Chasing Simple Marketing for Entrepreneurs

Are you feeling uninspired when you sit down to create content? Do you feel completely out of ideas for what to say, or talk about? Have you said it all, more than once?

If you’re feeling this way, this episode is for you. I’m going to share three ways for you to spice up your messaging so that you can continue to show up for your people, share your messaging, and bring in those clients – without getting bored.

Because it doesn’t matter if you have the best messaging in the world if your audience doesn’t hear you talk about it.

Don’t forget to subscribe so that you never miss an episode! Also, if you would be willing to leave a review on Apple Podcasts, it would mean the world to me. It’s such a small thing that can make a big difference in helping me spread this message of simplicity to other overwhelmed women.

Have a comment about today’s episode, or a topic you’d like to suggest for a future episode? Shoot me an email over at [email protected]!

Are you feeling uninspired when you sit down to create content? Do you feel completely out of ideas for what to say or talk about? Have you said it all more than once? If you’re feeling this way, this episode is for you because I’m going to share three ways for you to spice up your messaging so that you can continue to show up for your people, share your messaging, and bring in those clients without getting bored.

Because it doesn’t matter if you have the best messaging in the world. If your audience doesn’t hear you talk about it. You’re listening to episode 156 of the Chasing Symbol Podcast. And I’m your host, Amanda Warfield. This episode was brought to you by the Chasing Simple Content Planner, and you can grab your own at amanda warfield.com/planner.

How do I run a successful business from my home? How can I possibly wear all of the hats? Am I the only one that struggles with staying organized? What am I supposed to do about work-life [00:01:00] balance? How can I create a solid schedule and routine? How do I even stay productive? And the biggest question of all, how do I manage it all?

And can I really create a business that I love without being chained in my laptop? Welcome to The Chasing Simple Podcast, hard conversations and Actionable Education meet. I’m your host, Amanda Warfield, time management coach, online educator, and crazy Cat mama. My mission is to help overwhelm biz owners get more done and less time so that they have more time and energy for what matters most.

If you feel overwhelmed or occasionally lost in the rollercoaster that is entrepreneurship, I want you to know that you aren’t. Those things you’re feeling, you aren’t the first or the last to feel that way. The hard things you’re going through, someone else has already been there too. Each week I’ll bring you transparent conversations, actionable steps, and a judgment free community to encourage and equip you.

So grab yourself a cup of coffee or whenever your drink of choice [00:02:00] is and meet me here each week for love. Practical tips and advice on simplifying your biz. Let’s do this entrepreneurship thing together, shall we?

Are you looking to improve your content without spending a ton of time and mental energy doing so? Whether you’re looking for help, knowing what to talk about, setting up content systems. Or improving your launch strategy. The Chasing Simple Shop has something for you from a year of content prompts broken up by type of content to my launch strategy mini course, which will teach you my entire strategy for launching your upcoming online course.

The Chasing Simple Shop is the quick and simple way to take your content to the next level, and you can get 10% off. Any item just for being a listener of the Chasing Civil Podcast by using the Code Listener at checkout, just head to amanda warfield.com/shop. And again, that code for 10% off [00:03:00] is listener.

I wanna kick this off with just a quick and friendly reminder that if you are having these feelings, you are probably most likely the only one that’s actually bored. Your audience does not see and listen to and watch enough of your content to truly be bored with your messaging. They’re not. They’re just not.

That’s just a fact of the matter, how the algorithm works, how marketing works. They are not bored. You are the only one that’s bored, but I also know that it can be difficult to show up and create content when you are bored, which is typically the place where people start to outsource their marketing and get some help with it because they’re bored and they don’t know what else to say.

But friendly reminder, you’re the only one that’s bored right now. That being said, in order to keep things not so boring for you, so that you continue to show up, let’s talk about some ways that you can. [00:04:00] Stay on brand with your messaging without giddy board. And inside of the content planner, the Chasing Simple Content Planner, I have some of these questions already outlined.

So if you do have the planner already, you’ll have seen these things inside of your monthly prep work, and this is why they’re in there because it’s a quick and easy way to shift your messaging, just the tiniest bit to make it not boring while still staying on brand. So the first question I want you to ask yourself every month when you are preparing to sit down and plan out your content for the month is what is currently affecting your niche?

And what I mean by this is what is happening? in your niche, in your sphere that you could talk towards. So for example, maybe it’s November, if you are a business to business provider, maybe it’s November and you know [00:05:00] that Black Friday is coming up and that your audience is in full sprint mode with, okay, we’ve however many weeks, two, three weeks to Black Friday, we are wrapping things up for the year. Basically. We know that in the business space, a lot of us take December. Just a total step back, we know that November is a sprint month, and so how can you take that information about it being just a full out sprint and tweak it to your current messaging?

If you are a copywriter, maybe that means you’re giving tips for how to craft messaging that’s gonna stand out when it’s crowded in November. If you are a mindset coach for business owners, maybe you’re giving tips for keeping your mindset strong when comparison sets in, because everyone’s selling something right now.

Maybe you’re a podcast editor and you’re messaging is all about how you can [00:06:00] repurpose old episodes. For the December episodes, because you’ll be creating December content, November hopefully, and here’s what you can do over December because downloads are low. So maybe try out this type of episode. Maybe you are repurposing, maybe you take a break.

Maybe that’s your messaging for the month of November is what can you do in December with your podcast? Let’s say your business to consumer, and let’s say you create planner stickers and your messaging in November is all about planning for Thanksgiving and maybe, maybe you create a whole new set of stickers that is just to help someone plan out their Thanksgiving menu.

I don’t know. Maybe you are a wellness coach and you’re helping. Your writing content that’s going to talk about how to. Healthy choices without guilt or how to make choices, maybe not [00:07:00] healthy choices, maybe how you’re gonna make eating choices that don’t make you spiral with guilt, but also aren’t restrictive.

Maybe you teach people how to clean their homes well, and you are focusing on how they can best prepare their homes for holiday guests. What you wanna think about is what is happening right now. The world in my niche and how can I change my messaging around that? So this can be something like a holiday, like November.

Obviously in America, we’re gearing up for Thanksgiving and then the holiday season, but it can also be something that is just happening in your niche. For example, right now as I’m recording this, AI copywriting is big. Um, chat, G B t Canva’s got a new magic tool, I don’t remember exactly what it’s called.

All of these different AI tools are coming up that help people create content, and it has been said more than [00:08:00] once lately that, oh, copywriters chat, C B T, whatever is coming for your job. . That’s a whole conversation that’s currently affecting my niche that I can speak into, which spoiler alert, it’s not coming for my job.

And I’m gonna have a guest on the podcast here soon, and we’re gonna talk more about that. But that’s something that’s really specific just to the marketing industry right now that’s affecting my niche. If you’re a health coach that does, that means nothing to your people, right? So that’s the first thing you wanna consider each month as you go to play in your content.

What’s currently affecting my niche and how can I take my messaging and combine it with that to have something new to say this month that’s really not new, but just reaffirms my messaging. The next thing I want you to look at is what is happening in pop culture and current events right now? You know, it’s funny.

In ninth grade history class, we had to do a current events project, and at the time I [00:09:00] thought it was so stupid and I thought, when am I ever gonna use this? And here we are today. Um, but what’s happening in current events right now, what’s happening in pop culture? And this could be something that you tie closely to your messaging, like with something that’s currently affecting your niche or this is great for popping in those little witty takes, those little sentences in your copy that really make people connect with it and make it stand out.

So for example, when Taylor Swift released midnights, that was something happening in pop culture that I did and could plug into my content just as a reference, not as an all out post about midnights, but just as a reference inside of copy and inside of content that I could reference something that I really enjoy.

Another big [00:10:00] pop culture thing that happened recently was, uh, the Meghan and Harry documentary and then Prince Harry’s book, right? Like that was a big cultural phenomenon that people were talking about a lot. Popping in some kind of reference to either of those just helps people connect with your content a little bit more, and it makes it fresh. Those are the kind of things though that if you’re reusing content, you’ll have to find new pop culture references for when you reuse it, but definitely worth putting in there and just writing out your content and then going back over it and saying, Hmm, what’s happening in pop culture right now that I can slip in and this is why it’s one of the questions in the planner prep work each month is just what’s happening, so that when you’re going over your content with a, that fresh eye and you’re polishing your content each month, you can look at that list and go, Hmm, how could I slip a reverence to this in there? And it just makes it so much easier.

And then the last. I have for helping yourself to not feel bored with your content is to [00:11:00] really pay attention to what your audience is asking you and how they are asking you. In the planner. Towards the back, there’s a whole page where I encourage you to write down any questions you get, anytime you get a question through Instagram, through your email from someone else’s audience.

I really, really, really encourage you. To go in there and write down that question because when it comes to creating content the next month, that’s a piece of content that you can really easily take and create and put your own messaging on. But not only the question they’re asking is important, but how they’re asking you.

Because taking those little phrases and utilizing them again in your content is going to help people connect even better with your messaging, and it’s going to keep your messaging feeling fresh. It’s gonna give it a little bit of a. Here’s the thing though that I want you to remember is that you, your messaging is not set it and forget it.

You should honestly constantly be tweaking your messaging, which is why inside of the Chasing Simple Content Planner, [00:12:00] I have all of these different places and different things for you to be thinking about on a monthly basis. But on top of that, I really recommend that every single year you. Refresh your content messaging as a whole, your brand messaging as a whole, your offer messaging for each individual offer.

That should be an ongoing process where you are just consistently going through and, okay, what’s my messaging for this part of my business? What’s my messaging for this part of my business? What’s my messaging for this part of my business? And just maybe every single month say, okay, this month I’m going to do a refresh for my overall brand, and this month I’m gonna do a refresh for this arm of my business, and this month I’m going to do a refresh for this off our messaging, and so on and so forth.

So that you are making sure that you’re constantly on top of your messaging, and that’s not to say that you’ll have drastic changes over time. The changes get smaller and smaller and smaller, but with each new client and student that you [00:13:00] get, You discover a little bit more about what you love about your business and how you can help people.

And so it’s always worth that refresh once a year to look back and say, okay, here’s my messaging right now. Does this still feel aligned? How can I make this better? And if you need help with the refresh of your messaging, I highly recommend the Building a Story brand book by Donald Miller. It really walks you through that pre messaging and gives you a good solid structure for how you can refresh it, um, and just quickly refresh it each year instead of having to reread the book every year. But highly recommend doing that. And if you are still wanting even more ways to get inspired for your content, if you have not already, go back and listen to episode number 69 “Seven Places Defined Content Inspiration”.

This week’s action step is that if you haven’t revisited your brand and offer messaging this year, just put a date on your calendar to do so. You don’t have to buy the book, you don’t have to set up how you’re gonna [00:14:00] do it. Just pick a date on your calendar and put it on there so that you can. Give yourself that time to update your messaging.

And this week’s book recommendation is part of your world by Abby Jimenez. I gotta be completely honest with you, I don’t really remember what happened in this book, but it did get a rare five stars. So, and I, I very, very, very, very, very seldom give a book Five Stars, especially a fiction book, especially a meat, cute fiction book.

They, the most they ever get really is for. So this was a rare five stars. If you like Meat Cutes, highly, highly recommend part of your world by Abby Jimenez. And with that, my friend, I hope that you’ll go out and uncomplicate your life in biz.

Thank you so much for joining me here today, friend. If you loved this episode, it would mean the world to me if you’d leave a rating and review. This is a great way to help spread the word about this podcast. Help other wonderful women like yourself find it. You can find this episode show notes as well as [00:15:00] tons of other great resources [email protected].

And if you aren’t following me on Instagram yet, I’d love to connect with you over there. I’m at Mrs. Amanda Warfield. Shoot me a DM and tell me what you love most about this episode. Thanks for being here, friend. I’ll see you next time.

The post Episode 156: Keep Your Marketing Messaging On Brand (Without Getting Bored) appeared first on Amanda Warfield.

Can I be honest? When I first started my business, I would see other business owners talk about how important mindset is to running a successful business, and I would wave it away and dismiss it. In my mind, I needed knowledge, and with knowledge, I could craft the business of my dreams.

Well, my friend … I’m here to admit that I was wrong. 5 years in to running a business, and I have come to appreciate just how valuable of an asset mindset is as a business owner.

But – it’s still not one of my strengths, so I’ve brought in a special guest today to help us both.

Teresa Heath-Wareing is an online business, marketing & mindset expert who works with business owners from across the world, helping them to build a business and life they love.

Teresa’s online membership and her innovative Dream Business Growth Path enable overwhelmed business owners to balance their lives, while building a business they love.

As well as inspiring members to dream big and set ambitious long term business goals, Teresa equips them with practical actionable steps to get them closer to their goals. Her holistic emphasis on the whole business, and the mindset of the business owner, enables her members to navigate the world of running a business with Teresa as their biggest cheerleader.

An international best-selling author, award winning speaker and TEDx speaker. She is the host of the Your Dream Business Podcast and has interviewed the likes of Amy Porterfield, Pat Flynn, Michael Hyatt, Jasmine Star, Stu McLaren, Mike Stelzner and Dean Graziosi., Teresa is recognised alongside some of the world’s digital marketing thought leaders and is widely regarded as one of the UK’s leading marketing influencers.

Teresa Heath-Wareing is an online business, marketing & mindset expert who works with business owners from across the world, helping them to build a business and life they love.

Teresa’s online membership and her innovative Dream Business Growth Path enable overwhelmed business owners to balance their lives, while building a business they love.

As well as inspiring members to dream big and set ambitious long term business goals, Teresa equips them with practical actionable steps to get them closer to their goals. Her holistic emphasis on the whole business, and the mindset of the business owner, enables her members to navigate the world of running a business with Teresa as their biggest cheerleader.

An international best-selling author, award winning speaker and TEDx speaker. She is the host of the Your Dream Business Podcast and has interviewed the likes of Amy Porterfield, Pat Flynn, Michael Hyatt, Jasmine Star, Stu McLaren, Mike Stelzner and Dean Graziosi., Teresa is recognised alongside some of the world’s digital marketing thought leaders and is widely regarded as one of the UK’s leading marketing influencers.

Social Links:

https://teresaheathwareing.com/

https://www.instagram.com/teresa_heathwareing/

https://twitter.com/theathwareing

https://www.facebook.com/TeresaHeathWareingUK

https://www.linkedin.com/in/teresaheathwareing/

Don’t forget to subscribe so that you never miss an episode! Also, if you would be willing to leave a review on Apple Podcasts, it would mean the world to me. It’s such a small thing that can make a big difference in helping me spread this message of simplicity to other overwhelmed women.

Have a comment about today’s episode, or a topic

Amanda: Can I be honest? When I first started my business, I would see other business owners talk about how important mindset is to running a successful business, and I would wave it away and dismiss it because in my mind I needed knowledge, and with knowledge I could craft the business of my dreams. Well, my friend, I am here to formally admit that I was wrong five years into running a business, and I have come to appreciate.

Amanda: How valuable of an asset mindset truly is as a business owner, but it is still not one of my strengths. So I’ve brought in a special guest today to help us both. Theresa Heath Wearing is an online business marketing and mindset expert who works with business owners from across the world. Helping them to build a business and life that they love.

Amanda: Theresa’s online membership and her innovative dream business growth plan enable overwhelm business owners to balance their lives while building a business they love as well as inspiring members to dream big and set ambitious long-term business goals, [00:01:00] Theresa equips them with practical, actionable steps to help them get closer to those goals.

Amanda: Her holistic emphasis on the whole business and the mindset of the business owner enables her members to navigate the world of running a. With Teresa as their biggest cheerleader, an international bestselling author, award-winning speaker, and Ted X Speaker. She is the host of the Your Business Dream Podcast and has interviewed the likes of Amy Porterfield, Pat Flynn, Michael Hyatt, Jasmine Star, Stu McLaren, Mike Stelzner, and Dean Graziosi.

Amanda: Teresa is recognized alongside some of the world’s digital marketing thought leaders and is widely regarded as one of the UK’s leading marketing influencer. You’re listening to episode 155 of The Chasing Simple Podcast, and I’m your host, Amanda Warfield. You are truly in for a treat with this one. This episode was brought to you by the Chasing Simple Content Planner, and you can grab your own at amanda warfield.com/planner.

Amanda: How [00:02:00] do I run a successful business from my home? How can I possibly wear all of the hats? Am I the only one that struggles with staying organized? What am I supposed to do about work-life balance? How can I create a solid schedule and routine? How do I even stay productive? And the biggest question of all.

Amanda: How do I manage it all? And can I really create a business that I love without being chained in my laptop? Welcome to The Chasing Simple Podcast, where hard conversations and actionable education meet simplicity. I’m your host, Amanda Warfield, time management coach, online educator, and crazy Cat Mama. My mission is to help overwhelm biz owners get more done and less time so that they have more time and energy for what matters most.

Amanda: If you feel overwhelmed or. Occasionally lost in the rollercoaster. That is entrepreneurship. I want you to know that you aren’t alone. Those things you’re feeling, you aren’t the first or the last to feel that way. The hard things you’re going through, someone else has [00:03:00] already been there too each week, bringing you transparent conversations, actionable steps, and a judgment free community to encourage and equip you.

Amanda: So grab yourself a cup of coffee or whenever your drink of choice is and meet me here each week for love support. Practical tips and advice on simplifying your biz. Let’s do this entrepreneurship thing together, shall we?

Amanda: Are you looking to improve your content without spending a ton of time and mental energy doing so? , whether you’re looking for help, knowing what to talk about, setting up content systems, or improving your launch strategy, the Chasing Simple Shop has something for you from a year of content prompts broken up by type of content to my launch strategy mini course, which will teach you my entire strategy for launching your upcoming online course.

Amanda: The Chasing Simple Shop is the quick and simple way to take your content to the next level, and you can get 10% off. Any item [00:04:00] just for being a listener of the Chasing Civil Podcast by using the Code Listener at checkout, just head to amanda warfield.com/shop. And again, that code for 10% off is listener.

Amanda: Theresa, I am so excited to have you on. I have been really looking forward to this interview. So can you please tell everyone a little bit about yourself, your business, and who it is that you? 

Theresa: Of course I can, and I am also very excited to come and chat to you. I’m really looking forward to today. So I’m Theresa Wearing and I work with business owners from around the world to help them create a business and life that they love.

Theresa: And I don’t say that likely. I don’t say that from like just a fluffy thing. I say that from a, I help them understand. What it is that’s important to them, what season of life they’re in, what’s important to their family and their friends and their home, and then how do they create a business that fits around all of that?

Theresa: And also, while they’re doing that, I help them [00:05:00] unlearn maybe some of the unhelpful stuff they’ve maybe heard in the past where they’ve told they’ve got a. Have a certain type of business or they’ve gotta earn a certain type of money, or it’s gotta look a certain way, or they’re no good if they don’t do this.

Theresa: So I work with them to really empower them to understand what it is they do. And I do this through my membership. I have a membership and I have a couple of courses and I do it through speaking. I’m a podcaster, I’m an author, so I try and get myself out there as much as I possibly can. For free. You know, there’s lots of things that even come listen to and do for free as well as in my pay programs.

Theresa: But I work with mainly women. It’s not that I only work with women, I seem to attract a lot more women. My branding is very feminine. I’m quite feminine. That’s probably the reason. But yeah, and I. and I tend to work with businesses from anywhere and who do anything. And I love that. I love the fact that I can [00:06:00] one minute be talking to someone about, uh, one of my members is nutritionist and she has a membership for perimenopausal women.

Theresa: And then I could be talking to, uh, someone else who owns an art gallery and how they sell art. And then I might talk to someone else who makes things. Or someone else who’s a coach or someone else who has an online business. And I love the fact that my brain has to like move that fast. So yeah, so I don’t really niche.

Theresa: My niche is me and uh, I work with those amazing business owners from wherever they are and with whatever they need. So we do a mix of marketing and business and of course mindset. 

Amanda: And what I love so much about what you do is that you really push everyone to. One, think about whatever season of life they’re currently in.

Amanda: I don’t see enough people talking about this. Yeah. And it’s such an important part, I mean, of life really. And just like non-work routines, it’s so important to realize what season of life you’re in. You know? You see people who are like, well, everyone says that [00:07:00] you should get up at 5:00 AM. And it’s like, but if you have an infant that’s keeping you up all night, that’s really silly.

Amanda: Why are you trying to get up sleep Your body needs. It’s so important for outside of work, but it’s so important for inside of work too, especially for those of us that are business owners and we have that freedom and flexibility. So I love that that’s something you really drill down on with everyone.

Amanda: And I also love that you really push people to consider what they want and not what someone else told them that they need and not what some other. Guru or expert said is the right way or the best way, but what they want and what works for their business. Yeah. And considering that you work with such a wide range of businesses and business owners, I’m really curious to know what sort of similar themes do you see running throughout all of the work that you do with your clients?

Theresa: I think for me, one of the biggest themes that we have is freedom, but the word freedom can mean so many other things. It could be freedom from [00:08:00] uh, having to. Be accountable to clients or freedom from the worry of money or freedom from the do you know what? One of my members just messaged me and said, I’m taking the afternoon off.

Theresa: It’s ace. I’ve just had an impromptu, I’m doing something with the children. I’m taking the afternoon off. So that seems to be a main thing that runs through and what really amazes me, especially when it comes to. People talking about maybe online business is the perfect solution. And, and don’t get me wrong, I have an online business.

Theresa: I adore my online business, but when people talk about freedom and, and getting real freedom, they often talk about online business. And the truth is, yes, you can have freedom, but you can’t ever, if you were. . If you have an online business that is you, that does not give you the flexibility to just disappear for six months at a time or to get someone else to do it.

Theresa: You know, I have a membership and I do everything in my membership because of the fact of, I’ve been in memberships where I, I’ve joined up because of someone and they’ve never even been [00:09:00] there. I’ve never even seen them in there. So I turn up to the coaching calls, I do the mindset sessions. I am there when we have external training, but I’m the one introducing them.

Theresa: So for me, it’s about. Sometimes when they kind of sell you this, this story of what a business can look like, you’re sold a bit of a lie and actually, . It’s not trying to be negative about it. It’s about trying to get people to understand what does their freedom look like to them. So again, someone might love the fact of, well, actually I don’t want clients.

Theresa: So having an online business and showing up and being on camera is my idea of freedom, which it is for me. Whereas someone else, I’ve got another member who. Is, uh, she’s awesome and she has a membership and she’s now in a season of life where her husband and her are thinking about not retiring as such, but they’re liking to take some nice long holidays.

Theresa: And she came on a call the other day and she was like, I don’t wanna do this anymore. And she said, I feel like I’m failing. I’m like, you’re not failing. It’s not fitting with your season of life. She, at the beginning of lockdown, it was great. I was on [00:10:00] all the calls, doing all the things. She goes, I don’t wanna do that.

Theresa: I want to be able to go away for two, three weeks at a time and not think, but I’ve gotta go on a coaching call or I’ve gotta do a cook along, cuz she’s a nutritionist. And so for her, the online business is no longer working for her. And actually the one-to-one stuff might work better. It is about that thing.

Theresa: And, and, and like I said, freedom is often the word that comes through and that’s often a word that lots of gurus use, but it’s understanding what type of freedom, you know, whether it is an actual financial or time or people, or, you know, being accountable. It’s really understanding that. 

Amanda: Yeah. And personally I am in this transition phase out into a new season of life where, you know, I’ve been working typically Monday through Thursday, and I’ve been working like nine to four. And that’s just, I have my set hours and I have all of my business stuff set up in a certain way. And my husband has just started a new job where he’s working shift work and his [00:11:00] schedule is constantly changing.

Amanda: And so now like we’re recording this on a Thur, it’s Thursday. I don’t even know what day, week it is, right? Now’s Thursday. . It’s always, always something. Um, but we’re recording this on a Thursday and my weekend this week was yesterday. And today, yes, because his schedule is shifting and so that’s been, it’s a new season of life and freedom is looking different than it used to, but it’s also a really big mindset struggle for me as someone who has always thought.

Amanda: Okay, well a work week is Monday through Thursday. I always thought like, oh, I take Friday off. I’m so evolved, um, , and now it’s a whole new ballgame. Now it’s, oh, I have to really, because I wake up on a typical quote unquote workday. Mm-hmm. , and I have to tell myself today is a weekend. Yes. Like, and I have to really sit, sit with that and say, today is a weekend.

Amanda: I do not have to work today. I don’t need to feel like I need to work today. Just [00:12:00] because, yeah. The rest of the online space is working. And so it’s, it’s been a lot of mindset work for me. And I know that you. Rely very heavily on mindset work, and you do a lot of that with your clients, and that is what we are here to talk about today.

Amanda: Mm-hmm. . So I would love to know what is mindset work? What, for the people who maybe haven’t started diving into that yet, what is it and why is it so important as a business owner to really add that in to your day to. 

Theresa: So that’s a great question and, and I’m not sure was actually asking me what mindset is and how to explain it, but for me, when I think about mindset, it’s about the awareness.

Theresa: It’s about the attention that we give to ourselves and what we’re doing and how we’re managing things. And I think for me, that’s the, the key in why it’s so important in business because. The stories we tell ourselves, the conversations we have in our own head, [00:13:00] the things that hold us back. If we are not aware of these, then they continue to do so.

Theresa: And sometimes things are happening and we don’t even know. Even when you are working on mindset stuff, like you might be stuck somewhere and you just can’t figure out why there’s a reason, but you just can’t figure out why. So for me, a mindset, Looking at mindset is more about having a understanding of you having an understanding how you fit in your world.

Theresa: And I love the example you gave in terms of your season of life because, and this is what I aim to do when I’m in my membership and when I work with people, is understand them and their life because. I could look at you as a business person and go take Fridays off, but that’s not gonna work for you because your husband now works shifts.

Theresa: So it’s got, you’ve gotta understand where that person sits in their own life and who’s involved. So, yeah, so for me, the mindset work is about getting clearer on who you are, clearer on where you are in your world, clearer on what you want. And really it’s giving you time to. It’s almost like mindset [00:14:00] work is quite a luxury I find like cuz it’s given you that time to sit and think and ponder and analyze and go through certain tools and activities that help you really understand this.

Theresa: But the. , it sounds so gentle and so nothing but the shift and the change and the difference that can be made by doing mindset work is phenomenal. It literally is life changing. 

Amanda: So what kind of shifts have you seen in your own business and maybe even with some of your clients from really diving into that mindset?

Theresa: So again, like the great example of my member messaging me going, I’m taking this afternoon off of my kids. She would never have done that because she had been in this mindset where basically she couldn’t do that. To be a successful business owner, you couldn’t just take an afternoon off because to be a successful business owner, you had to hustle.

Theresa: You had to work hard, you had to charge a lot, you had to earn a lot of money or [00:15:00] more than she was earning. Things like getting clear on what the reason she’s doing this for and the reason she’s running her business and the reason she’s doing the work is so that she can spend time with her family. But the mindset work comes into it, not only to understand that that’s the goal that she actually truly really wants, but also to look at how is her life set up now and is it heading to that goal?

Theresa: Is it working? For you or against you. And then it’s putting those things in place for it to work for you. And then it’s when you do take action like she has today, there was no apology, there was no, I’m gonna work late tonight. There was none of that. It was like, no, I know what I’m doing. This is my life.

Theresa: I’m in control. I can do this thing. And again, it might sound really simple, but if you are sat there listening to this and you are overwhelmed or stressed, or. Completely head is fuzzy. You can’t think straight or you keep finding [00:16:00] yourself going through the same pattern and hitting the same brick wall every time.

Theresa: Like so you try and launch something, you try and do something, you try and get a new client and it is just hitting the brick wall. Hitting a brick wall. There’s a reason for that. Like there is a reason why, and I’m not trying to play it down, like do you want exercise? And it’ll all be fixed cause that is not the case.

Theresa: But there’s a reason for that. And also, Just generally, if you are not happy in your life, now I’m not sat here saying that. Just put a smile on your face. All is good, and think positive thoughts. It’s not that it’s about we have one life, you know, depending on what you believe, but we are in our one life at the moment and I don’t ever want to come out of it and go.

Theresa: I should have done that, or I should have tried harder, or I shouldn’t have let that one person say that one thing and bother me, which then stopped me doing all these other things. And it’s not until we start looking at it and, and pulling these things apart that we realize that that’s happening. So it can be, like I said, some minute shift of that one thing.

