The Business of Authority

It’s A Wrap

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 22 Apr 2024 10:00:00 +0000

We talk about where we’re taking the show and how your feedback will impact our next steps.

It's your chance to reach out (see the links below) and weigh in!

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April Dunford - Obviously Awesome REPLAY

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 15 Apr 2024 10:00:00 +0000

Do you know how to position your product or service?

Talking Points

April’s background
Why positioning is important
What positioning is
Email for lawyers
Problems caused by weak positioning
How solos can identify positioning problems
Choosing criteria that ensures clients will be happy in the end
Positioning the business itself versus individual offerings
How publishing a book affected April’s inbound leads
Books as part of the overall business

Quotable Quotes

“There’s branding and there’s positioning. Those two things are totally separate, and in fact, you need to have your positioning sorted out first, before you decide what your branding should be.” –AD

“Now I think there’s more of an awareness around positioning.” –AD

“Now, I’m booked up 3-4 months in advance, my rates are way higher, I work way less, and my clients are way happier, because I only promise to do this one very narrow thing, but it’s a super valuable thing, and if you’ve got this problem, who else you gonna call?” –AD

“If you’re going to make that investment in doing marketing, there should be a call to action in there.” --AD

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The Passion Economy with Adam Davidson REPLAY

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Apr 2024 10:00:00 +0000

Why passion alone isn’t enough—we also need rigor and hard work to build a successful Passion Economy business.

Rethinking your client base as a very tight, intimate group, because fewer passionate clients beat a lot of indifferent ones.

How to get clear on the unique value you bring to your clients—and weave that into your business model (and marketing).

When letting go of non-ideal clients is essential and how it changes the dynamics of your work.

Why pricing should be a dialogue between you and your client vs. a static thing (and why a “shocking” price may be exactly what you need).

Quotables

“What do you want to be worried about at 3 in the morning—cause you’re gonna be worried at 3 in the morning if you’re an entrepreneur.”—AD

“The passion word should convey: I’m going to put me and the wholeness of me into how I make a living. It’s a strong choice. It’s not a trivial choice.”—AD

“The rest of us have to use the tools of scale, use the tools of digital communication…to find our intimate group, to find our tiny village even if they’re thinly spread all over the world.”—AD

“You don’t want to be the same. You want to say I do this one thing and I do it really well and 99% of people have zero use for it, but there are people who will love it.”—AD

“You want to become THE brand for your micro niche.”—AD

“1/3 of your customers…are costing you money...if you actually add up the time and how much you’re making, you’d be way better off doing new customer development—or just sleeping.”—AD

“It’s the stuff you’re thinking about when you’re doing the pitch that is often the most valuable. You’re looking at this company, you’re sizing them up, you’re taking in what they’re asking and then you’re really coming up with a big strategic vision…the value you’re adding is often front-loaded in that pitch.”—AD

“Price really should reflect a dialogue between you and your customer. That customer is getting unique value from you. What is THAT value?”—AD

“What if I doubled my prices tomorrow—what would happen? That probably for most people will provoke a crisis.”—AD

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The Passion Economy
Twitter

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In Defense of Repetition

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 01 Apr 2024 10:00:00 +0000

How niching down—think of it as repetition—gives you the opportunity for focused practice.

Why we refer to consulting and coaching as practices.

Giving yourself permission to suck—while you gradually improve.

How to reframe repetition (think continual upward spiral) as practice.

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Genius Zone vs. Productivity

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 25 Mar 2024 09:00:00 -0100

Why it’s tempting to conflate productivity with working in your genius zone (and how to think about it instead).

Finding joy in “brain dead” activities (or anything necessary, but not strictly in your genius zone).

The difference between light lift and deep dive genius zone activities.

How to handle resistance to entering your genius zone.

Why you don’t have to work solo inside your genius zone (aka the magic of co-creating).

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And of course, big thanks to Louis Grenier for inspiring this episode. If you hate marketing BS as much as we do, you are going to love his podcast: Everyone Hates Marketers

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The Pros And Cons of An Application Process

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 18 Mar 2024 09:00:00 -0100

When you want to use an application process to screen potential clients and group members.

The particular challenges applications present (and a few work-arounds).

Why conversion rates are much higher when using applications to “gate” your service.

How to use an application process to enhance the experience of your ideal clients and buyers.

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Are You Too Cheap To Trust?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 11 Mar 2024 09:00:00 -0100

How to use pricing as a tool to niche down your audience.

Why engaging clients BEFORE they have the big problem you solve seldom works.

Becoming aware of the stories you tell yourself about money—and how they impact your pricing and packaging.

Why it’s not unethical to charge top dollar for your services (and one solution if you balk at increasing your profit).

The fairness fallacy: why “fair” is an impossible way to set your prices.

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The Books That Changed Us

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 04 Mar 2024 10:00:00 -0100

How the books you read as a child can help chart the course of your life.

The business and leadership books we found at EXACTLY the right time for each of us.

Why the right biographies, self-help and inspirational books (and other non-conventional business books) can lead to business break-throughs.

How the personal nature of what we get from books can change depending on when we read them.

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The Servant Leader

Managing The Professional Service Firm

The Trusted Advisor

Desert Queen

The Big Leap

The Simple Path to Wealth

Value-Based Fees

How To Measure Anything

Book Yourself Solid

Getting Things Done

The E-Myth Revisited

The Secret of Selling Anything

Thinking In Bets

Godel Escher Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid

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BizDev Systems For Soloists

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 26 Feb 2024 10:00:00 -0100

Why this is not “slimy selling,” but genuinely providing value to the people you want to serve.

The role of business development in “whale” B2B models (and how it fuels high-end consulting practices).

Using LinkedIn to discover your ideal people and leverage your interactions.

A handful of examples using in-person conferences as part of your business development plan.

The importance of prioritizing relationships and tracking your business development activity over time.

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You Hit The Finish Line. Now What?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 19 Feb 2024 10:00:00 -0100

Getting past the fear of an empty calendar following an intensive project. Hint: having a marketing system you work even when you’re slammed goes a long way.

How to turn a wrap-up meeting into additional work, testimonials and/or referrals (and one specific problem this meeting will solve for you).

The magic of taking time for yourself to recharge after an intense bout of work—and a few ideas to try out.

The post project questions to ask yourself to narrow down your superpower(s) and focus them on even higher-value future work.

How small rituals to close out projects can have big emotional and financial payoffs.

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The 5 Things That Happen Right After You Specialize with David C. Baker

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 12 Feb 2024 10:00:00 -0100

NOTE: Rochelle and I (Jonathan) couldn't record last week. Rather than give you nothing (or a TBOA repeat) to listen to, I decided to dig through the Ditching Hourly archives and find an episode that long time fans of TBOA would be sure to enjoy.

Here's the info from the Ditching Hourly site:

The “Expertise Expert” himself, David C. Baker, joined me on Ditching Hourly to talk about the five things that happen right after you specialize.

Summary

Here is an AI summary of the key points from the episode:

The episode is a discussion between Jonathan Stark and David C. Baker about positioning and specialization for consultants and professional services firms.

They discuss the importance of niche positioning to stand out, attract ideal clients, see client patterns more clearly, accelerate learning, and always have things to write and talk about.

They outline 5 things that happen after narrowing your business focus:

You don't instantly become smarter, but your rate of learning accelerates because you start seeing more examples of your niche.
Impostor syndrome kicks in because you're making expertise-based claims you didn't make before, but this fear is often unfounded because you were willing to work with those clients previously.
You don't have to turn down unrelated work right away during the transition period, though over time, you'll likely feel unsatisfied with off-target projects.
You immediately start narrowing your focus even further, fine-tuning your positioning through real-world conversations and testing.
Counterintuitively, you'll have way more to write and talk about when focused on a niche than as a generalist.

Jonathan and David emphasize that niche positioning is critical before you can effectively differentiate, charge value-based pricing, market yourself, or even decide what content to produce. It brings focus to everything that follows.

About David C. Baker

“The Leading Authority on Positioning, Reinventing, and Selling Firms in the Creative and Digital Space.”

David C. Baker is the author of five books, three of which focus on the central elements of the business of expertise: positioning, financial management, and leadership. David speaks regularly on more than 70 topics relevant to entrepreneurial expertise, from 20 executives to 5,000 live on TV worldwide, and has worked with 900+ firms through his Total Business Review process.

David's Links

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Experimenting for Fun + Profit

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 05 Feb 2024 10:00:00 -0100

When to shake things up by trying an experiment in your business.

Why it’s worth challenging your own perceptions and/or the norms of a popular platform.

Creating your own “book central” to capture everything you need to help with marketing and sales of your product in one place.

One surprising outcome of this experiment (and why it will keep leveraging itself indefinitely).

How starting with a niche book can expand your audience well beyond your intended target.

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Curating Your Learning Habit

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 29 Jan 2024 10:00:00 -0100

When to consider learning from a 1-1 coach vs. a group experience—and how to think about when an investment makes sense.

Building your own network of peers—through community participation or seeking out 1-1 relationships.

Why guided experimentation works for so many soloists in the expertise space (and how to find those experiences).

How to match your learning investments (time and money) with your business stage.

Learning from your marketplace, including having regular conversations with your potential clients and buyers.

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Clearing The Decks (To Build Something New)

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 22 Jan 2024 10:00:00 -0100

Why you want to move those “bees in your head” to a Projects List where they don’t interfere with your focus right now.

The importance of testing your concept (with yourself) and perhaps others before investing significant build time.

Ways to organize the design flow of a time-bound challenge—and why cohorts can be so magical.

Using technology short-cuts (like Zapier and ConvertKit)—and the value of testing your automations before you go live.

Why documenting the process as you go is an easy move that pays off big if you decide to launch the program again.

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How To Launch Something Different

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 15 Jan 2024 10:00:00 -0100

How to identify your target market and create just enough of a description of the new offering to test it with them.

Different ways to construct a “listening tour” for feedback and constructive criticism depending on your idea and your goal.

Why you want to prepare a throughline—the compelling story that connects what you’ve been doing to your new thing.

The value in embracing imperfection and adopting an experimental mindset.

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How To Name Your Baby

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Jan 2024 10:00:00 -0100

Which is best: using your name or creating a company name for your expertise business (hint: what’s your end game)?

How to deal with an unusual, unpronounceable (to your audience) or too-common name.

Why your company name matters less than you think (but your URL is gold).

Naming your books, products and services and why that’s different than naming your firm.

The non-intuitive question to ask yourself when naming each of your babies.

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Kicking Off 2024

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 01 Jan 2024 10:00:00 -0100

Why you can’t let what’s going on in the world keep you from playing your game, serving your niche.

How to decide your themes for the year (and a sneak peek into ours).

The role of energy in deciding how you want to spend this moment/this day/this month/this year.

Why how you feel about your to-do list is a leading indicator of what you’ll actually accomplish (spoiler alert: delete/offload the low energy stuff).

How to identify small changes to remove draining tasks and add energizing ones—AKA genius zone work—to your schedule.

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Is Work Life Balance A Myth?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 11 Dec 2023 10:00:00 -0100

Why we tend to think “balance” is a single point where we remain forever (even though that’s not how life usually works).

The role boundaries play in how happy you feel with your choices.

How your genius zone factors into structuring your work and your life.

Choosing to keep your work and your life in an upward spiral—and why that sometimes means letting go of your past self.

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Planning Your Bets For Next Year

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 04 Dec 2023 10:00:00 -0100

How to blend both analytical and feelings-based reviews into your planning (and the key questions to ask yourself before making any final decisions).

Translating your bets into systems to lock-and-load your goals into your recurring (daily, weekly, monthly) actions.

How adding a paper—yes paper!—calendar to your planning routine might pay off for you.

Why you want to choose a theme for the year—and how to think about yours.

The most important factor to consider when evaluating multiple bets.

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Changing Your Perception of Risk

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 27 Nov 2023 10:00:00 -0100

How to know if your next move is all that risky—or just feels risky?

Why it’s worth doing an analytical assessment of a specific risk before just saying no (or yes).

How to reduce the uncertainty in any action(s) you’re considering.

When your fear is more about the qualitative experience than about how you’ll look/how much money is at stake.

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Interesting Ways To Monetize Your Expertise

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 20 Nov 2023 10:00:00 -0100

Licensing your intellectual property into tools and assessments.

Translating your reputation (and personality) into live events with tiered pricing.

Leveraging books beyond the book sale into significant revenue streams.

Designing creative pricing for memberships.

Using contractors to deliver fixed-price services for value-priced projects.

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What To Do When The Rules Change

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 13 Nov 2023 10:00:00 -0100

How you’ll know the rules of the game you’ve been playing have changed.

Why creating a new service or product is a better solution than cutting prices on existing offerings.

An alternative that will increase your insight (not to mention your revenue) into why demand is softening.

How to test if you’re following “rules” that no longer apply.

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Can You Re-train Clients?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 06 Nov 2023 10:00:00 -0100

The “Secret” Benefit of Podcasting

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 30 Oct 2023 09:00:00 -0100

Inverting the podcasting pyramid to have a faster impact on your business (and waste less time promoting in social media).

When how many listeners you have really doesn’t matter as a success metric.

Why you might conduct some interviews in person (and how to leverage your attendance at industry conferences).

When podcast hosting is a relationship builder between you and your ideal potential clients and buyers.

How you’ll get the most benefit from podcasting (hint: clearly aligning your podcast with already proven positioning is an excellent start).

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Ask Us Anything 6

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 23 Oct 2023 10:00:00 +0000

How to make the final decision to let challenging clients go.

Making spending more time in your genius zone a reality.

Substack vs. ConvertKit.

What to say when clients ask about your costs.

Is it time to give up on my business and go back to being an employee?

What do you say to creative people in their 20’s who feel like their only viable career choice is building an on-line creative business?

How do I create recurring revenue from support or advisory options without talking about hours?

Should I be immediately value pricing my services in my brand new expertise business?

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How Much Is Enough?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 16 Oct 2023 10:00:00 +0000

What happens when we get unconsciously caught up in lifestyle inflation (and how to escape that trap).

How to think about your two primary buckets of “enough”.

The handful of markers to know you’re taking the right risks and protecting your downside (even though your “enough” number will be unique).

How spending fits into your personal equation and when to consider flexing (stepping on the gas or the brake) your business.

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Luck vs. Skill

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Why the stories we tell ourselves about our luck vs. skill aren’t always true.

Why most of your business bets will be small-ish stakes (a series of pivots) vs. flinging yourself into the volcano.

The early signs your bet is working—or not—and why we tend to ignore them.

How to make your feedback loops shorter to increase your longer-term likelihood of success.

Why it’s helpful to determine the roles luck vs. skill played in past big decisions (and the factors we consider).

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Making Better Decisions with Annie Duke

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 02 Oct 2023 10:00:00 +0000

“There are only two things that determine the way your life turns out. Luck and the quality of your decisions. That's it.” Annie Duke

When we won’t quit a bad idea because we hear a unicorn success story—instead of making the smarter move to invest “our treasure” (talents, time and energy) elsewhere.

Why we never have ALL the facts when making decisions (and how luck swings outcomes more than we think).

When we have to ignore how much money we’ve “put in the pot” and fold instead (and why pre-bet kill criteria will be your friend).

Thinking in bets: how to calculate your expected value from a decision (and why horses are more dangerous than sharks).

How soloists can establish truth-seeking groups to get the value of constructive advice (and why this is so critical to high performance).

Be sure to stick around to the very end for a lightning round of Q+A on making better decisions.

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Annie Duke | Substack | Website | Quit | Thinking in Bets

BIO

Annie loves to dive deep into decision making under uncertainty. Her latest obsession is on the topic of quitting. In particular, she is on a mission to rehabilitate the term and get people to be proud of walking away from things.

Annie is an author, speaker, and consultant in the decision-making space, as well as Special Partner focused on Decision Science at First Round Capital Partners, a seed stage venture fund. Annie’s latest book, Quit: The Power of Knowing When to Walk Away, was released in 2022 from Portfolio, a Penguin Random House imprint. Her previous book, Thinking in Bets, is a national bestseller. As a former professional poker player, she has won more than $4 million in tournament poker. During her career, Annie won a World Series of Poker bracelet and is the only woman to have won the World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions and the NBC National Poker Heads-Up Championship. She retired from the game in 2012. Prior to becoming a professional poker player, Annie was awarded a National Science Foundation Fellowship to study Cognitive Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania.

Annie is the co-founder of The Alliance for Decision Education, a non-profit whose mission is to improve lives by empowering students through decision skills education. She is a member of the National Board of After-School All-Stars and the Board of Directors of the Franklin Institute and serves on the board of the Renew Democracy Initiative.

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Why ‘Those Who Can’t Do Teach’ is BS

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 25 Sep 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Rising above the “holy war of craft” into focusing on business impact.

How to raise the level of a craft conversation (and what can happen when you do).

Growing your business once you decide to take your expertise on an upward spiral.

Why there is room for soloists to be a top craftsperson OR a top advisor (and how those business models differ).

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Do You Need To Escape Your Business?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 18 Sep 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Why the gurus’ advice to spend all of your genius zone time alone does not apply to our kinds of businesses.

How the transformations you want to make with your people drive the way you structure your business.

What can happen when you’re responsible for employees (and perhaps feel the need to escape 😎).

Creating the ultimate non-escape plan by pivoting your business to a “go out with your boots on” model.

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Jonathan | Daily List | Website | Ditcherville | LinkedIn Twitter

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Time Management For Soloists

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 11 Sep 2023 10:00:00 +0000

How we think about using your time—so you can not only be productive, but genuinely enjoy your work.

Blocking and tackling your calendar to align with your priorities.

How to create to-do lists that incent you to act vs. pushing items around “for later”.

Alternative ways to handle your email so that it supports how you do your best work.

Addressing your “maybe someday” list to decide which ideas will make the cut to your business.

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Jonathan | Daily List | Website | Ditcherville | LinkedIn Twitter

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The Hidden Cost Of Delegation

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 04 Sep 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Why you want to weigh how you want to work and your overall vision before making delegation decisions.

Considering whether you’re buying a “box” that someone else has assembled or are designing your own unique process.

The sneaky ways delegating small tasks can eat up your time and/or change how you work (aka when delegating has a waterfall effect on your other processes).

How to recognize delegation creep: when outsiders add complexity you just don’t need for where you want to take your business.

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Jonathan | Daily List | Website | Ditcherville | LinkedIn Twitter

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The 100-Day Sprint

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 10:00:00 +0000

The magic email to send when you want to get a go/no go on a proposal that’s gone dark (and why triggering FOMO can be exactly the right move).

Sending cold outreach that avoids the stench of desperation (and a sample template you can personalize).

Why you want to lead with the pointiest point of your spear when you’re pitching.

How to intrigue with your ask (hint: a compelling call to action), while still being exquisitely clear on WIIFM for your target.

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https://www.winwithoutpitching.com/magic-email/

https://www.winwithoutpitching.com/prospecting-by-email/

https://www.winwithoutpitching.com/telephone-intro/

Jonathan | Daily List | Website | Ditcherville | LinkedIn Twitter

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Creativity Can Get Messy

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 21 Aug 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Why you want to start with a sales page when designing for clients and buyers.

What to do with “sparks”—those tiny bits of an idea that light you up.

How to think about putting together your idea (aka does your buyer want the pineapple?)

Overcoming avoidance (fear), imposter syndrome (fear), and worrying your audience won’t like you/your idea (fear).

How to choose the right people to share your fledgling ideas with.

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Why Your Pitches Aren’t Landing

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 14 Aug 2023 10:00:00 +0000

How to get clear on what your “target” wants most—and why it matters.

Why you want to answer your reader’s WIIFM (what’s in it for me) question right up front.

How to “punch above your weight” to connect with household-name-type people.

The value of being genuine and coming from a helpful place.

Crafting your pitch so that the reader can make a quick Yes/No call.

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The Introduction Game

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

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Perspective Meets Mindset

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 07 Aug 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Why perspectives are easier to change than our mindset (and how to get help when you need it).

The one question to ask yourself if you think your mindset is getting in your way.

Six specific mindsets (and how to recognize them) that can prevent soloists from breaking through to high-end revenue combined with the free time to enjoy it.

Crossing the line from being tentative to charging premium prices because you are confident in your transformations and your business.

The links between your mindset and your confidence in making bets inside your business.

RESOURCES

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Building A Business Around Your Genius

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 31 Jul 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Talking Points

The four zones of work and how to continue morphing toward your personal genius zone.

How to think about (and master) the upward spiral that is consistently spending more work time in your genius zone.

The clues that tell you it’s time to exit the trap of doing work where you’re merely competent or excellent.

Embracing the counterintuitive idea that you can do less—and do fewer things—to move ahead faster.

Understanding those things that are a drag on your energy vs. a source of fuel.

RESOURCES

Quotables

“One of the ways that we sabotage ourselves is we stay in our zone of competence or excellence. We actively push away opportunities to be in our genius zone. It's almost like, who am I to have it this good?”—RM

“(The upward spiral) is aspirational. It's not perfectionist. It's like this iterative process, which to me is so much more real than this like magic bullet.”—JS

“You do nobody any favors by staying in your zone of excellence or your zone of competence.”—RM

“(Your genius) is way bigger than like a business model or something like that. It's almost like a trait, like a superpower or something.”—JS

“Your genius zone is about how you contribute to the world by bringing it your best talents.”—RM

“The process of honing down…to the extent that I would call it my genius zone, is really just like looking at the stuff that drains me and not doing it anymore.”—JS

“Every day that you're alive, you could get a little bit more into your genius zone.”—RM

“That feels weird: it's like, wait, do less, do fewer things to get ahead. It's counterintuitive.”—JS

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Why Wouldn’t You Hire Help?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 24 Jul 2023 10:00:00 +0000

How it feels when clients have several choices, but don’t trust any of them to bring them reliably to their finish line.

