My heart dropped… I couldn’t breathe. And I’m sure my eyes were the size of coconuts.
Terror LITERALLY took over my body…
That was how I felt when a giant waved started hurtling towards me.
My desire to live knew what I had to do.
….But the overwhelming panic of having my head submerged under water said another thing.
You see, when I was about 10, I dove into the deep end of a pool. My head hit the bottom really hard and I thought my lungs were going to burst before I made it to the top.
It was terrifying.
Ever since that day I’ve had a deep fear of putting my head under water.
Luckily, my instinct to live won out and, like a pro, I jumped through that wave and landed victorious on the other side.
I was giddy!
That moment became one of the most important in my life.
Not only has jumping through waves become one of my FAVORITE things to do…
…it also taught me the sheer joy and satisfaction of overcoming my fears.
It showed me how important it is to take the plunge, no matter how scared I am.
For example, it took me a long time to decide how to brand myself.
Deciding on my target market and changing the text on my homepage to reflect that made me feel like that scared girl afraid to jump through a wave.
I think I ate 18 chocolate bars and 5 bags of chips before I built up the courage to press Publish. (Not to mention all the back and forth before that).
But, just like jumping through that wave, I felt amazing after I did it!
Do you ever feel afraid of being “you” with your brand?
What do you need to Do To Be “YOU”?
If, like me, you’re having trouble branding yourself all I can say is take baby steps.
…Dive into a mini-wave so-to-speak.
If you’re fun-loving and quirky you don’t necessarily have to go all out.
Instead, you can add a fun color or cute font to your site.
….Or pick a background picture for your homepage banner that is “you”.
And don’t be afraid to add a little personality to your content too.
If you want to play it safe, be a bit more professional on your home page but have more fun with your blog posts. That’s what I do.
Just make sure that you channel YOU! Not who you think you should be!
It can seem like only certain types of people are successful.
… Usually, it’s the people who are the opposite to you.
But the truth is this — Anyone can be successful online.
- Serious, business-brands do well (i.e. Stacey Hylen)
- Thoughtful brands do well (i.e. Chad Thibodeaux)
- Out-there brands do well (i.e. Jamie Joslin King)
- Introverts do well (i.e. Russell Brunson)
- Type A’s do well (i.e. Julie Stoian)
- People who struggled in school do well (i.e. Steven Larsen)
- Straight A students can do well (i.e. Julie Stoian)
- Etc…
So seriously… just be you.
And if you don’t know who you are quite yet, that’s ok.
You CAN figure it out as you go. And when you consider everything that we go through when building a business online, chances are you will.
Changing is inevitable!
…. Who I am today is completely different than who I was 15 years ago when I started!
There isn’t a one size fits all roadmap. And definitely no direct roadmap.
But, try to have some fun with this because the one thing I know is this:
- Figuring out your branding isn’t just good for your business. It’s also good for you!
It is seriously one of the most important things I have done to become a happier and more fulfilled person in life AND business.
Take Your First Baby Step
Pick one of the things I mentioned in this blog post and go apply it.
- Add a new font
- Pick a new color
- Change your home page banner
- Be more playful or “out there” just once in your next post
Transformation doesn’t happen overnight.
…. It happens one, small change at a time!
