In this noisy and competitive business world, it's easy to get caught up in comparing ourselves to others and trying to fit into the mold of what others think we should be - or even what WE think we “should” be. But that's a recipe for frustration and mediocrity. (Cue the sad trombone)
Instead, we want to use our quirks - our STRENGTHS - to our advantage. They are really your secret weapon or your special sauce in both life and work! So today, we’re going to unpack exactly HOW to put them to work for you. How can you better leverage your strengths to grow your business? That’s what we’re here to discover.
Download Season 8 Episode 5 | iTunes | Spotify
In this episode, we are talking about:
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Theme music: “Big Time” by Ikoliks, Artlist.io
In a world filled with noise and competition, standing out can be a challenge, and it’s particularly daunting if you’re a multi-passionate entrepreneur or Fusion creative. You’re so good at so many things that defining a clear niche or brand identity can be hard.
But what may look like a challenge is exactly what you need in order to captivate the attention of your Raving Fans. In this episode, I'm sharing three secrets that you can start implementing TODAY to break out of the sea of sameness, along with the story of someone who defied expectations, became a force for good in the world, and is a celebrity in their niche.
Together, we’ll discover the keys to standing out in a noisy market and unlocking more freedom and ease in your business.
Download Season 8 Episode 4 | iTunes | Spotify
In this episode, we are talking about:
Rising Tide community members can login and access your free downloads here.
Not a member yet? It's free! When you register for the Rising Tide, you also get email updates, the FREE learning library, and access to episode transcripts, worksheets, and more!
Special thanks to our Patrons for your continued support.
Theme music: “Big Time” by Ikoliks, Artlist.io
[Note: I started doing an annual recap back in 2010 .
You can find other years here: | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023
2020 got skipped for a number of reasons, not the least of which was the pandemic.]
If you've been in my orbit for any length of time, you know that my new year starts on Jan 5, because that's my birthday. So yeah... Happy New Year!
Since I've been doing these recaps for 15 years now, I thought I'd go back and actually read through all my past recaps. See how far I've come and whatnot.
13 years since my first book. 10 years since my last album. 9 years since I moved to Nashville. 8 years since I first hosted my annual Creative Freedom Retreat. 7 years since my last book. 6 years since we moved to Mississippi. Almost 5 years since my pandemic wedding. 4 years since we moved back to Nashville. 3 years since I started and ended the year with COVID. 2 years since my back surgery. 1 year since I became the local host for Morning Edition from NPR News. All before I turned 50!
I found it interesting that the recurring theme of most years is how HARD things are, and how I came close, yet still missed the mark on many of my goals. This year's wrap up is eerily similar in that respect.
I'm curious about that. Curious why I've always set goals that are so ambitious that I consistently fall short. At one point, I remember telling my former mastermind group that it's because I'd rather set something ambitious and point to progress rather than hit something small and easy.
Now? Well, I'm not so sure. Maybe I'm just used to things being hard and setting this ambitious goals keeps me in that comfort zone. Maybe I'm afraid to set "easy" goals because they're not ambitious enough. Maybe I'm afraid of getting complacent once I hit those easy goals.
Maybe it's a little of all of that and some other things I haven't figured out yet. Maybe I'll never figure them out.
Like I said... curious.
I've dragged my heels getting my goals locked down for this year and I sense I just got a clue as to why!
Seriously. I typically have all my goals hammered out in October and my planning calendar primed and ready to go for January 1. This year, I didn't even do my annual reading with Pam until January 1... and I had all kinds of "not enough" feelings around that.
But we've had a BUNCH of question marks and uncertainty as we rolled into the end of the year that made it challenging to have any kind of clarity on much of anything.
Jim had more surgery, changed jobs a few times, resulting in a significant net income drop that made hitting our goals almost laughable. More on that in a bit. The radio station gig became something entirely different once I got there. That's both a good thing and a less than desirable thing.
I generally set my goals using my Dreamblazing program, and as I've done for the past 10+ years, you'll see a breakdown below by each of the 5 Key Area of Success. I also typically review and re-set my goals at semi-annual planning, but this year, the second half of the year went a little off the rails. So you won't see a mid-year reconfiguration in my goals.
Enjoy!
At the beginning of 2024, this was my number 2 goal - and it was hella ambitious.
I play Lisa Robbin Young full out - to the hilt - and show the world who I am, while confidently trusting that the Divine supports me to thrive - I can only WIN!
Like I said, hella ambitious.
I think I checked this box as far as my capacity would allow. Another case of progress on a very ambitious goal. Maybe ambitious goals are more inspiring to me? Hmm... hard to say. Still being curious.
I definitely went full out in just being Lisa Robbin Young more intentionally in public. At the station, I've somehow empowered a whole much of folks to wear more sparkles. They'll come up to me and show me their sparkly thing - a sweater, a dress, a pin or a pair of earrings - and say "I HAD to show you my sparkles!"
It may seem trivial, but those are ripples in the pond, baby!
