Career Coaching Secrets

German Rochez : How to Conquer Marketing & Find Your Ideal Coaching Client

• Davis Nguyen

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Rexhen Doda interviews German Rochez, a transformational career coach and HR business partner. German's journey evolved from HR into coaching, focusing on mid-to-senior professionals experiencing burnout, helping them shift mindsets and build confidence for career pivots.

In his first 10 months, his business generated about $5,000, prompting him to increase pricing as his formula proved effective. His main challenge is marketing and consistently finding his target audience, addressed by refining client avatars and diversifying channels like LinkedIn, Instagram, and TikTok. German aims for $150,000 annual revenue within three years. He emphasizes mindset, resilience, and continuous learning for fellow coaches.

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German Rochez:

The first 10 months, it's been about $5,000 so far, and it's because of transitioning from being a resume writer to being a career coach to owning that. and understanding that my prices were dirt cheap.

Davis Nguyen:

Welcome to Career Coaching Secrets, the podcast where we talk with successful career coaches on how they built their success and the hard lessons they learned along the way. My name is Davis Nguyen and I'm the founder of Purple Circle, where we help career coaches scale their business to seven and eight figures without burning out. Before Purple Circle, I started and scaled several seven and eight figure career coaching businesses myself and consulted with two career coaching businesses that are now doing over $100 million each. Whether you're an established coach or just building your practice for the first time, you'll discover the secrets to elevating your coaching business.

Rexhen Doda:

Hey everyone, welcome again to another episode of Career Coaching Secrets Podcast. Today my guest is Herman Roches. He is a transformational career coach and a seasoned HR business partner with over 15 years of experience guiding organizations and individuals towards peak performance. Known for his dynamic blend of data-driven strategy and heart-centered leadership, Herman specializes in building inclusive high-performance cultures where both people and businesses thrive. From optimizing HR operations to driving change management and DEI initiatives, he partners closely with executive leaders to align talent strategy with organizational goals. As a certified triathlete and marathoner, Herman brings the same endurance, focus, and passion to every coaching session and workplace transformation he leads. It's My pleasure to have him on the podcast today. Welcome to the show, Herman.

German Rochez:

Thank you for having me. I appreciate that introduction and I'm looking forward to the questions.

Rexhen Doda:

It's a pleasure to have you here. Herman, tell me a little bit more about what inspired you to become a career coach.

German Rochez:

Sure. So I think it was a journey for me. I think I was, being someone who works in HR, my favorite role has always been the client-facing role. So, you know, being an HR business partner, being that strategic partner was something that I've always enjoyed. What I didn't know back then, this could be, that specific piece could be a job. And so I was just like, yeah, I'm just going to be an HR professional. And so I think working as a business partner, I was able to train managers, some entry level managers, others quite seasoned. And I was able to coach them, help them out with getting to the next level, having difficult conversations. And so I loved doing that. I love the strategy piece. And fast forward, I was working as a recruiter and I knew exactly the ins and outs of it. And I got bored of it because it was just so simple. It didn't have that human touch to it. And so it started with me asking myself, what can I do that I love and I'm passionate about? And that's looking at resumes and helping with people and networking. And so my business started off as a resume writer. And the reason why I didn't put coaching there was because I was really, I was trying to figure that out on my own, my own beliefs. And It eventually led to me saying it out loud. I'm actually a career coach. I'm someone who could get you to that next level. I've done that multiple times. it makes sense to just have that and so that's when i decided to make it a shift into being more of a career coach rather than a resume writer which is something that i do as well but my passion is in switching that mindset in individuals and professionals who want to make it to the next level because a lot of the times these managers or these executives are burned out they don't know what to look what that next role looks like and so that's when i step in these exercises with them find that that aha moment in them build that confidence creates that mind shift into finding that role that perfect role that fits them and that's what i love about doing it and that's when i i was saying it out loud i'm a career coach you know and that's been the journey and i i love the ride so far

Rexhen Doda:

thanks so much for sharing that and so You've been doing this for the last 10 months. Can you share a little bit more about once you started it and how these first 10 months looked like working on your own business as a career coach?

