Stop Waiting and Start Doing: Building Confidence, Trust, and Momentum in Coaching and Speaking

What holds most coaches, speakers, and entrepreneurs back? It’s not a lack of ideas or talent—it’s the hesitation to start. Whether it’s launching a new program, delivering a keynote, or simply showing up on social media, many of us wait for the “perfect” moment or feel we need everything planned out before we take action.

Megan McCaleb, coach, speaker, and humor expert, knows this struggle firsthand. In a recent episode of The Amanda Kaufman Show, Megan shared how authenticity, vulnerability, and humor have shaped her approach to coaching and speaking. Her insights are a powerful reminder that sometimes, the best way to grow is to dive in and learn as you go.

The Big Mistake: Building Before You Have Buyers

One of Megan’s most valuable lessons came from a common mistake many entrepreneurs make—creating a product or program before validating it with paying clients. “I spent hours building this course,” Megan shared, “and then no one bought it.”

The hard truth is that investing time and energy into something without ensuring demand can lead to frustration and wasted effort. Instead, Megan now advises her clients to sell first and build as they go.

“It’s about showing up in the moment,” she explained. This approach not only saves time but also allows you to adapt your offerings based on real client needs. The same principle applies to speaking: don’t wait to perfect your keynote—start where you are, even if it’s just posting a video on social media.

Using Humor and Vulnerability to Connect

Megan’s experience as an improv comedian has taught her the value of humor in building connections. “Self-deprecation, when done with good intention, can create accountability and self-awareness,” Megan explained. “It’s a way to connect with people and show how much we actually have in common.”

Humor, particularly when combined with vulnerability, helps to break down barriers. It makes difficult topics more approachable and shows audiences that you’re human too. This approach is especially powerful for coaches and speakers, as it fosters trust and relatability.

But Megan warns against overdoing it. “If you lean too heavily on self-deprecation, it can undermine your credibility,” she noted. “Use it to connect, but balance it with confidence and authenticity.”

Authenticity: The Secret Sauce in Personal Branding

In a world full of polished images and curated feeds, authenticity is a breath of fresh air. Megan emphasizes that showing up as your true self—flaws and all—is one of the most effective ways to build a strong personal brand.

“Your audience doesn’t want perfection; they want connection,” Megan said. “Share your story, your struggles, and the lessons you’ve learned along the way.”

Authenticity isn’t just about being real—it’s about being intentional. Megan encourages coaches and speakers to share personal stories that align with their message. “When people think of a topic, they should immediately think of you,” she said.

The Role of Storytelling in Audience Engagement

Storytelling is one of the most powerful tools in a coach or speaker’s arsenal. Megan believes that sharing personal experiences—both the highs and the lows—helps to create a lasting impact on your audience.

“The best coaches are the ones who are willing to share the hard stories,” Megan said. “Not just hypotheticals or case studies, but the real, personal experiences that have shaped who they are and why they do what they do.”

Storytelling isn’t just about engaging your audience; it’s about helping them see themselves in your journey. By showing vulnerability and authenticity, you give others permission to embrace their own stories and take the next step in their journey.

Stop Over-Preparing and Start Taking Action

For many coaches and speakers, the fear of imperfection can be paralyzing. Megan’s advice? Stop waiting for the perfect moment and start doing.

“Sometimes people think they need to write the perfect keynote before they start speaking,” she said. “But the truth is, you’ll never feel fully ready. The key is to get yourself on stage as quickly as possible—whether that’s an actual stage or just starting with a video on social media.”

Taking action, even when you feel unprepared, builds momentum and confidence. It also allows you to learn and adapt in real time, which is far more valuable than waiting until everything is “perfect.”

Key Takeaways for Coaches and Speakers

1. Sell Before You Build
   Validate your ideas with paying clients before investing time in creating them. This ensures you’re meeting real needs and reduces wasted effort.

2. Use Humor and Vulnerability Strategically
   Self-deprecation and humor can create powerful connections, but balance them with confidence to maintain credibility.

3. Be Authentic in Your Personal Branding
   Share your true self and your personal stories to build trust and relatability with your audience.

