The Kim Doyal Show

One of the benefits of being in business so long is that you learn to take the so-called “failures” as part of the process.

But that doesn’t mean you don’t get disappointed.

That feeling you get when you’ve worked hard and something doesn’t go as planned or the way you hoped it would. This is when the little kid in you who didn’t get picked for the team or get invited somewhere shows up again.

The difference now is that you’re not that child… you’re the adult who chose to be an entrepreneur.

Knowing full well that things not going as planned is simply part of the process.

It’s what you do with those feelings and results (because no matter how something turned out, you’ve got some data to work with. That’s the beauty of an online business).

I’m going to share a bit of what I’ve been through this past week, how I’ve handled it and am still handling it, and how it’s leading to the birth of something new.

I’m pretty transparent about most things in my life and business.

The more I share, the more people connect with me.

I also don’t have the energy to be something I’m not or pretend for the sake of appearances or feeding my ego.

I recently launched something that didn’t go as I hoped.

My initial feeling was a massive disappointment because I’d worked super hard to get to that point (this was a completely revamped version of Email Insiders, which went from a two-month cohort to a 6-month group coaching program).

A few months back I shared that I had made a significant investment in my business by signing up for a program and said I’d share more about that later.

Well, it’s later. 😉

The program was called “Fearless CEO” with Mariah Coz. I say was because they’ve had a pivot and gone back to the name they were recognized for (High Ticket Hybrid) because there was a disconnect with their audience.

I won’t go into a bunch of specifics on that because it’s not my business or place to share what they’ve shared with paying clients, but even know they were successful in terms of sales (high 6 figures in two months), they realized they needed to make some adjustments.

I’ve invested a little over 13k in this program (yes, seeing that and saying it out loud makes me cringe a little, but fortunately, the content, training, structure, and program are amazing. No regrets).

I changed the name to “Email Insiders Accelerator”, and went about doing exactly what I was supposed to (which was a LOT of work). The launch for this is through a live private training (they call it an LPT). To give you an idea, the Google doc to write out that training ended up being 35 pages long (there was a base template and I wrote out my content).

I followed the launch plan (they suggest not doing any paid traffic the first time), which meant I was emailing to about 10k people and posting to social.

I don’t have any final numbers yet (the cart isn’t closed), but the numbers have been disappointing.

I reminded myself that this is a big investment for people (6k) and when I invested in the Fearless CEO program it took me a few days to make that decision.

I held my live private training when I still had friends in town.

I could have put it off, but I knew I needed to get it done – because it’s WAY too easy to continually put things off or push the date out further. For myself, I needed to pull the trigger.

So naturally, my first thought was that I did this too soon (gotta love the ego and all the BS it throws at us, right?).

In many ways, I was massively grateful that I had friends in town because I made a very conscious decision to stay present and NOT feed the stories in my head and ruin the few days I had left (we also rented my therapist’s house on the beach and I wanted to soak up every minute of this location).

Let me...

It’s officially May today (when I’m writing this episode) and at the end of the month, I’m renewing my lease in Costa Rica – for two more years.

My plan is to purchase a property down here before the end of those two years and I’m excited to see where this journey takes me.

This episode is going to be a look back on the last year, the lessons, and what this all means for my business. I’m about to embark on a new chapter in my business and I honestly feel like I’m about to burst I’m so excited.

I’m still a little in awe of the fact that I’ve been living in Costa Rica for a year already. I knew the year would go quickly which is why I didn’t hesitate to sign a year lease (sight unseen – both my place and the country). What was the worse that could happen? I break the lease and head back to the states.

I’ve found a lifestyle and way of life that feeds my soul… but it hasn’t been a slam-dunk from day one. I’ve had my moments of doubt, changed my mind, and then came full circle to loving it again.

Some of this might be a little redundant (if you’ve been listening or reading over the last year), but hopefully, I can bring a fresh perspective now that I’m hitting the one-year mark.

A little backstory

Here’s the TL;DR version of my move to Costa Rica (which you can read more about here).

After my youngest graduated high school, I moved out of the Bay Area. I had been planning this move for a couple of years and was looking at Boise, ID. In July of 2019, my world was turned upside down when my Mom passed away at 71.

Instead of going straight to Boise, I stayed with my Dad for a while with a couple of trips to Boise in between to check things out.

