There’s this problem that I’ve seen some of my clients struggle with:

They’ve invest hundreds (if not thousands) into digital learning products - usually a mix of e-courses, e-books, workshops, and workbooks - and they’re still exactly where they started, not making any progress towards bringing their business idea and vision to life.

They have big lofty goals at the forefront of their mind as they take this leap into the world of creative business:

“Reach 10K months within 90 days"
“Build a 10K email list within two months"
“Have a 15K launch in the next 45 days"
“Attract 100K monthly visitors to their brand new blog"
“Get booked out 6 months in advance within a month of launching their business” 

These goals can be awesome, but they're usually influenced by the success of more seasoned creatives in their industry and they tend to show up as dreams instead of a tangible plan of action to actually move forward and make it happen.

Hello, 2016. It’s good to see you.

Something I see many people do around the web this time of year is set an intention and focus through the year ahead through a single word. While trying to explore what my word for 2016 could be I played around with Growth, Explore, Connect, Create, and Joy, but I finally stumbled across the perfect word while re-reading through Brené Brown’s 10 Guideposts for Wholehearted Living. 

Wholehearted.

The word and her guideposts summed up exactly what it is I want to focus on and cultivate in this brand new year ahead. Working through her 10 guideposts, I found myself setting clear intentions for both my work and my life and I want to share them with you today in the hopes they can be a jumping off point for you to do the same.

2015 is almost over and today I want to share with you 11 of my favourite blog posts and articles from around the web this year.

A huge intention of mine this year was to be more intentional with what I consume, and that has meant cutting down a lot on how many blog posts, podcasts, articles, social media, and videos I consume on a weekly basis. 

The best way I’ve been able to do this is by sticking to some core thought leaders and creatives who really inspire, motivate, and leave me full of deep thoughts and ideas after I’ve spent some time with the awesome content they’re sharing online. If you’ve worked through Be A Game Changer yet you’ll already know my thoughts on consuming ideas instead of advice, and the following posts and articles are the ones that have stayed with me long after clicking the X in my browser. 

For me, the best kind of posts and articles give me the space to explore new ideas, expand on my own, find clarity and direction through their story, and sometimes they're the extra kick I need to know that I’m on the right track, that I’m not alone, and that it’s okay to play by your own rules and live a creative life on your own terms. 

I hope these can do that for you too.

Why do we want to cultivate effective & game changing client relationships?

Because that’s how we get results.

And word of mouth referrals.

And returning customers.

And that feeling in our soul when we know we’re doing purposeful and game changing work.

Here’s something from behind the scenes of my business and how I make a sustainable full time income from my work:

Over 50% of the client work I bring in each month is either a direct referral from a current or past client, or a returning client who wants to work together again.

I believe that our content needs three things for it to resonate, connect, and be effective for our business and brand:

1. Clarity

Without focus around your message, ideas, purpose, and values, you may struggle to create content that truly breaks through the noise and resonates with the right people for you. But when you’re clear on what it is you want to say, and on your strengths, your ideas, and your message, that’s when your ideas will start flowing much easier and your content will be able to stand out in the crowd online without just adding to the noise.

A strong grasp of your brand, your message, your purpose, and what it is you want to say and how you want to make people feel is how you can create content that is effective and game changing along the way.

2. Consistency

Consistency isn’t just about how often you post and sticking to a set schedule; it’s way more about how you show up with your content and how you make your community feel when they engage with the ideas you share. Consistency is taking the clarity you have around your purpose, your message, your ideas, and your values, and letting that breathe into and shape everything you share and do online.

Consistency is how you differentiate yourself from the crowd; it’s how you show up and say something, over and over again, that is unique to you. It’s the jumping off point to establishing your expertise, your thought leadership, and the value around the work you do.

3. Connection

Without connection, your ability to have impact and reach online is limited. This is a very human arena; people want to connect with other people, not faceless brands and corporations. Connection is how you build a brand that people care about it and connection is the foundation for building a game changing community that moves your brand forward in a way that you couldn’t alone.

You need clarity and consistency if you want to cultivate connection, but you also need to tap into your own unique strengths, gifts, and personality traits if you want to cultivate connection in an authentic and human way that stays true to who you are and the work that you do.

Today we’re here to talk about how to develop a content plan and process that helps you to build community around your brand, have impact and reach online, and build a profitable and game changing online presence...

Raising our prices is how we can continue to move forward as freelancers, coaches, and creatives. 

