When an artist is deciding whether to hire a coach, the biggest unknown is almost always the same: what will we actually do?
Most coaching pages explain what you’ll get. They rarely show you what the weeks look like. That makes it hard to tell whether coaching is a real working relationship or a series of nice conversations.
So here it is, start to finish. I’m Matt, I’ve been a musician for more than 30 years, and I coach independent artists on how to build a business around their music. This article walks through how the 12 weeks of my 1-on-1 program actually run, what you do each week, who gets the most from it, and who should wait.
Before Week 1: The Free Intro Call
Everything starts with a free 15-minute intro call. There is no pitch and no pressure. I want to hear what you’re working on, where you feel stuck, and what you’re hoping music will become. You get to ask me anything, including whether coaching is the right next step at all.
If it isn’t, I’ll say so. For some artists, the free community or the monthly Mastermind is a better fit right now. Later in this article, I’ll go through who the 12 weeks are built for.
Weeks 1 to 3: Build Your Career GPS
The first session is onboarding, and from there the first three weeks are focused on one job: building your Career GPS. Think of it the way you’d think of the navigation on your phone. A GPS is useless until it knows two things: where you are and where you’re going. Then it can draw the route.
Point A: where you’re starting from.
We walk through a series of questions that define your benchmarks. How much do you earn from music today? How big is your audience, and where do they live? What operations do you already have, like a bank account, a website, an email list, a way to book shows? Most artists have never looked at these numbers all in one place. Seeing them is often the first real moment of clarity.
Point B: your destination.
This is where we define what success looks like to you. I mean to you, not to a streaming chart or to the artist you follow online. Through a set of exercises, we get specific about where you’re headed. Some artists want music to become their full-time career. Others want a steady second income, a touring act, or a project that supports a family. All of those are valid, and each one calls for a different plan.
The roadmap between them.
Once we know where you are and where you’re going, we map the gap. The route is made up of what I call waysides, also called points of interest: mini-projects we stop at and work on one by one. By the end of these first weeks, you have a roadmap built around your goals, your life, and your schedule. It is the document we work from for the rest of our time together.
Weeks 4 to 12: Work Through the Waysides
This is where the work happens. Each session focuses on one step of your roadmap, and we keep moving until there are real moving parts creating momentum.
Every artist’s route is different. Here are some of the waysides I’ve worked on with artists:
- Registering an LLC with your state
- Setting up a band bank account or accounts
- Building a press kit or electronic press kit (EPK)
- Setting up your social profiles
- Setting up a website
- Configuring a basic CRM to collect email addresses for your email list
- Planning a show or a setlist
- Defining your audience persona for marketing
- Booking a show, or a summer tour schedule
- Signing a contract with a booking agent
Notice what these have in common. Each one is a finished thing you can point to, not a topic we talked about. A bank account is open. A website is live. A show is on the calendar. That’s how coaching becomes progress instead of conversation.
If you’ve read my article on the 4 revenue streams every independent artist should build, you’ll recognize the thinking. We build, organize, and run your music like a business, one piece at a time.
What a Weekly Session Looks Like
We meet for 30 minutes every week. The format is simple and built to keep you moving:
- Review the work you did since our last session. Most of the work is done on your own, between calls. The call is where we look at it together.
- Answer your questions. If something came up that you didn’t know how to handle, we work through it.
- Talk through obstacles. Maybe a week got away from you, or a step turned out harder than expected. We figure out why and adjust.
- Decide your next steps. You leave every session knowing exactly what you’re doing before we meet again.
The structure is designed to keep you accountable. Knowing someone will ask “how did it go?” next week changes what gets done this week.
Support between sessions. Real life doesn’t always wait for a weekly call. If something is time sensitive, you can schedule a quick check-in session or an emergency session between our regular meetings. I’m also available by email and through a Slack channel.
What Coaching Has Looked Like for Real Artists
Every artist’s 12 weeks look different, because every artist’s Point B is different. Here are three examples from artists I’ve coached.
From no direction to a website, an email list, and a song of the month club.
One artist came to me with no clear direction. Working through the Career GPS and the roadmap, we built a new website, set up an email list, and launched a monthly “song of the month” club for his fans. He went from not knowing what to do next to having a plan and the pieces to run it.
From side hustle to a different career.
Another artist wanted his music to stop being a side hustle and become part of his full-time career. As we worked through his destination, it led somewhere he hadn’t planned: he changed jobs, leaving a desk job to become the pastor at his church. That allowed him to bring his music into his outreach, both inside and outside regular services. The plan didn’t just grow his music. It reshaped his working life around it.
From an idea to a touring show.
A third artist has worked with me for four years. He started with an idea. Today he has a full touring “rock and roll history show” of original music, backed by historical video footage. That’s what staying consistent with a plan can build over time.