4. Leverage Storytelling to Engage
   Real, personal stories resonate more than hypotheticals. They create lasting connections and help others see themselves in your journey.

5. Take Action Now
   Don’t wait for perfection. Start where you are, whether it’s launching a new program or stepping onto a stage.

Final Thoughts: Momentum Is Everything

Megan McCaleb’s insights remind us that confidence, trust, and momentum are built through action, not preparation. By showing up authentically, embracing humor and vulnerability, and taking the next step—even when it feels uncomfortable—you can create meaningful connections and lasting impact in your coaching and speaking journey.

Whether you’re a coach, speaker, or entrepreneur, the message is clear: stop waiting and start doing. Your audience is waiting to connect with the real you.

Ready to learn more? Check out the full episode of The Amanda Kaufman Show featuring Megan McCaleb for even more inspiration and actionable advice.

Connect with Megan McCaleb

📌 Instagram: @kookymegan
📌 LinkedIn: Megan McCaleb
📌 Facebook: Meet Megan McCaleb
📌 Website: Improv Team Culture

📕 Want our free Thrive & Scale Expert Blueprint? Grab your copy here: https://thecoachesplaza.com/the-thrive-and-scale-blueprint

🎙️ Podcast: Dive deep into success strategies with The Amanda Kaufman Show Listen here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-amanda-kaufman-show/id1450993176

📺 YouTube: Watch our latest episodes and coaching tips on our channel Subscribe here: https://www.youtube.com/@theamandakaufmanshow

📸 Instagram: Follow Amanda for daily motivation and behind-the-scenes content Follow here: https://www.instagram.com/theamandakaufman

💼 LinkedIn: Connect and follow here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amandackaufman/

👥 Facebook: Join The Coaches That Don't Suck Free Facebook Group Join here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/thecoachsplaza

Full Transcript

Megan McCaleb (00:00)

And one of the things that I learned as one of my biggest mistakes that of course I've heard other coaches say is don't create the thing until you have a paid client. And I have shown them the actual courses. I'm like, this is the thing I built that I spent hours building and then no one bought it.

versus the, I have this program that I knew I had the content for and it wasn't until I had the paid client that then you build it out. And then in many cases it's week over week, right? And then you realize you don't even really need all of the beautiful worksheets and all this stuff. It's more about just showing up in the moment. And then the same thing translates over to speaking is sometimes people are like, I need to write this perfect keynote. And then they're like, well, now where do I take it? And so I like,

Amanda Kaufman (00:17)

Yeah.

Megan McCaleb (00:45)

think how do you get yourself on stage as quick as possible and that's sometimes just starting with a video on social media and when you start doing the thing then it just changes the feeling of urgency inside us and then the trust we can grow knowing that we have so much to share.

Amanda Kaufman (01:01)

Well, hello and welcome back to the Amanda Kaufman show. We're continuing our series on coaches that don't suck. And I was just telling my friend, Megan McCallib, that I am so excited that she's here because she definitely doesn't suck. So there's criteria number one, but also she's just so dedicated to doing a really amazing job for her clients, helping them build their keynotes and show up confidently as a speaker.

So Megan, hey, welcome to the show.

Megan McCaleb (01:32)

Hey, thanks for having me. Super stoked to be here, Amanda.

Amanda Kaufman (01:36)

Yeah, yeah, I've been looking forward to this. So take 30 seconds and why don't you, in your own words, let our listeners know exactly what it is that you do.

Megan McCaleb (01:46)

Cool. Well, I'm a speaker coach and it actually kind of all began as being a comedian. I've been a comedian improv and standup for over 15 years and did that as a hobby while I worked in corporate. And then I saw all the fun parallels of how comedy is so connecting and really great for getting through like hard conversations and hard topics. And so it's evolved to where I just help people find their variety of humor.

and understand why sometimes their most challenging stories or situations actually become a superpower, especially as a coach. They're going to be able to help people see what transformation is possible. And it just really taps into vulnerability in a fun, approachable way.