Theresa: It can be a huge shift of [00:17:00] I’m stopping this and I’m doing this in my life. It can be. You know, and, and this is not so much mindset work, but this is, I guess, you know, a, it can be a shift to change of I don’t want that person in my life anymore, or I’m gonna go and do more of this. That makes me happy. You know, it can be so much stuff and it can be big and it can be small and sometimes it’s almost, it can feel insignificant and it’s not until then you look back and you see how far you come and you’re like, wow, that is phenomen. 

Amanda: Love that when you give the example of your client, what I’m hearing is that she has so much peace. Mm-hmm. over that decision to spend the afternoon with her kids. Because I think a lot of times we can say, well, I’m going to do this thing because in my mind I know that I should mm-hmm. , but we’re not really, like we can sit there and say, okay, well this is what I want out of my life and this is why I’m starting my business.

Amanda: And we can know all those things logically. Yeah. , but then our heart or our gut still makes us feel guilty as we’re [00:18:00] doing it. Even if we know logically it’s the right thing in what we really want, we still feel guilty. Yeah. And that mindset work has helped her relieve that guilt. And I, I know that it’s not always simple and easy and that it does take a lot of practice, but as you practice more and more of that, it does become simpler to set that aside and to really be okay with each decision that you’re making throughout the day for your business and for your personal life.

Theresa: And that has a huge knock on effect. So let’s say she decided to take the afternoon off from work and spend it with her children because it’s the summer holidays here in the UK and they’re off, and she goes and does this fun thing. But in her head, she’s going, but I’ve got so much work to do and I really shouldn’t be doing this.

Theresa: And what if a client wants me and. I, you know, this isn’t a proper business owner. A proper business owner wouldn’t just take time off in an afternoon. And what if she was telling herself all these stories? So what’s then the knock on effect of it? So she’s thinking all these things. So how’s that gonna make her feel?

Theresa: Well, it’s gonna feel horrible. You’re gonna feel like, well, I’ve [00:19:00] probably failed. Or you feel like, well, I’m not a real business person. Or you feel like you’re trying to, you are no good at either, cuz that. As a parent, that is a constant thing. Like you either an okay mom or okay business, you’re never good at both.

Theresa: Like, so she would feel all these things and based on her feelings, her actions then might be, well, do you know what? I’m gonna work all night tonight. So instead of going home or going back to where she is and having some dinner and putting the children to bed and getting a good night’s sleep herself, so she’s refreshed and ready for tomorrow, her action because of her thoughts might be, I’m gonna work all tonight.

Theresa: I’m gonna like put the, you know, give the kids something really quick to eat. I’m not gonna eat with them. Um, so therefore, you know, she wouldn’t have the time with ’em. I’m gonna put ’em to bed. She probably is gonna be a little bit short in terms of like her patients and putting them to bed, cuz she’s thinking I’ve gotta get to work, I’ve gotta get back to work.

Theresa: She’ll then get back to work. She might work till 1112 at night. She’ll have not much sleep and then she’ll wake up tomorrow feeling rubbish and the result. Tomorrow, the work won’t be as good as she could have done. So that [00:20:00] is such a, and it’s that one tiny bit of work that she’s done that has basically changed the direct directory trajectory.

Theresa: You know the word, I mean, um, the, you know, the flow of what then happens. Because instead what’s going to happen is she’s gonna go, no, I’m gonna like to take time off with my children. And no, I don’t have to work tonight if I don’t want to. And do you know what? I’m actually not going to, I’m going to do this.

Theresa: I’m gonna wake up fresh and tomorrow I’ll get loads done. So as much as it seems so small and so insignificant, that one slight shift can then put you on a complete different. 

Amanda: Yeah, I know I’ve experienced that where the whole, oh, my clients are gonna think poorly of me if I’m not working during quote unquote work hours.

Amanda: I’ve, we were in, uh, home Depot a few weeks ago on a typical workday, but my husband was often, so I was off that day as well, so we could be together. And I had a client Voxer me, and [00:21:00] she had a request. A typical, normal, everyday request that if I had been in office, I would not have thought twice about, but because I had all of those spiraling thoughts about, uh, you know, my clients aren’t going to approve of this, yada yada, I can’t serve my clients well if I’m taking this time off, all of those things.

Amanda: My first thought was, oh my gosh, I’m a terrible business owner. All of my clients are gonna fire me, and then I you spiral. Burn it down, burn the whole business down mode. In reality, 

Theresa: what do I even do with my life? 

Amanda: It doesn’t, yeah, exactly. It’s one of those spirals where it’s like, okay, well now I’m gonna burn everything down.

Amanda: When in reality had I been in office, I would’ve looked at that request and been like, okay, I’m adding it to my to-do list and I will get to it by the end of the day. No big deal. Exactly. 

Theresa: And the same with like, and I used to have this a lot. Not when I had, cuz when I first started my business, I had clients and now I have an online business, but I used to.

Theresa: Like when I had clients and I would be out and let’s say I was picking up my daughter from the school run or meeting someone for lunch or doing something nice, which I never did that often cause I was a [00:22:00] single parent and I couldn’t afford it. But let’s say I was, and I would get a client calling or I’d get an email through and I’d exactly say, I’d be thinking, oh my goodness, I’m out.

Theresa: This is awful. What are they gonna think are, they’re gonna be so angry I didn’t get on this, but then I used to think, well, hang on. I do like strategy days with people. I do days where I am training all day, and do I feel guilty then? No, because I’m working. So what’s the difference? I’m not accessible 24 hours a day.

Theresa: They do not pay me 24 hours a day. So it’s okay to let them wait. And I think that’s where often we don’t even have the awareness of that whole process. We don’t even have the awareness that we’re even thinking those things, and then we’re resulting in those. All the mindset work that we do and every little tiny little bit of exercise, little thing we do, all leads to that self-awareness of actually I don’t need to beat myself up because you know what?

Theresa: I’m doing a good job. Like I’m doing the best I can do right now, and that is plenty good enough and I’m not gonna feel guilty for it. So how 

Amanda: do we begin [00:23:00] if we are wanting to build that self-awareness so that we can work on our mindset? Cause I’m really glad that you brought that up because I know that before I, I mean it took me years.

Amanda: I am. Five years into running a business at this point. And I’m really just now starting to work on the mindset side of things, because I had no idea. People were talking about mindset and it was so over my head, I was like, that’s too woo. That’s not mm-hmm. like that’s not actually helpful. That’s a woo thing.

Amanda: But in reality, I just didn’t have that self-awareness and I didn’t realize that that’s what I was missing. So how do we start? How do we begin to build that so that we can start really working on our mindset as business owners? 

Theresa: and I’m so glad you said that because I used to think it was woo. I used to think like, you know, I’m gonna talk about manifesting and we’re gonna talk about like this and that and, and I was so not woo, and now I am quite woo.

Theresa: But mindset and the ness are two different things. Sometimes they overlap, but they are two different things. So for me, when I first started, I actually started with a coach. I had a coach that I worked with who was really good at this stuff. Like amazing [00:24:00] when it comes to mindset. And most coaches are, cuz that’s their thing.

Theresa: So for me, if you can, and I know it’s time, cost and time and all that sort of thing, but if you can find someone that’s teaching this, so whether you get a coach one-to-one, whether you join a membership like mine where we do mindset exercises, but having someone who can walk you through some exercises because you.

Theresa: even though I do all this for my members, doing it for myself is much harder. So I need someone to help me with my mindset stuff. So finding someone is really, really useful. But I think if you are sat there going, okay, I haven’t got the money, I haven’t got the time to do those things, one of the first things I would do, and again, this can seem a little bit woo, I promise.

Theresa: Once you get it, you get it and it’s game changing. is journaling. Okay. Now, someone told me about journaling a really long time ago, and I was like, I didn’t get it. And I tried and I didn’t get it. And it took years for me to eventually get it. And now I do journaling every single morning. It’s the very first thing I do when I wake, [00:25:00] and it’s really helpful because.

Theresa: And I’m gonna give you a real life example. So my coach at the time, the lovely Mary was working with me and I had not long met my husband. Now, well not not long, I’ve been back a year or so in a relationship, and we were moving in together and he had a teenage stepdaughter and my daughter was five. So can you imagine I’m jumping from a five-year-old?

Theresa: To a 15 year old and she’s a 15 year old and her dad has not long got divorced and her mum had gone off with someone else and her dad’s got a new girlfriend and her life is in turmoil, so she wasn’t the best behaved so many a time like the stress and the anxiety and everything. This house was completely overwhelming and Mary was talking about journaling and I was.

Theresa: Not sure I get it. Really struggling with it. And she’s like, I want you to think about what if you came from love. She goes, I want you to, when something happens, Literally write it all down. Scream on the page. Write anything you want as mean, as you [00:26:00] like. However you feel. Literally get it on the page.

Theresa: Don’t think about it. You’re not gonna reread it, you’re not gonna give it to anybody else to read. You can throw it away afterwards if you want. I mean, I write. When I journal, I write in the most ridiculous handwriting. No one could read it anyway. So I literally used to sit there and be like, I can’t believe she’s done this.

Theresa: I mean, if someone read them, geez man, they would not have, uh, liked me very much, but I would literally scream at the behavior. I’d write down all this stuff as fast as I could about how angry I was, how she behaved, and I’d disgusting this is, and how annoying and this isn’t fair, and all this sort of stuff.

Theresa: And then. You wear yourself out and you get to a point where you go, Ooh, I’m done now. And then that point I’d write, what if I came from love? And then I would start writing again and I’d go, she’s 15 years old, and her mom’s just left and her dad was in the military and he’s now at home and a full-time person.

Theresa: And suddenly this new woman’s coming her life with a four-year-old or a five-year-old, like this poor girl. [00:27:00] I can’t tell you the amount of times that properly saved my marriage because of the fact that it was so stressful and it was so hard to deal with, but actually just having an outlet that wasn’t screaming at my husband.

Theresa: Don’t get me wrong, there are many times I screamed at my husband, but like having that other outlet and then. once I had worn out, and I dunno whether you’ve read the Chimp Paradox, but it’s an excellent book. But he, um, professor Steven Peters, I think it is, and he talks about the human brain and, and the chimp brain, and it’s the chimp brain that’s going crazy on the page that literally is like, I hate this.

Theresa: This is not bad, da da, da. But it wears it, so you can’t fight it. It’s, it’s so strong. You can’t fight it. So you just have to let it wear itself out. And once it’s worn itself out, the human takes over and the human goes. Yeah, but you probably didn’t need to say this or you probably shouldn’t have acted that way.

Theresa: And then what would often happen, cause I’d finished journaling and then I’d find my husband or I’d like turn around table my friend in the same office and go, yeah, I’m sorry about that. I probably should have [00:28:00] dealt with that a different way. I probably should have handled that a bit better. And you know, now my self-awareness is so high.

Theresa: And thank God we are many, many, many years on from that. Uh, my daughter’s now 12, but she’s now 25, I think. Um, but. Now my self-awareness is so high, I probably don’t need to go through that entire process. I can probably catch myself before those other things happen, or I can find other explanations for things or I can see things differently.

Theresa: And I’m much more self-aware than I have been because of the fact that I’ve gone through this process. So there are a million books out there that you can read and, and I have a load on my website of sort of mindset stuff, but, but that for me, just that really simple act of journaling and. , allowing yourself to put all that like stress out onto a page and then going.

Theresa: Okay. What now? Now I’ve worn myself out. What if I came from love? What if it was something else? What if it’s like, there’s a great story that, um, uh, the Seven Habits of [00:29:00] Highly Effective People is another amazing book for a mindset. And Stephen Covey talks about how our thoughts change everything, which is some to what I’ve talked earlier about.

Theresa: And he was talking about he was on the subway one night and this guy gets on with these two kids and these two kids are like, Feral like they are misbehaving and the the, you. The subway, the train they’re on is pretty quiet. Everyone sat reading and then suddenly these two children come on and they’re going absolutely crazy and they’re jumping on things and making all this noise and the dad has just sat there doing nothing.

Theresa: And so Stephen Covey says, I’m sat there and I’m really annoyed. I’m like, this is ridiculous. You know, they control those children we’re having a, you know, it was nice and calm hair and they’ve come destroyed all how badly behaving. You’re such a terrible parent in his head. And eventually he has to say something because these children are unruly.

Theresa: So, Says to this guy, I’m sorry, can you not like, do something with your children? And the guy says, yeah, I’m really sorry about that. Uh, they’ve just come from the hospital where their mum has passed away, so I really don’t [00:30:00] know what to say to them. And suddenly like shift change completely different. And that’s the thing for me, I think when you can think.

Theresa: Okay. And like I was doing with my stepdaughter, like, what if I came from love? What if I came from her side? What if I thought about her in a different way rather than the stepmom where she’s literally screaming at me? And I think sometimes that shift and that change, trying to be aware of it can, it can be a game changer.

Amanda: So good. That’s such a great way to start thinking about things not only within yourself, but outside of yourself as well. 

Theresa: Mm-hmm. . Yeah. And how you treat people. 

Amanda: Yes. Yeah. How you treat people, how you treat yourself. All the things. Yeah. What would you say to those that are listening, that are thinking in theory, journaling sounds great, sounds like a great activity.

Amanda: Mm-hmm. , but they don’t have that habit of when they’re feeling those feelings sitting down and picking up their journal. [00:31:00] What’s it, what have you found that helps maybe yourself or that you recommend the clients that can help start that habit? . Mm-hmm. . 

Theresa: So I think for me, putting it into a routine, but again, you’re entirely right, seasons of life.

Theresa: You know, if you feel like young children, my, my daughter’s 12 now. My stepchildren are much older. Like I have the beauty that I can wake up at my own steam and do stuff without anybody interrupting my morning. Whereas that might not be the case for you. So, but if there is something or somewhere where you can slip that in as a habit, then that’s going to be easier.

Theresa: Like, Attaching it to something else is really, really useful because then you think, okay, it’s like putting your gym clothes out on a, where you would get your clothes from in the morning. Cuz that then takes a thought process out of it. So attaching it to, oh, when I do this, I do. This is really, really helpful.

Theresa: So that’s one thing you do if you find, and you’re totally right when you are in it, oh man, it’s hard to step out of it because you’re in it and you’re doing it. So if you come [00:32:00] out of it and then eventually calm down. Then journal it, then think about it, and then just go through it. And I want you to go through it from a view of a scientist, not a judge.

Theresa: We are the biggest and best judges of ourselves. We can beat ourselves up as soon as look at ourselves like, why did you do that? I can’t believe you acted that way. That was ridiculous. You shouldn’t have said that thing. You should, or you should have said this thing or whatever. It’s too late, but that is not doing anything for anybody.

Theresa: So come from a scientist’s point of view. Okay. That was interesting. And those are the words I put before most sentences where I’m trying to do this and sometimes like, I don’t mean that was interesting. I mean, God, you’re an idiot. Why did you do that? But. I replace it with. That was interesting. Why would I have behaved that way?

Theresa: That was interesting. How did that end up like that? And I think sometimes just asking yourself that question, even in your head or on paper, cuz there is some science behind writing things down, asking yourself, that was [00:33:00] interesting. How or why or what did I do behave? And then see what comes. And then again, it’s the time has gone.

Theresa: You’ve passed that. So there’s no point beating yourself up. You’ve already done it, but the least you can do is learn from it. And then maybe next time you won’t react quite as bad. Or maybe next time you might think slightly better about a situation. And they’re same with a failure. Failure’s a really good one to look at, and this is a very internal one.

Theresa: I’ve talked a lot about how we react to other people. The stepchild thing is just such a good story. But like, so for instance, let’s say you’re going to launch something and uh, I once set a webinar and one person turned up. I’m not even kidding, one person. Uh, I’m glad. So that doesn’t happen anymore, but it did right?

Theresa: Nearly days. So instead of going, I can’t leave one person, turn up cuz you’re such an idiot. You genuinely thought people are gonna turn up. Like of course they’re not gonna turn. What were you thinking? No one’s gonna do this. Instead of like having that judge come down on you. That was interesting that only one person turned up.

Theresa: Why might that be the [00:34:00] case? Well, did you do as much as you could have done? Did you do this? Was that this, how was this? And it’s, it’s really about trying to understand yourself. Like again, when you keep hitting that brick wall of you want to charge more and you can’t, or you want to take time off and you can’t, that’s interesting.

Theresa: Why do I feel like I can’t do that? Or why do I feel like. It’s not gonna happen. And another really good example I give, we have all these exercises that are so good and I could literally talk all day on this stuff. But we talk a lot about limiting beliefs cuz this is one of the things that holds us back as business owners is the belief that we can’t launch something cuz no one’s gonna buy it.

Theresa: We can’t s. Charge at that price because that’s too expensive and people can’t afford it. And there’s a lot of those going around at the moment. You know, the time of recording this, the world is, there’s a lot of conversations about very expensive fuel and all the prices going up and cost the living and all this sort of thing.

Theresa: So because of all this, we are telling ourselves all these stories, we are saying to ourselves, you know, the belief is that. This is the case. [00:35:00] Now the difference with the, A limited belief is it’s not fact, it’s just a belief. So the fact might be that the, uh, it’s costing more at the pump. Okay. Which it totally is.

Theresa: That is fact. I can see it on the pump. I can see it’s gone up. That’s a fact. But the belief I’m taking from that is, well, no one’s gonna buy anything now cause they can’t afford. . Well, that’s not fact. That’s a belief. So often what we do with our limiting beliefs, whether it’s external or internal, sometimes an internal one, we might go.

Theresa: So if we think, um, I’m not very smart and I don’t think I can do this thing. Sometimes with limiting belief, you just flip it and you go, I’m smart enough, I can work this out. But sometimes that doesn’t feel right. Sometimes you think it’s like, you know, I. I tried a long time to lose weight and I not very good at it.

Theresa: For whatever reason, my body does not like to lose weight, but I used to like write these affirmations. I am thin, I am this, and the second I wrote it, I’d go, yeah, whatever, like literally in my head. So the limiting, the swapping, the limiting belief didn’t work for that example. [00:36:00] So then what you do is you try and find someone who.

Theresa: Your belief who basically proves it wrong. So if I was, so for instance, if I sat there and go, you know, I am slim and healthy. Is there no one out there who’s been my size that has lost weight and are slim and healthy? Well, of course there are. Can I, have I got any examples? I could probably think of some people I know.

Theresa: And it’s like, so it’s, that can happen. It’s just a belief that that can’t happen to you. It’s the same when like I tell people to do an exercise and we dream of their perfect day and someone was talking to me about they wanna live on a lake somewhere in the States, they’re in the uk. And I’m like, so.

Theresa: Could you do that? Well, probably not. It’s not gonna happen, is it? I was like, so you’re telling me there’s no one living on a lake in the States or by a lake in the States? Like that just isn’t true? And she’s like, yes, of course it’s true. Well, it could happen then, can’t it? So sometimes with those limiting beliefs, or sometimes with the beliefs we hold, instead of just trying to flip them, which sometimes doesn’t feel very realistic.

Theresa: Look at examples of people. So let’s go back [00:37:00] to the prices at the pump. No one can afford anything. So does this mean no one is buying anything? Can I find examples of people who are spending money? A hundred percent I can. So is that belief right? No, it’s just my belief. So try and find examples as to where it completely proves you wrong, because otherwise we’ll just find all the examples that prove us, right?

Theresa: It’s like when you go to buy a new car and you are gonna buy a certain make and a certain color, and then suddenly all you see on the road are those make some colors. It’s because your brain is going so there’s more of them, the brain is more aware of it. So it’s showing you more examples. The same as if, if you believe.

Theresa: Well, I can’t do this because all it’s gonna show you is examples to prove you, right? And you need to say to brain, no, we gotta prove you wrong, and therefore you need to start doing that. I love 

Amanda: that car example. It’s called, what is it like Reticulated Activation System or something 

Theresa: like that? Is that what it’s called?

Theresa: I’m gonna Google that afterwards. I’m gonna steal 

Amanda: that. The R a s I read a book and, sorry [00:38:00] guys, I don’t remember which book that was talking all about, that kind of thing where there’s so much information that we’re taking in. Mm-hmm. at any given time. all day long. Like I’m standing here in my closet doing this podcast interview and there’s a light right here that’s shining in my face, and there’s one monitor where I have all of my notes for the interview, and then I’ve got the notes I’m taking and I, there is so much happening, even in this one little space that I’m in all the time.

Amanda: Yeah. That our brain cannot take in. Alls I can really take in right now is looking at you and listening to you. If I shift my attention to look at the other screen to make sure I. Hitting all the topics I wanna hit, then it’s just my attention. But there’s only so much we can take in, and when we’re going about our day-to-day, there’s so much that our eyes take in that our brain doesn’t even.

Amanda: Acknowledge. Yeah. Because it’s system overload. Until you give your brain a reason to start acknowledging those things. Like the car, the specific car you’d like to buy, and all of a sudden they’re everywhere. They were always everywhere. Yeah. Your brain just didn’t have a reason to take it in. So I’m really glad [00:39:00] that you brought that up.

Amanda: I love brain stuff. I know. 

Theresa: It’s so good. And it’s a very practical way of explaining where like, cuz if you say to people, just think positive thoughts, more positive thoughts will come your way. It’s like, Whatever, . Whereas actually, when you think about it that way, like, and, and we are really good at proving ourselves, right?

Theresa: So if we are like, well, everything’s awful, it’s all dreadful, the world’s falling apart, then our brain is gonna go, oh, that’s what you wanna see. Exactly like you just said and show you all that stuff. So we have to change what’s in our brain to then make sure our brain is looking for the stuff that we need to see.

Amanda: Yeah, absolutely. Oh, this has been such a great conversation. If you could give the listeners one action step to take this week to prepare themselves better for really diving into the mindset side of 

Theresa: things, what would it be? To listen to your thoughts, like just. Listen to some of the things you say to [00:40:00] yourselves and some of the things that happen.

Theresa: And that’s why the journaling is so good because you can write those thoughts down and then you go, oh wow, did I really say that to myself? But just watch out for them and just listen to like, oh, okay. That’s interesting because when I did that, I called myself an idiot three times or That’s interesting that someone said to me, you know, it’s a lovely day.

Theresa: And I was like, you think so? Like, Just be mindful of what’s going on in your brain because as we’ve just pointed out, what’s happening in there is, is almost showing your reality and, and therefore, if you don’t like what you’re looking at, it might be that there’s something in there that you’re saying or thinking that is adding to that and is basically driving that.

Theresa: So just be super aware and be super kind to. We’re doing amazing. Like everyone is amazing. Like High five yourself right now. You’re phenomenal . 

Amanda: Yes I that. Everyone is doing a great job no matter how you’re feeling today. Yeah, you did great. We end every episode with a book recommendation, and I know you’ve already given two [00:41:00] really great ones that we will also link to in the show notes, but if there was one book that you recommended that everyone go read, what would it.

Theresa: Oh man, it, this is like one of the hardest things cuz I am, I inhale books and I love reading. Um, and it depends on my mood and it depends where I am. I think, uh, one of my favorites, oh, I tell you what, uh, Atlas at the heart, Brene Brown, that was one of the ones I’ve read recently. And it’s so good, like, especially if you’re trying to become aware, It talks about all the different emotions and how they are and how they affect us, and it’s very, very smart book.

Theresa: And she’s crazy smart man. She is like, she’s on my wishlist for my podcast a hundred percent. Oh, I love 

Amanda: that. I have not read that one of hers, so I will have to go add that to my to read list. Theresa, this conversation has been so good. Thank you so much for being here and for taking the time to come on and share all about what it is that you do with [00:42:00] my listeners where, because now I know that they’re already to dive in, to start becoming more self-aware so that they can improve their mindset.

Amanda: Where is the best place for them to find you so that they can continue down that journey 

Theresa: with. So you can basically search Teresa wearing anywhere and you will find me. But you can go to Theresa Heath wearing.com or you can find me on Instagram, cuz that’s my favorite place to hang out. So that’s where you’ll find me most.

Theresa: Perfect. 

Amanda: And we’ll have all of Theresa’s stuff link in the show notes so you guys can easily find her. Thank you again for being 

Theresa: here. Thank you so much. It’s been my pleasure.

Amanda: Thank you so much for joining me here today, friend. If you loved this episode, it would mean the world to me if you’d leave a rating and review. This is a great way to help spread the word about this podcast and help other wonderful women like yourself find it. You can find this episode show notes as well as tons of other great resources [email protected].

Amanda: And if you aren’t following me on Instagram yet, I’d love to connect with you [00:43:00] over there. I’m at Mrs. Amanda Warfield. Shoot me a DM and tell me what you love most about this episode. Thanks for being here, friend. I’ll see you next time.

The post Episode 155: The Importance of Mindset as a Business Owner with Teresa Heath-Wareing appeared first on Amanda Warfield.

It’s not enough to decide you’re going to create content for a certain platform, and then expect it to grow your business. Showing up on any given platform is nuanced, and each platform has it’s own purpose. Which is why you find creators showing up on every platform and encouraging you to do the same.

But I don’t want you to do that. Instead, I want you to be informed about how to best leverage each platform so that you can choose the BEST platforms for your business, and leave the rest. Which is why today, I’m going through each type of content platform, and outlining how they work, what you can expect from using them, and helping you determine which might be best for you.

Don’t forget to subscribe so that you never miss an episode! Also, if you would be willing to leave a review on Apple Podcasts, it would mean the world to me. It’s such a small thing that can make a big difference in helping me spread this message of simplicity to other overwhelmed women.

Have a comment about today’s episode, or a topic you’d like to suggest for a future episode? Shoot me an email over at [email protected]!

It’s not enough to decide that you’re going to create content for a certain platform and then expect it to grow your business. Showing up on any given platform is nuanced, and each platform has its own purpose, which is why you find creators showing up on every platform and encouraging you to do the same.

But I don’t want you to do that. Instead, I want you to be informed about how to best leverage each platform so that you can choose the best platforms for your business and leave the rest. Which is why today I’m going through each type of content platform and outlining how they work, what you can expect from using them, and helping you determine which might be best for you.

You’re listening to episode 154 of The Chasing Symbol Podcast, and I’m your host, Amanda Warfield. This episode was brought to you by the chasing symbol Content planner, and you can grab your own at amanda warfield.com/planner.

How do I run a successful business from my home? How can I [00:01:00] possibly wear all of the hats? Am I the only one that struggles with staying organized? What am I supposed to do about work-life balance? How can I create a solid schedule and routine? How do I even stay productive? And the biggest question of all, how do I manage it all?

And can I really create a business that I love without being chained to my laptop? Welcome to The Chasing Simple Podcast, where hard conversations and actionable education meet simplicity. I’m your host, Amanda Warfield, time management coach, online educator, and crazy cat mama. My mission is to help overwhelm biz owners get more done and less time so that they have more time and energy for what matters most.

If you feel overwhelmed or occasionally lost in the rollercoaster that is entrepreneurship, I want you to know that you aren’t alone. Those things you’re feeling, you aren’t the first or the last to feel that way. The hard things you’re going through, someone else has already been there too. Each week I’ll bring you transparent [00:02:00] conversations, actionable steps, and a judgment free community to encourage and equip you.

So grab yourself a cup of coffee or whatever your drink of choice and meet me here each week for love. Practical tips and advice on simplifying your biz. Let’s do this entrepreneurship thing together, shall we?

Are you looking to improve your content without spending a ton of time and mental energy doing so? Whether you’re looking for help, knowing what to talk about, setting up content. Or improving your launch strategy. The Chasing Simple Shop has something for you from a year of content prompts broken up by type of content to my launch strategy mini course, which will teach you my entire strategy for launching your upcoming online course.

The Chasing Simple Shop is the quick and simple way to take your content to the next level, and you can get 10%. Any item just for being a listener of the Chasing Civil Podcast by [00:03:00] using the Code Listener at checkout, just head to amanda warfield.com/shop. And again, that code for 10% off is listener. 

I have had this conversation four or five times in the last week alone, and because it keeps popping up, I figured that meant it was probably a good topic to bring to the podcast so that you could also hear the conversation around.

What it is that I’m talking about today, which is how to use each different content channel. So over the last week or so, I’ve been continuously having some variation of this conversation right here where a potential client comes to me and says, well, I really need help with my content, and what I want is for you to create content for Instagram for me and help me grow.

