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Skip Solitary Entrepreneurship – Find Your People

June 26, 2017 by Karin Beery Leave a Comment

In 2007, I attended my first writers conference. At the American Christian Writers Conference in Grand Rapids, conference coordinator Reg Forder introduced himself and explained that everyone in the room – all of us strangers – had two things in common: no one could walk past a bookstore or office supply store without going inside.

As everyone in the room nodded, I knew I’d found kindred spirits.

There’s just something about a group of people who can (and do) talk about characters as if they were real people, who celebrate the Oxford comma, and who spend an entire meal discussing books and movies with the same passion that some people might discuss current events. Like-minded people – especially those who work in the same industry – understand each other’s struggles and successes. Your family and friends will never understand your passion quite like a room full of strangers. Your network of writers becomes an invaluable support system.

I’ve been attending conferences for the past decade. I’ve met several amazing people, and have developed some lasting friendships, but this year I experienced something I’ve never experienced before. This year I found my people.

It happened at PENCON 2017 in Atlanta, Georgia. After various writing conferences (for fiction, non-fiction, and the press), PENCON was my first editor’s conference. While writing and editing are closely related, there’s a fine line separating them. Subtle differences that require specific training and practice. They’re first cousins in the same artistic family tree.

As much as I love writers (I’m a writer myself), something about the editors touched a hidden, unknown place in my heart. Instead of introducing myself to strangers, it felt like meeting up with old friends. Some how we managed to inspire instant trust, form immediate bonds, and develop our own unique family. More than mere kindred spirits, I’d finally found my people.

Why am I sharing this?

Because your people are out there.

If you haven’t found them yet, keep looking. It may take a few tries (it took me two critique groups and more than a dozen writing conferences of various sizes). You don’t have to read or write the same things. You don’t have to be the same age. You don’t even have to be extroverted! Just be yourself. Be honest with each other. Open yourself up. Eventually you’ll find the people who speak to your heart, and those people will become irreplaceable in your professional and personal lives.

Go. Find your people.

Good Listeners are Good Writers

June 19, 2017 by Karin Beery Leave a Comment

“I love it – you really understand the heart of our organization.”

“Perfect! You make me sound so smart!”

What writer wouldn’t want to get these kinds of compliments? They came from happy clients, which are the kinds of clients you want. It wasn’t the correct grammar, syntax, and punctuation that made these clients happy, though. They loved the content, which turned out better than they’d expected. How was I able to deliver those kinds of results?

I listened.

Good listeners make good writers, and good writers make clients happy. However, listening means more than just jotting down the words that someone says. You need to really hear what they’re saying, then be willing to change your strategy if needed. Whether you’re writing articles or business copy, here are four ways you can hone your listening skills to create content that will impress your clients.

Hear what they say. Do they talk about their hobbies? The places they’ve been? Their education? If your client mentions something a lot, it’s probably important to him. Weaving that into the content will show that you picked up on it.
Example: One client told me all about his wife, daughters, and granddaughter, referring to his wife and his lighthouse and admitting that his granddaughter had him wrapped around her little finger. It wasn’t a stretch to call him a dedicated family man. He loved that I’d noticed that and included it in his biography.

Hear what they DON’T say. Inflections. Avoidance. All of those show you what a client may not want to discuss or highlight, but that doesn’t mean you should leave it out of your article/content. You need to interpret what those pauses mean.
Example: I once interviewed an award-winning teacher. I was supposed to write an article about him, but he answered every question with as few words as possible. Instead of forcing it, I asked him about his students. I then spent some extra time asking his students about him (not originally part of the plan). In the final article, I talked about his humility and dedication to the school and about not taking the spotlight for himself, then I filled the space with praise for him from his students. His colleagues said the article perfectly reflected him and his teaching style.

Hear what they’re trying to say. Few people take the time to think before they speak. They’re uncomfortable with silence, so they talk through their thought processes. It’s easy to accumulate 1,000+ words of rambling notes for a 500-word article or blog post. It’s your job to sift through that to figure out what your client really wants to say.
Example: Every year I interview an organization regarding their annual event. Per their request, I email the questions in advance. When I arrive, they give me pages of typed out information, then we conduct the interview. I end up with pages of notes that I sift through to find the heart of the story. It always means cutting entertaining (but unrelated) information, but I end up with a concise, focused article. Every year I receive a thank you letter saying how happy they are – again – that I found the heart of their event and put it into words.