Amanda Kaufman (02:28)

I love this, you know, because I like to use humor if I was to, it's so awkward talking about your own humor style, isn't it? But you know, it's like, I'm funny because it's like, But I am funny because I like puns, I like kind of double meanings, you know, and I like to get very hyperbolic when I'm sharing things. And what I found in terms of using humor in my coaching especially,

Megan McCaleb (02:36)

Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Amanda Kaufman (02:55)

is that you can say things in a humor context, that if you just said that like super straight to the person, it might be, you know, just too much for them to take. But if you're able to like make it, you know, jovial and funny in the right context, you can actually say things that you would never be able to say with a straight face.

Megan McCaleb (03:15)

yeah. Well, in the magic of comedy too, and there's obviously, I don't know, actually, maybe it's not obvious to your listeners. There's a little bit of a difference between improv comedy and standup comedy. And so I like to merge like the things that you get from each of them. For example, in standup, you have self-deprecation. So it's something where it actually heightens the accountability factor and the self-awareness. And so that's what makes it. So you can say things that are a little bit more challenging because it's not coming across.

If you're doing it right and with good intention, it's not coming across as a mean-spirited thing. It really helps connect and show like, look at how much we actually have in common, even when there's like, you know, sometimes we do need to kind of course correct, and it just makes it so much more pleasant, for sure.

Amanda Kaufman (03:48)

Hmm.

I that, you know, like the self-deprecating humor can be very effective. I've also seen it overdone. like, you know, what would you say if somebody is wanting to like play with humor? You know, an example that's coming to my mind right now is actually earlier this week, I was hosting a live stream and I dual cast. So I broadcast to Instagram and I broadcast to all the other channels. And after half an hour of just bringing it with all the fire, I realized that I was on mute.

on every channel except for Instagram. And afterwards I was just like, my goodness, like what a move, you how many of these lives have I done? And I had no problem whatsoever. And then I did this one. Well, I turned around and I made a story on Instagram laughing about it. And I was like, you guys, and like the whole punchline was the self-deprecation of like, you know, that mistake.

Megan McCaleb (04:29)

no.

Yes.

Amanda Kaufman (04:54)

And then I was like, this girl needs a checklist. And I was like pointing at the wall of where I was going to put it. And no kidding, I got literally 10 times the number of inbound messages that I would get if I was like directly putting into the stories like, hey, get this free thingy from me. so, you know, that's just kind of a little, little example. But I think you can go too far with self-deprecation. So I'd love I'd love to pick your brain in front of everybody.

Megan McCaleb (05:12)

Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

Amanda Kaufman (05:23)

on your thoughts on this.

Megan McCaleb (05:24)

Yeah. for sure. Well, exactly what you said. That's a perfect example. Because especially, think, where our area of expertise lies is where we're to get constant opportunities to grow and fail and see how we show up. I'm really good at catching things. Right? So I think it's what keeps us sharp.

Amanda Kaufman (05:39)

You are going to say something else. Yeah. Yeah.

Megan McCaleb (05:50)

And so the acknowledgement, the quick ability to acknowledge just makes it so it eases the discomfort of whoever saw it. And they're like, my gosh, does she know? Like, is there something that she's like, whatever. It makes everybody uncomfortable until the thing is acknowledged. Where people take it too far, I think actually probably because I read so many personal development books that when you take it too far, it actually makes people uncomfortable because it's like,

Amanda Kaufman (05:50)

Mm-hmm.

Megan McCaleb (06:16)

you're spending too much time on it, it feels like super extreme, or it really starts getting into a negative energy that just doesn't feel good. so self-deprecation, especially with like mindset, and we need to be speaking kind words to ourselves. Like I have to find a good balance there because it can go too far in a lot of different ways where it actually starts offending other people, it derails from the original point.

and it just carries a little bit of a less desirable energy. So kind of finding that balance of when do you get to activate it so that it can realign with wherever we're heading and show you're human. Like that's the best part is then people go, good. So she's not perfect. And then that actually, like you said, getting way more interaction on it. That's what is like magnetic is that real human moment and, and not staying stuck in it.

Amanda Kaufman (07:06)

Yeah.

Megan McCaleb (07:10)

to.

