becoming a hub | marketingforhippies.com

stop trying to change minds

By: Tad | Published: November 26, 2011 · 2 Comments

I invite you to give up trying to change people’s minds.

People can be a lot like this child – stubborn. They don’t like being pushed around. Or told they’re wrong.

This is the core challenge of marketing I think. Or a core blunder. Or something.

Trying to convince people that we are right and they are wrong.

Trying to convince them that they need to act preventatively.

Trying to convince them that their core world view is wrong.

Trying to convince them that our diagnosis is so important before they even know they have a symptom.

Trying to convince someone to buy NOW when they might rather wait for a more fortuitous timing.

And I want to suggest that . . . that’s really hard.

And it might hurt people.

The idea that we can change people’s minds is the beginning of trouble.

It’s a much better idea to create something that resonates with where people are at. Meet them where they are.

My colleague Jessica O’Reilly shared how she came to this realization with her sex workshops in this blog interview I did with her in July, 2011.

Callan Rush has some important thoughts on this which she shared in this March 2011 blog post. Here’s the relevant excerpt.

LESSON #5: Don’t just market to the 3% who are ready to buy right now.

Think of your ideal clients. The people in your niche. Your target market. Now think of all the people in your town (or wherever you want to tour your workshops) who fit into that group. There are likely a lot of them.

But here’s the bad news.

97% of your ideal clients are NOT looking for my product, program or service right now.

Here’s a piece Callan shared that was worth the whole evening. It’s a percentage break down of your target market right now. I think these percentages are really accurate pretty much across the board:

3% are actively looking for your solution. They’re googling it at 3 am. They are super, actively looking for a solution to their problems. And everyone is fighting over this 3%. Every other workshop leader is trying to reach these same people.

And so they put their marketing out to reach these people.

“Hypnosis workshop!”

“Buy our technology”

“All 2010 Model Cars Must Go! 0% Financing.”

“Non Violent Communication Workshop”

“Learn Reiki”.

And it’s not that this kind of marketing doesn’t work. It totally does. It absolutely reaches and works on that 3% of your ideal clients. But it’s ignored by everyone else. Ouch. This means your marketing might be being totally ignored by 97% of your target market.

7% are open to your product, program or service. They’ve heard about the kind of thing you do. They’re genuinely curious about it.

30% are aware for future. They know they need you or someone like you – but it’s sometime down the road. They tell themselves, “I’ll need a new car when we have kids.” But that time hasn’t come yet. Or they think, “When this crunch time at work is over I’m going to get back into yoga.” Or, “When I stop traveling I’m going to buy a house.”

30% are totally unconscious. When you meet them it’s clear that they have a problem you can help them solve – but they have NO awareness they need it. They might not even know they have a problem. It’s like someone with bad breath. You knooooow they need a tick tack but they have no idea. Or someone with anger issues who’s convinced their problem is everyone else.

They may or may not have any overt symptoms but those symptoms are likely not understood. Like, they know they have stomach pains all the time – but they don’t realize that it’s because they’re celiac. Or they notice that their romantic partner has lost interest in them but they don’t see how this loss of interest was triggered by their domineering nature and inability to communicate.

In short, they lack the proper context for their symptoms. And so often they ignore them entirely.

30% are just a ‘NO!’. They’re just closed to it. Maybe it’s because they live too far away, they’ll never be able to afford it or they’ve already hired someone else. With these people you need to just bless and release.

The Bottom Line: 67% of these people are not really being marketed to. They’re being ignored by everyone else leading workshops.

But the way you market to the 67% who are open, aware or unconscious is very, very different than the way you market to people who are totally ready to buy. It’s a bit of a slower turn around. More trust building. More being a generosity based business to start.

Simon Sinek, in his book Start With Why points out how people gravitate to businesses that resonate with them (rather than being inspired to adopt a new lifestyle that company is selling).

Apple sells a “lifestyle”, marketing professionals will tell you.

Apple didn’t invent the lifestyle, nor does it sell a lifestyle. Apple is simply one of the brands that those who live a certain lifestyle are drawn to. Those people use certain products or brands in the course of living in that lifestyle. That is, in part, how we recognize their way of life in the first place. The products they choose become proof of why they do the things they do. It is only because Apple’s why is so clear that those who believe what they believe are drawn to them. As Harley Davidson fits into the lifestyle of a certain group of people and Prada shoes fit the lifestyle of a certain group, it is the lifestyle that came first. Like the products the company produces that serve as proof of the company’s WHY, so too does a brand or product serve as proof of an individual’s WHY.

That some people are viscerally drawn to a ferrari more than a Honda Odyssey says more about the person than the engineering of the product.

Loyalists for each brand will point to various features and beenfits that matter to them or don’t matter to them in an attempt to convince the other that they are right. And that’s one of the primary reasons why so many companies feel the needs to differentiate in the first place. Based on the flawed assumption that only one group can be right. But what if both parties were right? What if an Apple was right for some people and a PC was right for others? It’s not a debate about better or worse anymore, it’s a discussion about the different needs. And before the discussion can even happen, the WHYs for each must be established first.

A simple claim of better, even with the rational evidence to back it up, can create a desire and even motivate a decision to buy, but it doesn’t create loyalty. It is the cause that is represented by the company, brand, product or person that inspires loyalty.

Seth Godin deepens this conversation is his book Tribes:

A Tribe has a Shared Worldview:

This leads to an interesting thought: you get to choose the tribe you will lead. Through your actions as a leader you attract a tribe that wants to follow you. That tribe has a worldview that matches the message you are sending.

Important clarification: Great marketers lead people, stretching the boundaries and bringing new messages to people who want to hear them. The core of my argument is that someone’s worldview, how they feel about risk or other factors, is beyond your ability to change in the short run. Sell people something they’re interesting in buying. If you can’t leverage the worldview they already have, you are essentially invisible. Which is a whole other sort of magic, one that’s not so profitable.

If you are leading a tribe focused on saving the world by fighting global warming, the tribe will of course have a worldview that includes the idea that global warming is a problem and that it includes the idea that global warming is a problem and that it can be addressed through its actions. They come to the tribe with that in mind and your leadership resonates with them.

If, on the other hand, you choose to work to persuade a different group, one with a very different worldview, they will likely reject you. Al Gore started leading his tribe when he didn’t know who they were.

He stated his message and people found him.

Ultimately, people are most easily led where they wanted to go all along. While that may seem as if it limits your originality or influence, it’s true. Fox News didn’t persuade millions of people to become conservatives, they just assembled a tribe and led them where they were already headed.

Tribes are increasingly voluntary. No one is forced to work for your firm or attend your services. People have a choice of which music to listen to and which movies to watch. So great leaders don’t try to please everyone. Great leaders don’t water down their message in order to make the tribe a bit bigger. Instead they realize that a motivated, connected tribe in the mist of a movement is far more powerful than a larger group could ever be.

As the ability to lead a tribe becomes open to more people, it’s interesting to note that those who take that opportunity (and those who succeed most often) are doing it because of what they can do for the tribe, not for what the tribe can do for them.

This is the heart of the matter: Every leader cares for and supports a movement. A movement like the free speech movement at Berkeley or the democracy movement in Tiananmen Square or the civil rights movement in Mississippi. Or maybe a movement like the obsession with hand roasted coffee in Brooklyn or the worldwide collection of people obsessed with tattoos.

