One of the questions I’m often asked is how to create a movement to grow your business. Why are movements more powerful, exciting and relatable than a business that just sells products? What are the building blocks of a strong movement? How do you create a movement manifesto and story? On this episode, I talk about building a business that is also a movement, because all the best brands are!

A movement cannot move if it is not shared. If you don’t share what you believe in, no one has a chance to get excited by you. -Dana Malstaff

3 Things We Learned From This Episode

• A movement bands people together, and it creates momentum.
• A movement allows you to attract people like a magnet instead of feeling like you need to reach out to them.
• To formulate a powerful story of your movement, ask yourself what you believe in, what kind of world you want to live in and what you know to be true.

Nowadays, people really want to know about the behind-the-scenes of what you care about and who you are. That’s where a movement comes in. Every business has a movement, and with a little work you can uncover yours. You need a manifesto because it becomes all the words you use in marketing and the things you use in branding. You also need a movement story which is “what you believe in” mixed with “what you’re good at” so it can be shared with the world.

Entrepreneurs are so easily caught up in “shiny object syndrome”, and move to the next thing before giving the last thing a real chance. How long should you stay horizontal on one strategy, system, or tactic? Does work-life balance exist? How do you get over the shyness of being on camera? On this episode, Amy Porterfield talks all things entrepreneurship, motherhood and getting comfortable on camera.

In your business, you are tweaking more than pivoting. -Amy Porterfield

3 Things We Learned From This Episode

Don’t obsess over work-life balance (12:47 - 13:23)

When you’re a mom and you’re trying to build a big business, you’re not always going to be able to be there. There’s no such thing as work-life balance. You can’t be in two places at once, and you will always miss out on something-- and that’s okay.

Lean into your insecurities about being on camera and use them in your story (18:46 - 21:15)

Let go of worrying what you look like and sound like, because no one cares about that. They are actually thinking of themselves and watching to get something out of it for themselves. Remember: having something valuable to share is way more important than how perfect you look and sound when you share it.

Tweak more than you pivot (22:42 - 24:27)

There will be about 2 or 3 core pivots that you will ever do in your business. Most of the time, what’s required is tweaking to make things better.  If something is working, stay horizontal for at least 18 months. Tweak it, market it, and promote it for as long as it’s working.

It’s easy to get caught up in the fear and limiting beliefs that come with putting yourself out there as an entrepreneur. When we let those things win, we are actually doing ourselves and our students a disservice by saying we care too much about how we look or come across on camera. Even if you feel awkward, push past that and let go of your insecurities. You’ll learn that your audience appreciates it and loves you even more for it. The key thing will always be consistency. When you do something consistently, you’ll become known for it-- and that’s what you want!

We often don’t leverage holidays and special days enough--but we should! Why are holidays such a great way to get your audience excited about your products? How are the special moments in our lives opportunities for us? On this episode, I talk about the power of infusing special days and holidays into your marketing and content.

We have complete control over what we launch, and we can make informed decisions that we can market really well. -Dana Malstaff

Things We Learned From This Episode

• Marketing and promotion is about finding a reason to celebrate.
• September and October are great for health and cooking because we’re about to have guests, and we want to cook good meals without gaining weight over the holidays.
• Look for correlation between a holiday and what you’re trying to sell to your audience.

Holidays and special days give us an opportunity to breathe life into our projects and promotions. If you plan ahead, you can do something that will stand out and resonate with your audience. Go to websites like http://www.holidayinsights.com/moreholidays/ , pick 4 or 5, and find a way to get people excited!

The rules of traditional direct response marketing require us to push on our prospects’ biggest fears and negative emotions. How is this messaging confusing to the consumer? How can we tap into the right kind of emotions? Why is it so valuable to know what’s keeping your ideal client up at night? On this episode, Michele PW talks about love-based emotions in marketing and why they are the best way to fuel your messaging.

Once you get to what’s truly keeping them up at night, you’ll know the transformation they’re looking for. -Michelle PW

3 Things We Learned From This Episode

Direct response tends to focus on fear-based emotions (01:43 - 02:52)

The problem with traditional direct response marketing is that it relies too much on tapping into negative emotions like guilt, fear, anger, and resentment. Rather than empowering or encouraging people, it often seeks to motivate action to avoid feeling bad.