None of these artists followed the same path, and none of them quit everything to chase music. They started by getting clear about where they wanted to go, and then they did the work.
What You Have by Week 12
I can’t promise you a specific result, because the results depend on the work you put in. What I can tell you is what changes structurally.
By the end of the 12 weeks, you have:
- A clear picture of where you started, where you’re headed, and what success means for you
- A custom roadmap that fits around your day job, your family, and your real schedule
- Real moving parts, not just plans: the projects we’ve finished along the way
- A weekly rhythm of work and accountability you can keep going
The goal is momentum. By week 12, the things you set in motion should be creating their own forward movement.
Is This Right for You?
The artists who get the most from the 12 weeks share one thing: they already see music as a business. They understand that it only grows and works if you treat it like one, not like a hobby.
In my experience, the ones who make progress are the ones who:
- Show up to the weekly sessions
- Put in the work between sessions
- Measure the results of what they’re doing
- Stay consistent over time
Fit has nothing to do with age or background. Some of the artists I work with are in their 20s, serious and ready, sometimes backed by their parents because they’re pursuing music instead of a degree. Others get serious after raising a family and return to music in their 40s or 50s. Everyone’s path is different, and everyone arrives at this point in their own time.
Coaching may not be right yet if:
- You mostly want to make music and aren’t ready to treat it as a business
- You’re not able to commit to the weekly session and the work between sessions
- You’re still deciding whether you want this at all
There’s nothing wrong with any of those. If that’s you, the free community is a good place to start, and the intro call is a good place to figure it out.
What Happens After Week 12
The 12 weeks give you a foundation. After that, you choose what fits:
- Renew for another 12 weeks. If you’re energized and feeling the momentum, we keep meeting weekly and keep moving through your roadmap.
- Move to a slower pace. Meet every other week to maintain your progress at a lower intensity.
- Join the Mastermind. Keep an accountability checkpoint and a community of serious artists, so you don’t lose steam.
What It Costs
1:1 Coaching is $1,997 for the 12 weeks, with a 3-month, $700/month payment plan available. It includes weekly one-on-one sessions, a custom plan built around your goals, actionable steps, and support between sessions.
For many artists, that’s a real decision. That’s why the first step is a free call. You can ask about the price, the schedule, and the fit before you commit to anything.
Key Takeaways
- The program runs 12 weeks, one-on-one with me, with a free 15-minute intro call to start.
- The first three weeks build your Career GPS: Point A (where you are), Point B (where you’re going), and a roadmap between them.
- After that, each weekly 30-minute session works through one step of the roadmap, and most of the work happens on your own.
- You finish with real moving parts, like a website, an email list, a bank account, or a booked show, not just a plan.
- You can schedule check-ins or emergency sessions between weekly meetings, and reach me by email or Slack.
- After week 12, you can renew, move to a slower pace, or join the Mastermind.
- It works best for artists who treat music as a business and are ready to show up and do the work.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long is Eleven’s 1-on-1 music coaching program?
The program runs 12 weeks. We meet once a week for 30 minutes, and most of the work happens on your own between sessions. After 12 weeks, you can renew, switch to a slower pace, or join the Mastermind.
What happens in the first session?
The first session is onboarding. We start building your Career GPS, which defines where you are today (Point A), where you want to go (Point B), and the roadmap to get there. The first three weeks are focused on completing it.
What is the Career GPS?
The Career GPS is the framework I use to start every coaching engagement. Point A is your starting point: your income, audience, and existing operations. Point B is your destination: what success looks like for you. The projects between them are called waysides, and together they become your roadmap.
What do I work on during the 12 weeks?
It depends on your goals. Common projects include registering an LLC, setting up a band bank account, building a press kit or EPK, setting up a website and social profiles, configuring a CRM to collect email addresses, planning a show, defining your audience persona, and booking a show or tour.
Do I need to quit my day job to do this?
No. Your plan is built around your real life, including your day job, your family, and your schedule. The goal is to build your music career around the life you already have.
What if I need help between weekly sessions?
You can schedule a quick check-in session or an emergency session when something is time sensitive. You can also reach me by email or through a Slack channel.
How much does it cost?
1:1 Coaching is $1,997 for 12 weeks, with payment plans available. The intro call is free, so you can ask questions before you decide.
Who is the program a good fit for?
It’s best for artists who see music as a business and are ready to show up, do the work, measure results, and stay consistent. If you mainly want to make music and aren’t ready for that yet, the free community may be a better starting point.
Ready to See What Your 12 Weeks Would Look Like?
The easiest way to find out is to talk. Book a free 15-minute intro call, and we’ll look at where you are, where you want to go, and whether the 12 weeks make sense for you. You can also read more about 1:1 coaching first.
Eleven Music Career Center is built by a musician, for musicians. Everything here is designed to give independent artists the business education the music industry never offered.
