**this picture is me,
coming to you bare faced this Sunday morning,
and yes… I’m talking to YOU!** =) =)
Before you open your proverbial doors,
because you don’t know what you don’t know,
it can feel as if
deciding whether or not to START a business
is the biggest, ultimate decision.
But as soon as you’re in…
as soon as you “hang out your shingle,”
you quickly realize that decision making better become your new super power. You’ll be making decisions about all sorts of things, about everything, actually…
when you work,
for how long,
where you set up your office,
what support you outsource first,
what advice you pay for initially,
who to listen to,
where to hang out,
how to “brand” yourself online,
I mean… the list goes on and on.
and on and on and on,
and it does not stop.
This is why the most successful business owners are always the most decisive. In fact, when I worked with people 1:1 I’d routinely — as a matter of habit — take a proposal OFF the table when the prospect wasn’t very decisive.
Why?
Because they take forever to decide,
they’ll be less successful
and I ONLY wanted / want to work with women who are hear to take the world by storm.
“Waiters”
as I call them,
by their very nature,
aren’t very action-oriented,
so their success will be limited and slow.
Back to the FOUR
make or break
decisions you MUST make
for wild success.
These four decisions
are quite literally the cornerstone
on which your brand and business will be built.
How you answer them will determine how far you go,
and how fast. The answers will also be the foundation on which you base OTHER decisions, making each consecutive decision and EASY yes or no.
But these four…
may take you some time.
Dig in,
don’t hold back,
and don’t get up until you’ve answered them…
and not just answered them,
but answered them honestly,
with as much soul and faith and courage as you have available to you right this minute… which, by the way, is ALWAYS enough.
Here goes.
💥💥 Decision #1: What will you be known as…. in the eyes of your target market?
In the beginning of my business coaching business, I built a reputation as a No B.S. strategist and a truth teller. I gained a reputation as much from people who hated me for being a “dream killer” as from people who credited my work as what got them past six figures, or even into 7 figures.
I wanted to be KNOWN as the female business coach who wasn’t mucking around, who held your feet to the campfire of your potential, who didn’t mince words and — of course — who got results.
I decided this early.
If someone was looking for a touchy-feely, uber-enthusiastic life coach who also talked business, they’d run far from me… and I, them.
Today, I run Women Who WOW, the online alliance where the seriously driven women entrepreneurs come for strategy, coaching, sisterhood and real time, real world, no B.S. support. We’re KNOWN as the place for women who have heart and soul but also GRIT and goals. We’re becoming known as the place for women who don’t fit most other places for women. =) The place for women who are UNAPOLOGETICALLY pursuing MORE, and are AUDACIOUS enough to believe we can create wild success… on our own terms.
When women find us, it’s often an immediate Hell Yes, or Hell No. Because we know who we ARE, we’re okay to wish the “hell no’s” well as they mosey off to find another more suitable group…. (Probably one that offers business card toss networking or rah rah conventions. lol… ) More on our hell yes or hell no philosophy HERE.
For you, deciding what you will be KNOWN as in your market will lay the foundation for everything else. It will determine your branding elements, your messaging, your presence, your packaging and your pricing.
So, what do you decide?
Who do you WANT to be?
How will you show up?
How will you be known?
and what will you be known AS?
💥💥 Decision #2: What will be your primary marketing engine… and how will it be fueled?
I guess this is a bit of a rhetorical question for me to ask. There IS a right answer… =) and many wrong ones. The RIGHT answer is content.
Content, yours… the kind of content that just flows from you. Written or spoken, video or audio, live or recorded, graphics or words… These decisions can largely be based on your own preferences (always, of course, taking into consideration your CHOSEN** market.)
But you do have to decide on your own marketing engine and how you will fuel the growth of your brand, the expansion of your list, and the building of your bottom-line.
For the sake of truth, accuracy and efficiency, let’s assume you’ve chosen the marketing engine of content. How will you FUEL that engine?
Will you do daily videos?
Will you do a daily quote or inspirational message?
A daily blog?
A weekly podcast?
What will be your PRIMARY form of content?
and how will you leverage it into many forms of content?
What will your daily routine be?
Where will you be found?
Marketing is NOT a spectator sport,
it is a strategic and active one.
You’ve got to show up, pads up, and getting in the ring DAILY.
Sometimes your nose will feel bloodied by the lack of response or outright rejection.
When “they” reject your offer,
it feels like they rejected you.
When “they” don’t respond to your messaging,
it feels like they’re ignoring your very soul.
These moments are tough.
But you are tougher.