Today, you can have a narrow movement, a tiny movement, a movement in a silo. Your movement can be known by ten or twenty or a thousand people, people in your community or people around the world. And most often, it can be the people you work with or for, or those who work for you.

The web connects people. That’s what it does. And movements take connected people and make change. What marketers and organizers and people who care are discovering is that they can ignite a micromovement and then be propelled by the people who choose to follow it.

The bottom line is this: don’t try to change people’s minds. Get so clear about your deeper why, the journey you help people on best and your point of view and find people who will resonate with that. Don’t try to get people to change their minds about things. Meet them where they are and begin to slowly educate. Find some real challenge they are aware of that they’re experiencing and offer them help with that. Earn the trust. Align and then redirect – don’t oppose.

Instead of trying to push harder and hype it up more – just make it clearer who you are and safer for people to approach you. Be the lighthouse, not the searchlight.

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| Categories: becoming a hub, marketing philosophy, platform, Start with Why - Tags: authenticity, becoming a hub, building trust, empathy, generosity based business, pink spoons, pressure free, relevance

twelve ways to figure out your ‘why’

By: Tad | Published: November 24, 2011 · Leave a Comment

So, over the past week or so you’ve read about why it’s important to have a bigger cause that your business is about, you’ve seen some examples of people who have or are exploring this but now it’s time to look at how you can begin to sort this out for yourself.

The first thing I’d suggest is not to attempt to do this alone.

What I’d most commend is to sit down with a dear one in your life over a hot cup of something delicious and to have them ask you these questions and take careful notes for you. They can ask you good follow up questions and reflect what they’re hearing you say.

The second thing I want to suggest is that this is not an overnight process. It will evolve and deepen over time. And that’s okay.

But I do think these questions will help you make some progress.

Here they are . . .

What has been one of the central questions of your life? What are those topics and questions you find yourself constantly circling around and bringing up in conversations? What are the conversations you find hardest to stop?

What are the different elements or worlds you’re trying to balance? What worlds do you feel like you’re a bridge between?

What got you started in what you’re doing?

What are the changes you want to see your industry undergo?

What is this work really about for you? Try completing this sentence twenty times, “At the heart of it, my work is about . . .”

Complete this sentence, “When I look at the world, what I most see missing is . . .”

Complete this sentence – ‘every ______ deserves ________’ (e.g. ‘every woman deserves the opportunity to have a joyful birthing and parenting experience’ or ‘every man deserves authentic brotherhood’)

what’s the impact of what you do on people’s lives if you do it well?

If everyone in your target market got to Island B, then what? What would the impact of that be on the world?

what are you most sick and tired of seeing in the world?

when you read the paper, walk down the streets, surf the net – what issues grab you and why?

Whatever you do – is there a metaphorical level to it? If you help people with heart issues on a physical level – is there a deeper metaphorical level to hearts. If you help people to build houses – what is a house really ‘about’? If you sell bicyles – what are bicycles about? If you massage feet – what are feet about at a deeper level?

| Categories: becoming a hub, Branding, Start with Why - Tags: authenticity, becoming a hub, trusted advisor

deeper into why

By: Tad | Published: November 22, 2011 · Leave a Comment

It’s easy to feel alone in the world.

But it’s not pleasant.

And, the way we market our businesses can actually help heal that.

In his book Start With Why, which you should really go and buy from a locally owned bookstore, Simon Sinek shares a familar old story,

“Consider the story of two stonemasons, you walk up to the first mason and ask “Do you like your job?” He looks up at you and replies, “I’ve been building this wall for as long as I can remember. The work is monotonous. I work in the scorching hot sun all day. The stones are heavy and lifting them all day can be backbreaking. I’m not sure if this project will be completed in my lifetime. But it’s a job. It pays the bills.”

You thank him for his time and walk on.

About thirty feet away, you walk up to a second stone mason and ask him the same question. He looks up and replies “I love my job. I’m building a cathedral. Sure I’ve been working on this wall for as long as I can remember, and yes, the work is sometimes monotonous. I work in the scorching hot sun all day. The stones are heavy and lifting them day after day can be backbreaking. I’m not even sure if this project will be completed in my lifetime. But I’m building a cathedral.”

What these two stonemasons are doing is exactly the same; the difference is, one has a sense of purpose.

He feels like he belongs. He comes to work to be a part of something bigger than the job he’s doing. Simply having a sense of WHY changes his entire view of his job. It makes him more productive and certainly more loyal. Whereas the first stonemason would probably take another job for more pay, the inspired stonemason works longer hours and would probably turn down an easier higher paying job to styay and be a part of the higher cause.

The second stonemason does not see himself as any more or less important than the guy making the stained glass windows or even the architect. They are all working together to build a cathedral. It is this bond that creates camaraderie. And that camaraderie and trust is what brings success. People working together for a common cause.”

Think of a non-profit and, hopefully, you can think of a larger cause that’s being addressed. But non-profits are not the only ones allowed to have a mission. Businesses can too. We all can.

It might be easy, at this point, to think that your ‘why’ must be something outside of you. Some larger cause or issue that you are joining.

And, that might be the case, but it’s worth exploring the often surprising personal connections we might have.

I’ve written a bit about how our deepest wounds are often our truest niche.

That you have likely gone through struggles in your own life and that these struggles have given you a keen empathy and insight into a certain emotional terrain. If you’ve struggled with something and come out the other side, there’s a really good chance you’ll be able to help others with that struggle to. If you’ve been on a certain journey, you can likely help others with that same journey.

But, if we step back, and remove it from the personal we can start to see how deeply and widely these wounds are shared.

Your most personal wound might not only be the wound you’re most able to help other individuals heal, it might be the collective wound in the world you’re addressing to.

I think most movements are started because of some wound. The loss of dignity, freedom, safety . . . and the desire to have it back. As we connect with our own story, we are more able to connect with the larger story.

The personal is political.

Those things which are most personal end up being most general.

It’s an amazing moment when you really, really get that you’re not alone in your struggles – and, in fact, that no one is alone. That there is a whole community and tribe of people struggling with the same issues. And, that when we boil to the essence of the struggle – it’s often something that everyone struggles with (e.g. love, optimism, self acceptance).

So, part of it is seeing our business as a part of a bigger story. And maybe the biggest story there is – the story of the healing of the world. As it’s called in the Jewish tradition – Tikkun Olam.

Most of us feel isolated and alone. And, deep down, we all crave to contribute some portion of beauty back to the world. Most of us crave to play some role in a story that is larger than ourselves. The warning in the Narcissus myth is not to not fall in love with ourselves. It’s to not fall in love with our reflection and miss the larger story. This culture promotes a profound self obsession. A ‘what about me?’ neurosis. And it’s just this neurosis that has us feel so alone. And the belief that we’re the only ones in Hell – is Hell.

There are two ways to live in the end. One is, ‘what’s in it for me?’ and, in the end, this is profoundly unsatisfying (no matter what kinds of privileges come with it). The other is, ‘how can we all get our needs met?’.