And here’s the thing. Right now, Instagram is not a platform that is geared [00:04:00] towards growth. And so this conversation that I have been having over and over again is that’s great, but I don’t wanna give you unrealistic expectations and I don’t wanna promise you something that’s just not realistic. Not because I’m not good at what I do, but because the algorithm sets us both up for failure at this point. And if you’ve been around, you know that I am very anti pleasing the algorithm right, but, and we’re not going, I’m not suggesting to try to please the algorithm, but what I am suggesting is to work with the algorithm and to understand it at a basic level. We don’t need to know the nitty gritty details of exactly how the algorithm works in order to know what is working on the platform right now. 

So when we know what is working on the platform, we’re able to kind of, yes, gear our content towards what’s working, but [00:05:00] also set realistic expectations for ourselves. Because right now, if we go to Instagram and we say, this is gonna be a platform where I’m really wanting to see serious growth. I want to go viral. I want to bring in a ton of new people. It’s just not gonna work. And you’re gonna be upset, you’re gonna feel frustrated, and you’re gonna feel like you or your business is the problem when it’s not this platform at this time. It’s just not set up for growth. 

So, That’s why it’s so important to understand how a platform is working and not just follow the best practices that someone is listing out there in the world.

I could sit here and tell you today, here is the best practices for this platform, this platform, and this platform. And by best practices, I mean, you know, post this many times and post this type of content, do it. It’s not gonna, it’s not gonna be helpful for, for you because one, as soon as we figure out what best practices are, the algorithm changes and I’m recording this.

Two months before it actually even comes out. But two, even if I [00:06:00] got on stories today and said, Hey, here’s what’s working on Instagram. Be sure to post a carousel post for every day. It what? Show up at this time. It’s gonna change tomorrow. It is not an effective use of your brain space to try to keep up with those back best practices and instead understanding how the platform is working.

 In general, what the platform is being best utilized for, helps you create a strategy that works for you. There’s a nuanced difference there, but what I’m saying is instead of do this exact structured step-by-step thing, and that’s going to help you show up best in the algorithm, it’s more of a, what is the concept behind?

The goal and the intention I should have with my content on this platform. So let’s get into it. When you’re looking at those intentions, there are three main considerations you want to consider. Which platforms are going to help you nurture? [00:07:00] your audience. I’ve talked about this in a few different episodes, and I definitely talk about it in the book, which launches very soon.

Be on the lookout. You can go to amanda warfield.com/book to learn more, get on the wait list, potentially even pre-order by the time this episode airs. So excited. But I digress. In the book, I definitely talk about this, but there are two main things that you’re doing with your content. You’re nurturing your people and then you’re also growing your audience, right? 

So Nurture, that’s the first main consideration, which platforms are going to be geared towards nurturing your people. Then the other is growth. Which platforms are going to be geared for growth and seeing that growth in your audience. And then the third main consideration is which platforms are gonna be best for selling?

And we’ll get into each of these. We’re gonna go platform, right platform. We’re gonna get into each of them in just a moment, but there’s also a. Bonus consideration that I want you to think about, and that is how do you use a platform? [00:08:00] Here’s the thing. We get so bogged down in what are the best practices?

How does this person say we should be using a platform? What, what’s working, what’s not? We get so bogged down into that that we forget that if we are actively using a platform for our own enjoyment, not just for work, but for our own enjoyment. We’re the ideal customer, so to speak. We are a great example for ourselves of how the platform is being used.

And so, for example, I know that when I’m listening to podcasts, I’m usually multitasking. I’m not sitting down listening to a podcast, right? I am driving, I am cleaning, I am out taking a walk, and so I know. Most likely, most of my listeners, most of the people listening to my podcast, they are also probably multitasking.

They also are probably not clicking links and worrying about [00:09:00] looking things up in the, you know, it, it’s a very passive, almost. And because I listen to podcasts, I can look at my own habits and realize that same thing with social media. I know for a fact that when I go on Instagram, I’m not looking at anybody’s feed, I am not looking at reels.

And the first thing I go to, and really the only thing I look at is stories. Does this mean that everyone uses the platform in the exact same way? Of course not. Obviously people look at reels and obviously people look at the feed, but we can get a decent indicator of what people are doing on a platform by looking at our own habits.

So those are the main considerations as we go through. What I want you to be thinking about, let’s talk about YouTube first. YouTube is incredible for nurturing because not only do you have someone’s ear? Not only are they listening to your voice, but they also can see you. And [00:10:00] we all know if we’ve ever done Zoom calls, the difference between a zoom call where everyone’s camera is on, and you can see people nodding and making faces and the difference when everyone’s camera is off and you’re just kind of sitting there hearing what people are saying, there’s a large difference there. So the more they see of you, the more nurturing you’re doing. 

YouTube is also a great growth platform because it’s so heavily SEO focused. SEO is search engine optimization, and anything that is SEO focused is going to have a larger ability for you to see growth simply because when people search for terms, you might come up in it, whereas if you look at, again, we’ll take Instagram for example here, that’s not SEO focused. They have a search bar. But you going into Instagram and searching for how to do something it, you are just not gonna do that. It’s not gonna pull up what you’re looking [00:11:00] for as easily or as thoroughly as a Google search or a YouTube search, or a TikTok search, right?

So YouTube is so heavily SEO based that it’s also great for growth because they can bring in a cold audience. through that sel. And then YouTube is also great for sales because it’s, it’s got this ability to add clickable links and all kinds of extra things within YouTube. And YouTube doesn’t really penalize, obviously, they want people to stay on YouTube longer, but there’s not a huge penalty if you are sending people to a sales page or something like that.

So YouTube really hits all three check marks there. It nurtures your people, it gives you audience growth, and it also is great for sales. Now a podcast. On the other hand, it is good for nurturing because it’s still, you’re still listening to my voice right now, right? We have a relationship because you listen to my voice week after week after week, and you’re hearing me talk and you hear the [00:12:00] inflections and the tones and my miss stumbles and all of that stuff, right?

You, you hear my voice, but it’s not as strong of a nurturing platform as YouTube. So for me to sit here and think, okay well, I’m doing crazy nurture. It’s nurturing, but it’s not. It’s a step down. It’s just the realism of podcast versus YouTube. I chose podcasts because it is easier and less time consuming to create, and I took that into account when I made that choice.

Yes, I’m maybe not nurturing as much as I could with a YouTube video, but it’s so much easier for me to create that. I knew I’d be more consistent with it. But when it comes to growth, a podcast is not, it’s not SEO at all. There’s no SEO search when it comes to podcasts. When you pair a blog with a podcast, then you can get some SEO traction through Google, but a podcast itself not gonna do a whole lot for your growth necessarily.

And [00:13:00] then sales wise, I touched on this a bit earlier, but I know that unless I am super interested in something, I’m probably not going to actively click on links, make purchases, or anything like that as I’m listening to a podcast. But if someone talks about something over and over and over and over again, eventually I may be intrigued enough by it.

It’s just not going to be as easy and as simple to convert. Into sales in this scenario, because again, looking at how I use podcasts in my own life, I recognize that, you know, I probably don’t have the capacity to stop and make a purchase, make a sale while I’m driving or walking or cleaning my house.

Then we’ve got blogs, not awesome for nurturing, so there’s no voice, there’s no video, there’s just words, and that [00:14:00] doesn’t do a whole lot to help people get to know you. You can have your brand voice, it can be witty and all of those things, but at the end of the day, a blog post just isn’t gonna nurture as well as someone listening to your voice or seeing you and seeing your face, right, but the growth capabilities of a blog are pretty large because of the seo. Again, SEO does take time. It’s not gonna be an immediate, I put up a blog and now I see a ton of growth. It’s gonna be, I put up blogs for a year or two, and then I started to see some growth, and that’s okay. But there is that ability to see that growth. And this is why I really recommend, even if you’re doing YouTube, even if you’re doing a podcast, transcribe what you’ve created, pop it all into a blog.

I’m just throwing that out there. But blogs can be great for sales conversions because it’s so easy when someone’s sitting down to read a blog, they are sitting down most likely to read it, and they are actively in that. Hunter mindset, [00:15:00] they, if you’re researching blogs and you’re reading blogs, you are likely gathering information and you’re in that, okay, well I am hunting down this particular thing.

And if you have a resource that can help someone for what it is that they’re looking for, well you’re more likely to make a sale. So blogs can be great for convergence. So those are the big three, the long form content platforms, YouTube podcast, blog, with those three main considerations, they all. Pros and cons, right?

YouTube is gonna be the best all around if you are wanting to really see nurturing and growth and sales. But YouTube is also very, very time consuming, and most likely you’re gonna wanna have a team to help you produce YouTube content that just, it is the way it is. It is very time consuming. A podcast is more of that middle ground.

You can do it solo, you can have a team. You can do [00:16:00] it in a very time consuming way, or a not very time consuming way, but it also gives you more middle of the ground nurturing growth in sales, right? , and then you’ve got the blog. The nurturing is going to be the least effective, but the growth in the sales ability is there, and also time-wise, they’re the fastest and easiest to create.

So when it comes to this, the long form content channels, when you’re deciding where you wanna show up, you wanna consider those three things, nurture, growth, sales, but you also wanna. Where you have the capacity to show up and. You have to take all of that into consideration in order to decide where you wanna show up and how you want to show up and what your expectations are for your content.

Because what we don’t want to do is to show up and think, okay, well, I’m creating [00:17:00] blogs every single week and now my business is going to take off. That’s not how this works. We want to have those realistic expectations of. Here’s what I’m utilizing this content for, and there are other things I need to also do to work on growing my business.

So those are the long form contents. Then we’ve got email, email marketing over and over again. I’ve said this, but if you haven’t listened to other episodes, email marketing kind of exists in this bubble all it’s own. We’ve got long form content, you’ve got short form content, and then right in the middle is email marketing.

Email marketing is so unique in how it interacts with people, how it helps your business, and. The way that other people interact with it, that it really just has its own sphere. When it comes to nurturing, email is great because you’re showing up in their inbox. They have invited you into their internet home basically, and said, yes, show up.

Great for nurturing. Even though there’s not the voice aspect or the video aspect, it’s great because they’ve invited you in and you [00:18:00] can send them to those. If you do YouTube or have a podcast, you can use your email to directly link to those things to help. Further nurture, right? Growth, incredible for growth because you can say, here’s a freebie and go into other people’s audiences and share that freebie and bring in new people to your list.

Incredible for growth, and the same thing for sales. If someone is sitting there reading email, they are most likely. At their desk or sitting down on their phone or their tablet or whatever, and potentially ready and able to make a sale. Make a purchase. And so it’s great for sales as well, especially because it gives you the ability to explain why someone might be interested in your offer and easily gives them the ability to say, okay, yes, I am interested.

What’s the next step? Whether it’s fill application, purchase the course, whatever that may be, they’re able to quickly and easily do that through the email you sent them. So email [00:19:00] marketing all the way around. Incredible for all of those things. Nurture, growth and sales. If you’re not email marketing, you need to get on it right now.

period point blank. It’s time to get started because it really is, it’s so pivotal. Probably the most important, I would say, definitely content channel. If you do nothing else, get an email list and start working on growing it and showing up for your email list. Then we’ve got social media, and this is where things get very interesting because email marketing and the long form content types, those are fairly stable.

They change some. , but in the scheme of things, they are incredibly stable. If I was a scientist, I would make some reference to , some kind of, um, something in the periodic table that was stable in my mind. That was a great joke. Anyways, um, so they’re very stable. They don’t change a lot, and those three main considerations don’t change a [00:20:00] whole lot.

Social media on the other hand, is always changing. It’s always changing. I mean, we just look at Instagram. A few months ago they came on and said, okay, we’re moving back to a picture app after we spent all this time pushing reels. And everyone was like, okay, great. Awesome. We love that. And then this last week, again, I’m recording this in February, this last week, they announced that they’re doing these chat channels.

I don’t know. I don’t know. But all the comments on the reel where they shared this information was like, this is not what we asked for. , what happened to becoming a picture app? Again, we don’t want this. We wanna be a picture app. So it’s constantly changing. Literally, it feels like the drop of a hat. And so this is where you’re gonna really want to kind of put your detective cap on because each channel is constantly changing and then it’s never a surprise when a new channel pops up either.

So Instagram, again, currently at this moment [00:21:00] in time as I’m recording, we’re not seeing growth. Our content is not being shared out to new people, but what we are able to use Instagram for really, really well right now is nurturing the audience we do have. And so when you look at how you use Instagram, if you’re like me, you really focus on stories, not by any choice, but just because it’s the easiest way to get an inside look into someone’s life, right?

And so, That means that using your stories to nurture people is going to be an incredible tool for you. You’ll have seen if you follow me on Instagram, that I have moved to a static grid where I’m not, I’m not putting posts on my feed really. I have the ability to, but I’m not, I’m just not focused on it.

When I batch out my content for the month, I’m not doing it. I just have this static. Three grid at the top that gets pinned, and if I feel like posting something, I post it [00:22:00] in the moment, but I’m not doing that even on a weekly basis. That’s maybe once or twice a month, but I am focused on showing up on my stories because I know my feed wasn’t getting any results.

I tried strategy after strategy, tactic after tactic. Nothing was working to really boost that engagement. And so I said, why bother, , it’s not helping me and it’s taking up my time. So I’m just gonna stick to stories where I do get engagement and I can see that this many people are seeing it fairly consistently.

And so currently at this moment in time, Instagram’s great for nurturing and I like to send people from all of my other content channels to Instagram so that they can. Get to know me even better through my stories. That’s my goal with Instagram at this time. On the other hand, if we look at Facebook groups, they are, they’re actually.

Working really well. [00:23:00] SEOs, if you have the capacity to start a Facebook group. Facebook pages, though they’re not getting traction, they’re not, um, they’re not doing a whole lot for anyone and they just kind of show that someone has an active business. Basically. The only time I ever personally look at Facebook groups is if a business doesn’t have a website or their website is garbage.

That is the only time. And again, if that’s how I’m using. , there are probably a lot of other people utilizing it in the same way, right? How, how are our habits, how does that showcase what other people might be doing as well? So Facebook groups potentially, if you are focusing on SEO and bringing in a large, a large audience, potentially with really specific but also.

Not too specific. It’s a really weird balance to hit. Um, those can be great for nurturing and for sales. At this point. [00:24:00] The nurturing tends to be best and growth as well. Because of the SEO function, you can bring in people that have never heard of you before. Sales. They’re easily clickable. But also because it’s tends to be a colder audience if you’re using the SEO function, that can make it, um, a little bit slower with sales.

But if you’re seeing that growth, it’s worth putting it out there always, right? It’s always worth putting the sale out there and the promo out there, so Facebook groups can be good for that. Bringing in a colder audience and starting to nurture them and sending them to other channels where they can be even better nurtured.

Like your YouTube, your podcast, your email list, your Instagram. Then we’ve got TikTok. TikTok is probably the best social media short form channel for growth right now at this time because it’s very, very, very, Very heavily SEO based. They, they’ve put it a large, [00:25:00] large emphasis on seo, and honestly, TikTok is more of a competitor with YouTube than it is with Instagram at this point.

They’re not worried about Instagram, but they are worried about and competing with YouTube so, That has kind of become, honestly, the new YouTube for Gen Z when they, and I even have fallen into this too. When I wanna look up something, I wanna know how to do something. I want more information on something.

I go to TikTok and search for it now. But very SEO based, so it’s great for growth building community has not proven to be. all that simple there, it, it just doesn’t have that same feel as an Instagram story does. So it’s great to grow, to bring in new people and then send them back to Instagram or send them to your email list.

TikTok also is one of those platforms where, again, it’s always worth asking for the sale. You probably aren’t gonna see mega, mega mega sales though, because it [00:26:00] actively discourages people from sending people away from the app. So at this point in time, it’s best for using for growth and then trying to funnel them to other places where you can get better nurturing and better sales in.

So those are kind of the main short form content types right now. There are always gonna be other ones, and the way that these are used are always going to change, which I know is frustrating. But remember, go back to paying attention to how you use each. And that’s going to give you a good indicator of how to structure your own strategy, especially when you are not able or not ready to hire someone who is deeply immersed in this every day not ready to hire marketing strategist.

Paying attention to your own habits is going to help you craft your own strategy and realistic expectations for how you’re using each and every platform. So what I want you to do, and here’s the really important part of this, it’s great to sit down and you’re listening to this [00:27:00] episode and you’re probably not taking notes because like we said, you’re most likely multitasking, but you’re you might be thinking, okay, well this is what I’m gonna do and this is how I’m changing my expectations for the next month, and I’m gonna be ready to go. And then what’s probably going to happen is you’re going to keep doing that until you get frustrated and overwhelmed by your marketing again. Instead, what I really, really encourage you to do is.

To stop sleepwalking through your marketing creation and in order to stop sleepwalking through your marketing creation each and every month. When it comes time to set up your next plan, your next strategy for the next month’s worth of content you’ve got to review. This is something that I was really intentional about laying out inside of the Chasing simple content planner.

After each month, there’s a review. And then in the beginning of each month, there’s a prep page where we’re kind of reiterating the same things you do on the review page [00:28:00] in just a different way and with a different forecast. So with the review, you’re looking back, what did I do in this last month? And what worked and what didn’t.

And then with the prep, you’re looking forward and going, Hmm, this is how I wanna do things based on what I learned in. The last month, what I just reviewed, this is how I’m gonna make changes moving forward. In that way, you’re not spending a ton of time, it’s maybe 10 minutes outta your month where you’re reviewing and deciding how to move forward, but you are taking the time to review what’s going on and to make a plan, and that’s gonna help you stop sleepwalking through your marketing.

Goals and do your marketing creation, and so that you’re not just churning out content each month without any real strategy or plan behind it. So your action set for this week is as you’re scrolling, start paying attention to how it is that you utilize each content platform for yourself and start thinking about how you can take that information to make changes to your own [00:29:00] content.

This week’s book recommendation is Weather Girl by Rachel Lynn Solomon, and I am just a sucker for everything she writes. It’s so good. The stories are always incredible. They’re always a meet cute, right? Which I love regardless. But she’s so well written. The stories are great and fun and different. And then also the fact that they’re based in Seattle always makes me really, really happy.

But even outside of that, if you don’t care about Seattle at all and you like me cute, you’ll love this book. Highly re. All right, my friend. Until next time, I hope that you’ll go out and uncomplicate your life in biz.

Thank you so much for joining me here today, friend. If you loved this episode, it would mean the world to me if you’d leave a rating and review. This is a great way to help spread the word about this podcast and. Help other wonderful women like yourself find it. You can find this episode show notes as well as tons of other great resources [email protected].

And if you aren’t following me on Instagram yet, I’d love to connect with you over there. [00:30:00] I’m at Mrs. Amanda Warfield. Shoot me a DM and tell me what you love most about this episode. Thanks for being here, friend. I’ll see you next time.

The post Episode 154: Creating a Content Strategy That Works: Leveraging the Strengths of Each Platform appeared first on Amanda Warfield.

How can get more done? How can I be more efficient? How do I stop wasting time? How do I decide what to work on at any given time? I get some variation of these questions on every single annual survey that I put out. So today I’m sharing exactly what I use (Hint: A Command Center!!) to keep my businesses organized, keep them running smoothly, how I can immediately get down to work as soon as I sit down at my desk, and how I stay on top of all of the moving parts of my business – without losing tasks and forgetting about something that needs to be done.

Don’t forget to subscribe so that you never miss an episode! Also, if you would be willing to leave a review on Apple Podcasts, it would mean the world to me. It’s such a small thing that can make a big difference in helping me spread this message of simplicity to other overwhelmed women.

Have a comment about today’s episode, or a topic you’d like to suggest for a future episode? Shoot me an email over at [email protected]!

[00:00:00] How can I get more done? How can I be more efficient? How do I stop wasting time? How do I decide what to work on at any given time? I get some variation of these questions on every single annual survey that I put out. So today I’m sharing exactly what I use to keep my businesses organized, keep them running smoothly, how I can immediately get down to work as soon as I sit down at my desk, and how I stay on top of all of the moving parts of my businesses without losing tasks and forgetting about something that needs to be.

You’re listening to episode 153 of The Chasing Symbol Podcast, and I’m your host, Amanda Warfield. Let’s dive in.

How do I run a successful business from my home? How can I possibly wear all of the hats? Am I the only one that struggles with staying? What am I supposed to do about work-life balance? How can I create a solid schedule and routine? How do I even stay productive? And [00:01:00] the biggest question of all, how do I manage it all?

And can I really create a business that I love? Without being chained in my laptop. Welcome to the Chasing Simple Podcast, where hard conversations and actionable education meet simplicity. I’m your host, Amanda Warfield, time management coach, online educator, and crazy cat mama. My mission is to help overwhelm biz owners get more done and less time so that they have more time and energy for what matters most.

If you feel overwhelmed or occasionally lost in the rollercoaster that is entrepreneurship, I want you to know that you aren’t. Those things you’re feeling, you aren’t the first or the last to feel that way. The hard things you’re going through, someone else has already been there too. Each week I’ll bring you transparent conversations, actionable steps, and a judgment free community to encourage and equip you.

So grab yourself a cup of coffee or whenever your drink of choices and meet Mimi here each week for love. Practical tips and advice on simplifying your [00:02:00] biz. Let’s do this entrepreneurship thing together, shall we?

Are you looking to improve your content without spending a ton of time and mental energy doing so? Whether you’re looking for help, knowing what to talk about, setting up content systems. Or improving your launch strategy. The Chasing Simple Shop has something for you from a year of content prompts broken up by type of content to my launch strategy mini course, which will teach you my entire strategy for launching your upcoming online course.

The Chasing Simple Shop is the quick and simple way to take your content to the next level, and you can get 10%. Any item just for being a listener of the Chasing Civil Podcast by using the Code Listener at checkout, just head to amanda warfield.com/shop and again, that code for 10% off is listener. I would be completely lost as a business owner without my [00:03:00] command center board on Trello.

I used to be such a proponent of pen and paper planning. I loved nothing more than to buy a new planner at the beginning of each year. I loved, you know, color coding with my different pins. I loved having everything written out, and I really do believe. , the science behind you. Remember things more if you write it out.

But the longer I’m in business and the more complicated my business becomes, the more paper planning just wasn’t working for me. It was great for writing out dates on the calendar and times on the calendar. , but it got to the point where that was all I was using it for. Whereas originally I was creating my plan for each and every day in my planner, and I was writing deadlines in my planner.

But the more I got into working and the more complicated my business got, the more. , I was struggling to [00:04:00] keep track of my projects because pen and paper planners are great for tasks. It’s great for saying this needs to get done on this day, this needs to get done on this day, this needs to get done on this day.

But what I was finding was that I was having a really hard time keeping up with the overall view of any given project that needed to happen. And a project has so many different tasks, right. And at first I was like, okay, well, Create a list of all the things that need to get done, and sometimes I would just, you know, space those out.

I would take that list and say, I’m gonna do this task on this day and this task on this day, and then I would just keep a running list in a journal or something. And that worked okay for a little bit. But then I realized that there were, sometimes I’d have thoughts about a project and I wouldn’t know where to put it.

You know, I could maybe put it on a sticky note of, oh, don’t forget to talk about this thing, or, Ooh, this would be good message. Or what if I implemented this with this, you know, any just random thoughts I had about a project, I didn’t have a place to store those thought. Because [00:05:00] alls I had was a checklist and a set of tasks for any given day.

And then I got to the point where, okay, I could put sticky notes on top of that checklist for all of my thoughts. And I did that for a while. But then I came to the point where there were links that I needed, oh, don’t forget to link to this. Or, oh, here’s the link for this thing. Here’s whatever links needed to happen.

And that’s when I realized I probably need to start putting my projects into. . I used Trello. I love Trello. I was using Trello long before I had a business, in fact. And I just finally said, okay, this isn’t working daily tasks and daily to-do lists just isn’t enough. I need project management, which is truly the purpose of Trello, right?

It is there, or a sauna or click up or whatever project management system you use. That’s literally what they’re for, is to manage your projects. And so I finally gave it and said, I’m gonna start managing my. On Trello, and [00:06:00] that has evolved over the last few years to what is now my command center board.

And this board has everything I need in one place for my project management and for making sure I’m hitting my goals in my business. Now I have quite a few Trello boards. This isn’t the end all be all for every single thing in my business, but for everything related to project management and goals in particular.

I’ve got it all on this board, and I used to have my goals in one board and my financial things in another board, and what I’ve done is I’ve actually ended up putting them all in one because they’re all connected. So I’m gonna go through what everything in this board is in a moment, but just know that this has evolved from something very simple into what might seem a little bit more complicated.

And I certainly don’t expect you to necessarily go. And greet eight your own. That is fully [00:07:00] complicated or anything like that. But this has evolved because I want to make sure that all of the tasks that I’m doing are aligned with projects that I have set up for myself and that all of my projects are aligned with my goals.

And in order to do that, I’ve really had to put everything all in one place. And so, Command center is great because it puts all of that in one place. It helps me stay focused on the bigger picture and what I’m doing at any given time, but it also helps me not procrastinate. When I sit down to work each day, I already know exactly what I need to work on.

It’s all written out for me, and I can start making moves and get it done. It keeps me from being distracted because I’m not like, okay, what do I need to work on today? , oh, here’s this random thing that needs to happen that maybe won’t move my business forward, but I really need to clean this thing out.

Or, oh, I forgot that, you know, all those little tasks that we can get distracted with. I’m not [00:08:00] getting distracted with them because I have a clear plan each day, and that clear plan comes directly from my projects, which comes directly from my goals, which comes directly from my overall business goal for the.

This board keeps me on track. It helps me eliminate that procrastination and that distraction as much as possible. We’re human. There are gonna be times where I just don’t feel like it , and there are gonna be times where I am gonna get distracted and I am gonna procrastinate. But this helps me minimize that as much as possible so that I know exactly what needs to happen.

And if I stay on top of these things, I’m gonna move towards these overall goals. So real quick, if you. Don’t use Trello or Asana or Click up or any other project management system. I just wanna give you a quick, uh, overview of what that is and what some of these words that I’m gonna be saying mean. So you have an idea.

So Trello is again, a project management tool, and within Trello you have what are called boards. I mentioned [00:09:00] this. I have a lot of different boards. So you’ve got all these different boards that you can use in whatever way you want, and they’re basically these overall categories. So again, I’ve got a board specifically for the podcast.

I’ve got a board specifically for club content matching. , I’ve got a board specifically for one-to-one clients and for my content bank, I’ve got my company guidebook that I got the idea from Ashlyn Carter. She talks about this where you put all of your important links and your. , uh, logos and your colors, your hex codes, all of that in one place so that anyone on your team can refer back to it easily.

I’ve got a board for profit first where I kind of outline not the financial goals, but how I’m allocating my money, my budget, essentially. , I’ve got a board for team members. I, I’ve got so many boards. So the board is an overall space for whatever given project or area of your business, you may wanna utilize it for Within [00:10:00] a board, you have lists and you have cards.

Lists are pretty self-explanatory, right? Just like a paper list. It’s a list. And within that list, instead of lines on a piece of paper, you’ve got cards. Cards are a real magic. because you can create a card and it can be as simple as just a note to yourself. Or you can add a bunch of notes inside of it.

You can attach images or other documents to it. You can add checklists, you can add dates, due dates, labels, different members. There’s so many different things that you can do with these, and that’s where the real magic comes into play, especially for a command center and for managing projects. So within a card, I may.

a project, and then I may list out every single task I need to do for that project. I can create multiple checklists, so I can break it up by dates or categories or whatever parts of the project, phases of the project within a project. I can [00:11:00] label it. So just for example, all of my clients have a black label.

all of my speaking and PR has a purple label. Um, networking things have a yellow, like I label things and I categorize things so that at a glance I can easily see what’s happening and when and when I need to focus on different things. So boards, lists, and cards, those are kind of the the things that you’ll hear me talking about that you may kind of wonder what is that?

So within this board for my command center, I have 16 different lists. I have numbers to know where I keep my overall goal for the year, and then my quarterly revenue goals, my overall revenue goal for the year, I should say, and then my quarterly revenue goals. Within each quarter, I also have a space to mark how much I actually made each month, what my actual goal was.