The perceived experience and control clients feel from a DIY solution (that they don’t completely trust they’ll get from you).

How to make it easier for certain clients to either hire you or drop out earlier in the process.

What goes through clients’ heads as they consider spending money for your services/outcomes.

Quotables

“Once you make that decision and you pick the horse, you're riding that horse to the end.”—JS

“Just because you decided to do it yourself doesn't mean that you know what's behind the walls.”—RM

“There's no real way for a non-expert to judge the capabilities of an expert.”—JS

“You consciously chose this because it was a better perceived experience for you than the level of unknown with hiring somebody to do it.”—RM

“All of the decision-making processes that kept us paralyzed turned out in retrospect to have been unfounded.”—JS

“Sometimes when you (bring in additional team members), it allows you to make a different promise to your client and make it easier for them to hire you.”—RM

RESOURCES

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The Mid-Year Assessment

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 17 Jul 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Why it’s about more than just your revenue/profit lines (even though they are pretty darned important).

Another way to look at your revenue growth or lack thereof (hint: it involves what you enjoy doing most).

How to decide how well (or not) your strategic and tactical moves are working.

A host of tactics to grow your top line revenue and have more fun doing it.

Stepping back and looking not just at your business but how well it’s integrating with the rest of your life and vice versa.

RESOURCES

Quotables

“There are only two numbers I track on a regular basis. One is newsletter subscribers—and related to that, the open rate.”—JS

“My satisfaction rating is just a totally subjective rating of how much fun this has been. And am I enjoying the ride even when it's hard?”—RM

“I have a pivot table in my budget projections for my revenue projections that splits out the mix of hard stuff versus easy stuff.”—JS

“If it's a tactic and it's been six months, that's a reasonable amount of time to decide it's working or it's not working.”—RM

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Riding The AI Wave

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 10 Jul 2023 10:00:00 +0000

The power and potential of AI for authority businesses, even in use cases where pundits insist it will decimate business models.

Some of the new tools (that you can use right now) that innovators are developing for experts, authorities and soloists.

Why using AI for first drafts may be the immediate best use of AI for experts and authorities.

New uses of AI in the authority space: automated transcription, voice replication and first-draft content generation from tweets and hashtags to turning podcasts into book drafts.

The potential of AI to leverage your soloist business, including taking tasks you used to pay for or do yourself off your plate entirely.

Quotables

“It's like this thing you can see on the horizon. And it's like, are you going to paddle out and ride it or just stay on the beach, nice and comfy?”—JS

“I don't have to be a tech bro to figure this out…this is achingly simple.”—RM

“The power of that (AI) for someone who is trying to lead a revolution or spread a big idea or lead a mission—especially a soloist—it's jaw-dropping.”—JS

“It's dangerous to be resistant to new ideas. Doesn't mean you're going to embrace them ever, but just being flat out resistant usually is not a great long-term strategy for your business.”—RM

“Let's say that it takes half of your time to do first drafts, and you could increase your productivity by like, say, double. And you could take on twice as many clients working the same amount of time as you currently work.”—JS

“This is about getting a first draft. As a writer…your client doesn't care where it came from. What they care about is that it works for their brand or their campaign, or whatever they're hiring you to do.”—RM

“It's kind of like I have a first drafter, like an intern type of employee who understands my stuff and can do a good first pass.”—JS

“If I can get clients to something that is going to cut the amount of time they spend and increase their profits, hello! I want that at the top of my list for my practice.”—RM

RESOURCES

LINKS

Knowing When To Quit

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 26 Jun 2023 10:00:00 +0000

How to think about sunk costs—and the cultural and emotional messages around abandoning your “thing”.

Evaluating opportunity costs—how to know when it’s time to quit to free up resources for other things.

The value of asking for outside input before making large investments—and how to get it.

Why setting kill criteria right at the start of your new investments (and not well into the project) may be your best move.

The cultural and emotional aspects of quitting that no one talks about, but pretty much everyone experiences.

RESOURCES

Quotables

“It’s always easier to see when you think someone else should quit something. It's like, you've been trying to become an actor for 40 years and you've had one walk on part. I think it might be time to quit.”—JS

“I'm thinking of something that I dropped and, duh, it didn't work because I didn't do any freaking research to make sure anybody even wanted this thing.”—RM

“If you've only got a few chips on the table, it's no big deal. It's just like, eh, this is an experiment, didn't work out. And if you keep doing those, eventually one is gonna be not crickets. One is gonna be take my money.”—JS

“The right people will say yes to a call or some kind of an interaction. And if they won't, then it doesn't matter how good your idea is—then you need to spend some time getting these people to want to take your calls...”—RM

“If you think quitting is for losers, maybe reframe that in your mind in terms of knowing when to quit.”—JS

“Fear is what keeps people in terrible jobs, in terrible relationships, in businesses that don't fit them, in roles that really are bad for them. It's that fear of…but what do I do next?”—RM

“The type of goal that you have can make it easier or harder to know what the kill criteria is or are.”—JS

“So much is possible, if we allow ourselves not to stick with everything that we start.”—RM

LINKS

Deciding To Be The Best In The World

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 19 Jun 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Why navigating the dip (the desert you have to cross to get to Mecca) is so much easier when you have decided to be the best in the world.

What does “best in the world” mean for you—and what are you willing to commit to to achieve it?

How that decision translates to revenue and picking the right next moves—even (especially) when they’re hard.

Choosing where to place your bets when faced with turning point decisions.

Why the “glorious quest” nature of some missions allows you to tap into energy you didn’t even know you had to get through obstacles.

Quotables

“It is sort of a call to arms to be more than mediocre.”—JS

“The dip is kind of like the desert that you have to cross to get to Mecca. And on the other side are all the riches you get from doing the hard, dirty, nasty work of the dip.”—RM

“If you're spending all of your time doing this thing, you need to have a way to put Cheerios in the bowl.”—JS

“You're willing to do it because it's worth it. It's worth it in terms of your emotional connection to the outcome. It's worth it in terms of the transformations you deliver to your ideal people. It's worth it in terms of the business you can build for yourself and the revenue that you can make.”—RM

“It's like every decision you make is a bet. There's no guarantee, right? So it's a bet.”—JS

“It's not like you only have one chance in your life to do this one big thing. You have multiple, multiple chances.”—RM

“It's just going to come back to…focusing down on demand that is so specific that you can reasonably decide to be the best in the world at this very specific thing and then use the excitement of that to carry you through whatever dips you encounter (which you will).”—JS

“You're not like the Renaissance person who knows a lot about a few things and a little bit about a lot. You're someone with deep knowledge—and that makes you really valuable.”—RM

LINKS

The Dip by Seth Godin

RESOURCES

LINKS

The Song Of Significance with Seth Godin

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 12 Jun 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Why right now is the best time ever to make a significant contribution to the change you want to see in your world.

The importance of focusing on the smallest viable audience to accomplish significant work.

How to transform your work into your art (hint: it includes the story you tell yourself about where you’re going).

Why “soft skills” need to be considered as “real skills”—and why they are often far more valuable than skills that can be easily measured.

What to tell yourself to push past imposter syndrome.

Quotables

“It's way more likely that adroit committed, passionate, smart people are going to realize they have more tools than anyone on Earth ever had before.”—SG

“What I'm trying to help undo is industrial brainwashing and remind people that significance comes from making a change in the world.”—SG

“I've done more than 200 projects in my career. I've never missed a budget and I have never missed a deadline. And the reason is because when I run outta time or I run outta money, I'm done.”—SG

“The key to significant work, particularly for the soloist you're talking about, is understanding the power of the smallest viable audience. The goal cannot be the biggest possible audience, ‘cuz that will water down your work and wreck it.”—SG

“Part of my contribution is helping people tell themselves a story so they can transform parts of their day from work to art.”—SG

“Real skills are honesty, generosity, leadership, connection, charisma, creativity, a sense of humor.”—SG

“We have filled our lives with dangerous, ineffective proxies. Things we measure that look like they're gonna give us a hint as to what we're gonna get, but they don't.”—SG

“People say how do I get rid of imposter syndrome? And I say you can't. And that's a good thing because feeling like an imposter is a symptom that A, you're not a sociopath, and B, that you're actually doing something difficult. Something important, something that might not work, something you can't prove because you're leading.”—SG

Links

RESOURCES

LINKS

How To Design Guarantees For Your Work + Products

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 05 Jun 2023 10:00:00 +0000

What exactly is a guarantee and why/when does it make sense to offer one?

Why you are probably already offering a guarantee even if you haven’t explicitly stated it (and what to do instead).

How to develop meaningful guarantees when the client is intimately involved in the outcome.

What happens with your client conversations and relationships when you offer a guarantee.

How clients are (already) telling you which guarantees they’d value most.

Quotables

“The thing with guarantees is that you - as a buyer - automatically know they're a good thing.”—JS

“One has to kind of punch through the fear of making a guarantee. And it always feels a little bit easier on products to make a guarantee—just give it back.”—RM

“I'm sure everybody who's ever billed hourly has eaten hours because they're like, ‘Dang, that took me six hours and I thought it was only going to take me one!’ which is them honoring a guarantee that they never explicitly made.”—JS

“If you really listen in your sales conversations, they will tell you what they're worried about…it’s like big old giant neon signs pointing you to a potential guarantee.”—RM

“You could address that fear (when they’re afraid of themselves) with something like a red alert guarantee.”—JS

“This is what goes through their head: ‘I'm gonna mess this up…I will never be hired again, I'm gonna have to go be a Walmart greeter.’”—RM

“For an info product, it makes a lot of sense to just offer an unconditional 100% money back guarantee—if you're unsatisfied for any reason, I'll refund your purchase in full, no questions asked.”—JS

“Acknowledging their fear…will make offering guarantees more smooth, because you'll see the ways that you can make it more comfortable for them at no cost to you.”—RM

LINKS

Sales Pages 101

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 22 May 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Why capturing the pain your ideal buyer is experiencing is the perfect opening for a successful sales page.

How to move away from focusing on your “fix” to the emotionally charged decision your buyers are making.

The four essential parts of every successful sales page (and how to up the ante once you’ve got those covered).

What to do if you don’t have social proof for your new offering just yet.

How to think about what you’re selling and why your mindset impacts the success of your sales page.

RESOURCES

Quotables

“You want someone to know immediately that you understand them. And by describing their pain…they’re automatically going to be somewhat convinced or beginning to trust that you’ve got a solution to this thing.”—JS

“We buy how something is going to make us feel. We don’t buy on logic.”—RM

“In the dream section, you want to present the reader with the mirror image of the pain—you want to flip it.”—JS

“This (the CTA) should be a big button. It should be in major contrast to all of the copy and the colors around it. Your eye should be drawn to this giant button.”—RM

“Social proof: like the smiling faces of people who have just been transformed in the way that you promised above, that that will resonate with the ideal reader of the page.”—JS

“If you’ve already got an audience, you’re hitting on their pain, you’ve designed the solution that your kind of people are looking for—the solution matches the pain and their dream—you’re golden.”—RM

“If someone is coming to the page ready to buy…in the first five seconds, they know what it is and how to buy.”—JS

“If you don’t sell, you’re denying your people the opportunity to be better than they were before they experienced this thing.”—RM

Links

Building The Perfect Sales Page

LINKS

Tactical Creativity

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 15 May 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Why small buckets of time can often be easier to exploit than large swaths of free time.

How to think about protecting your creative time for your business while also enjoying the rest of your life.

When rethinking large creative projects and parsing them into smaller chunks makes sense.

The role of consuming other people’s content in “loading the cannon” of your own creativity.

Quotables

“Not that swanning around the neighborhood with a full day off is a bad thing, but we're talking about the sort of creative things that you're doing to build your authority business.”—JS

“When you have a whole day, you can say ‘Wow, look at all this open space—what can I create today with that?’”—RM

“What can I squeeze in between these two appointments?”—JS

“We do these soloist expertise businesses so that we can do great work, make huge transformations, make piles of money, and enjoy our lives.”—RM

“Writing a podcast outreach pitch where I am reaching out to a podcast host to pitch myself as a guest—half an hour is a perfect amount of time for me to do one of those.”—JS

“When I'm invited to guest, especially on a well-known podcast, I'm going to do prep…I will think about how do I want to position this? I don't ever want to go into those cold.”—RM

“If you know what they're going to ask you, they're going to put you on the spot. Then it's like, you might as well rise to the occasion.”—JS

“Sometimes I'll just look at all the highlights (I’ve collected from other people’s content) and ask…how would this apply to expertise and authority and consulting? Is there an angle I haven't thought about?”—RM

LINKS

Productivity vs. Creativity For Soloists

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 May 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Why authority-based businesses require being unproductive at times—and how to give yourself permission to go there.

The hidden costs of failing to innovate, especially for soloists.

The wide spectrum from productivity to creativity—and deciding where you want to be in any given moment.

Pushing through any residual guilt from not being highly productive, all the time.

The difference between exploration and expedition—and why exploring (a proxy for creativity) may be challenging for experts.

RESOURCES

Quotables

“There are things that you probably need to do for an authority-based business…that require you to be unproductive.”—JS

“Creativity is like being delightfully unproductive.”—RM

“There's no stopwatch to be like, okay, like how fast did you come up with an idea today?”—JS

“You may have this sort of mindset that you need to always be busy. And sometimes that just has to be broken.”—RM

“The question immediately comes up like, how do you schedule projects back to back if you're not sure when they're done? And I'm like, why are you scheduling projects back-to-back at all?”—JS

“You just have to find a way to shift back and forth between those times where you're really busy and it's relatively quiet.”—RM

“There's a thing that I do that looks like I'm doing nothing from the outside. And if you just recognize that that's part of the process, like without that, you're not gonna innovate.”—JS

“People resist it (allowing an idea to roll around before it gels) like I can't even tell you because there's so much discomfort in sitting in the not knowing.”—RM

LINKS

Specialist vs. Generalist

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 01 May 2023 10:00:00 +0000

The two ways you can decide to be a specialist or a generalist.

A four quadrant approach to choosing where you want to take your business on the generalist to specialist continuum.

How to make a generalist skill set work in a hyper-differentiated market place.

Why experimenting between the quadrants will lead you to your ideal balance between specializing and generalizing.

Quotables

“In the etch-a-sketch metaphor there's these two knobs you can dial…one would be who you help and the other is what you do.”—JS

“Is there a market for this? And how big is that market?”—RM

“The lower left quadrant is a rough place to be because that's the place where you have downward pricing pressure. You're commoditized.”—JS

“If you just pick one of these two axes, I think most people know right away which feels better.”—RM

“If you really want to be a generalist, I'd say, okay. Stay general in your skills, but pick a vertical, pick who you help.”—JS

“This can be an experiment, but even if it doesn't work, what do you learn from that experiment? Well, you learn what you didn't like, so how do you get closer to what you DO want?”—RM

“You create a moat around yourself that very few competitors will be able to cross.”—JS

“You can think about which quadrant am I in? And is it the right quadrant for me and for my business? “—RM

LINKS

Niching Into Specific vs. Small Targets

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 24 Apr 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Why it’s more important for your target market to be specific than small.

What happens when you truly understand your group of target clients and buyers.

How to think about the revenue model you might build to serve your targets (and one incredible real-life example).

What changes in your business when you get specific about who you’re targeting.

How a handful of experts niched successfully into specific—but not small—markets.

RESOURCES

Quotables

“It's much more important for your target market to be specific than it is to be small.”—JS

“If we can substitute specific for small, maybe it cracks through a psychological barrier to niching.”—RM

“It's almost a revelation how much easier everything gets when the group is specific enough that you can understand them.”—JS

“We can also look at the other end (from bespoke services), where you can create a system…that meets that (serious need), and you make up for what you lose on price in volume.”—RM

“At the beginning to get traction, to establish really solid, predictable cashflow, a great approach is to pick a very specific market that you know inside out and then serve some existing demand.”—JS

“You don’t start big—you start specific.”—RM

“She can speak with like comical specificity to her target audience about the things that are going through their minds.”—JS

“When it (getting specific) works, it’s a thing of beauty.”—RM

LINKS

Considering Cold Outreach?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 17 Apr 2023 10:00:00 +0000

How to think about cold outreach so you can practice (and get comfortable with) doing it on a regular basis.

Three situations where you can use a low-key form of cold outreach that is likely to be highly successful.

Why knowing exactly who your ideal client is makes cold outreach more effective and faster to leverage.

How to make cold situations warm(er) and more comfortable.

The surprising results from continuing to follow-up, even beyond your comfort level.

Quotables

“Imagine an acquisitions editor from a big publisher sent you an email and said, ‘Hey, we'd like to talk about doing a book with you’. That's cold outreach.”—JS

“I wouldn't want to spend my whole day doing just cold outreach, but it's really a fun part of building an expertise business.”—RM

“They're not trying to take something from you, they are sending a highly relevant message to you for a very specific reason.”—JS

“The time that cold outreach makes the most sense is when you have something that's potentially mutually beneficial.”—RM

“A great time to do (cold outreach) is when you're inspired by something.”—JS

“The tighter you make that ideal client, the easier it is…to know what's gonna light them up.”—RM

“The best time to do cold outreach is when you don't need to do it—when it can be organic and serendipitous and genuine.”—JS

“The first thing I always try to do is to turn cold to warm.”—RM

LINKS

Chat GPT For Authority

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 10 Apr 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Why Chat GPT can be like having a sort of infinite number of (free) interns.

How to learn and deal with the limitations of the service so you can ensure you’re getting reliable information.

Various use cases for your authority business, including blind spots to watch for.

Understanding the application’s privacy and IP challenges and making decisions in line with your mission.

RESOURCES

Quotables

“I've heard it described as it's like having a sort of infinite number of interns for free.”—JS

“It doubles down on the things that are already there versus exploring the new and the interesting and the quirky.”—RM

“It has the opinion of the sort of collective unconscious of people who have posted stuff online. So it's skewed and not perfect and not true…But I used it as a sparring partner for some of my maybe more controversial ideas.”—JS

“Somebody has to take that extra step right now to say, oh what other voices are there on this topic?”—RM

“(We have been experimenting with) an app called Podium that you can upload your audio, your MP3 file, and it goes through and creates the show notes and highlights and quotes and timestamps and chapters with summaries and timestamps, and it takes about 45 seconds and it's free.”—JS

“In this case it's a thinking assistant because it's listening to your words and deciding what to do with them.”—RM

“Okay here's a wild one, especially for the non-technical people: I told Chat GPT to hand code a webpage for a solo consultant…and boom, it puked out the HTML and the CSS and you just open 'em in your browser and it's like a website.”—JS

“I don't need somebody to listen to an hour (of the podcast) if they can get value in three minutes. That's okay. You're not hurting my feelings. Take what you need. It's a gift.”—RM

LINKS

Do You REALLY Have Competition?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 03 Apr 2023 10:00:00 +0000

If you’ve ever taken a business course, chances are that competition was presented as a zero-sum game: you battle it out and only one party wins.

Jonathan and I explore why thinking about your competition differently can turbo-charge how you sell and market your expertise:

How to identify your competition in similar spaces (and look for non-traditional competitors you might overlook).

How the game changes when you view your competitors not as adversaries, but as fellow players in the same game.

Why focusing on your ideal client is a more sustainable (and memorable) move than trying to beat competitors.

How to use your competition to make positioning decisions that will attract your ideal clients and buyers.

What it means when you have no competitors.

Quotables

“If you put a label on yourself, then people can Google for it and find a list of alternatives.”—JS

“There is this deeply ingrained thing in capitalism that you have to have competition…that your job is to slay them.”—RM

“I know I do lose deals to people, but my mindset is that I probably dodged a bullet.”—JS

“Just kiss them goodbye in a nice way…I want you to get the help that you need and I don't think I'm the right solution.”—RM

“If you have an abundance mindset, you're playing an infinite game and you see your “competitors” as other players like you’re all in the park playing Frisbee.”—JS

“I don't wanna be apples to apples because nobody else is exactly like me.”—RM

“It would be pretty easy to come up with something where you have no competitors, but it's because there's no demand.”—JS

“We do create our own competitors.”—RM

LINKS

Book Series: Choosing Your Best Editor

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 27 Mar 2023 10:00:00 +0000

Why you want a developmental editor—what they do and how to work with one.The role of a copyeditor and how to determine who has the skill sets for your particular book.

The role of a copyeditor and how to determine who has the skill sets for your particular book.

How to decide which editorial comments to accept and which to ignore.

Determining schedules and timing with your editor (hint: more time does not guarantee a better book).

Where to go to find potential editors for your project.

RESOURCES

Quotables

“What we're talking about today is when you're self-publishing and you need someone to make sure that your book holds together…that it's not rife with typos and your thoughts are carried coherently throughout the book.”—RM

“I suppose worst case scenario (after editorial review) was start from scratch. Best case scenario is it's perfect. Certainly the reality is somewhere in between.”—JS

“I can't imagine anybody ever gets a developmental edit that says it's perfect. Editors by their nature can always find something to change.”—RM

“I can imagine getting that feedback…and pushing back slightly and saying why, do you think that's going to make the book better?.”—JS

“I want something that's more than ‘I did this once and let me show you how to do it too’…that is not an authority book.”—RM

“The advice to the listener is get a developmental editor and listen with an open mind.”—JS

“There aren't nearly as many people hanging a shingle for developmental editing as there are for copy editing. So it does create some complexity in the search, but the outcome is worth it.”—RM

“There was a torturous experience that was very common when I wrote books for O'Reilly…you'd still be working on chapter 10 and you'd be getting edits back on chapter one.”—JS

LINKS

When Clients Aren’t Spending

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 20 Mar 2023 09:00:00 -0100

Identify those in your target market who will use this as an opportunity to leapfrog past their competitors.

Start moving up the food chain within your niche, either with more complex work or with larger clients.

Use this extra time to create authority products—such as a book—or productized services and work on building your email list and/or allies.

