How to gain traction and income while you're still figuring it out

Did you know that?even while you're developing?your offers, figuring?out your ideal client,?experiencing sub-optimal?conversions,?and in the "messy middle" of things,?you can still be working with great people and making good money in your business?

True story!?

Few people have the luxury of getting to lock themselves away to?spend 6-12 months toiling on?their offer until?they reach perfection before?they release it to the world.?

Most of us need to earn money while we're trying to get it all sorted out.?

That means there's a balance to strike between?addressing?current opportunities, perhaps working on projects or with people that don't exactly float your boat but get the bills paid, and creating new ones.

Between working reactively vs. proactively.

Still, I see plenty of people dragging their heels on producing?and?promoting services and products?they're truly excited about.?

When that happens?the?period of?working reactively drags, too.?

People who are able to put things together, put them out into the market quickly, and iterate based on feedback are the ones who expand their revenue and skills the fastest.?

My client Rachel is an excellent example of this. As a consultant for nature-based early education programs and schools, Rachel offers a mix of products (i.e. books, workbooks, digital tools), trainings, and coaching for two different audience types.?

Since we first started working together, Rachel has learned how to develop her offers in rather short order, moving from idea to market research to pilot launch to refinement sometimes in a matter of weeks. Her ability to generate and iterate creates a lot of interaction and opportunities for her audience. As such her income has steadily grown.?

In a only a few years, Rachel has amassed a sizable, engaged audience (her primary marketing strategy is speaking on other people’s stages and her own).?She's shifted?what was a part-time endeavor while she was finishing up her doctoral program into her full-time business.

(You should check out her business Samara Early Learning here and definitely get on her list if you're working in early ed.)

It’s taken me 5 years of steady trial and diligence to evolve my main program to its current format?and become my?primary source of revenue.

Through it all, I’ve?gotten to work with fantastic clients?who've experienced great results from our collaboration.?

They've made me a better human, a better professional, and enriched my world.

I’ve learned an incredible amount, which for a lifelong student?like me, is joy in itself.?

I’ve made good money.?

All this even with fails and bloops and blunders.

And none of it without having been?mentored and coached by?a number of exceptional people, because it's difficult to find the clarity and courage to do the things that need to be done to get yourself where you want to go without help.?

There are far too many doubts and distractions to keep you treading water or pull you off course?and a definite lack of distance?that makes it impossible to see both your blind spots and your brilliance.?

There's an adage you may know: money loves speed.?

I see this prove true many times.

Well,?speed loves collaboration.

So when you're looking at the?projects on your plate and the?dreams on your vision board, ask yourself:

Where are you dragging??

Who's around you to keep your focus and your feet moving forward?

~ Lisa