I wear something that sparkles, shimmers, or shines every day. That was a commitment I made to myself after I went through the STAR program a couple years ago. Some days, I'm head-to-toe in sequins behind the board in the studio. Other days, it's just a pair of bedazzled shoes or a sparkly necklace with my station T-shirt. But EVERY day, I sparkle, shimmer, or shine.
To see that commitment having even a tiny impact on a workforce where women are in the minority and often have to show up in very male-dominated spaces makes my heart happy. that they feel comfortable enough to bring more of their own sparkle to work is one thing - but then to share it with other people? That's impact and I am HERE for it!
Showing the WORLD who I am? Well... MY world this year was limited pretty much to Bloomington and my extended family and friends around the globe. I think, for THEM, they got an eye full of who I'm becoming.
I was very visible locally: Emcee for two entrepreneur pitch competitions and at TEDx Bloomington. Hosting a trivia night for the radio station, and meeting a bunch of our listeners at the station Open House.
I was also on a few podcasts in 2024 that won't air until 2025. So those ripples are still pending!
The hardest part of this goal was trusting that I was supported to THRIVE. I look back at 2024 and don't necessarily FEEL like I was thriving. It felt like a lot of hard work and very little return on investment. Seed planting. Nurturing. Watering and tending, but not much growth, blooming, or fruiting.
So, perhaps I needed to be more specific? Trust that I would thrive THIS year, instead of just thrive in general? Because it feels like the seeds I planted will mature and bear fruit this year... and maybe I'll feel more like I'm thriving then.
Trust, in general has been a hard one for me over the years. When you come from a traumatic background where trust was a tool for manipulation and a weapon held against you, it is very difficult to trust other people - let alone trust the Divine - for anything. This is an ongoing practice for me. Therapy is definitely helping. And, to quote Robert Frost... I have miles to go before I sleep.
This was my number six goal for the year. While I can mark this goal as technically achieved, it was also probably one of the biggest disappointments of my year.
I am deepening my family bonds with new experiences and positive memories.
This was ranked number six because I felt like my family bonds are pretty strong in most cases. My extended family has been harder to stay connected to, and both my kids have their own lives now that they are adults. The three most important things for me this year were seeing my youngest graduate from high school, and visiting my families for the holidays (and hopefully seeing my oldest child somewhere along the way.
I wasn't able to attend graduation, but I did watch it on the livestream that the high school made available. I'll save my salty comments about ex-husbands being uncommunicative, or work schedules making it nigh on impossible to be there.
I did make it back to Michigan for Thanksgiving. My extended family convened at my cousin's house for the evening meal and some great conversation. I've missed those times. Everyone was in a great mood and we were all smiles. Oddly, there wasn't a single game of Euchre or Cribbage, but otherwise it was a fun time.
And we made it to Nashville to visit Jim's folks. Also a good time.
As for new experiences... well, maybe I should have been more precise. My oldest has been struggling with housing and job insecurity. It was an emotional Thanksgiving, seeing him clearing out a garage for the winter so that he and his dog would have a clean, warm place to sleep. I won't tell his story for him. Suffice it to say that, as a mom, it's hard to see your kids going through hard things.
After Christmas, Jim and I went a little farther south to Louisiana. No... not NOLA. This time, we went to check out Lafayette and Baton Rouge. We were supposed to meet up with some of Jim's friends, but the storms blowing through cancelled those plans. We DID get to have a quick coffee with another of Jim's long-time friends as we were driving through Birmingham, though, so that kind of made up for it.
All told, it wasn't exactly how I hoped it would be, but it was goal number 6, so that's par for the course.
My number one goal this year was to have the resources for proper & timely healthcare for my total well being. My other fitness goal - at number 5 - was to expand my social network by 204 people and actually go DO things together!
I started my year with a birthday celebration with two new, local friends. We saw each other a few more times during the year, but the radio station job made it difficult to connect on week nights.
We rolled into year two of our local D&D group. They meet at our house and they are a fun group of "kids" (they're in their 20s-30s). Jim hosted a bonfire over the summer and our work friends came out to toast marshmallows and talk late into the evening.
I really needed that.
The gig at the station became more of a lifeline than a fun project by summer. My "work friends" were giving me life on the daily and having even one of them come to just hang out on a Saturday night meant the world to me.
I've been grateful that I had much better medical care this year, thanks to the University's insurance. Probably the best medical insurance I've ever had. I will miss it when I'm gone. My heel lift (that was a problem in 2023) was FINALLY resolved after another extensive round of PT and medication to help with the heel lift issue. I also finally got in to see a therapist and she is FANTASTIC!
This year my goal was much more succinct than last year: continue to prepare for Jim's retirement & still be able to make 3+ trips/vacations during the year.
I mean, we did that, but not NEARLY at the pace I'd planned.
See, this radio station gig was supposed to be a fun "extra" to help us pay off some bills and sock away money for Jim's retirement in 2026. But...