March 2020, right before the world shut down, I moved to Boise, ID.

My year in Boise was quiet, which is exactly what I needed. But I knew it wasn’t for me (too cold). When my lease in Boise was coming due I had originally thought I’d stay a few more months and then break it but realized there was no point. Why not just move to Costa Rica? (I had been considering Portugal, but that was pretty far for a first jaunt out of the U.S.).

Within a week I found my place in Costa Rica, signed the lease, gave notice, and started packing. I spent two months in California at my Dad’s to get things situated and on May 31st of 2021, I moved to Costa Rica (with the help of my amazing daughter).

Adjusting to Life in Costa Rica

Since I had never been here I truly had no idea what to expect (which meant I was pretty open to everything). I’ve shared bits and pieces of my life here in other episodes (more in-depth), but my day-to-day is really pretty similar to my life anywhere else, in terms of what I do.

That being said, EVERYTHING is different.

I recently had friends here for a week (and have more visitors in the coming months) and it was such a gift to see their appreciation for Costa Rica and the life I’ve created here.

Before I get into the things that are different and what my life is like here, I want to share some of the less-than-highlight-reel moments.

At about 3 months I started feeling a little homesick and kind of wondering if this was the right place for me. I had a trip home at that time (a memorial service for a dear family friend and a border run) so I think that carried me into the fall.

I also sold my car in California and purchased a car in Costa Rica when I got back (that’s a whole other conversation)....

Kim Doyal 0:00

Before we get into today's episode, I have a quick message for my sponsor cloudways. cloudways is a managed cloud hosting platform that simplifies your web hosting experience. The platform allows businesses to focus on their growth and have complete peace of mind with 24/7. Support and flexibility to scale. Can we just say support is hugely important when it comes to hosting. And thanks to cloud wise they are offering an exclusive discount for the Kim Doyal show listeners, visit cloudways.com and use a promo code Chem 20 to get 20% off for two months on the hosting plan of your choice. Alright guys, let's get into today's episode. Welcome to F the hustle. I'm your host, Kim Doyal. You want a life that is meaningful and exciting. In this podcast, we're going to talk about launching and growing an online business that fits your lifestyle. F the hustle is all about doing good work, building real relationships, and most importantly, creating a business that supports how you want to live your life. You don't have to sacrifice the quality of your life today to create something that sets your soul on fire. And yes, that includes making a lot of money. So we'll be talking about selling, charging what you're worth, and help earning more means helping more people. My goal is to help you find freedom and create a business on your terms. Hey, what's going on everybody? Welcome to another episode of the podcast at the hustle with Kim Doyal. I of course am your host Kim Doyal. And I'm really excited today a because my guests and I have only chatted sort of via online. This is really our first time getting to connect in person, which I'll take in person video any day over just email. But we're going to talk about growing an agency. She's got a great YouTube channel. There's a lot of stuff I'm going to pick Nicole's brain about but let's welcome my guests. Nicole Osborne of Wonder stars. Thank you for being here, Nicole.

Nicole Osborne 1:51

Oh, Kim, I'm so excited to be here. I think I told you I'm a total fan girl. So to have you in Costa Rica. And thank you for having me.

Kim Doyal 2:01

You're, you know, it's so funny. You know, you're just like you and like if people say that to me, and it's so funny. I used to tell my kid my family. Like you know, you guys, I'm famous on the internet. And nobody believed me until like, my niece was 12. And she Googled me which it was all like blog posts and links and stuff. And I'm like, well, somebody believes me. But anyways, thank you.

Nicole Osborne 2:19

I'm on my seven year old. I'm speaking to Kim. She's in Costa Rica.

Kim Doyal 2:24

Well, and you're in Germany, like this is what I love about are you in Germany. Oh, no.

Nicole Osborne 2:29

What? German based in London. Oh, even matter. I talked to someone today in Florida and someone in Pakistan. So actually, today's International Day. I'm loving it. It totally

Kim Doyal 2:41

is. It's so funny when when and for people. I'm really curious. And you guys have promised we're gonna get into the interview here. But this is what I love about people in my offline world. Right who it's normal life day to day and it was like I was talking with I'm sure your friends at Pizza Neary this morning. I'm like, No, she's an Italian, who spent a ton of time in London. And now she lives in Spain. Like, this is why I love this. It's like the world is huge and small all at the same time.

