Building Unshakable

Not many people know this but, I've directed several weddings over the years! Never as an actual business venture but simply because people know that I'm super type A, organized, and reliable. I've never charged for my time as it's always been for close family and friends and while I've been told that I'm great at it, it's just not something that I plan to do again. So, this past weekend, my cousin's wedding, may have been the very last wedding that I ever direct.

The real challenge was directing a wedding when some didn't want to be directed at all! My patience was certainly tested, but I was grateful because this wasn't my normal gig and, in my coaching business, I get to choose my clients. I don't accept everyone. I've spoken with some women on a consultation call and never even offered my services. Why? Well, there's one specific piece of criteria that is critical for me in helping women achieve high results in their business, and that is being coachable. 

Symptoms of someone that is not coachable:

1. They are someone who always thinks they are right.
2. They are not open to learning anything new.
3. They have low self-awareness.
4. They have no desire to improve.
5. They blame others and make excuses.
6. They don't take action (even when they say they will).

Symptoms of someone that IS coachable: 

1. They desire to learn and continue to learn.
2. They are open to changing and improving.
3. They take action and do what they say they'll do.
4. They ask for help! They realize they need help to get where they want to go.
5. They trust their coach/mentor and the process.

"Do you ask for help or do you struggle silently?" #scaletoseven -Kathryn Binkley

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Today we're going to talk about niching down. Now, if you're still trying to be everything to everyone, how is that working for you?

I know it sounds counter-intuitive, but in order to get more results, you actually need to narrow your focus. Yes, it's tempting not to because you want to get more sales and it seems more logical that if you want to get more sales, then you need to offer more services and help more people but that isn't the case.

You feel like it's going to limit you when you narrow down, but when you try to help everyone, you end up getting overlooked. Niching down actually helps you stand out! So, how do you do that? 

There are two ways to narrow your focus, and we are going to take a look at both to see which makes the most sense for you. 

1. Narrow your target audience. 

• You're going to need to get really specific about who exactly you want to help and then tailor your marketing directly to them. The more you use the language that they use for their industry, the more they are going to trust you and feel like you get it. So, what's one specific industry that you can serve?
• Let's say that you're a social media manager. If you can specialize in one industry and create resources and content just for them, imagine the possibilities! Instead of marketing your social media services to all businesses, what would happen if you specialized in social media for a dentist, realtors, or maybe even hair stylists? You may think that this sounds limiting, but I've heard of people who have built incredibly profitable businesses by narrowing down to one specific audience.

1. Narrow your services. 

• If you are having a really hard time narrowing your audience, the good news is there's another choice. Instead, you can do less for a wider range of people. So for example, focus on one thing that you're going to become an expert in. Using the same example of the social media manager, instead of handling all of the social media platforms, you focus on Instagram. Then, when someone wants to grow their following on Instagram and learn how to convert those followers into fans, you become the go-to person for that job!

1. Narrow down your target audience and services!

• Now, if you're feeling courageous, you can actually narrow down both! Take time to do some research because depending on the market and demand, you want to make sure there is truly a market and there are enough clients when you narrow down your audience and the services you provide. But, assuming that's true and there is a market, this can be really powerful!

"You have to niche down in order to stand out!" - Kathryn Binkley

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I have a question for you... what is your biggest challenge in your business? This is a question I ask every potential client and I've heard many answers! Most say their biggest struggle is finding and booking clients. Many say confidence or time management. Some say, balance or fear. You name it, I've heard it. Well, there is one thing I haven't heard. I haven't had a single person tell me that they have no challenges. Most would identify multiple challenges if given the opportunity and maybe even proudly display, #thestruggleisreal BUT I'm here to tell you that the struggle doesn't have to be real! So, I've got a little tough love for you and everything is truly meant with love.

•  Your business is designed perfectly to get the exact results that you're getting right now.
• Are you not getting clients? Maybe, there's something that needs to change with the way that you're operating your business or there is something wrong with your marketing strategy. If you want different results, you're going to have to change something.
• Your present circumstances are a reflection of your past thoughts.
• Your thoughts create your reality, but your current reality is based on the thoughts that you've had in the past, not your current thoughts. Just because you've done some work and addressed your mindset doesn't mean that that's going to be reflected in your current reality... instead that's going to impact your future. If you haven't done the work yet and you want to see something different in your future, that means you need to examine and change your current thoughts. You have to change your beliefs now in order to impact the future.
• Struggling is a choice. 
• You don't have to struggle, you get to choose and you are not a victim to your circumstances. Take the responsibility and realize your part in your life. No matter what happens, you have to see your role in it and know that you have a choice. If there were a reason that you were choosing to struggle, why might that be? Here are some examples.
• Is it easier to say that you're struggling with time management or that you don't have the time when you're really choosing to waste time because you're scared of what's on the other side of success?
• Do you complain that your spouse isn't supportive  verses choosing to do whatever it takes because you know that it's easier to say that it's his fault than it is to face the decision on the other side of success about whether to get a divorce?
• Do you say that you struggle with visibility when you actually choose to play small intentionally because you worry about what people are going to think of you?

