How To Build An Ethical Business
Have you considered the ethics of your small business, coaching practice or spiritual business?
Ethics are a reflection of you and your values. While we’ve been taught to believe business is very corporate and selfish, it doesn’t have to be that way!
You became an entrepreneur to build your business, your way. If you’re spiritual or into wellness, then ethics are an important part of that! Just because the typical Bro Marketer doesn’t care about this stuff doesn’t mean you have to follow suit.
Of course, ethics is a huge topic, both personally and professionally. Many people hold different opinions about what is right. Ultimately, you need to do the work to figure out what’s right and ethical for you.
So while I’m not here today to tell you what you should do specifically, here are some basic things to think of when it comes to building an ethical small business:
What Are Ethics In Business?
Of course, every separate country and state will have legal codes for a business to follow. But legal and ethical aren’t the same thing! Ethics go deeper than just what’s legal.
For example, see Jeff Bezos massively underpaying workers to the point that they must rely on food stamps. That’s extremely unethical, especially for a company that makes so much money and pays so little in tax.
It’s thought that there are seven business ethics you should think about: accountability, care and respect, honesty, healthy competition, loyalty and respect for commitment, information, respect for rule of law.
Ethics are the moral code for the way a business is structured and operated. It’s the self-generated set of rules under which a business operates.
Why Ethics Matter
A strong ethical foundation is essential for every spiritual business! Ethics foster trust, a vital ingredient for clients to feel comfortable sharing personal goals and challenges. In turn, strong ethics showcase you as a leader. They allow people to feel safe with you. And in turn, they allow you to show up for your clients in a more meaningful way.
How To Build An Ethical Business
There are lots of different things to consider when it comes to business ethics! But here’s a quick guide, specifically targeted towards coaches, female entrepreneurs, and spiritual business owners.
As always, take what applies to you and leave the rest!
Business Basics
Business basics include everything communication, boundaries, etc. This might not seem like it’s ethics but if you’ve ever accidentally disappointed someone because of a misunderstanding this area, you’ll quickly see how important it is.
1. Confidentiality
Clients trust you with sensitive information. Upholding confidentiality builds trust and encourages open communication. It should go without saying that confidentiality is a must! But it always helps to tell your clients about this guideline explicitly. For example, iIf in doubt, ask permission before you share stories or wins on social media. (Or at least don’t use people’s real names!)
2. Boundaries
Coaching often creates close relationships. Maintaining professional boundaries ensures coaching sessions stay focused on the client’s goals, and avoiding inappropriate self-disclosure or “trauma dumping” on the client. This also includes sticking to what the coaching package included, not being reachable outside of client hours. etc.
If you have hard client boundaries, better think about them and put them in your coaching package or agreements so that everyone is on the same page.
3. Client Autonomy
Ethical coaches empower clients to make their own decisions. You guide them, but the ultimate choice belongs to them, even if it differs from your values or goals. Being ethical means not positioning yourself above your clients or telling them what to do…ever!
4. Inclusivity
Be vocal about who you want to serve! The outdated model of thinking is that people will just know I can help them. These days it’s important to make your intentions clear: BIPOC, disabled, all genders, LGBQT+. Without explicitly names, people might assume they’re not included.
But it doesn’t stop there. Inclusivity can also include language, using BIPOC people in your marketing and much more. Again, choose what’s right for you.
For example, I make a point of adding info to my FAQ that some of my programs are video only and therefore not a great choice for the hearing impaired. (It’s not that I want to exclude them but I definitely don’t want to sell someone something they can’t use!)
Ethical Coaching
Did you know coaching itself can sometimes become problematic? Personally, I don’t think this is usually nefarious (although sometimes it definitely is!). Most of the time it’s someone with the best of intentions who’s doing something that strays into ethically weird territory. So here are some things to think about if you’re a coach.
1. No Gaslighting
I’ve heard of gaslighting coaches who insisted that their clients weren’t really depressed or anxious. etc. Instead they just need to open their chakras or whatever! Cringe!
Honestly, I think this reflects both a lack of education and confidence on the coaches part. There’s a way to help your clients without invalidating their lived experience or denying their very real psychological diagnoses. If you can’t figure out how to coach without doing that, then perhaps coaching just isn’t right for you.
I also suggest looking into trauma-informed business guidelines to take this a step further!