Nicole Osborne 3:07

I love I love pizza. I just communicated with her via LinkedIn, chatting about her amazing program. And I think she's absolutely nailing it on LinkedIn. And I just think she's so authentic. And have you seen her artwork? She sometimes publishes that on Facebook. She's oh my gosh, yes. Talented. Wow.

Kim Doyal 3:23

Oh, yeah. No, we literally just

It’s the only thing I regret not putting time and energy into sooner, but as they say, there’s no point crying over spilled milk.

Here’s my intention with this episode:

Not only will you be fully vested in making email marketing a priority in your business, but you’ll also have a solid understanding of why (this is more important than you think) and exactly what you should do to get started.

From the first moment I began in this amazingly crazy, wonderful, and frustrating world of internet marketing (I know you all know what I’m talking about), the message that the “money is in the list” has been as consistent as gravity.

The problem with this message is that even though we “get it”… we don’t really “get it” until we dig in (how’s that for an ambiguous statement).

There are 3 different phases in the online marketing space:

1. Newbie: People here are just getting started, full of enthusiasm and excitement for all the possibilities in front of them. They’re committed to doing whatever it takes to make their dream a reality.
2. Knows enough: This phase is probably the most dangerous. People here have had some success, some failures, they know enough to do the work, but they tend to keep looking for the ‘ONE’ thing that will get them to the next level. In this phase, you keep working but it feels a bit like spinning your wheels.
3. Mastery: This is where the magic happens (and the best way to get there is through DOING THE WORK). You know that you need to do more than “know enough” to get to where you want to be. There’s nothing wrong with knowing enough but in order to grow and scale you have to go deeper, not learn more.

Everything I’ve done along the way to get to where I am today has been invaluable, but who you become at the mastery level is an entirely different ballgame.

And to make sure we’re all on the same page with mastery, the definition and explanation I’m using is: “comprehensive knowledge or skill in a subject or accomplishment.”

I think of mastery as ongoing learning and a desire to consistently improve.

The second phase (knows enough) is the most dangerous because you can end up stuck there.

There will always be people who know less than you, and you can serve them with integrity and truly help them at this level. However, there will always be people who know more than you.

If you feel like you’re stuck in the “knows enough” phase my challenge to you is to go deeper. Find someone who knows more than you and show up like an excited 5-year-old on the first day of kindergarten.

Back to Email Marketing…

With so much changing online in terms of privacy and tracking, paid traffic is becoming more challenging (particularly if you’re just getting started with it) and more expensive. It will always work and when you can you should definitely invest in it, but until then, you need a reliable source of traffic.

Which is your email list.

Think of email as a marketing channel you own where you get to create and control the conversation.

Here are a few statistics from Hubspot’s annual “Ultimate List of Email Marketing Statistics for 2022”:

• There are 4 billion daily email users.
• 78% of marketers have seen an increase in email engagement over the last 12 months.
• 4 out of 5 marketers said they’d rather give up social media than email.
• 81% of B2B marketers say their most used form of content marketing is newsletters.

I’ve linked to the full article above and if you’re listening, you can just search for Hubspot’s email marketing statistics and you’ll find the article.

Everything I do on...

Before we get into today’s episode, I have a quick message for my sponsor Cloudways. Cloudways is a managed cloud hosting platform that simplifies your web hosting experience. The platform allows businesses to focus on their growth and have complete peace of mind with 24/7. Support and flexibility to scale. Can we just say support is hugely important when it comes to hosting and thanks to Cloudways they are offering an exclusive discount for the Kim Doyal show listeners. Visit cloudways calm and use the promo code KIM20 to get 20% off for two months on the hosting plan of your choice. Alright guys, let’s get into today’s episode.

Welcome to F the hustle. I’m your host, Kim Doyal. You want a life that is meaningful and exciting. In this podcast, we’re going to talk about launching and growing an online business that fits your lifestyle. After the hustle is all about doing good work, building real relationships, and most importantly, creating a business that supports how you want to live your life. You don’t have to sacrifice the quality of your life today to create something that sets your soul on fire. And yes, that includes making a lot of money. So we’ll be talking about selling, charging what you’re worth, and how earning more means helping more people. My goal is to help you find freedom and create a business on your terms.

