Yesterday, when I asked my neighbor’s kid if she could walk my dog, she directed me to her dog walking website, complete with client reviews, a message statement, customer testimonials, and pricing tiers. In the About section, I learned she is 10 years old.
Say what you will about Millennials, but today’s kids have more sophisticated message marketing skills than most Baby Boomers. Still, even if you aren’t a born entrepreneur, you can learn 6 essential skills necessary to earn extra income with your home-based business.
Why become an entrepreneur?
With company’s hiring fewer full time employees, careers like my father’s, who had one job for his entire life and retired at 55 years old with a lucrative pension, are few and far between. According to The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average person now has 12 jobs in his or her lifetime, and many of them are at the same time. If you want to afford a great lifestyle, it is necessary to be a self-starter and know how to maximize your earnings.
When starting a home-based business, BEFORE you hire someone to design your website, write copy, and handle the marketing, learn these 6 marketing skills:
1. Know your message. Your essential business message has to be front and center on your website. This is called Your Promise Statement which is a 5 to 7 word statement that conveys the results of someone using your service or product. That should go onto your website, form your social marketing campaign, and be reflected by your logo. http://themessageofyou.com/webinar-jane/
2. Get Google to Find You. Like the old adage goes, what good is a website if Google can’t find it? You can DIY SEO marketing to increase your online ranking without hiring an expensive expert.
3. Write Findable and Sizzling Web Copy. Data driven websites are a bore. Communicate with clients using STORIES. There are 3 Essential Stories you have to have on your website.
4. Create a great demo video. Before you hire an expensive video production crew, assemble an authentic video that will connect with Millennials. A phone and selfie stick will be useful as you want to be authentic.
5. Connect with stories. Know your 3 Essential Business Stories that include: the story of your customers, the story of your business, and your own personal heart story.
6. Use public speaking to promote your business. Yes, speaking is scary, but there is no better marketing than a 12-minute TEDx talk to turn you into an International Expert.
Your message is your foundation to your marketing. To help you find your message and
other marketing skills, view free video lessons here. It all comes down to message marketing.
Overcoming procrastination is possible! I’m a total procrastinator, yet, I have published five books, written TED talks for myself, and others, and run my home-based business where I’ve developed an online speaker and comedy workshop.
And further more, I got this blog done!
You’re probably thinking that, “That doesn’t sound like a procrastinator.” You want proof of what a nut job I am?
Here’s a video of a day in the life of a writer (me) struggling to write a new speech where I keep looking for ideas in the refrigerator which has the same stuff in it as it had in it when I looked 5 minutes ago. Squirrel!
When I was teaching standup, so many comics didn’t do any advance work because if they didn’t get laughs, they could cop-out by saying, “I didn’t work on this.” Nobody likes to feel dumb. In my comedy and speaking webinars, the attendees who do their homework and put themselves out there, get better. Just ask past comedy student, Seth Rogen.
#2 "This Stuff Is Just Plain Boring"
I was complaining about all the boring database work I have to do to promote my new book "The Message of You Journal" to my buddy film director, Cathryn Michon. Meanwhile, Cathryn commiserated because although, she got to write, starred in and direct her movie "Muffin Top: A Love Story," rather than spending her time drinking Champagne from a crystal Tiffany flute, she spent her time re-linking audio files, color correcting, and searching for corrupt pixels. As she said, "People don’t realize that 90% of having a dream job is boring, grueling, grunge work.” Take our dreams... please!
#3 "I Don't Feel Like Doing It"
If you want until you’re motivated to do something, you’re going to die waiting for that burst of inspiration. Getting tasks done is like married sex: you make an appointment, start doing it even when you don’t feel like it, and then your both surprise yourself that things got rolling.
#4 "But What If I Can't Cut It?"
Fear of failure is another reason people procrastinate. I remember when I was teaching comedy, that there was a student whose cell phone went off right before it was his turn to go onstage. He would shout, “My wife has an emergency!” But, the third time, his wife gave birth within a month, we were on to him. In my online Comedy Workshop, generally, the people who show up are the ones who succeed.
#5 "You Can't Make Me"
Many times, my internal voice sounds like my mother saying, “Do your homework, NOW!” And my rebellious reaction, “NO!” We baby boomers were the protesting generation. I can just see us in Assisted Living being pushed to the bathroom going, “Hell no; we won’t go!” Oh look, you already went... in your pants.
Here’s the thing, if you are a procrastinator, there are workarounds to overcoming procrastination:
ADMIT IT
As in all first steps, you have to admit that you are a procrastinator. If your first thought right now is, I’ll admit this "later” rather than, “Now,” you are a procrastinator. I remember listening to Jane Fonda interview in the '80s where she called herself “Lazy.” Mind you, at the time she was a movie star, teaching workout classes, raising a family, as well as putting out exercise DVD series. Once you admit it, then you can accept fixes.
GET APPS
Turn to a power greater than yourself – an APP! Yes, there is an app for that and here are some good time management tools. According to LifeHacker.com here are the Top 15 Time Management Apps and Tools
HIRE A BOSS
So now, even though, you have a list of time management tools, if you are like me, you “Dismiss” those annoying reminders on your iPhone telling you to do something. So, hire a boss via TaskRabbit .I tried hiring a Virtual assistant and that was a disaster. So, when I was writing a book, I hired someone whose sole job it was to sit next to me on the couch and not allow me to get up and wake me up when I fell asleep. That book is "The Comedy Bible" and has sold more than 500,000 copies.
STOP WORKING
I know, this is a weird tip. Avoid procrastination by procrastinating. Yesterday, I was beating myself up because I couldn’t get anything done. So, I just got out of the house, walked my dogs on Venice Beach, had some frozen Yoghurt, went shopping, and had a lovely cocktail. And the next day, I got stuff done, as I wrote this blog. Sometimes, you have to give yourself space to let your brain relax. Beating yourself up is never a way to overcome procrastination.
The good news is that you’re not alone. There are millions of us avoiding stuff and many of us are successful. We all need help and that’s why I created the ultimate Stop Procrastination tool, The Message of You Website where we can all empower each other and overcome procrastination.
Judy Carter blogs on comedy, storytelling and public speaking techniques, using personal stories and her adventures as a stand-up comic turned motivational public speaker. Her weekly blogs are read by fans of her books, “The Comedy Bible” (Simon and Schuster) and “The Message of You” (St. Martin’s Press), which include comics, speakers, and entrepreneurs. She is also known for teaching the value of humor and storytelling to businesses as a leadership and stress reduction tool.