Amanda Kaufman (07:11)

Yeah, I love that. And I love your approach with it too, because it's very organic. know, like something that I was thinking about too is we talk all the time about authenticity in marketing and representing exactly who we are, et cetera. And I know that there's a lot of staged content for sure on social media where, you know, no, what happens next? And it's like the staged mistake. And...

You know what I found is that number one, you know, it's staged. So like you can just sort of feel the inauthenticity of the quote unquote mistake. And that kind of content can actually be viral. You know, it can it can go really, really far. What I found personally and just I think I'm echoing what you're saying is like when you have your own experience and you make your own mistake, you know, a kind of a running.

Megan McCaleb (07:49)

Yeah.

Amanda Kaufman (08:03)

joke that I have inside my internal team is like today I learned and then I would share like the flub, the mistake, the issue. And you know what I try to do and I don't know if you have any thoughts on this, but what I try to do is when I admit the mistake, I also share what's the reparation. know, like did I forgive myself? Sometimes it's just like I did something that embarrassed me or did I like make a techie

Megan McCaleb (08:21)

you

Amanda Kaufman (08:29)

mishap because that happens. What I do to fix it, I try to like, drop the joke or the embarrassing moment, but then pretty quickly afterwards come up with a resolution. Yeah, yeah.

Megan McCaleb (08:31)

Yeah.

yeah, for sure. mean, and one of the things that you said actually comes up a lot in my coaching speaking speaker coaching space around authenticity and vulnerability. Like those two are so hot. They're so hot right now and hopefully forever more. and people are like, I almost can't stand the focus on the super staged clicky bait things that are not really genuine because those

Amanda Kaufman (08:57)

Mm-hmm. It's like so good.

Megan McCaleb (09:09)

those don't really necessarily lead to quality leads. And so the thing that a lot of coaches will get stuck on is they feel like if they don't have this huge audience that maybe they shouldn't be speaking yet or that it's not being as effective. really that, yeah, right. Yeah. The more they can focus on who they are as an individual though, the more quickly they're going to magnetize the right people as you know. And so like, I don't, I don't have a giant following really yet on any specific

Amanda Kaufman (09:23)

Or that they're boring.

Megan McCaleb (09:38)

platform. I have a pretty engaged audience though, cause I've just always nurtured things and I learned to be pretty vulnerable early by accident. and it just, it, it, it, there's just so much value in it. Like really just dropping the guard and not trying to, to over cook the joke, I guess, like you said, of something quick to acknowledge and get a little bit of a chuckle and that quick relief. And then there needs to be something tangible there.

Amanda Kaufman (10:06)

Mm.

Megan McCaleb (10:07)

Like what is next? And yeah, I don't know. And we're telling people that they need to be vulnerable and authentic, although we're not really telling them how. And that is the thing that a lot of leaders and coaches are getting stuck in is like, well, how? Cause we're so inundated with what other people are doing. I'm like, well, don't be that if you're not that, you know? I don't know. feel like it's.

Amanda Kaufman (10:11)

Yeah. I love-

Yeah.

Well, and I think even like your comment about my audience isn't all that big. It's like the first coachy thought that came to my brain was like, well, compared to what though? mean, you know, compared to when you started, you're probably huge.

Megan McCaleb (10:42)

Maybe I'm more intentional now. You know, my goals, my 10 X version of me is to have hundreds of thousands of followers or maybe millions someday. And yet I have also had $90,000 months with 2000 followers, but you know, on Instagram, you know, I have all the different platforms that have their different purpose. But, the key is like people are drawn in because my true story that I mix with my teaching element is

Amanda Kaufman (10:45)

Yeah.

Megan McCaleb (11:10)

pretty heavy, it's an adoption related story. then people like, when we tap into our stories, then we realize, that's what's actually driving us. Hopefully, like I think the best coaches are the people who are really willing to share the actual hard stories. They're not just giving hypotheticals. They're not like only talking about case studies and stuff. They're like up in front saying, these are things I've gone through on a personal.

Amanda Kaufman (11:30)

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

Megan McCaleb (11:40)

and a business level and that's why I teach XYZ. To me that's like, that's the secret recipe that helps my coaches like really start to stand out as a speaker and a thought leader. Like that's what we all want to be as a coach is we want them to think of that topic and go, Megan teaches that.