Kim Doyal: 0:00

Hey, what’s up, everybody? Welcome to another episode. I’m really excited. Today, my guest is going to talk about something that we all need are probably not doing well and can do a little bit better. So my guest is John Ainsworth of Data-Driven Marketing. Thank you so much for being here today.

John Ainsworth 1:36

I’m delighted, what an honor.

Kim Doyal 1:40

Yeah, so we connected and we do have to give the listeners a little bit of a backstory because we’re recording this and you’re getting a November and I think it’s kind of fun. We connected through a good friend, Jimmy rose, James rose, depending on where you’re connected with him online. And John is in Mexico, and I’m in Costa Rica. So we’re sort of having this tropical conversation today. Yeah.

John Ainsworth 2:03

We’re both just loving the fact that it’s beautifully warm in November, it is a wonderful thing.

Kim Doyal 2:11

It is, I think I’m going to be in shock going back to California in December, even though it’s California, it definitely cools off in the winter. So I’m like, What am I gonna wear? Did I bring anything to wear?

John Ainsworth 2:23

And I have it on my packing list when I travel. If it’s going to be cold when you go back, pack a jacket, and hat and scarf, and gloves and just like don’t get to the airport and go, Oh God, what am I done?

Kim Doyal 2:37

I mean to wear flip-flops and get out and snow this is.

John Ainsworth 2:41

Exactly yeah.

Kim Doyal 2:43

Anyways. Yeah. So I’m totally excited to talk about this day, John, because, you know, it is there was a time when funnels were not a common marketing language. It’s what you guys do. But before we get into that, how did you get into your funnels? But how did you start your online business what’s a little bit of backstory, I love hearing how people got to where they are.

John Ainsworth 3:05

So this is my second business. And my first one was I used to work in sport and physical activity marketing, I used to be campaigns manager for Sport England, who’s like the National Organization for sport in England. And I’d run campaigns for them. And then I set up a business on my own. And I would do that for local government and health charities. And I would get inactive people into physical activity cancer patients, disabled people, people from teenage girls was a really hard...

I’ve mentioned on many episodes that I have a therapist and still talk to her regularly (even though technically she’s “retired”). I’m hoping this episode will be helpful in hearing how this relationship has evolved and why I still talk to my therapist – 18 years later (almost 19).

For those of you who have been listening to the show for a while (i.e, the days of “The WordPress Chick” podcast), some of this might be a repeat, but I encourage you to listen anyway.

The perspective I have today is completely different than the perspective I had when I first started podcasting.

The Backstory

Why I started therapy

I started therapy in 2003, a couple of months after I lost my husband in a car accident (he was 32, our kids were 6 & 2). Prior to this, I didn’t think I was someone who “needed therapy” (now I think everyone does 😉 – if you’re lucky enough to find the right therapist).

I initially went to therapy for grief counseling and more or less considered that to be why I was going for the first couple of years.

Then my therapist told me she was moving out of the area and closing her practice, but me being me, asked if I could stay in touch.

I’d email now and then and then asked if we could do some phone sessions. Fast forward a few more years and I told her I wanted to see her in person (she had moved 3 hours north of me). Fortunately, she said sure and since I was making the trek we could keep the sessions open-ended (in terms of time). Most of these sessions were 3 hours long.

I looked at these days as a gift to myself and most people knew not to try and get in touch with me. There was something soothing about the solitude and time in the car before and after my session.

In between seeing her in person, I’d have phone sessions but it was more of an ‘as-needed’ basis. I’d have an in-person session usually every two months (unless I was going through something).

Fast- forward to 2020

Right after I moved to Boise the pandemic struck and everyone went into lockdown. I was stuck in Boise, she was stuck in Costa Rica (and yes, her love of Costa Rica is what put it on my radar).

A few months into the pandemic I was struck with inspiration and asked her if we could do weekly calls because I “wanted to raise my vibration.”

I had no idea what that looked like or meant, but she was game (we have similar spiritual beliefs so I knew she’d get it).

Now two years later, unless something comes up, I’m still doing weekly calls with her (or seeing her in person when she’s in Costa Rica).

Sharing this in my business

When I started my business in 2008 I had a completely different vision for what it was going to be than what it turned into (ignorance truly was bliss).