Acknowledging people’s pain in a respectful manner is really important (06:49 - 09:19)

Pain is a part of this life, for better or for worse, and it serves an important function in our growth. But there is a huge difference between pain and suffering. Suffering is what happens when we attach emotions to pain. In direct response marketing, people tend to agitate the pain which actually induces suffering. Through love-based marketing, there is a way to acknowledge the pain without making people suffer.

Dig deep into what keeps your prospect up at night (09:32 - 09:48)

It is so crucial to know the primary concern on your prospect’s mind. With that information, you can be equipped to provide the solution to their need and help them transform their lives.

People make their buying decisions with their hearts and emotions, which is something marketers can easily tap into. The problem is the damage we can do when we agitate their fear-based emotions and encourage decisions made from a negative place. Instead of using anger, guilt and fear as the basis of your marketing,  opt for love-based emotions. Connect to people’s passions, hopes, desires, and core values. Ultimately, that’s what’s going to move them.

It’s common right now for people to publish social media content that isn’t really achieving anything for their brand. Why is it so important for us to publish with engagement and our core offering in mind? How do we adjust our strategies so that the social media algorithms benefit us? On this episode I talk about a different approach to social media strategy and why it can make such a huge impact on your brand.

Your core service is your engine, and your social media is the fuel. You have to constantly reinvigorate the fuel and refill the tank. -Dana Malstaff

3 Things We Learned From This Episode

• Put your core program, service, or offering at the center of your strategy.
• Think about the different ways you can create diverse content on one thing.
• When you hire a social media manager, it shouldn’t just be someone who can post for you. You need to hire somebody that has a content background so that they can actually write things for you.

Social media is not a place where we should thoughtlessly, continuously post and hope that people will engage. If there is anything that the social media algorithms are showing us, it’s that engagement matters. So instead of trying to publish content haphazardly, build your strategy around your core offering or program. Present your content in different ways so there’s some diversity. This way, you can increase the appeal of one piece of content, and serve your core programs well. When you center your social media around your content, you will have a stronger and more effective strategy.

Building a business from scratch is hard enough, but what happens when the absolute unexpected happens? How do you deal with the things you can’t control? And most importantly, how do you build a business that can continue making profit when you can’t be there? In this episode, Lacy Gadegaard shares her amazing story on how she started out as a hair extension specialist for celebrities, broke out and created her own wildly successful extension business, and how she found the courage to fight multiple sclerosis and keep being a mom and entrepreneur. 

It is so silly to think that in business we can do it all by ourselves. -Lacy Gadegaard

3 Things We Learned From This Episode

The importance of social media for business growth (04:30-05:33)

A website where you showcase your work, doubled by the endorsement others give you on social media, makes you look more credible. This is especially true if you are just starting out. Offer your services to bloggers who have large audiences, and share your collaborations with them on social media to reach an even a larger crowd.

Focus on the big picture (10:00-10:33)

Don’t stress over the small things. Life is filled with unexpected events and things we can’t control. The only thing left to do is to try your best and avoid comparing yourself to others, because they aren’t you.

Hiring people increases your revenue and gives you back your freedom (17:15-19-02)

Hiring new people can be scary at first, but you can’t do everything by yourself without being tired and stressed out. You don’t have to do everything on your own. The more talented people you hire, the more your business will grow.

Tragic events happen every day, but you must keep going. When everything is falling down, you learn to focus on the big picture and ignore the small things that once made you upset. Life-changing events such as disease, divorce, or the death of a loved one may change the way you view the world. Even though the progress may be slow at times, it’s up to you to maintain your growth.

 

Guest Bio-  Lacy Gadegaard is a hair guru, celebrity hair extensions specialist, and the CEO of Laced Hair. Her fight with multiple sclerosis only made her stronger in the long run. She built her business while diagnosed with it, and she is currently raising her two children. Her products were featured on ABC, Shark Tank, and The Bachelorette. You can find out more about her amazing story on her instagram or on her website.

Mind maps are a great way to brainstorm, and they serve as a great starting point for getting ideas out of your head. Why are mind maps so freeing? Why is it so important to understand how your brain works and comes up with ideas? On this episode, I talk about why mind maps are my favorite way of planning to execute on an idea.

3 Things We Learned From This Episode

• Mind mapping is great way to brainstorm without worrying about structure. Sometimes structure holds us back, as our ideas don’t always come in the order we want to execute.
• A mind map is never wrong. Every piece of it, whether you keep it, cross it off, or move it is part of the journey to allowing your brain to unravel the beauty that’s inside it.
• You can’t access the parts of your brain with the good stuff without getting uncomfortable.
• If it’s not worth mapping and doesn’t fit into the strategy of your business, consider whether it’s really worth it to your business.

