one employer contact has asked for a workshop outline.
What Maple Lane sells
| Offer | How it works | Year 1 price | Year 1 share of revenue |
|---|---|---|---|
| One-to-one package | Twelve 50-minute sessions over about 16 weeks, with a written agenda for each | $2,340 ($195 a session) | 72%, with retainers |
| Monthly retainer | Two sessions a month for package clients who want to continue, ended on 30 days' notice | $400 a month | (in the line above) |
| Group program | Eight weekly 90-minute video sessions for 6 to 10 people, with a printed workbook | $495 a seat | 10% |
| Workshop day | A half-day ($2,400) or full day ($3,600) at a client's site | $3,000 blended | 18% |
The blended workshop fee pairs one full day with each half-day. The single-session list price is $210, and the package price is about 7% lower for committing to twelve. Per delivery hour at Year 1 prices, a workshop day earns about $214, a group cohort $161 at the Year 1 average of 6.5 seats and $198 at 8, a retainer $143 and a package $139, so the mix of offers moves the result more than the price of any one of them.
What Maple Lane does not do
Nora does not diagnose or treat mental health conditions, and the first paragraph of the coaching agreement says so. A client whose questions turn clinical is referred to a licensed counselor and the package is paused. She promises no job, promotion, salary or other result, and the website and proposals carry no outcome claims. A client buys a fixed number of sessions, a defined structure and a coach's attention.
Credentials and the rules
Whether Pennsylvania places any registration or licensing rule on coaches, and where it draws the line between coaching and counseling or therapy, is a question for Pennsylvania counsel. The practice makes no claim either way, and the $2,400 legal line in the launch budget pays for that review before the first client signs.
A credential is voluntary and separate from the law. The International Coaching Federation (ICF) sets its entry-level ACC credential at 60 hours of coach education, 100 hours of client coaching of which at least 75 are paid, 10 hours of mentor coaching over three months, and a performance evaluation and exam. ICF revises its requirements, so the current ones are confirmed before an application. Nora is part-way through a coach-training program and holds no credential at launch. The launch budget pays the training balance and application fees ($3,200), and the mentoring and continuing-education line, $3,000 in Year 1, covers mentor hours; both are planning figures. The model sells 238 one-to-one sessions in Year 1, about 198 client hours at 50 minutes each, so the 100-hour client-coaching requirement could be reached during the first year. Until a credential is awarded the website lists only the training she has completed and uses no credential letters.
Where the practice aims to be by the end of 2028
- About 26 packages sold in 2028, with four retainer clients active on average.
- Four group cohorts and eight workshop engagements in the year.
- A part-time administrator in place from January 2028, taking scheduling, invoicing and workshop logistics.
- $123,380 of revenue and a result close to break-even after tax, with no borrowing.
Coaching Demand Around Pittsburgh
Employers and professionals behind the demand
The SBA Office of Advocacy's 2025 profile counts about 1.2 million small businesses in Pennsylvania, 99.6% of the state's businesses, employing 2.5 million people or 45.2% of the state's workforce. These are statewide figures and say nothing directly about coaching. In the profile's 2022 Census tables, 938,764 of the 1,169,008 small businesses, or 80%, have no employees, so a one-person practice is the ordinary shape of a Pennsylvania small business. The other 230,244 have employees, but 200,574 of them have fewer than 20, so the realistic workshop buyers are the 29,670 with 20 to 499 employees and larger employers such as Pittsburgh's hospital systems and universities, which the profile does not count and the figures here do not size.
What the profession earns
The International Coaching Federation's 2023 Global Coaching Study, which reports on 2022, estimated 34,200 coach practitioners in North America, earning an average of $67,800 a year from coaching, against $52,800 worldwide. Worldwide, 53% of coaches reported less than $30,000. ICF's 2025 study counts 122,974 coach practitioners worldwide. The 2023 study also reports that North American coaches averaged 13.3 hours of coaching a week and 13.5 active clients, and that fees and income rise with experience, with sponsored clients and with executive clients. Maple Lane's clients pay for themselves and its coach is new, which points to the lower end of that range, and its $195 session price sits below the $272 average fee ICF reports for North America.
Maple Lane's Year 3 revenue of $160,280 is revenue before any owner pay and sits well above the $67,800 average. The model gets there with workshop days alongside a caseload of about 16 clients in session at a time, above the 13.5 ICF reports as the North American average.
What nearby pay looks like
The Bureau of Labor Statistics put the median pay of training and development specialists at $69,280 for May 2025 and projects 11% employment growth for the occupation from 2025 to 2035. Nora's $52,000 salary sits about 25% below that median, a deliberate choice for the first years. The same agency reports a median of $48,310 a year, or $23.23 an hour, for secretaries and administrative assistants, which sets the rate for the part-time administrator.
What a client could do instead
| Alternative | What it offers | Why a client picks it | How Maple Lane differs by design |
|---|---|---|---|
| Independent coaches | One-to-one sessions, often open-ended | Referral, personal fit | A fixed twelve-session structure and a price known before the first call |
| Employer-paid coaching or outplacement | Sessions an employer sometimes funds | Little or no cost to the individual | Chosen and paid for by the client, so the agenda is the client's |
| Licensed counselors and therapists | Clinical support, often covered by insurance | Treatment of a clinical need | Coaching only, with referral out when the need is clinical |
| Online platforms and self-paced courses | Low price, on demand | Cost and convenience | A named local coach and a live conversation |
| University alumni career offices | Career advice for graduates | Can be free or low-cost for alumni | Open to anyone, with sessions scheduled around work |
The table describes what each option offers and where this practice sits against it. Prices change often and are left out, and no providers are named because their terms are theirs to publish.