I first started sharing it on my podcast.

My intention when I started podcasting was simply to have more fun in my business.

At the time I was still doing WP websites, had an outsourcing company, and was just starting to coach clients (with similar businesses).

Because I wasn’t stuck on how things had to be I let it grow and evolve (I’ve done this with every iteration of my business).

I started podcasting in 2013 and structured the show on two things: what I wanted to do and the types of shows I enjoyed listening to. I needed to get out from “behind the computer” at the time and I’ve always been a huge fan of audio content.

I set the show up so I would do a solo show one week and an interview the next (this varies nowadays). When I did the solo shows I started sharing little snippets here and there of things I had talked to my therapist about or a nugget of wisdom from her.

Let me be super clear: even though I did this,...

Kim Doyal 0:00

Before we get into today's episode, I have a quick message for my sponsor cloudways. cloudways is a managed cloud hosting platform that simplifies your web hosting experience. The platform allows businesses to focus on their growth and have complete peace of mind with 24/7 support and flexibility to scale. Can we just say support is hugely important when it comes to hosting and thanks to cloudways they are offering an exclusive discount for the Kim Doyal show listeners. Visit cloudways calm and use a promo code Chem 20 to get 20% off for two months on the hosting plan of your choice. Alright guys, let's get into today's episode.

Welcome to F the hustle. I'm your host, Kim Doyal. You want a life that is meaningful and exciting. In this podcast, we're going to talk about launching and growing an online business that fits your lifestyle. After the hustle is all about doing good work, building real relationships, and most importantly, creating a business that supports how you want to live your life. You don't have to sacrifice the quality of your life today to create something that sets your soul on fire. And yes, that includes making a lot of money. So we'll be talking about selling, charging what you're worth, and how earning more means helping more people. My goal is to help you find freedom and create a business on your terms.

Hey, what up what up? Welcome to another episode of EFF the hustle with Kim Doyal because this is now the third iteration of

Kyle has been on with me with the WordPress tech podcast Kim Doyal show. And I think I'm in my sweet spot at least for a few more years with FSL with Kim Doyal. So that being said, my guest is my good friend, Kyle Vandusen. Kyle, thanks so much for being here today. I'm super excited to be here. And I'm just waiting for your next iteration so I can come back again.

Well, you'll I'm sure you'll come back before there is another iteration. At that point. I'm like, Girl, I got like for myself talking to myself girl stick with like, no more rebranding, let's just, we're dialed and we're placing events in the background.

place bets on the the change of the name, or what course platform is gonna jump on next.

Anyway, um, alright, so let me I'm gonna kind of just do a little backstory with. I'm not I'm gonna link to previous episodes with Kyle, you guys can listen to who he is. And what he does, I'll let him do a quick little bio, we've gotten much deeper into his business in previous episodes. But the reason I reached out to Kyle is because he responded to an email about time lotteries. And we're going to talk about that in a minute. So this is going to be much more of a free flow conversation. We're going to talk about thought management mindset, running your business in a way that works for you. And we're gonna just see where it goes. So for those who have not listened to Yo, Kyle, or have had the good fortune of our previous conversations, give a little background.

Kyle Van Deusen 2:55

Yeah, my name is Kyle Van Deusen. As you can probably hear from my accent, I am from Texas. So forgive me for that. But I own a small agency here in Texas that I've had since 2017. About a year after I started that I started an online community called the admin bar for web developers, freelancers, agency owners, and that has grown tremendously over the over time, we're at about 5000 members now. And at this point, my business that's taken over to kind of take up most of my time at this point. So it was before the agency was full time in the community was part time. And now it's the community is full time in the agencies getting a little bit more part time. But yeah, as long as as long as it has to do with web, I'm usually in the middle of it.

Kim Doyal 3:37

Perfect. And he does have Kyle is a believer in email and newsletters as...

