CFW Coaching Call Archive

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April 8, 2026

Today we talked about:

• [00:00] After 8 years, Michi finished her book!
• [04:37] Marketing calendars and planners when you've never sold paper products before. What's the production and promotion timeline? Print-on-demand versus self-fulfillment, organic social versus ads, and whether you'll actually make money your first time out.
• [25:48] What to do when your book beats publisher sales projections before it even launches. Stephanie's bug book already has the Junior Library Guild gold stamp and the publisher is asking “what is happening with this book?”
• [32:00] Why podcast and radio appearances matter more than live gigs for building a speaking career. Reaching bigger audiences through podcasts versus one appearance at a time.
• [39:57] Treating caregiving as your current major project and putting everything else in triage. When you're caring for someone in an emergency, how do you keep the rest of your life on track while also conserving capacity?
• [47:39] How to celebrate finishing a major project without turning it into a sales pitch. Michi finished her eight-year camping history book—what should she do when she has the finished book in her hands, and how to throw a party that's actually celebratory versus a “buy my book” event?
• [51:51] How to identify your values and criteria for success when you don't know what you want. What to do when the criteria exercise triggers an existential crisis: Start with what you're against rather than trying to answer the big question all at once.