SWOT
| Strengths | Weaknesses |
|---|---|
| Twelve years of talent-development work inside Pittsburgh employers | One coach, so every session depends on one calendar |
| Fixed-length packages that are easy to price and buy | No coaching credential at launch |
| Workshop days that pay more per hour than one-to-one sessions | No signed client before opening |
| Opportunities | Threats |
|---|---|
| Alumni who return for a retainer or a second package | Free or employer-funded coaching reaching the same buyer |
| Employers that book a repeat workshop day | A slow summer and December, which the first-year figures include |
| Referrals from HR leaders, financial planners and counselors | A client expecting a guaranteed result that is never promised |
Who Books a Coach
The mid-career professional at a fork
The core client is 35 to 55, employed or recently between roles, and paying out of pocket. Typical triggers are a reorganization, a promotion that went to someone else, a return from parental leave or a sense that the next ten years should differ from the last ten. Many are well paid and unsure what to ask for.
The manager who books a room
The second buyer is a team lead, a director or an HR business partner with a training budget and a team that is changing shape. She wants a half-day or a full day with a start time, an agenda and a facilitator she can describe to her own manager.
What each wants settled on the first call
- The price, the number of sessions and the cancellation terms, in writing.
- Whether Nora has worked with people in a similar role.
- What happens between sessions and who owns the notes.
- For employers, who attends, how long it runs and what each participant takes away.
From First Call to Signed Agreement
The path from inquiry to first session
- A free 30-minute discovery call, booked through the website and held within two business days.
- A written proposal and the coaching agreement within 24 hours.
- Payment at enrollment by card or bank transfer, in full or in two parts.
- A first session within ten days.
- A review at session six and a close-out session with a written plan.
- An offer to continue on a retainer, made at the close-out and not before.
Where the Year 1 packages come from
| Source | Packages | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Nora's professional network and former colleagues | 6 | Earliest, mostly in the first four months |
| Local search and the website | 3 | Builds from spring |
| Group cohort alumni | 3 | After the June cohort |
| Workshop attendees | 2 | From June |
| Referral partners | 3 | HR leaders, financial planners, counselors |
About 50 discovery calls in Year 1 produce the 17 packages, a close rate of 34%.
The 13 group seats come from the same pool. Six seats in the June cohort come from the network and the first intro sessions, and seven in the October cohort come from package alumni, intro-session attendees and referral partners. A cohort with fewer than six enrolled is postponed. The four workshop engagements follow from the one employer contact who has already asked for an outline and about ten proposals sent to employers during the year, of which three are expected to book.
From package to retainer
About one package client in three continues on a retainer. The average stay is four months in Year 1, five in Year 2 and eight by Year 5, as the alumni base grows. Retainer clients average 4 in Year 2 and 8 in Year 5. Retainers carry more of the forecast than their price suggests: $6,800 of Year 1 revenue, 10%, and $30,600 of Year 3 revenue, 19%.
Pricing and cancellations
Package fees rise about 3% a year, from $2,340 to $2,640 by Year 5. Unused sessions are refunded pro rata within the first four weeks of a package and not after. Seats are refunded in full if a client declines the new date for a postponed cohort. A workshop day canceled within 14 days of the date is billed at 50%.
Where Clients Come From
What the Year 1 budget buys
| Line | Year 1 |
|---|---|
| Website upkeep and local search content | $2,400 |
| Local search and social advertising | $2,800 |
| Professional association, chamber and alumni events | $1,800 |
| A free monthly intro session (room and materials) | $1,200 |
| Referral-partner outreach and thank-you gifts | $1,000 |
| Email list and lead magnet | $1,600 |
| Operating marketing | $10,800 |
A further $7,000 of launch spend sits in the start-up budget: the website build ($3,200), photography and brand ($900), intake and scheduling set-up ($700), the first lead magnet and email sequence ($800) and the first free workshop ($1,400). Year 1 marketing comes to $17,800. Divided over the 17 packages alone that is $1,047 a package, or 45% of a $2,340 package, though the same spend also has to fill 13 group seats and four workshop days. Against all Year 1 revenue it is 27%.
How the cost falls
Operating marketing rises from $10,800 to $17,500 by Year 5 while packages sold rise from 17 to 37. Marketing per package falls to $508 in Year 2 and $473 in Year 5, dividing all marketing by packages sold as in Year 1 (the Year 1 figure includes $7,000 of launch spend). The Year 2 step is steep, 22% more marketing for 53% more packages, because referral partners, cohort alumni and repeat workshop clients are expected to bring about half of the new packages by then. Marketing is 16.6% of Year 1 revenue before launch spend and 8.3% of Year 5 revenue.
What the marketing says
The website and advertising describe the program's structure, its price and who it is for. There are no testimonials at launch, because none exists yet, and no statement about jobs, salaries or promotions.
Dates to hit
- Month 1: website live, coaching agreement signed off by counsel, first discovery calls booked.
- Month 6: first group cohort starts with at least six seats, and the first workshop day is delivered.
- Month 6 review: fewer than seven packages sold by this point (the model has eight) prompts a decision on hours and spend.
- Month 12: four retainer clients active and the administrator's job description written.
- Month 13: administrator starts.
