One of the major breakthroughs I had in my business very early on was realizing that my earning potential wasn’t written in stone. It was a choice.
For a variety of familial and community reasons, I believed that my earning potential was capped around $40,000 per year. So I planned my business to generate about that much revenue.
At some point I realized that this was an arbitrary number–sometimes I am less bright than others–and that I could set any goal that I like. So I set a higher goal. Wouldn’t $80,000 be nice? Maybe $100,000? Maybe $150,000?
Once I realized that my earning potential was up to me (sky’s-the-limit, please and thank you), I could make different (read: better) decisions.
One of the chief lessons I want people to take away from my new book, Quiet Power Strategy, is:
Treat everything in your business as a choice.
Whether it’s the amount of revenue you want to generate, the way you want to promote your products, the model you use to construct your business, or the channels you use to communicate with your customers, everything is a choice.
It’s easy to get bogged down by what you think you need to do to succeed. It might be pricing your products or services a certain way. Or it could be creating a certain set of offers.
For instance, I can’t tell you how many times clients have said “I’ve been seeing clients for a year now so I know it’s time to write an ebook and then create a program.” Really? Is that the best thing for you? How do you know?
Constantly looking for the best practices and “right ways” is tantamount to backing yourself into a corner. And that’s when the mistakes happen. Following someone else’s lead can be great, but not without careful personal examination first.
When you allow others’ previous success to guide your actions, you ignore the insanely creative voice inside your own head. You might also ignore the fact that your customers are quite different or that you have different goals for your business.
Generally, I don’t encourage business owners to reinvent the wheel. But some of the best marketing, branding, and business model ideas have come from when business owners just like you have disregarded what “works” in favor of trying something out of left field.
Think Netflix, Dropbox, Nespresso. Think coworking spaces, clothing subscription services, doctors-by-skype.
Consider what works for your personality, your business’s personality, and your customers’ motivating values. Consider what will be memorable, welcome, and gratitude-inducing.
You don’t have to set a certain price.
You don’t have to use a certain marketplace.
You don’t have to use a particular business model.
You don’t have to use social media.
You don’t have to do anything.
Arm yourself with information, engage in strategic thinking, and make a choice.
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The Mission
Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to choose to do your content marketing differently by writing a blog post that only you could write. How? Focus on your unique point of view in your field: your design philosophy, your methodology, your personal pet peeves, your guiding principles, etc…
Don’t be afraid to say things that have been unsaid or might prove unpopular with some people. Invest yourself in your unique point of view and choose to powerfully communicate the individuality of your business.
When you’ve completed the post, share the link on Facebook or Twitter with the hashtag #contentdirectionmission and #quietpowerstrategy.
Don’t know what this is? Join in Lacy Bogg’s Content Direction Agency scavenger hunt: click here.