"You have the choice to let go of the struggle. The struggle does not have to be real." - Kathryn Binkley

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A few months ago, I broke my arm. I mean, it was shattered! That's the word my surgeon used. After two plates and eleven screws, I was out of surgery. I had a cast for a while but weeks later, it was removed and for the first time, I saw two scars on my wrist. The surgeon did a beautiful job, but I still hid my scars. I'm not interested in drawing a lot of attention to them. I don't want to answer a million questions about the accident and so I keep them covered up. And while these are visible scars that I've chosen to hide, I have many others that I've hidden as well. 

• There are a lot of things in life that I haven't talked about. From a really early age, I felt like we just don't talk about those things and so, I haven't talked about the Dad that walked out or the youth pastor that took advantage of me at the age of 18, or when I was laid off unexpectedly. I haven't talked about the pain of endometriosis that led to a full hysterectomy at the age of 30. I don't talk about the pain of no longer being able to have kids. Although I am so grateful that I've had two of my own before. It's been so much easier to just tell others that "I'm fine" or hop online and act as if everything is incredible. But, that's all changing now!
• Over the last year, I've felt an urge to share more and more about my story. It's something that I've thought about, debated with myself about and hesitated on multiple times... but I started to take baby steps. I started sharing with people who I would consider close to me, yet still didn't know some of the things I've struggled with most. Over time I put in the work to get ready to share in a bigger way.

"I knew that hiding my scars is not only holding me back, but it's holding you back." - Kathryn Binkley

• I decided I would no longer allow my past to get in a way of my future. Is your past holding you back from your future? Have you become a prisoner to it? Are you hiding your scars? If the answer is yes, you are not alone. Here are a few things I want to share with you to encourage you and let you know that it will be ok if you choose to share.
• Your past doesn't define you! What happened to you, happened. You can't change it, but you can change how you move forward. You don't have to live your life as a victim of your past. You can choose differently.
• Your fear of what people will think is holding you back. But it can only hold you back if you let the stories that you're telling yourself keep you quiet.
• To get over that fear, you have to share your story. Talk about it. Stop hiding it. Make is a part of your message. There is nothing to hide. The fear, shame, and all of the emotions that you feel, grow when put under the pressure of starting in hiding, but when you open up and talk about it, they lose their power over you! So, share your story.
• If you could help just one person, would it be worth it? Will you join me in committing to stop hiding our scars?

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He told me the words I wanted to hear. He told me to go after my dreams but I didn't feel his support for such a long time. In fact, I could see right through his words. His support didn't feel authentic until... it finally did. And until then, I struggled like never before. So, how did I make it through? There are nine specific steps that I took in my journey that I'd love to share with you.

• I stopped sharing my fears and doubts with my husband. 
• I realized they were only feeding his own fears and doubts. I needed to project confidence! I wanted so badly to share those things with him, but I couldn't in that season. Not if I wanted to actually create the success that I had in mind.
• I hired a coach.
• I hired someone else to speak with and go to when I needed help dealing with all of the things that were coming up in my business. Someone who knew how to work through the  fears, doubts, and challenges. I could work through everything with her, without worrying my husband.
• I had to stop telling him what I was going to do and start showing him! 
• You have to "make more moves and less announcements" and that is exactly what did. I had to make it happen instead of telling him what I was going to make happen.
• I recognized that his comments were a reflection of his own mindset. 
• When they got to me before it was because there was a part of me that had the same mindset! Those same fears and doubts were in me, but once I took care of my own mindset, I was able to realize that he was just dealing with his mindset hurdles.
• It was a choice to allow his negativity to impact me. 
• The negativity certainly did not go away but I let it stop impacting me. I chose to ignore it and not to focus on it.
• I shifted my focus from him to my goals. 
• I went all in working towards my goals. No matter what he said and how hurtful the comments were, I just kept going.
• Celebrate the wins! 
• I shared every good thing that was happening in my business, so that he could start to see that things really were happening.
• I shared more once he opened the conversation. 
• Once he noticed how I had changed, he started to ask questions. Then, and only then did I share more about all of the mindset work that I had done. In those moments, he started to understand more just how much things were really shifting and what was really possible!
• I proved him wrong. 
• Now to be clear, proving him wrong was not my motivation. I just focused on my goal and did what I needed to do. Eventually It happen and I actually did what I said I was going to do, and all of his doubts disappear because it had happened!

