The Jim Galiano Show: Help for Freelancers & Solopreneurs

https://www.jimgaliano.com/cloudways

Every good plan has a beginning, middle, and end. Very few people plan all the way to the end, however. This is true on every level. We see this play out in everything from huge companies to nation empires. We see it happen with businesses – small and large.

Without a defined stopping point of some kind in your overall plan, what you build will ultimately become increasingly difficult to manage. That becomes the first domino to fall in a series of dominos.

So, if you’ve come to the point where you feel like you’re drowning in vagueness and uncertainty… and you know something has to change, you’ll get a lot from today’s podcast.

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https://www.jimgaliano.com

https://www.jimgaliano.com/cloudways

Back in 2017, I started talking about AI (artificial intelligence) and newer technologies. I shared some thoughts on how it would affect certain markets and even career choices going forward.

Over the past few years, we’ve seen the first generation of low-cost AI solutions enter the marketplace. Some of them are admittedly a little clunky. They are basically low-budget versions of more advanced tech that’s coming. Think Amazon 1.0 or Facebook 1.0.

These solutions will replace the need to have an entire team of people dedicated to certain kinds of tasks or projects. How soon will this happen? Sooner than most are willing to believe.

This will come as a shock to some people, but it shouldn’t. We’ve been seeing AI depicted for years in science fiction. We’ve seen it in the real world, too. We’ve seen robotics replace factory workers for years. Today, you can run many manufacturing plants with just a few people.

I think we’ll see an increasing amount of upheaval in the days ahead. I believe it will require many, if not most of us, to make changes to our business going forward.

Subscribe to The Jim Galiano Show: Help for Freelancers & Solopreneurs on Soundwise

https://www.jimgaliano.com/cloudways

https://www.jimgaliano.com

What kind of business advice should you be considering? What type of experts should you be following? Whose advice should you be taking to heart?

If you’ve never heard my backstory before, I grew up around self-employed business owners and entrepreneurs.

Almost all of them learned about business in a non-formal setting.

Many of them didn’t have an education beyond high school, but that didn’t stop them from succeeding.

In today’s podcast, I want to talk about books, courses, success, and education. When all is said and done, your personal path to success might look different from what you currently think.

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https://www.jimgaliano.com/cloudways

https://mikeoliver.me/

Do people see you as an "Expert" in your field? The word expert is defined as a person who has a comprehensive and authoritative knowledge of or skill in a particular area. I know it's easy to get hung up with labels. Some people wouldn't dare call themselves and expert at anything unless they had a degree or certification of some kind to back them up.

Others who are self-taught have no problem at all with the label and will even go as far as calling themselves one of the best in the world at what they do. Ultimately, when it comes to the marketplace, the clients or customers will cast the only vote that really matters.

Those are generalizations, of course, but there's an overall point you need to consider.

Whatever type of business you have, you need to be the kind of “expert” your customers and clients need you to be. That and more in this week's episode.

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Episode links below

https://www.jimgaliano.com/cloudways

https://mikeoliver.me

In today’s podcast, I want to talk about pushing through business setbacks. There are a lot of things that can hold a person back. Some things are obvious, but many others – less so. Money can certainly be an issue. When I first started, it didn’t seem like I’d be able to compete unless I took out a big loan of some kind.

That said, I used what I had without going “too far” into debt.

Sometimes, you have to keep moving forward despite delays, setbacks, and slow business growth. Other times, you have must reimagining what you’re doing completely to be able to move forward. All that said, sometimes the biggest obstacles of all are ones of our own making. And acknowledging that can make a huge difference. That and more in today’s podcast.

Subscribe to The Jim Galiano Show: Help for Freelancers & Solopreneurs on Soundwise

https://www.jimgaliano.com/cloudways

Today, I want to talk about my experience with marketing and growing a business using WordPress. Is it possible to grow a successful business today focusing almost exclusively on creating “long-form” content?

I believe it is. At the end of the day, SEO and WordPress have provided the closest thing to a “silver-bullet solution” than anything else out there.

What about social media?

I hate to say this, but, increasing numbers of people are navigating away from the social scene. That “feel good” experience seems to be a thing of the past for many.

The point is, we already have a powerful tool at our disposal that we can use to really leverage our marketing efforts. Yes, I’m talking about WordPress.

If you want to hear more… I’ll continue this conversation in today’s podcast.

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Today I want to talk about two very different styles or approaches to marketing. Marketing, in general, can be an overwhelming topic for a lot of people. There are many different options, steps, and strategies to choose from.

Just getting started can be overwhelming to a lot of people.

If you’re a do-it-yourselfer or find yourself working with a very limited budget, this is a problem. Why? Because the popular approaches to marketing in our time are time-consuming, multifaceted, and not beginner-friendly by any stretch.

What’s the solution? I think the topic of martial arts or self-defense gives us a great analogy. Instead of trying to force you into a popular style, one that accentuates your weaknesses, we take the opposite approach.

We bring the style to you that fits your existing strengths. Some styles are better suited for people who are fast and agile. Trying to teach that style to someone who’s older and slow is an uphill battle. The same approach can be used to teach marketing, sales, and even publicity.

If that sounds interesting to you, today’s podcast will give you plenty to think about.

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Click here: https://www.jimgaliano.com/cloudways

Sooner or later every business owner comes to the place where you find yourself asking, “What should I do next?”

I originally started out with the intention of building a publishing business. So that was the path I followed before jumping into the online world.

Once I jumped into the world of online business, I felt like a kid in a candy store. Sometimes I still do!

There were more opportunities than I could count! That said, there’s an old saying, “He who chases two rabbits catches neither.”

The implication is, without a focused effort, you’re not going to get the things you’re after in life. As true as that may be, what happens when you have multiple interests?

That’s the topic of today’s podcast.

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https://www.jimgaliano.com/cloudways

Have you ever noticed how many rules there are in the marketing, sales, and business space today?

There are rules for just about everything.

Do you want to set up a landing page? Follow these rules.

Do you want to launch an email campaign? Follow these rules.

Do you want to have a successful social media presence? Again, follow the rules?

Do you want to create a powerful business proposal? Follow the rules.

The list is unending.

In today’s podcast, I want to talk about rewriting the rules or, in some cases, throwing them out completely. How far has the “follow the rules” approach gotten you with your business?

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https://www.jimgaliano.com

It’s finally happening. Many of the big marketing and ad agencies of North American are shedding workers by the tens of thousands. And there doesn’t appear to be an end in sight. For some, this really isn’t a big surprise. In retrospect, the decline has been in progress for some time.

It’s like the story of an aging boxing champion who, for brief moments, shows glimpses of their once formidable skills.

Interestingly enough, it appears that freelancers, subcontractors, and part-time workers will now fill the void once occupied by huge, full-service agencies. Yes, times are changing, but thankfully, some very good things opportunities for smaller business owners are on the near horizon.

In today’s episode, we’ll talk about this and how you can position yourself to be discovered by an ever-growing number of clients and customers.

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