Look at serving markets adjacent to yours—the very event limiting your clients’ ability to hire you might have the opposite effect on those just next door.

How to avoid making moves from desperation (and what to do now to insulate yourself from future “surprises”).

Quotables

“A bunch of people are going to belt tighten and hunker down, but not all of them will. Find the ones who are using this as an opportunity to make a leapfrog event happen.”—JS

“If you are taking a consultant's mindset…then you've got an opportunity to do something that is perhaps less revenue, but higher impact.”—RM

“Perhaps you could create it (productized service or product) quickly enough to address the new current expensive problem in some way that is still very profitable for you, but is aligned with their risk tolerance.”—JS

“This could be the ideal time to take the step from thinking of yourself as a freelancer to thinking of yourself as a consultant and business owner.”—RM

“It might be that some of them (your clients) take the opportunity to speed up, get ahead of the pack. You could do the same thing for your own business.”—JS

“The tyranny of the checklist: it feels so good for some people to just check that box off and convince themselves they're moving their business forward while they miss the real opportunity.”—RM

“It's possible that there's something right adjacent to it (your target market) that…is triggering an opportunity.”—JS

“The key when you suddenly have this big open slot of time is not to get desperate…that desperation just leaks out of you and everybody picks up on it.”—RM

LINKS

How To Think About Your Time

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 13 Mar 2023 09:00:00 -0100

Why time is a cost when you’re selling expertise, but doesn’t need to factor directly into your pricing strategy.

When to track your time—and what to do with what you learn.

Evaluating the quality of the time you’re spending on client work—your personal happiness factor.

Negotiating with contractors for non-time based fees on joint projects (and one cautionary tale).

RESOURCES

Quotables

“It (time) is our cost, right? So you can't just ignore your costs, but… it's like you just don't want to be setting your price based on your cost. You wanna set your prices based on the value.”—JS

“You probably won't pay so much attention to your time unless something starts to feel off. Your spidey sense will start tingling when things are going off the rails.”—RM

“What's the point of tracking all of this, measuring all of this if you're not gonna use it to make a decision?”—JS

“Client profile “A”  gets a yes—I'm happy to work with you, here's the price. Let's go. Client “B” gets a eh. I don't think we're a fit.”—RM

“Once you're good at what you do, billing for your time is leaving money on the table.”—JS

“I would negotiate a price with the consultant to do Project X as we define it together—then I don't care how many hours they work.”—RM

“That billable hour concept—it infects the whole organization.”—JS

“How can I make the hours that I'm spending on work happier? How can I just enjoy this more? Because that's the freedom that we get as soloists—we get to create our own reality.”—RM

LINKS

Do Authorities Have To Write?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 06 Mar 2023 10:00:00 -0100

The traditional path to authority and how writing and speaking fit in.

Why you don’t need to write/publish to run a successful expertise business, although building authority gives you more growth options.

What to do when you’re better at speaking than writing.

Viewing writing as a practice vs. a natural talent that you have or you don’t.

Quotables

“If you run a chain of laundromats, you don't need to be out there publishing books about it or doing a daily email list.”—JS

“The question is: Can you do enough to grow your business if you’re not writing?”—RM

“There's almost an inherent built-in editorial process with writing that does not exist with speaking.”—JS

“The tried and true path to authority is writing and speaking, and for most people, that's gonna be the fastest, easiest way to authority.”—RM

“This turns into a marketing question, like how am I gonna do my content marketing—is it gonna be an audio first workflow? ”—JS

“To go out and just talk, hoping there's an idea in there is not doing you or your audience any favors.”—RM

“I feel like a big part of getting better at writing is just writing more. If you really can't write, okay then, alternatives abound.”—JS

“You can work through this stuff by talking, but…don't do that in front of an audience until it's tight enough so that you're not wasting their time.”—RM

LINKS

Pivoting After A Layoff

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 27 Feb 2023 10:00:00 -0100

Why you want to learn how to business—the craft of building a profitable, sustainable business for yourself.

The three most critical areas to master (delivery, sales and marketing) and how to start practicing each immediately.

What to do now to avoid the “sophomore slump”—your second year when referrals tend to dry up.

Why speaking and writing—even at the very beginning of your business—are worth committing to consistently.

Teaching your contacts how to look out for the key trigger that says it’s time to call you in.

RESOURCES

Quotables

“Use that time (your first year of business) to learn how to business, learn the craft of business, building a profitable business that you want to show up and work at every day.”—JS

“(Your pre-layoff work) came to a screeching halt because somebody else made a decision that was outside of your control.”—RM

“You probably think that doing a great job is how you're gonna magically get new clients.”—JS

“Selling is the art of taking someone who's interested and showing them how you can help them, how you can transform their situation into something better.”—RM

“Instead of pitching, you try to talk them out of working with you, confidently, perhaps with some humor.”—JS

“If you're just getting started, focus on actively listening (in a sales meeting) because your instinct is gonna be to do the opposite.”—RM

“You're not gonna know who your ideal buyer is. You might not even know who your target market is, but you do want to show up in places where people who might have problems you can solve are hanging out.”—JS

“Think in terms of a trigger: what does that other person have to hear to know that they should call you in?”—RM

LINKS

Reaching Soloist Nirvana: Exploring The Five Mindsets for Success

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 20 Feb 2023 10:00:00 -0100

The value of having an externally focused mission—and why it may take some time and exploration to find yours.

Thinking like an investor—how to make bets with high upside potential while minimizing your risk.

The role of experimentation in building your business—even when it feels risky or vulnerable.

Why you want to discover your genius zone—and become brave enough to align every aspect of your business around it.

Overcoming guilt to hire the home support you need to work at your best.

Quotables

“The thing with self-oriented goals, the me goals..they don't give you much direction. There's like a hundred ways you could reach these goals.”—JS

“There's no shame if this is not the life for you. But it does get measurably easier if you've got a north star that you're shooting for.”—RM

“I feel like I'm totally unemployable at this point.”—JS

“People who are at the very pinnacle of this soloist life, they look at every decision as…is this going to bring me closer to where I want to be?”—RM

“Look, it's a bet—you're making a bet. And if you're not a gambler...you want to de-risk the decision as much as possible.”—JS

“Every human being has these fears, like the zebra that lifts itself up out of the herd will get slayed by a lion.”—RM

“I think creating products is a great way to invest in your business.”—JS

“We deserve to have a great life and to enjoy ourselves. This is not about doing things that we hate for people we don't like.”—RM

LINKS

Positioning: The Numbers

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 13 Feb 2023 10:00:00 -0100

The ideal number of competitors and target clients in your niche to ensure it’s big enough to keep you profitably in business and small enough that you’re memorable.

Why fishing in the right barrel vs. trying to cover the ocean is an ideal strategy for a soloist.

The importance of finding your "unfair advantage”.

How to find and analyze a potential market niche, including government statistics, trade associations, and social media.

RESOURCES

Quotables

“There's this sort of tacit assumption that more prospects is better. So why would you narrow your focus on a subset of the whole universe?”—JS

“Maybe you don't need to have a hundred thousand people on an email list to have a viable business.”—RM

“Would you rather be in the ocean with that hook, or would you rather be standing next to a barrel of trout?”—JS

“I don't have to write about 20 different things. I don't have to have 10 different products and services—I can just focus on whatever this particular group is most interested in.”—RM

“Where do you have an unfair advantage? Like where are you already connected with a bunch of people? That could be your target market.”—JS

“You have to be excited by the depths you're going to go to when you decide to niche.”—RM

“I’ve just heard this story so many times when people finally niche down to an appropriate level…they start feeling traction right away.”—JS

“’I like all my clients the same.’ Nobody has ever said that to me. They’ll say ‘Oh let me tell you about Joe or Sarah. If I could fill my pipeline with people just like that, I would be thrilled.’”—RM

LINKS

Why Your Stuff Isn’t Selling

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 06 Feb 2023 10:00:00 -0100

You’re not on the radar of your ideal clients, so you’re not making their short list.

Your ideal buyers are aware of you, but don’t recognize your offerings as a solution to their problem.

Your buyers recognize that you offer a potential solution to their problem, but they don’t find your claims credible—they don’t trust you (yet).

Your ideal people trust your solution to their potential problem, but your solution costs more than it’s worth to them to solve it.

Quotables

“A market is a place—virtual or otherwise—where buyers and sellers regularly show up to transact, to trade goods and services.”—JS

“If there is commerce, there's the opportunity to make a profit.”—RM

“It's very common that the buyers will not recognize that the inputs that you are selling are solutions to the pains they're experiencing.”—JS

“If nobody knows you exist, there is no surprise that your stuff isn't selling.”—RM

“You put a big label on the front of your bottle that says fast migraine relief…and you've still got the small print on the back with all the ingredients.”—JS

“A feature is not a solution.”—RM

“Find people who have a bigger version of the same problem, which probably looks like a larger buyer.”—JS

“Wanting to work in your genius zone…might cause you to change your niche market vs. changing your offerings.”—RM

LINKS

Choosing Your Growth Path

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 30 Jan 2023 10:00:00 -0100

The role of leverage in scaling your expertise business.

Building a solo business model without leverage from products or employees.

Growing as a solo but adding leverage to scale: products (books, memberships, workshops, licensing) and/or people (contractors).

Building a firm with traditional W-2 employees—and the two key activities you’ve got to love to make this work.

The challenges—and opportunities—to grow and scale in each business model and how to decide which is right for you.

RESOURCES

Quotables

“There are certain kinds of industries and certain kinds of expertise where when you combine them in the right ways, you can actually build a million dollar plus solo business with no leverage.”—RM

“Anything that allows you to do more with less is leverage, whether that's your pricing model or anything.”—JS

“Contractors are usually contractors because they don't want to be employees.”—RM

“You're using a team of people to help you produce new income streams, new lines of business that are more highly leveraged .”—JS

“Having contractors first is a really good training ground for having employees.”—RM

“It's (having employees) like being married to 10 people and you're worried about 10 mortgages now.”—JS

“If you're gonna have employees, it's the equivalent of baby birds saying “give me a worm”. You've got to keep them busy.”—RM

“As soon as you get into product, then you can have a real hit—like you can really have a hit.”—JS

LINKS

Growing Your Authority Circle

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 23 Jan 2023 10:00:00 -0100

The leap of faith required to act generously right from the start of any promising relationship.

Moving transactional interactions—like say guesting on a podcast—into relational ones.

How to find the right watering holes for other leaders in your niche—without limiting yourself to social media.

The one invitation you can offer new contacts that is often a hard yes.

The sometimes hidden value from buying cohort-based courses and programs.

Quotables

“There needs to be a leap of faith in your mind that reaching out to broaden your authority circle (to maybe someday amplify your message), is gonna start off by you showing up in a generous way to help other people.”—JS

“You’re in the green room and you have this interaction and then afterwards you've developed a rapport and you've got the opportunity to build a relationship—I love podcasting for that.”—RM

“There's this group of people that are all climbing the same mountain, but we're at different points or different places so we don't know they're there.”—JS

“You can move something that's a transaction into something more relational.”—RM

“A good watering hole: some kind of class that has a cohort where people are birds of a feather flocking around this particular idea.”—JS

“I wanna find other people like me, because guess what? The Chamber of Commerce in my town doesn't have anybody like me.”—RM

“If you cannot find a watering hole—like you're pretty clear about who you're looking for, but you just cannot find a place where they gather online—you can start one.”—JS

“You will help them (new contacts) because you think what they're doing is interesting or there's something about their story that resonates with you.”—RM

LINKS

Choosing Your Top Priorities

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 16 Jan 2023 10:00:00 -0100

Is it a good idea to have multiple themes or strategies in a single year?

Why running your business—prospecting, closing deals, delivery—always has to be a top priority (hint: nothing good happens when you don’t have cash flow).

The natural progression from starting a business to defining your value proposition to earning serious revenue—and how a single focus will move you faster.

How to think about monetizing your expertise as you grow.

RESOURCES

Quotables

“You still have to do all of the care and feeding of your business. You have to have money coming in. You have to be closing deals… you have to be doing delivery.”—JS

“Prospecting never stops. Ideally on the road to authority, you do a lot of prospecting in the beginning and then it tapers off.”—RM

“I get nervous when people are splitting their time between two themes.”—JS

“I focus a lot better if I've got one lodestar that I'm shooting for.”—RM

“Of all of the things that people have been paying me for, what is the thing I really want to show up and do?”—JS

“How are you going to make money out of this?”—RM

“Clients are happy to pay your exorbitant fees and your growth looks like getting bigger and bigger clients for whom you'll deliver more and more value and therefore can charge higher and higher.”—JS

You really have to marshal all of your energy into one thing to push to that next level.”—RM

LINKS

The Care And Feeding Of Your Authority Business

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 09 Jan 2023 10:00:00 -0100

Deciding what checklists, systems and automation make the most sense for you.

How to determine where your time has the most value (and let go of what you can).

Knowing if/when you’re ready to outsource any tasks—and why you want to understand the process and potential outcomes before you hand them off.

How to think about and plan the financial side of your business so it’s serving you (vs. the other way around).

Quotables

”The automation that I have now began its life as checklists.”—JS

“There are five areas where you can have systems and checklists—where you want to pay attention to your business and the underlying systems.”—RM

“It gives you a chance to step back and be like, is everything I'm doing here adding value? Especially the really hard stuff—is that adding value?”—JS

“It (making checklists) also gives you better insight into how much time you're spending running your business.”—RM

“Have a really simple, straightforward (selling) system that is as easy as it can be…that you're comfortable with, so it doesn't make you cringe.”—JS

“It's really easy to let the selling go when you have a thorny client problem. Having a system—with checklists—is really important to keep your pipeline full.” —RM

“The stuff that you do to keep your marketing machine operating on a regular basis can be very small—like it doesn't need to be overwhelming.”—JS

“This is where you ask, so do I want a 401k? Do I want some kind of a retirement plan inside my business? What are the best options for me?”—RM

LINKS

Kick-off 2023

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 02 Jan 2023 10:00:00 -0100

When it’s time to develop a new strategy (or pivot from the old one).

How to use your strategy as a filtering system to evaluate and choose the right tactics.

Using themes to focus your activities for the year.

Punching through an income plateau with new strategy and tactics.

RESOURCES

Quotables

“It was like I had a team of people that just did what they were supposed to do.”—JS

“Your strategy is like a filtering system—there's a gazillion things we can do in any moment but if we're filtering through a strategy, we're much more likely to be productive.”—RM

“Tactics without strategy is a disaster.”—JS

“You've got this litmus test of the strategy to say, okay, does this tactic align with my strategy?”—RM

“A strategy automatically has risk. If your strategy can't fail, it's not a strategy.”—JS

“What are your people working on? What are the buzzwords they're using? What are the challenges that they're facing?”—RM

“Part of my overall mission does point me to reaching people who are younger and younger. I even have a children's book sketched out that illustrates the insanity of hourly billing.”—JS

“If you've been at an income plateau for a while, and nothing you do seems to punch through—that's when you need a new theme for the year to shake up your tactics.”—RM

Links

Good Strategy Bad Strategy

A More Useful Definition Of Strategy

LINKS

BONUS Clips from Episode 211: Systems, Habits and Creating Time

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 26 Dec 2022 10:00:00 -0100

Clips from Episode 211: Systems, Habits and Creating Time

LINKS

BONUS Clips from Episode 219: Time ≠ Money

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 19 Dec 2022 10:00:00 -0100

Full episode:

Episode 219: Time ≠ Money

LINKS

Consulting vs. Coaching

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 12 Dec 2022 10:00:00 -0100

The differences between the opposite ends of the spectrum and how to own any position you choose to claim.

How to migrate from one point on the spectrum—selling, marketing, service delivery and authority building—to another.

Matching your business and revenue model (including how big an audience you’ll want to attract) to your unique balance between consulting and coaching.

Deciding which kinds of transformations matter most to you.

The role of advisory retainers in moving across the spectrum.

Quotables

“It (coaching) feels a lot more like a transformation that you're selling and…it feels more like you're transforming the buyer into thinking a new way.”—JS

“You have these opposite ends of the spectrum between consulting and coaching and then there's so many points in between you can own.”—RM

“I took baby steps from consulting to coaching because it was like a relatively small number of people paying me a relatively high amount of money.”—JS

“I had this philosophy—even when consulting—that the answer wasn't in me. The answer was in the client. And my job was to get that answer out.”—RM

“It's really hard for me to imagine ever reversing direction on that spectrum (of consulting to coaching).”—JS

“Now my greatest joy is when somebody hits a new level. Watching that dawn on people—midwifing those transformations—that's what I value.”—RM

“And they're like, ‘I know I've heard you say this a thousand times, but you said it a little differently this time, and all of a sudden it clicked.’ I just love those because they're so visceral to the reader or the listener.”—JS

“Advisory retainers are another option where you can start to straddle the difference between classic consulting (where you're doing) and classic coaching (where you're always there).”—RM

The Experience Economy Episode with Joe Pine

LINKS

Predictions for 2023

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 05 Dec 2022 10:00:00 -0100

Planning around the amped up fear about uncertainty—recession, inflation, monetary policy, cryptocurrency, war, politics (just to name a few).

The power of building even more discreet and creative niches—and making money from them in new ways while serving people who energize and inspire you.

 The birth of a major social media platform that optimizes information exchange within communities—with tighter controls on access.

Soloists will keep multiplying, especially those migrating from tech space layoffs and those disenchanted with corporate business-as-usual.

We crave connection even more after a long shut-down—we are drawn to those who help us feel connected in our work and our lives.

RESOURCES

Quotables

“There is going to be so much fear about things like recession inflation, monetary policy, war, politics—and it's easy to get sucked into that. But those who don't—those who conquer it—have got the opportunity to up our game and take home a bigger share of the marbles.”—RM

“There's a great line from Game of Thrones. There's a character called Little Finger, and he's talking about how the world will be thrown into chaos. And he says ‘Chaos is a ladder’. And it's such a great way to look at it…like it can be good.”—JS

“Niching is actually fun because you're finding your people, you're finding the way that you can use your superpower…the next thing you know, your business is full of people who energize and inspire you.”—RM

“Another social media related prediction that I'll make is that LinkedIn benefits from all of this bananas on Twitter.”—JS

“A reasonable number (of those laid off from tech) will say, you know what?  I'm done. I'm done with somebody else having control over me…I am gonna do this on my own.”—RM

“There's a really interesting development in the AI world called stable diffusion, which turns text prompts into unbelievable 2D images.”—JS

“Actuarial valuations were a commodity, but nobody recognized it until somebody decided to start a new firm and change the pricing structure. And then guess what? All the big firms dropped their prices and started to finally look at that data as a commodity.”—RM

“If your clients cannot differentiate you from other people who have a similar looking resume in any meaningful way—like they don't see any meaningful difference between you and the next 10 people—then you're on sort of thin ice.”—JS

LINKS

Behind The Scenes Of Daily Publishing

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 28 Nov 2022 10:00:00 -0100

Why frictionless publishing and distribution is usually the way to go (and what to do when it isn’t).

One publishing tech stack suggestion for low friction daily posting and sharing.

Working around the downside of automation, AKA how to make sure your posts aren’t riddled with typos.

Evaluating alternative social media distribution options.

Quotables

“It's really important to make this stuff as frictionless as possible so that you can just stick to the really important piece, which is coming up with brilliant new insights and getting them out to the people who are excited to read them.”—JS

“I schedule everything that can be scheduled.”—RM

“Zapier gives you these little building blocks that you can just drag and drop or select from a list.”—JS

“I'm always looking for preset easy ways to do some of this kind of automation without making yourself crazy.”—RM

“A relatively new addition to my stack is Grammarly. I installed Grammarly on everything and wow—immediately addicted.”—JS

“Cutting and pasting my post into ConvertKit and sending it to myself allows me to see it like the reader does, and I will edit in ways that I wouldn't otherwise.”—RM

“If you are just syndicating content to these platforms, your engagement's not gonna be really high.”—JS

“Once you've gotten in the habit (of posting) and you're feeling good, then look carefully at the social distribution of what you're doing, because every platform is different.”—RM

LINKS

What (Not) To Talk About

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 21 Nov 2022 10:00:00 -0100

How your target audience can guide how much you reveal about yourself and/or your politics.

Deciding which boundaries and guardrails make sense for you, your work and how you want to roll.

The advantage we have as soloists—but don’t always use—when deciding how much of ourselves to share.

One technique to deal with clients who have disclosed something distasteful to your core values (but you can’t fire them yet).

RESOURCES

Quotables

“I'm not saying no to (talking about) chicken vindaloo, I'm saying yes to ‘Let's talk about pricing today’.”—JS

“If you're doing B2B to big corporates—unless you're running a politically oriented law firm—then you're probably not talking politics.”—RM

“I don't know how to build a business or help someone build a business where you really don't care about your clients.”—JS

“We’re soloists—we get to decide…we're not working for ‘the man’ getting a salary and having to serve whoever comes in the door.”—RM

“Maybe you're not there yet, but you will be able to become increasingly picky over time (about who you take as clients) and it's delightful.”—JS

“If you can't say goodbye right now, then you put them on the list—they're the first one that's gonna go, and you'll find somebody else to replace them.”—RM

“Just write something that you want to learn a lot more about. Pick that as your central topic, and if you’re really excited to learn more, you don't have to be an expert.”—JS

“Think about glass or plexiglass so you can see them, but they can't touch you. That negativity, that thing that you really don't like, can't touch you—that's a technique that therapists use all the time.”—RM

LINKS

Re-Evaluating Leverage

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 14 Nov 2022 10:00:00 -0100

When automating or outsourcing tasks makes it clear that they don’t need to be done at all.

How to evaluate contractors and advisors for signs that they’re saving—vs. costing—you time and money.

How to think about out-of-pocket cost vs. your time and the complexity of your business operation.

Why you want to periodically re-evaluate your existing leverage and how it’s working for you.

