I can’t afford it. 

This objection comes up when someone feels like they don’t have the money. This might mean that they do not have access to the money they would need to enroll without causing themselves serious financial trouble.

However, oftentimes people can find the money if something matters to them, it’s just uncomfortable. So rely on your gut and your conversation up to that point to determine where the person falls on the spectrum. If they are showing up as someone who can find the money but is just scared, here’s what I do:

Ask: If you were with your own best friend, and your best friend wanted to do something she wasn’t sure how to figure out the finances for, what would you tell her?

That’s too expensive.

The stick-shock reaction, this objection comes up when someone doesn’t understand the value of your program.

Most people are not blessed with an infinite amount of money, so we are making decisions every day about what we want to spend our money on and saying yes and no to things along the way. Where this goes awry is when people are tapped into a limiting belief system that prevents them from being resourceful to afford something.

The way that I suggest that you can overcome this objection is by sharing a story. Tell a story about something that you wanted, but it felt out of your comfort zone. And explain how you were able to figure out a way to afford something expensive, like a nice trip, a new car, or another similar coaching offer.

As a business coach, I often find myself leaning into the story of how I invested in my first high ticket business coach. I had to let go of my desire to pay in full or to know how I would cover every single month of the year-long commitment and just go for it!

I don’t have enough time.

There are only 24 hours a day. So when someone shares with me that they don’t have time, I want to know more about their mindset. Are they going to be coachable? One question to ask is, “What else do you have on your plate?”

They might genuinely not have the time that they would need to commit to your program, but if that’s not the case, then this would be an excellent opportunity to share a story about a season in your life when you handled feeling overwhelmed or time-scarce yourself.

I have to think about it.

This usually means that they have made a decision in the past that they regretted. So now they don’t trust themselves to make a decision that isn’t emotional. Or, it’s possible they don’t trust you because they haven’t had enough experience with you. Each person requires a different amount of exposure to feel a sense of trust. 

One question that I love to lead with at that moment is, “Is there anything specific that you need to think about?”

Then pause to give them time to think. 

Sometimes it’s a logistical reason such as checking into times and dates. They want to make sure their schedule doesn’t conflict. If this is the case you can reassure them about the exact timeline. Sometimes something else comes up, but either way you get a chance to handle the underlying objection before getting off the phone.

I need to ask my husband.

I need to talk to my financial advisor.

I need to talk to the bank.

When you hear something like this, you never know what the person’s situation really is. Like if they have supportive people in their life or not. Never act like you know, but what you can do is coach them on how to approach the conversation, which can make all the difference.

I realize if the lead I’m talking to goes to their spouse and says, “Hey! I want to spend thousands of dollars on this coaching program; can I do it?” versus something like , “Babe, I just had an incredible conversation with a coach, and I really want to do their program, and I need your support.” The response will be different, and this is something you can explore with them so they feel prepared for the conversation.