Hear the real Sometimes you’ll got into a meeting with a page of pre-written questions because you think you know what you’re going to write. If you don’t listen to your client’s answers, however, you might miss the real story. Be flexible enough to make adjustments.
Example: I was assigned to write a business feature about a local entrepreneur. As we talked, however, I learned that she was also a talented singer/songwriter. The longer we talked, the clearer it became – her business wasn’t nearly as interesting as she was. Instead of a business feature, I pitched my editor the idea of a personal feature. Instead of talking about her work, I talked about her passion for people – a passion that fueled both her business and her music. She was thrilled with the final result and how it told her whole story.

When you listen well, you write better because you have a deeper understanding of your clients and their stories. Whether you’re writing web biographies, articles, or books, listening to and processing your clients’ stories will create more accurate, better-developed content that you can both be proud of.

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Good Listeners are Good Entrepreneurs

June 12, 2017 by Karin Beery Leave a Comment

Dealing with conflict is never easy. In fact, some people dread it so much that they’ll do anything to avoid it. A noble endeavor, but not always feasible (or the best option). As a freelance professional and entrepreneur, you can’t avoid conflict – often you’re the only person available to fix the situation!

When it comes time to dealing with a complaint, concern, or any type of issue (be it with a customer or employee), the most important thing to remember is to listen. Why?

To get the full story…You may have heard rumors and you may think you know what’s going on, but chances are good that your interpretation of the situation is off. This is especially true if you’ve heard any gossip about the situation (which I recommend you ignore). You want to make sure you know exactly what happened, and you want to make sure you know how your customer or employee interpreted it.
To show that you care…I once went to a job interview where the supervisor picked his fingernails and stared out the windows. I would answer his questions with extra information, then he’d ask me for the information I’d just given him. It was the first time I’d left an interview and not wanted a call back – if he didn’t care enough to listen through an interview, what kind of boss would he have been? Unfortunately people often handle conflict the same way. Don’t. Prove that you care – make eye contact, take notes, and stay engaged.
To improve relations…Conflict doesn’t always have to end badly. Often times it can lead to improved customer and employee relations, as well as improved customer service, because you’re willing to acknowledge your weaknesses and (hopefully!) correct them as needed.

And now I’m going to give you the most important tip I can offer – I’m going to tell you how to listen. It seems simple enough, but there’s one key component that you need to remember. Before I give you the key, consider this scenario:

A customer contacts you with a complaint. Before you talk with that customer, you decide how to fix the situation. You know which solution you want to offer and how you want to implement it. While you’re talking with your customer, you’re thinking about when to present your solution and how he’ll receive it.

Do you see the problem? You’re not really listening. Sure, you’re having a conversation, but your mind is wandering. You haven’t given that customer the attention he deserves and is looking for. It’s time to pull out your listening key – mindfulness. What I mean by that is this:

Be mentally present. Don’t think. Don’t strategize. Just listen.

Remember, you might not yet have the full story. You need to make sure you understand the situation before you respond. That means giving your customers or employees your full attention, not just them time to discuss the situation. When you listen (instead of simply responding) you’re not only showing people that you care, you’re also showing that you’re willing to learn and improve yourself as a person and company. Who wouldn’t want to business with someone like that?

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Entrepreneur Interview: Karie Price

June 5, 2017 by Karin Beery Leave a Comment

Marketing. Branding. Messaging. You may not want to worry about it, but if you want your business to succeed (and who doesn’t?) then you need to give it some time and attention. One way to do that – talk with a branding coach like Karie Price, today’s interviewee! With 20 years of experience, she knows what she’s talking about, and she’s passionate about helping other women brand and expand their businesses.

Hi Karie, and welcome! For starters, please tell us about your business: what you do, when you started your own business, and why.
Thank you so much for the opportunity to share with you and your readers! I’m Karie Price, and I’m a Brand Messaging Coach helping ambitious women business owners find and own the words to stand out, be heard, and Make Your Message ROAR™. That means having a message that is Relatable, One-of-a-kind, Actionable, and Reliable.

I started this version of my business in the fall of 2016, but I had my first full service branding agency 15 years ago. Back then, we didn’t have social media (can you even IMAGINE what that’s like?) and together with my husband (who is a graphic designer) we did all of the brand development. I have background as a business analyst, so I know how to quickly learn about a business, asking the questions that probe deeper than the surface answers. That allowed me to develop a process to learn what we needed to know to position our clients uniquely in the market. Back then, we even developed the concept of a small group workshop. We were told by one of our advisors that it was a great idea, but we were ahead of our time.

