The Nitty-Gritty

* Tara shares the story of how the seeds she panted at the beginning of her business journey have grown into The What Works Network* How a small action now can turn into big success for your small business down the line * Why your next big idea will probably come from the small ideas that you are planting today* And a sneak peek at the candid conversations coming up in April

Well before he was a New York Times bestselling author, Chris Guillebeau penned an ebook called 279 Days To Overnight Success.

In it, he outlined all the hard work he put into becoming a full-time writer over the course of 10 months.

The point was simple: fulfilling his dream of becoming a full-time writer didn’t happen because someone tapped him on the shoulder and made him a full-time writer.

It didn’t even happen because he got a big media break or a had a viral hit.

Chris planted seeds with every blog post he wrote and connection he made. He did the work of raising those seeds into saplings and watched them grow into trees. All along the way, he continued to plant seeds.

Chris is now the author of 5 books, the host of a remarkable conference, and an international speaker. But he certainly didn’t get there overnight.

The first seed I planted in my business was my first post-collegiate blog: Handmade In PA.net.

I had no idea what I was doing at the time. I just knew that I loved blogging and I loved the new maker movement.

When I started that blog, my only plan was to sell some advertising in the sidebar to cover a few lattes per month. I can remember telling a reporter from the local paper how much I was charging for advertising and he chuckled.

It wasn’t much.

But, low and behold, I got a few advertisers and made a little money.

More importantly, the site was a hit among a very niche, very small group of people. I wrote consistently, I connected with the audience, and I connected the audience to each other. They loved it.

Now, this is not a story about how Handmade In PA.net beat the odds and grew into a behemoth indie craft site. It did not.

Instead, it’s a story about how my vision grew.

By starting out small, I started. I turned words into pixels. I met people. I learned things.

I went from a local craft blogger to a global craft blogger. I went from a blogger to a writer and teacher. I went from a writer and teacher to a coach. I went from coach to trainer, facilitator, podcaster, and CEO.

My vision grew and grew and grew to what it is today.

The second seed I planted in my business started with a mind map.

Back in 2012, I worked with clients through a one-off consulting session model.

They’d share their goals and challenges through an intake form. I would pour over the intake form, research their digital presence, examine their market, and create a overview of where I saw opportunity and what they could do to seize it.

I loved these sessions and the businesses I got to work on in that model. Even more importantly, my clients loved these sessions and got great results.

And often, they’d come back looking for more.

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