A Week in the Practice
The workspace
A coworking membership in Shadyside with a dedicated desk, a shared reception and meeting rooms that can be booked for individual sessions, at $450 a month in Year 1 and $475 in Year 2. When the calendar fills in Year 3 the practice moves to a small private office at $550 a month, rising to $600 by Year 5. These rents are planning figures and not quotes, and no deposit is modeled. Utilities, mainly internet and phone, are $600 in Year 1. Cohorts meet by video, with one in-person kickoff evening per cohort in a rented room.
How much one coach can carry
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| One-to-one sessions sold | 238 | 408 | 516 | 576 | 636 |
| Sessions a week over 46 weeks | 5.2 | 8.9 | 11.2 | 12.5 | 13.8 |
| Group cohorts | 2 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 6 |
| Workshop engagements | 4 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 13 |
| Delivery hours (founder) | 429 | 763 | 962 | 1,094 | 1,192 |
| Share of a 1,288-hour ceiling | 33% | 59% | 75% | 85% | 93% |
| Revenue per delivery hour | $151 | $162 | $167 | $173 | $178 |
| One-to-one clients in session at an average moment | 7 | 12 | 16 | 17 | 19 |
Delivery hours count 1.4 hours per session (the session plus notes and preparation), 20 hours per cohort and 14 hours per workshop engagement. Selling, writing, administration and continuing education come on top. The ceiling is 28 delivery hours a week over 46 working weeks, and roughly half of those hours are spent in the room with clients. Clients in session are packages sold times 16 weeks over 52 (each package runs about 16 weeks) plus the average number of retainer clients, with packages taken as sold evenly through the year; group and workshop participants are not counted.
Hours are counted when a package is sold, not as its twelve sessions are delivered. Year 1 has no administrator, and its busiest month by hours sold is October, at 76 hours (30 sessions, a cohort and a workshop) against a twelfth of the ceiling, 107. Years 2 to 5 have no monthly view, so Year 5's 93% is an annual average and a busy month would run above it. That leaves little slack for illness, so growth after Year 5 would come from price and from the mix of workshop days. A second coach would be a different business from this one.
Records and tools
Session notes, agreements and invoices sit in practice-management software with encrypted storage and a client portal. Payments run through a card processor and bank transfer. Nora collects only the health information a client volunteers and stores no clinical records. Software costs $3,000 in Year 1 and $4,800 by Year 5.
Insurance and agreements
Professional liability, general liability and cyber cover total $1,500 in Year 1. Workers' compensation for the administrator takes the total to $2,200 in Year 2, and the broker confirms the requirement for a part-time employee before the hire. Both premiums are planning figures, since no quotes are in hand. Every client signs the coaching agreement, and every employer signs a workshop contract with a cancellation clause.
The administrator from January 2028
A part-time administrator works eight hours a week on scheduling, invoicing, reminders, cohort enrollment and workshop logistics. At about $23.32 an hour ($9,700 over 416 hours) the role pays far above the $7.25 federal and Pennsylvania minimum wage, and eight hours a week brings no overtime. Until month 13 Nora does this herself with software, which at about 1.4 packages a month in Year 1 is workable. The hire follows revenue: it comes once the practice has sold 17 packages, runs cohorts alongside one-to-one work and has retainers and employer invoices to administer.
The Founder and Her Backstop
Nora Whelan, founder and lead coach
Nora has twelve years in talent-development roles at Pittsburgh employers. She designed and ran internal leadership programs, advised managers on career conversations and sat on hiring and promotion panels. She is part-way through a coach-training program and holds no coaching credential at launch. The $85,000 is savings built over those years, and her household has a second income that covers living costs through Year 1.
Where the team is thin
Nora has no sales background and has never run a business, and nobody has signed yet. Those gaps are covered by a fixed weekly outreach schedule, an accountant retained from month one and a mentor coach whose fees sit in the continuing-education line.
If Nora is out
One coach is one point of failure. The coaching agreement lets a client pause a package without penalty. Nora keeps a reciprocal referral arrangement with a peer coach, so a client can be moved if she is ill for more than two weeks, and workshop contracts allow rescheduling. A longer absence would stop most of the revenue, and no disability or key-person cover is budgeted.
Outside help
An accountant for tax and bookkeeping, counsel for the agreements, a mentor coach and the local small business development center for review of the plan.
Ownership
Nora owns 100% of Maple Lane Coaching, LLC. No outside investor holds a stake and there is no bank covenant to meet. The reserve is the safety net.
What a lender would still ask
- Collateral. Nothing is borrowed, but a lender asked for even a small standby line would find $3,200 of net equipment and $1,247 of receivables on the Year 1 balance sheet, with the rest in cash. It would look to Nora's personal guarantee and a personal financial statement. The SBA describes microloans of up to $50,000, made through nonprofit intermediaries that set their own credit terms.
- Cover. A lender would test EBITDA, which in the base case is a loss of $35,134 in Year 1, then a profit of $329 in Year 2 and $27,522 in Year 3, and in the 20% downside a loss of $40,611 in Year 1 and $660 in Year 2, then a profit of $14,701 in Year 3. The earliest test that fits is on Year 3 results, with a minimum cash balance and a bar on payouts below it. Nora's own bar is no distribution unless year-end cash after the payment stays above three months of costs, about $35,000 in Year 4 and $37,000 in Year 5; the base case closes those years at $85,108 and $107,201.
- Evidence of demand. Five inquiries and one employer contact stand behind 17 packages, 13 group seats and four workshop days. The 34% close rate on about 50 discovery calls has no track record behind it.