I know that you can reach your goals. Don't lose hope! You've got this!

"Make more moves and less announcements." - Kathryn Binkley

Schedule a free clarity call for more support!

Next Steps:

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Why do you wait to do so many things in your business and life until money arrives? If you wanted to welcome money in your life and business, there are some things you should do to prepare. You should act as if it's already on the way. You don't wait to get everything ready for guests to arrive to your home, you prepare in advance, right? So, why do we do the exact opposite when it comes to money!? 

• What's your revenue goal? Now, what would you do if you were 100% certain that you were going to hit that goal? How would you make decisions differently? What would you invest in? What would your marketing look like? How would you run your business differently? Now, why aren't you now doing that now? There may be this belief that you aren't there yet and you'll act differently once you get there, but that logic doesn't work! That's not actually how you get there.
• You have to have faith, faith strong enough to take action. Action is evidence of what you believe! I can't tell you how many times I see a client hesitate and when I do, I know just how much or how little she believes in herself. How much she believes that the goal that she set will actually happen. If you really believed in yourself, what action would you take?
• So, I invite you to walk to your door and open it, but don't stand there waiting and staring. Open the door to success but then go do something about it! Go get ready for its arrival!

"The only thing standing between you and that woman you want to be is faith!" - Kathryn Binkley

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What are you going to do if your business doesn't work out? Are you going to go back to a 9-5? Are you already looking at job openings from time to time when you start doubting yourself? Now, I'm curious what came up for you when you hear those questions? If you answered anything but, "That is not going to happen!" then, you are already open to the option of a plan B. And the first thing you have to do is kill your plan B! 

"Get certain about the future you want!" - Kathryn Binkley

Here are a few steps to help you. 

1. First, you have to get certain about the future that you want! You need to know, really know, what your future is going to look like.
2. Evaluate your options and decide on one path. If you're weighing a couple of different options and you think both can get you to this desired future, I really encourage you to compare the best case scenario for both. Often times we compare the best case scenario against the worst.
3. Commit to your plan and follow through. Whichever you choose, choose it and keep going.
4. Stop entertaining any other options. There is no plan B anymore. Your only option is to succeed because you won't stop until you do! Failing really isn't failing unless you let it stop you!

Your success is inevitable, when you decide it is!

Next Steps:

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Are you ready for your new normal?

Everyone's normal is different. In one business a woman could be making 1k a month and that could be normal for her. Someone else could be appalled at only making $1k a month and might be making $10k, $20k or $100k a month or more. Whatever your normal is, is pretty much what you can expect.

So, is it normal for your income to barely cover your expenses? Is it normal for no one to sign up for your highest offer and only book the lowest offer? What I can tell you is those things might be normal for you but they are not normal for everyone and they don't have to be normal for you! Here's the thing... whatever you expect is what you should plan on getting. If you want new outcomes, then change your normal! If you're booking in an average of one client per month and that's your normal, change your expectation, increase it!  

Here are six steps to help you along this process. 

• Figure out what is normal for you right now
• Get clear on what your normal is currently? Don't lie to yourself! This might sting a bit. If you binge watch Netflix while you have no clients, write that down. If you never do live videos because you can't stand the way that you look. Write that down! This leads us to the next step.
• Understand where you learned this normal
• Where did these thoughts come from? Did they come from early childhood? Did you learn this state of normal from the people you surround yourself with? You might need to make some changes, but you have to understand where your current idea of normal even comes from before you can change it.
• Get uncomfortable with your current normal
• If you want something different, then the pain of where you are now has to be greater than the pain of where you want to be. So, the idea of where you are now should be appalling! There is no way you're going to tolerate making $1k months long-term. There is no way that you're going to tolerate only booking one client a month. This works for all areas of life! Don't settle!
• Decide on your new normal
• When we talk about your new normal, I want you to dream big! Go over the top, too good to be true, kinda BIG! Anything is possible. Maybe your new normal is always flying first class. Maybe your new normal is increasing your prices. Allow yourself to dream big.
• Take baby steps
• You're going to take baby steps until you get to your new normal. Whatever your new normal is, you're not going to get there right away... so, what's your next step? Maybe it's never letting your bank account get less than $500, then $1000, and so on. Maybe it's increasing your prices a little at a time.
• Never settle for your current normal again
• As soon as something becomes normal, create another new normal! Keep growing! Success is a moving target, right? Don't tolerate anything less and continue to change that normal, and create even more for yourself.