Fast forward 14 years when I was ready to go back into business for myself full time. With social media, it’s even easier for a small business to get started and market themselves, but that also means there is a lot of competition. Competition is not a bad thing (it means there is a market for what you do), but it does mean that it’s even more imperative that you find a way to stand out in the market. Having a one-of-a-kind message is one of the most strategic ways to do that.

I knew I wanted to help more small business owners, especially women, build the foundations for successful businesses that survive and thrive in the market. I also know it can cost tens of thousands of dollars to have an agency develop that for you, so I set out to help female business owners find and own their words – to leverage the process I’ve been using for years with my done-for-you clients – so they could have the benefits of a well-defined brand message that truly sets them apart.

What has been your biggest struggle in launching your business?
My biggest struggle is probably impatience and wanting everything now. Having owned multiple businesses over the years, I know that it takes time, perseverance, and focused marketing to really establish yourself. There are so many things I “want” to do in and for my business, but everything takes longer than I think it should.

How are you overcoming it?
I had to really focus on the “right” activities – the revenue-generating activities – and let some things just be “good enough” until I could spend more time on them. I’m a recovering perfectionist and want all my ducks in a row, but not all of those things can be done at the same time. Also, by focusing on the revenue-generating activities and serving clients, I can invest in getting support and outsourcing tasks that free me up for the most important work in my business.

What’s surprised you the most about working for yourself?
That I’m the hardest boss I’ve ever worked for! It’s a balancing act as a business owner to want to work hard and not burn out. It’s part of the reason why I left my day job – to minimize stress, have more time for family, friends, and myself – but I fell into the trap of working round the clock for a while. It got to the point where my husband stopped asking me “ARE you working tonight/this weekend?” and started asking me “WHAT are you working on tonight/this weekend?”. Don’t get me wrong, it’s hard work building a business, but it needs to be sustainable and enjoyable, especially in those early years when you’re not necessarily making the money you want and you know you’re investing in the future. Now I schedule no-work nights during the week (Tuesday and Friday) and at least one full weekend day with no work.

What’s your favorite part of this kind of work?
Being able to truly help my clients on their paths to success. It’s so rewarding to see the results my clients get, celebrating with them with every new client they attract, seeing how excited they are to put themselves out there because marketing is so much easier. I’m able to make a difference in their businesses in their lives, and that feels amazing. I think we all want to find a way to leave a mark on the world, and I’m so thankful to be able to do it this way – doing something I really love.

Is there any one event/moment that helped you move from starting your own business to making a living with your own business?
Definitely leveraging my process into a small group format. Working with clients one-on-one is a lot of fun, but taking a small group of business owners through the process together is what allows me to scale my time and grow my income without burnout. A lot of work goes into organizing and creating the content to do that, of course, but it’s a process I’ve been successfully using for a long time now, so it was time to package it up into a program.

If you could give a new entrepreneurs one piece of advice, what would it be?
Know that owning a business is a marathon and not a sprint. That might sound cliché, but I still fall victim to trying to do too much at once, and it’s exhausting. Because of that, be very strategic with your time. Focus on the right activities. Find people to help you so you can be more efficient. I invest with business and marketing coaches to help me know what to do without reinventing the wheel and have hired a virtual assistant to do the tasks that don’t require ME to be the person to do them. I know that feels daunting at first, but if these investments can pay for themselves in a relatively short time frame, they will help you grow your business more quickly. The 10 hours a month that I use my VA saves me probably 30-40 hours of my time trying to figure those things out. She’s way more efficient at it, and I’m a whole lot less stressed.

If you could do one thing differently in your career, what would it be?
I would have invested in coaches and mentors sooner. It wasn’t until this round of business ownership that I truly understood how beneficial that is. I’m seeing much more success, more quickly, without trying to figure it all out on my own. I wonder what my prior businesses might have been like if I would have done that.

What’s your favorite kind of work? Why?
I truly love to mentor others and help them to be their best selves. I have always been a person who is able to see patterns, processes, and systems to be more efficient. I also am able to see multiple sides of the same situation. This allows me to provide the outside perspective for my clients that they can’t see for themselves. We ALL need that. I get outside perspective from others (my coaches and my husband, who is in the industry) because we’re too close to our own stuff.

