I want to tell you a little bit about daring to be different so customers can find you.
“Daring” and “Different” have uncertainty attached to them, and that can quickly turn into fear.
The thought of doing stand-up comedy in a club in New York City terrified me. And I’ll tell you what I learned.
Fear will stop you from succeeding.
Period.
This shows up in many ways. Here are a few examples from real conversations with potential clients:
- They are afraid to try a different approach because what they did before got them some leads; what if the new way generates NO leads?
- They fear being so different compared to others in their industry that they attract attention. [WHATTTT??]
- They refuse to try pitching themselves to podcasts because that’s “too pie-in-the-sky” for them.
These people want different results, but they hold themselves back from achieving them because of fear.
Fear that something new won’t work
Fear of other people’s opinions
Fear of putting in effort without a guarantee
This quote grabbed me by the heart:
The worst thing that can happen to you is allowing yourself to die inside while you’re still alive. – Dr. Travis Bradberry
That reminds me of another quote:
If you do nothing but yearn for different outcomes, you allow your joy and business to die unnecessarily.
Fear of the unknown is powerful. Unfortunately, a few of the clients I’ve worked with let that rule their actions, so they didn’t execute on my recommendations, and continued to struggle to thrive. Remember, doing the same thing and expecting different results is crazy. Yet, it happens to me too when I’m stuck. It’s incredibly frustrating.
Fear of standing out is a tricky one. If you are uncomfortable with attention, good or bad, you probably feel most comfortable blending in. That’s bad for business.
When I recommend doing something that is out of the norm in a client’s industry, they say one of two things:
“You’re fired!”
or
“How do we do that?”
I’m VERY HAPPY either way because it tells me if we are a good fit. If I’m not, then I want to help them find someone who is.
How do you overcome fear? By doing things you haven’t done before with help.
You find a guide who sees where you want to go, knows the ropes, and helps you navigate the fear.
As I mentioned, the thought of doing stand-up comedy in a club in New York City terrified me.
It was right up there with encountering a snake on a plane or anywhere else. So, I decided to do it as a test of my courage—comedy, not the snake.
BUT I didn’t head to the first open mic I could find. I wanted help and company, so I enrolled in a stand-up comedy workshop. Me and nine other terrified souls went through a month-long comedy boot camp that taught us how to write and perform a five-minute comedy set.
Eight classes later, we each stood alone on the stage at the Gotham Comedy Club in front of a zillion people [It felt like it even though capacity was 75]. “Graduation” was performing our five-minute sets there on a Saturday night. My classmates included a contractor, Associated Press reporter, director of a non-profit, and a science teacher. None of us had ever done it before. All of us wanted to throw up.
Skipping ahead – none of us threw up [in public], and all of us got at least a few laughs. I went on to do stand-up once or twice a week at clubs around NYC for three years with the contractor, reporter, and non-profit director. We laughed at each other’s sets [they were really funny!] and cheered for each other.
The morals of this story are
you will find success on the other side of terror
and get help doing scary stuff.
If you want help doing different marketing to grow your business, check out ways we can work together below.
Do something different so you experience the thrill, success, and pride that come from being uncertain and doing it anyway!
I dare you!
– Melinda
How can we work together? Take the fear out of daring with an EXPERT!
Choosing to avoid doing business differently out of fear and uncertainty will make growing your business frustrating. And why avoid it when you don’t have to??
Creative Jolt Session
[90-Minutes of energizing ideas]
Get unstuck in this 90-minute session that’s a creative wake-up call for your business. I’ll focus my brilliantly different brain on your business issue, and I KNOW a storm of very different-than-you’ve-heard-before ideas will follow [aka a brainstorm!].
We’ll bust through the roadblock you’re hitting, so you can break out of your usual marketing rut, get unstuck, and move forward. You’ll walk away with innovative, sales-driving ideas and action steps to integrate them into your marketing mix.
90-minute session and prep worksheet
Innovation Showcase For Team Meetings
[Customized inspiration for your team]
Don’t have time to hunt down the best new ideas in biz today? I’ve got a ton of them!
I’ll bring examples of the freshest marketing and customer experience campaigns out there to your next team meeting. Seeing the innovative ways other companies drive sales will spark new ideas for your company!
Customizable: Virtual or in person. 10 minutes or more.