Not long after Jim returned to work post-2023 surgery, he resigned. There were financial shenanigans afoot at his place of employment. The CEO and office manager ended up getting removed from the property for misappropriating funds. that explained why they were cutting hours and payroll, but they couldn't provide a clear timeline on when employees would be restored.
Jim resigned... without having anything else lined up.
It was a bit of a shock, since I was only a week into this radio station gig at the time. But, we do what we've gotta do to keep the ball rolling.
He eventually settled into part-time work at a local school. But his pay was effectively cut by more than 50%.
So, my "fun little extra" became a significant part of our income (and health insurance!) for the year.
We did manage to pay the extra tax bill from my student loan forgiveness, thanks to a part-time gig working at the mall for the first part of the year.
Yes, you read that right. I was working part time at the mall to save money for the taxes, full time at the radio station, AND running my business, which did surprisingly well this year, too!
Normally, I would not advocate for this kind of lifestyle imbalance. It was definitely a year of what I call compassionate hustle. I started the year with the capacity to do this much work. Looking at this year, I may need to re-assess.
I hired an amazing video editor. He's been busy cutting together the remaining episodes for Season 8 of Creative Freedom. We've got about 2 episodes left!
The reason for the delay in the broadcast schedule?
My VA had a medical crisis early in the year that necessitated a leave of absence. I made a decision to shoot all the episodes first and THEN finish the release of the season, once she had returned to work.
Let's be clear: many companies act like giant machines that keep steamrolling into the night like Snowpiercer... when one "part" goes down, we just replace it with another human and keep the train going.
While I think my work is important and valuable to the world, my work is not life or death. No one is going to die if Creative Freedom doesn't have any new episodes for a while. I don't need to put undue pressure on myself to pick up the work that would normally be done by my VA, and hiring someone else would create a different kind of disruption... believe me, I've been there before!
Our business is cruising along in a state of stability. I have contracts with clients and about 90 people in our membership community. There's no need to put extra pressure on myself to "grow the business" and create more work that only I would be able to do!
Plus, Creative Freedom is a cost center. It doesn't make money directly. It drives new business from viewership, but social media has made that lead time even longer in the last few years, so I'm in no hurry to throw money at something that won't generate immediate revenue in return.
So, I made the decision to put distribution of the show on hold and keep working behind the scenes to create new episodes with my video editor. We would "stockpile" them and be ready when my VA was able to come back to do the marketing and distribution of the show.
That happened near the end of 2024. We are putting the finishing touches on a few episodes and expect to re-launch everything in the next month or so.
This was my number three goal for the year: I have the freedom to create, explore, and just BE on my own terms.
HA HA HA HA HA.
Freedom looked very different this year. I wanted freedom in all ways - in my body, my life, my work. I wanted freedom in all forms: time, space, financial, energetic.
This was a mixed bag.
In one sense, I had a LOT of freedom to work: freedom to take on a part time job, a full-time job, and keep working my business at the same level as last year. At the radio station, I had some freedom to be able to create and launch a new music history show. The Influencers is a multi-media music and music history show that connects the dots from pop artists of today to the historical influences in their musical family tree. Think: Finding Your Roots meets American Top 40... but without the countdown.
The show has great potential, and it's been a LOT of work to get even the show announcement trailer launched. All my years making Creative Freedom has been put to good use. Which is another reminder to STOP waiting to get discovered and just do the work you love. The right people will find you and opportunities will come to you in time.
But taking on three different positions over the course of the year didn't leave me with much freedom from work! Time freedom was not really a thing for me this year. In the process, I learned a few things about myself that probably wouldn't have come to light otherwise:
Don't get me wrong... I enjoy coaching. I'm GREAT at it. I've also hit a couple of walls in the past few years where I've felt more like a crutch than a problem solver. Solving problems delights me. Performing delights me. Intensives are a way for me to do both simultaneously.
That Manifestor energy is perfectly suited to being an entrepreneur - because telling your boss you're going to do something and then DOING it without getting a greenlight can be a recipe for stress... and I felt that a LOT this year.
The original premise was for me to design a radio broadcast show that would eventually become a weekly series. But as I looked at the station's strategy and vision, it became clear that they needed something else - a vehicle that could bridge the gap between their existing audience and a new audience they wanted to attract. That meant using video and/or podcasting in some way, since that's where the new audience was "hanging out".
The station has never developed a multi-media, cross-platform show before. But I had. I knew that it would take a bit of logistics to do it in a sustainable way. And they're actively working on building out the infrastructure to make this kind of work more sustainable. But the path to getting there has been BUMPY at best. It involves enlisting talent from multiple departments in our unit. It means a lot of ASKING FOR HELP and then WAITING to get it.
If you know me, this is NOT my zone of genius.
So I practiced a lot of patience this year - or at least TRIED to. I pitched the idea for this show in April... our first video episode just went live over the weekend.
Yeah... a LOT of patience.