The role of your mindset when working with outsiders (or paying their invoice).

Quotables

“It's usually just making (automation leverage) simpler by shaving off stuff that apparently doesn't need to be there.”—JS

“How do you know when you cross the line from leverage saving you money to costing you money?”—RM

“In the context of this episode, the question becomes ‘do I even need to hire anyone to do this at all?’ Like maybe I shouldn't even be doing this anymore.”—JS

“So it's really being aware of when someone you're handing things off to is making your life more difficult rather than less.”—RM

“In re-evaluating places where you create leverage, I feel like systems is the one that's the easiest. If we're talking about SOPs and text documents, they're so fluid and easy to update and super useful.”—JS

“Deciding to outsource something—or even thinking about outsourcing—changes how you think about things. Either you don't miss it at all or you ask ‘why was I doing that?’”—RM

“Ask: is there a way I can optimize this in a one-time way that will produce ongoing leverage from this money that I'm spending?”—JS

“There might be something in there (SaaS upgrades) that we hadn't considered before, that we hadn't known was available that might make our lives so much better.”—RM

LINKS

Packaging Your Expertise Differently

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 07 Nov 2022 10:00:00 -0100

Four primary ways to assemble and deliver your expertise—and the pros and cons of each.

Shifting your mindset while shifting your service and product packaging, AKA how to move upstream confidently.

How to conduct a listening tour of your ideal clients and buyers for focused direction on (re)packaging and price points.

Integrating what your audience most wants from you with your genius zone.

RESOURCES

Quotables

“You have this expertise that produces results, but you're used to delivering it in just one particular way…  How can we come up with some different ways to assemble it and deliver it?”—JS

“There’s the fear factor: If you're used to getting $50,000 to build something and now you’ll get $5,000 to outline it, you’re thinking ‘where am I gonna get the other 45,000?’”—RM

“If you're an order taker and you disagree with the orders, it's like the world telling you to move upstream.”—JS

“Think assessments which allow you to shift your revenue and to productize your knowledge into something that's easier to sell.”—RM

“It's not that difficult to add some kind of upfront design or architecture phase to whatever the thing is that you normally build.”—JS

“I like listening tours where you're going to people who are your ideal clients, and you're asking them about the biggest problems they're trying to solve—and you find out more about that, so you get a sense of magnitude.”—RM

“I like to ask historically, have you tried to solve this in the past? How much money or sleep have you lost because of this problem? Things like that, because they can answer that. Like they are the expert on those questions.”—JS

“Instead of just looking to what other people are doing, we have to really understand what our audience wants from us.”—RM

LINKS

The Anti-Vanity Metric

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 31 Oct 2022 09:00:00 -0100

Why profitability is the ultimate anti-vanity metric that will give you a quick read on the health of your business.

How to start thinking about your time as part of your profit equation.

One way to value your business that will rewire how you think about its profitability.

The thrills of desire-based planning—and learning to consider and manage opportunity cost.

Quotables

“It's so easy to get wrapped up in ‘Oh, my podcast downloads are increasing’, or ‘My mailing list is growing dramatically’, or ‘My website traffic is going up’. None of that matters if you're not increasing your profitability steadily over time.”—JS

“It's really tempting to just think that as soloists, we don't have any real costs so we don’t have to think about profitability.”—RM

“The thing I do like about an S Corp is it is financially separated—the business and your personal money is separated. You have to run payroll, you have to pay FICA, you have to do all that stuff.”—JS

“You know how much leverage you have when you try to sell or even think about selling a business. What is this actually worth if I'm not here?”—RM

“So you can take your $245 million and put it where the sun don't shine because you are wrong and I'm not gonna do what you're asking me to do, which is bad work.”—JS

“It's what I think of as desire-based planning. You ask what do I want? What is my desire? Who do I want to serve? What revolution do I want to lead? What new thing do I want to learn?”—RM

“Given that constraint of not the entire full tube of toothpaste, you get creative about how you're gonna get that last bit out.”—JS

“The thing that always makes me sad for people is when I see them not making decisions because they don't know what to do—so they do nothing.”—RM

LINKS

Making Learning on The Client’s Dime Ethical

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 24 Oct 2022 10:00:00 +0000

How do you/they disclose that there will be real-time training happening?

Your role as the buyer when your seller isn’t coming to you with full disclosure and pricing options.

Assessing the impact on your authority when you tell your client you’re not an expert (and the surprisingly positive view most buyers will take).

How not to fall into the employee mindset trap—and what to do instead.

Using new challenges as a way to move up the food chain with your clients.

RESOURCES

Quotables

“Should you always warn the client that you don't have experience in something they've asked you to do? My answer to that is yes. Why wouldn't you?”—JS

“When you’re on the buyer's side…asking those pricing and cost questions up-front—even if your person isn’t bringing them forward—makes the working relationship so much better.”—RM

“It might be an opportunity for you to learn on the job, but you should give them some kind of picture of how long you think it would take so they can at least have an estimated price.”—JS

“When I heard ‘I worked those hours and you owe me’ that told me their mindset was an employee mindset versus a business owner mindset.”—RM

“Never accept ‘I have no idea’ as an answer.”—JS

“We want to be business owners, perhaps partners in what they're doing. We don't want to be a vendor, and we don't want to be an employee.”—RM

“If you are a commando type and you are the person that they call when they don't know who to call, you can be dropped behind enemy lines and come away with a win.”—JS

“When you don't know something, that’s your opportunity to move up the food chain.”—RM

LINKS

The Services Buying Journey

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 17 Oct 2022 10:00:00 +0000

How the emotions they’re experiencing impact how they perceive you and the choices you’re offering.

Why you can charge more (and sell faster) when you’re referred by someone your buyer trusts.

Why your buyer compares your price to something totally different (a car, a trip, a fill-in-the-blank).

How your buyer thinks about the increments between your price tags (and how to apply that to your pricing model).

Why some buyers will pay more for speed—and how to set yourself as their premium choice.

Quotables

“There can be a whole bunch of emotions wrapped around the delivery.”—JS

“We didn't ask what it cost—we didn't care.”—RM

“Bob can charge a lot more than the next person who does what Bob does because you got a referral...If you didn't get a referral, you're Googling for a generic category or solution.”—JS

“When they gave us the final number and the guy was out of earshot, I looked at my husband and said ‘well, that was a weekend away’.”—R

“They purposely put you in a scenario where you're highly likely to say yes to anything reasonable.”—JS

“The fact that they were so specialized…and so prepared for whatever happened —I was impressed with them (and would buy again).”—RM

“There's a very small list of things that would not be like this—where you've got a problem, you want it fixed, and the faster it gets fixed, the more you're willing to pay.”—JS

“It was like magic.”—RM

LINKS

Dreams Of The Soloist

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 10 Oct 2022 10:00:00 +0000

The four aspects of being a soloist that you’ll want to consciously examine now—and revisit over time.

How to discover whether you’re a good candidate to hire employees for your business.

Setting financial goals for your business and deciding where your “enough” lies.

Incorporating time off into your work life (and the magic of boundary setting) in a way that fits your personal vision.

Building the right amount of flexibility—for you—into how you work, where you work and when you work.

RESOURCES

Quotables

“Being a soloist is awesome…it allows you to have some dreams that would be really hard to achieve when you're working for somebody else.”—RM

“If you don't have your objectives defined or the vision for what these four things are going to look like in the future, then it's really difficult to decide what to do.”—JS

“Ask yourself: Do I enjoy the idea of leading employees? Do I want to inspire them?  Do I want to show them how to do things? Do I want to mentor them? Do I want to listen when they have issues?”—RM

“Once you replace your salary, then it's like, all right, do I need more and/or how much more do I want?”—JS

“There comes this point where you start to look at the future and you think, ‘I'm gonna do this for the next 20 years?’”—RM

“It's not like you need to alert the media and be like, ‘Okay, I'm not answering email between these hours or on these days.’”—JS

“If you don't think about the intention for your business, if you don't examine it, then it's easy to let your business start to run you instead of the other way around.”—RM

“How much time do I want away from doing client work—doing delivery—so that I can either work on the business or play with the kids?”—JS

LINKS

Be A Contributor, Not A Guru

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 03 Oct 2022 10:00:00 +0000

Shifting your mindset from “I must be a guru” to “I want to contribute to the conversation”.

Battling imposter syndrome and perfectionism by thinking about expertise from your prospective clients’ point of view.

Adopting the consulting mindset of “I’m here to help” vs. “I’m awesome at this”.

How to speak up and contribute to your ideal audience long before you feel like an expert or an authority.

Quotables

“I try to point out to people that if you know way more about your area of expertise than your ideal buyer, then as far as they're concerned, you are an expert.”—JS

“If you're earlier in your career when you go out on your own, you can think ‘Oh, who am I to call myself an expert?’”—RM

“The reason I started thinking about perfectionism along with imposter syndrome is because you can combat those things by helping.”—JS

“Is the guy who does my WordPress site the world's expert on WordPress?  I doubt it. But I don't care because he gets whatever I need done.”—RM

“’I'm here to help’ versus ‘I'm awesome at this’ is like automatically going to put you in more of a service posture, more of a consultative mode.”—JS

“If you never say no, you're not a consultant.”—RM

“When you show up, it's not about pitching or seeing how smart you are or anything like that. It's about finding out if you can help.”—JS

“If you don't have a comparable level of expertise with somebody else—say the “guru”—that doesn't mean you don't have plenty of value to add to the conversation.”—RM

LINKS

Fighting The Busy-ness Monster

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 26 Sep 2022 10:00:00 +0000

How years of conditioning have wired our brains to believe that more and/or harder work is always better than “sloth”.

What happens when you move away from billable hours, where more work=more money.

The importance of building some structure—for example a system for lead generation—so you’re always “gardening” whether your business is in a peak or valley.

Why you want to hold a big picture vision beyond your business to keep you grounded and focused.

RESOURCES

Quotables

“It's not uncommon for people to be like, ‘I could never not be working like ALL the time.’”—JS

“We've been sold with this idea that if you're not booked that you are failing.”—RM

“You could be doing well, but if you don't know where your next client is coming from, that's not a great feeling.”—JS

“You want to find that balance of how much lead generation you need to do on a regular basis. That becomes your system—and you work the system.”—RM

“If you're complaining about how busy you are, then that's a sign that you don't want to be that busy.”—JS

“We have a different version of what’s “enough”, but some people don't have any version. Like ‘it's never enough’ is their version.”—RM

“If busy-ness isn't making you happy, then you know what monster you need to slay.”—JS

“The gift of having a business like ours…is that we have to reinvent ourselves because at some point, there is a sea change around us and…we have the opportunity to change before it takes effect.”—RM

LINKS

Hiring Employees Is Not The Holy Grail

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 19 Sep 2022 10:00:00 +0000

Three ways to scale your business with employees (and when it makes sense for them to be contractors instead).

How to think about and map your monetization strategy when you have employees—and why cash flow is queen.

What to do instead when you think it’s time to hire your first salesperson.

The four steps to create personal leverage in your core business—with or without employees.

Why your business deserves to be structured so you can live and work in your genius zone.

Quotables

“Hiring employees is held up like a milestone in the journey of every entrepreneur.”—JS

“Having employees changes how you think about your business day to day.”—RM

“Minimees are inexperienced versions of yourself where you're gonna mark up their time, bill them out and make the profit off of that.”—JS

“(When you’re thinking of hiring) you first want to map out your monetization strategy.”—RM

“If you're billing by the hour, just shut this episode off because what we're gonna talk about next is how to deliver more with less work.”—JS

“You can hire a whole bunch of employees and go broke five times faster than you would otherwise.”—RM

“What would you be considering hiring employees for? It's always because you think they're gonna create leverage…to make your business better.”—JS

“I always wanted my employees to make plenty of money because it meant we were all really successful…I paid them based on the outcomes they met, and we could all make a lot of money.”—RM

LINKS

Making Email Work For You

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 12 Sep 2022 10:00:00 +0000

How to think about email as a tool to spread your ideas and share your expertise.

Why simple is often best—and what to focus on to keep it that way.

Basic automations that will allow you to help more people at scale (without overcomplicating your life).

Creating the client and buyer experience that stays true to your brand and message (hint: you’ll want to test how it’s working).

RESOURCES

Quotables

“If you're in the business of changing people's minds… it's a pretty good strategy to do it slowly over time, like drip information out in digestible bits, until finally it clicks.”—JS

“We want email to work for us. We want it to engage people in our revolution—engage them in buying things from us, learning things from us.”—RM

“Having things scheduled in advance and set to go out on a particular schedule is really useful from an impact standpoint, because you can help people for free at scale.”—JS

“A welcome or nurture sequence…is where you're bringing them in a very nurturing, welcoming way. That's really important when we're talking about expertise, authority.”—RM

“The cautionary tale is it's really easy to overcomplicate this at the beginning and think that you need to know every move each person makes to get it customized to the situation.”—JS

“There's just something different about when you look at your emails from the buyer's point of view.”—RM

“Periodically I'll have a big jump up in subscribers and it'll like, push me into a new category price wise and I'll be like, eh, maybe it's time to prune.”—JS

“It's the brand experience—what do you want people to experience as they go through these different emails with you?”—RM

Links

Ditching Hourly with Jason Resnick

LINKS

Clients For Life?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 05 Sep 2022 10:00:00 +0000

How the retainer execution model rewards a clients for life strategy, but can keep you on the gilded hamster wheel.

The required mindset shift as you move away from strictly execution to higher value consulting.

How to think about dandelion projects where you stay in touch with client team members as they scatter to new companies (and which business models can easily leverage this).

The altitude shift from “hands” consulting to advisory work and why that tends to down-shift client longevity.

Quotables

“Think of a retainer as charging a periodic amount…for a given set of deliverables. An advisory retainer is not that. An advisory retainer is where you are not executing—you are giving strategic advice.”—RM

“The thing about this sort of ‘hands-on’ retainer…it's like a job. It's predictable and safe and probably can be a lot longer term than an advisory retainer.”—JS

“When you start that transition (to advisory)…it feels like ‘wait a minute, I'm not doing enough for this money. I need to be busier.’ You have to make a mindset shift.”—RM

“Think about a dandelion project—where a buyer brings you in, and you do good work for them…and then that team from that company disperses, and they go to five other companies.”—JS

“It's different working with the CEO than it is with the director level of a function. Your impact is bigger. Your potential influence is larger. And the price of failure is higher. That's why you don't come out of school and go coach the CEO.”—RM

“The easiest sale is new stuff to old clients because you already have trust. They already know you're legit. They already know that you deliver results.”—JS

“Growing your altitude…allows you to operate at a much higher level. And by the way, that level is exceedingly lucrative.”—RM

“I've got some students who've done internal systems for gigantic brand names—like names you'd recognize—and they've just oozed from department to department.”—JS

LINKS

Leveraging Your IP with Erin Austin

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 29 Aug 2022 10:00:00 +0000

How to think about your intellectual property and the steps to take to protect it under U.S. law.

When you might decide to give your content away to spread an idea vs. keep it close for revenue generation.

The role of registering and monitoring various elements of your intellectual property.

How to decide whether you’re ready to license your knowledge (hint: it’s not for beginners).

Using licensing to scale your business and create a saleable asset.

Quotables

“We use intellectual property laws to provide a legal monopoly on using our intellect.”—EA

“Under U.S. copyright law…the copyright applies at the moment of creation.”—EA

“If that trademark has secondary meaning in the mark—like everyone associates it with you—you really do want to make sure that you get protection for that so that you don't lose it.”—EA

“Make sure you are monitoring use of that (trademarked) term on the internet. So if people are using it and you're not asking them to stop using it…then you can lose it.”—EA

“There is a perception that IP or intellectual property is a product and it's not a product like a book or a course, or even a licensing program. IP is the exclusive right to exploit your intellect.”—EA

“When we are experts, we are creating intellectual property every single day, because intellectual property is the fruit of our intellect.”—EA

“A license is anytime I'm giving permission to a third party to use my intellectual property.”—EA

“Obviously it (licensing) is not for beginners. It really is for someone who has established their methodology, that you have a record of success of happy clients where you do have these processes in place.”—EA

“The key (to make your firm saleable) is making sure that it's something that can run without you…you wanna make sure that you've developed that independence.”—EA

Links

Erin's website Think Beyond IP

The Hourly To Exit podcast

RESOURCES

LINKS

What Are The Odds Of Success As An Authority?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 22 Aug 2022 10:00:00 +0000

Why this is the wrong question to decide whether to enter the authority space—and what to ask instead.

How your risk tolerance—and financial runway—impact your likelihood of achieving success in the short-term.

Why an emotional connection to the revolution you’re leading gives you an authority advantage.

How skills, timing and preparation (such as building an email list and/or a side hustle) will impact your success trajectory.

The importance of maintaining your focus and discipline by consistently saying no to everything not in your zone.

Quotables

“I understand the desire for someone to want to know the percentage chance, but it just feels like the wrong question.”—JS

“Your success definition is so pivotal to your odds—and there are so many possible ways to define success.”—RM

“You try to decrease the odds of a loss and minimize the impact of a loss should that happen.”—JS

“It makes sense to really think through your choices and the timeline because authority is a long game.”—RM

“Be clear about who you want to help. That is really super useful and increases your odds of success.”—JS

“You need to say no to a client who's not ideal, say no to working outside of your genius zone, say no to working crazy hours when your intention is to have a more manageable life.”—RM

“I don't know how you could write a book (to build authority), if you weren't really into helping this audience or really into this particular rabbit hole.”—JS

“Decide who you want to go after, decide what your revolution is and then you can figure out how to monetize it.”—RM

LINKS

Why Editing = Thinking

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 15 Aug 2022 10:00:00 +0000

How writing and speaking play different roles in crystalizing your thoughts.

The role that consistently writing and editing plays in the evolution of your authority.

Why (and how) editing allows you to deepen not only your market authority, but the impact of your work.

What happens when you socialize your writing—and how to edit your way to the right audience.

LINKS

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

Quotables

“The difference between writing and speaking is crystallizing your thoughts. I've never heard anybody say that speaking crystallizes their thoughts.”—JS

“Writing is really a plus for introverts because you don't have to talk to a million people to do this.”—RM

“Daily writing does something weird in your head where you start to see ideas everywhere.”—JS

“You can't just try to put the work out there. You have to do it consistently because it's that consistency that really tests us: what do we have to say?”—RM

“I did a sort of crowdsourced model where I offered a choose your own adventure discount structure. But (to get the book discount) I was gonna bug you relentlessly for questions, typos, any kind of feedback, comments...”—JS

“I didn't know what else to write. I felt like I had bled out on the paper already.”—RM

“I'll use examples from people who are in different places, probably almost never all in the same email, but I'll bring in examples or I'll ask for permission to reprint a question.”—JS

“That preparation piece (for an interview) can give you those ideas—those unpolished gems—that you can then take and polish through editing.”—RM

LINKS

You SHOULD Listen To This Episode

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Aug 2022 10:00:00 +0000

Why the word is both insidious and judgmental—and how it can easily become manipulative.

What happens—especially to go-to, high visibility authorities—with those who consistently use ‘should’ in their client interactions (and what to say instead).

How to use your point of view as an alternative to ‘should’ conversations or directives.

Dealing with the most common ‘shoulds’ you’re likely to hear as you build your expertise business.

The difference between saying ‘should’ to or about yourself and using it with other people.

Quotables

“Should is a radioactive word for me. It's usually a sign that I'm making massive assumptions about the other person.”—JS

“It's way too easy to pontificate vs. actually help your client change whatever situation it is you've been hired to fix.”—RM

“Stop should-ing on people.”—JS

“We all know there's nuance—no two situations, no two people, no two clients are ever exactly the same.”—RM

“Berklee teachers would never say that music has rules. They would say that different styles have different style practices.”—JS

“If you're the type of person who responds to judgment and potential shaming…’should’ can make you start to question your own logic and thought process.”—RM

“When someone gives you unsolicited ‘should’ advice, just nod and smile... and then ignore them.”—JS

“The word ‘should’ is so insidious, cuz it's like you're trying to get into my brain and tell me what to do.”—RM

LINKS

Working Out Your Business Model

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 01 Aug 2022 10:00:00 +0000

What exactly is a business model (and how to think about yours)?

The difference between your business model and how—and what—you charge.

The four most common business models we see in the expertise space and how to make each one work for you.

Considering hiring employees? How to think about growing with—and without—employees.

Sidestepping the slippery slope that is hiring specialized help—from mini-me’s to social VAs—to grow your business.

LINKS

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

Quotables

“How are you going to create, deliver and capture value?”—JS

“If we're not creating value, we're not going to make money for very long.”—RM

“You could use value pricing to increase the amount that you can charge and increase your profit margin.”—JS

“If you do want to scale with employees…you have to create a job—actually define very specifically what this person will do.”—RM

“’I'll just hire someone good and throw them to the wolves.’ That's what happens.”—JS

“Membership models have some very specific operational kinds of things that impact how you market, how you sell, whether you do ads, whether you don't. ”—RM

“A product line could take off and cause you to make a decision to say ‘oh, you know what? I would rather have customers than clients’ .”—JS

“You think when you build a business (at least in the U.S.) that you have to have employees, but it's about thinking past what we're “supposed” to do and getting clear on what it is we want to build.”—RM

RESOURCES

LINKS

Your Summer 20

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 25 Jul 2022 10:00:00 +0000

When doing more isn’t the right move—and how it can actually prove counter-productive.

How to apply 20% thinking to your business growth moves.

Using consistency in making outbound development calls (to prospects, media and your Authority Circle) to avoid the desperation zone.

Becoming aware of where you’re getting your dopamine hits—and managing them.

Why strategy trumps all (and what to do if you don’t have one).