"Your thoughts create your reality. If you want something different, you can create it!" - Kathryn Binkley

Next Steps:

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When you think about how your week is going so far and how you're showing up and putting in the work, are you acting more like the employee or the entrepreneur? 

If you started out your career working for someone else and you're used to being an employee, there is an entire mindset around being an employee that has to shift to really take full advantage of all the opportunities that you have as an entrepreneur. 

Here are 8 shifts to go from employee to entrepreneur! 

• Shift from focusing on the amount of time that you work to being productive. 
• This was so hard for me when I first started my business. I felt like I had to work all day in my business even when the work was done. Rather than just getting things done and enjoying the freedom that I wanted to create as an entrepreneur, I was spending all of my time and filling my day, stretching out how long it took to get things done. I was focused on spending "enough" time working versus being productive and effective so that I can move on!

"In business, there is no participation trophy! So, you don't get rewarded for the amount of time that you show up. You get rewarded based on the result that you actually create!" - Kathryn Binkley

• Stop following the rules and start breaking them.
• As you look around at everyone else who is in a similar industry as you, you start to create these ideas in your head and what the rules are and how you should do things. But as the entrepreneur, you get to make the rules and it's more important to innovate, to evolve, to adapt.
• Go from avoiding discomfort at all costs to embracing it. 
• Be courageous enough to take those steps even when you know you may fail. Risk it because of the potential reward.
• Work on your business not just in the business. 
• When you're an employee you're working in the business. You're doing what needs to be done. But, as an entrepreneur, you have to set aside time to work ON your business in order to grow it.
•  Shift from focusing on the present to thinking about the future.
• As an employee, you may focus on the present, just showing up each and every day focusing on what needs to get done and trying to get through it but as the visionary, it's your responsibility to think about the future.
• Start looking at the metrics.
• As an employee you might make decisions without any data or numbers, but as an entrepreneur, you have to look at the metrics.
• Your clients are not your boss. 
• You're so used to having a boss as an employee and keeping them happy, that sometimes an entrepreneur, you treat your clients as your boss.
• Never stop learning.
• When you were an employee, maybe you have a lot of discomfort around the idea of being a beginner, but as an entrepreneur, there are so many things that you need to learn!

Next Steps:

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There were days when I was still in my 9 to 5 where I would come home after a long day of work and complain to my husband about what happened. Most of the time, I was talking about my boss. There would be something that he or she did and I would come home still steaming about it. The thing is, I don't do that anymore. I don't complain to my husband about my boss but that's because it's me! But, the reality is, I do some of the same things to myself that I used to complain about! I love what I do but sometimes, I put so much pressure on myself that I make myself do things I don't even want to do in my business! Can you relate to this? Have you found yourself working non-stop, putting in crazy hours and not because you want to but you feel that you have to? If you're not being a boss that you would want for yourself then it's time to take a closer look and I have five areas for you to work on as it relates to being your own leader! 

• Remind yourself of your purpose! 
• Remind yourself why you started your business in the first place. What it is that you even committed to doing. What's the impact and vision that you have for your business, audience, the world, and for your life? Remind yourself of every success story. Put them in a folder. Save them every time you've received a compliment or testimonial, hold onto those and revisit them.
• Care about yourself! 
• Instead of demanding things of yourself, ask yourself what's really best for you. Stop focusing on what's best for the business and make sure you're prioritizing yourself because without you there wouldn't be a business. So how will care for yourself this week? What does that look like? What do you need?
• Give yourself affirmation for the things you're doing well! 
• Celebrate the wins! What's one thing you can reward yourself this week? How can you celebrate and remind yourself of what a great job you're doing?
• Create space for growth! 
• You've got to give yourself space to learn and grow to continue to improve. Allow yourself to fail without beating yourself up. Allow yourself to learn instead of putting so much pressure on yourself to be perfect. There is no such thing as perfect!
• Play! 
• Have some fun! What would you do if you spent this next week prioritizing some fun? If every single day you led from a place where you're going to have some fun with what you're doing verse putting so much pressure on yourself to perform. Play around, have some fun, look forward to what you're doing! Laugh a little!

"You're the boss, you get to choose, so be good to yourself!" - Kathryn Binkley

Next Steps:

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Follow & Review on Apple Podcasts:

Are you following the podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to follow today so you don’t miss any future episodes! I have so many topics lined up, and I would hate for you to miss a single one. 

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