In the end, the only wealth there is is community. Each other.

the shady side of the road – by rabindranath tagore

I lived on the shady side of the road
and watched my neighbours’ gardens
across the way
revelling in the sunshine.

I felt I was poor,
and from door
to door
went with my hunger.

The more they gave me
from their careless abundance
the more I became aware
of my beggar’s bowl.

Till one morning
I awoke from my sleep
at the sudden opening of my door,
and you came and asked for alms.

In despair I broke the lid of my chest open
and was startled into finding my own wealth.

Caitlin Matthews, Celtic scholar and author, poses the question like this:

“How can the soul or the world be re-enchanted once it is lost the enchantment? Only by returning to the story of the soul and retelling it up to the point of fracture; only by placing our story within the context of the greater song.

She tells that when Merlin is exposed to the terrible carnage of the battle of Arfderwydd “he becomes mad an runs into the depths of the forest. Within the forest’s embrace, he becomes one with the trees and seasons and puts aside the terrible sights he has seen to focus upon the gifts of the wild world, becoming rusticated and “uncivilized.”

Ever pertinent and prophetic, he sees through the pretexts and pretensions of those who come to lure him back to civilization with the sure instinct of an animal,”

He does not respond to anyone except his friend, the Welsh poet, Taliesin who comes to sit with him. Only then “does Merlin respond, asking the odd question, “why do we have weather?” This seemingly trivial query is all that Taliesin needs to help his friend. He begins to recite the creation of the world. At the end of Taliesin’s recital, Merlin is restored as the sacred context of his story is given back to them.”

What does this all have to do with marketing?

Our business can feed on people’s insecurities or it can invite them into a larger story.

It’s powerful for people when they find a home.

When they find a community of people who think like them, see the world the same way, have gone through the same struggle and are about the same things. It’s incredible to find a community that has a shared point of view and sense of ‘why’ about their lives.

And you can make your business into that. A home. A sanctuary. A place where people connect not only with you but with each other. Our businesses can become hubs that actually foster, tighten and deepen community.

You need to build a hub around a platform – some strong center that can hold it – and there are four things that can be.

You can see some examples of hubs built around a point of view here and ones built around a strong ‘why’ here.

As David Korten puts it, “we can’t just talk these things to death. We need to live them into being.”

You can become a voice of hope and clarity in challenging times inviting people not to become lost in their individual struggles – but to see themselves as a part of a larger story. You can help them move their focus from their lonely troubles to shared solutions we can all work towards. We can startle them with their own wealth.

When your community looks into the mirror that reflects the current world’s woes and feel such despair and overwhelm from it – we wave our hands and the mirror becomes a window through which they can see what’s possible. And, with another wave, that window becomes a door and we invite them through.

Let’s keep reminding people what it’s really about.

| Categories: becoming a hub, Ethics in Advertising, marketing strategy, platform, Start with Why - Tags: authenticity, becoming a hub, building trust, trusted advisor

the bigger cause

By: Tad | Published: November 17, 2011 · Leave a Comment

The other day, I wrote a blog post about the four key elements you need to create your platform.

Today, I want to zone in on the last of the four – the deeper why and bigger cause of your business.

It’s a simple question: ‘why do you do what you do?’

But it’s one that most entrepreneurs never reflect on.

I recently finished reading Simon Sinek’s book ‘Start With Why’. And, over the coming weeks, I’ll be sharing my reflections on it. You can watch a 20 minute video of him giving the heart of the book here.

You started your business for a reason.

What was that reason? What is this business really about for you? At the heart of it? What has it become for you?

One of the things that is most overlooked in marketing is sharing ‘why’ we do things.

And it matters.

When people don’t understand the deeper ‘why’ behind what you do . . .

You will get pigeon holed in whatever it is you do that they first heard of. And you won’t be able to get out. You’ll get known for the boat. Case in point: what does Xerox make? The immediate answer in your mind was clearly photocopiers. What does Dell make? Computers. They make boats. They are known for the quality of their boats. If they tried to make a different kind of boat? Disaster. Xerox launched a brand of personal computers once. They were really good. Remember them? Exactly. Dell tried to create an MP3 player. Remember that? Again, of course you don’t.

You’ll end up needing to resort to manipulative marketing tactics to get people to actually buy something. Communicating your ‘why’ clearly inspires people. You don’t need to push, hype or manipulate.

They’ll likely believe that you’re just in business for the money and so their trust won’t run as deep.

What do I mean by the ‘why’?

The why often starts with our looking at the world and seeing that something is missing. Seeing that something feels ‘off’ to us. It’s like the film the Matrix. People having the vague sense that’s something isn’t right. And yet, the answer isn’t found in the small details but in looking at the overall context – the bigger story. The bigger story is the golden thread that weaves all of those experiences together. And the quest for liberation from the machines is the bigger cause.

When we wake up to an issue that is so much bigger than us – we want to help. And we often find that there’s already a movement that’s going on. It’s not usually something we can create. It’s something bigger than us that we choose to be a part of. And even if we are the initiator of a particular campaign – the movement for justice is as old as the existence of injustice.

Your why is something you’ll likely never achieve in your lifetime because it’s so much bigger than you. You why are all the trees you’ll plant that you will never sit under.

Recently, I’ve been seeing a lot of rhetoric in the marketing world about ‘starting a movement’ instead of marketing. But, if you can create it, it’s probably not a movement. It’s a marketing campaign. By definition a movement must be bigger than you. And it can’t be started by you.

These movements aren’t ours. We’re just throwing our shoulder to the wheel. We’re adding our unique voice and perspective. We’re helping getting the truck out of the mud. We’re trying to help things move a little faster and smoother.

Gandhi didn’t start the struggle for India’s independence, he just became one of it’s most vocal and articulate proponents. Martin Luther King Jr. didn’t start the civil rights movement. He just played his role in it.

We’re not saying that our boat is the only one addressing this issue. Just the opposite – we’re saying, ‘we are one of many businesses and community members that care about this cause’. We’re one boat of many.

“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”

- African Proverb

But we begin to see our role as not just someone selling something but a spokesperson on this issue, an advocate for a cause, a visionary for something better, more deeper and more true. So much of becoming a hub is this – taking a stand for something. Even more deeply, taking a stand as something. Continually crafting our boat so it becomes the most beautiful possible expression of the deepest why we know. I think this is much of what Gandhi meant when he said, ‘become the change you wish to see in the world.’ Do that with your business so that what you’re about is unmistakable.

What is the bigger movement or cause your business is a part of?

| Categories: becoming a hub, marketing strategy, platform, Start with Why - Tags: authenticity, becoming a hub, building trust, relevance, trusted advisor

life is easy

By: Tad | Published: November 15, 2011 · 6 Comments

I was just in Thailand and I stayed at an organic farm and sustainability center called Pun Pun. It was run by a fellow named Jon and his wife Peggy.

Below is a 15 minute video of Jon sharing the philosophy of his center.

It’s a beautiful example of a well articulated point of view and clear sense of why. And I think it might just inspire and warm your heart.

| Categories: becoming a hub, Case Studies of Inspiring Business, Start with Why - Tags: authenticity, becoming a hub, point of view, stories

your platform: six things you can be known for (and one other)

By: Tad | Published: November 15, 2011 · 30 Comments

If you want to succeed in your business – you need to become ‘known’ for something.

