I like to think about the time I was side hustling like running a marathon. A three-year-long marathon – but one that’s on a circular course in a forest. Is that even a thing? I've never run one so I don’t know.
But I think of it as not a perfect circle, but a windy path with some obstacles along the way, but where you always end up back at the start-finish line.
I’ve cycled through the same phases a few times since I started my business and each time I cross the start-finish line I know more about the course than I did the last time I went around.
I know where that tree route is that tripped me up in the first lap. I know where that rock is so I know what’s coming up next. I know that I start to get tired in turn three so I can pace myself better. I can try a new line through the first turn to see if I’ll go faster than I did the time before when I took a different line.
THAT FEELS VERY, VERY DIFFERENT THAN MY DAY JOB, WHERE I OFTEN FELT LIKE I WAS ON A GIANT HAMSTER WHEEL WHERE THERE WEREN'T ANY NEW REVELATIONS WITH EACH NEW REVOLUTION.
I had this realization after listening to a podcast… (I feel like every blog post I write starts like that, but I can’t help it, it’s true!!) For the past three years, I have consumed every piece of content I could get my hands on about how to build a business online, and podcasts are my drug of choice.
And I LOVE to go back and listen to episodes that I listened to 3 years ago when I was just starting my business, because things are different every single time I get to the start/finish line.
My perspective totally shifts each time. No longer did the successes and possibilities shared by the guests on my favorite podcasts feel like they were too far away, or like they were for someone else.
The episode hadn’t magically changed. I had evolved.
The ideas I heard shared landed in my ears in a totally different way. They inspired me in a totally different way than they had when I first listened to them, gave me new ideas and solidified my belief that I’m making the right move.
THE FIRST TIME YOU DO SOMETHING IS NOT GOING TO BE THE ONLY WAY YOU EVER THAT YOU DO THAT THING BECAUSE AS YOU GROW YOUR PERSPECTIVE WILL CHANGE.
So if something doesn’t work the way you expected it to the first time, that doesn’t mean that it didn’t work.
It doesn’t mean that you failed, but it does mean that you may want to try a different approach.
AND THAT’S EVOLUTION.
Relationships
Amplify
Consistency
Evolve
SO HOW DO WE EVOLVE?
First we have to set the expectation for an outcome. We have to know where we’re going to know if we got there, right??
Then we decide what steps we’re going to take.
Next, we take the steps.
Finally, we see if we reached the desired outcome.
That’s one lap around the track.
If we didn’t get the outcome we expected, we can either change the outcome (because maybe we set the bar way too high for the steps we were willing or able to take), or change the steps (because we need to take some different steps to get to the outcome).
So the next you go around the track, it’s like a new track, and you can try a new approach.
TELL ME IN THE COMMENTS BELOW – AS YOU START TO IMPLEMENT THE RACE STRATEGY IN YOUR BUSINESS, WHAT IS YOUR EXPECTED OUTCOME?
Mine is to grow my email list from 5000 to 10000 subscribers in the next 6 months.
AND THEN, AS YOU IMPLEMENT, EVERY TIME YOU MAKE A LAP AROUND THE TRACK, AS YOURSELF THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:
- What steps worked for you really well when you were working on building Relationships? What didn’t work so well? What can you do differently?
- What tactics to amplify your message fell short? What can you try differently next time?
- Did you nail your schedule the first time you set it, or do you have to make some adjustments in order to get some consistency?
THE BOTTOM LINE IS THAT WE HAVE TO BE OKAY WITH CHANGING THE WAY WE’RE DOING THINGS, AND THERE’S MORE THAN ONE WAY! WE AREN’T GOING TO NAIL IT THE FIRST TIME. EVER!
Say your outcome is to get your first 25 subscribers. You created a freebie, you posted it to your Facebook page and and you’re some getting traffic to your website, but you’ve only gotten 5 subscribers.
Does that mean your freebie sucks and your business is doomed and you should just give up your dreams?
No! What can you change?
Adjust the freebie name, promote, compare your results. Adjust the location of your optin, promote, compare your results. Promote on a different social media platform, compare your results.
Are you trying to do this all on your own without spending and money or asking for help? What can you change? What can you do differently the next time you try to get different results?
HERE’S WHAT EVOLVE LOOKS LIKE FOR ME IN MY BUSINESS RIGHT NOW:
Aside from the obvious evolution of leaving my day job, for about the last year, there have been a few things in my business that just weren’t WORKING. They haven’t turned out as I expected, and I’ve felt really stuck…
So I’ve kinda been ignoring these problems, and putting my time into shoring up the other parts of my business so that I’ve got a solid foundation in place for the growth I expect in the next 6 months. But it got to a point where I couldn’t ignore the problem any longer. In order to move forward with everything else I needed to do, I had to figure this one part out once and for all!!
And you know where I found the answers? No, not in a podcast… not this time…
I found them in some courses that I purchased a few years ago. I opened Becca Tracey’s “Hey Nice Package!” up and started from the beginning like I did when I was just starting out. I pulled out Ash Ambirge’s Brandgasm 101, which was the catalyst for coming up with the name for my business.
This time, I was able to get something completely different out of that information because I’m coming to it with a perspective that has evolved. A belief in myself that’s evolved, and a belief in what’s possible for me that has evolved.
SO IF IT FEELS TOUGH, IF YOU FEEL STUCK, JUST TAKE A DEEP BREATH.
Trust that you have access to the answers (if they’re not already inside of you), and by taking action you can find them. You really can’t go wrong.
Every outcome you set, every step you take, every unmet expectation and exceeded expectation – it all happens to shape your perspective and help you evolve for the next time you go around the track.
I can’t wait to hear how you implement the RACE Strategy in your business! And I’ll keep you posted on my results as I continue to build Relationships, Amplify my message, create Consistency and Evolve!
Today’s pep talk is brought to you by Bluehost. Go to www.shannonmattern.com/bluehost and get 36 months of web hosting for just $2.95 a month. That’s less than one trip to Starbucks a month – and if you’re anything like me, you’re at Starbucks more than that!
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