Quotables

“You've done your 20% for the day that produces 80% of the result. So why are you sitting in front of your computer, fiddling with a hundred things that don't need to be done?”—RM

“Watering your garden in the summer twice a day is a good thing. So watering it 20 times a day is even better, right?...it's worse than counterproductive—it'll actually wreck what you're doing.”—

“The easiest way to get frustrated is to do more outbound sales calls when you don't have enough work…that translates into a little bit of desperation.”—RM

“I care what those people (in my slack community) think much more than I care what some anonymous coward on Twitter thinks.”—JS

“I try to be very careful of where I'm getting my dopamine hits.”—RM

“You can slowly—not overnight probably—but you can make it so that client stuff is not 40 hours a week of billing hourly.”—JS

“There's a signal that consistency gives—it doesn't mean that it has to be every Monday at 8:00 AM—but there is some expectation that you're going to show up…on a regular basis. It’s how we build trust.”—RM

“I think some people put a level of effort into social media that probably doesn't produce much.”—JS

“The prescription, if you don't have a strategy, is to get one right now.”—RM

LINKS

When Your Partner Is Not On The Same Page

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 18 Jul 2022 10:00:00 +0000

Why having partners with different risk tolerances can actually be helpful.

Engaging the status quo person—who is usually happy—in a change that will work for both parties.

The role of identity in business conflicts and how to understand yours and your partner’s.

Why resolving even minor conflict often means revisiting your joint objectives and strategy.

How to be brave and address potential conflicts early so they don’t fester or run you off the rails.

LINKS

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

Quotables

“Plenty of soloists have a spouse that has a dramatically different risk tolerance than they do.”—JS

“(Being different), you keep each other from going too far off the rails, but it does mean that there's the potential for disagreement, for conflict.”—RM

“The status quo person is usually happy as a clam, and thinking... ‘if my partner would just stop bugging me about posting on social media every day everything would be fine.’”—JS

“It's also about how we feel individually. Who we are and what we want to have happen in the world. When you have two business partners, your personal identity may get attached to different things in different ways.”—RM

“You'll see conflict over a proposal crop up because, let's say, one person is more revenue driven and the other person is more mission driven. In a case like this, you're never gonna be able to agree how to price it.”—JS

“There's a lot of those strategic and foundational identity things that happen (between partners) and the tactical issues are just how they manifest.”—RM

“You might both be aligned on the objective, but you still have to agree on the strategy. There are probably multiple strategies that could work, but you gotta make sure you're both using the same one.”—JS

“It's important to go back and look at the strategy, the glue that holds this partnership together. We have to be able to talk about that and be brave.”—RM

LINKS

Clients Are Not Your Boss

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 11 Jul 2022 10:00:00 +0000

Rethinking any outmoded belief systems we carry over from our jobs—for example that the “boss” is always right.

Where we owe our obligation and allegiance when it comes to dealing with client requests and direction changes.

Why collaborative relationships reinforce the value of your expertise and contribute to outcomes that stick.

How you can determine—as early as a sales conversation—whether your potential client will be your dream (or your nightmare).

Setting boundaries to avoid becoming a martyr to the project (or your client).

Quotables

“You are there to fiercely defend the outcome of the project.”—JS

“The way that a client feels when they own this thing that you've created together, it creates a bond between you. They're gonna want to talk about you. They're gonna wanna bring you in again…it's really powerful collaboration.”—RM

“It happens from the very beginning—setting up the expectation that they're not your boss, that it's a collaboration.”—JS

“A client can be the nightmare or the dream. It's not about the person—it's about the match between you and the outcome you want to create together.”—RM

“When you have them share with you how this will fit into the overall business and you pivot into The Why Conversation, bad clients will hate it and good clients will love it.”—JS

“You only want to work with people for whom you can create these transformational outcomes together.”—RM

“Just imagine what your business would look like if you were producing a trail of smiling clients.”—JS

“Start with believing that you have something valuable to offer and setting the boundaries you need so you don't become a martyr to the project.”—RM

LINKS

How To Conference

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 04 Jul 2022 10:00:00 +0000

The role of live speaking in building authority and how it fits into your business model.

How to decide which conferences are worth your time, energy (and cash) to attend.

An array of tactics to leverage your conference attendance.

Using media intentionally to engage conference attendees and make your new relationships more sticky.

Picking the right conferences as a new(ish) speaker and how to ensure your investment will pay off.

LINKS

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

Quotables

“I did a conference in 2015 that was exactly my target market for Hourly Billing Is Nuts, and I still keep in touch with people I met there.”—JS

“If you're doing conferences—whether you're speaking or attending—there's a certain amount of energy you have to put into it to be good, much less to be great and to reap something from your investment.”—RM

“Meeting people in person creates a deeper connection faster.”—JS

“If you travel 1,000 miles and then sit in your hotel room for most of the conference that's not gonna work.”—RM

“Let's say there's a big conference coming up and your ideal buyers are going to be there. You can piggyback a workshop on the day before. You don't even need a ticket to the conference—you can just get a room in the hotel.”—JS

“When you're a speaker at a conference, you know what your job is…When you're an attendee, you still have a job, but not everybody recognizes that.”—RM

“Speaking at a conference is great for your street cred. It's social proof aka third party endorsement from the conference organizers, implicity saying that you know what you're talking about.”—JS

“If you're just getting started (speaking), pick a conference that is big enough so that you feel like it's worth your time, but small enough so that you have a good chance of getting in.”—RM

LINKS

The Economy: What To Do Now

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 27 Jun 2022 10:00:00 +0000

Why it’s always a good idea to keep evaluating your client base and your product/service ladder—and what to consider now.

How to think about economy-fueled pivots to ensure you don’t make fear-based moves.

Managing your mindset (and your nerves) through economic change—and why staying closely connected to clients helps all of you.

One hidden opportunity to grow your authority (and potentially your business) during economic uncertainty.

Quotables

“The kind of—almost advantage—of news about a recession or whatever is that you've got months potentially to plan for it.”—JS

“The strategic part of this is to really think about your client base and start to imagine what might happen to them in the future.”—RM

“If you're experiencing any kind of like trepidation or nerves around the economy right now, guess what? Your clients probably are too.”—JS

“There sometimes needs to be a little air between checking in on clients to see how they're doing and offering them a new product.”—RM

“I think that the key here is resisting the urge to go into your shell and batten down the hatches.”—JS

“If your client base is all saying the same thing (when you check in with them), you're getting some themes to write about and speak about.”—RM

“It's okay to be nervous, just don't act on the nerves.”—JS

“It’s really important to manage your own mindset vs. letting the media do it for you.”—RM

LINKS

How To Conduct A “Listening Tour”

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 20 Jun 2022 10:00:00 +0000

Why—and under what circumstances—you might want to consider a listening tour.

How to choose who to interview and increase your chances for getting a yes.

Uncovering specific belief systems and comments that you can incorporate into your sales copy.

The one question that will get your interviewees to go deeper in sharing their experiences.

Why avoiding any sort of persuasion is critical (and how to stay in listening mode).

LINKS

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

Quotables

“It’s an ideal gig when you can basically package and sell your expertise.”—RM

“There's something about writing, actual writing, not typing, that focuses me more on the conversation.”—JS

“My marketing copy came out of the mouths of the women that I interviewed.”—RM

“There's just something magical about unfiltered input from the buyers’ side of the table.”—JS

“You really have to look at this as a listening tour—not a selling tour, not even a warm-up-to-buy tour.”—RM

“Obviously this whole episode is to encourage listeners to do this…but it's also about how you're going to communicate the offer in a way that the right people will recognize that it's for them.”—JS

“I looked at my job (on the listening tour) as “tell me more”. How do you think about that? What made you think that way?”—RM

“You don't want to be too rigid in your thinking and then go out and try and validate that, because it'll turn persuasive and that'll just be gross.”—JS

LINKS

Dealing With Critics

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 13 Jun 2022 10:00:00 +0000

The difference between getting critiqued by your email list, social media types and your intimates.

How to think about criticism from your circle and use it to benefit the revolution you’re leading.

When to unplug or take steps to protect your mental health.

Deciding whether your critics are coming for you (to be helpful) or at you (to tear you down a peg).

When receiving criticism can be a form of deep care (and how to keep the right kind coming).

Quotables

“I think people (critics), are a little bit more thoughtful in email than social media.”—JS

“Just breathe. Walk away from the keyboard...”—RM

“When somebody on my list sends me one of these sort of polite pushback kinds of things, they're usually right.”—JS

“I have unfollowed and blocked (social media critics) for my mental health because I don't need somebody who's just gonna go around trolling.”—RM

“Where do you get your canary in the coal mine when you actually are wrong, or you actually have too shallow of an understanding of something that's much deeper?”—JS

“I can feel if they (critics) are coming for me or at me—and I take critical feedback really well from the people that I know are for me.”—RM

“You have to consider the messenger. When someone on my list pushes back, I'm like ‘this feedback is totally valid because you are the person I made it for.’” —JS

“It's so valuable to have somebody tell you when you're doing something that they perceive differently than you do.”—RM

LINKS

How We Roll

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 06 Jun 2022 10:00:00 +0000

Just as we have each built our own systems to produce our desired outcomes, there is no one perfect model of working.

Conscious experimenting—with your ultimate vision firmly in mind—will help you master how to best invest your business building time.

Why when you find your sweet-spot, “work” doesn’t have to feel like work.

How pivoting from serving clients day-to-day to high-level advisory or teaching (books, courses, speaking) shifts how you spend your time.

LINKS

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

Quotables

“I don't think about it consciously on a weekly basis. It's something I think about at the beginning of the year..what's going to be my strategy for the coming year?”—JS

“What happens for a lot of people is we get caught in the weeds. Like how am I going to get through this week with client deliverable X?”—RM

“Did you hear what my schedule looks like? I don't need a vacation.”—JS

“I want work to be fun.”—RM

“Slack is my social media…I know that it's not going to be a cesspool of doom scrolling.”—JS

“When you're doing what you love, you can do it for as long as you want to.”—RM

“Podcasting became much more important because it serves a similar purpose to speaking at conferences. They're not exactly the same of course, but bang for the buck wise, podcasting is a lot more my speed these days.”—JS

“Who do you want to give pride of place in your head to…what is it that you want to write about and talk about and teach them?”—RM

LINKS

Why You Want To Create First

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 30 May 2022 10:00:00 +0000

Why the intersection of idle time, an outlet and a deadline is exactly what you need to build content for your expertise business (and authority for you).

The importance of mindset and how to keep yours working FOR you as you go about growing your business.

Giving yourself some guardrails to develop great content efficiently—without putting a damper on your creativity.

How to get out of your own way so you can release your personal genius for other people to benefit from.

Quotables

“It's pretty common for non-business things to creep in to business coaching and become obstacles. And a lot of them have to do with internal monologue stories.”—JS

“We all have our own internal hurdles to leap over. And you have to understand what those are.”—RM

“I feel a lot worse after I've been exposed to a TV for 90 minutes.”—JS

“When you have a deadline and some idle time or some free space in your brain, things happen.”—RM

“If you want to be recognized as the go-to person, as the expert for your area of expertise, then you need to be producing content. It’s probably a great rule of thumb to be producing content regularly.”—JS

“You're not just writing to write or have a podcast to hear yourself talk. It's about figuring out what you want to share. How are you going to get your audience to the transformations that you promise?”—RM

“The best thing about daily writing is it makes you better. It makes you smarter. It makes your insights deeper. It differentiates you because you have new ideas or old ideas framed in radically new ways.“— JS

“The important thing is that we get out of our own way as much as we can and put that genius that each of us have out in the world for other people to benefit from.”—RM

LINKS

Using Today’s Profits For Tomorrow’s Legacy with Erica Goode

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 23 May 2022 10:00:00 +0000

The big money decisions you’ll want to make early and how to decide between setting up a sole proprietorship, an LLC or a Sub S.

When does it make sense to build processes to handle things like paying yourself and funding and paying taxes?

What to ask your CPA and why you don’t want to wait till year-end to get advice.

When to look for longer-term, perhaps tax-advantaged opportunities for savings.

How to think of and use your business profits now to build your desired legacy later on.

Quotables

“Usually the starting point is a sole proprietorship and you don't want to hang out there too long.”—EG

“If you can't pay yourself what the IRS calls “reasonable compensation”…it's not time for you to be an S-corp yet.”—EG

“I'm really big on paying yourself a consistent salary—not necessarily varying with your revenue stream—because with consultants, expertise businesses, coaching businesses, you get these roller coaster spikes of revenue.”—EG

“Get a small refund or maybe owe a little bit…but we try to always avoid these four or five figure surprises that you're writing a check for in April.”—EG

“There's a lot of relationships with CPAs where you're just sending them a packet of documents in February, and they're sending you back something in April, and you're either happy about it or sad about it.”—EG

“My preference, especially for somebody in an expertise business where they're a soloist, would be to look at a solo 401k. You can only have a solo 401k if you and or your spouse are the only employees or owners of the business.”—EG

“You say: ‘I can use this to change my trajectory or my lifestyle or my retirement plan. I could use this money I'm making in this business. And the more profit I make means that I could pay off my mortgage sooner.’”—EG

“It's always good to have an out of tax season conversation with a CPA… And have somebody respond with ideas that you would have never thought of (or would have taken a lot of hours of research for you to get).”—EG

“If you've noticed that you've acquired two more cars, a four Wheeler, three campers and a boat, it's probably time to start thinking about some tax advantageous ways that you can spend your money.”—EG

LINKS

Erica Goode, CPA

Erica’s Newsletter sign-up

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

LINKS

Is Hourly Billing Really Nuts?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 16 May 2022 10:00:00 +0000

When you’re working like a dog (earning maybe $100-$250K billing hourly on a site like Upwork or from an agency or two) without real positioning—and you’re ready for a more livable alternative.

When you’ve just left corporate life and are first hanging out your shingle as a freelancer or consultant.

When you’re so new at your craft that you’re actually not that good yet.

And even where we could make an edge case for hourly billing, we get hyper-specific on when/how to gracefully transition out.

Quotables

“They like the promise of not feeling like they're losing $200 an hour when they're on vacation.”—JS

“Just go back to your source of leads…and significantly increase your hourly rate.”—RM

“Why would anyone feel obligated to pay you some amount of money per hour because you decided to have a really expensive lifestyle?”—JS

“It's a very rare person who comes right out of corporate and says ‘I'm going to do productized services. Here's what they are. Boom. Let's go’.”—RM

“I don't think it never makes sense to think about how many hours something's going to take you to do, just don't base your prices on it.”—JS

“Hourly rates just exacerbate that inner discussion about whether or not you're worth it.”—RM

“Productized services make it easier for you to hit a home run, to deliver positive ROI, to get a great testimonial.”—JS

“Offering productized services gets rid of a lot of extraneous BS because you are hyper-focused on delivering only the things that you are really good at delivering.”—RM

LINKS

Financial Checkup Time

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 09 May 2022 10:00:00 +0000

Why May is the perfect time to schedule a strategic tax planning call with your CPA.

How to pay yourself and fund your tax liability, even when you have spikes in your income.

Who you need on your team to get the right advice—and why it’s worth hiring experts (hint: peace of mind is priceless).

Setting up tax-advantaged plans now instead of waiting until year-end.

LINKS

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

Quotables

“So I have these like quarterly spikes…that make it hard to have a set it and forget it payroll.”—JS

“As long as you give your accountant a couple of weeks to breathe (after tax day), they're usually anxious…to think strategically vs. just plowing out a bunch of tax returns.”—RM

“I'd rather have the IRS hold it (my tax withholding)…I just don't want to know about it. I don't want to ever see it.”—JS

“I'm pretty sure my tax accruals are more than I'm going to need. And so after I pay the IRS next year, I'll pay myself a bonus with whatever's left.”—RM

“When I started my solo consulting business, I got a financial planner, a bookkeeper and a lawyer.”—JS

“People who have left consulting (to go solo), the first thing they do is incorporate because they're worried about liability. You're like, ‘ah, the first thing I'm going to do is protect myself and my assets’.”—RM

“It still makes sense to check in with someone who has got a bigger picture, knows more detail about what's going on—we're fans of expertise over here.”—JS

“You have a lot of options depending on your business structure to tuck some money away pre-tax…it's worth having that chat with your accountant.”—RM

LINKS

Building Your Best Course

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 02 May 2022 10:00:00 +0000

Addressing the chicken/egg nature of developing an idea for your course with targeting the ideal audience for it.

Why building cohorts will improve the effectiveness of your course (and your future sales).

How to build your course materials with reasonable deadlines that match your comfort level with teaching the topic.

Why we hate launch hype and what to do instead.

Quotables

“The majority of the time you probably are thinking of teaching something bigger than you need.”—JS

“When we're trying to teach something that involves significant behavior change, that's when I really love building a cohort.”—RM

“I found it (the cohort experience) drawing me back almost like a social media network might because I wanted to find out what happened with Jason's thing that he was working on.”—JS

“When you have a cohort, you are actively engaging with them. And for people who are sort of natural teachers, that feels amazing.”—RM

“You do want to figure out what you think is going to make the most sense for you—not drain you, keep you energized, keep you engaged teaching the thing that you want to teach.”—JS

“I want to have a really clear direction (when prepping material). I want to know how many sections and what's going to go in each one so that it makes sense.”—RM

“If we sound cynical (about launches), it's because we are.”—JS

“If it's right for you, I want you to have it. That is the (launch) message.”—RM

LINKS

Are You Overdelivering?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 25 Apr 2022 10:00:00 +0000

Our tendency (especially in proposal situations) to acquiesce to client requests—and how to re-direct that for the good of all.

The power and status dynamics surrounding consultants serving clients and what happens if we start treating clients as higher status.

How overdelivering can seep into your firm’s practices and where to nip it in the bud.

Developing a healthy mindset around service delivery, providing value and decoupling your fees from effort.

LINKS

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

Quotables

“Your clients are a choice, just like your boss is a choice, but people often forget that walking away is one of the options.”—JS

“You could say: ‘Listen, if we take out this step, I can't guarantee the transformation, and therefore I can't do that for you.’”—RM

“The way to provide value to your clients is not to be obedient—it's to deliver results.”—JS

“The proposal is the dress rehearsal for the engagement.”—RM

“If you let prospective clients push you around in the sales process, it should come as no surprise when they push you around during the project.”—JS

“The more that you consider yourself low status relative to clients, the worse you're going to feel about it.”—RM

“There's so much ‘the customer's always right’ psychology. "Wouldn't it be better to give them more than less?" No, it really wouldn't.”—JS

“This is about leveraging what you have—not playing status games that have you overdelivering and creating relationships that don't work for you.”—RM

Links

Tara McMullin's Instagram piece on over-delivering

RESOURCES

LINKS

Bad Grammar—Should You Bend The Rules?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 18 Apr 2022 10:00:00 +0000

Why using perfect grammar in a sales pitch or conversation still won’t guarantee you the deal.

How to use grammar and language to communicate and persuade vs. to impress (and the role of status games).

Why simplicity makes it easier to get the result you want.

The role of grammar in expressing your brand and setting client/audience expectations.

Quotables

“You could do a sales pitch or a sales interview and use perfect grammar throughout and still not land the deal.”—JS

“You adjust your language to meet them where they are.”—RM

“You're not looking for an A+ on a book report. You're trying to get someone to change.”—JS

“This is really more about simplicity and getting the result that you want.”—RM

“It's all about communicating it to them in a way that is going to be digestible and not activate status roles.”—JS

“Who's your audience?  How do they communicate? What kinds of words are too big and too much?”—RM

“If what you want is for the listener or the reader or the viewer to do something, then the most important thing is producing that action.”—JS

“Language is part of the toolkit of a consultant or anyone who's trying to make transformational change in an audience.”—RM

LINKS

When It’s Time To Un-Stick Yourself

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 11 Apr 2022 10:00:00 +0000

Getting yourself the endorphin rush from physically getting up and going outside or meeting a friend.

How to keep pushing the envelope even as you’re doing the routine things that make your business run.

Why that feeling of putting your “baby” out there can feel crazy-scary—and how to do it anyway.

How to tell the difference between when you’re laying groundwork for your next thing or just burning daylight.

LINKS

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

Quotables

“It was so much fun…I noticed that I felt like this total endorphin rush, I was in the best mood.”—JS

“I've so trained myself into this virtual be efficient work from zoom/have phone conversations mode that it was almost like upsetting the apple cart to go to an in-person meeting.”—RM

“It's not too bad to have an idea and then, like roughly a quarter later, launch it.”—JS

“It doesn't mean that we don't double down on the things we're good at, but we just keep pushing that envelope on some level.”—RM

“Talk to people like: ‘Hey, I've got three ideas for my next workshop I'm going to launch. Which one seems the most exciting to you?’”—JS

“I'm waiting for somebody to write and go ‘Yeah, this is a stupid idea. And I don't ever want to hear from you again.’”—RM

“If you can introduce really smart, fun people into the process (of getting outside), that sounds like a really good routine to get into.”—JS

“There's always going to be those periods (of laying groundwork), but the ideal is that they're moving you towards something else, even if you're pulling your hair out while you're going through them.”—RM

LINKS

When Your Book Is Last

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 04 Apr 2022 10:00:00 +0000

Why book as business card is not the book that will still be relevant and valuable in 20-30 years.

How to introduce your book content to ideal readers so they can help you use the right language, examples and stories.

Using your book idea to build a tribe of support for your eventual launch.

Positioning your book so it has a built-in base of readers—and is attractive to potential publishers.

The benefits from teaching your material before you ever start writing the actual book.