German Rochez:

Yes. The toughest part of it is the marketing piece. I'm someone who knows how to network with others, but when it comes to who is my main target, client and what are the main demographics and key demographics that I'm looking for, then I had to dig deep and figure out what is that? What is it that I'm looking for? Because if I don't have that, then I'm just going to just venture off to places where I don't want to go. And it's going to make me feel uncomfortable. There's going to be clients that I don't want. And so figuring that out took some time. And so I had to exercise, create an avatar to just target my audience specifically. And once I was able to do that, I'm getting a little bit better at marketing myself to these individuals and finding them because they're definitely everyone that I work with has had some type of burnout experience in their careers where they're just trying to transition. They don't know how to do that. And that has been an exercise that's been steadily moving forward, but it was definitely difficult at first because I had to branch out, create a marketing funnel, start creating these avatars for the people that I want to hire. I'm not hire, I'm sorry, the people that I want to work with. And so that's been the journey.

Rexhen Doda:

Thank you. And is there a specific target audience or group of people that you typically work with?

German Rochez:

Sure. So I work with mid-senior to going to that next level. And the specifics are also someone who is burned out. They've essentially peaked at where they are and want to go to that next step, but they don't know what that next step looks like. I'm looking for people who are, these are the people that are not sure what is it that they want or how to get started. I'm the person that doesn't have the confidence to sell that brand of who they are. I'm also the people, the clients that I look for are people who are working in international development or going from government into the private sector or people who are trying to get into an industry that they weren't a part of. And so I work with these individuals to find that. So those are the main demographics and things that I look for.

Rexhen Doda:

And where do you find that? What marketing channel is so far working best for you?

German Rochez:

So far it's been LinkedIn, but I've been branching out a little bit more. I've been doing podcasts such as this one. I've also ventured into Instagram. My Instagram handle is Capital Career Partner. And I've also started doing TikTok as well to venture out. But my main source of targeting my clients has been LinkedIn and I do that via posting or blogs and those have been the key strategies that I use.

Rexhen Doda:

Thank you. And how does the future look like? Do you have any goals you're working towards in the next one to three years?

German Rochez:

Yes, I do. I actually, you know, I'm someone who also believes in manifestation. I recently read this book that essentially solidified that and it's called Mind Magic. It's by a neurologist out of Stanford. But anyway, my goal for the next three years is to at least generate at least $150,000 a year. And eventually within that third year mark, jumping into more of like a, you know, million dollar mark. And so I have that on my board here. I wrote a check to myself just like Jim Carrey did for $1 million, and I'm hoping to cash it within the next three years.

Rexhen Doda:

Wow, I really like that goal. Obviously, I'm thinking that there's certain investments that you need to do in order to get there. I know you haven't been doing this for a long time, but for the last 10 months, is there any coaching programs, masterminds, or communities that you... have found or been part of or that you have invested or so far that you'd like to share or is there none so far

German Rochez:

so far there's uh been two the first one uh is um you know tony robbins i would I was fortunate enough to do one of his seminars a few years ago. So I listened to a lot of his podcasts. I attended a lot of his events. And the other one, which I recently found out through my informational interviews with career coaches, has been Career Thought Leaders, or CTL. And that's a community that I am deeply involved in now because there are great professionals and career coaches that have been in the game for so many years. and i learned so much from them so i think those are the two main ones for me

Rexhen Doda:

and i'm curious for anyone who i might be thinking of joining ctl um i believe this is a paid community i'm not very uh i haven't researched them very well but um Could you also share what the cost would be to be in like a mastermind like that in terms of like

German Rochez:

investment? They have different ones. They have a subscription, which is about $69 a month. So you can do it via that way. And there's also certificates you can get. with them so pick and choose whichever one you think you need you know you perform essentially like a gap analysis on yourself to figure out what's missing and then you become certified in it and then you coach in in that certification

Rexhen Doda:

cool um that all makes sense um is there um is there something that you wish you had known first when you started your coaching business that you learned kind of in the last 10 months, like an unexpected lesson learned?

German Rochez:

Yeah, it's been, I mean, I have my MBA and so I thought I was, you know, business savvy, but being in, having your own business and you being essentially the person who oversees all things business related, it's been a bit difficult. But I've been able to transition into being businessman who knows how to market themselves create funnel for list of clients and network with a lot of different communities and my target audience so I could be that expert and get those clients but it definitely took some time to figure that out and now I'm starting to get more of a rhythm going for sure

Rexhen Doda:

thank you and and the editor can cut this out too but I Is there any, and if you wouldn't like to share this, totally fine, I wanted to ask, is there, in the first 10 months, how does the revenue for you look like?

