life

Movie Spin-offs and Blogging

September 20, 2017 by Jessica Goddard

If you’re anything like me you are thinking about your business even when you are doing something totally unrelated. Well, I’ve been thinking a lot lately about blogging. Mostly because I just started mine (in my third week now!), and I feel a constant struggle to come up with my next topic. Here’s my recent “light bulb moment.”

If you have kids, and you have Netflix, you may have seen one (or several) of the Disney fairy movies. These movies are a spin-off from Peter Pan, starring Tinker Bell and her fairy friends. Obviously this is not the first spin-off movie or television show, but it’s the one my daughter was watching when things clicked for me.

Disney made these spin-offs because there was interest in Tinker Bell from a movie that wasn’t all about her. We can find the same interest in our content and conversations and use it to our advantage.

Hopefully you have some form of analytics installed on your blog and/or social media. From those analytics you should be able to figure out what your most popular posts have been, and even what conversation was spurred by those posts. Do you see where I’m going here?

Use that data to come up with spin-off content from the originals! Your audience is telling you what they like, so give it to them! It’s amazing when you really dig into it how many posts you can create from one initial topic.

That said, I’m still working on this whole blog (content) thing, and I’m by no means an expert. I just know a good idea when I see one.

Five Marketing Lessons Learned While Dieting

September 19, 2017 by Jessica Goddard

As a solopreneur I often find my life and business intertwined – gaining insight in one area based on my actions in the other. Right now a large part of my personal life revolves around diet and exercise, and in that I’ve found some surprising connections to marketing my business.

I had my second child about 18 months ago, and it has been rough. Aside from the struggles of raising an infant (now toddler) and dealing with depression I have found it impossible to lose weight, despite what I assumed was my best efforts. Today, however, I’m happy to report that I have lost almost 10 pounds by making some simple changes in my life – and now I’m applying the same principles to my business.

Lesson 1: What Worked Before May Not Work Now

As someone who has had a constant struggle with weight, I was no stranger to dieting and making lifestyle changes to get results. So, once I exited the newborn fog I set out to drop some pounds. Unfortunately, what worked in the past did not work anymore. Blame it on hormones or age…whatever the reason it sucked. I was lost and hopeless so I gave up.

Finally, I picked up those broken pieces and educated myself. I found a diet that works for me as I am now and I am seeing results.

Marketing, as you’re probably aware, is constantly changing. What worked before (phone book ads) probably isn’t going to work today (or at least not as well). You must educate yourself on what marketing makes the most sense for your business today, and sometimes you might have to do a little trial-and-error to find success.

Lesson 2: You’ll Probably Have To Do More Than One Thing

If you’ve ever tried to lose weight you may be aware that it takes more than “dieting” to see results. Exercise, sleep, and stress reduction are all important aspects of seeing those extra pounds go away. I’m sure that you could lose weight with diet (or exercise) alone, but it would be a heck of a lot harder.

Marketing also requires a multi-faceted approach. If you put all of your time and money into Facebook ads but haven’t taken care of what happens after engagement, you probably aren’t going to see many results. It’s about the big picture and carefully crafting your efforts across the board.

Lesson 3: You’re Never Done

I’ve used the word “diet” a lot, but actually I prefer to think of my efforts as a lifestyle change (that has, fortunately, caused weight loss). See, I’ve been to this rodeo enough to know that I can’t change my habits to lose the weight then go back to living an unhealthy lifestyle. These changes I have made are changes that I’m planning to implement for the rest of my life.

I’m sure you’ve heard it before, but marketing is (or should be) a constant effort in your business. Even when you’ve reached the coveted “booked out” status, you still have to keep up with your marketing. You’ve worked hard to get there, now you just have to maintain it.

Lesson 4: It’s a Lot of Work, but It’s Worth It

Losing this weight is taking a lot of my energy, both in planning what I will (or won’t) eat and in exercising. There are plenty of days when I just don’t want to do it. It feels like too much effort. Then I remember all of the benefits. Aside from weight loss I’m experiencing more energy and happiness. It is worth it.

With marketing you have to put in a whole lot of effort and you may see very little reward – at first. Once that marketing machine is really churning, however, you will be able to sit back and appreciate what you have done and the effects it has had on your business. You will be able to spend more time enjoying your work and less time clamoring to find it.

Lesson 5: Don’t Underestimate a Support System

I saved the best, most important lesson for last. A good support system is everything. I’m beyond fortunate that my husband has decided to embark on this lifestyle change with me. We support each other when we’re feeling week and celebrate our victories. Without him I probably would have already given up on this attempt.

As solopreneurs, we do a lot of work alone and sometimes it’s really hard. There are so many decisions that need to be made and it can get very overwhelming. How can you know if you are making the best decisions for your business? Find support. You don’t have to do it alone. Find an amazing Facebook group or a mastermind program. Let others cheer you on and give you honest feedback when you’re not doing what’s best for your biz.

Are you ready to make changes in your life and business? Results go beyond pounds on a scale or money in the bank. Positive changes can lead to a happier, more confident life which will aid you in ways you can’t even foresee.

Four Steps for Reversing the Downward Spiral

September 5, 2017 by Jessica Goddard

I often describe my life, or events in my life, as being like a spiral. Good creates good and bad creates bad. At any moment in my life (or day) I feel like I am either spiraling upward or downward. In my experience, the good kind of operates on its own, not needing much effort other than my acknowledgement. The bad? Well, I gotta stop that one in its tracks.

As someone with anxiety and depression it doesn’t take much to make me feel like everything is crumbling around me. In early 2015 a stomach flu swept through our house and to say it knocked me out would be an understatement.

Since then I’ve learned to be much more mindful of that downward spiral and attempt to stop and reverse the trend as soon as possible. Following are some of the steps I take to stop and reverse the spiral:

Acknowledge there is a trend. If you continue to go on in your current state of mind without acknowledging that things are crumbling it will just continue to get worse. Stop and admit that things aren’t OK and it’s time to take action.
Assess what is contributing to the spiral. Whether it’s something tangible, like business or house work, that is making you feel down or if it’s more of a mental battle, you need to sit down and figure out all of the contributing factors. Create a list if that helps you. Face those problems head on.
Give yourself space to feel down. It’s OK to not feel happy and positive all the time. Sometimes life is just plain hard. Allow yourself to feel these emotions. Take a little time to just feel sad or mad. Sometimes we just need to break before we can rebuild.
Create a plan for changing the course. Now that you’ve identified what is causing the spiral and allowed yourself to feel all of the effects, it’s time to take action. Start figuring out what little things you can take care of that will have a positive impact. The more you do, the easier it will get.

If you’re like me you may become afraid of feeling good because, inevitably, you will fall again. As difficult as it may be you have to allow yourself to feel better, and give yourself grace in the process. You may stumble, but if you continue making intentional choices toward an upward spiral you will be successful.