2. Know Your Limits
There will be some people out there seeking your help in an area that you’re not qualified with. For me, that’s trauma. Although I talk about trauma a lot, I aim to make it very clear that I’m not a trauma therapist. It’s not that I can’t help people with trauma but it’s still important that people understand that’s not what I’m trying to do.
3. Don’t Be A Dictator
It’s still very popular for the coach to hold themselves at a higher position than their clients. “I know what’s best.” However, it’s important to know that you’re not here to tell people what to do! That’s not what coaching is supposed to be about.
4. Respect Their Boundaries
Not all your clients are an open book! That means, if you’re a business coach who wants to talk about your clients marriage, you must respect the fact that they might not want to go there with you. Some might be tempted to “push them past their blocks” but often this really isn’t the ethical thing to do.
5. Be Open To Feedback
Another big red flag in the coaching industry are the coaches who ignore their own feedback. Yes, that includes deleting Instagram messages because they don’t align with what you want to hear.
Everyone is afraid of getting cancelled today and online bullies are real. But at the same time. creating a culture where no one can ask question, post criticism or say anything that’s not remotely glowing is peak cult-leader behavior. Ick.
Ethical Selling
Surprise! Loads of the popular Bro Marketing sales tactics are not at all ethical! (Just go look at Andrew T*te!) However, I recommend you still learn about what those tactics are for two reasons. First, so that you can notice these tactics so you can avoid them yourself. Second, so that you will avoid accidentally copying them, without realizing their potential harm.
This is a big topic unto itself but here are some things to think about:
1. Deliver What You Promise
Delivering what you promise is huge, whether you’re selling an e-book, workshop, or year-long coaching package. That means both teaching the mindset shift (or equivalent) that will get them the result and actually making sure that you send out the right products.
No you’re not required to do the work for them! But be real with the information you’re giving out and what you’re promising. Think: underpromising and overdelivering instead of vice-versa!
2. Handle Screw-Ups With Grace
I’ve heard nightmare stories about coaches who forgot to send out coaching call invites and then blamed their students for not making it to class. Not a great look at all!
Tech problems happen. Also, sometimes real life happens and we forget to send something or do something we promised. But you can handle that in a graceful way, instead of blaming your clients or students.
3. Have A Clear Cancellation/Return Policy
What’s your policy when it comes to cancellations and returns? This can be tricky territory of course! I’ve definitely had people “buy” my products, request a refund and then try to sell my stuff as theirs. Obviously, they were not successful but what a horrible thing to do to someone! But even though it sucks that there are scam artists out there, it’s still important to think about what you want to do in these situations.
For example, if your new coaching client suddenly loses their job, are you going to require them to commit to the rest of your coaching package? Put it on hold? Offer a partial refund?
There’s no one right answer here! Also, there’s a big difference between digital products and coaching. But whatever you do, think about it before it becomes a problem so you can act on it if you ever need to.
4. Create Non-Predatory Prices & Products
A few years ago, it was the norm to continually push your rates higher and higher, while bragging all over the internet about it. It’s not that I don’t think you should charge a high rate. But some coaching and consultant rates out there were definitely predatory: requiring a huge financial output without a lot of return.
Yes, people are free to make their own decisions and spend their money as they wish. But part of fixing this problem is up to the coaches themselves, not vastly overcharging for their time.
5. Avoid All Scammer Associations
Without naming names, be aware that there are some “coaches” out there who are basically operating an MLM. You start working with them by selling your products and services to other people who are also working with them. You create business success only because it’s a bunch of select people selling to each other! But rest assured, someone in that coaching world is holding the short end of the stick.
If that sounds like something you’ve accidentally signed up for, consider leaving that world and making it on your own. (I suggest visiting the lifecoachsnark subreddit to look up specific names if you’re not sure!)
6. Drop The High-Pressure Sales Tactics
All too often high-pressure sales equals unethical practices. I’ve heard of some coaches encouraging potential clients to take out loans in order to pay for their services! Needless to say, that’s pretty gross. Yes, you can encourage people to work with you. Some of them will figure out the money stuff on their own. But if you have to suggest things like borrowing money, then the water gets quite murky.
Personally, I would never feel comfortable doing that–even though some coaching instructors will tell you to do exactly that. Solution? Make up your own mind and decide how far you want to go. There’s a big difference between holding space for your potential clients to meet you and pushing them to make risky financial decisions.
Giving Back To The Community
Many people think donating came come later in your business–you know after you’re making 200k a year.
If that’s you, don’t worry. I’m not judging that, as we’re all on our own journeys financially and ethically!