- Retainers. The one-in-three take-up supplies 19% of Year 3 revenue. With no retainer clients Year 3 is a $1,756 loss and year-end cash falls to $4,908.
- Workshop concentration. Four engagements are 18% of Year 1 revenue and may come from only a few employers. Halving them leaves a Year 2 loss of $11,981. Employers pay on 30-day terms, and 60 days would lower the Year 1 low by $1,978, to $29,021.
- Owner pay and living costs. Nora draws $52,000 plus on-costs from month one while Year 1 loses $49,134 after start-up costs. A household second income covers living costs through Year 1. The open questions are what happens if that income stops or Nora takes a job in month 8, since no disability or key-person cover is budgeted.
- The size of the reserve. The base-case low is about $31,000 in September 2027, so the $67,800 reserve is sized for the harder cases: an opening on March 1, 2027 leaves a $15,096 low in November 2027, and a Year 1 that sells 40% less ends with $7,755. A lender would ask why Nora holds that cash and does not borrow a line instead.
- Credential and legal opinion. Counsel's view on the line between coaching and counseling in Pennsylvania, the professional-liability insurer's wording and the date of a credential award are all open. The $3,200 launch line and the $3,000 Year 1 mentoring line are planning figures.
- Timing and tax. Revenue is booked when a package is sold; on an accrual basis it would be about $6,500 lower in Year 1 and $3,000 lower in Year 2. The LLC is modeled at corporate rates with a W-2 salary, and Nora's personal tax is not shown.
Five Years of Figures
One model sits behind every table: monthly for Year 1, then one column a year to Year 5. The working figures come first so each number traces to its reason. A table that moves one input at a time and a downside case close the section.
What the launch costs and who pays
| Use of funds | Amount |
|---|---|
| Laptop, camera, microphone and lighting for video sessions | $2,800 |
| Workshop kit: portable projector, display stand, flip charts and cases | $1,200 |
| LLC registration and city business registrations | $600 |
| Legal: coaching agreement, workshop contract, privacy policy | $2,400 |
| Coach training balance and credential application fees | $3,200 |
| Launch: website, photography, intake and scheduling set-up, first free workshop | $7,000 |
| Cash reserve: covers the Year 1 shortfall and leaves about three months of costs | $67,800 |
| Total uses | $85,000 |
| Source of funds | Amount |
|---|---|
| Nora Whelan's savings | $85,000 |
| Total sources | $85,000 |
Nora puts in $85,000 of her own savings and borrows nothing. Of that, $4,000 buys equipment, $13,200 covers one-time start-up costs and $67,800 stays as a reserve. Year 1 uses $53,581 of the $85,000: a $49,581 operating outflow, which includes the $13,200 of start-up costs, and $4,000 of equipment. That leaves $31,419 at the end of the year, about three months of Year 2 operating costs. Cash figures include the whole reserve, and no deposit on the coworking membership is modeled. The reserve is larger than the trading loss alone requires, and three cases set its size. The base-case Year 1 low is about $31,000 in September 2027, measured as month-end cash less seven days of that month's revenue. An opening that slips to March 1, 2027 leaves a low of about $15,100 in November 2027. A Year 1 that sells 40% less than planned ends the year with $7,755 if nothing is cut, or $14,359 with the downside's pay cut from month 7; the monthly view, which carries seven days of December's revenue as receivables, puts the December balance at $7,952 in the first case. The slip and the 40% case are defined under the one-input table below, and the pay cut under the downside case.
Working figures behind the forecast
- A one-to-one package is twelve 50-minute sessions at $195 each, $2,340 in Year 1 and $2,640 by Year 5 after annual rises of about 3%. The session price is a planning figure. It sits below the $272 average fee per one-hour session that ICF's 2023 study reports for North American coaches, because the clients pay for themselves and the coach is new. Year 1 sells 17 packages and finishes with four retainer clients paying $400 a month for two sessions. Years 2 to 5 sell 26, 31, 34 and 37 packages, with retainer clients averaging 4, 6, 7 and 8.
- A group cohort is eight weekly 90-minute video sessions for 6 to 10 people at $495 a seat, rising to $555. Year 1 runs two cohorts with 6 and 7 seats, an average of 6.5. Years 2 to 5 run 4, 5, 6 and 6 cohorts of 8 and sell 32, 40, 48 and 48 seats. The step from 6.5 to 8 seats is the largest in the group forecast, and the one-input table shows cohorts that stay at 6.5.
- A half-day workshop costs $2,400 and a full day $3,600, both planning figures for a facilitator new to the market. With one full day for each half-day the blended fee is $3,000 in Year 1, rising to $3,380 by Year 5. Year 1 books four engagements from June, then 8, 10, 12 and 13. Employers pay on 30-day terms and individuals pay at enrollment, which puts receivables at about 7 days of revenue (30 days on the 18% to 21% workshop share is 5.5 to 6.2 days, rounded up).
- Founder time per session is 1.4 hours with notes and preparation, 20 hours per cohort and 14 hours per workshop engagement. That is 429 hours in Year 1 and 1,192 in Year 5, against a ceiling of 1,288 (28 hours a week over 46 weeks). Revenue per delivery hour is $151 in Year 1 and $178 in Year 5.
- Direct costs are 4% of one-to-one revenue, 6% of group revenue and 8% of workshop revenue: card fees, assessment licenses, printed workbooks and workshop materials. The model blends them at the Year 1 mix, 4.94%, and applies that rate to every year, so a line's own rate holds only in Year 1.
