The fastest known way to grow your business is by working with an experienced mentor.
Why?
Because they’ve been where you are, faced the challenges you’ve faced and know what works.
When people message me to say they’re struggling to hit their goals in their business, or that it all feels ‘hard’, I always ask them “who are you working with to help keep you on track?”
While content marketing has been a very hot topic for the last few years, many companies and marketers still do not understand how to use it and why it is so effective. Understanding the importance of content marketing and ways of efficiently using it could be a turning point for your business’ success.
First of all, did you know that approximately 26% of desktop users and 15% of mobile consumers are using ad-blockers to remove any advertisement on websites they are visiting? (ref: Interactive Advertising Bureau study, July 2016). These numbers are huge, and it is a good indication that traditional marketing is losing its power. Paid advertising was THE way to spread brand’s message in online marketing, but not any more. Ad blocking is on the increase, which is great for consumers, but a terrible trend for marketers who rely heavily on paid advertising. Luckily, there is still a way to get cut-through with your message.
Have you ever wondered how to get more done in less time? I certainly did….and still do, often (but that’s because I’m determined to only ever work a 3 day week!)
Well I’ll tell you how all the super prolific content stars do it. It’s called BATCHING. And it’s absolutely BITCHIN’ when done well (that’s surfer dude speak for awesome, cool, amazing).
So what is BATCHING?
Sasha is 41 years old. She’s married, has two young children, a dog, a lovely house in the suburbs and a relationship that’s comfortable. She runs her own business, formally exercises once a week (but kids herself she’s burning serious calories picking up after the children all day), drinks wine and coffee and then green juices. She usually shops at Target but has no problem buying $300 shoes. She has heaps to say and can talk underwater but struggles with a pen. She is passionate about her passion and is desperate for it to consume more of her life…if only she could carve out a few extra hours each day. She’s happy, driven, but not ecstatic – yet.
You know quite a lot about our ideal client don’t you? Because you’ve been told ad infinitum that this is the cornerstone of business marketing. Every program, every course, every webinar has banged on about it for years. You got the message.
Or did you?
2016 was a very interesting for many of us. I know upon reflection, we can pretty well say that every year, but last year the universe really seemed to rock for many people. I know little about stars and planetary alliance, but apparently that had something to do with it. Or maybe it was just people pissing each other off.
There were many political and cultural challenges (Trump, immigration, gay marriage, legalisation of cannibis and Syria to name but a few), which prompted outrage, annoyance, confusion and hurt. And there were many amazing artists and icons lost (Bowie, Ali, Fisher, Cohen, Cole, Lee, Rickman…the list goes on). And whilst we didn’t know them, they entertained us, changed us, made their mark on the world. Why? Because they had the courage to use their own voice. Sometimes it was used well, others inappropriately. Regardless, they had the guts to stand up and be counted.
The year was tough and tricky in many ways, but the tides of change have been fuelled.
I don’t believe in regret.
I’m also not sure that people actually change that much. And I certainly know that what’s said in the heat of the intoxicated-midnight-moment is almost definitely never going to come to light in the cold hard reality of January 1.
This scepticism may sound odd, given that essentially my chosen pathway is to support and coach people through change…given that whether I’m working with groups or individuals, I am constantly talking about change, the affects, the stories.
But here’s the thing. I’m not completely without hope that people can morph or rehabilitate or alter their pathway. It’s just that THIS is what I believe in: Continue reading
“There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self.” ~ Ernest Hemingway
As the year draws to a close, most of us take time to reflect on what was, what could have been and what the hell! And it can surprise us, just how much we’ve achieved, or it can make us squirm uncomfortably as we realise it was just another ho-hum year that dwindled by without a whole lot of positive progress.
Now, it would be completely unrealistic to expect that each year is going to be extraordinary, filled with massive highs, few lows and progression in leaps and bounds. Some years just aren’t meant to be that way. And you know what? Your adrenal glands will thank you! Rarely can every single year be an adrenaline fuelled party where success is all you feel. However, I do think it is important to keep aiming for better each year. Better health, better wealth, better connections, better balance, better fulfilment. Otherwise, what’s the point?
Your words have a huge impact on those that hear them or read them, particularly those who look to you for leadership. The power of words goes well beyond their explicit meaning; do not underestimate the implicit and intrinsic too.
Words can be used for good or evil; the great orators of our time are testament to this. Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Adolf Hitler, Bob Hawke, Barack Obama, Donald Trump. Love them or loathe them, those who choose their words carefully, and craft clever messages, can whip individuals or entire countries, into frenzied action.
I met a gorgeous woman last week. She approached me in a crowded room and said, “I’m only here for you. I’ve been watching you and reading your blogs and posts for months and I needed to meet you. I’ve driven for an hour to be here, so can we talk?” This gorgeous woman then invited me out to lunch, which is where I was today, enjoying great food and company in the sunshine, with a like-mind.
Now, if I was single,and if I was so inclined, I may have read this approach as a proposition. Or, if I wasn’t in the business I’m in and therefore able to read the subtext, I could easily have been highly weirded out and worried about her stalker-ish behaviour. But the thing is that in the circles I run in, in a professional sense, this kind of behaviour is actually the highest form of flattery. In fact I commended her on her ‘positive stalking’ (a phrase I coined about 12 months ago when a similar thing happened to me), and she just laughed, knowing full well I wasn’t offended or turned off by her approach.
You would have to be hiding under a rock if you hadn’t seen or heard what has transpired over the last 48 hours in the US. The Presidential Election which has gone on FOREVER is finally at a close, with a not terribly popular (ironic, given he’s the winner) result.
The media, bloggers, journos – hell, everyone in social media land – has gone crazy reporting every minute detail about the outcome, including their own fears and freak-outs about what it’s going to mean for America and the rest of the world. And whilst I have to admit that when I first heard that Mr “You’re Fired” is now a world leader I almost choked on my protein ball, I have to say I didn’t immediately go into “the world is going to end” mode.
Little known fact: I’m actually an American citizen. I could have voted in this election. But I chose not to. One, because I don’t live there and postal votes only get counted if it’s looking like a tie, and two I wasn’t informed enough about the individuals and their parties to know what they actually stand for. I’m not an idiot, so on the surface I could see that Trump was a pretty revolting choice. His ability to shoot his mouth off and offend an amazing cross-section of the community is quite remarkable to say the least. But I felt like a hypocrite voting for just anyone in defiance of him, given I have little idea about what their policies would do for the larger population.