The Life Coach School Podcast · Brooke Castillo

Ep #511: Fast Success with Cayla Horey

February 1, 2024·37 min·2 clips

Freedom is the machine that makes money.

Cayla Horey is a life coach specializing in leadership development for entrepreneurs and small business owners, trained through Brooke Castillo's Life Coach School. She spent over 20 years coaching in the nonprofit sector before launching her own practice at the end of 2022. In her first year she achieved six-figure revenue despite serious health challenges that consumed her first four months, requiring MRIs, surgery, and daily injections. She homeschools three children — including one with special needs and one with medical challenges — and built her business largely through in-person networking rather than social media. Cayla's approach centers on leadership development, drawing on her belief that entrepreneurs are often the bottleneck in their own businesses. She explains that her previous nonprofit fundraising work gave her skills in finding audiences and making compelling pitches, which she adapted for entrepreneurship. A key mindset she describes is never approaching her business from a scarcity of "where is my next client" but instead asking "where can I put value into the world." She argues that if you want to earn a certain amount, you must first put that much value into the world without waiting to be paid. She found that getting into rooms where entrepreneurs already gather — rather than posting to the same social media audience repeatedly — was the engine of her fast growth. Cayla admits doubt crept in but describes deliberately coaching herself through it, using the same ownership mindset she teaches clients. She reflects on how her background in a sector that never rewarded her financially made her first entrepreneurial successes feel transformative for her sense of self-worth. The conversation explores why some coaches achieve fast results while others struggle, with both hosts agreeing that mindset and willingness to act matter more than the specific tactics. Cayla plans to continue scaling her practice with a focus on serving small business owners who need leadership transformation. Her tone throughout is warm, direct, and celebratory without being boastful. The episode appeals to new coaches, aspiring entrepreneurs, and anyone navigating a career pivot while managing significant personal responsibilities.

As heard by us

A grounded success story that keeps the friction visible.

Brooke Castillo frames Kayla Horry's story as a plainspoken look at what fast success demands: follow-up, resilience, and the ability to hear no without treating it as the end.

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Why you'd press play

If you need a story about stubborn follow-through after a messy start, press play.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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