Build a List Growth System You Can Maintain in Just 5 Hours a Week

My guest Christina Claytor is a follow-through coach who helps capable but frustrated people build the habits they need to consistently do what they say they will do and finally stop breaking promises to themselves.

Christina came to me wrestling with a challenge so many second-act coaches face. She has just 5 to 6 hours a week to work on her practice, and needs a way to consistently market her business and grow her email list without burning out or overcommitting. The traditional list-building tactics felt too heavy, and she struggled to find a repeatable system she could actually keep up with given her limited time.

Together, we mapped out a practical, permission-filled list-building plan that fits her real life and her strengths. We also tackled the common mental hurdles that come up, like “Who am I to do this?” and “Will anyone say yes if my list is still small?”

Let me highlight the steps Christina and I worked through to help her design a simple marketing routine that brings in a steady trickle of new subscribers every single month.

Step One: Lean Local With Monthly Workshops

You do not need to ignore local opportunities just because your coaching is online. We built Christina’s system around hosting a free workshop in her community each month. Libraries, city rec centers, government-funded parent support groups, anywhere people gather for learning with minimal friction.

The project breaks down into a four-week rhythm. In week one, research and pitch. In week two, confirm and schedule. In week three, prep for the workshop. In week four, deliver. This routine takes out the guesswork. You always know what you’re working on, and you’re increasing visibility and referrals in your real-life network.

If you want steady client leads, remember that word-of-mouth from one helpful session can be more effective than any ad or social media post.

Step Two: Pitch Lead Magnet Swaps to Build Your List Consistently

Once Christina’s lighter, more relevant lead magnet is ready, we added a monthly system for swapping freebies with other coaches who serve a similar audience. This is not a one-time tactic but an ongoing process that lets you steadily grow your list even with a tiny audience.

The swap plan mirrors the workshop routine: research and pitch in week one, coordinate the details in week two, share each other’s lead magnet with your respective email lists in week three, and then review results in week four.

Think progress, not perfection. Even a swap yielding 10 new subscribers is a win, and those numbers add up fast with steady repetition.

Step Three: Reframe How You See Your Own Value

Almost every coach hits the “Who am I to pitch this?” wall, especially if you come from a professional environment that prizes academic degrees and hierarchy. Christina’s day job in healthcare surrounds her with people with formal credentials, which can make sharing her lived expertise as a coach feel daunting.

We named that inner critic out loud and broke down the truth: Your lived experience, 15 years in healthcare, all those results in follow-through and productivity, those matter more to your clients than an alphabet soup of certifications. Your role is to help people solve a problem, not to be the most credentialed person in the room.

Working through the discomfort, pitching before you’re “ready,” and realizing folks care far less about your resume than you think, are all skills to practice—not prerequisites for starting.

Finally: Test, Tweak, and Stay in Action (Even When “No” Happens)

We set a concrete target. Send 15 workshop pitches and 15 lead magnet swap pitches over 90 days. The goal is to capture enough data to see what works, what needs a tweak, and where the real bottleneck is. If you get a string of “no” responses, then it is just feedback. It means you can revisit your pitch or your offer—not that your plan is broken.

This routine keeps you out of a trial-and-error spiral with endless pivots, letting you build real momentum and gather the data you need to make smart, informed adjustments.

And here’s a nugget you don’t want to miss: When pitching lead magnet swaps, keep it short and to the point. No one needs your life story or a giant wall of text. Assume the person on the other end is just as busy as you are and appreciates simplicity. The clearer and more concise your ask, the more likely you’ll get a yes.

There’s plenty more in this episode, including Christina’s strategies for follow-through when motivation is low and how we handle those “always no” fears with real numbers and compassion. Give the full episode a listen to get the scripts, the step-by-step breakdown, and, most importantly, permission to build your marketing around the actual time you have.