How do businesses ultimately succeed?

By word of mouth. People telling people because they want it to thrive. Because they love it. Because they know it will be useful to a friend.

In short, the business is known for being good at something.

And that ‘something’ should be clear from the first moment people meet you. That something is your brand.

It should be something that’s so clear that people can express it to their friends.

It doesn’t need to be something you can sum up in a slogan (but bonus points if you can) but it should be something people can feel and ‘get’.

And, of course, this can all feel a bit daunting.

So, let’s break it down.

I would submit that there are six things your business can be known for.

That your platform isn’t just one thing. It’s not some pithy sound bite or elevator speech or a single Unique Selling Proposition. It’s a weaving together of six things. At least.

And, I’d submit that most businesses settle for being known for only one of these things (almost always the same one – which also happens to be the least inspiring and the one most likely to have you relegated to commodity status where people compare you only on price).

Before I give you the six (plus the one other). I need to tell you a story – to give you an image in your mind.

Imagine a young man on an island (which we’ll call Island A). It’s not that great a place to be. But, it’s all he knows, so he goes about his days. Then he starts hearing that his is not the only island in the world. That there are other islands. At first he doesn’t believe it, but the more he visits the docks and meets these visitors the clearer it becomes. It’s true. And then, one day, he hears about a particular island (which we’ll call Island B). And his heart leaps. He wants to go there.

Of course, he needs to get a boat to go there.

But there are so many boats to hire! Which one to choose?

Your business is a boat. It helps people like this young man get from Island A where they’re struggling with some problem (i.e. set of symptoms they don’t like) to Island B where they have the result they want (i.e. something they’re craving).

So, in this image we have six elements I want to lift up for your consideration. Each of them is something you can become known for.

The Captain: you.
Boat: what you do. Your irresistible offering.
The Journey: the problem you solve and result you offer for a particular group
The Sea: your particular point of view and map on that journey.
The Sky: the overarching reason and cause that all of your work is an expression of.
The Unimagined Possibility: beyond the place they can imagine going, there might be something even more wonderful.
The Deepest Fear: if they do nothing – what are they secretly afraid might happen? (this is the ‘other one’ because it’s not something you can really be known for but it plays a role).

If you’ve been following my work for any time at all, you know that a core theme of mine is about identifying the ‘journey’ that people are on.

Metaphorically, it’s like people are on Island A where they’re struggling with some problem (i.e. set of symptoms they don’t like) and they want to be on Island B where they have the result they want (i.e. something they’re craving).

And your business is like a boat that takes them on the journey from Island A to B.

The truth is that some people will just want to buy from you because they like you, the captain, so much. Some people have such a great vibe that people spend money with them because they just want to support them and be around their vibe. This is the heart of any kind of holistic work because the implied message in holistic healing is, ‘do what I say and you’ll end up like me’.

And when practitioners have a bad vibe – all the marketing tactics in the world won’t help them.

But, the best vibe in the world isn’t something you can build a business on. You can have such an amazing vibe and still be broke unless people are clear about the other four pieces.

And, in your marketing, you want to make sure that you’re speaking to their journey, not just talking about your boat and how great it is. The homepage on your website should be about the journey, not about the boat. The first words in any presentation you do should be about the journey – not about the boat.

But most marketing is just people talking about the features and benefits of their boat. But when people see you as a boat, sometimes it can be hard to tell you apart from all the other boats. And so you’re a commodity. They have lots of options and ‘let’s see who’s cheapest’ becomes the mantra.

So, getting clear about the nature of the journey is vital.

On the outside edges of that journey are two other islands. Behind to the left of Island A you can imagine Island Z. That’s where they’re secretly scared they’re going to end up if they do nothing. These are fears like, ‘if i don’t handle my dating life I’m going to end up old and alone’, or ‘if I don’t keep my mind sharp I’m going to end up with alzheimers like my great grandparents.’ These fears are rarely talked about, but they’re deeply real for people. These fears aren’t things you can be ‘known’ for but understanding them gives you an incredible empathy and sensitivity which will allow you to engage the other three more deeply and safely.

The key here is that Island Z is not real. It’s a mirage. A nightmare fantasy. The worst case scenario. That’s why it’s not part of your platform. It’s a part of their internal world.

To the right of Island B, we have Island C. If Island A is the pain they’re in now and Island B is where they want to get to, then Island C is what we know is possible for them that’s even beyond Island B. As I wrote a few days ago,

Island A: I’m lonely. Island B: I want to date someone. Island C: we fall in love and say, ‘I never knew I could feel this way.’

Island A: I’m sick. Island B: I want to be healthy. Island C: we cleanse, do yoga, start juicing and say, ‘I never knew I could feel this way.’

Island A: I’m broke. Island B: I want to to be able to pay my bills on time and have money left over. Island C: we do the work needed to handle our money and say, ‘I never imagined I could feel so at peace and proud in my relationship to money.’

Island A: I’m full of angst and depression. Island B: I want to feel good again. Island C: we get deep into our personal healing work and one day wake up saying, ‘I feel so beautiful and light. I feel so at peace.’

Island C is what might be possible in the life of ONE person that they hadn’t previously considered. This i different than the bigger cause we imagine which is what we envision for our whole community or the world (though they are likely connected).

There’s the pain they feel. There’s the thing they’re craving, but the thing they’re craving only goes to the limits of their imagination. Our cravings take us to the end of what we know but no farther.

And then you have a certain map or route that you’d recommend for how folks can get from Island A to Island B. You have a certain Point of View about the journey. You can think of that as everything that’s under the water connecting these two islands. It’s your diagnosis about the underlying, root causes of why it’s so difficult for folks to make this journey. I’ve written a lot about that lately.

But there’s something more that’s been becoming clear to me recently.

It’s not enough to be clear about WHAT the journey and the boat are or HOW you take them on the journey – they need to know WHY you’re so passionate about that journey and what the bigger picture is for you. They need to know what this is about beyond the money. Why does your work matter to you and to the world?

Your why is the bigger cause you stand for.

It’s the journey you see that the world or your community is on (e.g. Martin Luther King Jr.’s articulation of the journey from a deeply racist USA to ‘the beloved community’).

Simon Sinek talks about this in depth in his brilliant book, Start With Why:

“People don’t buy WHAT you do, they buy WHY you do it.

WHAT: Every single company and organization on the planet knows WHAT they do. This is true no matter how big or small, no matter what industry. Everyone is easily able to describe the producs or services a company sells or the job function they have within that system. WHATs are easy to identify.

HOW: Some companies and people know HOW they do WHAT they do. Whether you call them a “differentiating value proposition”, “proprietary process” or “unique selling proposition”, HOWs are often given to explain how something is different or better. Not as obvious as WHATs, many think these are the differentiating or motivating factors in a decision. It would be false to assume that’s all that is required.

There is one missing detail . . .

WHY: Very few people or companies can clearly articulate WHY they do what they do. When I say WHY, I don’t mean to make money – that is a result. By WHY I mean what is your purpose, cause or belief? WHY does your company exist? WHY do you get out of bed every morning? And WHY should anyone care?