So, market in a way that Exposes your soul,
and the soul of your brand, your purpose, your mission….
all the things that make you, YOU
and everyone else in your industry…
NOT you…
daily.
**CHOSEN. If you feel stuck doing things, doing things a certain way, working certain hours, showing up places you don’t love because your market “demands” it… remember: You CHOSE this market. And you TRAINED them as to what to expect from you. You can always rewrite the rules of engagement and / or choose a different market to serve. Your choice, always.
I cover all of this and much more in my upcoming live intensive, which is priced so that you can EASILY 100x your investment with just one simple 20-30 minute commitment per day. NOVEMBER 2, 2019: Content 2 Cash: The Habits, Hacks & How to of Content Marketing in YORKTOWN, VA You can register HERE.
💥💥 Decision #3: Full vision thinking or “just enough” thinking? How big will you think?
One of the biggest,
No..
One of the ugliest..
One of the most persistent,
(consistent?)
no …..
THE TOP, #1, MOST CONSISTENT, UGLIEST & BIGGEST MISTAKE I MADE IN MY BUSINESS WAS USING “JUST ENOUGH” THINKING.
I set out in my business journey to “make ends meet” for my small but growing family. And, in truth… in order to do so nearly 20 years ago, I had to REPLACE my former full time income.
I know many women never actually do that in their businesses, let alone with an investment of only $50 like i did…. so I’m grateful and yes, proud I guess. But… Once I discovered that I could make money from home, on my own terms… I began to have bigger visions.
I would see myself speaking on stages.
I would imagine paying cash for a car.
I would daydream about helping tens of thousands of other women grow their businesses.
I fantasized about being in the media.
But then… I
<<quote>> “came back to reality.” <<end quote>>
I kept my head down,
and kept focusing on maintaining the whole “ends are met” thing.
I would SOMETIMES sprint forward,
only to retreat when money got scary or
when I’d have to really back myself.
In those moments, I’d start to question whether making that money or time investment was really worth it… or if…
I was throwing away time and money
on a pipe dream.
I am ashamed to admit that many times,
I backed down from bigger thinking.
I’d put my head down and focus just on what i ALREADY knew I could do: make ends meet.
And by focusing on ONLY what I had already done,
I was GUARANTEEING a groundhog day experience,
where every single day was a warmed up leftover of the day before.
I thought I was being wise,
but really… I was running scared.
From my purpose,
from my calling,
from my biggest goals.
I eventually backed myself,
Have done all the things on the list above,
and more…
and have a much bigger list of “BHAGs”
I’m crossing off each and every day.
Anyway, one of the decisions YOU will have to make in your business is whether or not to dream and do BIG… or dream BIG and do small.
The choice is — of course — yours,
but the consequence of that choice
knocks on the door of your heart EVERY DAY.
Whether that consequence shows up as
a welcome training partner in life, one that inspires you, kicks your butt and holds your hand in the scary moments…
OR
a dreaded fireball of regret and shame and woulda, coulda, shoulda energy…
that’s up to you. Moving on.
💥💥 Decision #4: Where are you safeguards?
Business is like life,
or marriage,
or fitness,
or raising kids.
It’s not WHETHER times will get tough and hard…
It’s not IF you’ll feel like quitting and throwing in the towel,
It’s not WHETHER you’ll feel overwhelmed and overworked, frustrated and fatigued, lost and alone….
but what you do, where you turn and who you reach out to when you do.
Who are YOUR safeguards going to be?
Who or WHAT will guarantee you don’t remain on the TREADMILL of business, hustling hard, sweating it out… only to realize you’re remaining stationary???
Who will be the voice you turn to when you feel like retreating?
Who’s strategy will you trust when you just need to know what step you’ll take next?
Woman, don’t rely on “just anyone” for these roles. Turn to PROVEN entities, who have been around awhile, seasoned in the art of marketing, the science of sales and the magic of mindset.
Women Who WOW is a container.
A place, really…
where the seriously driven woman entrepreneur
finds her people,
her safeguards.
Currently, membership includes 1:1 coaching with moi….
weekly hustles to keep you from that groundhog day experience,
e-coaching,
hot seat masterminds,
ongoing trainings,
a daily PIPING HOT cup of #EntrepreneurialEspresso to start your day in the right direction…
message me NOW to get in at 2018 rates,
and lock in all of these benefits for AS LONG AS YOU’RE A MEMBER. Or, if you’ve been hanging around… wondering if Women Who WOW is for you… KNOWING you’re one of us but haven’t — for whatever reason — pulled the trigger, just go to this “secret” link and join today.
