#202: Lea Bochtler – What It’s Like Running a Coaching Business in China Artwork

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Catch The Zenith

#202: Lea Bochtler – What It’s Like Running a Coaching Business in China

May 05, 2025 • Nicola Flückiger • Episode 202

#202: Lea Bochtler is a high-performance coach and Columbia University grad who’s helped 400+ clients level up their performance.

What’s it like to grow a coaching business on China’s biggest social platform, WeChat — and serve hundreds of clients in a completely different cultural context?

Get ready to learn how Lea grew to 120,000 followers on WeChat, how business culture in China differs from the U.S., what she learned from Richard Yu’s coaching program, why university is no longer the most efficient path to high-income skills, how to overcome social pressure when going your own way, how to develop real confidence through public speaking plus a lot more...

Timestamps

(01:26) How Lea grew to 120k followers on WeChat in China

(03:57) Business culture in China vs. the U.S.

(06:13) How she got her first coaching clients in China

(08:25) Richard Yu’s program and how market research calls work

(12:00) What Columbia taught her — and why she returned to China

(14:15) Why people in China don’t talk about success openly

(16:14) How New York forced her to grow fast

(18:15) Balancing 1-on-1 coaching with scalable systems

(24:00) How you do one thing is how you do everything

(28:00) Why a 3-month coaching program can beat a Master’s

(36:09) Why she turned down EY to pursue coaching

(41:00) Dealing with social pressure and not following the crowd

(49:05) Netherlands vs. Columbia: the truth about education quality

(54:05) Overcoming fear of public speaking and building confidence

(01:00:45) Her relationship with her dad and learning acceptance

(01:07:02) What’s next: Instagram, YouTube, and platform risk in China

(01:11:03) Where to find Lea online

Lea Bochtler

Nicola Flückiger

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