When most organizations or people think, act or communicate they do so from the outside in, from WHAT to WHY. And for good reason – they go from clearest thing to fuzziest thing. We say WHAT we do, we sometimes say HOW we do it, but we rarely say WHY we do WHAT we do.

But not the inspired companies. Not the inspired leaders. Every single one of them, regardless of their size or their industry, thinks acts and communicates from the inside out.”

A strong ‘why’ or cause doesn’t marginalize anyone – it’s different that a position. Your point of view is a position. Your point of view says, ‘I’m for this and I’m against this.’ People will often disagree with your point of view. But a reason why you do something is less likely to get disagreement. Usually they’re the kinds of things that anyone can relate to and empathize with – even if they might choose a different approach. Your cause is a stand for something bigger and deeper. Your cause says, ‘as a world we need to get to island B’ your point of view says, ‘and here’s my belief about the best way to get there’.

Your why is what you want, not what you don’t want. It’s the core of what you’re for – not a list of things you’re fighting. It’s often inarguable. Once you land on it, it’s like, ‘who could be against this?’

You might picture the ‘why’ as the golden sun shining above the islands and the boat – holding them all. The umbrella of the sky.

What’s interesting about all of this is that when the journey, point of view and larger ‘why’ are clarified – the boat often changes.

You will, in the end, be known for your boat – but make sure that your boat is an expression of you not just a cookie cutter, copy cat boat. Make everything about your boat an expression of the cause. If your business is about fun and celebration then make it a fun boat with wonderful colours and amusements around every corner. If you’re in love with elegance and beauty – then make your boat the most elegant boat the world has ever seen with lanterns and candles and beautiful dinners. If you’re passionate about adventure – then let your boat be rough and the rooms people sleep in be spartan.

And, of course, the boat must be a boat that you want to be on. It must fit the kind of lifestyle you want to have. As you figure out your ideal lifestyle, that will do more to help you design your boat than just about anything I know. And, if you need help with that, there’s only one person I can commend speaking with on that.

Every plank of your boat should ‘fit’. It should make sense. It should all communicate a clear message. They should be able to look at the boat and quickly get a feel for it what kind of journey it can take them on, what your point of view is and what you’re about at the core. And then, when they get on the boat their initial impressions should be deepened and confirmed.

| Categories: becoming a hub, Branding, marketing strategy, Niche Marketing, platform, Start with Why, word of mouth - Tags: becoming a hub, communicating value, irresistible offers, niche, trusted advisor

guest post: 3 must-have’s for online marketing success in your holistic business

By: Tad | Published: September 21, 2011 · Leave a Comment

by Suzanne Monroe

Something that gets me so excited in life is being able to run my business virtually. Oh, who am I kidding…it’s actually up there with one of the most over-the-top amazing things in my life! Running my business online is pure euphoria for me.

Euphoria?! Yes, euphoria. The Definition of euphoria made me smile today.

Wikipedia defines euphoria as this: Euphoria is medically recognized as a mental and emotional state defined as a profound sense of well-being…an intense state of transcendent happiness combined with an overwhelming sense of contentment.

Yep, that’s sounding like me when I’m running my business. But wait, there’s more….

Euphoria is sometimes induced by the use of psychoactive drugs. However, some natural behaviors, such as activities resulting in orgasm, love and the triumph of an athlete, can induce brief states of euphoria. Euphoria has also been cited during certain religious or spiritual rituals and meditation

Want some of that, don’t you?

So if love, sex, meditation, running a marathon and even drugs can cause euphoria, your business can too! I’m calling for an addition to the definition of Euphoria = Following Your Passion in Business, because what I know today is that holistic entrepreneurs are so tapping into their passion and making big impacts that they are definitely euphoric.

How to Experience More Euphoria in Your Biz

Achieving euphoria in your business happens when you are totally tapped into your passion and purpose and serving the world from your heart. You’re giving and receiving and are excited to wake up everyday to all of the possibilities that await you, and you go after them while experiencing ease and joy.

Running my biz actually gives me tingles when I think of how amazing it is. There’s so much AWESOMENESS being able to set my own hours, connecting with people all around the world, and creating an in’come that isn’t limited by a company’s rules or a hidden “glass ceiling”. (Yuck, corporate old school stuff!) Not that many years ago, when I was lugging around in a day job I despised, having a virtual business wasn’t even something in my awareness. Now I can’t imagine my life without it and the way things are going, it’s an opportunity that anyone have…if that’s what your heart desires.

One reason I love being online and running my business virtually is that I get to reach so many people in so many different places. Just last week I connected with a client in South Africa. We have people from across the world joining the IAWP and our training programs.

As a holistic biz owner, I know you, too, value freedom, flexibility and being able to help people with your work just about anywhere. So that’s why I wanted to share with you the 3 main things that you need to have in place to have online success in your holistic business…and experience more euphoria along the way.

The 3 Secrets to Online Business Success

These 3 things are essential to online success and as a result, biz euhporia, no matter if you’ve already taken yourself online or if you’re just getting started. No exceptions, you just gotta have these:

1. A Problem Solving Program –
This one’s a biggy. Whether you’re a coach or a service provider, you can design whatever it is that you currently offer into a “program” that solves your potential client’s problem. If you have a website with tons of offerings and you’re finding it isn’t working for you, make sure that your programs are truly SOLUTIONS that will solve a problem for your clients. If you aren’t solving a problem for a specific group of people who need support, your work won’t stand out to anyone in particular. Which means less traffic, less clients and less biz for you. Take an inventory of your programs right now and make sure they’re Solutions to the Big Problems your clients are facing.

2. Lead Seeds –
The second most important thing you need for online success in your holistic business are what I call “Lead Seeds”. Lead Seeds are essentially all of the places your ideal client hangs out online. In internet lingo, it’s essentially “traffic”. Where are your clients coming from? If you don’t know, you need to get very clear on this so you can spend your marketing efforts and time wisely. There’s many ways to connect with your ideal client online, from speaking to joint ventures to social media, but the important thing is knowing where your clients are and where you can connect with them.

3. Signature Support System –
You have to have a way to stay connected and offer your support. Don’t sit around waiting for people to contact you. The way to get your phone ringing and your contact button on your site pressed is for you to step up and lead your client communications. You can do that when you have A Signature Support System. It’s simply the specific steps that clients take with you through your business. Every Signature Support System needs to have starter steps and bigger leaps that clients can take. And the support system only works if you are providing value to your clients and continuing to solve their problem at every step along the way. If you don’t have a Signature Support System in place, you’ll want to start by creating a “signature freebie”, something valuable you can giveaway and share with your community. (To see an example, check out ours here at http://www.iawp-connect.com )From there, staying in contact and finding out how you can serve and support are the ways to building a sustainable, thriving business doing what you love.

If you’re marketing your holistic business online (which I sure hope you are!), then get make sure you’re getting these steps in place so you can experience euphoria…and help others get some of that energy, too.

Thriving Together,

Suzanne Monroe

Founder & CEO

The International Association of Wellness Professionals

Are you a wellness professional, holistic health practitioner, or other health-minded, heart-centered entrepreneur who wants to learn the business and marketing tools to create lasting success? Get your FREE Wellness Professional’s Success Starter Kit at http://www.iawp-connect.com and jumpstart your wellness practice today. Suzanne Monroe is a Holistic Business Coach and the Founder & CEO of the International Association of Wellness Professionals, where passionate practices become thriving businesses.

| Categories: becoming a hub - Tags: becoming a hub, building trust, empathy, online marketing

case study: grocery shopping tour

By: Tad | Published: September 18, 2011 · Leave a Comment

Victoria Laine does a simple thing that most entrepreneurs could do but never think of.

