Coaches are really good at helping clients build plans, organize their money, set goals, and adjust their behavior. These are excellent things.

But something that comes up in almost every coaching relationship, usually several months in, is this: “I think things are okay. I mean, we're getting by. But I don't really know if we're ahead or behind.”

The client is still doing the work. Still showing up. Still trying. But the enthusiasm isn't what it was, and they can't quite tell whether any of it is actually paying off.

This week, we’re sharing the Progress Number, a single percentage that tells clients exactly how much of their income is actively going toward their financial future. Not their budget. Not their bank balance. A clear, revisable number that answers the question most clients are afraid to ask out loud.

We walk through the formula, how to calculate it, how to handle the gray areas, how to introduce it in a session, and what happens when a client who's been working hard finally gets to see the proof that it's paying off.

The progress number isn't just a coaching tool. It's what gives clients something to stand on when motivation gets harder and a rough month makes the whole year feel like a loss.

Links & Resources:

• Financial Coaching Essentials
• Episode 143: How Confidence is Actually Built

Key Takeaways:

• Without a concrete way to measure progress, clients go by feelings. A rough month makes the whole year feel bad. A good paycheck makes everything feel fine. Neither is the full picture.
• Net worth is a snapshot. It shows where someone stands, but not how fast they're moving or how intentionally they're directing resources toward their future.
• Two clients with the same net worth can be in completely different places in terms of momentum. Snapshots don't show trajectory. The progress number does.
• The formula is simple: total financial progress divided by total income, multiplied by 100. What counts as progress is something the client gets to define.
• The number itself matters less than the direction. A client who started at 3% and is now at 8% is winning, even if 8% sounds small.
• When a client can point to a number and say, “I was at 4%, now I'm at 6%,” something shifts in how they carry themselves. That's not a pep talk. That's identity.
• Your progress number is also your coaching tool. It gives you a concrete way to revisit progress across sessions, something to celebrate when things are going well, and something to investigate when they're not.