And that’s just a quick glance to know, okay, this is kind of where I’m at with each of these goals. The next list I have is my one day [00:12:00] projects. These are things that I would love to do at some point, but that are not really on the horizon for this year, more than likely. But I don’t want to lose the ideas I have for them.

I do go through this list every year when I do my beginning of the year prep and I clean out the list because at some point, you know, you’re just gonna decide, Hmm, I actually don’t wanna do this right now. So, that is just a kind of a dumping space for things I might wanna do one day or new ideas that I have, but I’m not ready to go all in on.

Then I’ve got my 2023 goals. This is a new list that I actually put in here for this year, and I’m really excited about it because again, it just kind of keeps me. Focused on what my actual goals are and what I’m moving towards. And it also will help so much with planning each and every quarter. Two. So I’ve got all of my goals listed out.

Each goal has its own card, and then within that I typically have a checklist that kind of outlines some of the basic [00:13:00] projects that I’m thinking of that I will do to achieve that goal. So some of these. You know, 10 different projects that I wanna do. Some of them have just, you know, three projects that I wanna do.

And it’s not an end all, be all of all the projects, but just as I’ve thought about the goal. . These are some things I might do during any given quarter, and so again, when it comes time for quarterly planning, I look at those goals and say, which one do I wanna really focus on this quarter? Which projects was in that?

Do I wanna focus on? So on and so forth. Then I’ve got a list that just is called ongoing, and with the ongoing list, it’s things that I do every single. . So things like every single week I’m sending speaking pitches. Every single week I clean off my desk. At the end of the week, every single week I do file management.

Every single week I do site maintenance, and it’s really just kind of a holding ground for. Those tasks when they’re not on my weekly to-do list, for example, during batch week. During batch [00:14:00] week, I’m not worried about any of those tasks, but I don’t wanna have to recreate that card every single week. And so it’s just a place for me to hold the cards so that when I’m planning out next week after batch week is over, I can just move them to the day they need to.

my next list is rocks in progress. If you have red traction, you’ll know what I mean by rocks. If you have not red traction, I highly recommend that you read it. Um, but rocks are essentially just. Projects, they kind of use the idea. I’m sure you’ve heard of the time where, time metaphor, where you put your boulders in and then you do your smaller pebbles, and then you do your sand.

The rocks are those boulders. These are the big things that you’re getting done that you’re really focused on, and you wanna keep those top of mind so that the sand isn’t becoming your entire. Set of time your entire day. So I’ve got my rocks that are in progress, the ones that I have decided for this quarter that I’m gonna be focusing on.

And each project, each rock has its own [00:15:00] card. And within that card, it’s got everything I need to complete that rock from checklist to links to random thoughts that I’ve had, literally anything and everything I can think of that I would need to do in order to. Complete that rock. Within this, I also tend to put one-off tasks that I know need to get done simply because I don’t want just a another list in there for the sake of having another list.

And I try not to have too many random run-off, one-off tasks, but for example, someone who has requested to cancel their club content batching membership, but it doesn’t end for another month or even. Few months maybe. Uh, I put a card in there with a date. I add the date to it so that I can see it and go, oh, on this date, I need to make sure I cancel this.

Or for example, when I sent out holiday cards this year to all of my past clients and students [00:16:00] and anyone who’s purchased anything from me in the pa in the past, uh, there was a QR code on. And that QR code allowed them to access a special sales page where they could get the chasing simple content planner for a special price.

Well, on the card and on that page it says, this offer ends February 1st. So I have a card right now that. Actually, it said in January 31st. So I have a card right now that has a date for February 1st for me to go redirect that page because I need to remember to do that. So that’s how I remember like due dates of things.

Also, I’ll put that in here if it’s not part of an overall project and it’s just a one-off task. Anyways, it’s got all my rocks and my projects, but it also has those one-off tasks, which again, I try to complete as quickly as possible, but sometimes there’s something that doesn’t need to happen until a certain date.

So I just have a little task with a due date on it to remind myself to get it. . And then I’ve got just a space, I have a list that literally just says space, and there’s nothing in it. And this is just so that I can better visualize the [00:17:00] break from kind of the planning things to the actual tasks for the week.

So I don’t put things on this. It just kind of exists. And then the next five lists are all days of the week list. So Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday. and within the name of the list, the like title. I will also, I’ll put the day of the week, and then in parentheses, I’ll also put my focus on what my focus is for that day.

So this week it’s just batch week, day one. Batch week, day two, batch week, day three. But typically it’s something like Monday Clients, Tuesday, Amanda Warfield Projects, Wednesday, magical Escape, vacation Projects, Thursday Marketing Friday administrative. Something like that, and it depends on the week.

Sometimes I have two separate client days, one for each business, and then I ab week, the projects day. It just really depends on what’s going on in my life and business at that time. But whatever my focus is for that day, [00:18:00] I theme out my days and then I just put it there so that when I’m planning, I know what I am supposed to be working on.

On any given. Then I have a list that’s called Done and as I complete tasks throughout the week, I move, I just click the card and drag it over to the done list, and that way it cleans up what I’m working on. So I have a clear view of what still needs to happen on those days of the week list. And I also can see all the things that I got done, which.

Honestly, as much for my mental health as it is for the sake of keeping things simple and organized, it really is helpful to see. Okay, I don’t feel like I got much done, but look how long my done list is this week. And you know, sometimes that means I have a project card where I’m just working on one task that week, and if I complete that one task, it gets moved over.

I’m not waiting to complete the entire project in order to move it over to Dunn. Again. It’s simp. a holding space until it’s time to work on that thing again, because [00:19:00] I theme out my days, and then I’ve got my templates list, which is just, and this is where the real magic comes in and why I eventually switched from pen and paper planner to a project management system because I have all of these different workflows that I have created, and I don’t want to have to recreate them every time I do them.

So every time I have a new. There’s a client card with everything I need from onboarding checklist, uh, pre-session, post-session, monthly, weekly, all the things I need to do for my clients. I’ve got one for my podcast interviews. I’ve got one for each day of batch week. I have just, Tons and tons and tons.

I’ve even got one for the holiday card, so that next year when it comes time to send a holiday card, or at the end of this year, I suppose when it comes time to send a holiday card, I know exactly what I did and I’ve got that. So anytime I create a new workflow or I do a new task or project that I know I’m gonna do, again, I create a template and then I have this template so I can just copy it [00:20:00] and duplicate the card and have it all set up.

And so that holds all of my templates so that it’s just so much easier to remember what I did last time. Improve the workflows each time. And then as I add potentially new team members, they’ll have access to these as well. And the final list is completed rocks. So right now there’s nothing in it because it’s still January when I’m recording this.

But as I complete those rocks, those projects throughout the year, they’re gonna get moved over there so that the end of the year I can look back and say, wow, look at all the projects I created. Again, this is. just as much for mental health as it is for simplicity and organization. It does clean up the beginning areas of the board, but it also will help me to look back and go, wow, look how many different speaking engagements I did.

Look how many different summits I was a part of, how many different podcasts I was on? Look at all the projects I got done. So instead of at the end of the year feeling like I didn’t do. I [00:21:00] can say, oh, I actually made serious progress this year, and it helps with reflection and planning for next year and all of that too.

So I just have at the very end of the board completed rocks so that I know exactly what I got done throughout the year. And then as I plan for next year, I may decide to turn one of those into a workflow, and that way I have it there and haven’t deleted it yet. So as far as how I use this board, every.

on the final workday of the week, whatever that may be. I will plan for the next week, so I’ll look at what didn’t get done. I’ll look at all this stuff in the done list, and I will plan out the next week. I’ll decide, okay, this is my theme for this day and this day, and this day and this day. And then I’m gonna move projects over based on when I need to get things done.

I’ll add any meetings that I need into the day in any one-off tasks. And then I also move in. Ongoing tasks like file management, site maintenance, checking in with clients, check in [00:22:00] with my va, so on and so forth, and I move those to those appropriate spots. And then if there’s anything left in the done list that wasn’t a one-off task or a meeting, let’s say, you know, I moved over, let’s say I moved over a project and I worked on it this week.

But I’m not gonna work on it next week because it’s batch week. I’m going to take that card and move it all the way back to the Rocks in Progress list, and that’s just where it’s gonna sit until it’s time to plan the next week again. And so then once I’ve moved everything that I need to reuse in some way, whether it’s being put into a day of the week, whether it’s being held in the rocks in progress list, or it’s being held in that ongoing.

Whatever that looks like. Once all that’s done, alls that’s left in the done list should be things that are no longer needed and I can just delete all the cards in that list and then it’s a clean slate for the next week so I can just continue to move things over when I’m done with them. And that’s just how I use the board.

[00:23:00] It keeps me on top of things for the day. I re plan the week and just move things around and reset it basically. At the end of each week so that on Monday morning I can sit down and get to work and know exactly what I need to do. If you would also like a command sitter and you would just like a template of mine so that you’re not having to start from scratch, you can actually head to the shop and I have a template of exactly what mine looks like in the shop, and you can grab that yourself, ideally it.

Right now it’s just set up for Trello, so you could take the Trello one. Implement it into whatever system you use. Ideally, at some point, my goal is to have it have one for Asana and have one for click up and all the other project, main project management systems. So if you’re listening to this in the future, you might wanna go check it out and see if those options aren’t there yet.

But that is a one day goal that I have. But even if it’s not there, you can take the Trello template and use that because Trello’s free, you can grab the template and not have to [00:24:00] like pay for Trello or anything. You can use that to then create your own in whatever system that you use. Now, your action step, if you do wanna set up one of these, either totally on your own or you wanna get the template to help you set yours up.

Your first step is to choose themes for each workday of the week. This is so helpful. I’ve talked about it so many different times on this podcast, but it’s so helpful to theme out your work days because it really helps you focus in and make progress on all the things it helps so that you’re not, oh, I spent the whole week working on client projects and never got to my own projects.

Oh, I spent the whole week on meetings. Oh, I spent the entire. working on this and I never got to my marketing. It really helps make sure that you’re spreading the love around for all of the different areas of your business. So that’s your first action step To do this yourself is to choose themes for each workday of the week.

And your book recommendation for this week is that Summer by Jennifer Weiner. Uh, I don’t wanna say much because I don’t wanna spoil anything, but [00:25:00] it’s definitely, it’s one of those multiple narrator jump in timeline. You’re trying to figure out how are these people connected, what is going on? If you like that type of book, you’ll enjoy this one.

So that summer by Jennifer Weiner. And that is linked in the show notes as always. And until next time, my friend, I hope that you’ll go out and uncomplicate your life and biz.

Thank you so much for joining me here today, friend. If you loved this episode, it would mean the world to me if you’d leave a rating and review. This is a great way to help spread the word about this podcast. Help other wonderful women like yourself find it. You can find this episode show notes as well as tons of other great resources [email protected].

And if you aren’t following me on Instagram yet, I’d love to connect with you over there. I’m at Mrs. Amanda Warfield. Shoot me a DM and tell me what you love most about this episode. Thanks for being here, friend. I’ll see you next time.[00:26:00] 

The post Episode 153: How a Command Center Minimizes Procrastination and Distraction appeared first on Amanda Warfield.

I’m really glad you’re here because today’s conversation is such an important one. We’ve all heard the statistics about how the majority of businesses fail by year 5, and I don’t want that for any of us in this business sphere. So I invited Joy Aleman onto the podcast to discuss exactly how we can build strong roots for our businesses – and continue to weather all of the entrepreneurial storms that come our way.

Joy is a mom of two, you-tuber and host of the Called to Both podcast, She is on a mission to help ambitious creatives balance the worlds of building a successful brand while building a life they love. After photographing weddings full time for 8+ years, She founded Photoboss®: a community and brand that equips photographers to build a profitable business. She is married to her Husband of 10 years (Felipe) and has two toddlers (Clara + Lewis).

In this episode, Joy is sharing 4 steps you can take to go from Hobbyist to Pro (and build those strong roots so that you can STAY a pro in business).

Joy is a mom of two, you-tuber and host of the Called to Both podcast, She is on a mission to help ambitious creatives balance the worlds of building a successful brand while building a life they love. After photographing weddings full time for 8+ years, She founded Photoboss®: a community and brand that equips photographers to build a profitable business. She is married to her Husband of 10 years (Felipe) and has two toddlers (Clara + Lewis).

Social Links:
https://joymichelle.co/
Called To Both FB Group https://www.facebook.com/groups/calledtoboth
Photoboss FB group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/photoboss
IG: https://www.instagram.com/joyymichelle/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Ou6jRKxcjMrVMxWxLO_fQ
Joy’s Podcast https://joymichelle.co/called-to-both-podcast

Don’t forget to subscribe so that you never miss an episode! Also, if you would be willing to leave a review on Apple Podcasts, it would mean the world to me. It’s such a small thing that can make a big difference in helping me spread this message of simplicity to other overwhelmed women.

Have a comment about today’s episode, or a topic

[00:00:00] You’re listening to The Chasing Simple Podcast, episode 152, and I’m your host, Amanda Warfield. Welcome friend. I’m really glad that you’re here today because today’s conversation is such an important one. We’ve all heard the statistics about how the majority of businesses fail by year five, and I don’t want that for any of us in this business sphere.

So I invited Joy Oliman onto the podcast to discuss exactly how we can build strong roots for our business. And continue to weather all of the entrepreneurial storms that come our way. Joy is a mom of two YouTuber and host of the Call to both podcast. She is on a mission to help ambitious creatives balance the world’s of building a successful brand while building a life they love.

After photographing weddings full-time for over eight years, she founded Photo Boss, a community and brand that equips photographers to build a profitable business. She’s married to her husband of 10 years and has two toddler. In this episode, joy is sharing four steps you can take to go from hobbyist to pro [00:01:00] and build those strong roots so that you can stay a pro in business.

How do I run a successful business from my home? How can I possibly wear all of the hats? Am I the only one that struggles with staying? What am I supposed to do about work-life balance? How can I create a solid schedule and routine? How do I even stay productive? And the biggest question of all, how do I manage it all?

And can I really create a business that I love without being chained in my laptop? Welcome to The Chasing Simple Podcast. We’re hard conversations and actionable education. Meet simplicity. I’m your host, Amanda War. Time management coach, online educator, and crazy cat mama. My mission is to help overwhelm biz owners get more done and less time so that they have more time and energy for what matters most.

If you feel overwhelmed or occasionally lost in the roller coaster, that is entrepreneurship, [00:02:00] I want you to know that you aren’t alone. Those things you’re feeling, you aren’t the first or the last to feel that way. The hard things you’re going through, someone else has already been there too. Each week I’ll bring you transparent conversations, actionable steps, and a judgment free community to encourage and equip you.

So grab yourself a cup of coffee or whenever your drink of choices and meet Mimi here each week for love. Practical tips and advice on simplifying your biz. Let’s do this entrepreneurship thing together, shall we?

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I am so excited to have you on today, and I would love for you to just start us off by telling everyone who you are, what you do, and who you. Yeah. Well, thank you so much. I’m so excited to be here. I am Joy Michelle. I run a brand called Photo Boss, where I help photographers scale or start a photography business to profitability.

So after photographing weddings and portraits, For over eight years, I now help photographers do the same. So I run a Facebook group called Photo Boss with Joy Michelle and a YouTube channel. And that really focuses on like the business [00:04:00] side of running a brand in a photography business, lots of marketing and that kind of thing.

Uh, and more recently I launched. A podcast for ambitious moms called To Both is the name of the podcast for women that are just feeling the pressure to balance it all. And I have two little kids and that’s probably where the whole podcast came from. So I have a three-year-old and a one-year-old, and now that I’ve scaled back a lot in my business in terms of hours, that is a big focus of what I like to talk about is how can we be full-time income, part-time hours and balance those two worlds.

That’s a little bit of what I do. Yeah. And I know that everyone listening is going to love your podcast because around here we are all about simplicity and finding that balance in life. Whether it’s, you know, just because you just don’t wanna work a full-time job or whatever reason it is that you wanna find that balance.

But I know that everyone listening really values that. And so I really encourage everyone to go listen to call to both because you think you’re gonna really enjoy it. Now, [00:05:00] I’m so excited to have this conversation of hobbyist to Pro because. . I know that there are many, many listeners who are in that space right now where they feel like maybe they’re not treating their business like a business, or maybe it is just, just quote unquote a side hustle and they want to grow it to more, but they’re kind of in this phase where they feel stuck.

And so I would love to hear what you think the difference between a hobbyist and a pro is. Because we can’t bridge the gap if we don’t know what the, the start and the end point. Yeah, I love this question. I think there’s so many people that are gonna be listening and are in Facebook groups and are kind of in this like learning phase that would identify as a hobbyist, but I feel like let’s, let’s kind of define the two in the difference.

I actually looked this up before hopping on this interview. The hobbyist or a hobby is an activity done regularly in one’s leisure, time for pleasure, and the professional is relating to or belonging to a [00:06:00] profession. So I personally think that the second you are taking money or trying to find more people to.

Take money or you’re trading money for a service, it becomes a business, right? So when you have an offer and someone pays you for it, even if it’s lower than you’d like it to be, or you just started last weekend, or you feel like you’re just starting out and you are still thinking you might fit into that hobbyist category, the second that there is that exchange of money, it does play into that business model.

And I think the word in the definition for one’s leisure time is important to. Point out because a lot of times creatives especially, they find pleasure in their work, right? So it says done in their leisure time for pleasure. And so we might say, but I really enjoy it and I don’t really charge a lot. So it’s kind of a hobby.

Well, that’s where we’re kind of blending those two things. And just because someone is loving it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s still a. That’s kind of the difference between the two. I think the second year trying to [00:07:00] make money from it, it is now a business and there’s such a mental shift that needs to happen there.

And I think letting go of that word and that identity of hobbyist is like the first step for sure. Okay, so the mental shift is exactly where I wanted to take this next, so I’m really glad you brought that up. What would you say to someone who they are exchanging money? They are. Running a business, even if they’re feeling like the hobbyist.

What would you say to them about that mindset shift that they really need to make because they’re calling themselves, well, it’s just a hobby, it’s just a side hustle, but they’re having that exchange of dollars to time or dollars to product, or whatever that may be. Yeah, I think. That a lot of times, especially as creatives, we might stumble into that business role where you started out doing this for friends or family, or you just love what you do in your business so much that it can be hard to see it as a business.

I think the first thing to say is that [00:08:00] feeling ready is kind of an elusive concept. Uh, and more often than not, I think we have to push past a feeling of ready and decide, give ourselves permission to step into that next role. So, Deciding that you are going to be a professional is the first step. And I remember early days of my photography business actually having to practice saying I’m a wedding photographer out loud, because saying it, I felt like I was lying even though it was true and it felt like I would say it wrong or I would.

Pat it with an excuse or I would say I’m just, sometimes I shoot weddings, but I’m also doing this and we feel the need to say what else we do. You know, what other day job we might have. And having a day job does not discount whatever it is that you’re doing in your business, and that is so, so important.

But I think that the confidence with which we talk about our business or we talk about our service or our product, Is key because if we don’t believe in it, [00:09:00] it’s going to be really, really hard for others to believe in it. And I think sometimes we wait for someone else to say like, you should be a pro at this.

You should charge more at this. And someone might even say, you should charge more, but they’re not actually willing to pay you the more. But I think it’s so important to make sure that we’re not looking externally for that first step, that we’re really just saying, I want this. I’ve decided I want this.

And that makes it valid. I love that you, you talk about how important that confidence is, but you also gave everyone an action step. To go build that confidence because it has to come from inside. You have to start with building that confidence for yourself, and if that means you walk around the house saying it out loud to yourself, or you write it on a mirror or you write it on a post-it note, whatever that may be, I really want you guys to start calling yourself what you are, and I know how hard that is.

Just this last week, I was at a conference and I should have been saying I’m an. Because the [00:10:00] book has been written, I didn’t mention it once, and so I know that resistance that you’re feeling, everyone yeah, can get it. It is hard to put those things out there, but the more you say it, the easier it gets to say it, and the more confident you feel as you say it.

And that confidence then bleeds into more sales. When you’re confident, when you’re talking to someone about what you do, they go, oh, okay. And they. What you do in their brain with you, and the next time they hear someone say, I need a wedding photographer. I need someone to set up the Deb Soto backend for me, they’re going to thank you if you’re confident enough to tell them what you do.

Yeah. I love Amanda. I love that you mentioned that you’re still navigating this because that is such a common misbelief that if I can just get through the first couple of years, I’m going to feel like that person I see online and they look so confident and they look so self-assured and their brand is so beautiful, but.

it almost doesn’t go away with every new addition to your title now saying you’re an author, which [00:11:00] is so incredible, it takes a minute to like put that identity on and to put the hat on and say like, I’m allowed to step into this. This is true. It kind of feels weird, but it’s true. And so I love that you, you’re kind of saying like, Hey, this doesn’t go away.

Like we have to keep checking and making sure. And then also that like the more you talk about it, the more people can. Your offer or service to even someone in their lives who might need it, which is so true and truly is how I found some of those first clients. Yeah. And I still to this day, if I’m like, oh, I know this person needs this person, I’m gonna help make that connection for them.

Yes. If I think of someone in, they’re like, oh, I need this person. I’m gonna say, oh, well I know someone that can help you with that. Because a referral from someone you know and trust is going to go so much farther than your content marketing will and. That, that’s the content marketing strategy saying that guys, but it’s true.

Content marketing will only get you so far and those relationships are so important. But if you don’t tell the people in your life what you do, [00:12:00] You’re not gonna get those referrals. Yeah. Yeah. And it’s even beyond a conversation. Like for me, it was hard to say, I am a wedding photographer. I am building this business.

I want to do these things In those early phases, sometimes when I didn’t have the work to back it up. It was hard to talk about, but it’s also going to bleed into the content you create. Also going to affect the captions you write and how you come across and with what kind of presence you bring even to an Instagram story, even when you open the camera and you start talking about what you can do and what you’re excited to offer.

It makes a difference cause everybody works, wants to work with someone that’s excited about what they do and is passionate about it. And I think I care a little less about how experienced someone might be versus the passion with which they will do that thing with me. Um, so really take that as like, A unique advantage when starting out is that like you can bring a lot of passion and intention and client service to the table.[00:13:00] 

Maybe not years and years and years of experience, but like really don’t let that hold you back cuz sometimes that’s not everything. That’s so true and I, again, at a conference last week, there were some incredible speakers, but most of them could not attend in person. And we had a lot of virtual speakers and I was like, you know what?

These speakers are incredible. But I would have rather have had less experienced people teaching me what they are experts in, in these same topics than have bigger. Be virtual. I would much rather have someone who was newer, less experienced, but still knew what they were talking about. Because you don’t need to be five, 10 years into your business to be an expert in what it is that you do.

Are you going to continue to improve? Absolutely. But you’re still an expert today. Yeah. Yeah. That’s such a great point, is like there’s value to being in that room. That is such a good point. I love that. Okay, so what would you say. We can do to start making that [00:14:00] shift. We’ve got the mindset, we are at least understanding that the imposter syndrome is gonna try to hold us back, and we are gonna break through that by reminding ourselves that you don’t have to be in business forever to be an expert and reminding ourselves that confidence is going to really take building up, but that we can do that and then it will bleed into other areas.

What do we do from. Yeah, this is an awesome question. I think cuz it, it can be really overwhelming to stay like, okay, we are at the bottom of this mountain, how do we get to the top? So I think breaking it down, just chunking it down a little bit into what exactly needs to happen to successfully make this transition is really what would be helpful here.

So, I like to think of a business in and going pro in that business in maybe like three factors. So the first factor or zone is your front facing brand. This is the website. This is the colors, the logos, the fonts, the stuff that I think sometimes, especially creatives, [00:15:00] hyper focus on important, but not everything.

It’s one leg of the stool. Then you have your backend, and that is your systems, your repeatable processes, templates, brochures, lots of what happens, really more so when someone starts working with you or contacts you or needs. You know, customer service in any way, shape or form. That’s your business backend.

And then you have your actual skillset or your product. So kind of chunking it down into like these three things I think can help you to know which of these areas. That they are separate, but that they all are going to need attention at different times because you might fall into one zone of hyper-focusing on one area.

So I know at first I was really, really hyper-focusing on like, I’ve got to get better at taking photos cause that’s my skillset and that’s important, right? But I’ve also got to look really professional online and I like completely forgot about the backend of my business and it [00:16:00] kind of. Had me like stumbling along as people were asking difficult questions or reaching out and wanting to make amendments to maybe my contract.

It’s like I was floundering on the back end because that just wasn’t my strong suit. It’s not where my head was at. . So I think something really important if you’re going to be making this transition into professional in your workplace is let’s get a C R M. You need the client relationship management tool.

You, if you want a lot of clients, you need to start thinking what are the tools? What are the systems, what are the templates and workflows that are going to carry me through when that client roster is full? So, think. Let’s set it up now because I delayed some of these things personally, which I think so many people encounter this because I wasn’t super busy, so I could kind of work, really not smart.

I was spinning my wheels a lot. I’m writing the same emails over and over. I’m trying to remember where I’m at in each client process, but when you have a handful of clients, Doable. And I [00:17:00] didn’t have any kids at the time, and I had all this extra time, and now I’m realizing it really wasn’t necessary for me to spend so much time on the backend of those things.

So that kind of stuff. You also have like your legal and your contracts and getting your business set up legitimately like f. Filing for an L L C or whatever business formation you end up with, this is so important. And I think that also kind of contributes to our own confidence doing some of these simple things on the backend that seem not as exciting, that nobody really sees will be important for you to know.

No, this is a real business. I do have a business bank account. It might not have lots of money in it, but it’s there , and we’re excited about that and. Setting up your backend is really important as well. So as you think about these zones, especially when you’re in school or you’re working a full-time job, and this is on the side, one thing that I love to recommend is to pick a focus maybe once a week, [00:18:00] one time a week, that you can focus in your business.

So, In your calendar, you’re blocking that time, even if it’s like a 90 minute block and then choosing, okay, either for the month or for the week, let’s focus on one of these zones. You know, you do need a brand, you do need a website. You do need those visuals, but don’t let that be the thing that sucks you in for six months.

And we haven’t worked on the craft, educated ourselves, connected with other creatives that kind of. I was so glad you mentioned the connecting with other creatives because I’m finding a lot of students falling into this trap of working on all these aspects of the school, but not building relationships in any way, shape or form with other people in their industry.

And yeah, if you don’t have, you can’t do business in a vacuum. No. Uh, yes, yes. And it’s funny, I’m like jumping ahead because that’s like totally one of my points, but it’s connect through community and through mentorship. So finding a tribe, finding a like-minded community. You know, if you can find people in your local geographic area that that’s [00:19:00] wonderful, but online is wonderful too.

And I always say there is stagnation in your isolation. So if you’re feeling stuck and. Like in the thinking, the same circular thoughts and you know, working on your website a little bit and then get an inquiry and then they ghost you. It’s like maybe get out of that. That closed world, that vacuum, just like you said, is such a great way of putting it.

It’s like if you’re just in this vacuum, you can’t expect to grow. You know? Like we have to rise to the community that we are around, that we’ve surrounded ourselves with. So, so important, and I think this also goes for like mentorship and coaching too. I think that. Easily help you to up-level your community because you have access to someone who has done it, who has been through it, who has made so many mistakes and can shed light on areas that you don’t necessarily need to go stumbling over.

And I, I don’t think it always has to be a paid thing. I think you can sometimes find mentors that are willing to take you under their wing, but I will [00:20:00] also say, That when you invest in something, something incredible happens with your commitment. I have seen this in my students’ lives. It’s, it’s wild and I’ve seen it in my own business when I put my money into something, cause money is just energy that you’re saying, I’m gonna put this towards this.

It just further confirms for you that you are doing that thing. You could say, I have committed to this. I am working on this. We are growing in this. And the, the way that you show up for yourself when you actually pay for so. Totally different game. Totally different game. And sometimes we need that accountability.

Right. . And it’s so funny cuz you and I were just talking about this before we hit record about the whole, okay, well we outsourced podcast editing right off the bat off. I didn’t write off the bat, but you did. And I got to this place where I really was feeling. Bogged down by the podcast because I was so tired of editing.