She hosts tours.

Now, she does tours of grocery stores. But maybe you could host a tour of strawbale homes. Maybe you could host a tour of gluten free options in your neighbourhood. A medicinal plant walk. A pub crawl with a theme related to your work. Maybe you could host a tour of all the strawbale homes in your community (even if you’re not a strawbale expert yourself). So many businesses could do this easily.

Tours get you away from your computer, connect you with potential clients, help build your credibility and might also help the people or businesses you’re taking your tours to.

What is the name of your project?

Grocery Shopping Tours – Victoria Laine Nutrition & Yoga

What’s the story of how this came about? What was the need you saw in the community that it emerged from?

I’ve had a fascination with food since I was a teen.

Watching other females in my life continually on yoyo diets, I developed an unhealthy relationship with food, obsessed with calorie counting and eventually an eating disordered pattern. Fortunately I overcame the eating disorder and grew to appreciate and have confidence in my body, which I credit to a better understanding of nutrition and a regular yoga practice.

However I was suffering with allergies, asthma, arthritic pain, depression, and digestive problems all unknowingly related to my food choices. Reading nutrition books, consulting naturopathic doctors and a holistic nutritionist, I overcame my health challenges and felt the best I’d ever felt. My experiences inspired me to want to help others who were unnecessarily suffering.

Health starts with the choices we make in the grocery store. Even before completing nutrition school over 10 years ago, I learned a lot about the power of foods. Sleuthing through grocery store isles reading labels, and investigating the nutritional benefit of unfamiliar foods had become somewhat of a hobby.

When Organic Roots Food Market and Restaurant opened in Edmonton I was hired to develop the first menu and to provide grocery tours and whole-food vegetarian demos. Both were well attended because of a growing awareness in our community of how important our food choices are to our body and to the earth.

Can you share a few examples of how your project works?

The tour starts out in the produce area where I highlight the disease-fighting benefits of specific fruits and veggies, and how to include them.

I introduce less familiar vegetables and fruits to help participants expand their whole-food horizons. I present information about organically grown vs conventionally grown foods to help participants to make the most do-able choices for their individual budget.

We discuss strategies for saving money while improving their health and have fun sharing ideas and experience. Then we move to the inside isles to discover more unfamiliar foods or familiar foods that can be used in new refreshing ways. I cover information about ethical, sustainable food choices to help people make conscious choices. I provide them with recipes and a few helpful handouts.

Who do you find it’s working best for?

These grocery tours are not for those who are satisfied with their daily food choices and do not see any room for improvement. They are most useful for those who want help to make more conscious choices or who are are struggling to deal with the overwhelm of too many choices. They are looking to find strategies to make the healthiest food shopping and eating simple, delicious, and do-able.

What’s the response been so far to the tours? What kind of numbers do you get per tour?

I limit the tours to 12 people so that everyone can hear what I’m saying and its a more intimate group…and so that we don’t disturb shoppers! The two tours I did in the spring were full, and I didn’t offer them in the summer season. The September tours have just been announced, and I expect a great response, so I’d encourage registration sooner than later due to limited space.

At it’s heart, what is this project/business really about for you? (beyond money, status and such)

At it’s heart my business is about doing what i can for the betterment of the world by serving others who need support, or are looking for inspiration, understanding, or encouragement.

I’ve been so fortunate to learn from wise, inspirational teachers, leaders, and authors such as John Robbins, T. Collin Campbell, Jane Goodall, Jonathan Safran Foer, Guy Dauncy, Brenda Davis, Michael Pollan, Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, Rachel Carson, and so forth…so many influential people who have given me clarity of purpose.

My tag line (Maureen is still working on adding it to my website) is Quick-Fix Solutions for Busy Vegans, Vegetarians, and Meat-Lovers too!

While I don’t think there is a quick-fix solution for problems associated with factory farms and CFOs (confined feeding operations), genetically modified foods, the pain endured by immigrant workers, and other tragic issues of modern food production, I do think as individuals we have the power to make positive changes quickly to be a part of the bigger solution.

What I’ve come to learn from authors and speakers who promote healthy sustainable food choices is that as humans we are generally self-focused, so the primary reason most people will initially shift to a plant-based or plant-strong diet is because they want better health.

That being the case I have the opportunity as a nutritionist to influence others to become aware of the ethical, moral, and environmental issues connected to their daily food choices. Part of how I do that is using quoted words of the renowned and respected authors, and by introducing my clients and students to books and documentaries like Forks Over Knives, Food Matters, as well as EarthSave newsletters, local groups like VOA and E-Sage, etc…so they can make more informed decisions.

I also tell them about Earths General store and other great local resources like farmers markets. And I love that clients and students love to share their latest ah-ha moments and resources with me, enabling me to share with others.

After they do the tour – are there options for them to hire you or work with you? What happens next for them? How do the tours fit in the bigger business strategy?

The tours are about giving people a value packed two hours with stuff to take home to keep them motivated to continue their healthier eating quest.

It’s also a chance for people to check me out to see if they might want to join one of the webinar programs I will be offering or work with me privately in 1-1 nutrition coaching which they can contact me about on the website under the 1-1 private Blissful Belly program.

I also offer free 20 minute consultations to allow people to see if I might be a good fit for their needs, and so i can give them a few getting started strategies. They can apply for the complimentary 20 minute consultation on my website.

What are the top three most effective ways you’ve found to market this?

MailChimp mailout to website registration, I’ve set up a Facebook page and am learning how to use it (looking for help with this) and other social media to help get the word out about this and the other new programs I’ll be offering in the near future. I’ll be blogging soon! I’m relaunching my business with a web based model so clients and students can save time and reduce their impact on the environment by calling in on Skype, FaceTime or Phone.

What are the three biggest lessons you’ve learned along the way?

Great question Tad! I’ve learned that to truly support people you have to meet them where they are at, and start from there.

I’ve learned that while my suggestions or recommendations may be helpful, what is most influential is what I do – when people see me doing my best to walk my talk. And I’ve learned that people are doing their best and need a new or different awareness to make better choices but that even when they do form new ideals they can still struggle with the logistics of their choices.

So my role of assisting people to put their goals into action is what I see as most valuable, which is why I enjoy seeing their excitement grow in the tours and the classes.

What’s the next level for your project? What are you most excited about that’s coming up?

Grocery Tour participants, readers of my first book (Health By Chocolate) and others, may also be interested to know about the new book and programs I’ve developed in response to the growing desire for helpful resources that make conscious eating easier.

My newest book, Real Life Vegan Quick-Fix Solutions: 10 Weeks of Whole-Food Fusion Meals with Gluten-Free, Vegetarian, and Meat-Lover Variations includes downloadable grocery lists, reliable recipes, how to set up a whole-foods kitchen, whole-foods assessment chart, and much more.