Quotables

“I think this is more reliable path to write a book that could theoretically be still getting read 20 years from now.”—JS

“If you're going to pitch your book to a publisher, they want to know: how does this book position against these other (competitive) books?”—RM

“What you want is feedback from people who are hearing your stuff for the first time.”—JS

“You need a launch team—you need a bunch of people supporting your book to help make it successful.”—RM

“They might tell me my baby's ugly, but that's what I want. I don't wanna write the book and then find out that my baby's ugly.”—JS

“It (a webinar) gives you a lot of experience with talking about the book and getting comfortable, listening and synthesizing what they're saying.”—RM

“If people do show up for your webinar, you're getting a head start on your marketing language for the book itself.”—JS

“For the kind of book that we're talking about, you've gotta have some other people invested in its success—where they get excited about it, they want to share it.”—RM

LINKS

Get Different with Mike Michalowicz

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 28 Mar 2022 10:00:00 +0000

How books have been a pivotal source of his authority (and a substantial slice of his overall revenue).

The role of his communities in concepting and testing book ideas—and why members who aren’t super fans are especially valuable.

Why incremental and real-life experiments are so critical to testing new ideas.

The value of going for small wins—even when complexity is the “better” solution.

Why being better is not enough.

LINKS

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

Quotables

“The stuff I put in my books is the same stuff I share on stage or on a podcast. But they're devalued when we hear the voice, it's eh, but once it's in a book, it becomes biblical for some reason.”—MM

“Why I’ve written so many (books) is I am working on any number at any given time, usually three to four in the works.”—MM

“The book is the starting point for lead flow, but it's the end point of the knowledge. It's the best of what I have accumulated.”—MM

“I use my subscribers and say, “Hey, we're going to concept—who's willing to try this out?” But I will, to some degree, intentionally exclude people who’ve tried stuff out in the past, trying to always approach new people and learn from them.”—MM

“What a lot of people do in their writings is they make it so it's not palatable and you lose the reader before you even get a chance to serve them.”—MM

“All my books are based upon this concept of quick, easy deployment.”—MM

“Being better is not enough. But many of us rely on that, we say we are better. Why don't we gain more business? We have to be noticeable.”—MM

“The only experience people have with us before doing business with us is our marketing. And if our marketing is inconsistent with the actual brand experience, there's a mistrust that's going to happen.”—MM

LINKS

https://mikemichalowicz.com/

LINKS

Ask Us Anything 5

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 21 Mar 2022 09:00:00 -0100

When moving from freelancing to consulting, how should I approach building my website portfolio? What kinds of best practices do you suggest?

How do I make sure I don’t lose my technical edge as I transition to more strategic consulting?

I’m not comfortable traveling or mingling with people whose vaccination and cautiousness status I don’t know—and yet it feels like everyone in my industry is anxious to attend events again. Is it possible to grow my authority business 100% virtually?

I’ve built a YouTube audience of 2,000 and an email list of about 1,000 by sharing a passion of mine. While I love doing it, it’s eating up more of my time and I’d like to monetize this—where should I start?

Quotables

“Encourage the client to share specific benefits—probably with numbers—some kind of absolute or relative numbers of the improvement that they attribute to your contribution.”—JS

“Think of your website, not as static, but as a living breathing thing.”—RM

“You can go into the lab and when there's something big—something game-changing—that enables new things for you that your clients care about.”—JS

“It's a little bit like riding a bicycle. You can not have ridden one for 10 years, but when you get back on you remember how to steer, you remember where your feet go. You know what to do.”—RM

“Think of someone who you perceive as an authority. Have you ever met them? Probably not. Have you even been to a conference where they were? Probably not.”—JS

“You can become an authority pretty much entirely virtually IF you design your business model to match that.”—RM

“It gets down to who needs, who stands to benefit the most from your superpower and how different do they perceive you to be in terms of the options for solving this problem.”—JS

“When talking to people who are already engaged in your worldview, they've signed on. And they're going to tell you what they want, not just from anybody to solve the problem, but what they want from you.”—RM

LINKS

The Dark Side Of Referrals

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 14 Mar 2022 09:00:00 -0100

Why relying on referrals is a passive strategy with few controls—and a dangerous hidden cost.

The difference between referrals and word of mouth from your authority-building efforts.

The one exception where a referral system can be exactly the right approach (and it applies to a VERY small slice of experts).

Why investing in broader market moves (e.g. publishing and speaking) will bring you business faster and more reliably than courting referrals.

LINKS

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

Quotables

“I'm like a control freak. I don't want to depend on maybe somebody sends someone my way…”—JS

“I always help people if I can, but there's a limit to what you can do for any one person before you have to turn the meter on.”—RM

“Like the difference between a hunting model and a gardening model, the word of mouth authority marketing is a gardening model.”—JS

“Referrals are a long-term play—and they’re so uncontrollable.”—RM

“I cannot stand this feeling of just hoping the phone rings.”—JS

“If you're operating on an old model (and you haven’t positioned yourself well), depending on referrals is going to get worse.”—RM

“It's that word of mouth that I would rather have, and it is more predictable than referrals—it’s more like tomatoes coming out of the garden.”—JS

“There's such a difference in somebody who comes to you because of the authority that you've built—they come to you basically pre-sold.”—RM

LINKS

Does Appearance Matter?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 07 Mar 2022 10:00:00 -0100

Aligning your appearance—how you dress and style yourself—with your brand of authority.

Why what matters most is what makes you feel confident and strong.

The dangers in making assumptions about your audience’s judgement (or listening too closely to critics).

How to match your exteriors with who you are, how you feel confident and the audience that you want to attract.

When—and how—to call in the experts.

Quotables

“If people don't like your vibe, then okay—they don't get the joke. Go find someone who does.”—JS

“There's also a sense of privilege that comes with this. If you're a white male, it's easier to say, oh, it doesn't matter what I wear, but if you're female or you're a person of color, it's a lot more complex.”—RM

“It's almost like a game. Can I be so good and deliver results that are so outstanding that no one cares what I'm wearing?”—JS

“It's not that there is this one size fits all look that you need to have in order to be an authority. It's a combination of what you want for yourself—what makes you feel powerful—and what helps attract the audience that you most want to attract.”—RM

“They weren't looking for a guy to come in jeans and blaze orange sneakers and a black t-shirt so it was just a bad fit.”—JS

“Once I hit a certain level, I was like, I don't care…I'm going to do that. And I don't care if anybody likes it or not.”—RM

“If you don't know what it is that would make you feel confident…just get an expert—just like you're an expert at something.”—JS

“It's finding the match between who you are, how you feel confident and the audience that you want to attract.”—RM

Links

https://yourcolorstyle.com/

https://elsaisaac.com/

https://alexandrastylist.com/

https://loriannrobinson.com/

LINKS

Time ≠ Money

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 28 Feb 2022 10:00:00 -0100

Getting over any residual guilt from not charging based on your effort (“I can’t charge them that much—it wouldn’t be fair/right/honorable”).

Why the best clients don’t really care about how much time you spend serving them—and what they do care about instead.

How to begin shifting your sales conversations toward high value outcomes and away from time.

The relationship between the altitude you’re operating at and the time it takes you to provide value.

Quotables

“Through conversation with the people for whom you are making the thing…you can think of it like a gift. It's like here, I made this for you.”—JS

“That's a whole mindset shift, that all of a sudden you're going to be paid for access…it can even feel like highway robbery at first.”—RM

“You should buy the most expensive one (mastermind) you can afford so that you will be slotted in with other people who are at your level. ”—JS

“Price telegraphs value.”—RM

“The reason it's so difficult for freelancers to value price is because they've never had a conversation with their past clients about what value they added.”—JS

“When you understand what your work is going to produce, you can work differently on the project. You can work at a higher level, you can be more effective, you can ask better questions.”—RM

“You can increase your altitude, the level at which you engage with the client…and almost invariably it's less work.”—JS

“Everything that we're talking about in this episode is moving you up that ladder so that you're selling your brains not your hands. “—RM  

RESOURCES

LINKS

Why You Don’t Have Imposter Syndrome

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 21 Feb 2022 10:00:00 -0100

Why, if you’re not feeling like an imposter, you’re not “working hard enough” (a Seth Godin quote from episode 100).

Facing the fear—and the resistance—and moving beyond a self-limiting label.

How working to become an expert can raise imposter feelings (and what to do).

Shifting your mindset to treat your work as an experiment.

The benefits of focusing on the people you’re serving vs. your own fears and resistance.

Quotables

“If we could deconstruct what people mean when they say imposter syndrome…it's like fake. I'm a fake, because I don't know if this is going to work or I don't know if this is the right way to do it. I don't know how to do this thing.”—JS

“The thing is it's really tempting to say, ‘Oh, I have imposter syndrome. I just can't do that.’ And so I don't like the label.”—RM

“If this sounds like tough love at all, it is because we don't want you in 10 years to be still stuck in the same place.”—JS

“The signal you’re becoming an expert is when you realize that you couldn't possibly know everything: ‘How do I niche down in the area of expertise that’s most intriguing? How do I think about this?’”—RM

“Imposter syndrome is probably that you don't know if it's going to work. You're doing an experiment. It's not like scientists are imposters because they don't know what's going to happen at the end of the experiment.”—JS

“The second we turn our focus away from ourselves and onto the audience, everything's easier. Because you're focused on them and getting them the things that they want.”—RM

“You're not here to be perfect or better than someone else—you're here to help. And if you focus on that, you don't have to be perfect. You just need to be good enough.”—JS

“Maybe it's work it till you make it instead of fake it till you make it.”—RM

Links

The Imposter Cure

The Imposter Syndrome

The Middle Finger Project

LINKS

Trusting Your Voice

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 14 Feb 2022 10:00:00 -0100

Why a big chunk of trusting your voice is being brave enough to let your “weirdness” out so you can find your tribe.

The value in being authentically consistent and how to course correct as you go.

Learning to keep playing your game, in your style, no matter where you are and what you’re doing.

Why trusting your voice is an iterative process—and how to ensure you’re consistently reinforcing who you are.

LINKS

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

Quotables

“I definitely let my inner weirdo out.”—JS

“Part of this is just learning to trust that your weirdness is compatible with other people's weirdness.”—RM

“What's the best part of you that's going to show up and be really thoughtful and consistent?”—JS

“You play your game, your style.”—RM

“Sometimes your inner weirdo is gonna preclude you being involved in certain things, but it's much more common for the opposite to be true.”—JS

“Somebody else can’t empower you. You empower yourself to put your voice out there.”—RM

“You’ve gotta find and hone and refine your voice.”—JS

“When you get to the point where it's almost like the opposite of imposter syndrome, you trust that you have something to say.”—RM

LINKS

Breaking Rules

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 07 Feb 2022 10:00:00 -0100

Why breaking the rules in a surprising way is so important.

Reaping the benefits of surprise—and how to figure out which rules are made for breaking.

Balancing your strengths and available time with the highest impact moves.

How to think about your rule breaking so you’re not copying someone else, but building your unique brand.

Quotables

“Some of my favorite strategies really do have a surprising piece to them, which is that I break a rule.”—JS

“‘I would never bother my audience with daily emails’—if you’re ‘bothering’ them, why send it at all?”—RM

“If you're known by name it's because you probably broke new ground, you broke some rules, some style practices and came up with something new and different that connected with people.”—JS

“One of the things that makes me crazy is automated content based on SEO. They look like they're written by robots.”—RM

“If you need an extra five hours a week, delete all social media from your life.”—JS

“There's no reason to feel like, oh, you must have music on your podcast. As we've proven.”—RM

“The reason I decided against that (using email salutations) was because I don't send emails like that to my brothers. And that was the feeling I wanted people to have when they got an email from me.”—JS

“You can get sucked into social media, commenting about things that aren’t building your brand.”—RM

LINKS

Profit With Purpose

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 31 Jan 2022 10:00:00 -0100

Why you need to answer this question: how much profit is enough for you?

How to work your way up the difficulty scale to find clients with bigger, more expensive problems so that you can work less.

The myth behind doing hard work—and how to work less without guilt.

Making an impact with your ideal audience that leaves a memorable footprint (and builds a sustainable business).

LINKS

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

Quotables

“Assuming you're comfortable with some profit, the question is how much?”—JS

“What's that expensive problem that's inside your big idea, your revolution, that you can solve?”—RM

“You can find people who are currently in a situation where they would write a big fat check to someone like you.”—JS

“You're gradually working your way up the difficulty scale to find clients with bigger problems or more expensive problems so that you can work less.”—RM

“If you only feel okay doing really hard work, then what does that look like in your future? You're dooming yourself to a life of toil.”—JS

“The key is delivering huge value. You have to keep asking: are you moving the needle on your revolution by doing the work you're doing?”—RM

“People do stuff all the time that is not in their best interest financially, for other reasons and one of them would be purpose.”—JS

“It's not just about the money—it's about impact. It's about your footprint.”—RM

LINKS

Experimenting for Fun and Profit

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 24 Jan 2022 10:00:00 -0100

Why raising your price(s) doesn’t always bring you better clients—and how to keep pushing the envelope to find the right balance.

How to raise—or lower—your prices without feeling manipulative or doing a bait and switch with your audience.

The value of being vulnerable and asking for input (with the side benefit of getting you deeply wired into your audience).

Joining high-end masterminds (or building your own) to solicit peer feedback and ideas.

Getting in the regular habit of experimenting to grow your audience and your business faster.

Quotables

“We make an assumption that the higher price points we have, the better clients we're going to get and that’s not always true.”—RM

“If you can't bring yourself to lower your prices back down (when a higher price isn’t working), cut the offer.”—JS

“It's dangerous when we assume that the blocks we have in our own head are in the minds of our clients.”—RM

“That's why the metaphor is a (product/service) ladder. Cause they can climb up it as you give them success on the lower rungs.”—JS

“The only way to know that you’re wired into your audience is to ask them, because otherwise we put our own assumptions on our audience and we could be a hundred percent wrong.”—RM

“One of the coolest things about running your own business and thinking of it like a business is that you can do this (experimenting) stuff.”—JS

“Consider a mastermind that has other people who've experienced your kind of growth—getting peer comments is hugely helpful.”—RM

Links

Pickfu.com

LINKS

Systems Gravitational Pull

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 17 Jan 2022 10:00:00 -0100

Why the more you invest—time, money and processes—in any system the more it starts to limit your thinking.

The value of choosing your apps/vendors wisely and then going all in for the future vs. frequent platform switching.

Protecting yourself (and your business) if one of your systems goes bad.

How to think about changing and communicating systems when you have clients and buyers using them regularly.

LINKS

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

Quotables

“The more code I build up, the more I've invested in any particular system, the more it limits my thinking.”—JS

“When my VA of 10 years left…I started to relook at and rethink every single function. Had she not left, I would not have done that.”—RM

“I am super choosy about which platforms I'm going to go all in on on them. But man, is it frustrating when something changes out from underneath you.”—JS

“The thing that makes some of these apps so wonderful is how comprehensive they are. You just have to ensure that you're protected if something really bad happens.”—RM

“When I pick a platform, I just suck it up. And I'm like, okay, the thing's going to evolve and I'm just going to deal with it as it evolves. But also it means that I really learn how to use it…so that I'm really getting my money out of it.”—JS

“You can't over-communicate in those situations (where your clients experience your systems changes).”—RM

“If we're talking about a gravitational pull of a system and you've got people in the system, there's no silver bullet to making changes.”—JS

“If you've got five people in a group and you change your systems, it's probably not a big deal. If you have 500, it is a big deal. All the more reason to pick the systems you want to invest in at the very beginning.”—RM

LINKS

Kicking Off 2022

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 10 Jan 2022 10:00:00 -0100

The difference between objectives, strategy and tactics—and why the possibility of failure is essential when designing a workable strategy.

How to give your tactics the optimal amount of time to assess whether they are working—or not.

Making the decision on how you want to impact your ideal audience—and baking it into your plans.

How to think about growth so that you’re building a business that plays to your genius zone.

Quotables

“The strategy should change the most slowly. Your strategy should…have some grit and sticktuitiveness about it, but the tactics are disposable.”—JS

“Once you position yourself (then you know what revolution you're going to be leading, who's your ideal client and buyer), then you can start creating a strategy to develop the products and services to monetize what you're trying to do.”—RM

“Strategy is a concise high-level approach to achieving the objective by pitting strengths against weaknesses, usually in a surprising way.”—JS

“Sometimes we give up on tactics too soon. If we agree that strategy is a non-trivial amount of time, then when it comes to tactics, you have to give it enough time…to prove whether it works or not.”—RM

“You are making a bet that this approach is going to work and if you're wrong, then you know it's not going to work.”—JS

“Most of us feel actualized when we're helping other people. It's not really about, oh, I want to go to the spa every day…it's about how can I help the people I care most about?”—RM

“Whatever the tactic is, you need to give it a reasonable amount of time for how long it's going to take for the tomatoes to start growing.”—JS

“By designing the business so that it fits you, you can get to whatever income level it is that you decide you want to go for.”—RM

Accidental Creative Episode with Michael Bungay Stanier

LINKS

Systems, Habits and Creating Time

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 03 Jan 2022 10:00:00 -0100

What insights your current behaviors, systems and habits can give you into creating more time.

The value of time boxing—limiting the period (and the amount of head space) you’ll devote to a particular thing.

Using habit stacking to create efficient ways to complete “must do” tasks.

How to use consistent habit tracking—aka streaks—to motivate you to stay on course.

When to buy back time—and overcoming your mental blocks that keep you from doing it.

Quotables

“Checklists or SOPs lift a weight off of you. It's this cognitive weight where…if you just do it in an order—the stuff that's going to happen every day—it gives you more freedom.”—JS

“It’s like Steve jobs wearing his black turtleneck and jeans every day. He didn't want to dedicate brain space to something that didn't matter.”—RM

“Time boxing helps quite a bit with the good enough slash perfectionism thing. Like the more you work on it, the better it will feel like it's getting therefore it becomes infinite.”—JS

“A little trick that I found that works really well—if morning is a good time for you to do detailed work—push your lunch as late as you can.”—RM

“I'm all about streaks. It's in my DNA to not want to break a streak.”—JS

“We can buy back time by hiring people to do things that we believe must be done. And it's not just about the business. It might be that you hire somebody to mow your lawn or buy your groceries.”—RM

“One thing is just to get rid of the things you don't need to do.”—JS

“There are people who will think nothing of spending a hundred thousand dollars in their business, but…can't have somebody mow their lawn. ‘I can't spend $10, but I can spend a hundred thousand.’ Sometimes the $10 will give you more value.”—RM

RESOURCES

LINKS

Predictions for 2022

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 13 Dec 2021 10:00:00 -0100

How live events will change (think thoughtful curation vs. large scale impersonal gatherings).

The wider presence and impact of women and people of color in the authority space.

The trend of personality—how far can authorities go to express their views?

How experts and authorities will differentiate their products and services—and more.

Quotables

“We would have these big live events…with a lot of wasted time, wasted energy and lost opportunities to connect with people. The trend will be that because we will have fewer live events, they matter more.”—RM

“I could imagine an increase in these sorts of small, highly-focused off the grid fishing village retreats.”—JS

“I believe that more of the new businesses that are growing in the authority space will not only be run by women, but people of color.”—RM

“I think it's so much more fun to learn from people who aren't afraid to like make predictions that might not come true.”—JS

“It's really about standing up for your values, your vision for where the world goes. You've got a code…a set of beliefs that tie into how you serve clients.”—RM

“I think going around and being in people's ear buds on a regular basis creates this asymmetric intimacy.”—JS

“We might have products and services at both ends (high touch/high price vs. low touch/low price), but we're not going to have much in the middle.”—RM

“The low touch end of the spectrum is all about productizing and packaging up your expertise…it's just so much easier to sell. It's easier to attract leads. It's easier to close deals.”—JS

LINKS

Selling Results

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 06 Dec 2021 10:00:00 -0100

Why a focus on outcomes naturally changes your sales conversations and how you think about delivery.

How becoming the client yourself helps crystallize the importance of outcomes vs. inputs.

Changing your mental model away from valuing time spent to the outcomes your clients are seeking.

Becoming the Mercedes option where your clients happily pay big premiums for your reliably transformative outcomes.

How using an outcomes focus in the sales process also weeds out undesirable clients.

LINKS

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

Quotables

“You change the way that you talk to the client, so that you're finding out more about what is the transformation they want instead of how much work is this going to be for me to execute.”—JS

“They (the billers of time) just have to invert their thinking. And it's funny because once you really see it from the other side, it's hard to unsee it.”—RM

“I fundamentally believe deep down that the majority of software projects go 2x over the initial estimate because nobody talks at the beginning about what the success metric is.”—JS

“It's just all in what you want, what you value and what the person is going to deliver (when you’re hiring a consultant).”—RM

“You found someone who you considered to be a Mercedes option—like a premium luxury purchase—and you just believed that it would work and it did work and it didn't need to take a lot of time. In fact, the less time it takes the better.”—JS

“There are some clients who really don't want to be challenged. They don't want to have those tough questions asked and those are not good clients.”—RM

“It's like finding the mission for the project and then it's all about everybody's on the same mission—you've got something to align everybody around.”—JS

“Going from time spent to outcomes is messing with somebody's mental model—it's really hard to imagine that someone will value the outcome only and not care about the inputs.”—RM

RESOURCES

LINKS

Productized Services

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 29 Nov 2021 10:00:00 -0100

Using this as a path out of hourly billing and/or simplifying your sales and marketing while juicing your revenue.

Why offering productized services forces you to get really tight on your delivery, messaging and outcomes.

How you can use a productized service offering to test drive a more laser-focused positioning for your entire business.

We share a host of real life examples you can check out to see how it’s done.

Quotables

“Productized services are like a path out of hourly billing for people who are used to delivering services by the hour.”—JS

“We need to not underestimate the power of making your marketing and selling simpler.”—RM

“If you're scared of positioning your overall business in a laser-focused way, you could just have the one (productized service) offering.”—JS

“Do not underestimate the power of using emotion to identify that final outcome to the client from your productized service.”—RM

“II you're embarrassed by your website, how do you think that might be trickling into your behavior and your actions?”—JS

“When you start experimenting with productized services, you might find that it gets you into a higher level problem than you'd been solving.”—RM

Links

LINKS

Overcoming Set Points and Plateaus

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 22 Nov 2021 10:00:00 -0100

The role of your mindset in breaking through set points and powering past income plateaus.