In the interim, we had regime changes. People who consulted on the original idea left the organization. The shape of the show changed a few times before we landed on a format that everyone could get behind. It meant a LOT more work for me: shooting, revising, and re-shooting. But we're inching our way toward a workflow that's doable for anyone in the department. My goal was to create something that had legs like RadioLab... and could continue on long after my departure in a few years.
I never planned to stay at the station more than 3-5 years (to get vested and see the show take off). I developed the whole thing so that it could be a profit center for the station... if it ever gets the green light.
We've got a 6-episode mini season for the first half of the year. After that? Well, there's a lot up in the air right now.
I'm glad I didn't "wait around to see what might shake out" with Jim's employment situation. The radio station gig has been a lifeline for us this year. It's helped bolster my own visibility in the community and nationally. I've been a "cover girl" twice this year for the station and have a feature article in a local magazine due out next month! We even have donors who are worried about "losing me to NPR national", they think I'm THAT good... and they haven't even seen the new show yet!
That said, my desire for Jim to take some time to find something that suits him didn't really pan out. He fell into a groove at the elementary school and just kept working it until the end of the school year. He picked up another job for the summer that really just filled a gap until he could return to the school in the fall.
By fall, things were on the ropes, financially speaking. He was more and more disenchanted with his job. Plus, you'll remember that his pay had been so significantly reduced that we weren't making much headway on his early retirement goal.
We've had almost three years in B-Town. I thought we'd be farther along on our goals. It triggered in me this old story of, "I can't count on my spouse. I have to do it all myself." This time, though, I refused to give into it and I actually talked with Jim about it.
I guess that, coupled with my frustration at how something that was supposed to be a "fun extra" had become our lifeline, lit a fire under him to start looking for a job again.
And he's looking everywhere.
Which means we may be relocating again this year.
I'm not entirely sure how I feel about that, but I'm staying open to possibilities. I always say I'll go wherever the Internet is good - so who knows? Maybe we'll take a 6 month turn in Cyprus, or Greece, or Panama... or maybe make a permanent move overseas - or maybe just down the road to another pat of Bloomington.
I'm learning to let go and accept help in whatever form it arrives.
As for my business, I'm refocusing my efforts on developing a reality show around writing my next book (about the Star Power framework) and bringing folks along for the ride as I put MYSELF through the framework over the course of the year. We've still got a few VIP backer seats left to fill, but I feel pretty good about how it's developing.
Last year's word was LUXE... signifying luxury and luckiness and in many ways, we were incredibly lucky! We made it through the year a bit better off than when we started it. I'm grateful for that, AND I'm wanting bigger wins for this year. I want to feel more expansive in the moment. Less pressure. More ease. More joy. More connection - which might actually make things more complicated, but if it leads to more joy, I'm willing.
I tried finding words that gave me a sense of lightness... joy.. possibility. I turned to Katy Perry's Roar... but the language was too much about overcoming oppression. I don't even want a hint of oppression. I'm not trying to call more of that into my life!
I moved on to Stevie Wonder's Sir Duke, which is a great tune, no doubt. I call on it a lot. But not exactly the lyrics I was looking for, either. More of a listicle than a calling in of all the good feelings I was looking to embody this year.
Then, I went to Jon Batiste and rolled through a bunch of his music until finally landing on Freedom. A song about embodiment, dancing, joy, doing my own thing and enjoying the hell out of it.
OH HELL YESSSSSS!
This year, the thing that gives me the ultimate feeling of joy, ease, lightness, and expansion is a sense of true freedom. "Free to live how I wanna live."
So many good lyrics. "We're overdue for a little more prancing."
Um. Yes please.
It's been a couple weeks since the election.
In that time, I've heard all kinds of people saying all kinds of things, but the one that really threw me was this:
"How dare you sell <<anything>> at a time like this?"
I mean, I get it.
There are lots of people feeling lots of things right now, and the folks who were hit hard by the news have been trying to grapple with what this new reality could mean for them.
But that's kinda like saying "How dare you go to work at a time like this?"
That's a luxury not everyone can afford.
I get that you may need some tenderness right now.
Some time to breathe.
Time away from a "sales cycle".
I COMPLETELY understand.
In fact, I was there for a few days... I couldn't bring myself to care about ANYTHING except "securing my bag" for my family?
I'm not pretending I'm over it. Not by a long shot.
But I made a commitment to my workshop partner and we're counting on each other to do our part.
I made a commitment to my family, and they're counting on me to do my part.
Plus, I am is more convinced than ever that NOT showing up is a losing proposition.
I lose. My family loses. My clients lose. My audience doesn't get the help they need and THEY lose.
Um, no thanks. I don't like the way that feels.
In my last book, I talked about what I call the I-Matter paradigm:
I Matter.
You Matter.
We Matter.
In that order. EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.
I know it might sound selfish, and if you only ever stay in the "I Matter" energy, then you're right, it IS selfish.
But the point of this paradigm is to help you realize that you've got to "put your own oxygen mask on first" so to speak. Once you've got your own needs tended, then you can turn to help those around you... and from there, we make a bigger impact on the world - TOGETHER.