Our brains are wonderful and unique instruments. When we learn how they function and how ideas unfold in them, the better we get at fleshing out our ideas and then executing on them. It’s not about having the most perfect and organized mind map-- it’s about letting our minds roam free to get an idea out of our heads and onto paper. Expect discomfort, because that’s how we reach the highest form of creation and creativity.

We all feel pressured to “do the right thing” when it comes to our careers. This usually ends up causing us to make safe choices that might bring money but take away our time and suppress what we really want to be doing. How do you decide what field you should work in? Is your current career path the result of a safe choice? On this episode, Stefani Reinold shares her journey from being an unhappy student in medical school to building her own business online.

I was hoping someone was going to give me an answer, and it took me a couple of years to figure out what my question was to begin with. -Stefani Reinold

3 Things We Learned From This Episode

1. Know what environments you thrive in (10:30-11:26)

If you are studying for a degree that you don’t like or working a job that takes all of your energy, it’s time to question your actions. Know from the beginning what your interests are as well as your raw qualities. In what environments do you thrive?

2. Step outside your comfort zone  (24:58-26:33)

Many people choose risk-free careers even if they aren’t made for them. The money might be good, but waking up every day and going to a job you hate will rob you of your joy. Entrepreneurship is not a risk-free path, but if you learn from your mistakes, you can thrive.

3. Nobody can tell you who you are (17:56-21-10)

No coaching program is going to help you unless you know who you are and what you enjoy doing. What price are you willing to pay for your career? How important is the time spent with your family? The answer to this question should help you find an industry you enjoy.

Guest Bio-

Stefani Reinold’s journey started when she realized she is not a “typical mom.” She’s been through a number a business ventures, and she had her fair share of failures. Stepani left behind the opportunity of having a high-paying career in the medical field to more time to spend with her family and follow her passion for business.

Today, she is a successful author and the creator of the Heart Method. She uses her website to educate and help women find themselves and their inner peace. You can find Stefani at Not the Typical Mom.

A lot of business owners do too much too fast because they are terrified of losing momentum. Why is control more important than momentum? What do successful businesses do to grow steadily? Why is it so crucial for us to slow down? On this episode, I talk about a powerful lesson learned from a Pilates class.

Strengthening your business core allows the rest of your business to work the way it should with less stress. - Dana Malstaff

3 Things We Learned From This Episode

• You don’t need grandiose movements or to catch momentum for steady growth to take place.
• Sometimes doing too much and creating too much doesn’t results in distraction rather than growth.
• When you hear something that feels profound, take a moment to think about how that applies to other things in your life.
• Don’t start blogging unless you want to make money from it. When you’re running a business, you have to create strategic content.

The businesses that are truly successful have good systems, absolute clarity, and say “no” to things that don’t serve their finite purpose. You don’t want your rolling snowball to end up with rocks and dirt-- you want it to have more snow. Having control means having a concise free-to-paid journey and only creating content that feeds your funnel.

Launching a new podcast requires a lot of dedication and discipline. How do you make sure your idea is good enough to get people interested? How do you balance between promoting your guests and making sure you’re getting unique stories? On this episode, blogger--and now podcaster-- NJ Rongner is back to talk about launching her very own podcast with as little stress as possible.

We all have these really wonderful ideas that we think are going to change the world, but if we don’t have the people in front of us that need that information, it’s not going to go anywhere. -NJ Rongner

3 Things We Learned From This Episode

Taking responsibility for your project is critical to its success (04:17 - 04:35)

In partnerships there’s a level of shared co-ownership. When you launch your own blog, podcast or project, the ownership is all on you. That means you have to be prepared for the responsibility that comes with it.

Make sure there’s an audience for your product (13:06 - 13:28)

Your product or idea needs to have people who want it and an easy way for you to launch it. Without both, you won’t get the ROI and results you hope for.

Consider all the factors when validating your ideas  (13:43 - 14:05)

Validating your ideas isn’t just about whether people need the information or not. It’s also about whether you’re visible enough for them to see it and whether you’re putting it in a format intriguing enough for them.

Having a wonderful idea that can change the world is a great start, but there has to be more to it. No matter how good your creation is, you also need to have some understanding of how it will be received by your intended audience. Lean on an existing community like a Facebook group or blog community to listen and learn what people actually need. These people will feed you information that allows you to craft a better product, and ultimately empower you to build something that will succeed.