Jane, Stop This Crazy Thing!
It's an interesting conundrum. Recently I've been thinking of this concept of careful what you wish for when it comes to business. As business owners we all want a steady stream of customers and clients. When you're just starting out endless prospecting and countless rejection is painful and unsettling. You never feel like you're going to make enough money, reach enough people and get to stop the hamster-wheel-hustle.
Not Quite a La-Z-Boy
I've written a lot about my fortune during the past year in terms of being busy with client work and at some points almost overwhelmed by it. These are good problems to have and I'm grateful. And because I've been head down in business for a while, it only recently occured to me that I could feel a little comfortable with how business was going, and in fact that the typical ebb and flow or feast and famine syndrome, as my coach calls it, had abated.
All You Can Eat Projects
So, I reached out to her to propose a topic for her podcast around this very thing. What happens when feast or famine becomes just feast? How do you respond when you've already raised your prices, vetted your prospects and everyone coming to you is a good fit? Is this the dream? It certainly means my marketing is working, but having a feast has of course, made me think about what I really want for my business. And my life. I'm still marinating on that (because I love a good food pun).
Why the Onslaught
It certainly made me wonder where all these projects were coming from. And why now? My messaging is very specific and my audience is very targeted. So I'm not casting a wide net. I only work with people who are ready. Who know they need help with their message and who desire personality. This might seem like a small group. And perhaps it is. But you don't need a ton of people. You just need the right people. People who want to work with you, can pay what you ask and will then refer you.
I'm Not Just the Owner, I'm a Client
I don't do any prospecting. No cold calls. No emails. No outreach. All of my clients come from relationship building, this newsletter and people who find me on LinkedIn. I'm not boasting here (although there's certainly nothing wrong with being proud of our hard work), I'm advocating that marketing and messaging can have very different meanings depending on your business and your goals. My strength is in connecting with people and being myself. That's my marketing tool. And as most of you know, the more myself I've become, the more business has grown. I've literally become the model for my own business without ever setting out to do that. And this allows me to talk more, teach more, train more and speak more about what I love — which is helping people be more them!
Thank God for Stretch Pants
I've recently guest-lectured at St. John's for an MBA Marketing class and am doing the same for a class at Pratt in June. And I've got a big corporate presentation and subsequent workshop lined up at a major consulting firm where I'll be helping employees within the organization learn how to build their own brand through Authenticity, Advocacy and Clarity.
And of course, I'm still helping clients with their own messaging, working on websites, presentations and blogs. So for now, the feast continues. But I may have some tricks up my sleeve (or dinner rolls). Want to join me?