Amanda Kaufman (11:44)

I love that. Yeah.

Right. relating and connecting. think one of the biggest surprises, and looking back, I'm like, why was I surprised by this? But it was a big surprise. Was just how people-y you kind of have to be if you want to be a successful coach. And when I started, I was so introverted. And I was funny, but it was funny with my super close inner circle. And I'm one of those like,

Megan McCaleb (12:17)

Hmm

Amanda Kaufman (12:25)

ridiculously loyal friends that if it's like, if we're bonding, if we're here, if we're doing, and you know this, Megan, like we've had situations where it's like, I probably didn't need to continue, but I did because I wanted to in like forming relationships with people.

even though I had all the reasons in the world to be like, well, this has been fun. Goodbye. Right. And I feel like a lot of people when they're building audiences and just like true confessions, because this is the podcast. I mean, you came in and you're listening here. You're reading more than a social post here. When my business has gone wrong, it's been when I.

Megan McCaleb (12:53)

You

Amanda Kaufman (13:02)

prioritized, you know, that marketing engine and getting the advice from everybody. And it just like diluted the level of connection that I was really feeling because I was losing the messaging. I was losing the interactivity, you know, because what I was supposed to be doing at the time was I was supposed to be, you know, supposed to. I was supposed to be scaling with ads. I was supposed to be scaling with sales team.

Megan McCaleb (13:12)

Hmm.

Mm.

Amanda Kaufman (13:32)

And I think that it will, you know, work, but it didn't work in the way that I was approaching it because there was just there was too many instances where the message was kind of getting into a copy paste place of somebody else and and and not enough instances of like that authentic and loyal connection, you know.

Megan McCaleb (13:45)

Mm-hmm, yeah.

Yeah. Mm-hmm. Ooh. I'm just thinking about on both sides of things of times where I have actually been coached. I've invested in lots of coaching over the years. And the times where I, it was so frustrating when things were out of alignment when I got in there. And it's not what you're being told you're having delivered and almost like.

Amanda Kaufman (13:55)

Woof.

Megan McCaleb (14:14)

I don't like when coaches are coaching on things that they haven't already done and you can sniff it out pretty quick. So there's a lot of things and I don't want to go down like a negative hole too far. and I also think that's really important to, to be really authentic is like one of the things that my clients actively tell me they love the most is just how honest I am. Like when I don't know the answer, I'm so honest and I show them exactly how far I am down the road with different parts of the program or deliverables.

Amanda Kaufman (14:34)

Mm-hmm.

Megan McCaleb (14:43)

And I only speak to these are the things that worked for me and then give all those different caveats of what might be relevant. I really want people to be empowered to choose and cherry pick while seeing that complete, I don't know if I'm too open because I'm like, here, let me just show you everything that I failed with. They love it.

Amanda Kaufman (15:03)

Totally. Yeah, I have a very similar philosophy and what I was thinking about is you were talking about this as I'm like gosh, you know how much of our authenticity gets discovered in those moments where It's tempting to not be as authentic or in those moments where we like do the thing and we think that it was authentic and then we actually look at it we're like I Can actually do better here?

Like I can be even more open. can be even more like, and for me, I know that I get caught sometimes in like the ideals of people pleasing, right? Of wanting people to be happy and to be pleased with having interaction. And, but that very tendency can cause me to maybe not emphasize the points that I would emphasize if I wasn't so worried about pleasing you. You know what I'm saying?

Megan McCaleb (15:53)

my gosh. Absolutely. And the other part of that, this is interesting and almost piggybacks off of a coaching call I had yesterday where I realized too, as a coach, we can only do so much too and we can't want the thing more for our client than they want for themselves.

Amanda Kaufman (16:13)

that is so frustratingly true.

Megan McCaleb (16:15)

And yeah, and so, I don't know. Yeah, there's like a lot of things swirling in my mind now, just even thinking of just where does it, where our energy should go to be the most, most authentic in the moment. And a lot of times too, and I don't know exactly how far down the road some of your clients are, like if they've been coaching for a long, time, or if some of them are newbies or both.