- Nora is paid $52,000 from month 1, about 25% below the $69,280 BLS median for training and development specialists, and the figure is held flat apart from the 3% annual raise. The administrator works 8 hours a week at $9,700 a year, close to the BLS median hourly rate of $23.23 over 52 weeks ($9,664). That is far above the $7.25 federal and Pennsylvania minimum wage, and at 8 hours a week no overtime arises. On-costs are 27% for Nora, covering payroll taxes, a health insurance contribution and a retirement match, and 15% for the part-time role; both are planning figures.
- Workspace is a $450-a-month coworking membership in Year 1 and $475 in Year 2, then a private office at $550, $575 and $600 a month from Year 3. These are planning figures, not quotes, and no deposit is modeled. Group cohorts meet by video; venue hire covers one kickoff evening per cohort, plus parking and travel to client sites.
- Insurance of $1,500 in Year 1 covers professional liability, general liability and cyber cover, and workers' compensation for the administrator lifts it to $2,200 in Year 2. Both are planning figures, since no quotes are in hand. The Pittsburgh payroll expense tax is 0.55% of taxable payroll on the City's 2025 ET-1 return, and with filing costs the line runs from $400 to $700 a year; the rate should be confirmed on the current return.
- Income tax is charged at the 21% federal corporate rate and the Pennsylvania corporate net income tax rate of 6.99% that the Department of Revenue lists for 2027. The Commonwealth's schedule lowers that rate each year to 4.99% from 2031, and the model holds 6.99% flat. An LLC taxed as a pass-through would put the profit on Nora's personal return, so corporate rates are a conservative stand-in. The Year 1 and Year 2 losses are carried forward, and the $13,200 of start-up costs is left out of the carry-forward, which overstates tax. The model also uses the carry-forward in full. The federal 80% limit on it would move about $1,100 of federal tax from Year 4 into Year 3 (21% of the $5,344 of loss use it defers) and leave the total unchanged.
- Owner distributions are $10,000 in Year 4 and $25,000 in Year 5. Each is paid only when retained earnings are positive after the payment, and each is smaller than that year's cash from operations. Nothing is paid in Years 1 to 3.
- Revenue is booked when a package is sold, because the client pays at enrollment, although the twelve sessions run for about 16 weeks. The engine has no deferred-revenue line. The estimate here takes each month's packages as sold mid-month and delivered evenly over 16 weeks (3.68 months), Years 2 to 5 as selling evenly through the year, retainers as earned monthly, and groups and workshops as earned when billed. On that basis about $6,500 of Year 1 sales would still be unearned on December 31, 2027, rising to about $9,500 in Year 2 and $11,700 in Year 3, so accrual revenue would be about $6,500 lower in Year 1, $3,000 lower in Year 2 and $2,200 lower in Year 3, before direct costs, with cash unchanged. The four-week refund rule for unused sessions has no line of its own; the bad-debt allowance stands in for it.
Revenue by offer
| Revenue stream | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| One-to-one coaching (packages and monthly retainers) | $46,580 | $82,340 | $107,480 | $124,000 | $141,360 |
| Group programs (eight-week cohorts) | $6,435 | $16,320 | $21,000 | $25,920 | $26,640 |
| Corporate workshop days | $12,000 | $24,720 | $31,800 | $39,360 | $43,940 |
| Total revenue | $65,015 | $123,380 | $160,280 | $189,280 | $211,940 |
| Growth on prior year | – | 90% | 30% | 18% | 12% |
One-to-one coaching is the largest line every year, 72% of Year 1 revenue and 67% of Year 5. Workshop days are 18% in Year 1 and 21% in Year 5 from only 4 and 13 engagements, because one day earns about as much as one and a quarter packages. Groups are the smallest line, 10% rising to 13%. The 90% jump in Year 2 reflects a first year that is mostly ramp: the fourth quarter of Year 1 earns $25,165, about $100,700 annualized, and Year 2 sits 23% above that on higher marketing spend. Growth then slows to 30%, 18% and 12% as Nora's calendar fills.
Month by month in Year 1
| Month | One-to-one coaching (packages and monthly retainers) | Group programs (eight-week cohorts) | Corporate workshop days | Total revenue | EBITDA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2027 | $2,340 | $0 | $0 | $2,340 | ($5,854) |
| Feb 2027 | $2,340 | $0 | $0 | $2,340 | ($5,854) |
| Mar 2027 | $2,340 | $0 | $0 | $2,340 | ($5,854) |
| Apr 2027 | $2,340 | $0 | $0 | $2,340 | ($5,854) |
| May 2027 | $5,080 | $0 | $0 | $5,080 | ($3,249) |
| Jun 2027 | $5,080 | $2,970 | $3,000 | $11,050 | $2,426 |
| Jul 2027 | $2,740 | $0 | $0 | $2,740 | ($5,474) |
| Aug 2027 | $3,140 | $0 | $0 | $3,140 | ($5,093) |
| Sep 2027 | $5,480 | $0 | $3,000 | $8,480 | ($17) |
| Oct 2027 | $5,880 | $3,465 | $3,000 | $12,345 | $3,657 |
| Nov 2027 | $5,880 | $0 | $3,000 | $8,880 | $363 |
| Dec 2027 | $3,940 | $0 | $0 | $3,940 | ($4,333) |
Revenue is $2,340 a month from January to April, when each month sells one package, and peaks at $12,345 in October, when a cohort, a workshop and two new packages land together. July and August fall back to $2,740 and $3,140 because no cohort or workshop is booked. EBITDA is positive in June, October and November and negative in the other nine months, with September at break-even. The lowest month-end cash balance falls in September 2027, at about $31,000 once seven days of that month's revenue are set aside as receivables ($32,978 before that adjustment). The monthly view has no receivables timing, so its December 2027 balance of $32,666 differs from the $31,419 closing balance in the cash table, which holds $1,247 of receivables.