It was, I hated every second of it. And my husband and I had to sit down and have a conversation of, is this a good investment to make for the [00:21:00] business? And he was kind of like, I don’t know, like if you think it’s a good investment, I guess so. But like is the r o ROI there? Um, turns out. The quality of the podcast has shot up, not just because the editor is way better than I am at editing, but also because I can pour more deeply into the actual content because I’m not so bogged down.

I’m more invested in it. Mm-hmm. Because I’m giving someone else my money and saying, please do this for me. Yeah. Yeah, I love that. I think the beauty of this is like you’re short-cutting into a higher quality product as well. Yeah. And that’s really what happens in a coaching relationship. It’s like you can shortcut , they’re gonna like hand you things and and explain things and help you not spend so much time on things that you don’t need to be spending time on.

That is so in. and there’s so many other perks of having relationships. One, you’re surrounded by people that get it. . Mm-hmm. , let’s face it, a lot of times our spouses and our friends just don’t get what we’re doing in this online space, and that’s okay because it’s not something that [00:22:00] they’ve lived through.

But when you’ve got people that you can have these conversations and shortcut these conversations of, oh, here’s what I wanna do without wait, but what does that word mean? And what does that mean when you are, you know, Yes. When you’re having a conversation where it’s like, I’m trying to follow, but I don’t really know all these terminologies that you’re using, so then you have to backtrack and explain everything, and then by the time you get around, it’s like, well, we’ve spent 30 minutes talking about this, and I haven’t even gotten an answer to my question or your thoughts on it.

But when you’re in relationships with people that get it, you can ask the question and 10 seconds later have some sort of brainstorming opportunity, and so you’ve got that. They also build your confidence, which we just talked about, right? Mm-hmm. . Having someone else say, no, you are good at this. No, you are meant to do this because that imposter syndrome is never going to stop.

You’re how many years in business? Mm, nine. Nine. Okay. And I’m five. And it just, It never ends. There’s always something else to feel like you’re an imposter about, and so you have to have those people that are gonna lift you up when you’re down. Oh, I [00:23:00] hundred percent agree, and I think that takes self-awareness to know that you feel better when you’re with certain people, or that you need to surround yourself with people who get it, and you can have supporters.

There’s a difference between a community that gets it and people who support you. My mom supports me. She doesn’t understand the jargon. It’s just like you were saying, I’m gonna spend more time trying to explain to her the significance of podcast download numbers than actually getting somewhere in a conversation,

And so there’s, there’s a place for both of those people. But you just, you need both. You need the community and it’s so, it is gonna help keeping you focused on your why and why did you start this at all? Because sometimes it, it gets so overwhelming when you’re doing all the things, wearing all the hats.

you can get lost in it and the community can recenter you. I love that. Okay, so I know you said we jumped ahead a bit. So we, first action step was to focus on all three of those zones, which is, you know, the front facing brand, the back end, and then also your skills. And then we also [00:24:00] talked about the importance of relationships.

What other action steps do you have for us? Yeah, so I think just being a, a lifelong student of your craft and carving out time for that every single. . And I think breaking this down even further, it’s not just the product or the service that you bring to the table, it’s now all the different aspects of business.

So trying to grow in each of these areas slowly can look like watching a teaching or attending a conference on email marketing. And you didn’t think you were gonna be an email marketer maybe when you signed? For this business, but now you are. And so I think really committing to like the learning and growing process so important, and this can be as simple as finding a podcast like this one and just listening to it every day as you get ready or tuning into a YouTube channel if you’re more of like a visual learner.

But I think that making sure in both the time that you carve out in your schedule, Even if it’s a little bit to constantly be learning and growing, but even in a budgetary way as well, to think, [00:25:00] okay, every year I wanna reserve a little bit to reinvest back into myself. Cause I think sometimes we’re, we’re accustomed to investing back into the business.

Like for me it was like a lot of gear that made sense. I could buy that lens, I could buy that camera body and I could physically hold it. And so that felt so important. But now I. That stuff. It has wear and tear. It was important. It was tied to income. That’s wonderful, but also kind of fleeting.

Everything that I learned as a business owner, I get to take with me into any iteration that I have in business, into any pivot that I might take that bettered me as the business owner and as the c e O. So continuing to make sure that that’s kind of in its rightful place, like pouring back into you as the C E O.

Is so important and so valuable so it can feel like everything’s important at first, cuz there’s a lot on, on your roster of things to do. But developing you is also very important too. I love that I, as a former teacher, I think continuing [00:26:00] education is so important because like you said, there’s always gonna be another thing to learn.

Things are always changing and mm-hmm. , hopefully, I’m not hijacking your next point with this, but along with that, a lot of conversations we’re seeing right now is people being very unwilling to embrace change as a business owner. Mm-hmm. Oh, yes. Particularly with TikTok, which as we’re recording this, it is September.

Hopefully by now everyone listening has gotten on TikTok, but that is just the nature of being a content marketer. Yeah. Things are going to change. We get so upset when the algorithm changes and we get so upset when this and that changes when iOS updates, uh, ruin, quote unquote our ad strategy and this and that.

Mm-hmm. changes the nature of being in business. Mm-hmm. . And if you’re being stagnant, like you said, you’re not grow. Oh my gosh. I love that you mentioned this. Have you read the book? Who Moved? My Cheese? No. Okay. Game Changer. Weirdest title, game Changer. It’s so short. I actually listened to it on Audible cause I’m a big audiobook listener.

It is all about [00:27:00] change and how if we are unable to adapt to change, but it’s like so good. You have to listen to it. , if you are unable to adapt, you will not win in business. And that like the most adaptable business owners are the winners. Like we’ve experienced this the past few years with what’s happened with Covid now here with like, what looks like a recession happening, it the, the most adaptable business owners will still be making it at the end of all of this.

And it’s, it’s such a good book. So yeah, who Moved My Cheese? Great book. But then also as you’re saying this, I’m like, it’s mindset. It all comes back to mindset. It’s a scarcity mindset to be hung up on an algorithm for a free platform that exist. To reach hundreds or thousands or millions of people, and instead of seeing it as, okay, if the algorithm changed, doesn’t mean no one’s getting reached.

We just have to figure out how, like you have to figure out how to make it work for you, and really seeing it as like a land of opportunity instead of a [00:28:00] frustration situation. Like, almost like palms open instead of like fists clenched. Yeah. Absolutely. Yes, the palms open. It’s opportunity especially, particularly if we’re talking TikTok.

Again, there is so much growth opportunity. I had TikTok go viral on one of my accounts over a month ago. Wow. And every day I’m still getting followers and likes on that TikTok, and it’s just a CAT account, so it’s not doing anything for my business. But there is so much opportunity to truly get in front of thousands or hundreds of thousands or millions of people on TikTok right now.

which we’re not seen on Instagram. Nope. Or anything like that anymore. Mm-hmm. . And if you’re able to be that palms open and say, okay, change is happening. I’m gonna go with the change and see what I can do and play around with it and not wait for someone to tell you best practices and not wait for someone to say, this is the best way to do it.

Just go in and experiment and it’s gonna be messy. And that’s, So good, so good. Well, if you wanna see Methy, go [00:29:00] back to my first YouTube videos, , because they’re all still there. And I wasn’t following best practices. I didn’t know, I didn’t know who to go to to learn this stuff. I mean, this was five plus years ago, but it’s crazy how like you can get stuck in like this like overthinking cycle of feeling, like if I get enough information, I will feel ready, I will not make mistakes.

And really what’s happening in there is just this like perfectionism, like analysis paralysis. And when I recognize that in myself, which happens a lot cause I want stuff to be perfect. I want it to be great and wonderful and not to look stupid online. But when I see that I real, I have to name that for what it is and say like, that is not serving me, that is not getting me clients, that is keeping me stuck.

So just name. and make a quick action. Like for me, when I’m stuck thinking about things, I’ll say, what can I post really quickly? Like, what if I set a 10 minute timer? Am I gonna go live? Am I gonna make a story? Am I gonna like something? I have to hit publish? Because if it’s been too long, the longer [00:30:00] you go, the more you build it up in your head to be more than it is.

Oh, I’m so glad you brought that up. It’s definitely a mindset of perfection. And if we can, yes, there’s a time and place where you should outsource things and you should say, let me hire an expert to tell me how to do this in the best way. Absolutely. But there’s so much inside of each of us where we can do this and we can do these things, and it’s totally possible.

And a lot of times outsourcing is just, I want a shortcut. Yeah. But in some things, a shortcut is not always, it shouldn’t be your first. No. Yeah, especially when you’re bootstrapping things in the beginning. And also I’ve heard when you’re hiring people on or when you’re outsourcing something, you should have at least a basic understanding of what it is that you’re trying to get someone to do.

So if you want someone to make all of your tos, make 10 by yourself first, know what’s possible, or you might have completely unrealistic expectations from that person, from the metrics. Also, you can’t hold them accountable. This is like why [00:31:00] when you hire an SEO expert and you know nothing about seo, you can’t actually check on their work.

You need a basic understanding of these things. And that’s why I, I, I exactly like you’re saying. I think there’s so much benefit to saying like, I have to learn these things at at least a basic level so that I know what, where am I really great? Where should I sit in my business, where I am utilized well, and then I can outsource.

And so that, That is so key because we do want a shortcut. We really, really do. , yes, and the expectations. If you have not already, go back and listen to episode 132 from November. It’s called Why Your Social Media Manager may not be getting the results you’re looking for in Spoiler. It’s not your social media manager’s fault.

Ooh. So everyone go back and listen to that one if you have not already or go re-listen because it’s a great reminder. Okay, so I know you have one more action step for everyone. I feel like we could just keep talking about this forever, but one more action step for everyone. What would that be? The final thing I think that’s [00:32:00] so important with this topic is that this is not a sprint, it is a marathon.

So pacing yourself and making sure that you’ve chunked this down into the action items that need to get done and really start getting. Good at knowing that that to-do list is gonna stay a little mountainous. That’s just like entrepreneurship. But pacing yourself, you have that time on your calendar, you’re guarding it fiercely.

You’re sitting there rotating through the three zones. Know that this is a long game and the good thing is slow growth can also equal very strong roots. And there is such a thing. And I know someone’s gonna be like, no, this sounds like a good problem. There is such a thing as growing too quickly. And if you are suddenly slammed with 30 clients and you don’t.

The booking backend support. You don’t have the systems and workflows and templates and things to draw from. You will be extremely overwhelmed and potentially not be able to deliver at that [00:33:00] client level that you really want to. I think so many times, as like small business owners, we really want that excellent client experience.

So having an appreciation for that slower growth and knowing that what you’re doing now is laying a base for a long lasting business. We don’t want just one viral video. We want a business that is gonna stand the test of. Absolutely. So good. Okay, so we have so many action steps. We’ve got mindset to revisit.

We’ve got those three zones to cycle through. We’ve got making sure you’re continuing your education and building relationships. If you were to give everyone just one action step for this week, what would it be? I think that if you do not currently have one place where all of your business stuff lives in terms of like a project management tool, so like Asana, Trello Notion is my current favorite, but whatever you will use is the right tool for you.

If you don’t currently have basically your entire [00:34:00] brain living somewhere, you are doing yourself a disservice. That should be a first step because you’re gonna hear all these amazing ideas and they all sound so pressing and so important. What I like to do is just put that on a someday maybe list so I can get it off my head.

I know we’ve written it down. We’ll get to it when we have time. Right now in this season, we’re working on backend or we’re working on our skills, we’re working on the brand, and it just helps to get that off your mind. There’s this, um, David Allen book called Getting Things Done, and he basically talks about this, like at, at, you know, he goes into all the details, but the essential part that really stood out to me was that our brains are not made to store ideas.

They are made to come up with ideas and solve creative problems. We are so good at that. So you might find that you have so many ideas, but you like almost can’t even remember if you transferred the laundry and what you’re having for dinner. It’s like you’re all over the place and one of the best things you can do is centralize everything into one.[00:35:00] 

One singular location. I think it’s great if there’s an app so that like if you’re on a walk, you can just write that thing down and move on, because you might have gotten five ideas just from this podcast. So put it down and then know where you’re gonna be, and then you can still stay in your lane while gathering ideas and while learning, because I know for me it was like, it was like a machine gun those first couple years.

It was like ideas. Ideas. Oh my gosh. Everybody’s saying all these things. I’ve never even heard of this. Okay, I need to get on TikTok. Like now I feel like the next week of my life I need to be on TikTok. It’s like, Write it down, put it where it belongs. Stay in your lane. Filing it all away is so important.

And having something that works both as a desktop and an app, that is my number one reason for loving Trello, because that, mm-hmm. for that for me is like, oh, I’m on a walk. Okay, well, I gotta get this outta my brain right now because I’m gonna forget, or I’m going to obsess over it so that I don’t forget it.

Yeah. Yeah, it’s huge and it’s huge for being feeling present. Like if your business is feeling like it’s kind of taking over your entire life, not just in the hours, but in your [00:36:00] mind, that is one way to truly put a pin in it and then say like, we can, we can be present now. We can be with our spouse, we can be with the kids, we can be with friends.

We can be alone and not be thinking. What are we doing with the email funnel , you know? Yeah, absolutely. Okay, so you’ve given us two great book recommendations already, but if there was like a top tier, everyone needs to go read this book right now, what would it be? soundtracks by John AK or start by John aaf.

So I’m like, does it count cuz it’s the same author. Can I say too, you can absolutely say too of these books have changed my life. Start is incredible for if you’re feeling fearful and you haven’t made the leap and you know what you wanna start and you just fear is what’s stopping you? Soundtracks, oh my gosh.

Truly, I think every single human being should read soundtracks because you will learn how to replace the negative soundtracks in your mind. All the mindsets that you might even not realize you’re holding onto, that are actively holding you back from the life you want [00:37:00] most. That’s great. I read either those, so I’m gonna add those to my library list as soon as we get off of this call.

And he’s hilarious. He narrates his own books and he’s also a comedian, so like they’re actually really good reads or listens. Either way. They’re really funny. Okay, great, thank you. Yeah. Okay, so now everyone is obsessed with you as I am, and they want more of you. Where should they go if they want to just hear more of you, if they want to work with you, where should we send them?

Yeah, I, so my website is Joy michelle.co. I am at Joy Michelle on Instagram. You can come tune into the podcast. It is called to both and. The Facebook group is Photo Boss with Joy Michelle. So if you’re a photographer and you are like, yes, I need all of these things to up-level my business and. Turn what’s now very passionate into something that’s also profitable.

Come join me inside of photo Bos. I would absolutely love to have you. Okay, great. Perfect. We will link to all of that in the show notes. Joy, thank you so much for being here today. I [00:38:00] really appreciate it. Oh my gosh. Pleasure is mine.

Thank you so much for joining me here today, friend. If you loved this episode, it would mean the world to me if you’d leave a rating and review. This is a great way to help spread the word about this podcast. Help other wonderful women like yourself find it. You can find this episode show notes as well as tons of other great resources [email protected].

And if you aren’t following me on Instagram yet, I’d love to connect with you over there. I’m at Mrs. Amanda Warfield. Shoot me a DM and tell me what you love most about this episode. Thanks for being here, friend. I’ll see you next time.

The post Episode 152: Building Strong Roots for Your Business with Joy Michelle appeared first on Amanda Warfield.

There are so many ideas out there for how you can sell and market your course. And you’ve got one expert saying that evergreen is the best and only way, and you’ve got another saying that live launching is the best and only way. And frankly, it’s just confusing messaging, and nothing in life or business is ever that simple.

In episode 123, I shared all about live launching vs evergreen funnels – the pros and cons of each, and which I think you should be utilizing. (spoiler: it’s both). In this episode, we’re going to dive a bit deeper into each of those, how you can create a cohesive sales system in your business, and exactly what you need to make that happen.

By the end, you’ll have a clearer picture on what an entire marketing and sales system could look like for your course or digital offer.

Don’t forget to subscribe so that you never miss an episode! Also, if you would be willing to leave a review on Apple Podcasts, it would mean the world to me. It’s such a small thing that can make a big difference in helping me spread this message of simplicity to other overwhelmed women.

Have a comment about today’s episode, or a topic you’d like to suggest for a future episode? Shoot me an email over at [email protected]!

[00:00:00] There are so many ideas out there for how you can sell and market your course, and you’ve got one expert saying that Evergreen is the best and only way, and then you’ve got another one saying that live launching is the best and the only way. And frankly, it’s really confusing messaging, and nothing in life or business is ever that simple as much as I would love for it to be.

Back in episode 123, I shared all about live launching versus evergreen. The pros and cons of each, and which I think that you should be utilizing, which spoil alerts both of them. In this episode, we’re going to be diving a bit deeper into each of those, how you can create a cohesive sales system in your business and exactly what you need to make that happen.

By the end, you’ll have a clearer picture on what an entire marketing and sales system could look like for your course or digital offer. You’re listening to episode 150, 1 of the Chasing Simple. And I’m your host, Amanda Warfield.[00:01:00] 

How do I run a successful business from my home? How can I possibly wear all of the hats? Am I the only one that struggles with staying organized? What am I supposed to do about work-life balance? How can I create a solid schedule and routine? How do I even stay productive? And the biggest question of all, how do I manage it all?

And can I really create a business that I love without being chained in my laptop? Welcome to The Chasing Simple Podcast, where hard conversations and actionable education meet simplicity. I’m your host, Amanda Warfield, time management coach, online educator, and crazy cat mama. My mission is to help overwhelm biz owners get more done and less time so that they have more time and energy for what matters most.

If you feel overwhelmed or occasionally lost in the rollercoaster that is entrepreneurship, I want you to know that you aren’t. Those things you’re feeling, you aren’t the first or the last to feel that way. The hard [00:02:00] things you’re going through, someone else has already been there too. Each week I’ll bring you transparent conversations, actionable steps, and a judgment free community to encourage and equip you.

So grab yourself a cup of coffee or whenever your drink of choices and meet Mimi here each week for love. Practical tips and advice on simplifying your biz. Let’s do this entrepreneurship thing together, shall we?

Are you looking to improve your content without spending a ton of time and mental energy doing so? Whether you’re looking for help, knowing what to talk about, setting up content systems. Or improving your launch strategy. The Chasing Simple Shop has something for you from a year of content prompts broken up by type of content to my launch strategy mini course, which will teach you my entire strategy for launching your upcoming online course.

The Chasing Simple Shop is the quick and simple way to take your content to the next level. And you can [00:03:00] get 10% off any item. Just for being a listener of the Chase and Civil podcast by using the Code Listener at checkout, just head to amanda warfield.com/shop. And again, that code for 10% off is listener.

Back in episode 1 48, I talked all about the two parts. That need to be inside of every marketing plan, nurturing your current audience and growing your audience, not only what they are, but some strategies for how you can do each of them. If you haven’t already, go back and listen to that episode for a more in-depth discussion, but I just wanted to mention that because you’re gonna hear me talk about both of those sides of a marketing plan within.

These two different sales systems. And I didn’t want you to wonder what in the world I was talking about, so you’ll hear me talk about this is the growth side of things or this is the nurture side of things with your marketing plan. This is what I’m referring to. And if you haven’t listened to episode 1 48, I definitely recommend that you do so.

So you kind of have a better idea of what it is that I’m referring to. But let’s start with [00:04:00] evergreen sales systems. So evergreen sales is exactly what it sounds like. The idea and what. Sort of pushed out there in the online business space is that it’s a set it and forget it kind of thing. You’re gonna make tons of passive income when you set up an evergreen system and you’re not gonna have to worry about working anymore, and that’s not true at all.

We all know that there is no true passive income. We know that. Yes, there are absolutely ways to make scalable income, right? Selling a course is a great way to make scalable income. You do the work once, and then you just focus on the sales and the marketing process, but you’re also gonna go back and revamp the course and make it better, and you’re gonna do the same thing with your sales and your marketing systems.

So it helps your business essentially become more so focused on sales and marketing versus the actual execution implementation of what your zone of genius is. [00:05:00] But it’s not passive. It’s not set it and forget. . That’s not to say that I don’t love evergreen sales systems. I really do. I just wanna make sure that we’re all on the same page as far as it’s not truly passive and you’re going to be tweaking your evergreen systems forever and ever.

Amen. And there is a lot that goes into it. And evergreen system, because it’s so ha. Hands off, requires lots and lots and lots of automation and lots of different parts of your automation working together. . But when it works well, you can essentially just focus all your time and energy on driving people into your email list and focusing on that growth aspect so that your automations can sell for you.

And you can see money in the bank coming in when alls you’re really focused on other than the tweaking that you’ll continue to do. But your big focus is seeing that growth in your list size so that you can bring a certain number of people in so that say 2% convert [00:06:00] and you make those. so needs, let’s talk about all the different pieces that you need for an evergreen sales system.

Well, first and foremost, you need a way to get someone onto your email list, so a freebie or a self-liquidating offer. And this can look like so many different things. We all know that a freebie can be anything from a PDF to a workbook, to an audio training, to a summit, to a workshop, a webinar. , there are so many different things that you can do and give away in order to get someone on your list and have them give you their name and their email address so that you can then put them into this Evergreen sales system and sell to them.

Right? Self-liquidating offer is essentially the same thing if you haven’t heard of it, but they pay for it upfront, so it’s typically something that’s like 27 or less dollars, and it’s a quick sale. , and then the idea is that they’re not just freebie seekers. They are ready to put [00:07:00] money into things.

They’re ready to say, yes, I am willing to pay for this goal, this end result, right? I’m ready to pay for this transformation. Here’s my money, and it’s an easy. Way to do so. Oh, I can pay $14 for that transformation. Not a problem. And typically these are used in ads. So people will say, oh, hey, let me drive massive amounts of traffic to this ad where I’m selling this offer, and the idea and why it’s called a self-liquidating offer.

The idea is that that 27 or less product will pay for the ads and then you can just continue to throw money. Left and right, and so the ads are paying for themselves and you’re also getting people on your list. And the hope is that they will then go on and buy a larger offer within the last year or two in all of the privacy concerns and apple changing things and all kinds of stuff.

These don’t seem to be working [00:08:00] quite like they used to. Um, it’s not as simple as, let me just throw money at an ad and it’ll pay for itself any longer. But the idea still stands. You could have a small offer that you’re selling. With the intent to get people into your funnel to a larger item, so you’re going to use those things that are distinctly connected to this long-term offer.

And you’re going to push these people into these sales funnels with them, and this is where the growth marketing side of things come in, comes into play. You are saying, okay, I am going to push people, like I’m focusing all my attention on this small offer or this freebie, and I am going to put this in front of as many people as possible and that’s gonna grow my list so that I can then make more.

The next thing that you’re going to need is a welcome sequence because once someone gets into your email list, you’ve got to nurture them. This is the nurture side of things, but for new people that come in, and then also for your current audience, once they come in, they become your current audience, [00:09:00] but you’re nurturing them and giving them information about you.

You’re giving them value and education and you’re kind of saying, this is why you should stick around. Now that you’ve gotten this thing, you’ve gotten this freebie, you’ve gotten this small offer, I would love for you to stick around and here’s why. So you’ve gotta set up a welcome sequence, and with this, they’re gonna be tagged to go into your welcome sequence.

Your email system is gonna send them a series of emails that you’ve set. And then within that welcome sequence you may mention, here are some other ways to connect with me. Here are some other free piece that I have. Here’s some long form content that I have. Here’s maybe another small offer you may enjoy, and you’re going to really welcome them into your space and give them a reason to stick around once you’ve sent them through a welcome sequence.

Then you’re going to send them through nurture sequences and sale sequences, and there are so many different ways that you can set these up. And so I don’t wanna spend a ton of time here because I’m, I’m not here to say that there’s one best way to do this, [00:10:00] but what you could do, one example of a, a nurture sequence would be sending them.

Three emails with tons of value, sending them to long form content, giving them like your best content. And then in the fourth one, sell them something. Just a quick email like, Hey, by the way, if you’ve loved these last three emails about. Email marketing. Here’s my email marketing templates that you might like, right?

You can do it like that. You can also do, okay, here’s three or four nurture sequence emails, and then I’m gonna put you in an entire sales sequence that is going to send you, you know, five or six emails about my course. And it really, the strategy behind these emails really is gonna depend on what your.

How much it is, what the transformation is, what your audience is like. And so again, I’m not gonna say send this many of this and this many of that, but the idea is that you are sending these people through a sequence or multiple sequences, depending [00:11:00] on your value ladder and how many different offers you have.

You’re sending them through these various sequences to nurture. And then offer them your offer. Let them know that your offer exists. Maybe if it’s something that needs more convincing, you do a full sale sequence and you can kind of go back and forth. Don’t do a sale sequence right after another sale sequence.

If you’re gonna do a sale sequences, do a sale sequence and then nurture ’em, and then do a sale sequence and then nurture ’em again, and you can spread out the nurture sequences. They can be as long as you would like. It really depends on, again, your business. And I’m not gonna give specific to-dos and not to-dos about that.

That’s another thing that you would need to set up for an evergreen sequence. You’ve gotta have those nurturing sales sequences set up because otherwise you’re not selling to anyone. The next thing you need is a way to create scarcity. When you have an evergreen sequence, you have to give people a reason to buy right now.

And because we don’t wanna create false scarcity, this takes some technology [00:12:00] involved, and this takes some really intentional thought and planning. One way that I will create scarcity is I will offer something for a lower price, but you’re only able to get that lower price for a certain amount of time, and once that timer.

goes off. Once it’s done, you truly cannot get back to that page, and I have that set up in Kartra. I’ve also, I know deadline funnels is another thing that you can use that with, but Kartra does allow me to do it with all my other stuff, and so I can set up a timer on a page so that once you are. unique person hits that zero on it.

It will redirect every single time. They will not let you back onto that page where that special offer is. So it’s not false scarcity. It’s truly this offer is only available for a limited time, and so you’re gonna wanna create some sort of scarcity that way. You see scarcity a lot, and it’s really obvious in live launches because okay, the doors are gonna close, the price is going up, [00:13:00] this bonus expires.

Those are. Scarcity. That’s all a reason to convince someone that now is the time, and it helps someone decide, okay, yes, I am actually interested in this and I’m gonna go ahead and get in while I can get this bonus, or while I can get it at this lower price. That’s kind of the idea behind why you need scarcity.

And so with an evergreen funnel, you’ve got to have a way to do it that’s legitimate and that isn’t false scarcity. So you’ve got to create the instead of the tech in the background for just. , and then you’re gonna need sales pages most likely because you’re gonna need your regular sales page. And then also, again, if you’re creating scarcity and you’re gonna have something only for a limited time, you’re gonna have to have another sales page that speaks directly to that scarcity, that then you can redirect them from when that timer hits zero.

So you’re gonna need multiple sales pages. And you could also, depending on, and this is getting way advanced, but depending on. Where you’re bringing people in from. You [00:14:00] could also set up separate sales pages for each thing. So let’s say you do a bundle or you do a speaking engagement and you wanna have a sales page specifically for that speaking engagement, so you can see how it converts so that you can speak even better to that audience versus just a generic sales page.

You can also create more sales pages based on your audience and based on where those people are coming. . The next thing you’re gonna need for an evergreen sale system is a payment processor and offer delivery system. Teachable, Kartra, Cajabi. There’s so many different ones out there. You just need some way to deliver what it is that you’re giving them.

If it’s a course, all of those things, you know, teachable, cajabi, all of that. You can also go the easiest possible route and do PayPal and then. Directly email someone the offer. But if you’re setting up an evergreen sales system, you’re gonna want something that’s more advanced and more robust so that it’s doing it automatically, not so that you have to go in and actually [00:15:00] set it up for someone.

Next thing you’re gonna need is a completion sequence. Basically, we all have those course graveyards, right? We all have bought a course or a digital offer, and they never looked at again because we said, oh, it’s on sale right now. Oh, this bonus is the scarcity got us, right, the bo the bonus is gonna expire, whatever that looks like, and then we never touch it again.

So what you wanna do is set up a completion sequence to encourage people to get through it, because if they don’t get through it, they’re not gonna get that transformation. They’re not going. fall in love with what it is that you do and how you teach. They’re not going to share about it with other people.