"I Matter" means:
If you're in a rest and recovery phase, that's a great thing... even if it feels tender. Thank you for taking care of yourself.
And if the best thing you can do right now is keep showing up and shining your light, then consider joining us for our upcoming workshop.
I'm more committed than ever to helping a rainbow coalition of deeply experienced and brilliantly gifted folks to become a sought-out authority in their niche. A strong brand identity is a big part of making that happen. This workshop can help.
Until next time,
- Lisa
P.S. Know someone else that could benefit? Send them here: https://digivisualdesign.com/brand-bible-workshop/
It's a honest question.
What is it about you and your Great Work that makes people fall in love with your business?
Maybe you have an immediate knowing. Maybe you can't WAIT to tell people why your "milkshake brings all the boys to the yard"...
Maybe that's not the best analogy, but you get the idea.
There's a certain something about who you are, what you do, and the way you do it, that keeps your Raving Fans coming back for more.
When you have this figured out, it becomes a helluvalot easier to market your business.
Why?
Because you can show up and speak directly into their hearts and minds in a way that creates harmonious resonance.
If you don’t know how to express what you’re really about & what makes you different from the other people who do your thing, then your marketing probably feels like a slog or a long, slow, death that you just wish would end already!
If that's how you feel, then this could be exactly what you've been looking for!
I've been blessed, for YEARS, to have the talent, skill, and brain of my designer and brand guardian, Tracy, on speed dial. there have been several times in the past where we've collaborated on a group call or a webinar about what makes for good design, but I've always wanted to do something more. Something that...
And we've finally got it!
One of the big things that's helped me create a cohesive brand is my Brand Bible. Tracy built my first ever Brand Guide almost 10 years ago. Over the years, I've put a lot of work into refining it, building it out, and making it even more comprehensive. From a guide to a full-blown, "do this, not that" bible for everything about my brand.
And I want to help you do the same!
Together, Tracy and I are leading a one-time-only workshop where we'll walk you through all the decisions you need to make about what to put in your very own brand bible. Space is limited, because we're teaching it live and answering all your branding questions.
Look, Tracy has more than 25 years of design experience for ALL kinds of design - from print to web to promotional products. She KNOWS her shizz! And I trust her to keep my own brand en pointe and looking sharp (and I'm MARRIED to a designer, so that should tell you something!).
If you’ve been in business for a while, but your brand doesn't look like it, if you’re worried your brand looks unprofessional... or (almost worse!) boring, if every time you sit down to work on your marketing, it’s a giant time-sucking slog because you’re making all these decisions from scratch, then join us on Small Business Saturday and make your life easier!
There. I said it.
I'm not the only one who's said this over the decades, but it seriously bears repeating.
I've been talking a bit in my recent emails about the power of a strong brand.
Strong brands have the power to influence, excite, disrupt, and move the masses.
Millions of people can be swayed by the power of a strong brand.
But a logo, in and of itself, is not a brand. It's a visual element of a much bigger story.
My own designer, Tracy, wrote a great post years back about why so many logo designs are a waste of time and money - and what to do instead.
And to create a really great logo, you've got to do some deep thinking about your brand as a whole.
It's important work, and when you're elevating your brand in the eyes of your customer, you can't half-ass it. I'd even argue that you've reached a point where you can't DIY your brand anymore.
Instead of trying to create something that won't do what you want it to do anyway, focus on the decisions that go into making a strong brand.
That's the BEST ROI for a micro business owner because it's something that only you can do!
A logo is meant to encapsulate what a brand is about. So, what is YOUR brand all about? I asked you the other day to remember who you are. What you stand for, what really matters. There was a reason for that.
Because those are two important decisions that go into the creation of a strong brand.
Tracy and I have been noodling on a workshop at the end of the month to help you make those key decisions about your brand. I'll share more details soon!
I've been looking for reminders lately.
Things that remind me who I really am... who I really WANT to be in the world.
That happens sometimes when you start questioning everything. When everything starts to feel unsteady, uncertain, unsure.
Two things from my annual Creative Freedom retreat this year keep coming back to me.
The SWOT Analysis - where several folks listed the outcome of this year's election as a potential threat to their business - and the reminder I shared with everyone on repeat:
Remember who you are.
When the world is off-kilter, dangerous, and hard to take...
Remember who you are.
Stand moored. Resolute in what it is that you stand for, what you believe in, and what you're about in this world.
Remember who you are.
Don't let the "slings and arrows of outrageous fortune" take you out of the race.
Remember who you are.
Gird your loins, light your torch.
Remember who you are.
Mount your horse, draw your bow, raise your shield.
Remember who you are.
Sing your song. Create your art. Dance your dance. Speak your mind.
Remember who you are.
Protect your peace. Honor your boundaries. Rest. Then RISE.
Remember who you are.
Don't let the bastards get you down.
Remember who you are.