Payroll: one coach and one part-time hire
| Role | Annual wage | Starts | Year 1 end | Year 2 end | Year 3 end | Year 4 end | Year 5 end |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Founder and lead coach | $52,000 | Month 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Practice administrator (part time, 8 hours a week) | $9,700 | Month 13 | – | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 |
| Total payroll incl. on-costs | $66,040 | $77,195 | $77,195 | $77,195 | $77,195 |
Nora is the only person on payroll for the first twelve months, with scheduling, invoicing and reminders run by software. A part-time administrator joins in month 13, January 2028, once the practice is selling packages, running cohorts and invoicing employers at the same time. There is no second coach in the five years, because the capacity table in the operating plan shows one coach using 93% of her delivery ceiling by Year 5. The administrator's $9,700 is a part-time wage. Nora's $52,000 starts in month one and is already in the costs, so profit here means what is left after she is paid.
Profit and loss
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $65,015 | $123,380 | $160,280 | $189,280 | $211,940 |
| Direct costs (card fees, assessment licenses, workbooks and workshop materials) | ($3,209) | ($6,090) | ($7,912) | ($9,343) | ($10,462) |
| Gross profit | $61,806 | $117,290 | $152,368 | $179,937 | $201,478 |
| Payroll incl. on-costs | ($66,040) | ($77,195) | ($77,195) | ($77,195) | ($77,195) |
| Rent | ($5,400) | ($5,700) | ($6,600) | ($6,900) | ($7,200) |
| Utilities | ($600) | ($650) | ($700) | ($750) | ($800) |
| Marketing | ($10,800) | ($13,200) | ($15,000) | ($16,500) | ($17,500) |
| Insurance | ($1,500) | ($2,200) | ($2,400) | ($2,600) | ($2,700) |
| Professional fees | ($3,600) | ($4,000) | ($4,400) | ($4,700) | ($5,000) |
| Software subscriptions | ($3,000) | ($3,600) | ($4,200) | ($4,500) | ($4,800) |
| Mentor coaching, supervision, continuing education and credential renewals | ($3,000) | ($2,800) | ($3,000) | ($3,200) | ($3,400) |
| Pittsburgh payroll expense tax and city filings | ($400) | ($600) | ($650) | ($700) | ($700) |
| Phones, books, supplies and postage | ($1,200) | ($1,500) | ($1,800) | ($2,000) | ($2,200) |
| Venue hire, parking and travel for workshops | ($800) | ($1,500) | ($2,000) | ($2,400) | ($2,600) |
| Equipment replacement | $0 | ($800) | ($1,000) | ($1,600) | ($1,600) |
| Bad debt allowance | ($600) | ($900) | ($1,200) | ($1,500) | ($1,700) |
| Annual pay raises (3% a year) | $0 | ($2,316) | ($4,701) | ($7,158) | ($9,689) |
| EBITDA | ($35,134) | $329 | $27,522 | $48,234 | $64,394 |
| Depreciation | ($800) | ($800) | ($800) | ($800) | ($800) |
| Interest | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Income tax | $0 | $0 | $0 | ($10,012) | ($16,866) |
| Net income before start-up costs | ($35,934) | ($471) | $26,722 | $37,422 | $46,728 |
| Start-up costs expensed at opening (legal, registration, credential fees, launch marketing) | ($13,200) | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Net income after start-up costs | ($49,134) | ($471) | $26,722 | $37,422 | $46,728 |
Year 1 loses $35,934 before start-up costs and $49,134 after them, and payroll alone is 102% of Year 1 revenue. Year 2 is close to break-even: EBITDA is $329 and the result is a loss of $471, 0.4% of revenue. Year 3 earns $26,722, a 16.7% net margin, and the margin reaches 22.0% in Year 5. Headcount is fixed at one coach and one part-time role from Year 2, so as revenue rises 32% between Years 3 and 5 payroll, including pay raises, falls from 51% of revenue to 41%. Income tax is zero until Year 4 because the Year 1 and Year 2 losses are carried forward. Revenue is booked at sale, so profit runs ahead of an accrual view: the working figures put the difference at about $6,500 of revenue in Year 1, $3,000 in Year 2 and $2,200 in Year 3.
