If you’re making decisions based on “gut feelings” instead of actual data, you’re basically playing business roulette. Spoiler alert: The house always wins.
The difference between struggling coaches and seven-figure coaches is not luck or talent… It’s tracking the RIGHT metrics and making CEO-level decisions based on cold, hard facts (not wishful thinking).
I see so many talented entrepreneurs pouring their hearts into serving clients and creating amazing offers. You know your stuff, you deliver real results… but when it comes to the business side, most of you are running on gut feelings and crossing your fingers that it all works out.
How do I know this? Because that was me just a few years ago.
I was working 60+ hours a week, constantly stressed about money, and had absolutely no idea if my marketing efforts were actually working. Everything changed when I started tracking my numbers and really thinking like a CEO.
Here’s the truth bomb you need to hear…
You are not just an expert in your field. You are the CEO of your business.
And CEOs make decisions based on data, not feelings.
The Wake-Up Call That Changed Everything
I’ll never forget the first time I tracked my email open rates and realized that my “perfect” subject lines were only getting 12% opens. Talk about a wake-up call! But that data helped me pivot, test new subject lines, and try new approaches.
Within a few months, my open rates DOUBLED—and so did my sales.
This is the power of tracking. It takes you off the emotional roller coaster of “Is my business working?” and gives you crystal-clear clarity. It’s like turning on the lights in a dark room. Suddenly you can see what’s working, what’s not, and exactly what needs to be changed.
Your CEO Dashboard: The 8 Metrics That Matter
So what exactly should you be tracking? I call this your CEO Dashboard, and it’s going to become your new BFF.
These aren’t vanity metrics that look pretty but don’t drive decisions. These are the specific numbers that separate coaches who are constantly stressed and overwhelmed from those who have predictable, scalable businesses. Each metric tells you something different about your business health and gives you clear direction on where to focus your energy for maximum impact.
Here’s what you need to track:
1. Lead Magnet Conversion Rates
If 100 people see your landing page and only two sign up, that’s a 2% conversion rate—which tells you something needs to change. You need to know this number to optimize your lead generation.
2. Email Marketing Performance
Your email list is the bloodline of your business. Track your:
- Open rates
- Click rates
- Unsubscribe rates
Your email list is one of your most valuable assets, but only if people are actually engaging. This is how you know if they’re interested in what you’re offering.
3. Traffic Sources
Where are your visitors coming from? Are they coming organically? From Meta ads? Podcast interviews? You need to track each source so you know where to double down.
Pro tip: Use separate funnel steps and links for different traffic sources. Create one landing page for your website traffic, another for Facebook ads. This is how you’ll know where your traffic is really coming from (plus Google Analytics).
4. Sales Funnel Conversions
Track conversion at each stage—from tripwires to self-liquidating offers to high-ticket upsells. See what those conversions are at each stage and where people are falling off. Remember: conversions = unique viewers vs. how many took that action.
5. Call Booking and Conversion Metrics
If you do sales calls or discovery calls, track:
- How many people land on your booking page and actually book
- How many of those calls show up
- How many of those calls convert
Each of these three steps will tell you exactly where you need to fix things.
6. Return on Ad Spend (ROAS)
For every dollar you spend on advertising, how many dollars come back? Anything less than 1:1 (you spent a dollar, made a dollar) means you’re losing money.
Quick tip: Google “ROAS calculator” for free tools if you can’t do the math manually.
7. Lead Source Quality
This is huge. Which traffic sources bring you people who actually convert? I once had a lead magnet bringing in hundreds of new subscribers who never bought anything. That data told me to pivot—either I was giving away too much or not leaving enough of an open loop to create demand for my services.
8. Cost Metrics
Track your:
- Cost per lead
- Cost to acquire a customer
- Lifetime customer value
When you know a customer is worth $5,000 to your business over time, spending $100 to acquire that customer becomes a no-brainer. It takes the stress off worrying about acquisition costs when you understand the bigger picture.
How to Implement Without the Overwhelm
I know this sounds like a lot, but the good news is, you don’t need to track ALL of these at once. Start with the three most relevant to where your business is right now, set it up, get it going, then build upon it.
Your Simple 15-Minute Implementation System
- Weekly CEO Check-In Block at least 15 minutes every Friday (I call it “Finance Friday”) to review your numbers. Put this on your calendar as a recurring appointment. It’s a non-negotiable.
I use ClickUp and put this as a recurring task. Mondays, I look at income projections. Fridays, I look at my data.
- Start Simple You don’t need fancy software to start. A simple spreadsheet works perfectly. As you grow, consider a dashboard solution like OptimaFunnels that can centralize all your data in one place.
- Use UTM Tracking Codes These are magical little tracking codes you can add to your links to see exactly where your traffic and conversions are coming from. Game changer. Make sure you:
- Use them consistently
- Actually look at the reports
Learning UTM codes isn’t difficult—once you get it down, you just need to use them consistently.
The Mindset Transformation
The key is consistency. I’d rather you track three metrics every single week than try to track everything and give up after a month.
There’s a saying in business: “What gets measured gets managed.” Simply by tracking your email open rates, you’ll naturally start writing better subject lines. By tracking call conversions, you’ll get better at sales because you’ll see where you’re losing people and what objections you need to overcome better.
But the bigger transformation happens in your mindset. When you know your numbers, you stop second-guessing every decision.
From Guessing to CEO Confidence
I remember the first time I looked at my dashboard and thought, “Oh, I know exactly how many subscribers I need to generate $10K this month.” Think about that for a second. No more guessing, no more “I need to make $10K/$50K/$100K this month and I have no idea how to get there.”
That clarity changed everything for me. Suddenly, I wasn’t working more hours, I was working smarter. I knew exactly where to focus my energy for the biggest return.
This didn’t just change my business, it changed my life. I went from constant hustle to taking Fridays off, from worrying about money to having predictable cash flow, from questioning my worth to confidently raising my prices. All because I started tracking the right metrics.
Your Next Steps
Choose three metrics from my CEO dashboard that feel most relevant to your business right now. Create a simple Google Sheet or Excel document and call it your CEO Dashboard.
Then schedule a 15-minute CEO check-in on your calendar for this Friday. This small action is your first step to thinking like the CEO you’re meant to be and creating the sustainable, scalable business you deserve.
The bottom line: You didn’t start your business to stress about money or work 24/7. You started it to make an impact and create freedom in your life. Tracking your numbers is the bridge that gets you there, no matter how much you might hate numbers right now!
If you just ignore your numbers, they’re definitely not going to get any better. But when you start tracking the right metrics and making data-driven decisions, you transform from a stressed-out solopreneur into a confident CEO who knows exactly what’s working and what needs to change.
Ready to stop playing business roulette and start making decisions like the CEO you are? Check out the full episode of The Traffic & Conversions Show for my complete breakdown of each metric, plus the exact tools and systems I use to track everything without it becoming a full-time job. And while you’re there, hit subscribe so you don’t miss the next big idea that could transform your coaching business!
Remember, in the coaching world, making data-driven decisions isn’t just more effective, it’s your fastest path to predictable growth, sustainable impact, and the business freedom you’ve been dreaming of.