Deciding when it’s time to change your revenue model to provide your business with greater leverage—and larger earnings potential.

How to think about and reframe limiting beliefs that keep you from making big leaps in your business.

When your past experiences are powering decisions today that don’t serve you or your business growth (and how to re-wire them).

LINKS

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

Quotables

“There's a certain point where you've found all the leverage you're going to find with this model and you need to find a bigger lever.”—JS

“I'd like to be a best-selling author. But guess what? If I don't write a book, it's not going to happen.”—RM

“One of the things that can be the moment of a huge breakthrough for people is the first time they say no to a client.”—JS

“Maybe there's a voice in your head that says you don't deserve any better than this. That this is the best you get.”—RM

“Lightning round of three limiting beliefs: I can never call myself an expert if I’m not the world’s greatest; Oh, these are all great ideas, but they won't work; I can't stop coding because then I wouldn't be able to consult.”—JS

“There are all these different experiences that impact how we think about money and therefore what we allow ourselves to achieve in our business.”—RM

“You can go back and find out what your particular contribution was worth to the client and then try and extrapolate into the future. So when you talk to someone who's similar, you can get better at guesstimating what your contribution might be worth to this kind of a client.”— JS

“Once you're past the bootstrap stage and your business is truly launched, then there are certain things that are going to move you faster. You have to believe your business is worth investing in them.”—RM

LINKS

Book Publishing Listener Q&A

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 15 Nov 2021 10:00:00 -0100

The two main reasons to write a book for your expertise or authority business.

The pros and cons of self-publishing vs. seeking out a traditional publisher.

Positioning and pricing your self-published book—and whether to sell it on your website and/or amazon.

How to find and vet the right editor(s) for your situation.

The role of e-books vs. physical books and why you probably want both.

Quotables

“The two main reasons to write a book for business: there's the 300 page business card and there's the revenue stream… it really helps going into it to know which one you're writing.”—JS

“You might make different strategic and tactical decisions depending on whether you want direct or indirect revenue from your book .”—RM

“If you want to reach a broader audience, then it does make sense to go through a more traditional publishing channel or at least something closer to that.”—JS

“The irony (with traditional publishers) is when you want them, when you need them, they usually don't want you—because they want you to have enough name recognition that you're helping to drive the sales of the book.”—RM

“When I published Hourly Billing Is Nuts, since it was so much about pricing, I was like, I want to price this right. And I don't want it to be next to a whole bunch of direct competitors that are cheaper. It'd be like putting myself on Upwork.”—JS

“I wanted really good editors because all of my (client) book experiences up to now have been with really top-notch people at big publishing houses and I wanted somebody as good as that for my book.”—RM

“I think everybody should write a book—the experience is fabulous. It's so good to have to think that hard about something and have a project that's that big.”—JS

“How hard is it to create a physical book on Amazon? It is so freaking easy if you're already doing the e-book on amazon.”—RM

RELATED LINKS

LINKS

The Authority Code

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Nov 2021 10:00:00 -0100

How “selling” your work completely changes once you’ve positioned yourself and monetized your expertise.

Building your business in “white space” and a new way to think about your big idea (hint: we’re talking revolution).

Why your genius zone is a pivotal element of your authority positioning.

Rethinking your business and revenue model to more closely match your positioning (and your genius zone).

Getting comfortable with publishing—testing your point of view—until you’re ready to start playing on other people’s platforms.

Quotables

“If you like this show, you're going to love the book.”—JS

“What thinking about your big idea as a revolution does for you is it allows you to think bigger than you would otherwise—as in who am I to think this big?”—RM

“I just see it as we're fellow travelers, we're on the same mission. We're in the same revolution and I don't care who leads it, as long as someone's doing it.”—JS

“It's so important that you discover your genius zone. We started our own businesses—we took a lot of risk. Why shouldn't we be doing what we really love to do?”—RM

“Once you flip your mindset from I do rails or I do price consulting to I know how to build rails apps—then you can start disconnecting your expertise from your labor.”—JS

“You're going to start with an email list, but then the question becomes, what should you do first in terms of publishing? I like writing and podcasting because they feed each other and they've got long tails.”—RM

“Sales conversations are always fun, ‘cause they’re very consultative—it’s like I’m getting to know them.”—JS

“Selling authority is three things: it's publishing, it’s developing your authority circle and it's having sales conversations. It's selling without selling.” –RM

Links:

The Authority Code

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

LINKS

Profit Matters

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 01 Nov 2021 09:00:00 -0100

Why profit is the most important measure of how your business is doing—even when profits are not your purpose.

The difference between relying on vanity metrics and your bottom line to show you how you’re doing.

Measuring impact vs. measuring revenue and what you need to build so they grow in tandem.

How to avoid short-term thinking while still keeping your eye on your profit line.

The value of reliability in your profit generation—and what that buys you in your business and your ability to make an impact.

Quotables

“You can’t buy Cheerios with likes on Twitter.”—JS

“My concern sometimes with these giant lists is that they don't have this commonality in the audience that is going to help you grow your business.”—RM

“You can measure impact. And that's a great thing to measure, but you can't eat it for dinner.”—JS

“Once you run the long-term profit numbers, then you can make a wise-for-you investment decision. This is a good idea, a bad idea, or I'm not sure. Maybe I need to test it more.”—RM

“I always notice when businesses basically tank because some cost cutter becomes the CEO—like the COO or the CFO becomes the CEO—and they stop investing in innovation.”—JS

“You can't cut your way to innovation. You can't cut your way to being the industry leader. It just doesn't work that way.”—RM

“If you're going to call yourself a business, then you need to have profits. Even though profits aren't your purpose, they still need to be there.”—JS

“Until there's some kind of reliability built into your revenue model, your business is really hard to sustain.”—RM

LINKS

Leveling Up Your Systems

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 25 Oct 2021 10:00:00 +0000

A new way to think about big projects based on how you work best—and the value of absolute clarity with your plan.

What happens when you fall into flow on a big project that needs room to breathe.

The unintended consequences of changing your environment.

How to find the system(s) that will work for you—and why you don’t need to worry if they look entirely different than what works for someone else.

Adopting the mindset of a creator—and aligning it with your daily habits.

LINKS

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

Quotables

“It's as if you're going into battle, but you're going to battle against yourself.”—RM

“I felt like I was on this path that I had wanted to be on for so long and I was finally doing it. So it was its own energy source.”—RM

“I left this environment where I had lots of uninterrupted time. Switched to an environment where I'm interrupted all the time and didn't recognize or take into consideration the effect that would have on things that I already had in motion.”—JS

“I don't want to stop. I want to just keep it, once you get into the zone and get over that resistance, fear, and you're in the zone, it's like a drug.”—JS

“Once you have the boundary, you can all work with and around the boundary. But if it's not set, we're not going to work around it.”—RM

“The thing that does motivate me is streaks and being able to tick off a check box next to the thing I was supposed to do today.”—JS

“We all deserve to be able to carve out a space to produce this kind of work. It goes with the authority space.”—RM

“It's a big undertaking and it's not something that you can just imagine is going to work itself out.”—JS

LINKS

Designing Your Authority Circle

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 18 Oct 2021 10:00:00 +0000

What’s an Authority Circle and why you need one.

The role of your rat pack, apostles and tribal leaders and how to enlist them in your cause.

Earning apostles for your work and connecting with influential tribal leaders.

How selling your authority becomes more focused and simple once you clearly identify your circle.

How to think about your Authority Circle and enlist them in spreading your vision, even if you’ve always thought of them as competitors.

Quotables

“It's a wild process, writing a book. It's a marathon for sure.”—JS

“The big problem that an authority circle solves is you have somebody else working on your behalf all the time.”—RM

“A good friend will bail you out of jail. A great friend will be in jail with you.”—JS

“Apostles are the people who are spreading the word on your vision, the revolution you're seeing for the world, because they believe.”—RM

“The thing with the apostles that is different than super fans is apostles will occasionally challenge you in a good, polite, constructive way.”—JS

“You're looking for a way to take what you know, and apply it to the tribal leader’s specific audience.”—RM

“If you're really thinking about making a big cultural change, you better have these apostles and tribal leaders who - at least partially - agree with the mission.”—JS

“When you have your authority circle, what you're doing in a very small but important way is that you're connecting; you’re building connective tissue with all these different people and they're going to help you.”—RM

LINKS

Sales Meeting = Sample Engagement

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 11 Oct 2021 10:00:00 +0000

How to set expectations and boundaries in the initial sales meeting (and why that’s critical to the progression of your project).

Why the client isn’t always right or always wrong—and how to adopt a mindset that allows you to keep the outcomes front and center.

Finding socially acceptable ways to push back when the client(s) starts leading down a path that doesn’t serve the outcome.

Getting to the point where you believe you don’t need this client, this project—and why having a safety net is crucial.

Why sales interviews are auditions for the client where you get to be the casting director.

LINKS

Jonathan | Daily List | Ditcherville | LinkedIn | Twitter

Quotables

“You've got two different kinds of expertise that are coming together in this sales interview to see if there's a good fit between where you want to go.”—JS

“You're teaching them (in the sales meeting) how to think strategically about your area of expertise and how it applies to their business.”—RM

“You want to open their eyes to the fact that there's a reason they're calling an expert and it could be that they made a fundamentally bad decision way up front.”—JS

“Our job is to hold the vision for the project…When you do that, it gets a lot easier to deal with things that are really more of a personality conflict, or a power play.”—RM

“It's about finding socially acceptable ways to say no—to push back. And it's all in their best interest…it's all about the success of the project.”—JS

“You have to get to that point where you say okay, if this is not the right fit client, I'm not going to do this.”—RM

“These sales interviews—you could think of them as an audition for the client. That's how I look at them, like an audition for the client, which frames it with me in the judge seat.”—JS

“Everybody needs a safety net. I promise you the second you truly get to that headspace, your meetings start to change and you get better.”—RM

LINKS

Guest Highlights From 200 Episodes

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 04 Oct 2021 10:00:00 +0000

The definition of authority and the challenges in building it.

How to think about and price different products and services based on how they contribute to your overall business model.

The challenges of bringing new ideas to market and developing sustainable habits to keep growing your business.

The role of trust in building authority (and your business).

Why clients value outcomes above all else.

Quotables

“The McKinsey trap is you're getting paid X number of dollars at McKinsey, and you realize they're marking you up for X. So you quit McKinsey and go out on your own and you can't even get paid a quarter.”—Seth Godin

“I don't worry so much about the revenue from the books. What I look at is how it supports the other things that I do. I'm being paid to do it (webinars) because I'm an expert in this field. And so I have an entire business model that is set on giving away stuff for free and making good money doing it”—Jill Konrath

“I only want to release things that seem like they can gain traction quickly without putting a ton of work or doing like paid acquisition for them.”—Paul Jarvis

“We do not rise to the level of our goals.  We fall to the level of our systems.”—James Clear

“You should see how picky I am about taking on a client. It's crazy…I was just doing the generic thing that all clients look like good clients. But now I do this really specialized thing. And I only take you on if you fit my target perfectly.”—April Dunford

“The I, the last factor in the numerator (of the trust equation) stands for intimacy, which is an interesting and unusual word in the business context, but it goes to…do I feel safe and secure sharing things with you?”—Charles Green

“You have to bring rigor to it (your passion business). You have to bring discipline. You have to work really hard. Honestly, a lot of it can be less easy because when you're doing something you really care about, it's going to be maybe even harder than doing a job that someone else told you to do.”—Adam Davidson

“Having a small child, I said, I cannot take any more unpaid work. I have no more time left in my calendar. So I put a call out for sponsors (of my podcast). I asked, four people to sponsor the show, all four said, yes. And that's the moment when I looked at my husband and I said, so people are paying me money to do a thing.”—Sarah Peck

“It really is the outcomes that people want. That's the way it is with all transformations. Inputs don't matter—only outcomes.”—Joe Pine

LINKS

Eliminating Friction

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 27 Sep 2021 10:00:00 +0000

When outsourcing is freeing vs. when it simply adds more friction to your life.

How to tell the difference between good friction and bad friction (hint: it’s not the same for everyone).

Why it makes perfect sense to outsource critical functions that are not core to your business—think taxes, legal, payroll.

The surprising benefits from documenting what you do and how you do it.

The human side of heavy outsourcing—and how to decide if it’s for you.

Quotables

“I don't really care about search. I care about word of mouth. So if people aren't searching for my name, I'm doing something wrong.”—JS

“After that first week (without my VA) I literally wanted to gouge my eyes out.”—RM

“When it's literally done, it's different than knowing it's going to get done.”—JS

“I'd like to not do it (the outsourced task), but I love the feeling that it's done and I don't have to worry anymore.”—RM

“It would be silly to do your own books or legal…things that are just not core to your business.”—JS

“I want to outsource the things that bring me comfort or bring me to a different level.”—RM

“I can't stress enough how important it is to have the steps of any of your processes written down.”—JS

“Having that checklist means not having to dedicate a space of your brain to anything routine.”—RM

LINKS

Setting Your Own Agenda

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 20 Sep 2021 10:00:00 +0000

The questions to ask yourself if you want to start or stop providing a particular service to a particular client.

Breaking up with your client: when to do it, how to do it and what to watch out for.

Why you always want to build a time constraint when transitioning clients—and how to think about the transition process.

When retainer scope creep is your fault—think guilt around doing less for a bigger retainer—and what to do about it.

Why the consultant’s job is to hold the vision for the project (and who is always THE client).

Quotables

“Here's the thing, it's your business. If you want to stop doing tactical work, you do more strategic work.”—JS

“Breakups don't have to be ugly, but the other thing is that sometimes what we think might lead to a breakup doesn't at all.”—RM

“Once you start doing that (extra pair of hands work), then it's a slippery slope. All of a sudden it's like the architect is cleaning the bathrooms.”—JS

“The client asks because they don't think about our business model. They assume if they ask us for something that doesn't make sense, we'll say no .”—RM

“The perfect time to say no…is the first time, like when the first ask happens or when you first think you're going to do it of your own volition. The second best time to do it is right now.”—JS

“It's really important to be clear about your timeline so that your clients understand that there's a limited timeframe and if they don't move, they're not going to get support.”—RM

“But if you have one foot out the door, it totally changes the framing (of your message). And then they're like, wait, maybe there's something we can work out.”—JS

“Holding the vision for the project, that's our job. And if I want to get dramatic, I would say it's a sacred obligation.”—RM

LINKS

Are You Feeling Lucky?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 13 Sep 2021 10:00:00 +0000

How to move beyond magical thinking and get very specific about your dream clients and buyers.

Why crystal clear positioning makes everything—including attracting your ideal clients—flow more easily.

Improving your odds of successful matchmaking—allowing influential others to hook you up with “your people”.

The relationship between taking calculated risks and achieving oversized outcomes (think drumming with the Foo Fighters).

Matching your dream up to your business and revenue model—and why that’s so critical.

Quotables

“If you could just wave a magic wand and be working with your top 20 dream clients, what names would be on that list?”—JS

“In most situations, success is hard work plus opportunity or as someone famously said, ‘The harder I work, the luckier I get.’”—RM

“You can increase your luck surface area, meaning you can do things, you can do the work, put in the effort to make it much more likely that you're going to attract the right kind of opportunities.”—JS

“We want to be a thoughtful matchmaker—it’s what we hope to receive from the people matchmaking us.”—RM

“Books will have this tendency to give you a defacto positioning.”—JS

“When we first start businesses, we're not always that clear about where we’re going—it’s like binoculars that you keep focusing.”—RM  

“There's this outbound thing where you can take control of fate and say, okay, that's my dream. Tesla marketing. That's all I care about. And you put all of your resources into that for a period of time.”—JS

“We want to see you succeed when you are the underdog…I want to see you strap on the cape and fly off into the air.”—RM

LINKS

Making Your Email Newsletters Relatable with John Dick

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 06 Sep 2021 10:00:00 +0000

How the newsletter started and why it was a well-kept secret for years.

Tying the newsletter to the core business without making it salesy or deadly dull—and positioning it differently than anyone else in the space.

How he sets the flow of the newsletter—and his fear that eventually he’ll run out of stories (sound familiar?).

His #1 rule before releasing any “What We’re Seeing” emails.

Why typical business assumptions about corporate titans are wrong—and how to engage them.

Quotables

“I wanted it to be the kind of thing they would want to read while drinking their coffee in the morning or laying next to their spouse in bed, on their phone. That's the vibe I was going for.”—JD

“I was quite apprehensive initially about even doing something weekly. Cause I was like I once you're on the ride, it’s hard to get off.”—JD

“It's gotten harder because I've used up most of my good stories by now, like funny stories I have from my dad or my college or whatever and like all my best material, I worry sometimes that I've used it up.”—JD

“An insight is significantly more valuable the more relatable you can make it.”—JD

“When you can make the insight…it doesn't just allow us to connect with that person as a reader, but it allows them to actually use that insight to drive a decision that they have to make.”—JD

“I do think there are the people who read that and they see I'm not exactly sure what this company does, but I want to do business with people like this.”—JD

“My Saturday email gets to be a little bit of a sacred place where that (sales) stuff doesn't happen.”—JD

“I can tell you without ever naming any names, the most senior people and powerful people on that list are the ones who are most likely to answer those frivolous poll questions at the end of the newsletter.”—JD

Links
Civic Science
Twitter

LINKS

Zero To One

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 30 Aug 2021 10:00:00 +0000

What it takes to put your first product out for the world to see (even if you’re not painting zombies on skateboards).

The fears you may experience the first time you go public and how to push through them.

Why publishing your price(s) attracts the right buyers and repels the bad-fits.

Worried about leaving money on the table by quoting a flat price? How to think about that whole transaction differently.

Why your prices for products and productized services are all experimental and deserve to change regularly.

Quotables

“I was aware of a sales guy who would routinely send out proposals with an extra zero. And if the client gasps, he's ‘oh, it's a typo. Okay. Sorry. Sorry. It's $60,000, not $600,000.’”—JS

“The buyer's time is valuable too. Who's going to want to sit through three conversations with three unknowns to figure out what they're going to do?”—RM

“Just put a price on your website and you'll automatically attract the right kind of people for you. It would save everyone time. You wouldn't have to negotiate.”—JS

“That first time that you actually put a price on your website…all sorts of things come up in your head, including imposter syndrome.”—RM

“There's this fear of leaving money on the table, but guess what? If somebody jumps at it, then you just raise the price for the next person.”—JS

“If you don't ever try raising your prices, you won't know the upper limits of what you can charge.”—RM

“That indifference to whether or not the client buys—generally that comes from being in demand.”—JS

“There's just something about putting a price on your website—you’re making a statement, oh, this is not a cheap WordPress guy I can hire for a thousand dollars…That’s level setting.”—RM

Links

Carl Richards on Ditching Hourly
Ask us a question

LINKS

Monetizing Your Positioning

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 23 Aug 2021 10:00:00 +0000

How most freelancers and independent consultants monetize their expertise in their first year or two—and the signs when your revenue model might need an overhaul.

The link between your positioning and monetizing your business—and why you want to be open to new ways of packaging your expertise.

A “typical” consulting/speaking/book revenue model and how it can become a trap (and some ideas to avoid it altogether or get out while you can).

What to do when your revenue model isn’t working.

Quotables

“It's very common for people to just go out on their own and do their job, but for clients instead of a boss, and the obvious business model is to just rent your hands out by the hour. And that's fine. That'll get you going.”—JS

“And then at some point (after you’ve positioned yourself) you come smack dab up to your business and revenue model and you say, oh, these don't fit anymore.”—RM

“The competition is increasing and you start to realize that you need to, you might not call it positioning, but you start to realize that you need to appear different in a meaningful way.”—JS

“The real money is coming from the other two revenue streams (consulting and speaking), so he is on what I would call a gilded hamster wheel.”—RM

“The typical business model for a consultant is write books, speak at conferences and make your money on consulting…He couldn't sell that business—he is the business.”—JS

“This idea that you're stuck with this business and revenue model that you created for something you no longer do is insanity.”—RM

“I love posting prices on your website because it puts you into a slot in the prospect's mind. So when new clients come along, they already have the expectation, at least in a ballpark way, of what it would mean to work together.”—JS

“Of course, there are things you're going to do for free. But when you're working in your genius zone, delivering to your ideal audience, most of those should be paid.”—RM

LINKS

Inequity aversion

LINKS

Patterns Of Authority

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 16 Aug 2021 10:00:00 +0000

You’re spending considerable time thinking, writing, speaking, publishing and socializing your point of view.

You discover the forms of publishing that fit with your talents and audience and produce regularly, no matter what.

You’re building a niche that not only allows you to charge more for your specialty, but gives you the ideal audience to continually feed your curiosity and work from your genius zone.

You’re positioning your business and expertise in white space—a target market that you don’t share with anyone else.

You’re building a business model with seductive levels of flexibility: what and how you charge; how much and how often you work; and a suite of leveraged services and products that optimize how you spend your time.

Quotables

“If you are renting your hands out by the hour to do tasks for your clients, it can be difficult to carve out time (to build authority). That feels un-billable, it feels like you're losing money.”—JS

“Authorities have a point of view: what is your belief system about how your expertise impacts your world?”—RM

“Freelancers are basically selling their hands where authorities are selling their brains. It's all about the intellectual property."—JS

“Obviously you can make a lot of money specializing, but in addition to that, you really can go where your curiosity takes you.”—RM

“Since I've got a daily deadline to publish something…for a bunch of people who are waiting for it, my brain will gravitate to what I should consider for that vs. thinking about say what should I wear tomorrow.”—JS

“If you're looking for ways to prime the (authority building) pump…read!”—RM

“Writing is like the sort of cohesive, coherent long form. It’s the crucible almost that you go through to bake your idea into something.”—JS

“A lot of us need to socialize things with other people to really get at all the things in the dusty corners of our brains.”—RM

LINKS

Do You Need An Exit Plan?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 09 Aug 2021 10:00:00 +0000

Situations where designing an actual exit plan makes sense and how to think about it.