Where the cash goes
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash from operations | ($49,581) | ($791) | $26,815 | $37,665 | $47,093 |
| Equipment and workshop kit | ($4,000) | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Funding received | $85,000 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Loan principal repaid | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Owner distributions | $0 | $0 | $0 | ($10,000) | ($25,000) |
| Net change in cash | $31,419 | ($791) | $26,815 | $27,665 | $22,093 |
| Closing cash | $31,419 | $30,628 | $57,443 | $85,108 | $107,201 |
Closing cash is $31,419 at the end of Year 1 and $30,628 at the end of Year 2, then climbs to $107,201 by Year 5. Owner distributions of $10,000 and $25,000 in Years 4 and 5 take about 27% and 53% of each year's cash from operations. Net income after start-up costs adds up to about $14,500 by the end of Year 4 and $61,300 by the end of Year 5, against cumulative distributions of $10,000 and $35,000, so no payout exceeds cumulative profit and retained earnings stay positive after each, at $4,538 and $26,266. The practice holds no debt, so the cash balance is not pledged to a lender. Month-end balances inside Years 2 to 5 are not modeled. An approximation for Year 2 starts from the $32,666 December 2027 month-end balance and adds each month's revenue less direct costs at 4.94% and less one-twelfth of Year 2's $116,961 of operating costs. If revenue climbs in equal monthly steps from the Year 1 fourth-quarter average of $8,388 to $12,175 in December 2028, adding up to Year 2's $123,380, the lowest month-end balance is about $26,900 in June 2028, or about $24,600 once seven days of that month's revenue are set aside as receivables. If July, August and December carry half the weight of the other nine months, with every month then scaled up by the same factor (about 1.16) so the year still totals $123,380, the low is about $27,400 in August, or $25,900 after receivables. The even spread behind the annual table runs between $32,700 and $33,000, so the ramp is the adverse direction. All of these figures are approximate.
Balance sheet at year end
| At year end | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash | $31,419 | $30,628 | $57,443 | $85,108 | $107,201 |
| Accounts receivable | $1,247 | $2,366 | $3,074 | $3,630 | $4,065 |
| Equipment and workshop kit (net) | $3,200 | $2,400 | $1,600 | $800 | $0 |
| Total assets | $35,866 | $35,394 | $62,117 | $89,538 | $111,266 |
| Bank loan | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Paid-in capital | $85,000 | $85,000 | $85,000 | $85,000 | $85,000 |
| Retained earnings | ($49,134) | ($49,606) | ($22,883) | $4,538 | $26,266 |
| Total liabilities and equity | $35,866 | $35,394 | $62,117 | $89,538 | $111,266 |
Break-even and margins
| Measure | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EBITDA margin | -54.0% | 0.3% | 17.2% | 25.5% | 30.4% |
| Net margin (before start-up costs) | -55.3% | -0.4% | 16.7% | 19.8% | 22.0% |
| Payroll incl. pay raises as share of revenue | 102% | 64% | 51% | 45% | 41% |
| Revenue per full-time equivalent at year end | $65,015 | $82,253 | $106,853 | $126,187 | $141,293 |
| Average monthly revenue | $5,418 | $10,282 | $13,357 | $15,773 | $17,662 |
| Monthly revenue needed to cover operating costs | $8,498 | $10,253 | $10,944 | $11,545 | $12,017 |
| Debt service cover (EBITDA / interest + principal) | – | – | – | – | – |
Year 1 averages $5,418 of revenue a month against the $8,498 needed to cover operating costs, so it loses money. Year 2 averages $10,282 against $10,253, which is break-even in practice. By Year 5 the needed figure is $12,017 and the practice averages $17,662. With no borrowing, debt service cover does not apply.
What moves the result, one input at a time
Each row changes one input from the base case and applies no management response. In the revenue rows direct costs stay at the base rate of 4.94% of revenue, and the bad-debt allowance and the workshop venue and travel line move in proportion to total revenue; no other cost changes. The rate is held at 4.94% even where a row changes the mix of offers, so the single-line rows take out the blended rate and not the line's own 4%, 6% or 8%, a difference of under $700 a year. Net income is after start-up costs, and the last column uses the base case's basis of month-end cash less seven days of that month's revenue as receivables (14 days in the 60-day row). The year-end cash columns hold receivables on a full year's revenue instead, so a December low can sit above the same year's close, by up to $570 in the no-retainer row.
| Case | Year 1 net income | Year 2 net income | Year 3 net income | Lowest year-end cash, Years 1 to 3 | Lowest Year 1 month-end cash |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Base case | ($49,134) | ($471) | $26,722 | $30,628 | $30,999 (Sep) |
| Revenue 10% lower, every line and year | ($55,175) | ($11,960) | $11,805 | $13,335 | $25,798 (Dec) |
| Direct costs 2 points higher (6.94% of revenue) | ($50,435) | ($2,939) | $23,517 | $26,860 | $30,202 (Sep) |
| Wages 10% higher (Nora and the administrator) | ($55,738) | ($8,422) | $18,533 | $16,074 | $25,142 (Dec) |
| Rent 10% higher | ($49,674) | ($1,041) | $26,062 | $29,518 | $30,594 (Sep) |
| One-to-one fees 10% lower | ($53,462) | ($8,139) | $16,719 | $18,790 | $27,510 (Dec) |
| Workshop engagements halved | ($54,709) | ($11,981) | $11,924 | $13,781 | $26,172 (Dec) |
| No retainer clients | ($55,452) | ($18,797) | ($1,756) | $4,908 | $25,802 (Dec) |
| Cohorts fill at the Year 1 average of 6.5 seats, Years 2 to 5 | ($49,134) | ($3,321) | $23,057 | $27,837 | $30,999 (Sep) |
| Employers pay in 60 days (receivables 14 days of revenue; cash only) | ($49,134) | ($471) | $26,722 | $28,262 | $29,021 (Sep) |
| Opening two months late, March 1, 2027 (Year 1 only) | ($61,045) | – | – | $18,717 | $15,096 (Nov) |
| Year 1 revenue 40% lower, later years on plan | ($73,297) | – | – | $6,466 | $7,952 (Dec) |
Two rows are Year 1 events with later years on plan. The opening-delay row starts selling on March 1, 2027: every month of Year 1 revenue moves two months later, so the final two months of base revenue ($8,880 in November and $3,940 in December) fall outside Year 1 and are not added to Year 2, while Nora's pay, rent, marketing and every other fixed cost stay on their original dates and direct costs, bad debt and venue costs follow the lower revenue. Year 1 equity ends at $23,955, and the reserve covers the delay with a lowest month-end balance of $15,096 in November 2027. The 40% row cuts every Year 1 month by 40%, to $39,009 of revenue, with the same cost treatment, and ends Year 1 with equity of $11,703.
