When Brett and I were looking at homes here in Scottsdale, Arizona (well, I was waddling around six-months pregnant with my twins), we fell in love with one in particular.
It was the exact style I loved—kind of a Mediterranean-Southwest mix—one level, on nearly two private acres (which, after city living for so long, seemed huge to us), with a beautiful pool and yard for the children. And there was a casita in the back for my mom to come join us. All the boxes were checked!
We pulled up into the circular driveway, walked in the front door, and entered the grand rotunda foyer to speak with the realtor.
Then, something UNUSUAL happened…
I realized my voice was suddenly resonating at a more pronounced level… without my having to strain.
I looked up and realized the ceiling had been painstakingly crafted to be a perfect acoustic dome! It was magical.
We went silent for a moment to take it in, and then I stepped away from the center to try speaking again…. Nope. Nothing.
I moved back to the right spot, just a foot, and then my words carried throughout the house… without effort.
When I positioned myself correctly, I didn’t have to shout.
And you don’t have to either.
Even in the midst of all the online madness.
The noise. The ads. The videos. The copying. The sensationalism.
You can still be BOLD without having to beat your chest!
So today, I’ve put together my 6 BOLD Ways to Start Breaking Away From ‘The Pack’.
Part one today will focus on the ENERGETIC separation you need to impart immediately to gain strength and perspective.
Part two, following soon, will focus on the PRACTICAL steps you need to take to position yourself up and away from all the competition.
CAUTION: Where I’m about to go may not make complete sense to you if you are not already at multiple six figures or higher, or if you haven’t been in business seriously for over three years. However, you should still gain a giant gem of insight from at least one of these points.
1. STOP FOLLOWING “THAT FORMULA”
“What?” you’re saying. “Aren’t you the woman who pioneered the Online Success Blueprint? The one that spawned all kinds of other programs and online trainings from all the women you mentored?”
Yes I did. And now, please, it’s time to move on.
Formulas are important for getting started. They build our foundations. They help us model others. And they can get us to multiple six figures for sure… even seven.
But you will come to a point where you’re either:
1) going to hit a wall and know you just don’t have the capacity to do MORE of what you’ve been doing, or…
2) you are simply SICK of what you have been doing! You have personally evolved past your original model.
Both have happened to me, honestly. When I get that same restless feeling I got when I wanted to start my own business initially, I know it’s time for a change.
So I decided to do something different.
For example, I went way OUT of the formula when creating my new Repower Workshop.
When I first knew this was what I wanted to do, of course my team started planning the launch… “OK Ali… What are we doing to do? Videos? A webinar? A live-cast? Beam you into people’s homes?”
After a few minutes of this on the phone, my mind was just fogging over.
And I blurted, surprising myself… “This is not going to have a real launch.”
There was silence.
I explained, “This event is only for women at a high level of leadership, so blasting this out to the masses doesn’t make sense. I am going to do this only in a way that feels good to ME… some blog posts, a few emails, and a lot of reaching out personally to true women leaders I have seen in action online.”
I continued, surprising myself… “I am completely going to market this from intuition and flow… let’s just get it going and see what happens.”
I got off the phone and took a deep breath. WHAT had I just committed to?
It felt incredibly liberating. And scary. There was no roadmap, no deliverables beyond the sales page, no detailed schedule, no marketing plan.
I had just thrown out the window everything that was proven to work in the past!
My rational brain was writhing in agony.
My creative brain was doing a happy dance and saying “Yes! Yes! Yes!”
I decided then and there to set no attachments to filling the entire room. I would only focus on attracting the right people who I would love to have there, and who would get incredible value from the event.
I saw it as a great experiment to get me back working from my intuition and flow. (And it’s working! More on that later.)
Have you ever felt like doing something like this?
Sometimes the BEST way to find where you really should be is to let go of where you know you shouldn’t be. Start there.
2. DO WHAT FEELS GOOD TO YOU (NOT EVERYONE ELSE)
On one of my recent Access Calls for my Elevate program, one of our members who had recently reached six-figures asked me about the best way to launch a new program she was about to release online.
She had come to the frantic and pressured conclusion—after watching so many people do a four-part video series and livecast—that SHE needed to do that as well.
