photo by D.sharon pruitt courtesy of flickr

photo by D.sharon pruitt courtesy of flickr

What if you knew that at the heart of your greatest struggle, was your greatest strength?

I was having a conversation with a client who is an EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique)  practitioner but also a professional musician.  As is the case with many holistic practitioners, her modality can help just about anyone with whatever they’re struggling with.   Since trying to market to everyone is the recipe for failure, we’re working on focusing her marketing message by deciding who she wants to help with what issue. We tossed the idea around of her working with musicians and performers to remove the blocks and anxiety that keep them from being great at what they do.

Of course I think this is the prefect branding for her but she said she’d rather focus her work on students who are having a hard time  in school and parents who are anxious because their kids aren’t doing well. Either one would work as a basis for her business, but to me it makes more sense for her to work with the population she is part of, to help those with a something that she has experienced.

I asked her why she didn’t want to work with musicians when she understood that world so well.  “It’s because I’m a very nervous performer.  Trying to help people with their anxiety around performing when I have so much of my own makes me feel like I’m a fraud.”

And my answer to her was–actually you’re not a fraud, you’re an expert because you’ve lived the situation. You have empathy and a deep understanding of what that struggle is.  Without empathy, there’s no real connection between you and the person you’re working with and therefore, a true shift can’t occur.

DING!

I could feel the light go on in her head and in that moment, she let herself off the hook of needing to be perfect.  The relief in her voice was palpable.

This is a very tender place to be. But here’s what I’ve seen over and over and here’s what I know for sure:

It’s the thing you wrestle with in your own life that ends up being the foundation of your work.  It’s what you’re trying to resolve that acts as the vehicle to bring your work into the world.

If it seems like a paradox, it is.  The sooner you can embrace this, the better for you, your business and those who need your help.

You don’t want to be a blank slate for your clients and you don’t want to be a faceless business.  You want them to know that you’re human and the more you can embrace your own humanity and own your imperfections and struggles, the more permission it gives them to do the same thing.

It takes a lot of energy to give the appearance of perfection.  Trust me, I did it for years…but that’s for another blog post.

So Where Does Fierce Authenticity Fit In With All Of This?

It fits in right now.  It’s not about hiding behind some image of perfection that you’ve conjured up for your business or as your persona.  It’s allowing your clients or the people around you who are struggling with something to be seen and witnessed by revealing that you’ve been where they are.   Even if it was just last week.  Even if it was yesterday.

Life is a work in progress and perfect only exists in the movies.

How you engage with the difficulty or the challenge is what’s important, not eliminating or sidestepping it.

It’s usually the thing you’re most scared to reveal that allows others to connect with you on a deep level.  It’s having the courage to allow yourself to be vulnerable that invites those around you to move in closer and to connect.  And at our deepest being, we’re all craving love and connection.  So when you reveal, you’re participating in something sacred.

We all need to know it’s OK to be where we are at any given moment–especially when where we are is a place of weakness–because the truth is, you can’t move from where you are without accepting it first.

Coming to that realization can be quite a relief.

Life isn’t about being perfect, it’s about showing up.  With all of who you are.

That’s Fierce Authenticity, Baby.

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When Niche Is Not Enough

by Cathy on May 10, 2013

What’s your reaction when someone asks you what you do?

Do you describe your business by the service you provide?

I’m a body worker, I’m an energy healer, I’m a life coach, I’m a financial advisor….

Or do you try to communicate something more.

Once you get half way through the explanation do you get a little knot in your stomach and think to yourself, “why am I even bothering with this–they’ll never get it.”
It’s not that the words are so wrong, it’s just that shrinking feeling that you have while you’re saying them.

You don’t feel like you’re standing in your power.

You feel vulnerable and unsure.

You feel like you’re being judged.

It’s hard to get clients and business if you can’t communicate what you do in a way that gets someone’s attention.

But what’s even more important than the words you use is your energy.

If you aren’t excited to tell people what you do, because you’d rather they just experience it so you don’t have to explain it,  then there’s already a disconnect.