The table shows that Year 2 is the fragile year. The base case earns nothing in Year 2, so every row that changes the result turns it into a loss of between $1,041 and $18,797. Year 3 stays profitable in every row but one: with no retainer clients it loses $1,756, and year-end cash falls to $4,908. Retainers are 19% of Year 3 revenue, and the one-in-three take-up behind them is the least tested figure in the forecast. Revenue 10% lower, workshops halved and one-to-one fees 10% lower each leave Year 3 profitable at $11,805 to $16,719, and year-end cash stays positive through Year 3 in every row.
When bookings run 20% light
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Year 4 | Year 5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $52,012 | $98,704 | $128,224 | $151,424 | $169,552 |
| Net income before start-up costs | ($41,411) | ($1,460) | $13,901 | $29,697 | $31,246 |
| Net income after start-up costs | ($54,611) | ($1,460) | $13,901 | $29,697 | $31,246 |
| Closing cash | $26,191 | $24,636 | $38,770 | $68,822 | $90,521 |
This case takes 20% off every revenue line in every year, from the first month. Revenue-linked costs follow it: direct costs stay at 4.94% of revenue, and the bad-debt allowance and the workshop venue line fall 20% in every year. Nora sees the shortfall at the month 6 review in June 2027, so every response starts after it. Her pay falls 20% to $41,600 from month 7 (July 2027), the administrator starts six months later, in month 19 (July 2028), and marketing is cut 20% from Year 2 and left as budgeted in Year 1, which overstates Year 1 cost by about $1,080. Retained earnings are negative through Year 4, so no distribution is paid until Year 5, when $10,000 is paid against $25,000 in the base case and leaves retained earnings at $8,773. There is no second hire to drop, and the Year 3 move to a private office stays in the case. The 20% cut is applied to revenue as a whole, so a June 2027 cohort that falls from 6 seats to 4.8 on average, below the rule of six, is treated as a smaller cohort that still runs. The pay cut saves about $6,600 in Year 1 and $13,600 in Year 2, the later hire about $5,700 in Year 2 and the marketing cut $2,640 in Year 2. On those terms the practice ends every year with at least $24,636 in the bank, loses $1,460 in Year 2 and is profitable from Year 3. Closing cash is below the base case in every year, by about $5,200 to $18,700. Equity ends Year 1 at $30,389. The lowest Year 1 month-end balance, on the base case's basis, is about $26,500 in December 2027, about $260 above the $26,191 in the cash table, which holds receivables on a full year's revenue. Debt cover is not defined because there is no debt, and there is no covenant to waive. Without the response, with the base-case payouts still made, the same shortfall leaves cash at $19,587 at the end of Year 1 and overdrawn by $3,958 at the end of Year 2, and it stays overdrawn through Year 5. A slow start is the likelier risk. If only Year 1 comes in 40% below plan, with later years on plan, the year ends with $7,755 in the bank and $11,703 of equity when nothing is cut, and $14,359 with the pay cut from month 7. That case is read for Year 1 only, because revenue returns to plan in Year 2.
Sources
- International Coaching Federation, 2023 ICF Global Coaching Study, Executive Summary: 2022 data on practitioner counts, average annual revenue from coaching by region (North America 34,200 practitioners and $67,800; worldwide $52,800), the 53% of coaches under $30,000, and North American hours (13.3 a week), active clients (13.5) and average fee per one-hour session ($272). The 2025 study's count of 122,974 coach practitioners is from the ICF Global Coaching Study page.
- International Coaching Federation, Associate Certified Coach (ACC) credential: 60 hours of coaching education, 100 hours of coaching experience including at least 75 paid, 10 hours of mentor coaching over three months, an exam and a performance evaluation. ICF may revise these.
- SBA Office of Advocacy, Pennsylvania 2025 small business profile: small-business and employment counts, and the 2022 Census count of 938,764 of 1,169,008 small businesses with no employees.
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Training and development specialists and Secretaries and administrative assistants, Occupational Outlook Handbook, May 2025 pay data.
- Pennsylvania Department of Revenue, Corporate net income tax: rate of 6.99% for January 1 to December 31, 2027, with scheduled reductions to 4.99% from 2031.
- Federal corporate income tax rate of 21%: 26 U.S.C. 11(b). The 80% limit on using carried-forward losses: 26 U.S.C. 172(a).
- City of Pittsburgh, 2025 ET-1 payroll expense tax return: tax of 0.55% of taxable payroll expense. The return for the year in question governs the rate.
- U.S. Department of Labor, federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour, and the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry, wage FAQs: a state minimum of $7.25 and overtime after 40 hours.
- U.S. Small Business Administration, microloans: loans of up to $50,000 made through nonprofit community-based intermediaries that set credit terms.
- Prices, volumes, close and retainer rates, hours per session, workspace, insurance, software, marketing, legal and credential costs and owner pay are planning figures, not quotes or statistics. Pennsylvania rules on coaching, counseling and therapy are not relied on anywhere in the figures; counsel confirms them before launch.
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