I sat down to write this open letter, and asked myself: what do I need to hear in this season of my business?
One thing I’ve been reminded of over and over and over in business (and life) is that there is nothing like the shared human experience to:
- Create connection and community
- Build things that matter and make an impact
- Identify what gaps exist, and fill them meaningfully and uniquely
- Market effectively and drive sales
I’m an operator, and so I need to be reminded sometimes that the best way to ‘do’ is to come back to our current experience, and how we each experience it similarly and in our own ways.
Sometimes I get up on my soapbox and say what needs to be said. But other times…I feel compelled to get down and dirty about how we’re all actually doing — and share something that’s timely, relevant, and important…and probably not glamorous.
So, in asking myself what I needed to hear in this season of my business, my hope is that I can share exactly what you need to hear too.
Decide what you stand for, and keep showing up for it.
Someone in our community asked me recently: How can I shift from a personal brand or social media business, to the CEO of an excellence-oriented brand with a team?
I can’t say that we’ve ‘achieved’ this yet, although it’s very much what I hope to build — a brand that’s bigger than me, that will still be around 10 years from now.
But what I can say is that in my pursuit of this so far, showing up for what I stand for has been a guiding force.
As an innovator who is leading forward, you’re doing something that’s never been done before. Which means you’re interrupting and rewriting patterns that already exist and have long been reinforced. And, it also means that there’s no playbook for you to follow. You are the one creating the playbook.
Your people exist, and are eagerly waiting for you to take your stand. The necessary qualities that make your business different are just that — different. Take your stand, and keep showing up for it.
I’m proud of you for taking on the responsibility of doing the things few others are willing to do. It’s called “life’s work” for a reason — it’s not meant to take shape over night.
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