But instead of putting off donations until “someday” (because hey, we all know what that usually means), you can bake money ethics right into the heart of your business.
1. Donate A Certain Percentage Of Your Profits
The most popular way to become a more socially-minded company is to simply pick a non-profit that you enjoy (or several) and commit to donating to them regularly.
2. Do Fundraising Campaigns
Similarly, you could do fundraising for select causes or when certain events happen in the real world. I saw a lot of people doing this for BLM, for example.
3. Volunteering
Just because you’re a business owner, doesn’t mean that you can volunteer! Your skills are extremely valuable and donating them is a huge gift. Consider volunteering your coaching skills through non-profit organizations or public speaking engagements. This can also increases exposure and build your network. Win-win!
4. Offer Pro Bono Work
Consider adding scholarships. free spots to your group coaching programs or taking on a few clients pro-bono throughout the year. These spots are always well-received and even though you’re giving them away, you’re still creating powerful connections that might benefit you in the future! Also, you can definitely ask for testimonials in exchange.
5. Create A Socialist Business Model
Now here’s a brilliant way to give back…to your employees! Honestly, I’d never heard of this before the stunningly smart Madeline Pendleton talked about it and now I’m not sure why more business owners don’t engage in this practice.
Don’t freak out about the word socialist comrade! A socialist business practice simply means putting more money in the hands of the workers.
Pendleton structures her business so that every employee (including herself) gets the same salary. (In her case. I believe that $75k) The idea here is that she’s genuinely hiring people to do tasks that she can’t do herself. So even if the position is typically considered low-wage, she pays them the same as she does herself.
But it doesn’t stop there! The company also splits profits among the employees. One year all the employees got cars (probably not new-off-the-lot cars, but cars nonetheless!). Another year, she focused on helping everyone make down payments on homes.
Talk about giving back to your community! Yes, of course the people we hire will always benefit from being employed by you. But this is a way to do it in a juicy life-sustaining way.
And guess what? Of course, everyone at this company loves working there. They don’t have a high company turnover and when they do have positions to fill, they have legions of excited qualified candidates at their doorstep. Talk about win/win.
I know most business bros will tell you to hire out your VA in the Philippines or wherever. And no shade, because many of those people will be happy to work for you for even a small amount of money. For many people, that’s still life-changing money.
But if that makes you feel icky and you’re looking for something bigger, think about adopting this socialist model for yourself.
Putting Your Code of Ethics into Practice
Here’s how you can integrate ethical principles into your coaching or spiritual business:
Develop Your Code of Ethics
Get inspired by this post but do your own research! Take notes about what other people are doing. Align with industry standards but adapt them to reflect your own values. This clarity allows you to attract clients who share your ethical compass.
Share Your Code Where Applicable
While there’s no need to publicly share your entire code of ethics, sharing a bit about your ethical business practices is helpful. At the very minimum, it will show your clients who you really are and that alone will help attract in more like-minded clients.
Be Open To Change
We’re all learning and growing, and as such, sometimes our ethics will grow along with us. If you get called out for something, aim to stay open and learn from the experience as much as possible. Not everyone is always going to love you but staying flexible and owning up to any past mistakes will take you a long way.
Be Open To Feedback
Don’t take any criticism about your ethics as a personal attack! Stay open and see what you can learn. Again, ethics are not one-size-fits-all. It’s okay if people disagree with you as long as you can stand behind what you do. But sometimes we have blindspots that it takes another human to point out–and that’s okay!
Trust Your Judgment
Many times with ethics, there is no one-size-fits all answer! So trust your own judgment and intuition. Always pay attention to your gut feeling. For example, if a potential client requests help with something that feels dishonest, decline the request or refer them to someone else. No money is worth getting caught up in a bad situation.
So what did you think? Do you have a code of ethics when it comes to your business? Did this post inspire you to change anything or add something new?
Final Thoughts
Your business ethics aren’t just about you. They’re also about protecting your clients or customers and making everyone feel safe! Trust is everything in business so showing that you’re at least thinking about ethics can really set your business apart and show that you are trustworthy.
By thinking carefully about your values and following a few of these strategies, you can build a successful coaching business grounded in ethical practices. Over the long term. you’ll also build a reputable coaching business with a lasting positive impact. How cool is that?


PS Looking for more? You might also want to check out this post about 5 reasons you should never use Elementor, improve your money mindset, or how to build your brand.
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