I wasn't trying to wax poetic when I started this. I was actually trying to get you to think more about who you are. What YOU stand for. What you WON'T stand for. Where do you draw those lines in the sand?
Believe it or not, those are important questions for your business, too. I'll share more tomorrow, but for now...
Remember who you are.
It took me a LONG time to stop DIY-ing my brand.
I mean, a REALLY long time. More than 20 years.
It wasn't because I thought I was the bee's knees at branding or anything - I'm clearly NOT.
I just didn't think it was the best use of my resources.
I mean... take a trip in the Wayback Machine with me and look at these oh-so-sexy early brand images.
This thing took me FOREVER to create - one pixel at a time - in MS Paint, I believe.
Looking back on it, I can say that it LOOKS like it was made in MS Paint. I was SO proud of all the detail. The shading! Look at that tiny little pot at the base of the hill! The cactus has a shadow!
Never mind that you can't really READ the words at all. I mean, who needs to know what your company is all about?
That landing page is HAWT, right? I used every bad design trick in the book on that logo. Reflection? Check. Outer glow? Double check. Embossing, drop shadow, inner glow, and outline? Baby, I got 'em ALL up in there!
It was also on the cover of the first edition of my direct sales training workbook.
I actually got smart and hired someone - on a site called "50dollarlogo.com" - to design something for the second edition of my book:
Yes... I was blonde for a time. And yes... I DID have more fun! But maintaining that color was a PITA. I had to cut my hair every time I colored it. Eventually, I gave up on it.
But look at that book cover - I still put that "glow" around my name, and what about the TERRIBLE cropping job I did around my hair? and let's not talk about the bad photoshopping of the money and the calendar. I mean, ooof! It's bad! And the website didn't match the book. It was just a mess!
Around the same time, I launched The Renaissance Mom. If you've been around a while, you might remember that old brand. Again, I hired out the design to someone who was REALLY good at giving me what I asked for, but I DIY'd everything else - including the website. Talk about a discombobulated brand! I went through a number of tag lines in the course of a few months and none of it stuck. I even tried hosting a 3-day event that totally BOMBED. Here's a screenshot from 2010:
Those giant, clickable social buttons on the top of the page? Yeah, they TOTALLY blend!
Good times!
I stumbled through another year of trying to DIY my website and then, because I was tired of trying to keep up with all the wordpress theme updates, I hired someone to do a whole refresh. I realized it was time for me to do SOMETHING unique to make a unique mark in the industry. Everything I'd done up to that point was built off someone else's template (except for those early logos, and well, you saw how good THEY were!).
I didn't have a ton of cash to lay out, but it was clean, original, and I finally had a tag line that felt genuine. I don't know why that was so important to me, but it was. Still is, to be honest. I think it helps people know what I'm about and what I stand for.
And that was the first time my name became my brand. GULP!
I had fonts! I had a logo! I had brand colors! I had ARRIVED!
I started making worksheets in Open Office (before Google Docs was hot, my friend!) and all my stuff started to look like it belonged together.
The Secret Watch came out in 2012 and I was finally a *published author* gosh darn it - and I wanted a website and branding to reflect this new version of me. Something totally custom.
Behold the Stepford website of 2014:
Now, to be fair, this website was EVERYTHING I asked for. I hired a designer to take the old phoenix from the Renaissance Mom logo and build a new one. Out of the ashes, right?!?
I even ordered business cards (still have them) with that logo. Then, I hired a web designer to incorporate that into my new website. We had new fonts, new colors, and I thought it was GLORIOUS!
But I was still doing a lot of DIY. I mean, check out this monstrosity:
Look at all those fonts and colors! The spacing! Your attention goes everywhere and nowhere all at the same time. WHAT A DISASTER!
But I was SO PROUD of it at the time. It lived on the bottom of the home page of that site for over a year.
That leopard print was slapped on everything for many years. I'm still a big animal print fan, but it took the tough love of a seasoned pro to help me get over myself.
By 2015, I was ready to release another album. It had been a while, and I had a clear vision for the project, so I booked my very first *official* photoshoot. I think I dropped a few hundred dollars on it. Which, for me, was HUGE at that time. From those photos, I reached out to Tracy Lay, who I'd known for a few years. She took those images and developed my very first Brand Guide. Here's a peek:
I felt SO professional! Tracy went on to create a bunch of branded templates for me - for YouTube, workbooks (still in Open Office!), and really felt like I had my shit together. Except that it didn't really match the website. Well, except for the leopard print. Like Sriracha, I put that on ev'rythang!
It was 2016. I had just moved to Nashville. Hot on the heels of my album release, I had just completed work on my Creative Entrepreneur Type Quiz. I jumped into Canva to create THIS carbuncle:
I used that thing for a few years. If you look hard enough, you can still find it buried in the pages of my current website. Shhh. Don't tell Tracy! I was using Canva for just about every design or brand project at that time. Social posts? Yep. Email headers? Sure thing!
And it was ALL. OVER. THE. MAP.
