Frame of Mind Coaching

Kim Ades started Frame of Mind Coaching 10 years before this 2016 interview, initially operating solo. Her coaching philosophy centered on helping driven clients "examine and shift their thinking in order to yield extraordinary results" through a unique process integrating online journaling. The business model was straightforward: direct one-on-one coaching at premium price points.

As clients experienced results from Kim's coaching, they began asking her how to become coaches themselves. Rather than turn them away, Kim created a certification process and systematized her methodology so others could deliver the same quality. By January 2016, she had 18 coaches on her team (10 fully certified, the rest in training), each paying $10,000-$12,000 to get certified. This certification program alone had generated over $100,000 in revenue.

Because the journaling process was so central to Kim's coaching effectiveness, she decided to build an in-house software platform called Journal Engine to enable coaches to interact with clients daily through structured journaling. Rather than keep this proprietary, she licensed it to other coaches, speakers, trainers, and community organizers at $69/month. By 2016, she had approximately 400 licensees generating roughly $28,000 per month in recurring revenue.

In January 2016, Kim's business was generating approximately $100,000 in total monthly revenue across three streams: coaching ($46,000), coach certification ($10,000+ monthly from new certifications), and Journal Engine software licensing ($28,000). Her full-year 2015 coaching revenue was $600,000. The business operated with lean fixed costs of approximately $18,000/month (primarily headcount), with coaches paid on variable cost basis—either 50/50 split if they brought clients through Kim, or 75/25 split if they brought their own clients. This structure created a network-effect model where coaches profited from their own client generation while contributing to the broader Frame of Mind brand and platform.

Despite running a growing coaching empire and raising five children (ages 16-22 at the time), Kim emphasized a philosophy of "be where you are"—full presence at work and full presence at home. She intentionally modeled entrepreneurial thinking to her children, supporting ventures like her child's music teaching business and another child's handmade paper product art business. When her teenage son wanted flying lessons, she told him to get a job—a lesson that stuck, ultimately leading him to teach dance professionally (including performing at halftime for the Toronto Raptors).