Kim Doyal 0:00

Before we get into today's episode, I have a quick message for my sponsor cloudways. cloudways is a managed cloud hosting platform that simplifies your web hosting experience. The platform allows businesses to focus on their growth and have complete peace of mind with 24/7 support and flexibility to scale. Can we just say support is hugely important when it comes to hosting and thanks to cloudways they are offering an exclusive discount for the Kim Doyal show listeners. Visit cloudways calm and use a promo code Chem 20 to get 20% off for two months on the hosting plan of your choice. Alright guys, let's get into today's episode. Welcome to F the hustle. I'm your host Kim Doyal. You want a life that is meaningful and exciting. In this podcast, we're going to talk about launching and growing an online business that fits your lifestyle. After the hustle is all about doing good work, building real relationships, and most importantly, creating a business that supports how you want to live your life. You don't have to sacrifice the quality of your life today to create something that sets your soul on fire. And yes, that includes making a lot of money. So we'll be talking about selling, charging what you're worth, and how earning more means helping more people. My goal is to help you find freedom and create a business on your terms.

Hey, what's going on everybody? Welcome to another episode of the hustle with Kim Doyal I am effing the hustle in Costa Rica. As you can see, welcome back. I'm so excited today for a number of reasons. But the to specifically one my guest is a dear friend and coaching client, love her energy, love everything she's doing. And the second reason is we're going to talk about something that I have jumped back into and I'm committed to mastering. So first of all, my guess is Karen Michaels. Karen, thank you so much for being here today.

Karen Michaels 1:52

Yeah, that was super fun. You are having the hustle all day long girl.

Kim Doyal 1:56

I don't know where that came in. You know, I don't always do that. Like, ah, but today was one of those days. And this is a total non sequitur. I bought the shade for this window over here. And I couldn't figure out how to roll it up. Right. Well, I figured out how to roll it up. So I was like, oh, like again.

Karen Michaels 2:13

Oh, you can see the ocean as a current desert dweller. I use the ocean waves as my regular focus sounds.

Kim Doyal 2:24

You know, it's funny to to because I've got all the everything shut with AC on. Yes, yes. From that down a little. Alright. So first of all, Karen, before we get into our topic, Mm hmm. Tell the audience who you are what you do. And you know how you run your business?

Karen Michaels 2:43

How I read my wells, oh, my gosh,

Kim Doyal 2:45

you're all day with that one. But I think really going in the right direction. And so a bit with sort of some off script, which is what I do, which will lead to why we're talking about this specific topic today. So

Karen Michaels 2:58

yeah, sounds fun. Your girl Well, I am. I am a solopreneur here in Las Vegas, Nevada. And I'm also a singer and a pianist who happens to love technology and apple and writing. And I had been dabbling, and it was 100% of side hustle, right? I was dabbling with social media. And I was helping friends or a client would say, oh my gosh, I love what you did. Can you mock that up for me right quick before the gig, you know, hilarious. And I was like, Sure, no problem. And then, of course, when the pandemic struck, and quarantine happened, I'm gonna be honest, my business took off. And thank goodness it did, right. Because there wasn't any live performing or any of that sort of, I'm also a teacher. And so none of that was happening.

Kim Doyal...

Kim Doyal 0:01

Before we get into today's episode, I have a quick message for my sponsor cloudways. cloudways is a managed cloud hosting platform that simplifies your web hosting experience. The platform allows businesses to focus on their growth and have complete peace of mind 24/7 support and flexibility to scale. Can we just say support is hugely important when it comes to hosting. And thanks to pod boys who are offering an exclusive discount for the Kim Doyal show listeners, visit cloudways.com and use a promo code Chem 20 to get 20% off for two months on the hosting plan of your choice. Alright guys, let's get into today's episode. Welcome to F the hustle. I'm your host, Kim Doyal. You want a life that is meaningful and exciting. In this podcast, we're going to talk about launching and growing an online business that fits your lifestyle. After the hustle is all about doing good work, building real relationships, and most importantly, creating a business that supports how you want to live your life. You don't have to sacrifice the quality of your life today to create something that sets your soul on fire. And yes, that includes making a lot of money. So we'll be talking about selling, charging what you're worth, and how earning more means helping more people. My goal is to help you find freedom and create a business on your terms. Hey, what's going on everybody? Welcome to another episode of the podcast. I am your host, Kim Doyal. And I'm really excited today because not only is our guest amazing, but we're going to talk about something that I have gotten really obsessed with in the last couple of years. And that is newsletters. But first, my guest today is Leslie sim, the founder of newsletter glue. Leslie, thanks so much for joining me today.

Unknown Speaker 1:45

Thanks so much for having me, Kim. Super happy to be here.