After some discussion, I learned:
1) she hated filming videos
2) a livecast would totally stress her out
3) she ALREADY had great success converting with webinars for another program.
“So, why not do another webinar?” I said.
“Really?” she replied. “I don’t have to do something bigger and better? More complicated? And do what everyone else seems to be doing?”
“Sure, if you want to. But if you are stressed out about it and not sure about it, or that doesn’t sound enjoyable to you, and you already have a model you use that WORKS, why not just do that?”
She was so relieved. Not only did it WORK, and she filled her program, but she enjoyed it. (Imagine that.)
It’s not about what’s BEST in general.
It’s about what’s BEST for you.
Every day I see clients who have come to think they HAVE to market in a certain way. They do lifestyle photoshoots to try to “be” like someone else, dress up to speak on stage like someone else, or do a livecast that freaks them out… because “everyone is doing it”.
The biggest lesson I’ve learned on my own and while working with hundreds of clients personally just in the last few years, is that IT HAS TO FEEL GOOD TO YOU.
If you hate speaking, don’t go pressure yourself to get on stages.
If you hate being on camera, don’t force yourself to go create a video series.
If hosting a live event makes you want to puke, create alternate ways to paydays. (There are many.)
DO WHAT FEELS GOOD TO YOU, AND THAT WILL BE MOST SUCCESSFUL FOR YOU.
Now listen… YES of course you have to market!
And YES you have to try many different ways to get out there. Try most everything you can that you feel could work for you.
But as you do… as you get more and more confident in who YOU are… start getting clear on what YOU are good at and enjoy, and choose those things. Don’t feel pressured to do what everyone else is doing.
(Is there something right now coming up for you that you know you want to let go of? Good. Write it down.)
3. TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS
The painter Picasso spent his teenage years at home in Barcelona studying the masters in art school. (Isn’t it hard to imagine Picasso in art school?)
No surprise, his early paintings look nothing like the masterpieces he would eventually create. He churned out realistic and serious portraits of grizzled peasants and members of his own family. It was all in the genre of the day and based on the RULES he learned in class—the same rules he would expertly BREAK later on.
Along the way in Paris, he went bohemian and dabbled in different styles—impressionist like Monet, still life like Cezanne, colorful works like Matisse. He modeled all of them at different times.
Then, he finally trusted his instincts. He emerged from the constraints of convention, and painted his own way to being one of the most lauded artists in the world.
And the same can happen for us, when the time comes we don’t want to play with the crowd anymore, and we’re ready to trust ourselves.
It actually starts with a questioning, “I’m tired of this and want to do something different. I hate to admit this, but I’m kind of bored… what do I FEEL like doing now? Where do I go from here? What am I REALLY here to do?”
This happens often to the MOST successful women… once we reach the multiple-six and seven figures. We have mastered the marketing and the model.
Then we are ready to truly step into leadership and a greater strategy.
My friend Claire Zammit teaches that as women we have been taught to dishonor the biggest gift we have… the ability to make good decisions from a deeper place than our “rational” mind.
It’s time we honored that deeper wisdom. And based our businesses and missions upon it.
What’s coming up for you right now as you read this?
Write it down.
And get ready for PART 2 to follow soon, with my practical tips on positioning yourself out of the crowd.[in the meantime I’d also love your COMMENT below!]
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If you have a business in the high-six or seven-figures, and you’re ready for something different…
Get ready for an event of a different kind.
One focused on strategy and leadership.
One bringing together some of the most infuential women I know online… and off.
Have a look at my upcoming Repower Workshop here.
This is not a public event, but a small, private retreat where we are going to do some very cool stuff regarding positioning our businesses and selves as the bold leaders we are constantly becoming.
It’s May 12 & 13 here in Scottsdale, Arizona at a gorgeous mountainside spa resort.
By application only.
We already have over a dozen women signed up to join us from a variety of industries, with business revenues ranging from $500K to over $60 million. (Yes, you read that right. I’m excited at the prospects of how this powerful group can help each other.)
For details, and to see if you qualify to attend, take a look here.Seating is limited, so I advise you not to delay.