My Blissful Belly program is growing in popularity and I’m almost finished developing 2 new webinar courses called 21 Day Vibrant Vegan JumpStart program, and WholeFood Nutrition Made Easy. I’m so excited for all of these offerings as they allow interaction and enjoyable learning in the comfort of their own home (from anywhere in the world where time zones jive), saving participants time, and reducing their environmental footprint.

If people want to find out more about your project, support it or get involved – what should they do?

Anyone interesting in finding out more can go to: www.Victoria-Laine.com to learn more about nutrition coaching, classes, programs, and books. If they’re looking for a speaker or workshop leader they are welcome to contact me on the site. If they are looking for a copy of Health By Chocolate they can find it at Greenwood Books, Audreys Bookstore, Earths General Store, and other locations in Edmonton, or the major bookstores elsewhere.

Real Life Vegan Quick-Fix Solutions will be available in print and eBook. Victoria

Anything else you’d like to add?

Thank you Tad for helping get the word out! I’m very grateful.

| Categories: becoming a hub, Case Studies of Inspiring Business, event promotion - Tags: becoming a hub, holistic practitioners, pink spoons, safety, trusted advisor

case study: thrive calgary becomes a hub

By: Tad | Published: September 12, 2011 · Leave a Comment

This Spring I presented at an event called The Meaningful Work Retreat. One of the co-presenters, Brenna Atnikov was working with a cool Calgary group called Thrive.

It was the perfect example of becoming a hub that I talk about so much. It’s in the non-profit context but I thought you might be inspired by the example.

Other lessons from this have to do with the power of being about something bigger (and how that can attract people who are also into those causes).

A notion: sometimes we start with the niche/target market – yang. and other times we start with really honing and developing what we’re offering – clarifying our point of view and what we’re about – YIN. the yin path has us develop and then ask, ‘who out there would love this?’ and find our target markets from THAT. And then proceed to be delighted when those don’t work but some other group mysteriously shows up and loves it unexpectedly.

If you become about a bigger cause – watch support come out of the woodwork.

The thing that caught me were the networking events that they hold.

As you read this, ask yourself, what are you about as a business? What’s the bigger cause? Could you bring people together around it?

Remember: word of mouth spreads within a community. The tighter a community is – the faster word of mouth spreads. Everyone wins. Including you. And if you’re seen as a host to the network – you definitely win by gaining stature in your community.

And there’s a difference to be held up here between building an empire and building a village. If you want to build your organization or business to be an empire, that takes a lot of work and control. But to support a network and community in thriving? Less so. You just need to ask yourself which one you want. Brenna gives us four important distinctions about networks vs. organizations below.

What’s the story of how this came about? What was the need you saw in the community that it emerged from?

I want to live in a city that has a strong, vibrant economy thats good for people and planet.

Thrive works towards this goal by asking: What is the economy for and how can it create meaningful economic opportunities for people living on low-incomes? How are we all better off when nobody lives in poverty?

Thrive is a collaborative network, which began in 2006.

It cultivates an environment in which transformation of our economy can occur because we bring together folks who often don’t get to meet but who all play an important role in economic development strategies: local business, government and non-profit organizations.

We provide a space for people to connect, learn, dream and act to create a resilient economy that combines social goals with business outcomes.

Can you tell me more about the events YOU host and who’s invited?

Thrive hosts between 4 and 6 events a year.

Starting this year (2011) they closely correlate to our 4 strategic directions/pathways/strategic directions which guide our work. We host learning events, facilitate conversations and advocate for more helpful public policy along all four paths.

Our trailheads are:

1. Neighbourhood Revitalization – working with all community members to establish neighbourhoods that provide a high quality of life for all residents

2. Local Business Development – Growing the number of local, social and environmentally responsible businesses that are either privately owned, cooperatives or social enterprise

3. Meaningful Employment – Contributing to workforce development initiatives that help create living wage jobs that also contribute to ecological sustainability

4. Innovative Social Finance – Stimulating conversation about how we can use local capital to invest in local economic development strategies.

Being that we think of ourselves as a ‘learning network’ that aims to catalyze action through information, we host events that introduce people to new and/or promising practices in the broad world of community economic development that they can then apply to their own work.

We might bring in a guest speaker, and then provide a local example of where CED is happening in Calgary. Or, we put an ‘ask’ out to the community to see who can take the lead on moving an initiative forward.

Many of our events have been a kind of ‘lunch and learn’ style, averaging about 80 people per event. Our audience is the public, private and non-profit sectors and individuals interested in transforming the economy to better work for people and planet.

Tell me about the difference between operating as an organization vs. a network?

In my own reading/learning, I’ve discovered that there are quite a few differences between operating as a network vs. an organization (a little different than the question you pose). They are:

1. Everyone is welcome to participate in a network. In an organization, you have to be hired.

2. People can contribute what they can, when they can, even if it’s only 1 idea EVER (in a network). In an organization, your job is to show up every day and contribute.

3. Networks facilitate two way communication with their community; most organizations simply ‘push’ information out.

4. Networks tend to be more emergent and adaptable, whereas organizations can be rigid.

And why do these events when there are no immediate tangible benefits?

We host our events because there are both immediate and long term benefits.

Most immediately, people are building strong, working relationships across sectors that don’t typically interact with one another. Exposure to new thinking, promising ideas and exciting possibilities are the ingredients of inspiration that eventually move innovative projects forward.

Over the long-term, these events are important because of their ability to bring people together and illuminate just what is possible in Calgary. As you’ll see below, tangible projects, initiatives and organizations also spring up.

What are the participants saying about them? What results are you noticing coming from them?

Overall, we get very positive feedback from guests at our events. Our satisfaction with events is often well above 95%. People often say that they were exposed to new ideas, met interesting people, tapped into a network of resources they didn’t know existed, etc.

The results include new initiatives and organizations emerging that help to strengthen our local economy and reduce poverty. Two great examples:

1. The launch of Enterprising Non-Profits Alberta came into being because of a variety of different players. We feel that Thrive played a role by: (1) hosting several events in 2006 and 2007 around social enterprise, which led to 3 funders being interested in the concept. The funders commissioned a study, and (2) the final report was presented at a Thrive event in 2009. One funder (The Calgary Foundation) was particularly interested in following this further, and Enterprising Non-Profits Alberta was launched in February 2011. It is now funded by The Trico Charitable Foundation. We have begun to co-host several events with them now and they are an important partner.

2. In February 2011, Thrive, Conscious Brands and Green Calgary brought Woody Tasch to Calgary. He is the founder of Slow Money. We just recently received an email from one of the guests at that event, telling us that (in part )as a result of the Slow Money event and getting to meet Woody Tasch, some folks from Leduc have started Slow Money Alberta. This is incredibly exciting for us to hear!

In summary, we are catalyzing action and inspiring different groups/people to take a necessaryleadership role on a specific area of interest, while Thrive can continue to be the incubator space for new ideas and possibilities.

What are the downsides of hosting a network?

Hmmm, honestly, I cannot think of any. We’ve had nothing but great experiences and involvement with the community since we formally launched this governance structure in February.

What are the three biggest lessons you’ve learned along the way?

1. Naming what we care about and putting that out in the world inspires people to get involved

2. Collaboration (vs. competition) is way more fun, productive and stimulates innovation.

3. When nobody lives in poverty, we are all better off. We are all responsible for ending poverty.

Can you give a few examples of the first lesson?