I mean, I had Tracy's brand guide, but I didn't know the first thing about design that worked. Clearly. I mean, just look at that thing! *shudder*
Thankfully, I did the right thing and hired Tracy to design the book layout when it was ready to launch. THAT turned out pretty darn good! So much so, that I also hired her to take the pictures from my second photo shoot in 2017 and fix my Stepford website - that I'd been running with for more than four years at that point. ZOINKS!
Together, we developed my second-ever mood board:
You'll notice some of the same elements, but a more sophisticated look and feel. I was "growing up" my little brand - and starting to embrace my sparkle! That was 2017. The plan was to create a "phase one" website that would start my transition from that old "Stepford" look and feel to a more grown-up brand. By the end of 2019, we were finally able to roll it out:
Yes, that leopard print's still kickin'! But we also pulled SO much of the book branding into the website. Fonts, colors, logo, tag line. The whole nine. And it was everywhere - social templates, Youtube thumbnails, email, worksheets (now in Canva, my friend!)...all the bells and whistles!
FINALLY, a cohesive brand... just a measly 25 years after I started this entrepreneurial journey!
Just in time for a pandemic. womp womp!
The truth is that none of it was actually bad in the moment - for where I was at and what I was trying to do. It served a purpose. It gave me a starting point. And to a degree, I was right - plunking down (tens of) thousands of dollars for branding would NOT have been a good use of my resources then. I was a mompreneur with young kids... then a divorced, single mompreneur who had to rebuild her life after a failed marriage.
But once I got established in Nashville, things started to change for me. I recognized that my DIY branding wasn't doing the heavy lifting I needed it to do. It looked half-assed, and my results for my clients are NOT half-assed. I put my whole ass into it, every time!
Working with a professional like Tracy, I've learned how to make better design decisions. But I also realized that having her as my brand guardian meant that I could TRUST someone else to make sure I looked good. What a relief! She's done all my branding since then, and most of my design work. And she made it easy for me because we put all the templates into canva.
So when I started working on my next book, and realizing that my brand wasn't reflecting the direction I needed to go next, I called Tracy, and we started working on the "phase two" website and branding of my dreams.
I mean, can we just celebrate how GOOD this all looks for a minute? And how it all goes together?!
DIY can take you pretty far. I don't knock it, because I know how important it is to do what you can, as you are able, with what you have... whatever that might be.
AND... I also know that sometimes you need to go further than what your DIY skills can provide. That's the benefit of hiring a pro.
Is it branding? Honoring your boundaries? Expanding your capacity? Something else? Not sure? I can help you suss that out. Book a next steps session and we can figure it out together.
I just returned from a week in St. Louis for our annual Creative Freedom Retreat. I stayed an extra night after everyone left to do some of my own planning. One of the things I got very clear on is that doing more live events is part of my plans for 2025. Stay tuned for updates on Creative Freedom Live - a new event that will deep dive into the elements of my book!
I LOVE being in the room where the action happens... where the light bulbs come on for folks. Plus, there's a different kind of connection between folks who meet in person versus coming together on a virtual platform.
Believe me. I've experienced the differences personally - both as a host and an attendee.
While I get that not everyone can travel, and that not everyone is excited about doing live events, I still feel strongly that there's a lot more value in doing live, in-person events - including industry-specific markets and pop-up shops. These types of events give you the chance to build deeper connections and increase sales.
If you’ve been considering hosting or exhibiting at in-person events, here's my take on making it worth your while.
Many businesses put their focus into trying to market to online customers. That makes sense, because it's "easier" and can be more cost effective if you're blasting emails and social media messages out all day. But there’s value in marketing in the real world, too. There are plenty of uber-successful companies and creatives NOT using Instagram or TikTok to grow their businesses - and making bank to boot!
Beyond money, exposure at in-person events can be valuable, too - if the event is one where your best audience attends (if it's not, then why are you there?). If you're sponsoring a booth or stage time, you'll get the undivided attention of the folks in the room, which often leads to sales at industry events. It can also lead to new networking connections. I've walked away from events with sales, new leads, and new friends and colleagues.
And if it's YOUR event? You can curate an experience that can't be found anywhere else. You have control of the environment, any speakers or sponsors that you want to have, and a deeper intimacy with the folks who get to engage with your brand! That kind of brand experience has led several of my clients to become regulars at my annual event. It's not that they don't know how to do annual planning for themselves, but that being in community with other folks helps them get more clarity, make more confident decisions, and be ready to take more courageous actions for their future.
If you run an online business, then you might have an idea of the type of people who like your products, but you may only have a small sample size, based on folks who've found you and bought from you online. At an in-person event, you’ll have the opportunity to meet your customers face to face. Aside from getting to know your audience a bit better, this can also be a major boost for your confidence as a business owner. There’s nothing better than hearing people gush about how much they love your products! Plus, you'll have time to do a lot more recon when you can talk to them face-to-face. Learn about why they buy, why they don't, why they're willing to travel to see you, and what makes them choose you over the competition.