It’s just gonna be something they bought and never thought about again. So you want as many people as possible to actually complete and get that transformation that you’re offering them. So you’re gonna send a sequence after they’ve purchased with emails every, depending. , how big your offer is and what the transformation is every week or once a month or once a quarter, so that you can just follow up and say, Hey, have you done [00:16:00] this yet?

Hey, keep it top of mind for them so that they actually complete. What it is that you’ve given them and what that they bought. And then finally, you’re gonna want a feedback or follow up sequence. Once they have theoretically completed the offer, you’re gonna say, Hey, I would love to get feedback from you.

Can you fill out the survey for me? And you’re going to set up a sequence that will encourage them to do just that. All of these things are going to be happening in the background. while you’re running your business on a day-to-day basis. So you set each of these processes up and then they run in the background and you’re not, you’re not following up on these things.

You’re not the one that’s saying, Hey, have you completed this? Hey, have you done this feedback? Could you fill out this form? Have you done? You’re not doing any of that. It’s set up, and again, you don’t set it and forget it. You can set it and forget it for a short amount of time to get data and to gather the information you need to then improve it and tweak it and make it even [00:17:00] better for the next set of people that go through it.

Again, this is great for those sales happening on autopilot for people completing your course on autopilot for you, getting that feedback on autopilot and then you can go. Once a month or once a quarter and update the feedback and testimonials on your website and on your sales page and your social media post, right?

You can then go in and say, oh, I’m hearing a lot of this isn’t explained clearly. Let me improve the course in this way. And you’re gathering that data so that you can make improvements. So all of that is happening behind the scenes for you in your business with that evergreen sales sequence, which is great.

And you’ll see a lot of people who say, set up your evergreen. Sequence and just promote your freebie, promote yourself, liquidate an offer, and just get people into the top of your funnel. That’s all you need to do. Which in theory works, yes, but it also requires a massive audience and the ability to get in front of a massive amount of new [00:18:00] people, because once you send someone through the sales sequence, they either bought or they haven’t.

And Evergreen sales funnels average about a 2% conversion rate, which isn’t high if you have a hundred people. Going into and through that sequence, that means two sales and just think how hard you work to get a hundred people into your funnel. So yes, if you’re a huge name and you have the ability to just bring in thousands of new people a week, great.

That’s incredible. And that’s gonna be a great way for you to run your business. But for most, That’s not us, right? We are more growing slowly. We are bringing in less people than that. And that’s okay, and that’s normal. And we are not the exception, but we are the rule. And so 2%. . Well, we’re not gonna see a ton of sales that way.

Yes, it’s gonna be great to occasionally get those sales right every, every week or every other week or whatever that looks like maybe a couple times a week. We’re [00:19:00] getting new sales of our products and offers, and that’s awesome. And that always feels really great, but it’s not enough to sustain an entire business.

Right. So then we’ve got live launching, which I know you’ve seen me talk about live launching. I love live launching. Live launching has a much higher conversion. Anywhere from five to 10 to really, if you’re doing an intentional live launch and you’re creating the runway and you’re doing all the different steps that I’ve outlined in so many different episodes, if you’re doing those, you can see conversion rates of much higher than that.

I’ve seen I average like 30 to 35% conversion rate, which again, if you’re bringing in a. New people under your list before launch. That’s like 30 sales. That’s a major difference. 30 sales versus two sales. If it’s a hundred dollars offer, it’s $200 versus $3,000. Right? Major difference. But live launching is exhausting.

Let’s, let’s just put that out there and be real. It’s [00:20:00] exhausting and can be mentally draining. It takes a lot of time. It takes a lot of energy and there are also a lot of moving parts, which after you’ve done the first live launch, you’re really just tweaking. It can still be a lot to strategize and figure out when you’re doing it.

It takes a lot of your time to prepare for the launch. It’s not as simple as setting and forgetting it. Every launch, you’ve gotta create a new launch runway, and you’ve gotta do all of this set up and promotion for the launch. Whereas with the Evergreen, you’re just promoting your freebie. But a launch, you’re promoting your freebie and your wait list and your this and you’re that.

And there’s a lot of moving pieces, right? So pros and cons to each of. , here’s what you need for live launching. You need that content runway, that launch content runway, the 12 weeks where you are leading people through problem, unaware to problem, aware to solution, aware to offer, aware to student, right?

You’re leading them. From problem unaware all the way to student within that 12 week period with your content. So that’s all content that you’ve got [00:21:00] to strategically map out and create, and that’s how you’re nurturing your people. That is the nurture part of this marketing plan. During the live launch, you are taking them from one place to another, and you are saying, I can help you because I’ve already helped you.

I’ve already helped you realize what the problem is. Now I can help you get that transformation and you’re nurturing them so that when it comes time to buy, they’re. . You’re also gonna need a visibility booster. This is your growth aspect of your marketing plan. For a live launch, you want to get in front of as many people as possible.

And the visibility booster is going to be things like a challenge, a summit, a limited time podcast, a audio, anything that you’re bringing in people and you’re doing almost live limited time. Podcasts aren’t super live because you can kind of set it and. Well, you’re not setting, forget it, but you record the information ahead of time.

But anything that feels, quote unquote life that is okay, this is happening during this week and this week only, and [00:22:00] you’re building up to it and you’re getting people onto your list for it and you’re saying, Hey, share with your people. This is a great, like, this is an incredible free information share with your biz bestie share with.

You’re mom, best friends, whatever that looks like, and you’re bringing people in and you’re getting really, really visible. You’re showing up a ton. You’re on all the different social media channels and whatever, like this is when you’re getting visible. This growth aspect is super important for your launch strategy because this is how you’re bringing in new people to your list so that you’re not just launching to the same people over and over and over again.

When you’re not in launch mode, you’re also gonna be working on growth through other aspects, through those freebies and things like that. And you’re gonna be pushing to those various freebies. But this is during the live launch, specifically what you’re gonna do to grow. You’re also gonna need a wait list because you’re gonna wanna capture those hot leads.

When they hear about your course, you’re gonna want them to say, oh yeah, I definitely wanna learn more about when this launches. Sign me up and put me on this list. So you’re gonna wanna have a wait [00:23:00] list set up, which is as simple as a. quick page that says, Hey, course is launching on this date. Put your name and your email in this box and I’ll send you information what it does, and then an an email sequence that says, Hey, you’re on the wait list.

Here’s what to expect. And then once you get into the launch, you’re gonna need the wait list email content that you’re then going to want to send them. But that’s, that’s during the content itself. So then you need your sales. Sequence your sales content. These are going to be the emails that you’re creating and putting out there to actually sell the course itself.

Typically, it’s, you know, 5, 6, 7, depends on how long your launch is, but you’ve got a set of emails that kind of walk people through the sales process and you’re gonna send a set of sales emails to the wait list and you’re gonna send a sale, send a set of sales emails to. The people on the interest list, and you’re gonna maybe send a couple sales emails to people that aren’t on the interest [00:24:00] list because they maybe just didn’t hear about it.

But you’re not gonna push it really hard. And so you’ve got all these different sales emails to create. You’ve got your content that’s going out on social media for that sales period, and you’ve gotta create all of those. , and you also need your sales page. In this situation, for a live launch, you only need one sales page.

You just need the one that is going to sell to every single person, however they find it. You don’t need a bunch of different ones because again, the scarcity of a launch is naturally built in. You don’t have to use technology to create it. It’s just doors are opening and closing, or the price is going up, or this bonus is gonna.

and then you again need payment processor, offer delivery system because you’ve got to be able to take the money and deliver the course. And then again, you need those completion sequences and the feedback follow up sequence because even though you’re selling live, you still and the conversions are better.

You still want to make sure your people complete the course and then give you feedback on the course so that you can improve it for the [00:25:00] next round. So, You probably noticed a lot of these needs are really similar, although the evergreen funnels are certainly more complicated, but with the live launch, you’re able to take things one step at a time.

you can work on, okay, I’ve got the launch runway planned out and I’ve got the content created for that. Now I’ve got a few weeks until I need to figure out the visibility booster. Okay, now I’ve got the visibility booster figured out. Now I’ve got the wait list set up. Now I’ve got the sales sequence. And you can slowly kind of take things one step at a time.

While with Evergreen Funnels, you kind of have to create all of it at the minimum viable product for the first time, right? Like get out just the bare minimum so that there’s something, but you have to create the funnel for them to go through so that they can go through the. , which is why I really encourage you to leverage your live launch to create your evergreen funnels because then once you have your evergreen funnels set up, you can continue to live launch, right?

Which is why I encourage you to leverage your live launch to create your [00:26:00] evergreen funnels. So you do your live launch and you tweak it, and you improve it. And then once you say, okay, I know this email works. This one needs improvement, this one works, this one needs improvement. You put ’em in, you use that content.

to put into your evergreen funnels, and it gives you that basis for that evergreen funnel set up, and you’re not totally starting from scratch. Whereas when you’re trying to start an evergreen funnel totally from scratch, it can be really, really overwhelming. But then once you’ve got your Evergreen funnel set up, Don’t stop live launching.

You can certainly slow down, but live launching is a great way to get really visible and to grow your audience. So when you live launch, you’re bringing in new people to your email list and to your audience who likely will not buy during that particular launch. And that’s something to remember, even before you set up your evergreen funnels.

The people that you’re bringing in during a live launch are most likely not going to buy during that live. , but they’re going to be in your audience and paying attention and waiting for the next launch, [00:27:00] and that’s when launching live launching. Really the magic happens is you’re continuing to build on for your next launch.

So this live launch helps prepare for your next launch, your next launch, prepare a set launch after that, so on and so forth. So when you live launch, you’re bringing in new people and they may not buy right now, but they are likely to buy in a later launch or even within that evergreen funnel. So, The real magic.

You live launch, you bring in new people, they don’t buy. You don’t have to live launch again as quickly as you would if you were only live launching because now you can send these people into that evergreen funnel and maybe in a month or two when they get to the sales sequence, maybe they’ll buy then.

So continue leveraging both live launches and green funnels as a complete system for selling your course. They work together. Two is better than one. They, they are really a cohesive system, versus you should focus solely on Evergreen launching, or you should focus solely on live launching. They’re better together.

So where do you begin? First [00:28:00] run a live launch of your own course. I recommend doing it on a shoestring budget for the first time so that you can prove your proof of concept. Yes, this means that it’s going to take a lot more time and effort for you, but if you’re not sure that the course will, , you don’t wanna pour a ton of money into it, and you can go back and listen to episode 77, the fastest and simplest way to create a successful offer.

To hear my tips on putting out a course in the simplest way possible so that you’re not wasting that ton of time. Because sometimes we have ideas for things that we think are incredible, that just are not what our audience wants, and we wanna make sure that we have proof of concept before we really pour a ton of time and energy into a course launch.

So then if the course does, Even if it doesn’t hit your goal. We’re not trying to have the most outrageous sales possible in order to continue something, but if you make sales, that means there’s something there. There may need to be a lot of tweaking and improvement, but it means there’s something there.

If it’s selling, people want it, [00:29:00] and then if you make those improvements and you do it all over again and things get worse, you can either decide, okay, maybe this messaging wasn’t better, or maybe this thing wasn’t better, or maybe this isn’t worth continuing on with, or, oh, I’ve got even more ideas for. So then once you make those improvements and you sell the course, you can see, okay, what needs to continue to be tweaked, what doesn’t, and so on and so forth.

And you continue tweaking it and then move into that evergreen funnel. And every live launch, try something new and see if you can improve your evergreen funnel that way. And if you’ve already launched your course once and it went okay, but you know that it could be. , but you don’t have the mental capacity or the time to figure out what to improve, how to improve it, and go through an entirely new launch.

I would love to help. My launch strategy, v i p days would be a perfect fit for you during your v i P day. I’ll not only look over the data copy and content from your previous launch and point out where you can improve things, but I’ll also create the [00:30:00] content marketing strategy for you to use during the launch and create a project management board that outlines all of the launch tasks that.

And your team, if you have one need to get done to make the launch happen. Basically I take the strategic thinking and the mental load off of your plate so that alls you’re going to have to do is execute and then show up for the launch itself. If you know your course launch could see drastically better results, but you don’t have the mental capacity to DIY your launch.

Head over to amanda warfield.com/service v p to learn more about how I can alleviate your launch burnout. Again, that’s amanda warfield.com/service-v p, and that’ll also be linked in the show notes for you. So your action step for this week is to put a date on your calendar for your next. Launch. I recommend giving yourself at least 16 weeks from now to ensure that you have time to create that full 12 week launch runway with your content and implement all the moving pieces necessary for launch.

But you do. [00:31:00] You take that as you will. That’s your action step though. Put your date on the calendar for your next launch and give yourself time to actually do all of the different launch pieces that you need to. and then your book recommendation for this week is, just Haven’t met you yet by Sophie Cousins.

This is a meet cute meets comedy of heirs and it, it’s a quick read, but it’s also a really heartwarming and fun, and I wanna use the word soulful read. It was a good one though. Highly recommend. Just haven’t met you yet by Sophie Cousins. Again, that will be as always linked in the show notes, and until next time, my friend, I hope that you’ll go out and uncomplicate your life and biz.

Thank you so much for joining me here today, friend. If you loved this episode, it would mean the world to me if you’d leave a rating and review. This is a great way to help spread the word about this podcast. Help other wonderful women like yourself find it. You can find this episode show notes as well as tons of [00:32:00] other great resources [email protected].

And if you aren’t following me on Instagram yet, I’d love to connect with you over there. I’m at Mrs. Amanda Warfield. Shoot me a DM and tell me what you love most about this episode. Thanks for being here, friend. I’ll see you next time.

The post Episode 151: A Complete System for How to Sell Your Course appeared first on Amanda Warfield.

Let’s face it, making money is fun, but managing it? Not always so much. Even for those of us self-professed money nerds that love personal finance – business finances are an entirely other beast. And I’ve found that the longer I’m in business and the more my revenue increases, the MORE complicated my business finances become.

So, this week on the podcast, I invited on a guest for, frankly, selfish purposes. Because I wanted to learn from her and get a better grasp on my finances in the business. So I’m really excited to share that Sarah Becker of Becker Talks Money is here this week to help us simplify those finances!

After ten years as a wedding photographer, real estate investor, and small business owner, Sarah Becker kept hearing the same story from her biz besties over and over again. While outwardly successful in their businesses, they were utterly failing in their financial goals (if they even had financial goals).

Sound familiar?

She started asking every businesswoman she knew about their money. Sarah learned that less than 2% of the creative entrepreneurs in her network were happy with the state of their finances. That’s when she started her career as a financial educator.

Sarah believes that money doesn’t have to be scary, that curiosity is more important than correctness, and that everyone can become an expert of their own money. (With a little bit of help — that’s where she comes in.)

When not crunching numbers, you can find Sarah renovating a river cabin with her partner Barry, taking her dachshund Gus for a long morning walk (with a London fog latte), and planning to have Asian food for dinner tonight (again).

This is an episode that I’m personally going to be listening to multiple times, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed recording the interview!

After ten years as a wedding photographer, real estate investor, and small business owner, Sarah Becker kept hearing the same story from her biz besties over and over again. While outwardly successful in their businesses, they were utterly failing in their financial goals (if they even had financial goals).

Sound familiar?

She started asking every businesswoman she knew about their money. Sarah learned that less than 2% of the creative entrepreneurs in her network were happy with the state of their finances. That’s when she started her career as a financial educator.

Sarah believes that money doesn’t have to be scary, that curiosity is more important than correctness, and that everyone can become an expert of their own money. (With a little bit of help — that’s where she comes in.)

When not crunching numbers, you can find Sarah renovating a river cabin with her partner Barry, taking her dachshund Gus for a long morning walk (with a London fog latte), and planning to have Asian food for dinner tonight (again).

Social Links:
Website: https://beckertalksmoney.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beckertalksmoney/
Get my money routine checklist: https://beckertalksmoney.com/money-routine

Don’t forget to subscribe so that you never miss an episode! Also, if you would be willing to leave a review on Apple Podcasts, it would mean the world to me. It’s such a small thing that can make a big difference in helping me spread this message of simplicity to other overwhelmed women.

Have a comment about today’s episode, or a topic

Let’s face it, making money is fun, but managing it not always so much, even for those of us self-professed money nerds that love personal finance business, finances are an entirely other beast, and I’ve found that the longer I’m in business and the more my revenue increases. The more complicated my business finances become.

So this week on the podcast, I invite our A guest for frankly selfish purposes because I wanted to learn from her and get a better grasp on my business finances. So I’m really excited to share that. Sarah Becker of Becker Talks Money is here this week to help us simplify those business finance. After 10 years as a wedding photographer, real estate investor, and small business owner, Sarah kept hearing the same story from her biz besties over and over again.

While outwardly successful in their businesses, they were utterly failing in their financial goals if they even had financial goals. Sound familiar? [00:01:00] She started asking every businesswoman she knew about their money. Sarah learned that less than 2% of the creative entrepreneurs in her network were happy with the state of their finance.

That’s when she started her career as a financial educator. Sarah believes that money doesn’t have to be scary, that curiosity is more important than correctness, and that everyone can become an expert of their own money. with a little bit of help, which is where she comes in when not crunchy numbers.

You can find Sarah renovating a river cabin with her partner Barry, taking her dash on. Gus for a long morning walk with a London fog latte in hand, and planning to have Asian food for dinner tonight. Again, this is an episode that I’m personally going to be listening to multiple times, and I hope that you enjoy it.

As much as I enjoyed recording the interview, you’re listening to episode 150 of The Chasing Simple. And I’m your host, Amanda Warfield.

How do I run a successful business from my home? How can I [00:02:00] possibly wear all of the hats? Am I the only one that struggles with staying organized? What am I supposed to do about work-life balance? How can I create a solid schedule and routine? How do I even stay productive? And the biggest question of all, how do I manage it all?

And can I really create a business that I love without being chained in my laptop? Welcome to the Chasing Simple Podcast. We’re hard conversations and actionable education meet. I’m your host, Amanda Warfield, time management coach, online educator, and crazy Cat mama. My mission is to help overwhelm biz owners get more done and less time so that they have more time and energy for what matters most.

If you feel overwhelmed or occasionally lost in the rollercoaster that is entrepreneurship, I want you to know that you aren’t. Those things you’re feeling, you aren’t the first or the last to feel that way. The hard things you’re going through, someone else has already been there too. Each week I’ll bring you transparent [00:03:00] conversations, actionable steps, and a judgment free community to encourage and equip you.

So grab yourself a cup of coffee or whenever your drink of choices and meet Mimi here each week for love. Practical tips and advice on simplifying your biz. Let’s do this entrepreneurship thing together, shall we?

Are you looking to improve your content without spending a ton of time and mental energy doing so? Whether you’re looking for help, knowing what to talk about, setting up content. Or improving your launch strategy. The Chasing Simple Shop has something for you from a year of content prompts broken up by type of content to my launch strategy mini course, which will teach you my entire strategy for launching your upcoming online course.

The Chasing Simple Shop is the quick and simple way to take your content to the next level, and you can get 10%. Any item just for being a listener of the Chasing Civil Podcast [00:04:00] by using the Code Listener at checkout, just head to amanda warfield.com/shop and again, that code for 10% off is listener.

Sarah, thank you so much for being here today. I’m super excited for everyone listening. We literally just chatted for an hour before we were finally like, we should probably hit record. So I’m really sorry you missed out on that conversation, but I’m super pumped for the conversation that we are going to have.

Can you just introduce yourself, tell everyone who you are and what you do, and who you. Yes. Thank you so much for having me. So my name is Sarah Becker. My business is Becker Talks Money and I’m a financial educator for entrepreneurs just like you. So I’ve been in the entrepreneurial space over a decade now.

I started to sell Wedding Photographer and then I got into real estate and then I got into another business and now I helped other businesses figure out their finances, which is honestly for me, very fun. Cause I’m a. Well, and you say now, but it sounds like you’ve been doing it all along now, you’ve I’ve actually, yes.

Get paid to do it. . [00:05:00] I’ve been doing it on the side for a while. Yeah. Over margaritas and stuff like that. Now I can actually, now I’m like, I’ll invoice you . Well, I’m really excited that we get to learn from your expertise. And my first question, and for me, this is my biggest financial issue with, Hmm, let’s talk about it.

Business finances. What is the difference between personal finances and business finances? What are the logistical differences? What are the mindset differences? What do we need to know to differentiate between the two? That is such a great question. So first, let’s talk about the how the government sees it.

So if you’re an L L C, which I imagine the majority of people listening are the government does not see a. Between your personal and business finances. Technically your business is a pass through entity to you. So even if you’re an LLC and you have an e i n, an employer identification number that you use instead of your social security number, at the end of the day, you’re the one who has the tax liability.

You’re the one filing this. Schedule C with your taxes, you’re the one [00:06:00] paying the government. Right? And when we get the separation is when you electrify as an S corp, which I typically recommend. If you’re making over about $70,000 in profit a year, not gross in profit, then it’s time to really think about becoming an S corp.

That’s when you start running payroll for yourself and the government. Sees that as two separate things. However, what the government thinks is honestly not as important as what we think at the end of the day and what our mindset is. And you know, when I started as a wedding photographer, my friends and I kind of had this thing where we would call it’s it’s real money or it’s photography money.

Because we would spend $5,000 on a camera, but when was I spending $5,000 in my real life? Literally never. Right? So it’s really hard to. Them is the same. They’re definitely not the same. But I like to think about it as your business. Finances are to fuel your business. It’s to do what’s best for the business.

Your personal finances are about what’s doing what’s best for you and [00:07:00] your future self. So I really like to keep them as separate as possible, you know, so does the government. I always recommend before you make $1. , get that business bank account, get that business credit card, keep it all separate because business money is not real money.

Yeah. I love that. I love that view. It’s not real money. Um, yeah, because yeah, it’s definitely a whole different ballgame when, and we were talking about this before, where I feel like I have a pretty good handle on our personal finances. Yeah. But then it comes into the business world and it feels.

Different and I have a budget. Mm-hmm. and I, I am like on top of my bookkeeping. That’s not one of those things that falls behind. I’m on top of it and I, I know what’s coming in, I know what’s going out, but I also feel like there’s just something I’m missing there. And unfortunately, because I don’t know what’s missing, I don’t even know how to improve that.

I think one big. Difference between personal money and business [00:08:00] money is that business money fluctuates, right? Like most people in their personal life, if you have a partner that makes a steady paycheck, or if you’re paying yourself a steady paycheck from the business or used to a certain amount, and even if the amount you’re bringing in isn’t stable every month, the amount you’re spending typically is, you know how much your mortgage or rent is, how much your utilities are gonna be, you know what your car payment is, how much you spend on groceries with the business you never really know.

How it’s, again, very fluctuating. And so I really like to reverse engineer a budget. And so instead of saying, okay, how much money did I make this month and where should it go? I start with how much money do you need to spend this month, both in your personal life and in your business? , being able to average that over a year gives you a really good number like Vicky Robin in a book I really, really love called Your Money Or Your Life, she calls it like an enough number and it’s how much money, how much money is enough for you.

And I’ll just tell you my enough number is $70,000. If I can bring in [00:09:00] personally, that’s after tax $70,000. I’m golden, and I save about 50% of that because I max out a Roth I r a and a solo 401k every year. So that’s almost $30,000 just in retirement investment that I’m putting away every year. So even with that included.

that’s my enough number and I know that some months my business is not gonna hit a 12th of that, and some months it’s going to hit five times that. So, okay, here’s my biggest question because I think so often we talk about, I keep saying my biggest questions. I’ve got a lot of big questions today, friend.

I love it. Biggest questions only. No tiny questions here. All the biggest questions. . So often when we hear people talk about fluctuating. Numbers with business people are specifically talking about that take home pay. Mm-hmm. . But what I’m curious to hear more about is the business operating expenses budget itself.

How do you budget for your business and their [00:10:00] operating expenses when you’ve got such fluctuations each month? Yes. I love that question. So you’re asking about the expenses, not the. Yes. So not what we’re paying ourselves, not how to deal with that kind of fluctuation, but how do you deal with the fluctuations with what we’re spending in our that play money, so to speak.

Yeah. Yeah. How do you, how do you deal with that being so different month after month after month? Yes. Okay. So I really recommend finding a percentage formula that works for you so that you can forecast what your expenses are going to be. I love a 30, 30, 30 10, which basically is 30% to ownership. Okay.

30% to expenses. 30% for taxes and savings, and then that 10% is just a little wiggle room. It’s just a little extra. And this is really helpful because I think a lot of budgets focus on profit. This is a gross budget, right? So if your business made $10,000 this month, great, I want you to pay [00:11:00] yourself $3,000.

I want you to set aside, you know, that kind of thing now. , if you are a single member, L L C, like most of us probably are, you can definitely pay yourself more than 30%. Right? And a lot of people are going to need to, to make their business work for them. But if you’re paying yourself more than that 30%, it should be coming from your expenses, not from your taxes or your savings.

It’s okay if your salary is an. Gotcha. But I think what a lot of times people will say, I don’t know if I can afford this for my business or not. I’ll use photography again as an example, because it’s a good one, and that our equipment’s really expensive. Like, can I afford this $5,000 camera? Well, it’s like, well, what?

Typically, again, in photography, you have contracts booked out for several months. So it’s like, well, let’s calculate, you know, if you wanna spend $5,000 and that’s about three months of expenses, are you gonna make. Is that 30% of your income and if it is, then yes, you can definitely afford it. Yeah. That’s definitely the, the trip up factor [00:12:00] of is this investment a good investment right now?

Yeah. Or not because of cash flow. Can you explain cash flow in a business, what it is and what the world that’s supposed to look like? Yeah, absolutely. So cash flow is literally what are you bringing into your business? Like cash flow and income to me are very, very similar. Um, I think that something that’s really important to think about is your business is supposed to fuel your life.

So if your cash flow can’t fuel your life, then you e there, you need to reassess your business, whether that’s. Push it forward and do more to make it work or take a step back and think about another way to make income. I’m obviously not saying like if you just started your business last month and you’re not making enough money to build your life, but give yourself the i r s gives you three years to be profitable and depending on your life, stage it, you know it, that’s a personal decision, how long you wanna give your business.

[00:13:00] But the whole point of having a. Is for it to fuel your life. So you wanna make sure that you’re cash flowing enough for your life. And another part of that is if your business isn’t making enough money to cover your personal expenses, what are some personal expenses you can cut? Because personal expenses and business gets very symbiotic.

So again, if you’re not making enough in your business, That doesn’t necessarily mean that you need to change your business, but it means you need to change your personal life temporarily. So when you’re looking at an investment and you’re evaluating whether or not now is the time and we, we aren’t evaluating whether or not you’re gonna get ROI from it.

We know that. Yes, we figured that part out. This is strictly the finances. , how do you, so you look at what’s coming in, what’s going out over the next however long, how do you decide, yes, this is the time to invest in this, or no, it’s not. Okay. So another thing I really like about having like a percentage formula in your mind, and honestly I recommend even having like separate bank accounts for this formula, is that if you’re setting.

[00:14:00] 30% of your gross, of every dollar that comes in for your savings and taxes, you’re not actually gonna spend that because your taxes are based on your net, on your profit, not your gross. So I see that after a year of people using this formula, they’ve got a nice little nest egg, they’ve got a little business savings, a little cushion, and what I recommend is at the end of each quarter, Look and see how much do you have in that cushion?

Some people feel like, okay, my business is great. I don’t need to invest in any education this year. I don’t need to invest in any equipment or, you know, any expansion. What do I do with this money? I’m like, that’s a bonus for you. Then go ahead and just bonus yourself out. Give yourself a little extra. . But if you have this money and you are wanting to, you know, buy, buy the $2,000 course or go on the $5,000 retreat or whatever and keep leveling up, that’s what that money is for.

So you don’t necessarily need to forecast. [00:15:00] You can start saving and have that, and I always say like, you should be saving for future. You, you don’t have to save for a future. An event or an item like save knowing that you’re gonna wanna do something in the future, cuz you always will. And once people start on this formula, Again, they get that little nest egg pretty quickly.

And so then when you’re, you know, faced with a financial decision, you know, immediately if you have that money or not, because I’ll say, if you don’t allocate that money, it’s gonna disappear. Okay. So what you’re saying, I feel like a huge label just went off in my mind. Okay, . Okay. Everything is so much clearer now.