Kim Doyal 1:48

And we'll just let everybody know, this is fun. You are recording from you're in Singapore.

Unknown Speaker 1:54

That's right.

Kim Doyal 1:55

Okay, so what time is it for you?

Unknown Speaker 1:58

Is 9:34pm

Kim Doyal 2:02

Yeah, and it's 7:34pm. This is why I love what we do, Leslie, it's like we get to connect with people all over the world. It's just, I don't know, it makes the world seem smaller and bigger kind of at the same time.

Unknown Speaker 2:13

Yeah, totally. I feel like I actually benefited from the pandemic, because now nobody's going out and meeting people. And they have to meet people like me online. So that's yeah, that's been like one cool and unexpected side effect. nice side effect of the pandemic.

Kim Doyal 2:31

It is, it's nice to see those benefits. And I mean, it just, I think it forced a lot of growth and opportunity online in general. So I think it's fantastic. Okay, so, enough about that. But I would love to know, you know, we did a live stream talking about newsletter glue, and I'll let you explain what that is. But I don't know much about your backstory, if you wouldn't mind sharing with listeners, kind of, you know, how you got into all this what you're doing prior to creating and launching newsletter glue?

Unknown Speaker 3:01

Yeah, how far would you like me to go back?

Kim Doyal 3:06

Maybe with your entrepreneurial journey, or you know, I mean, whatever you feel like sharing honestly.

Unknown Speaker 3:12

Um, so my very first job, or my very first real job after after university was in the government in the airport. And it turns out that I was very bad at that because I not like Are you familiar with the term iron rice ball? No, explains that there might be a Singaporean or Southeast Asian, but it's just kind of like a stable steady job that you know, like working in the...

It's easy to say "Own Your Expertise" to other people, but sometimes it's harder to do that for ourselves.

I have a tendency to go to one extreme when I get inspired (or fired up) about something and then the pendulum swings back to the middle and I'm able to move from a more grounded place.

I've been thinking about this a lot lately because I'm very clear on what I want this year to look like.

This March will be my 14th year in business (I'm beyond grateful that ignorance is bliss). What I'm doing today is not at all what I thought I'd be doing when I started this online journey in 2008.

Side note: I remind my kids ALL the time that what I'm doing today didn't even exist when I was their age, so this is my reminder to you too. Don't get attached to what things are supposed to look like.

I know I've shared my story a zillion times in terms of what I thought I was going to be doing (I thought I was going to write ebooks and make millions of dollars. #nuffsaid), so even though my business went in a different direction (and pivoted a handful of times), the journey is what has given me the strength to own my skillset.

This is what I'm hoping this episode will do for you as well.

Step into your own expertise and #JustShowUP - we need new voices and perspectives on things.

The "Create vs. Consume" argument

You hear this all the time in the creator space.

Stop consuming and start creating.

It's a completely valid point, but sometimes consuming is what helps you get clear on what you want to create.

I read a LOT.

Probably more than I need to, but guess what? I LIKE reading and learning.

It was through my consumption that I found what resonated most for me. You can also see patterns and behaviors that start emerging when you read and learn about specific topics consistently

There is absolutely a danger in consuming more than you create, but it truly depends on where you are in your journey and whether or not you're actually "doing the work."

Until about 5 years ago I probably consumed a lot of content on anything relative to digital marketing. Whether it was SEO, video marketing, email marketing, funnels, content creation, e-commerce, advertising, copywriting, podcasting, etc.

The funny thing is that even though some of those topics aren't interesting to me (SEO & advertising are at the top of that list), I still consumed it because I felt like I had to.

I had to have an understanding of ALL the things.

This is where the old saying "Jack of all trades and master of none" comes in.

But I don't necessarily think that's a bad thing. In fact, here's the full saying that is often left out:

Think about traditional education (which in many ways is broken, but we'll leave that discussion for another time. Or never 😉).

You go to school and study general education for the first 12 - 14 years of your life (personally I think we could do without the two years of lower-division in college these days, but I digress. Again).

Once you've built that foundation, you then go on to a focused area of study.

If you're lucky with your business, you're able to find that focused area that becomes your specialty early on, but sometimes the price of admission to getting there is general education. The trial and error that comes from trying and testing new things are how we learn.

If someone had told me 10...