A brand new year is just ahead of us and if you’re starting to plan and project your income for 2016 you may have realised that to scale and grow your business in a way that is both profitable and fulfilling for you, now may be the right time to increase your prices for your services and offerings.

But raising our prices can be seriously scary stuff.

Every single time that I’ve raised mine I’ve spent sleepless nights wrestling with anxiety and fear with a voice in my head saying: who do you think you are to be charging that? But for a business to move forward, to make a profit, and to give you the freedom to thrive and grow within your work (because lowballing yourself usually will just lead to burn out, frustration, and overwhelm), regularly increasing your prices when your services are ready for it is an essential part of the job.

But of course, our services aren’t all about us and the money we want to make and the life we want to live. They’re about the people we’re here to serve and who trust us enough to invest in what it is we have to offer. So if you’re thinking about raising your prices for next year but you’re stuck in that place of fear and self-doubt, I have an exercise for you today to help you move forward, move past the fear, and build a plan of action that’s right for you, your clients, and your brand.

As a coach, your business plan is a great jumping off point for finding clarity, focus, and direction with your brand.

There are tons of awesome business plan templates out there for freelancers and creative entrepreneurs, but what I’ve found with my own business and with my clients who are also coaches is that it can be hard to find a template that fully fits our business model and needs. 

A business plan has two main goals:

1. Clarify your business idea and all the nitty gritty details
2. Get you moving forward with your business goals and plans

As a coach, whether you work within the life, health, fitness, creative, business, or relationship industries, the way our business works behind the scenes differs slightly from other freelancers such as designers, photographers, and writers. I’ve found with almost all of my clients that without a solid business plan in place it’s hard to move forward in a way that is purposeful, strategic, and productive for their brand. And for my clients who are coaches, what I’ve seen them struggle with the most is to find a style of business plan that hones in on what it is they’re really trying to build.

That’s where today’s post comes in.

I’ve pilled together some of the core tasks that I have my clients work through when they’re getting stuck into figuring out their brand, their business plan, and how to bring it all together in a way that is purposeful and profitable at exactly the same time. For coaches specifically, I’ve outlined this into a ten step business plan to help you clarify your vision, your ideas, and how to translate that into a profitable business with a community, raving fans, and a schedule booked up with clients along the way.

When you run your own business, you either love making money or you hate it.

Maybe you love the excitement of making a sale and seeing the money coming in, or maybe to you money feels like a necessary evil. Either way, there are probably times along the way in your solopreneur journey when money starts to freak you out. When you’re not making enough. When you’re making more than you expected. When you have no idea how to manage your finances. When you’re afraid the work will stop coming in.

I know exactly how you feel.

I used to have a terrible relationship with money. I was in debt before I even turned 20, I had no concept of what it meant to truly live within my means, and I would recklessly spend come payday with no real thought given to the consequences to come. By the time I got myself together, debt free and starting from scratch all over again, my relationship with money had really changed. Money started to scare me. I was afraid that I would fall back into old habits again, and that I had absolutely no idea how to take control and manage my finances in a way that worked for me.

When you’re running a business and being boss, there’s no time to freak out about money.

Freaking out about money as a solopreneur when you’re first getting started is a given. Being in charge of your own paycheque is absolutely petrifying, and giving yourself permission to go out there into the world and charge for your services or products is seriously scary stuff. It’s taken me almost a year to full take control of my finances as a creative business owner. But I now no longer feel trapped in a feast and famine cycle, I’m able to make a sustainable living from my work, and I’m no longer overwhelmed by the fear that I won’t be able to provide for myself in the months to come. Here's why:

Getting booked out in advance can change everything when you’re a service based business owner.

Knowing in advance your client workload means:

• Less feast and famine and more financial stability
• More control of your schedule and routine
• Less anxiety and sleepless nights about how you’re going to pay the bills next month
• More freedom as a freelancer and creative business owner

When I first started my business I never even thought about getting booked out in advance. I didn’t even know if I’d be able to book enough clients to bring in a full time income, let alone have up to 4 months client work on the books in advance. But as my business grew so did my waitlist and being booked out in advance has played a huge part in helping me to feel more stable and secure in my work along the way. 

The strategies behind getting booked out in advance will look different for everyone and depends completely on your business model, who you serve best, and the structure and systems behind your work. After being able to get booked out for 2015 three months in advance, and now with availability for new clients from February 2016, today I want to share what I’ve learned so far and some of the key takeaways for any other service based creatives who are ready to fill their schedule up with clients and work for the months ahead to come.