What does your work space/office look like?
I’m fortunate to have a dedicated office in my house. For my birthday last year, I invested in a custom built-in that takes up one wall in the room with storage and two desk areas. I use one desk area as my primary workspace, and the other is set up with my webcam and lighting so I can do video calls and livestreams. We’re working on clearing out another room of our house to create a dedicated video studio so I can do even better videos for my own marketing.

What does your work day look like?
I’ve been working a lot over the past couple months to really fine tune my daily schedule. I’m usually up around 6 a.m. to take care of things around the house. I exercise most weekday mornings by walking on my treadmill (while catching up on my favorite show). I’m just starting PiYo which is a pilates/yoga combination to work in as well. Then I shower and get ready for the day.

I’m usually at my desk by 9 a.m. and focus on key prep for the day. It’s not until after I do that, that I check email and Facebook. This has been a big change for me. I used to check Facebook first thing in the morning, before ever getting out of bed, and felt like my day started out of my control. Now I take care of me first, key activity and planning, THEN see what the world wants from me.

I do take a break away from my office for lunch – a full hour – before getting back to it until around 5 p.m. Mondays and Fridays are mostly internal working days – where I’m working on new content, programs, marketing, professional development. Tuesdays I spend more time on social media, because I do a live stream mini training every Tuesday in my Facebook group, so I pop into a few other places to go live while I’m set up, and check in to see who I can help and support. The balance of Tuesday – Thursday are client focused, calls getting to know people, and marketing.

I do work a few evenings a week, and I usually try to keep that to 1-2 hours. Sometimes that’s engaging on social media. Sometimes I stay logged off and just get some focused, uninterrupted time to work. I’ve been trying to minimize work time on the weekends, but usually find myself putting in a few hours.

What’s your go-to snack when you need one?
Baby carrots with guacamole or hummus. Seriously, so yum. I often pair that with sopprasata (a kind of salami). (Ok, now I’m hungry!)

Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Entrepreneurship is not for everyone, and that’s okay, but if you ARE one of those people who wants to work for yourself, create your own business, serve the world with your brilliance, and leave your own legacy, it will be the hardest thing you’ve ever done – and the most rewarding all at the same time. But if you want more than a hobby – if you really want to make money – think like a business owner. (I’m always surprised when I encounter entrepreneurs who tell me they’ve never thought of themselves as a business owner.) Be smart. Invest wisely. Find your unique brilliance. Don’t settle for getting lost in the crowd. Make Your Message ROAR!
—

Karie Price is a Brand Messaging Coach helping ambitious women business owners find and own the words to stand out, be heard, and Make their Message ROAR™. With more than 20 years of experience in branding and business analysis, she guides her clients to uncover and master their Relatable, One-of-a-kind, Actionable, and Reliable message, so that they can boldly and confidently own their place in their market.

Connect with Karie on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/KariePrice

Or join her in The Messaging Den, where established women business owners gather to fiercely support each other in standing out, being heard, and making their message ROAR. http://TheMessagingDen.com

Grow Your Audience With Guest Blogging

May 29, 2017 by Karin Beery Leave a Comment

When you want to expand your audience, consider tapping in to someone else’s.

In order to expand your on-line reach, you need to get your content in front of more people: the more people who know about you, the better your chances for getting noticed. But how do you expand your audience?

You could buy followers on Twitter and Facebook, but those aren’t quality leads (which just wastes money). You could trying following everyone and everything on social media, but (again!) those won’t be quality leads, so you’ll end up wasting time.

One simple way to grow your audience is to tap in to someone else’s. You can do that by writing guest posts for other people’s blogs. Don’t ask just anyone with a blog, though. Be strategic in who you contact. These three tips will help you make the most of your guest post.

1. Make sure their blog is relevant to what you do. Sharing recipes on a mommy blog will get your name out there, but it won’t show your expertise as a graphic designer. If your goal is to promote your brand, keep your blog posts relevant. Look for people in your industry or in the industries you service.
2. Make sure they have an audience. If there are only six people reading the blog and the author doesn’t share links via social media, you’re probably wasting your time. The goal is to help get your name out there. If another blog has thousands of readers, plus they tweet all posts out to their tens-of-thousands of Twitter followers, pitch them an idea.
3. Make sure you’re contributing to the blog, not just advertising. Your blog post should show your expertise while supporting the goal of the blog. If you send an in-your-face-promotion, it’s not really a blog post, it’s an ad. Don’t be surprised if you’re not invited back (or not published on the blog at all).

Not sure how to find blogs you can write for? Ask around in your Facebook groups, at local networking events, or in any associations where you have membership. Offer your services and see what happens!

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