If you feel the words you’re using don’t adequately express what’s in your heart about the change you want to make in the world then the person you’re speaking to won’t be moved.

You know that quote by Robert Frost– “No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader.”

If your own message doesn’t resonate with you, how will it resonate with those you want to help?

So knowing your niche (who your ideal client is) is very important.

But a detailed profile of your ideal client is only half the story.

The other half of your marketing message and your branding needs to be about YOU.

Your business didn’t just arise out of nowhere–there was a journey.  There was something you overcame or experienced and now you want to help others down that same path.

How you do your work isn’t that important.

But WHY you do it is.

Your WHY needs to be the driving force behind your business.

When you’re in the helping or healing field, your clients want to work with someone who’s been there and understands what they’re going through.
And chances are you do.

But if that story isn’t somewhere in your marketing–if you haven’t figured out how your past experience, training, and talent come together to form your business you’re missing the big picture which is what connects you to your purpose.

Many new entrepreneurs want to put on a mask to market their business, they want to sanitize their message when what’s really required is for them to not only take off the mask but to be as transparent as they can about who they are, where they’ve been and what matters to them.

Because it’s the things you’re afraid to reveal to the world that your audience will love you for.
True.

I’ve helped many people through this process and each and every time the person arrives at the intersection–the place where their journey up until this point, their training, talent and the needs of their ideal clients intersect, it’s like watching spontaneous ignition.
They get it.
They know their why
and they know what they need to do next.

Sometimes what comes out of the process is a much bigger vision then the one they originally had.  There have been times when it’s clear to the client and to me that they are stewarding something very big–that their business has the potential to be world-changing.  But they really had no idea about that going in.

It can be very difficult to connect to this place inside when you’re trying to build a business and you just want to get started already.  You’re focused on earning money and setting up a business structure.  You might be tormented by the thought that you need to be further along than you are.

All of these things keep you from connecting to your deep wisdom and zeroing in on how your purpose translates into a message to help those you’re meant to serve.

I created the e-book and recording of Claim Your Niche! Six Keys for Coaches and Holistic Practitioners so you can tune out the distractions and allow the vision of the business that you’re meant to have come into focus.

It’s my gift to you to get you on the path of creating the message that will attract your ideal clients.  Put your name and e-mail in the box in the upper right hand corner and it’s yours.

CW-CYN-Group-1-150x150

with love,

Cathy

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How Do You Answer This Question

by Cathy on May 7, 2013

NailYourNicheLogoWebWhat’s your reaction when someone asks you what you do?

Do you describe your business by the service you provide?
I’m a body worker, I’m an energy healer, I’m a life coach, I’m a financial advisor….

Or do you try to communicate something more.

Once you get half way through the explanation do you get a little knot in your stomach and think to yourself, “why am I even bothering with this–they’ll never get it.”

And it’s not really that the words are so wrong, it’s just that shrinking feeling that you have while you’re saying them.  You don’t feel like you’re standing in your power.  You feel vulnerable and unsure.  You feel like you’re being judged.

It’s really hard to get clients and business if you can’t communicate what you do in a way that gets someone’s attention.

But what’s even more important than the words you use is your energy.  If you aren’t on fire about this thing you’re putting out there, then the person you’re telling it to won’t be that excited by it.   If your own message doesn’t resonate with you, how will it resonate with those you want to help?

In Nail Your Niche you get to connect the dots.  Your business didn’t just arise out of nowhere–there was a journey.  You’ve overcome or experienced something that you want to help others with. How you do it isn’t that important.  But why you do it is.

In Nail Your Niche, you’ll connect you to your why–because that’s the driving force behind any successful business.  When you’re in the helping or healing field people don’t want to work with someone who comes across as professional and corporate.  They want to work with someone who’s been there and understands what they’re going through.

Many new entrepreneurs want to put on a mask to market their business, they want to sanitize their message when what’s really required is for them to not only take off the mask but to be as transparent as they can about who they are, where they’ve been and what matters to them.

And as it turns out it’s that very thing that helps your business stand out from all the other people who do the same thing you do.

