The Future of Coaching Isn't Scale. It's Depth.
by Richard Lonsbury
Everyone's obsessed with scale. But after seven years on these Internet streets, I've found there's some truth to that. It's in the air.
With robots taking over and the inevitable Terminator-esque hellscape we're driving 90 miles an hour toward, the latest obsession seems to be: How can I get Daddy Hormozi to adopt me?
The second obsession seems to be: How can I grow faster, reach more people, and be in 40,000 places at once with AI?
It's seductive. Always has been. Ever since coaches discovered the magic of a landing page, the game has been: how can I make more by doing less? Get more people in my program, hire a team of coaches, and scale until we hit $50K, $100K, $1M a month.
Nothing wrong with that, per se. But I've noticed a trend: big coaching companies flying too close to the sun.
The bigger they get, the more people they leave in the dust.
We're in the transformation business, but sometimes we end up building machines that can't help but dehumanize the very people we're trying to help. Hey, at least you made your multiple six-figure months, right?
So, Richard, are you saying I shouldn't make more money than God as a coach?
Make your money, boo boo. I'm just saying…
…maybe you don't have to shove more people through your funnel like sausages.
What if prosperity came not from scaling out, but from going deeper?
Coaching is sacred work to me. I believe the secret to prosperity isn't solely through increasing your NUMBERS but through increasing your IMPACT.
Let's talk about it.
Find One Person
I was joking with one of my clients. I told him, "In my industry, you're what we call a cash cow."
He laughed and impersonated me, "Oh, you're a rich white guy who wants to better himself? Gimme 20K!"
We've been working together for nearly two years now. I would die for this man. I love him with my whole heart. I've met his family. Spent weekends with them. We're doing life together. This is a holy alliance.
When we started, it was $100/session. Then $500/month. Then $5,000/year. Then $10,000 for a 90-day sprint. Now it's $20K for the rest of 2026. The longer we worked together, the deeper it got.
When he faced one of the biggest parenting scares of his life, his wife asked him:
"Who can we talk to about this?" He said, "We can talk to Richard."
"Yeah, but is he safe? Does he get this?"
"Babe, Richard is the safest man in my life. I trust him."
That's the good stuff, my friends. Make yourself invaluable, and your practice will be fine.
Here is another example.
One of my clients was a math teacher turned relationship coach. I need you to understand this: Homeboy is the greatest relationship coach in North America. He IS the voice of healthy relationships.
He was at a breaking point. Booked for a national TV show, and his school told him, "If you do it, you're fired." So I called him and said, "God told me I need to coach you FOR FREEEEEEeeeeee…."
(He did. But that's neither here nor there right now.)
I coached him through the biggest transition of his life: from part-time coach/full-time math teacher to full-time coach and show host. I poured into him. Invested in him. Made myself invaluable because I knew he would succeed with the right push. Imagine my surprise to find God knew what He was doing all along.
My man crushed it. Closed $1,000 deals through email. Made the biggest month of his life. Added $250K his first year as a full-time coach. We went from free to $150/week to $1K/month to $2K/month to $20K — and we're just getting started.
It wasn't glamorous. I often thought, What the hell am I doing?
To my business mentors, well, I'm sorry for the headaches I gave you when you banged your head against my Zoom screen…
But like my mentor, Ankush Jain says:
"You can't out-give the universe. I dare you to try."
I did. And I became so devoted, so reliable, so relentlessly helpful that my clients started thinking, "What would I do without you?" Not from codependency, you psychological nitpickers, but from deep trust. Because when you're helping someone win championships… why WOULDN'T they keep working with you?
Michael had Phil Jackson. Mike AND Kobe had Tim Grover. My vision is to be Phil Jackson for a handful of All-Stars. Because when I help them win, their families win. Their clients win. The ripple multiplies. That's how empires are built. One relationship at a time.
The Real Game:
What Else?
When you stop chasing new and start deepening now, your creative genius wakes up. It becomes this thrilling, sacred game of:
What else can I do to serve this client?
What else can I see in them that they can't yet see?
What new possibility can I open in their life, their marriage, their mission?
You stop being a coach-for-hire and become Seneca to Nero… minus the murders. That's when the creative process never ends because real service is infinite.
The Mr. Feeny Factor
This way of working demands something most coaches avoid:
  • Truly trusting God.
  • Profound commitment.
  • Playing the long game.
Remember Cory and Topanga's relationship with Mr. Feeny from Boy Meets World? Feeny was more than just a teacher, he was family (I said this in my best Vin Diesel voice, by the way).
He saw them grow, fail, fall in love, and become who they were meant to be. That's the kind of relationship I'm talking about, one that stretches across SEASONS, not sessions. When a client knows you're in it with them, not as a service provider but as a sacred ally, they rise.
And as they rise… you prosper.
The Invitation
Here's my challenge to you:
Instead of asking:
"How can I get more clients?"
Ask:
"How can I go deeper with the ones I already have?"
Depth creates prosperity and legacy. The future of coaching, in my divinely inspired humble opinion, isn't bigger… It's deeper.
If you do it right, you'll never have to "scale."
You'll just keep growing.
Richard Lonsbury
Richard Lonsbury is a transformational men’s coach, international speaker, and founder of The Restored Man movement, a body of work devoted to helping men heal their hearts, reclaim their masculine power, and lead their families and communities with love, clarity, and conviction. Known as King Richard the Lionheart by his clients, Richard has guided hundreds of men through the deepest initiations of fatherhood, faith, and purpose. His approach blends Christ-centered devotion, psychological integration, and somatic embodiment to help men restore emotional safety in their homes and embody the kind of strength that inspires respect, trust, and intimacy.
Having risen from the ashes of personal loss, including the near collapse of his family and career, Richard rebuilt his life through radical accountability, spiritual surrender, and unwavering service. Today, his coaching, workshops, and speaking engagements reach audiences across North America and abroad. He’s helped men save their marriages, reconnect with their children, and step into their divine calling as leaders. His mission is simple and sacred: to heal the world by restoring men to their hearts, one father, one husband, one king at a time.

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Way of the Dragonfly: 101 Maxims for Leading a High Vibrational & Conscious Life - Kindle edition by Carroll, Jonathan. Religion & Spirituality Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.

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