making shit work today, because it has to
I hope you’re beyond the “should I be marketing while the world is burning?” point.
Your business finances your life. You HAVE to show up for it, because your life isn’t stopping. No, it’s not life as usual, and it isn’t business as usual. It’s business in a crisis. So what does that mean?
It can mean stripping things down. Cutting expenses. Even closing up shop and making backup plans. Definitely coming up with alternate career paths “just in case.” (Personally I think I will be an excellent cobbler once it gets too expensive to import shoes.)
That’s how I see most people talking about The State of Things right now, both online and off.
But if you’re committed to your business for the long haul, you know that it also means doubling down. Taking what you were putting into a job you got laid off from, and putting it into your former side hustle. Moving away from clients that aren’t aligned with your values.
Making shit work TODAY, as is, because it has to.
To get through this, you have to get REALLY clear on what you actually want, what you’re willing to put your limited capacity and resources into building, and WHY.
It means remembering why you started in the first place - and what will keep you going when it gets weird and hard - and what will guide your choices when it does.
This is when defining your big-picture vision becomes critical - and so does being able to SHARE that vision with people in a way that makes them want to emotionally and literally invest in it.
This is when the passion behind what you do NEEDS to touch and be felt by the people who need your work.
This is when your brand has to be SO CLEAR that it cuts through the noise, cuts through the fears, and lodges itself deep in someone’s heart, where it could change their life.
Having a business with a defined brand isn’t fucking cringe, frivolous, or selfish. It’s built on how you connect. It’s built on relationships.
And if you’re anything like me, you built yours on helping people make their lives better in whatever way YOU are able to do so best.
If it feels out-of-touch to be focusing on your big vision and fine-tuning visuals for your business right now, consider:
Do you feel inspired in your work right now? Do you feel like you can inspire other people right now?
Do you feel able to genuinely show up and market to people whose lives could benefit from your particular gifts right now?
Are you in touch with why you’re doing the work that you do, in a grounded, consistent, and deeply true way, right now?
If you answered no, then it might be time to embrace the ~shiny nice-to-have superficial ego trip~ (or whatever your mind has decided to label it) that is YOUR BRAND and take responsibility for showing up as fully as you can in this moment.
Which brings me to what I built my business on: helping people see themselves clearly, and allowing them to be seen clearly.
And I know that none of us are getting through this crisis without knowing in our bones what we’re here to do and letting people know about it.
If it's time to make sure that people SEE YOU when you show up and GET YOU when they do, let’s talk.