In Nail Your Niche you’ll get to your WHY and learn how to articulate that in a way that’s compelling to those you’re meant to serve.

I’ve helped many people through this process and each and every time the person arrives at the intersection–the place where their journey up until this point, their training, talent and the needs of their ideal clients intersect it’s like watching spontaneous ignition.

They get it. 

All of a sudden,it all makes sense.

The pieces of their business fit together.

They know exactly what step they’re supposed to take next.

If you’ve been struggling with finding the intersection–the place where your experience, talent, training and the needs of your ideal clients intersect, you may want to join us for
Nail Your Niche.

This is a 5 week teleclass where you will not only get clarity on who your ideal client is but how to speak to them in a way that gets their attention.

You’ll also learn how to translate the work you do into programs and packages that your audience wants to buy.

To watch the video click on the photo

Nail Your Niche TeleclassIMG_0386_2
Wednesdays May 15, 22, 29, June 6, & June 13
4:00-5:30pm  Eastern Time
For more info click here

Here’s what Ravani Leffler had to say about her how Nail Your Niche changed her business

 

http://youtu.be/32xyZleqgg0

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If you’re afraid of something, of putting yourself out there, of creating a kind of connection or a promise, that’s a clue that you’re on the right track. Go, do that. – Seth Godin

One of the biggest challenges I see my clients struggling with is promoting themselves and their services.

I work with a lot of coaches and healers who find promoting their business excruciating. They don’t want to be pushy and they really don’t want to feel like they’re bothering anyone.

The reason they feel like they might be bothering someone when they send a promotional e-mail is because they view what they’re doing as asking for something.

Hire me, buy my stuff, come to my event…

When viewed from this place, marketing becomes nothing but a pain in the ass.

And I must tell you, if you’re in the business of providing transformation, your marketing can change someone’s life.

If you are in a service business that helps people to create healing or transformation in their lives then not letting people know you’re out there is withholding help from them.

And that’s kind of ironic if you’re in the business of helping.

Who does it serve for you to not put your work out into the world?

Not the people who need you–that’s for sure.

There are people out there whose life could change if they worked with you.

Don’t let them down by keeping your business to yourself.

Do you have a story of finally finding the person who changed your life for the better? 

How different would things be for you if you hadn’t found that person?

Do you have a hard time putting yourself out there?

Does focusing on being of service help you to move past that?

Feel free to leave your comments below! 

I’d love to hear from you.

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Should You Do A Big Launch Or Is There Another Way?

April 21, 2013

It’s finally spring here in NY and for a lot of us it’s also launch season! Every time I launch or re-launch a program I go through the same thing.  I always end up with a knot in my stomach between the time I put out the info about the program and the time that [...]

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The Secret To Taking The Next Step In Your Business

April 13, 2013

I have a lot of sayings that I use about building a business when I coach my clients and teach my classes but one of my most utilized sayings and concepts is– Start where you are and do what you can with what you have. In my opinion, this is one of the sanest and [...]

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What If Someone Has The Exact Same Business You Do?

March 26, 2013

The other day a client sent me a link to a website of a business that’s very similar to hers.  Almost identical as a matter of fact.  In my world identical business means that your business provides the same service for the same group of people as someone else. So from the outside, the businesses [...]

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What Would Happen If You Just Let Go?

March 14, 2013

I had a very interesting dream the other morning. I was walking my dog Trixie but we were in some strange place, we were on the edge of a cliff which was overlooking a body of water. The water actually came right up to the edge of the cliff and was at the same height [...]

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A Grounded Approach To Promoting Your Work: The Online Empowerment Formula

February 19, 2013

By Guest Blogger- Marisa Goudy What does empowerment mean to you? It’s about making your own inspired choices, controlling your own destiny, and having the courage and the tools to meet your daily challenges.

  As an entrepreneur, you know that you’re most successful when you feel empowered in your business. You choose to work with [...]

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Has This Ever Happened To You?

February 17, 2013

Have you ever had the experience of working toward something whether it’s building a business or something else you want to do in your life only to have someone you thought was your friend try to discourage you from going for it? I’ve had more than one person come to me recently who was in [...]

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