So what you’re saying is operating expenses, that 30% is more so to be used for kind of the day-to-day. Expenses that you have in your business? Yes. Not those things like outsourcing a huge project or. You just blew my mind. Now you can always combine, right? So let’s say you have like a little folder, [00:16:00] either like in your mind or like truly two different business bank accounts.

And let’s say you like, oh, you know, my expenses have been lower. I’ve got a few grand in the expenses account. You know, I’ve got a few grand in the savings account. You can totally combine them and do something with both of those things. It’s just having a couple little pockets of money for future you and your future business.

I just, I’m speechless. You just blew my mind. I, that right there was the piece I was missing. Um, it makes sense. One coaching in this interview. Of course. Um, that’s what this interview’s all about really. I mean, it’s, the VIPs are able to listen in. That makes so much sense because I have been. I have, I don’t do 30, 30, 30, but I have, you know, a percentage that works free percentages.

And I have a bank account for each. I have five different bank accounts. Like I’ve got all of that. That you profit Firsted? Yeah, yeah, yeah. I did. And it’s great. I love it. It’s, I’m a black and white thinker, so if it says I have this much in the bank account, that’s how much is there. But I have been pulling all of my investments, the [00:17:00] conferences I wanna go to.

Yes. The one-to-one coach I wanna hire. I’ve been pulling all of that out of operating expenses. Yeah. But it is an investment. It’s what your savings are for. And I have never, and I always end up in this place of the cash isn’t flowing like I think it should be flowing, and I’m so confused. Mm-hmm. , and it’s because I haven’t been pulling it out of the wrong bank account.

And no one has ever made that clear. Yeah. So thank you. You’re very welcome. Wow. So now that we’ve got that covered Yeah. I, you mentioned briefly what you’re doing for retirement, and I know this is something else we talked about before we hit record, but. What is entrepreneurs should we be thinking about in terms of retirement?

What should we be doing? What? That seems like a really gray area as well. I know it’s super confusing. So my very first recommendation for anyone who’s like, hey, I wanna start saving for retirement. My business can support. This is don’t wait for you to be able to max out an account before you start investing.

That was a mistake [00:18:00] that I made. I’m a perfectionist, so I was like, if I can’t put $6,000 a year into a Roth, I R A, I’m not even gonna bother. But the issue is that with compound interest, you could kind of assume that anything you invest in the stock market is gonna double every seven years. So the earlier you start, the better because it helps your money literally earn money.

So if you could only put $50 a month into a retirement account, start it today. Start with a Roth i r a. It’s not tax deductible, but I love it because of that reason you all the growth, you know, you can just keep putting money in there. Once you have maxed that out, I love an independent 401k. People are going to give you two options basically after a Roth ira, a SEP ira, or a solo 401k.

I prefer a solo 401k because the limits are bigger, so it’s more room to grow. And Amanda, as you mentioned in our non-recorded part, [00:19:00] if you want to bring on employee. A 401k makes a lot more sense. So going ahead and starting with that. Now, the great thing about a 401K is you can contribute from both sides of your business, and by that I mean you can contribute as an employee of your business.

and as your own employer. So the great thing about that is that you can, the limits are just so much higher than an ira, so every year it changes a little bit, but this year, in 20 22, 20 23, you can do $19,500 as your employee. And then at the end of the year, once you’ve calculated how much profit your business has made, you can also contribute up to 25% of your profit as long as the total doesn’t exceed 58,000.

That’s a huge amount of money. I mean, I think an entrepreneur is doing great if they’re making $58,000, period. So let me be clear that we’re not, you know, that’s amazing. But it shows that you have room to grow. Yeah. Whereas with the Roth I R A, it’s $6,000 room maxed out, and once you [00:20:00] make $144,000, you can’t even contribute to your Roth anymore.

That’s why I always recommend starting with it, because if you make it big tomorrow and you’re bringing in that, you know, multiple six figures, the Roth is dead to us. The Roth, the limit is that for. A joint? Like a couple? No, $6,000 per person. Oh, sorry. I meant the, once you hit that threshold, the 1 44, is that what was Oh, the one, no, the 1 44 is one person, and I believe this year it’s 205,000 joint.

Gotcha. Okay. . Yeah. And again, that’s profit. So that’s another confusing thing. It’s not, I think people struggle with as a business, is that the money you’re bringing in and then the money, your tax return shows you brought in is so different because we’re able to deduct so much as small business owners, which is great, but also hard when you wanna start thinking about buying a house, stuff like that.

So there’s always a lot of considerations and that’s why it’s also important to remember that a Roth I r A is not deductible. It doesn’t [00:21:00] come off the top, but a 401k. the employee side can. So if you meet a hundred thousand dollars, you can put 20 in your I four Ohk. And technically you’ve now made $80,000.

And I want to just throw this out there for everyone listening because I know we have a lot of solopreneurs that are listening. Yes. When I was researching retirement accounts, For the business specifically. I came across these two. I mean, they’re the, there’s the two. And I have made zero progress in actually acting on opening any, because I was getting so tripped up over the fact that the SEP ira, it won’t work once you have employees, correct?

Mm-hmm. . But the solo 401k, you have to use that one for employees. And when I was doing this, Gosh, almost a year ago at this point. That’s kind of embarrassing that I haven’t taken action on that, but I got so tripped up because at that point, . I was like, I’m never gonna be anything besides a solo [00:22:00] coordinator where I have no interest in having employees.

Yeah. But I also, there’s a small little voice in the back of my head that said, you don’t know what the future is gonna hold. Yeah. But I really believed that I was never going to have actual employees, and I still don’t. But I did just last month hire a virtual assistant, which is a contractor, which is different.

but it is a step towards actually one day potentially bringing on employees. And I still don’t know if I’ll ever do that, but you just don’t know what the future’s gonna hold with your business. So I just wanna throw that out there. If you’re thinking, I’m always gonna be a solopreneur, if you’re very much on that train like I was, I would still consider listening to what Sarah has to say about the solo 401k, just because you.

you don’t know what the future’s gonna bring. You don’t know what kind of growth you’re gonna see in your business, what projects you’re gonna take on, and how much time that’s going to put on your plate, and things like that. Yes. And another thing to think about, you know, you may think. and, and you may never have employees, you may never hire an employee, but what if you wanna [00:23:00] retire your spouse one day?

A lot of people come to me and they say, Hey, in five years I want my spouse to quit their corporate job. I want them home with me. I want them to be part of the business. Well, are they gonna be an employee of your business? Maybe. So, thinking about. You may not want an employee, but yeah. I mean, you’d pay your spouse.

So yeah, thinking about that in the future too is important. But I’ll also say again, this is like where perfectionism comes to play, where you’re like, I have to make the, there is one right decision. There’s not. If you decide to do one and then transfer to another, that is not a problem. So the most important thing is that you are saving for retirement.

The less important thing is how you’re saving for it. So I know it can be overwhelming, but give yourself the grace. to not make the most perfect possible decision. Cause there really isn’t one you, we don’t have crystal balls, right? So just starting to save is the most important thing you can do. Love that.

So important, man. Again, I fall into those perfectionist tendencies clearly. Oh my, I mean, really hard textbook, which is why I [00:24:00] can say that because I literally know from experience . So what would you say to the people that are listening and they’re like, this is all. , but I feel like I’m lost in the day-to-day money stuff.

what advice do you have for them? So the very first thing I would do is figure out how much money you need to make, not how much money you’re making, right? It’s easy to do like a little calculation, see how much money you brought in here to date, but how much money do you actually need? Like what is your enough number and is your business sustaining that?

I would say that’s the number one thing. Another important thing is that if you’re not tracking your income and expenses in any way, it’s time to start doing that. I know it’s. Boring, but information is power. Knowledge is power. Like I always feel so empowered at the end of the month when I’m tallying all of my expenses because it gives me more information about myself and my life so I can make better decisions moving forward.

We do that for our clients, right, in all sorts of ways. We [00:25:00] collect data about them, we learn about them. Did better help them. You wanna do that for yourself too? So if you are not using anything, I really love Wave Accounting. It’s a hundred percent free. It. Has so many amazing tools and resources in there, it easily matches up with your bank account.

You can sync them. You know, once you start categorizing stuff, it’s, you know, it’s a smart app, so it’s gonna remember what that was for next month. Like, oh, this is my Amazon charge, or what have you. And you could also run all sorts of reports through there. You can run your profit and loss, you can really see what’s happening.

And again, it’s a hundred percent free. So if you try it and you don’t like it, you have not spent any money. We will link to that in the show notes. Friends? Yes. And I also have like a little 10 minute, uh, tutorial that I’ll send to you, Amanda. You can link that in the show notes. So if you’re like, I am just too confused about this.

No problem. I’ve got your back. I literally will teach you how to get it all set up. Perfect. And you also have a money routine [00:26:00] checklist that everyone demo. Absolutely. Tell us about that. . Yes. So one of the biggest questions I get is like, I don’t even know what I’m supposed to be doing. So I set up a little money routine checklist.

It’s literally from my life. It is what I do every week, every month, every quarter, and every year. So people download it. Literally put the dates like in their calendar as a little reminder. And it is just a really great peace of mind to know like, okay, I’m checking everything I need to check. I’m doing everything I need to do.

Like there’s nothing in the back of my mind financially. I’m all set. So yeah, that’s completely free download. And again, we can link that in the show notes. Perfect. We definitely will, and Sarah said this a few times now, but your action step for this week, friends, is to determine what that enough number is for you.

And I want you to send Sarah a message on Instagram and let her know that you did that and we’re gonna hold you accountable. You don’t have to share the number if that’s way too personal and too uncomfortable, but just say, Hey, I did it. I actually took this action step. And she’s [00:27:00] Becker talks money on Instagram, correct?

That’s right. Yeah. And I think that that. Perfect. And I think that’s a really good point. Like it doesn’t matter what the number is, as long as it reflects your life. I think that, you know, as entrepreneurs, we can get really caught up in like the six figure year, the six figure launcher, the da da da da, da, and you know, a lot of people.

Live in a, where you live depends on how much money you need to make. I mean, I work with people to figure out their enough numbers all the time. I’ve seen enough numbers that are literally $20,000, like I need to make $20,000 this year, and if I do, I’m golden. And I’ve seen enough numbers that are like 150,000.

Like I have to make this, I have to like keep my three kids in private school. You know, like it, there’s so many variables. So again, the number does not matter as long as it’s honest for. Oh, that’s so important. And season of life matters as well. Oh my gosh. There was a time where my number was significantly lower, like $14,000.

Yeah, because yeah, Absolut, we didn’t Absolutely, our cost of living was low. We didn’t have as much need for my business. [00:28:00] Whereas now it’s a little bit higher because we’ve taken on some other investments and expenses and things like that. Yep, absolutely. So it changes depending on where you’re at in life too.

So it doesn’t, I reevaluate mine every. You know, at the end of the year I’m like, okay, what, what I really need to make next year and what are some dreams I have and that I can add to this number? And you know, that’s one of the big ways we were able to buy two houses in two different places and split our year 50 50 because we really planned for it and we really thought about it.

Exactly how much money is this gonna take? I love that. So we end every episode with a book recommendation, and you already mentioned one, but I would love to know, is there one book that you would recommend that everyone go reads? It can be about finances or it could just be a fun fiction book that you really enjoyed.

Oh, oh my gosh. Whew. Okay. The pressure is On. Okay, so yes, the book I mentioned, your Money Or Your Life by Vicky Robin. It’s really short. It’s kind of intense. I mean, again, like take what serves you, leave the rest. But if I. Recommend if I could force, actually, I’m gonna go stronger than [00:29:00] recommend. If I could force everyone to read one book, it would be this one.

I love it so much. Another really interesting book about money is called Psychology of Money, and it’s less actionable. It’s really just stories of how people have handled money, typically rich people. But it’s really, really interesting and I’ve learned a lot from that. So it’s a really fascinating book.

And also I love the book Atomic Habits by James Clear. It’s a book I read every year. I make myself read it again and something I. About it is he talks so much about getting 1% better every day, and how at the end of the year you’ll be 37 times better, which is like crazy to me. So I really love thinking about where you are with money right now.

Don’t feel like you have to take everything we talked about and implement it this week. Like what’s one thing you can do to get 1% better at your money tomorrow? Focus on that one thing, like don’t worry about doing everything all at once and go download that checklist and that will help you get that 1% better.

That’s, that’s definitely more than 1% I think. I think James Claire would agree that’s at [00:30:00] least 10% better. . I’m here for it. Everyone, please make sure you go download that and get your money routines and check. We know we love a good simplicity focused routine around here. Yeah. Sarah, thank you so much for being here today and No, thank you for having me.

Yeah, this has been a blast. I think we may have to do a multi-part series at some point about, look, let me come back. Business finances. Yeah, I’ll, I’ll, I’ll keep talking as long as you’ll have me.

Thank you so much for joining me here today, friend. If you loved this episode, it would mean the world to me if you’d leave a rating and review. This is a great way to help spread the word about this podcast. Help other wonderful women like yourself find it. You can find this episode show notes as well as tons of other great resources [email protected].

And if you aren’t following me on Instagram yet, I’d love to connect with you over there. I’m at Mrs. Amanda Warfield. Shoot me a DM and tell me what you love most about this episode. Thanks for being here, friend. I’ll see you next time.[00:31:00] 

The post Episode 150: Simplifying Your Business Finances with Sarah Becker appeared first on Amanda Warfield.

At the end of October last year, I began to hit a wall. That familiar feeling of burnout was creeping in, and I ended up going down hard. It was the most severe episode of burnout that I’ve ever experienced, and it took me multiple weeks of really stepping away from my business to recover from it.

As this was happening, I shared about the burnout and the recovery I was doing on Instagram and had requests to do an entire podcast episode about it. So while I hope that you never end up in a situation similar to mine, if you do, this episode is here to showcase how I recovered from my own burnout.

Today I’m sharing what my experience was like, how I ended up there, and the exact steps I took to recover from it.

Don’t forget to subscribe so that you never miss an episode! Also, if you would be willing to leave a review on Apple Podcasts, it would mean the world to me. It’s such a small thing that can make a big difference in helping me spread this message of simplicity to other overwhelmed women.

Have a comment about today’s episode, or a topic you’d like to suggest for a future episode? Shoot me an email over at [email protected]!

At the end of October last year, I began to hit a wall. That familiar feeling of burnout was creeping in and I ended up going down hard. . It was the most severe burnout episode that I have ever experienced, and it took me multiple weeks of really stepping back from my business to recover from it. As this was happening, I shared about the burnout and the recovery I was doing on Instagram, and I had requests to do an entire podcast episode about it.

So while I hope that you never end up in a situation similar to mine, if you do, I hope this episode will be here to. Showcase how I recovered from my own burnout and be here as a helping hand for you. Today I’m sharing what my experience was like, how I ended up there, and the exact steps that I took to recover from it.

You’re listening to episode 149 of The Chasing Simple Podcast, and I’m your host, Amanda Warfield. This week’s episode is brought to you by the Chasing Simple Content Planner, and you can grab your own at amanda warfield.com/planner.

I guess we should start with how I ended up in such severe burnout. So at the beginning of 2022, I set my goals, my intentions for the year, and one of my goals was really to take better care of myself and focus on doing less and really tackle my. My belief that my productivity was tied to my worth and that my business success was tied to my worth.

And you know, that meant that I started therapy last year and it meant that I read a ton of books on doing less and productivity in Sabbath and just, I did so much learning when it came to. This whole dismantling of how I felt about productivity and, you know, I made a lot of progress. I started getting really serious about taking care of myself, was feeding myself good foods and working out consistently.

And, being done with work at the end of the day and not. Working in the evenings and not working so much on the weekend and not jumping right into work. As soon as I woke up, I got so much better about a lot of these routines and systems that I wanted to put in place, but, and in hindsight, this sounds so silly, but what I didn’t do was I didn’t scale back on my expectations for myself.

I took a bunch of work time away and yet expected more from myself than I ever have before with the business. I had more projects that I wanted to do and bigger projects than I’ve ever done before. I had higher expectations for. Just everything productivity related. So not only did I, I expect more in less time with work, but then I also was adding all these other expectations of taking care of myself on top of those work expectations.

And in hindsight, again, it’s like obviously that’s not gonna work, but it did until October. It didn’t really work. But I, I limped my way through until October. And then October hit and I had that realization. And then as soon as I had that realization, my body just crashed. It was done. It didn’t want any part of anything.

I had no motivation. I had no desire to work. I had, I almost felt depressed, but not quite. And I’m not sure how. How to explain that feeling, but it was like, alls I wanted to do was sleep all the time, but I wasn’t having dark thoughts. I’ll put it that way. I, it had my body felt like it was depressed.

And I, if you’ve never been depressed before, you may not understand that. I don’t know how else to explain it. But that’s kind of where I was. No motivation, no desire to work. I didn’t care about anything. I, I just didn’t care. I just didn’t care. And so at the beginning of November, I said, you know what?

I can’t keep going. I just don’t, this isn’t sustainable. I mean, I was having conversations with my husband where I was like, I’m gonna be a housewife. I don’t wanna work anymore. I don’t wanna have a business anymore. This is too stressful. I’m just gonna be a housewife. And of course, he’s a wonderful man, and he was like, you’re gonna hate that.

That’s not what you want, . Like, that’s not what you need. But I, I really just felt so done with everything, not just work, but every, like, I didn’t care about seeing people. I didn’t care about being engaged at my church like I normally am. There was so much that I just didn’t care about. So November rolled around and I said, you know what?

I’m burnt. We’re gonna try some active burnout recovery where I am going to be focused each day only on actively recovering from this burnout. And I shared this on Instagram and I got request to talk about this experience once it was over. here on the podcast. And so here I am today to share my experience.

But I just wanna preface this by saying I’m not a doctor, I am not a health specialist. This is not medical advice in any way, shape, or form. I’m just sharing what worked for me and what I did. So that being said, first week, I, again exhausted, no motivation, no burnout, nothing. my only goal that entire week.

Was to implement a daily top three. Three things that needed to get done each day, and my week kind of looked like this, so I was getting full night’s sleep. and then I would wake up and within an hour I would need to go back to sleep because I was that tired and I would go back to sleep for another couple of hours and the rest of the day, like I stayed in my pajamas.

It was really just a lot of trying to take care of myself and rest. The only thing I really focused on was making, sure I was feeding myself three times a day and drinking plenty of water. And there were days where one of my top three that I needed to get done that day was literally showering. , like that’s how little motivation I had all of my routines thrown out the window.

If there was a chore or other, like normal part of my routine that I wanted to get done, like laundry, it had to take up one of my top three spots. And that’s all I did that week was rest. Make sure I fed myself, make sure I drink water. And I had, I made a top three list every day. And honestly, some days the top three didn’t even happen..

more than once that happened where I didn’t even finish ’em and that was okay. I gave myself that permission and it was fine. It was very much a taking care of myself and just resting kind of week. Then the next week, same thing, but I wanted to add back in some of my routines. So I added back in my morning routine, which is Bible study, reading a chapter in my current non-fiction book that I’m reading, and then journal.

I also added back in my daily chores that I do each morning after my morning routine, but still before I start work, which is making the bed, emptying the dishwasher and scooping the litter boxes. Then I also added in whatever my typical chores are for each day. So each day I have different things that get done around the house, like, as I’m recording this, today is a Thursday and.

Thursdays laundry day and toilets day. So I’ll do the laundry, I’ll clean the toilets and I’ll also vacuum the carpets. And so those three every Thursday happen. So I have like a rotational system. So I added in the today chores, . That’s really confusing. Daily chores. Today chores. Daily chores happen every single day.

The today chores happen on a rotational basis. So morning routine, daily chores, today, chores, those got added back in. So I was. Taking care of myself, feeding myself, making sure I was drinking enough water, doing a top three, and just doing my routines for the day. So there’s a little bit more structure at the end of week two.

So right before week three, I think it was Sunday actually. And I’m considering the week to begin on a Monday. That’s Sunday, right before week three started, I got a hit of motivation and inspiration for the first time in weeks. , and this is actually where the the content planner came from, was that day I had had it on my, I wanna do this someday list for forever.

And all of a sudden that day, I just had 1,000,001 ideas. And so I wrote them down and that was it. Normally, in the past, if that had happened, if I was like, I’m recovering from burnout and I’m gonna take some time to myself, and then I got motivated, I would’ve said, okay, I’m fixed. I’m ready to work again.

And I would’ve gotten right to work. I intentionally made the choice when that happened to, okay, I’m gonna write down these ideas because they’re good ideas and I don’t want them to disappear, but I’m not gonna act on them and I’m going to continue this active burnout recovery and moving really slowly throughout my days and weeks instead of jumping right back into work.

So I made that intentional choice. . And then week three, daily top three, still doing that, did my routines. And it also happened to be batch week. Now. This was the week I was most nervous about because batch week is a lot of effort, which you know, if you’ve done before, it’s a lot of effort mentally, and I was really, really nervous about having to go through a batch week, and I was really thankful.

Those other few weeks. The month leading up to this current batch week, I was really thankful that I had batched my content because I was able to take that step back and know my business was still being marketed right. But I was nervous about batch week and it was okay. It wasn’t my best batch week ever, but I did get it done and it didn’t send me backwards, which is what I was really worried about.

Here’s how I simplified batch week. For those of you that are like, how do I do burnout a and batch week at the same time? So I incorporated more guest episodes, which you might notice if you go back and look at episodes from a few months ago. You’ll notice there are more guest episodes than normal because I had batched my guest episodes, every six months.

Six to eight months or so, I will do a massive batching of guest episodes that I can place in as I need them. And having those on file, like just sitting there waiting to be placed was really, really helpful because I was able to just say, okay, extra guest episode to fill up an episode here, extra guest episode to fill up an episode there.

Perfect. So I did more guest episodes. I also read a chapter from the book, so one of the podcast episodes.

Episode number 45. If you haven’t listened to that one, you can go back and listen to it, but that podcast episode is literally me just reading one of the chapters from the book, which is content that I’ve already spent time creating. I’m just repurposing it. And so yes, I still had to record the episode, but I didn’t have to think.

There was no thought process that went into it. I was able to just open up the file and start reading. 

Another thing I did to simplify batch week is I looked back at the content from that same time last year, so I save all of my content. This is the really strong reason why I encourage all of my students to put their content in Google Docs before they actually put it in the scheduler so they they can save it.

Because you can look back on the content you had last year and tweak it. I didn’t love all the content I had for that month last year, but I did take pieces of it and that helped at least get my brain going and start thinking versus just staring at a blank cursor. And I also did less content. I just posted less than I normally did and that’s okay too because I wasn’t going into a launch month or anything like that.

And remember, our content isn’t ebb and a flow now. I guess I should say. Social media, I posted less on my email newsletter, still went out the same amount, and the podcast still went out the same amount. But I just less social media and that’s fine because I didn’t need to be as active. I just needed to show up.

Consistly. So that’s how I simplified batch week to make it so that I didn’t have to think as much. Couple other things that were significant. During week three, I started attending meetings again, and quite honestly, that was possibly too soon. For the first few weeks, I canceled every thing that was on my plate, and that was so great.

Week three, I. started going back to meetings, and I didn’t have a ton, but for me, as an introvert, meetings are really, really draining. If you’re an extrovert, this may not apply to you. Meetings may actually be really good for you if you’re an active burnout. I don’t know, I’m just sharing what worked for me, but for me it was too soon because meetings are really draining, and it may have been too soon because it was, oh, it’s batch week and I’m starting meetings back.

I don’t know . That would be something that I’ll play around with in the future, I guess, if I ever end up back in the space. But I’m really gonna try to not end up back in this space. So did that. And then another thing to note was that the first day of week three was the first time that I did not need to go back to sleep after I’d woken up in the morning.

So every day for two weeks after I decided to actively recover from burnout, I was waking up, getting a full night’s sleep, waking up and within an hour crawling back in bed to sleep for a couple more hours and getting another REM cycle in week three. Day one was the first time that that didn’t happen.

So then I moved into week four. So now we’ve got daily top three, my routines, and I added in some additional work and personal tasks because I’m, my energy’s coming back. I’m feeling better. I’m still not all the way there, but I’m feeling a lot better. So I added in a half hour of communications, which is just, Checking my inbox, Voxer, my Facebook group, slack, all of those little checks to make sure I’m responding to people.

And on top of my communication again, because I was checking it maybe once a week before that, which is fine. There’s no rush, but, well, boxer I was on top of, I guess I didn’t say that all the back in the beginning. From the very beginning I was there for clients and students that didn’t stop, but other things.

I, I got back on top of my communications and I added in to my daily schedule a half hour where I’m making sure that I’m sitting down and checking in on those things. And then the other thing I added was some personal tasks that I really wanna do to fill my soul. So I’ve been working on taking care of my body, but now I wanna fill my soul.

So practicing the piano, which I’m attempting to learn baking bread, or at least feeding the. The sourdough starter and making sure I’m connecting with other humans. So making sure I’m calling my best friend or someone and just connecting in some way each day. So those are a couple things that I wanted to make sure I added into each day as I created a new schedule.

And then I also added in this final line on my list of. Bonus one hour, the Amanda Warfield brand, one hour, the match escape vacation brand or one hour household things. And that one is truly just a bonus. I usually don’t get to it, but if I’m a, if it’s a high energy day, it gives me a little bit of direction of, okay, pick one of these that needs the most attention right now.

do you have a ton of to-do lists for your personal life? Does one of you wanna work on a project for this business? You wanna work on a project for that business? And that’s really just given me some direction. If I have high energy, most of the time it doesn’t get to it. So I added all of those in and I ended up with where I’m at now, week five and beyond.

I don’t even know where I’m at anymore. 6, 7, 8 maybe, but I’ve just been repeating that same schedule. So here’s what my daily schedule currently looks. first my morning routine. Then I get ready. I eat breakfast daily chores, which again are those ones that I do the same three every day. Today’s top three, today’s chores.

communications, half hour personal tasks, bonus time. So every day I’m sitting there and going, what are the top three things that I need to get done each day? And I try, unless there’s pressing things, which makes it different, but I try to have one for each business and one personal. So today, For this business, my, one of my top three is record podcast episodes.

So getting these podcast episodes right now is one of my top three. My personal one is washing bath mats and curtains, and the one for the travel agency is to work on a website page that I’ve been working on. So those are the top three things that I’m gonna work on today, and it’s not as structured. as I used to run my days.

So I used to say, okay, from this time to this time, I’m working on this thing, on this time to this time I’m working on this thing. And that was great until I burned myself out and it worked really well for my brain saying, okay, from eight to 11, I’m gonna work on this theme for whatever the day is, client stuff, from 11 to one.

That’s my personal time to eat lunch, to take a walk, to just kind of get a midday. from one to two is communications hour from two. Like I, I had it all blocked out like that and that did work really well. But now things are much more flexible. It’s, I have this list, I have it written out on this little personal whiteboard I have, and as I do ’em each thing, I just kind of check ’em off and I don’t necessarily go in any particular order.

I do tend to morning routine, get ready, eat breakfast, and do my daily chores because it’s just kind of the morning routine that I’ve always had. And those go in that order. But after that, it’s just what do I feel like right now? Do I want to start with playing the piano? Do I wanna start with working on chores for today?

Do I wanna start with some of my top three? And if I start with a top three, like recording these podcast episodes, it’s a large top three. So I’ll record and as I start to. To hit that wall of, okay, I’ve been doing this for a while. I’m not producing my best work anymore. I’m gonna go take a break. Maybe I’ll go play the piano, or maybe I’ll go call my friend and they, I just in and out with different tasks throughout the day.

And so sometimes I get all the things done, sometimes I don’t. It’s really super flexible and I’m not sure how long I’ll continue running my days like this. . Like I said, it’s been, I don’t know, month, month and a half, two months, and I feel a lot better now, but I’m still not quite back to those peak energy levels.

And that may just be because it’s the holiday season, right? It’s December right now as I’m recording this. So that may just be because the holiday season is really overwhelming and there’s a lot on my calendar, I’m not sure. But what I don’t wanna do is end up right back where I was in October and early November.

So if necessary, this may be the schedule I keep forever. . You know, there’s structure, but there’s also a lot of flexibility and it really forces me to listen to what my body needs and what I need mentally over just trying to follow scheduled blocks. So I hope that’s helpful. It again, this is really just what worked for me.