German Rochez:

The first 10 months, it's actually been about $5,000 so far, and it's because of transitioning from being a resume writer to being a career coach to owning that. and understanding that my prices were dirt cheap. It is because again, I didn't know what the going rate for that was. And I think that's been one of the trials and tribulations of figuring it out. And now that I do, I'm gonna charge a bit more and I've had a few clients have gotten positions. So that has made me even more confident in what I'm doing. because it works my formula works and it's about getting it out there and having that confidence to say you know what the reason why i'm charging more is because you're going to get more you're going to get that six-figure job after we speak um and you know you learn everything you need to learn and that's something that i took time for me to figure out and i think this is this is 2.0 uh capital career partner

Rexhen Doda:

Yeah, thanks for sharing that. And is there, when I think about challenges so far, what are some of the biggest challenges you're facing in scaling your coaching business? What would you say is the main bottleneck from you getting to the next stage?

German Rochez:

The main bottleneck that I, hmm, the one that comes to mind has just been where to find my clients, right? And it's about thinking like them, And that's been a journey. I now know where to find them, at least better than before. And it required me thinking about it and figuring it out from a marketing perspective. So that has been the toughest piece. But now that I know who my key demographics are and how to market them, I think that's going to be the main change.

Rexhen Doda:

Thank you. And basically marketing and finding where the target audience is has been the biggest challenge. And so you'd say that, let's say, getting a consistent flow of leads is somehow the initial challenge that you're currently trying to figure out before we move to the next stage, right?

German Rochez:

Yep, that's exactly right.

Rexhen Doda:

And the next question is, in the last 10 months, how have you handled the balance between delivering great client results and managing business growth on the other side? So working in your business versus working on your business, how does that look like for the last 10 months? I figured it has to be quite challenging in the beginning, especially.

German Rochez:

Oh, yeah, it's definitely difficult. But now I have ADHD, which is another reason why I'm a career coach as well, because individuals, I was essentially late diagnosed. I was diagnosed a year ago. And so figuring everything out with that has been or was a struggle. Now it's a bit better for sure. But overall, I have strategies. And one of those strategies is is essentially like a compound board that I have right next to me. And I keep tabs on the things that I need to work on and improve on. And then, you know, I have to do doing needs review and done. And that keeps me on track on the things that I need to do, the events that I need to go to, the people that I need to connect with, the things that keep me in the know and creates that schedule or creates that strategy, that visualization that I need to move forward.

Rexhen Doda:

Thank you. Thank you for sharing with that. My final question is, what advice would you give to other career coaches who are potentially in your stage and are looking to scale their impact?

German Rochez:

Sure. I think the one thing that I would say would be to have that mind shift and and know that there's gonna be trials and tribulations, but if you believe in yourself, that is going to change. I think a quote that I live by is, is you only fail when you fail to learn. And so throughout this, throughout your journey, the first couple of times there's gonna be hiccups. So it's about what do you do after that hiccup or after that challenge that determines who you are as a coach. And so understand there's going to be times when you're not going to make the right decision, go to the right event, but it's not heading in the right direction. So know that, manifest it every day, say it out loud. And once it's embedded in your frame of mind, you'll have an easier job moving forward. specifically mentally because it could drain you otherwise. But you have to believe in yourself and you have to know that you will make mistakes and that's okay.

Rexhen Doda:

Thank you. Thank you so much, Herman. It's been a pleasure having you on the podcast. For anyone who wants to connect with you or reach out to you, they can find you on your LinkedIn, Herman Roches. And they can also find you on your website, CapitalCareerPartner.com. Yes.

German Rochez:

And I have socials. I have my Instagram, Capital Career Partner, and my TikTok by the same name. I post regularly as much as I can. And yeah, those are the places to find me. I have content that I put out weekly and also doing podcasts like these. So those are the ways to get in contact with me.

Rexhen Doda:

Thank you so much. It's been a pleasure having you

Davis Nguyen:

on the podcast. Thank you. Likewise.

Rexhen Doda:

Thank you.