Let’s Get Started…
Do you find yourself stuck in the mud of knowing you need to change and “stinking thinkin” gets in the way and you’re left wondering – How do I move forward?
My Journey
In August of 2003, I declared myself as an independent contractor with expertise in the field of Talent Development and started Raising the Bar Performance Consulting Services. I had been in the Training and Development industry for 13 years when I decided it was time to strike out on my own. With everything, there’s ups and downs and when I take an inventory of both as it relates to Raising the Bar, the pros always outweigh the cons. I love the work in all three services that I provide my clients, Instructional Design, Coaching, and Facilitation. In all honesty, I like some things more than others, but when you pull it all together, I am able to serve my clients in a very customized, focused way that drives results. For that, I am most proud.
Fast forward to March 2020 and COVID 19 hit all of us hard in one way or another. For me, business slowed down more than ever before, even compared to 2008 in the Big Recession. With that in mind, I needed to do something different because when people asked me – how do you get clients? My answer is always by “word of mouth”. On one hand that’s a good thing and on the other hand, it’s not because I thought this “word of mouth marketing” would be good enough and now, it just doesn’t work anymore. I also decided that I really wanted to keep working and grow my business. The next question that I had to answer, how do I do this?
Raising Your Bar
So, if you can relate to that example in your neck of the woods and find yourself needing to PIVOT and you don’t know where to start, consider these ideas:
- Identify the gap. For me, it was all about marketing. Once I speak with people, I’m good to go. It’s breaking the ice and getting people to reach out to me that’s my problem.
QUESTION: What change or pivot point are you being faced with? - Be OK with knowing that you can’t do it all. Realize that you can’t be all things to all people and letting go of that mindset is key. Then be willing to take your ego out of the equation and get help.
QUESTION: What do you know vs. what don’t you know or uncomfortable with doing? - Look for help. Through my network, I found a great marketing company – B2B Marketing, Brian Basilico, the BACON Coach. Brian gave me the best advice from day one and he said: “if you are a coach, you need a coach; if you are a doctor, you need a doctor”. In other words, you need someone who can help you in ways that you are not able to help yourself. I also took some time to talk to a few people. Make sure that whoever you work with it’s a good fit. What does good fit look like? It entails being on the same page, knowing what you expect from a customer service perspective, and know what you can afford to make this investment work.
QUESTION: Who can you reach out to for help? - Get a plan. For me, the first step was to redesign my website. The original website was so antiquated, outdated, and to be honest, VERY BORING. In fact, my nephew who’s a sales rep said – “it’s like reading a textbook – too many words”. He was spot on, so with Brian’s expertise and support, my website has been overhauled and revamped. www.rtbperformance.com. As Brian has said more than once, your website is the foundation from which to launch into the social media world with blogs, podcasts, videos, LinkedIn, etc.
QUESTION: What’s the goal and timeline? What are the action steps? - GET ER Done. Procrastination and Perfectionism prevent you from moving forward and gaining traction. Thanks to Brian, I’ve been able to keep a positive attitude as I’ve been tasked to get my website up and running. For example, getting testimonials, writing content, blogs, are things that I was able to accomplish and just “get er done”. I can always go back and tweak and realize that all this work is a “work in progress”.
QUESTION: What’s one thing that you need to “get done” without being perfect? - It’s a team effort. I was able to help Brian in the process of getting my website up and running by doing the heavy lifting with content. In that process, I learned that I can DO it, if I put my mind to it. I had to slay the “head dragons” of doubt and thinking – “who will read this stuff anyway?”. How many times do we allow “head dragons” to get in the way of moving forward?
QUESTION: Who’s on your team? Is it friends, colleagues, provider, etc? Who’s doing what? - Celebrate the small victories. When you break through a mental block and you move forward, don’t forget to enjoy the journey and Celebrate! If you feel good about something, rejoice in that.
QUESTION: What small victories will you celebrate?
What’s Next?
Writing my first blog was cathartic and positive. We all have a voice to speak up and speak out. If you can relate to this situation and you need some help to get out of your own head and deal with the head trash of stinkin-thinkin, reach out and I’ll help you get unstuck and move forward.
I would love your comments and feedback. Comment on this post or Contact Me!