Unless you only offer a handful of things, you probably won’t be able to bring all of your inventory to an event, so select your best-selling items, or ones that best represent your brand. Think "wow factor" if you're in a vendor booth or presenting from the stage. Once people have that "wow" experience with your brand, they're more ready to make a purchase. Obviously, you’ll need a way to accept payments. Tap to Pay on iPhone is available here, which will make it easy for your new customers to pay for their goods. Finally, some branded materials (say, banners including your business name) can help to make your stand more visually appealing.
If you're hosting the event, you'll need to think about how to incorporate sales into your experience. I don't offer anything for sale during my annual planning retreat, but I do make offers when I speak from the stage or during other in-person events like book tours, concerts, or other live trainings. I almost always have books and CDs available at a merch table of some sort. If you've got event sponsors or vendors, you'll want to consider how they'll be able to make the most of their time. If they're not seeing a positive return on their investment, they'll probably skip your event next time.
Find (Or Create) The Right Event
Making sure the right people are at the right event is crucial for maximizing success. Get it right, and you’ll have a whole audience of people interested in your types of products. Get it wrong, and it’ll be a waste of your time.
If you're sponsoring or exhibiting, do some research to understand the target audience of the event you’re thinking of attending. For example, rather than just selling your clothes at a clothes market, try to learn the demographic that the event is for. If it’s for people who fall under your ideal customer profile, then go for it. Otherwise, take a pass.
If you're hosting the event, the same thing applies. Know your audience - and be able to communicate that to any sponsors or vendors you're trying to attract. Again, if they can't see an ROI from participating, they'll look elsewhere.
If you're looking for more insights into live events, check out these episodes of the Creative Freedom Show:
Not sure if events are the best marketing tool for you? Book a Next Steps Session and let's talk!
When you’re developing your brand, it takes a lot more than just creating a fabulous and memorable logo or coming up with a catchy tagline. A great brand makes a lasting, memorable impact in the mind of your customer. It's built on a combination of things, like strategic planning, consistency, and your brand stories - they "mythology" of your company, your found (YOU), and your offers. It doesn't happen by accident. You have to choose - and keep choosing - to have a great brand.
Most brands have a clear vision. Your vision basically outlines the long-term plans and aspirations for your business, so it’s a great way not just to explain to your customers, investors, partners, and others that you’ve got a plan and you know what you’re doing, but it’s also a wonderful reminder to you of what you’re aiming for in the end - sometimes it’s easy to forget. Part of that vision is private. Internal to the company stake holders (employees, team members, you). But the public facing part of your vision is often found in the form of a vision statement. It's one way (but not the only way) to communicate that vision to your Raving Fans.
When you’re building a brand, you need to have a consistent brand voice - that way, whether you use your branding on your website or you hire a sticker maker for some giveaway swag, you’ll be able to make sure everything looks the same and, crucially tells the same story with the same message.
That means you're not speaking informally on your website and then showing up ultra-professional in person. That creates a disconnect. It you say "y'all" on your website, say it in person, too!
One of the best things to do to keep your brand voice consistent is to be genuinie - especially as a personal brand. The worst thing you can do is create a persona for your brand that doesn't feel authentic to who you are. You'll feel imprisoned after a while - chained to a brand identity that doesn't fit you. If your brand is an authentic reflection of who you are and what matters to you, then you won’t have to keep remembering what you said or did or how things sounded; it’s easy to remember - because it's YOU... or at least the version of you that you want the world to know.
This is important: you don't have to air all your dirty laundry. You can keep some things to yourself. No one has a right to see every part of you (except you). YOU get to decide how to "shape" your public brand by deciding what you want the world to know.
That said, you never have full control of your brand because it's ultimately up to your audience. It's how THEY see you and the stories they tell about you that ultimately define your brand. As I often say, you can't control the outcome, all you can do is influence it based on how you show up in the world. That's actually a GOOD thing because if you're being genuine, you're attracting people who like what you're about and repelling the folks that don't.
A great brand understands how important it is to treat your customers well. Understand your market, do appropriate market research, get customer feedback, and engage with your customers to get a broader view of who they are and what matters to them.
When you know what your customers want, you’ll be able to tailor your products, services, and marketing efforts to meet their expectations - in ways that also work for you - and you can use your brand to tell them you know what they’re looking for.
Staying on top of trends, attending industry events, going to conferences, and so on - the more you can learn and implement, the better. That doesn't mean running yourself ragged, but it does mean having an idea of what's actually going on inside your market beyond your doors.
Of course, to stay relevant means you might have to make changes in your business, so if you’re really serious about making your brand great, being comfortable with the idea of change is a must. The only constant is change, right? Make calculated, strategic changes when it matters. It will help you stay relevant to the people that matter most to your business.
And it's okay to NOT be mainstream. In fact, most creatives aren't. They've found their own path forward and that's half the reason their audience loves them. Let your audience love you and your brand, too!