The ‘things’ we’ve named and put out in the world as what we care about are our 4 pathways.

Since naming them, we’ve had people approach us with opportunities because they now know where our time/energy/resources are focused.

For example, we were invited to co-hosted Community Capital Networks with REAP and are part of some initial conversations about how to mobilize local capital for our community.

For more info go to: www.thrivecalgary.org

| Categories: becoming a hub, Case Studies of Inspiring Business, green economy, local economies, Marketing for Social Change - Tags: becoming a hub, bigger cause

case study: the therapy vault

By: Tad | Published: September 6, 2011 · 1 Comment

Lisa Mitchell (pictured here) has created something beautiful that was born out of empathy. It’s an amazing example of how our deepest wound can be our truest niche. It’s also an incredibly practical case study in becoming a hub for a community.

Furrthermore, it’s got a really wonderful and unique welcome video on the homepage.

Here’s an interview I did with Lisa recently. I hope you enjoy.

What is the name of your project?
The Therapy Vault

What’s the story of how this came about? What was the need you saw in the community that it emerged from?

After 20 years in the mental health profession, as an art therapist, psychotherapist, and trainer, I realized that I felt tired and burdened with client stories of pain and recovery.

In my work with therapists, as their therapist or trainer, I heard about these same difficulties of carrying remnants of stories and pain not their own. In our profession, we are expected to bare it. And there’s a myth that if we have good boundaries, proper training, and excellent self care we shouldn’t feel burned out or heavy hearted.

I had an answer in my art and creativity.

In order to save myself from burn out, and to help other therapists learn to sustain themselves on a day to day basis in their practice, I decided to expand my business. Of course, I didn’t have a clue about how to do this. Or what it would even look like.

In my work with Suzanne and Jeffrey, I not only found my business platform, The Therapy Vault, but I also learned to live into it by honoring parts of myself that I wasn’t allowing in my work formerly.

It was tough work, because it required more vulnerability than I felt comfortable with, but in a funny way, they helped me become unburdened. And now I feel totally re-inspired with my work, and am helping other therapists transform their burdens into beautiful pieces of inspiration.

Can you share a few examples of how your project works?

The Therapy Vault Breakfast Club is an online membership community where therapists receive an eworkbook every month.

In it, there is an art invitation (yes, that’s what I call them) that is rich with ideas for creative transformation. I also provide some good context with an audio and sometimes a video ‘How To’ so that my members don’t have to be super experienced with art materials and techniques to do the project. We all do the project, and then get together on a monthly community call to share the experience.

One of the most precious things that I can think of is having a group of therapists talking about the real life experience of how their job affects them. When they do, there are sighs and wonderful feelings of validation.

I offer a free workbook on my site called, “Create a Pocket Vault and Feel Passion for Your Work….again.” Basically, it walks therapists through making a precious container, one that is creative and colorful with magazine images inside and out. The container’s intention is to hold a representation of the calling that the healer answered when they first became a therapist.

For a lot of these wonderful healers, that’s been a really long time–20-30 years. And for some who are new, they don’t even realize that they answered a calling.

So, when they make their pocket vault, it’s like they are giving a home to a precious possession–a life force. I’ve had therapists tell me that they go to their Pocket Vault on hard days and just the act of opening it up helps them renew their sense of purpose. It’s lovely.

Who do you find it’s working best for?

In the beginning, I was just targeting my work for seasoned therapists. Psychotherapists, social workers, counselors who had been in the field for a long time. Now I see that this is important work for new folks and other healing professionals because they experience the same kind of burdening. I had a call just the other day from a Youth Advocate asking if she could participate. So, the audience is growing, and self-selecting.

At it’s heart, what is this project really about for you? (beyond money, status and such).

It’s about helping healers rediscover their beauty. I thrive on seeing beauty in others, and when I can help someone dig their beauty out of the burden that covers it, we are both transformed.

What’s the response been so far?

When I tell therapists that they don’t have to blame themselves or feel inadequate for feeling burdened or burned out the response is wonderful. When I offer them a supportive, safe place with fun creative activities to do–they become enlivened. The shame that they carry about their feelings disappears and they tell me that they don’t ever want to stop making art with me!

I’m still growing my online presence and the Breakfast Club Community, but my current audience is helping spread the word very fast. And, I’m thrilled to have had lots of interest with various organizations who want me to speak and train on the topic.

how did you promote this in the beginning? what were the top three most successful approaches at the start of it?

It’s funny because The Therapy Vault is an extension of the business that I’ve done for the last 10 years. So, I’m not sure when I started “promoting” it.

I do know that with my newly clarified purpose, I started talking about my workshops and trainings differently. And, the newest offer, The Therapy Vault Breakfast Club, is still in it’s infancy and growing in membership size.

So here’s what I did:

I was so fortunate to have an enthusiastic group of local followers because I’ve been writing similar content at my other site for years. I put out a request to my list asking for them to participate in free focus group workshops.

These workshops served multiple purposes. They helped me work on new content, get pictures of a variety of completed art projects, and learn how to articulate the benefits in the particpants’ own words. In the process, the focus group became my faithful tribe and have since participated in multiple Therapy Vault programs.

I started talking about The Therapy Vault in trainings that I was giving to agencies, and just handed out business cards. Because I was already in front of my target audience, all I had to do is add a little compassionate piece about how difficult the job is and I had people interested right away.

I’m involved in several professional groups and I took every opportunity I could to talk about what I was doing. This was where several speaking opportunities have sprung from. I haven’t
done the talks yet, but I’m expecting these to generate lots of interest and participation.

What are the top three most effective ways you’ve found to market this now?

I have such a wonderful list of followers at this point, after all this time–they are the ones that I’m reaching out to to spread the word. They have done a super job.

Speaking opportunities have come my way that will serve as really good advertising and credibility builders.

I’ll be doing a telesummit soon, and I know for sure that it will be a hit!

What are the three biggest lessons you’ve learned along the way?

Jeffrey Van Dyk helped me write these. I say them to myself every day.

Do things in my Own Time. Don’t rush just because someone else wants it right away. If it doesn’t feel ripe/ready/right let it simmer and don’t force it.

Do things with my Own Judgement. Don’t listen to the tapes/voices that have old standards and expectations. They aren’t useful and just keep me back where I started from.

Do things in my Own Way. I’m such a creative person. And sometimes I squelch that because it’s scary. So, my Own Way is to be both creative and thoughtful.

What’s the next level for your project? What are you most excited about that’s coming up?

In January, I’ll be hosting a telesummit: The Sustainable Therapy Practice Telesummit.

That should be amazing and full of new learning for everyone who participates.

I’ve also started a book. It turns out that there’s incredible research that backs what I’m talking about, and I’m going to start capturing it all in book form. So, I’ll be writing my proposals soon.

If people want to find out more about your project, support it or get involved – what should they do?

They can visit www.thetherapyvault.com. They can get a free workbook there and start creating right away. I also have various live workshops that are posted on the Programs page.

| Categories: becoming a hub, Case Studies of Inspiring Business, holistic practitioners - Tags: becoming a hub, empathy, relevance, safety