I hope you can take this and tweak it. If you are recovering from burnout right now, I really highly recommend writing out a new schedule for yourself. getting rid of anything that you’ve done in the past, any assigned time blocks, and just give yourself a really simple list. Because this, for me, I think has been one of the greatest parts of this, is yes, I gave myself the time to rest, but I also tore down what I thought my day needed to look like in order to be productive, and I had to rebuild what I wanted my productivity to look like.

Based on the things I wanted out of life versus just, all of this stuff needs to get done. How do I cram it into a day? So highly recommend getting rid of whatever you thought was your current schedule and the way things work best, and rebuild it for yourself slowly over time. Now, this week’s book recommendation is the Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley, and I’m not going to.

I’m not gonna say much about it because it’s a mystery novel and you know, you don’t wanna give things away. So I would just say, if you like mystery novels, I really like this one a lot. Again, it’s the Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley. It was a quick, easy read too, which was nice, and I will get in the show notes if you wanna check it out.

Until next time, my friend, I helped you go out uncomplicate your life and biz. 

The post Episode 149: My Active Burnout Recovery Process appeared first on Amanda Warfield.

How many times have you been frustrated because you’re putting out content, you’re showing up consistently, and yet you aren’t seeing growth in your numbers or business? If you’re marketing your business consistently, aren’t you supposed to see growth?

And the truth is, yes – and no.

Content marketing is only one half of a marketing plan. If that’s all you’re doing to market your business, then you’re missing out on part of what should be included in your marketing plan. And no, I’m not talking paid ads or anything like that. This missing piece is organic marketing as well.

Today I’m going to go over what two parts every marketing plan should have, as well as five of my favorite strategies that you can implement for that missing piece.

Don’t forget to subscribe so that you never miss an episode! Also, if you would be willing to leave a review on Apple Podcasts, it would mean the world to me. It’s such a small thing that can make a big difference in helping me spread this message of simplicity to other overwhelmed women.

Have a comment about today’s episode, or a topic you’d like to suggest for a future episode? Shoot me an email over at [email protected]!

 How many times have you been frustrated because you’re putting out content, you’re showing up consistently, and yet you aren’t seeing growth in your numbers or your business. If you’re marketing your business consistently, aren’t you supposed to see growth? And the truth is yes and no. content marketing is only one half of a marketing plan.

If that’s all you’re doing to market your business, then you’re missing out on part of what should be included in your marketing plan. And no, I’m not talking about paid ads or anything like that. This missing piece is organic marketing as well. So today I’m going to go over what two parts every marketing plan should have, as well as five of my favorite strategies that you can implement for that missing piece.

You’re listening to episode 148 of The Chasing Simple Podcast, and I’m your host, Amanda Warfield. This episode was brought to you by the Chasing Simple Content Planner, and you can grab your own at amanda warfield.com/planner.

There are two parts to every marketing plan. Nurturing your current audience and growing your audience. Nurturing your current audience means showing up for them consistently, giving value and education, and leading them into your sales processes. Because remember, marketing and sales are not the same thing.

Growing your audience. On the other hand, that means getting out and bringing new people in that you can then nurture , which sounds really simple and self-explanatory, right? But here’s the most common misconception I see around this concept. Too many entrepreneurs believe that the content marketing is a growth strategy.

can content grow your audience? Sure virality can happen, which brings in new faces. Your audience might love a piece of your content and share it, which will lead to growth, but that growth is a byproduct, not a strategy. , we all know how impossible it is to predict when a piece of content is going to be shared on a mass scale.

A lot of times we think this is gonna be great, people are gonna love it, and it’s crickets. And then other times we just throw something out there and people love it, and there’s all kinds of engagement. It’s really hard to predict what that’s gonna look like. And if you can’t guarantee that you’re getting yourself in front of new faces, it’s not a growth strategy.

Now, an exception here would be when you’re a first adopter of a new platform, and I’ve talked about this on a few different episodes now, but we’re currently seeing this with TikTok. Those that are hopping on early are able to see some viral growth because it’s not so crowded yet. So being an early adopter is a growth strategy.

You’ve gotta keep your eyes peeled for that one though. It’s not as easy to just say, I’m gonna start being an early adopter this month. You’ve gotta wait for the, the platforms to come. Now you might be thinking, okay, Amanda, you’ve convinced me that I need to focus on adding in growth strategies to my marketing, but what does that look like?

 The truth is, is that there are a million ways that you can get yourself in front of a new audience, but let’s stick to organic meaning not paid marketing. So here are my top five favorite growth strategies. First is Pinterest. Pinterest is, and we’ve all heard this, Pinterest isn’t social media.

Pinterest is a search engine. It’s not the same as just social media, yada. And that’s true. We hear it all the time because it’s true. Pinterest. gets you in front of a cold audience, social media, your long form content, your podcast, your YouTube, your blog, whatever. That all gets you in front of a warm audience that has said, yes, I wanna follow them.

Yes, I wanna get their email. Yes, I wanna subscribe to their podcast or subscribe to their YouTube channel. Those people are warm audience members. Pinterest gets you in front of a cold audience. . And so if you wanna get started on Pinterest, it’s a really simple way to get started with a new growth strategy.

It is a long term growth strategy. It’s gonna take some time for it to get started and for you to really see some results with it. But highly recommend if you’re not already on Pinterest, get on it. And if you go back and listen to episode 135. Pinterest best practices for 2022 with Natalie Bardo.

She gives you a really simple way to start. I’ve put what she said in that episode into practice and saw results right away. I will preface that by saying I have been inconsistently showing up on Pinterest for years now. Yeah. And we talk about it in that episode where Pinterest, you know, I started on it.

I was doing all the things I said to do, and then there was I, Pinterest went public and everything changed and everything got really confusing and even Tailwind and some other people that were Pinterest partners didn’t know what was going on. And so I really stopped, but because I had scheduled things out so far in advance, like I was scheduling things out a year in advance which is kind of crazy.

 I was still showing up not as much, but some, and so once I started actually utilizing her strategy, I did see a jump in impressions really quickly, I think because I had been showing up. That’s why it happened really quickly, but I just wanted to throw that out there to say. , what she’s teaching does work.

I’ve implemented it. And so it might not be as quick for you if you haven’t been showing up on Pinterest at all, but keep at it. It’s a really simple strategy and it is working and really building those impressions. And then once you have the impressions, you can focus on, okay, which of my pins is doing the best?

How do I make more graphics similar to that, yada yada. So episode 1 35, Pinterest Best Practices. That is a great growth strategy for getting in front of a cold audience. The next one is guesting on other podcast or YouTube shows. So aligning with people in your industry that have similar audiences and then going and being interviewed, you’re gonna have to pitch yourself for these, probably go pitch yourself and say, I can bring this value to your listeners, to your audience, and I would love to chat about this topic because I think it would be helpful for them because of X, Y, Z, and put yourself out there.

get in front of a new audience. That’s a whole new audience of people who have never heard of you before. And some of those people are gonna love what you’re talking about, and they’re gonna come follow you in other ways. You’re gonna have an opportunity to say, oh, I have this YouTube channel, or I have this blog, or, follow me on Instagram, or I have this podcast, and people are going to go follow you in those places where you can then start nurturing them with your content.

Number three, similar. , but more prep and more, I would say this is a more advanced strategy, but still worth thinking over is guest teaching in different membership communities. So there are a lot of people who have both free and paid memberships or. Facebook groups or things like that where you can get in and you can come in and teach.

And this is great because this is always super simple. If you can find someone who is looking for content, people that bring in guests on a monthly or quarterly basis are always looking for new content to bring in. And so if you can go to them and say, I know that your audience is x, y, z. , I know that you’re trying to help them do X, Y, Z.

I really think that this topic that I’m an expert in can help that mission because of X, Y, Z, and I would love to teach them abc. Tell them why you can help them and go teach in their communities. Give that value, teach those people some great things. What you know, you know things. There is something you can teach on, I promise.

That’s another way to bring in new people who frankly, if you’re going to teaching in their community and you’re interacting with ’em face-to-face, they’re gonna come in as warm leads, warm new audience members, so that you can then continue to nurture the fourth one. Little bit different track attending events and conferences where your ideal client and student is attending.

So, best case scenario, you’re doing this in person because there’s just so much more opportunity for getting to know people and having those good conversations in person. But virtual accounts too, as long as you’re intentional about it. So in the last year, I went to quite a few conferences and retreats and.

 I got clients from all of them because people really listen to who you are. They see your mannerisms, they get to know you. If you’re spending multiple days together, you it. There’s just this bonding experience that happens and they begin to say, oh. This person is an expert on this. When I need that or when I know someone that needs that, I’m gonna send them to it.

And it just comes from building relationships, not for going in and saying, here’s my business card, here’s my business card. You don’t do that. Just go in and build relationships because you never know when someone might know someone that needs what you do. and the best way to build that relationship is through in-person interaction.

Especially right now as we’re all post covid, burnt out, post pandemic, tired of everything being virtual, there is so much to be said for in-person interactions, but let’s say it’s not a realistic possibility. You can’t take the time away from your family. You don’t have the budget to go travel. I get it, and I’ve been there for sure.

So virtual. Join virtual summits of where your people are going to be. and connect with them. Go into those Facebook groups and be active in that summit. A lot of times people will join summits and they’ll attend a couple presentations, and then they kind of leave it at that. But go in there and attend the presentations and be active in that Facebook community.

Talk to people, follow up with them. If maybe you’re more comfortable DMing people on Instagram versus Facebook, say, Hey, what’s your Instagram? Let’s connect and then continue a conversation. And again, this is just relationship building. . That’s really what all of this is being on people’s podcasts, being in membership communities, this, it’s all just relationship.

building relationships where people think of you when they know of someone that needs what you have, but go in there and participate in the Facebook group. Show up to the live events. A lot of times in summits, there’s live co-working or live networking show up to those. I cannot emphasize enough how great those are.

They don’t sound flashy and exciting, and they’re one of those things where you’re like, well, that’s not someone coming in and educating. And I really want to listen to this educator speak. Those live events are the number one thing you should be putting on your plate because that’s where you’re connecting with other people.

And if it’s a summit that has your ideal clients, even better, you’re connecting with ideal clients. Or you can also think, okay, what would a summit be that has not my ideal clients, but my secondary audience as it might be. . So the people who are next to your ideal clients, the people that teach your ideal clients, the people that have your ideal clients as audience members.

So let’s say that you really want to work with stay-at-home moms, okay? And. You can go to summits that are specifically for stay-at-home moms. Absolutely. And connect with them there. You also can go to summits for, let me pull something out of thin air summits that are created for Stay-at-Home Mom.

Educators. These people that want to create their own educational topics, specifically in four stay-at-home moms. They’re gonna have audiences full of stay-at-home moms. Those are people that you can work on connecting with and building relationships with because they’re growing that. I mean, if you look at just the speakers or just connect with 10, 15 attendees, that’s 10, 15 people whose audience that you might potentially, if you build a relationship, be able to eventually bring into your fold if you can get in front of them.

long-term strategy. Absolutely. But that’s, that’s another one that you can do. And then the fifth one is participating in bundles. Now, bundles are great because they bring in a large influx of people at one time. If you’ve ever been part of a bundle, you know this. But if you haven’t, what happens is a bundle is either free or paid.

It really depends on who’s creating it. , whether you pay nothing or you pay $97 is usually what I see the bundles being sold for. You pay $97 and you get access to a ton of offers that are not normally free. . So Dolly DeLonge was on the podcast a few episodes ago, right? And she did a bundle this year where it was $97 and you got access to a ton of different things.

And personally, the offer that I put in was my year in preview workshop, which is 1 97. So someone got the year in preview workshop. Multiple people, many people got the year in preview workshop for $97. when it’s normally 1 97 plus everyone else’s stuff. Like that’s how that works. So you get a ton of courses and things all at once, but, and a lot of people buy those because it’s a great deal, right?

It is an incredible deal and every single person who’s contributed is marketing that bundle to their audience. So there’s a ton of people coming in and seeing that. And it’s a numbers game, right? Tons of people end up buying and then tons of people end up. Grabbing your thing and they end up on your email list so you can then nurture them, which is great.

It’s incredible. I like, I’m always so thankful to be part of bundles. The thing to know about bundles is that a lot of those people are also gonna leave because they’re downloading, for lack of a better word, they’re downloading 30 or maybe more, 20, 30 different offers. Which means they’re getting 20 or 30 new people in their inbox, which means their inbox is crowded, which means a lot of times they go in and if they’re not super jazzed about your thing or you, they’re gonna just unsubscribe.

So bundles have a really high influx, but they also have a really high exodus. But people do stay, and I have had people from bundles go on to later purchase different offers. So they’re not a lost cause, it’s just the numbers game that you have to go in and realize. I’m gonna get a ton of people, but I can’t be excited about that number because a lot of them are gonna leave too.

But is a great way to get a ton of new eyes on your stuff and you never know. Maybe someone finds you through that bundle, unsubscribes goes through your offer, and then later finds you again because they really love your stuff. So that’s always another thing to keep in mind. So those five, my five favorite growth strategies, Pinterest.

Guesting on other podcasts or YouTube shows, guest teaching and membership communities, attending events and conferences where your ideal client or student is attending and participating in bundles. All of those. Are growth strategies. They’re getting you in front of a new audience that you can then bring into your content to nurture.

So growth and nurture strategies, you’ve gotta have both. If you are only putting content out there and you’re only nurturing your people, you’re not gonna have people to nurture and not gonna have people to sell to. . The bottom line of those five though the cohesive thread that’s running through them is connecting with others in your industry.

You cannot do this business thing solo, and I really wanna encourage you to go and listen to episode six , it’s isolation, stunting your business growth. Because I talked about this way back then. Relationships are going to be key for a successful business. Period. And we’re not doing it in a scammy way.

We’re not doing it in a gross way. We’re not building relationships just so we can see higher revenue. We’re building relationships to build relationships, and it is a back scratching type of situation, but it’s also just a, you’re a human that I would like to get to know because you have similar interests as me.

and you do that and you grow and you know, maybe a few years down the line they refer a client to you and it’s incredible and it’s great. And then maybe you think to refer a client to them, maybe you start, there’s all kinds of things. I’m, I’ve told you, the 5 growth strategies, I’m not going on on, but relationships are key.

for business, you cannot build a business in a vacuum. So your action step for today is to choose one growth strategy to implement in the next quarter. Choose one thing that you’re gonna do to implement a growth strategy. One thing that you can do to help bring in a new audience because you can’t keep launching to the same people over and over again.

and then your book recommendation for this week is published by Chandler Bolt. This is going to be very niche. If you have no interest in writing a book, this is probably not gonna interest you, but this was such a helpful tool for me when I was writing my book that I. needed to mention it. So it’s a whole, the entire book is just like an action plan for writing a book and not just writing it, but the publication phase, the editing phase, the marketing phase, all the different things.

And it was everything I needed to know to get started and believed that I could do it. And then I also went on to, you know, hire and outsource different things. I knew what I needed to outsource, what I could reasonably expect for myself. If you have any interest in writing a book, even maybe theoretically, highly recommend published by Chandler Bolt.

And until next time, my friend, I hope that you’ll go out and uncomplicate your life and biz. 

The post Episode 148: The Part of Your Marketing Plan You Might Be Forgetting appeared first on Amanda Warfield.

If you’ve taken my A Year in Preview Workshop, or done any kind of content planning with me, you know that I’m very passionate about ensuring that our business supports our lives, and not the other way around. And the first step I always have people take when mapping out their year is putting their personal calendar into their plans first. Holidays, vacations, birthdays, anniversaries, time off … all of that goes in first so that there aren’t accidental launches during your kid’s spring break.

But before we can even start putting things on the calendar, we need to know what we’re going to put on the calendar. And how do we do that? By learning how to calculate projected revenue. If you’ve ever wondered how you’re supposed to connect your content with your bottom line, this episode is for you.

Yes, it’s mid-February as this airs and you might be thinking why wasn’t this put out in December? But now that the planning frenzy is over and all of the excitement of the year is waning, I want us to take some time to check back in (or do it for the first time) with those revenue goals for the year and how we’re using them to plan our content.

Don’t forget to subscribe so that you never miss an episode! Also, if you would be willing to leave a review on Apple Podcasts, it would mean the world to me. It’s such a small thing that can make a big difference in helping me spread this message of simplicity to other overwhelmed women.

Have a comment about today’s episode, or a topic you’d like to suggest for a future episode? Shoot me an email over at [email protected]!

If you’ve taken my a year in preview workshop or done any kind of content planning with me, you know that I’m very passionate about ensuring that our business supports our lives and not the other way around. And the first step I always have people take when mapping out their year is putting their personal calendar into their plans.

First holidays, vacations, birthdays, anniversaries, time off. All of that goes in first so that there aren’t accidental launches during your kids spring break or something like. . But before we can even start putting things on the calendar, well, we need to know what we’re going to put on the calendar and how do we do that By starting with our revenue.

If you ever wondered how you’re supposed to connect your content with your bottom line, this episode is for you. , and yes, it’s mid-February as this airs, and you might be thinking, why wasn’t this put out in December? But now that the planning frenzy is over and all the excitement of the year is waning, I want us to take some time to check back in or do it for the first time with those revenue goals for the year and how we’re using them to plan our content now that we have.

A clear head about what this year is gonna hold. So you’re listening to episode 147 of the Chasing Simple Podcast, and I’m your host, Amanda Warfield. Let’s dive in.

Yes, we are talking all about revenue today, and in particular, how we can make sure our content aligns with our goals so that we can increase that bottom line. And if you are feeling the ick or you’re feeling cringey about whatever is going through your mind, maybe you’re feeling like it’s greedy and wanna bring in more revenue.

I’m not, I don’t know. I don’t know what’s going through your mind right now, but if you’re having those, I would really encourage you to sit in that and think about that for a little bit. Why are you feeling those thoughts? Because I know that I’ve been there. I know that I used to feel so shameful around this idea of setting a revenue goal around wanting to make more money, and I really had to come to terms with the fact that I’m running a business.

yes, I wanna impact people, and that’s what I would hide behind, right? I would hide behind them. Well, I just wanna impact people and better their lives and help them with their business, and I do. I wouldn’t do all of the work of entrepreneurship, which is not easy in any capacity. I wouldn’t do all of that if I didn’t want to impact people and help people build their revenue as well, right?

I wouldn’t share all of these quote unquote secrets and all of this information I know and help you map out your revenue projections for this year. If I didn’t really wanna see you increase your bottom line, and I had to come to terms with the fact that while that’s true, a business needs revenue is also true.

A business is not a business without revenue. And the more revenue I make, the more I support my family, the more I support my community at large, the more I can support people and outsource to other business owners for their zone of geniuses, which they will then in turn. support their families and their communities and be able to outsource to other business owners.

And it’s a ripple effect, right? So if you’re feeling that shame, that ick, that cringe. I just want to encourage you that we’ve probably all been there and felt those things. , but your business needs revenue in order to be a business, okay? And when it comes to your content, well, your content’s purpose is to amplify your business, to get your business out there in front of more eyes so that you can bring in that revenue.

And if you want to ensure that your content is aligned with your goals, you’ve got to start by digging into the revenue numbers. . So like I said in the introduction, I’m gonna run you through some of the questions that are inside of the Chasing Simple Content Planner that are in the yearly planning section to help you do your revenue planning and your revenue mapping.

So there’s a two part series that we’re gonna do right here. You probably are gonna wanna have pen, paper, whatever. So first thing, revenue planning, you’re gonna ask yourself, what was your revenue last year? Write that number. . Then you’re gonna write down how much each stream of revenue that you have brought in.

So if you brought in 40,000 and you have one-to-one clients and you have a course, how much did each of those bring in? Then if you have the data, you are going to really wanna dive into how that came to be. . So for example, your one-to-one clients, let’s say of that 40,000, you brought in 30,000 with one to one clients, and on average the clients brought in X amount.

Maybe you have different packages, maybe you know, you raised prices, but on average what did they bring in last year individually? So let’s say you had 10 clients. 30,000, 3000. Is that right? Yes. Okay, so each client brought in roughly $3,000. You had 10 clients over the year. You brought in 3000. Okay, so you had 10 clients.

Well, how did you get those 10 clients? What number of inquiries did you have throughout the year? If you had a 50% close rate and you had 20 inquiries, okay, well, 20 50% gives you 10. You know your close rate, you know how many you needed. , you can take that number and go, okay, so next year if I want to make 50,000 on my clients and no, that math’s not gonna be good, let’s say 60,000.

I’m trying to do this in my head, 60,000 on clients, and they’re gonna bring in roughly 3000 each. Okay? So I need to bring in 20 clients next year. If I know I have a 50% average close rate, that means I need to focus on getting 40 increase throughout. , do you see how I worked myself backwards through with those numbers?

You’re gonna wanna figure that out for this year so you know exactly how many clients you need to hit your revenue goal so that you know exactly how many inquiries you need, and so that you can focus on bringing in the inquiries and not just sit there and go, why aren’t the clients coming in? So if you can dive into the numbers, great. If you’re listening to this and you are feeling overwhelmed because maybe your business didn’t bring in much this year and you just, you don’t have that data at all.

Or maybe you did bring him money, but you just didn’t think to, mark down that information. Well now, you know, moving forward what kind of information you need to be looking for and what kind of KPIs to be tracking for yourself, right? But if you just didn’t bring in the money and that’s why you’re feeling overwhelmed, I want you to ask yourself a few different questions, similar questions.

What did bring in money this year? Even if it was only a hundred dollars? What brought in money this year? How much did it bring? . And how did you get those sales? Did they come from word of mouth? Did they come from Google Analytics? Did they, or like people finding your website from Google search, I guess I should say, did they come from Instagram?

Where did they come from? And what you’re going to do is you’re going to plan for more of the same next year. and you’re going to build from there. It’s not a neat formula like the other example, and it is messy, but messy is completely normal in these early years. Okay? So don’t feel overwhelmed. Don’t feel lost.

Just what worked this year. Keep doing that. Get rid of the other stuff that didn’t work and keep doing what did work. Even if you only made a hundred dollars, you still made a hundred dollars, you still made some sales. . So then next part of revenue planning, you’re gonna write down what your yearly goals are.

Go ahead and write down all of your yearly goals, but in particular, what is that revenue goal? And if you have any goals that you’ve set surrounding how many clients you want or anything like that, write those down to for sure. The next question you’re gonna ask yourself is, what new offers, services, products do I plan to create?

Is there anything new that you’re planning to bring to the table this year? . Then the final question is for the revenue planning is what projects do I plan to undertake? So are there any backend things that you plan to do? Are you planning to update anything you already have? What projects do you have on your plate for the new year?

Now, all of these are not going to necessarily tie directly into your revenue mapping, but having them in mind as you’re doing your revenue mapping is going to be really important, which is why I want you to go ahead and write them down. So now we’re gonna move into revenue mapping. We’ve done the planning.

You know where your numbers came from, you know where you’re going in the new year. Now we’re gonna map it out. So create a list, maybe on a new piece of paper, create a list of all of your offers that you have, all of your different revenue streams down the page, and I want you to leave some room to the left and to the right..

then you’re gonna start projecting your revenue for the new year. So to the right, I would write out how many I plan to sell of something, or how much I plan to sell per month. So for example, I might write down five at 500 per month beside my one-to-one client space because I only take on five clients a year.

But for my shop, it’s not as precise because there are multiple products and I’m more worried about the shop’s overall bottom line than my, than I am each individual offer. So beside that, I might just write average $500 a month and if I make more some months, great. If I make less, that’s okay cuz I’m gonna make more other months and that’s fine.

And I base these numbers on the previous year. and then what I’m thinking that my launches and my projects will be, which is where that comes back into play. So if I know that I’m going to do less promotion of one stream of revenue, I might project less for it than it made the year before. Or if I plan to put more effort into an office, I’ll raise it from the last year.

And make no mistake that this is a guessing game. You wanna consider what you did before and keep it realistic. but it’s also okay to dream here too. I know for a fact that I’m only taking on five ongoing one-to-one clients, but I also have launched v I P days where I help map out an entire launch strategy and marketing plan for clients.

And those I don’t know how many are gonna come in throughout the year, and that’s one where I’m dreaming a little bit because I don’t have a set number that I’m taking on and that I know I’m taking on. So that’s one where I might say, okay, well I. 10 next year, or I want five, whatever that may look like.

There are some that are a guessing game, so just know that it’s okay to dream as long as we’re also being realistic in using the, the numbers and the data that we have from last year to do that dreaming so that we’re not just pulling it out of thin air. So then once I’ve written out my projections to the right of each revenue stream, I’m gonna put the total projection.

Number for each one to the left of the offer. \

So the five clients at $500 a month, that’s 30,000. So I’m gonna write 30,000 to the left. , and it really doesn’t matter which direction you do this. This is just how I’m doing it and just kind of showcasing that for you. But I’m gonna write that number down to the left, and then after I’ve done that for each revenue stream, I’m gonna add them all up and see what that total number is.

You’re gonna compare that number to the revenue goal that you wrote down earlier. . Is it on the nose? Is it lower? Is it higher? This is where you start playing around with these numbers. So you’ve done the initial projections, the initial mapping of how much you wanna make per each revenue stream, per month, how many clients you wanna have, yada yada.

You’ve done the initial projection, the initial mapping. , you’ve gotta compare it to that number. Is it right on the nose of that number? Is it higher? Is it lower? If it’s really like a lot lower, well that might be an indicator that your goal isn’t realistic for next year. If it’s only slightly lower, you may just need to change where you plan to focus your energy next year.

Can you tweak some numbers like trying to fit in more high ticket offer clients or. in order to to raise yourself up to the goal number, or on the other hand, if it’s higher than your goal number, you might wanna consider raising your goal number personally. . I like to have my revenue mapping end up higher than the goal I’m trying to hit.

That way I’m still likely to hit my actual goal, even if I don’t end up with the projected sales and clients that I mapped out. But that’s really a personal preference. You may want it to be right on the nose. You may want, that’s kind of up to you, but I like to have it so that when I’ve mapped out my year, if I hit all of those numbers, I end up way beyond my projected goal.

If I don’t hit it, I will probably still hit my goal . So once you’ve gotten your numbers tweaked to where you like, you’ll know exactly how many clients you need for the year, how many sales you need to make within each revenue stream, and how you expect to hit that big revenue goal. Now you have to decide when you’re focusing on each revenue stream throughout the year, and that is going to inform your content plan.

making it so that your content is aligned with your goals and actually moving the needle in your business. Like I mentioned in the introduction of this episode, these questions are laid out inside of the Chasing Simple content planner, along with many others that are going to help you keep on track with aligning your content to your goals all year long.

You can grab your own copy over at amanda warfield.com/planner. And your action step for this week is that it’s never too late to map out your revenue for the year. So even if you feel like you’ve got a plan in place, give it a try and see where you might need to make some adjustments in order to hit that revenue goal for this year.

This week’s book recommendation might be totally out of left field for you, but it’s Skincare. The new edit by Caroline Herrons and I. did not know how to girl. I, I say that all the time, like I don’t know how to girl. I never learned how to do my makeup. I never learned how to do my hair. I never learned how to take care of my skin.

These are all things that I just like never learned, and I really wanted to start taking better care of my skin. I’m in my late twenties, like I should have been doing it a long time ago. I live in the south where the sun is just like beating on my face and my skin all the time, and. I was determined to figure out what it is that I needed to do, but then the more I researched, the more overwhelmed I got because there’s so much information out there and there’s so many different products, and I was so confused.

And then I got recommended this book and it was life changing for me. So if you know things about skincare, you may not like it. I don’t know. But if you’re, if you’re where I was and. Overwhelmed completely by skincare. I cannot recommend this book enough, like five stars. I will gift it to everyone. It explains all the different things and what they mean, but it also tells you how to create a routine and how to create routines based on your skin type and based on, you know, are you in your routines?

Are you in your early twenties? Are you in your late twenties, your mid thirties, forties, fifties, whatever. It’s got different routines in there. No matter what your skin type or your age, and all of that is so highly recommend skincare. The new edit by Caroline Herrons and until next time my friend, I hope that you’ll go out and uncomplicate your life in biz.

The post Episode 147: How to Map Out Your Revenue Projections appeared first on Amanda Warfield.