Amanda Kaufman (16:35)

Some have, some have been doing this for 30 years. Some people are just getting started. Like they have kind of adjacent experience, you know, from their corporate job. Yeah, there's like a good range here.

Megan McCaleb (16:39)

Yeah, OK, cool.

Yeah. Yeah, that's actually one that really, spent a season of my coaching with people that were leaving corporate and starting their own coaching or their consultancy. And one of the things that I learned as one of my biggest mistakes that of course I've heard other coaches say is don't create the thing until you have a paid client. And I have shown them the actual courses. I'm like, this is the thing I built that I spent hours building and then no one bought it.

versus the, I have this program that I knew I had the content for and it wasn't until I had the paid client that then you build it out. And then in many cases it's week over week, right? And then you realize you don't even really need all of the beautiful worksheets and all this stuff. It's more about just showing up in the moment. And then the same thing translates over to speaking is sometimes people are like, I need to write this perfect keynote. And then they're like, well, now where do I take it? And so I like,

Amanda Kaufman (17:11)

Yeah.

Megan McCaleb (17:39)

think how do you get yourself on stage as quick as possible and that's sometimes just starting with a video on social media and when you start doing the thing then it just changes the feeling of urgency inside us and then the trust we can grow knowing that we have so much to share.

Amanda Kaufman (17:55)

Megan, my gosh, I need to have you back. We need to spend more time unpacking, because we've barely scratched the surface on the speaking side of what you do and everything. we must, we must not to put you on the spot live. But Megan, what is the best way for people? Wait, before I do that, I just got to ask really, really quick.

Megan McCaleb (18:11)

Yeah. No, I love it.

Mmm. Yeah.

Amanda Kaufman (18:22)

What are the three biggest things that you think help a coach not to suck?

Megan McCaleb (18:29)

Okay, to not try to copycat other coaches. So just in theme of our authenticity and vulnerability. Not to overthink it. If they're feeling pulled to do the thing, it's probably correct. I read in a book, yeah, I read in the book Happy Pocket Full of Money that says, don't discount what feels like a random thought because your thoughts are the answer to someone else's prayer. So trust that.

Amanda Kaufman (18:35)

Yes.

Yes, honor that intuition. I love it.

Megan McCaleb (18:55)

And then the third thing, ooh, to make them not suck is to just be honest. Like don't pretend you are something you're not yet because that just gives the whole community a bad rap. So be honest about where you are because you're, you can still help people that are not where you are yet. And then it's a lot more in alignment when you just are really true about where you are in the journey and get people to where you're at. And that'll help you grow quicker too.

Amanda Kaufman (19:25)

I love that. I love that so much. Okay, now, Megan, what is the best way for people to catch up with you?

Megan McCaleb (19:32)

I love Instagram. I'm at Kookie Megan, K-O-O-K-Y-M-E-G-A-N. And then I'm actually a big fan of LinkedIn these days. So if you have that to a drop somewhere in there, it's really, I'm really loving LinkedIn these days. It's very interesting.

Amanda Kaufman (19:43)

Yeah, I'll put it in the show notes.

I am too, I'm meeting some really cool people through that platform and you know they're serious but like not too serious. Yeah, it's pretty good, I love it. Cool.

Megan McCaleb (19:55)

Mm-hmm. Yeah.

Amanda Kaufman (20:00)

Cool. Well, Megan, thank you so much for joining us and we'll make sure to include like all the ways that you can get to know Megan even better in the show notes. And subscriber, go ahead and, or listener, go ahead and subscribe and go ahead and give this episode five stars and a review because Megan just showed up. She was just so...

In her space it was awesome. She definitely deserves a five for that and That'll help other people to find the episode by the way And you know what you can make it even easier for your friends to find the episode if you just share it with them So if you've got three friends who are looking to do more speaking they're looking to have more authenticity in their personal brand They can't miss this episode. So don't do that to them. Go ahead and share it I'll be back with another episode very shortly. Thank you so much for being here and we'll see you next time

Megan McCaleb (20:50)

Thanks.