The mindset required to move from trading time for money to creating assets with value independent of your presence.

Client exit strategies and why they worked for their situations.

Creating a business where the value isn’t 100% tied to your name—and when/how to start the shift.

LINKS

The Post-COVID Reckoning

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 02 Aug 2021 10:00:00 +0000

Channeling that sense of dissatisfaction to make big, small and/or pivotal change in your business.

Deciding which aspects of your work/life are ready for change and how to keep moving forward.

Dealing with status and identity challenges as you evaluate what next steps will work best for you.

Leaning into small changes that can have an outsized impact on your happiness.

How to let those clients and employees you’re leaving behind go with integrity.

Quotables

“I like to think optimistically that the whole thing was a wake-up call for people—who are now feeling the malaise as a desire to have more of a purpose or impact.”—JS

“Our elbows are rubbing up against the sides of our cage. And people are saying, what else is there? What can be next?”—RM

“Everything's in motion. So any rut that you're stuck in, you're going to have a lot of helpful momentum to pop you out of it.”—JS

“Don't worry about the process. Worry about where it is you want to go to get really excited about your work again.”—RM

“If you could wave a magic wand and put whatever you wanted in your calendar, what would be in your calendar?”—JS

“Change begets change. We do one small thing and then it energizes us, it gives us confidence to make another change.”—RM

“Look at your product and service mix and ask: am I getting bored with these? Am I getting better at these? Are they aligned with my mission?”—JS

“We like the changes that we initiate far more than those that somebody else puts on us.”—RM

LINKS

Avoiding An Expiration Date

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 26 Jul 2021 10:00:00 +0000

Evergreen expertise and content vs. those with an expiration date.

How to distinguish yourself with evergreen content—and why your voice and point of view are clear difference makers.

Avoiding the purist view that we absolutely have to invent something that's never been thought of before—and what to do instead.

Side-stepping the eventual conversion of your hot market knowledge into a commodity—or worse (our sympathy to Flash developers).

The magic of moving up to a higher level topic that is relevant to your current audience—and how to do it.

Quotables

“Maybe you localize a topic about marketing or sales into the technology landscape that didn't exist five years ago. If you’re careful about how you straddle that divide, you could still create very evergreen, but up to date content that stands the test of time.”—JS

“It's really easy to say let's go do evergreen content, but to distinguish yourself, you've got to really slice and dice it in such a way that you've got something new to say, or it’s new to a different audience.”—RM

“I've probably read 200 books on sales and marketing. It's stuff that software developers would rather eat glass than read. So if I can bring that to them in a funny way, or a way that resonates with them, or using language that doesn't repel them, then that's super valuable.”—JS

“We can't come from this purist view that we absolutely have to get something that's never been thought of before.”—RM

“Some of these more evergreen topics are going to be like fundamental truths of human nature, human behavior.”—JS

“It's a lot easier to get attention when you've got the newest sexiest whistle—everybody wants to go hear it.”—RM

“When you’re being cutting edge, you're co-opting the hype that some product or technology has built up and you're just strapped to that horse.—JS

“When your consulting is based on a new technology, over time more people are going to know what you know, so the price of your expertise goes down and eventually becomes commoditized.”—RM

LINKS

Addicted To Being Busy

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 19 Jul 2021 10:00:00 +0000

Tackling the mindset that says you must be constantly busy or you’re not worthy of success.

Busyness as a form of procrastination—and what to do instead.

Why defining a clear goal and strategy (with pre-planned tactics) can help you side step unfocused busyness.

The joys of creating leverage—and what to do with the time you’ve freed up.

How intentional, goal-based action will naturally identify the most high impact moves to grow your business.

Quotables

“When you actually get productive instead of just busy, you're producing better output with less input.”—JS

“There is busyness that is not productive in some way or creative, but that is really designed to take up space—it keeps you from facing decisions you need to make.”—RM

“Strategy is what helps you understand the difference between an opportunity and a distraction.”—JS

“Not checking or responding to email constantly really changed my life.”—RM

“How do you get productive instead of busy?”—JS

“Putting some limits on what you do in a day helps to improve productivity and outcomes.”—RM

“If you find that you can't eliminate the busyness, you have to ask yourself: what's going on here? Am I hooked on it? Is it some kind of worldview? Is it my identity? Do I believe deep down that if I'm not toiling all at all times, then I'm a bad person?” —JS

“If you recognize that maybe there's a little addiction going on with your busyness, before you start to shift gears, just stop and breathe for a moment and just ask: is this the best thing for me to be doing next?”—RM

LINKS

Engineering Confidence

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 12 Jul 2021 10:00:00 +0000

How confidence plays out in growing your business—and the role of daring and initiative in your success.

Why you need a handful of marketing processes built around your expertise and your market position—and a few examples of those that work.

How to think about and design your selling systems with both fixed and fluid components.

Ensuring your delivery processes support your selling and marketing and deliver your promised outcomes.

Why your behind-the-scenes operations need processes too—including project management, invoicing and client/team communications.

Quotables

“It's not confidence that allows me to launch (something new). It's that if it doesn't work, I'll try something else.”—JS

“Well-placed confidence says, listen, I've been through this before. I don't know if it's going to be successful, but I'm confident that I'm going to do my best to make this work.”—RM

“What is the market telling me…is this thing I created not selling at this price? What am I learning from that? And how do you build a system around it?”—JS

“It's hysterical how those checklists save us time, but they engineer confidence. Because you can focus on what's important vs. the miscellaneous stuff that has to get done.”—RM

“If you have to learn the lesson every time…you're not engineering any confidence in your process.”—JS

“When it comes to selling, you want to absolutely systematize every possible thing.”—RM

“You’ve already burned the creative energy to come up with a really good way to say this—why reinvent the wheel?”—JS

“Process is absolutely a critical part of being a believable, repeatable, successful consultant.”—RM

LINKS

Battling Invisible Risk

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 05 Jul 2021 10:00:00 +0000

Understanding how bad things could go—what’s the worst that could happen and how are you protected?

Pricing your work based on the amount of risk you decide to shoulder.

Saying no to high risk, low return client requests.

The role and value of defining work processes to manage your risk exposure.

Using peers and sounding boards when you’re doing strategic, high-impact consulting.

Quotables

“What's the right thing to do when you're engaged in client projects, where there are risks and project failure can cost lots of money?”—JS

“How bad can things go and what's your role in that? That's a strategic business operational question that we all have to ask ourselves.”—RM

“If you…take these hidden risks and make them visible, you can price based on that.”—JS

“Most of us who go into our own businesses, we don't like the word discipline…but there's a certain amount of discipline in running a business.”—RM

“E+O insurance, that was my net. Like I could walk the high wire with confidence, knowing that if things went as bad as possible, I wouldn't be in the street. My family wouldn't be in this.”—JS

“If what you're doing is more of a strategic thing, you really want to have a sounding board or two that you can use when you uncover an unusual client situation.”—RM

“Knowing that a second pair of eyes will be reviewing your work is a very interesting little kind of safety valve.”—JS

“We had peers excited about the work that we were doing, trying to figure out how to make it great for the client.”—RM

LINKS

Everything You Want To Know About Retainers

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 28 Jun 2021 10:00:00 +0000

How to structure—and think about—advisory retainers, including the role/importance of a guarantee.

Operating as a fractional CXO without committing to hours.

Designing extra pair of hands retainers that focus on outcomes—including productized services sold monthly.

The landmines to avoid when structuring your retainers.

The mindset shifts you’ll need to make as you move along the retainer continuum

Quotables

“In this context you're selling insurance…that's what an advisory retainer is. It's not about showing up and coding.”—JS

“When you're used to being paid for using your hands, being paid to sit on them instead feels really weird.”—RM

“The people who designed my Subaru Outback are different from the people who built my Subaru Outback and are different from the people who change the oil.”—JS

“You're not going to be able to deliver a home run to somebody who can't figure out what that looks like.”—RM

“If you're earlier in your career…and you do want some kind of stability or predictability in your income you could sell productized services on an ongoing monthly basis.”—JS

“There's no shame in doing the work and creating some kind of a retainer where you can get stability, you can get some continuity and you can build your credentials in the course of working for those organizations.”—RM

“What are you guaranteeing with an advisory retainer? The thing that I would guarantee is the response time. What they're buying is good answers fast.”—JS

“The whole idea behind advisory retainers is they're buying access—to your brain and to good answers fast.”—RM

LINKS

Ask Us Anything 4

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 21 Jun 2021 10:00:00 +0000

The role of trust—in you, in the process and their ability to carry out your recommendations—in choosing their course of action.

How differing perceptions of risk and the fear of change can drive organizational decisions.

Getting behind surface reactions and digging more deeply into the “why” behind client decisions.

The relationship between time, value and urgency as the client perceives them.

How the perhaps invisible—but still deeply entrenched—internal politics of your client’s situation may play out.

Quotables

“Straight up fear of change—where there's a perceived risk—it feels scary. Or distasteful. People just don't like change.”—JS

“Forget what you think is the right decision—just try to get to the bottom of what the client’s fear is about. By asking them some of those deeper questions, you may be able to uncover something that isn't on the surface.”—RM

“Sometimes it’s that they do trust you and they're not afraid of change, but they recognize that it (your recommendation) could fail.”—JS

“If the person who's making the decision doesn't reap any of the benefits, they're just not interested in putting their head on the chopping block.”—RM

“Maybe the person who's making the decision is new and hasn't got the political capital to do it.”—JS

“The whole theme of this is don't rely on your logic. Because your logic doesn't matter. It's how the client looks at it—it’s their perception of the situation that is going to drive the decision.”—RM

“Money is only part of the investment. There's also a time investment for any project.”—JS

“This is not about being manipulative. It's just really digging in to their situation and trying to understand what their life is like inside this organization.”—RM

Got a question for us?

Do you have a question that you'd like us to answer on the show? We'd love to hear from you! Email a voice recording to Jonathan at asktboa@jonathanstark.com and we'll add it to the queue.

LINKS

When To Negotiate

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 14 Jun 2021 10:00:00 +0000

Writing a proposal that offers up non-price options that make for easy negotiation wins.

Positioning yourself and your work to minimize—if not downright eliminate—discount requests.

Anchoring your fees in value instead of time so you can focus potential discounting discussions on outcomes vs. inputs.

Offering guarantees or warranties—and why these are a lot less risky than you think.

Working around the perils of dealing with procurement.

Dealing with potential scope changes, both up-front and as your work unfolds.

Quotables

“The thing about getting into price negotiations with clients is that if you…concede the first time, then it's almost like their moral obligation to negotiate every single time after that.”—JS

“When you make that decision that you're not going to negotiate on price, it actually makes everything else easier.”—RM

“I put one thing in the proposal that's so preposterous that it's the thing that people always want to negotiate.”—JS

“You're positioning yourself and your work in their minds.”—RM

“If someone was going to refer me to someone else, the thing I want them to say is he's expensive, but it's worth it.”—JS

“You're anchoring your fees in the outcome versus what a lot of people do—anchor their fees in time.”—RM

“Offering a written guarantee on your services is like a five year, 50,000 mile guarantee on a car.”—JS

“This is all about really creating the relationship you want with your clients…the minute we start to negotiate on price, it changes the dynamic of the relationship.”—RM

LINKS

Improv For Authorities

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 07 Jun 2021 10:00:00 +0000

Why even as an authority, you don’t need to know everything.

The “rules” of improv and how to develop your own framework.

Handling Q+A after a talk (hint: positioning your talk strategically almost guarantees you won’t get stumped by a technical question).

Running sales calls with a three-step process that allows you to let go of the formalities and focus on your client’s desired outcomes.

How to get the most out of exploratory meetings with potential partners and influencers.

Quotables

“In a sales interview…or a sales meeting, you're on the spot. You don't get a do over. You just have to look at it as practice for the next time.”—JS

“It is almost impossible to be stumped if you're positioning the talk with a strategic intent. People probably aren't going to be asking you technical questions—they're going to be asking you the strategic or even visionary questions.”—RM

“If you're doing Q + A and somebody hits you with a stumper of a question, you could turn it back to the audience…and say, 'Ah, interesting question. Does anybody else have the same issue?'”—JS

“When in a sales meeting, I want to be the instrument to get them where they want to go.”—RM

“If you're looking for an improv framework, look no further than The Why Conversation, where I talk about the three different why questions for running a sales interview.”—JS

“If the conversation is a little too tactical, asking that next level up question, or even two levels up question is going to help make it strategic. And it's also going to frame how they see you.”—RM

“In the sales meeting, there's this back and forth. It's like a volley of tennis—you've just got to keep hitting the ball back over the net.”—JS

“You don’t want to be the guy on the white horse coming in with all of the answers on what their transformation should look like. The answer is in the client and it's our job to ferret it out.”—RM

LINKS

Getting The Best Answers

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 31 May 2021 10:00:00 +0000

How to get feedback on a new offering you’re considering.

The art of asking for—and securing—permission to ask almost anything you’d like (this may be the step you’ve been missing if you’ve been striking out).

Getting yourself booked as a podcast guest, even if you’re just starting.

The role of trust in how you approach the answerer and position your question.

The optimal way to solicit feedback in an on-line community—and the sure way to never get the answers you really need.

Quotables

“The first piece of how to ask a really good question is picking the person you're going to ask.”—JS

“If you want an answer to a question (in email), ask the question right up front and ideally give the answerer enough information that they can help you.”—RM

“If you do the question up front, I don't consider that to be blunt. I would put the question up front and then have whatever context you think is necessary, the minimum amount of viable context.”—JS

“The headline…give that some attention. And then what's the question and how are you asking it? If you hook us, we're going to read the rest.”—RM

“I think the wrong way (to pitch yourself as a podcast guest) is to just sort of tout your credentials and say let me know if you'd like to set up a call.”—JS

“You wouldn't believe how many people have pitched themselves to my clients who have a no guest podcast—you’ve got to do your homework.”—RM

“If this sounds like a lot of work (pitching yourself), it is. And guess what? That's why it's not spam.”—JS

“The more specific you can be, the more helpful feedback you're going to get.”—RM

LINKS

Finding Your (Authority) Voice

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 24 May 2021 10:00:00 +0000

What we mean by finding your voice and why it’s worth doing.

Why you need a point of view to dig into your (authority) voice—and how to build yours.

How constantly refining and testing your voice helps you grow your audience and your business.

The role of authenticity—and finding the right balance of being the real you with performing at your best.

How to know when your voice is clicking with your audience (or not).

Quotables

“Your voice…is the most authentic connection that you have with your audience, but it's not just about you. It's about your ideas and how you translate those to the audience in a powerful way.”—RM

“If you're blending in, no one can see you, right? It's like having camouflage on.”—JS

“There are things you're for and there are things you're against, and that's all part of your point of view and how that gets reflected and integrated into your voice.”—RM

“Look at Gary V versus Seth Godin. They're both saying very similar things…but could they be more different?.”—JS

“A lot of it comes down to your point of view…it's not about you. It's about your audience. It's about how what you do transforms your ideal audience.”—RM

“So you'll have this idea, you’ll see this problem…but no one cares yet because you haven't found a way to communicate it with people in a way that lights them up.”—JS

“We're talking about voice, but it's more than just the physical voice. It's how are you going to translate that into formats that your audience can hear and emotionally respond to?”—RM

“The potential reason for the disconnect (when your audience isn’t responding to you) could be that you're screaming into the wrong microphone.”—JS

LINKS

Bootstrapping A New Offering

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 17 May 2021 10:00:00 +0000

Building confidence in yourself and others about something you’ve never done before.

Hedging your bets so you don’t spend tons of hours creating a course that launches to crickets.

Getting your first customers–and glowing testimonials–for a new productized service.

Price points to start with on a 10X Product Ladder.

A “3 coupon” approach to accelerating an eBook launch.

Validating new positioning statements when you're starting out or planning to pivot.

Quotable Quotes

“How do you get your first customers, your first clients, or even the feedback that you need to create the thing in the right way?”—JS

“I mean, for me, it’s really simple. It’s reaching out to the people on my list that I think this might fit, because generally speaking, I’m not sitting with a blank sheet of paper, dreaming something up.”—RM

“When I notice someone struggling with something, and then I notice somebody else struggling with the same thing, I’ll think, ‘Huh, I wonder if there’s something there?’”—JS

“When you do a launch, your list will get bigger. That’s how it works.”—RM

“When is comes to pricing, people are atrocious at pulling a number out of a hat.”—JS

“What’s interesting is they found errors in your book, but they engaged with it. This is why we need to get over this idea of perfectionism because people engage for different reasons.”—RM

“If you’re going to get $245 for this course, then you can reverse engineer how many videos you want to make.”—JS

“If you think this is a numbers game, you will never launch.”—RM

“I’m not looking for data to prove to me that it’s going to work. What I’m doing is looking for an opening.”—JS

“What this process does is it gives you that confidence that you're not going to lose your shirt, that you know how to speak to your ideal client, and that if a bad one sneaks in there, you're going to be done really fast and they'll be out.”—RM

“I don’t dream stuff up, like, ‘Boy, it sure would be cool if the universe had this in it now!’ It’s always from some struggle I observed.”—JS

Sharing is caring!

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Can you help?

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LINKS

Ask Us Anything 3

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 10 May 2021 10:00:00 +0000

What to do when the three “why” questions aren’t working—and what to do instead.

How to get strategic insights into the niche of people you want to serve (we had a lot of fun using the craft beer industry as a jumping off point).

The best way to build high value, low time commitment product and service options when your time is limited.

How to think about commissions for referring work to decide whether they make sense for you.

Quotables

“There’s a hundred ways I can build this—I don’t want to build it in some way that’s oblivious to your larger goals. A good client will sit back and say, ‘yeah, let’s do it’. A bad client will say ‘Why do you need to know this?’”—JS

“You’re giving them a preview of what it will be like to work with you.”—RM

“If you’re in a conversation (with a potential client) and you can’t get them out of order giver mode, it’s not gonna work.”—JS

“Working inside a business feels like a very labor-intensive way to get smart about a market niche…and you’re still only learning from one example.”—RM

“Sometimes it’s helpful to have no knowledge because you can come in with completely fresh eyes and break new ground and change paradigms.”—JS

“Going into courses and information products is the easiest way (to high revenue) in the sense of setting it up and forgetting about it—but in order to do this you really need an audience to sell it to.”—RM

“Even if you’re the most ethical person on earth, people know that financial incentives affect behaviors.”—JS

“It’s really hard to trust somebody who’s gonna get some money out of your recommendations, especially when it’s a lot of money.”—RM

Got a question for us?

Do you have a question that you'd like us to answer on the show? We'd love to hear from you! Email a voice recording to Jonathan at asktboa@jonathanstark.com and we'll add it to the queue.

LINKS

Escaping Execution

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 03 May 2021 10:00:00 +0000

Transitioning from execution to strategy, including setting up the right boundaries (hint: it’s a process).

Recognizing the warning signs that you’re sliding down the slope in the value chain—from strategy back into execution.

Adopting the mindset required to fully make the shift from execution to strategy.

Setting client expectations and managing boundaries.

Positioning yourself in your client’s mind as the strategist.

Quotables

“A lot of the struggle is: how much strategy do I do, how much execution do I do and where do I find that balance for my own sanity?”—RM

“Strategy can be very lucrative but you have to build that up—so how do you still keep putting Cheerios in the bowl between now and then?”—JS

“In order to really steer clear of execution, we have to put some big ‘ole boundaries in place.”—RM

“If you’re new to doing strategy it can feel like you’re not adding enough value because there’s so much profit.”—JS

“Working as the architect (the strategist) is a different way of working—it’s a different mindset.”—RM

“To shift out of (execution) and just deliver a strategy or an architecture or a migration plan and just leave is a hard shift for people and that can suck them back into implementation.”—JS

“There are people out there who are loving doing the execution and you want to know those people. They’re not your competition—in fact they might be the ones that help you get out of having to do more execution...”—RM

“Your positioning gives you a litmus test…it tells you what you should say yes to and what you should say no to.”—JS

LINKS

3 Tactics To Beat Procrastination

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 26 Apr 2021 10:00:00 +0000

How to attach rewards to your truly essential (but exceedingly distasteful) tasks to make them more likely to get done.

The role of knowing—and accepting—the consequences of delaying action.

Keeping the integrity of your list and why that powers your self-esteem and confidence.

The tricks we use to convince ourselves that procrastination is working for us—and how to reprogram them.

Discovering your danger zone—those things you genuinely can’t tolerate doing—and designing work-arounds so you can enjoy your life.

Quotables

“If stuff keeps staying on the (to do) list, it creates an anti-gravitational pull…the feeling of a death spiral.”—JS

“You want to keep the integrity of your list—if you’re not tending to it, all of a sudden nothing on the list is important.”—RM

“Get the stuff you’re never going to do off the list.”—JS

“The way we end relationships is a really good indicator of how we begin the next one.”—RM

“There’s a tendency to pour all of your time into the things (on your list) that you’re good at.”—JS

“Sometimes we just don’t have clarity—we put the thing on our list but we haven’t bought into the idea that this needs to get done.”—RM

“I know what my danger zone areas are, so I just make sure they’re covered.”—JS

“If you’re the kind of person that likes to have a lot of balls in the air (and you want an excuse to procrastinate), you throw another ball in the air.”—RM

LINKS

Why We Still Need To Sell

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 19 Apr 2021 10:00:00 +0000

How to use empathy and consultative driven sales to fast-track growing your authority footprint and your revenue.

Learning what your people care most about—including how they talk about it, act and buy—so you can meet them where they are.

Why sales is mostly listening vs. talking—and why introverts can be natural masters of selling.

Developing a sales mindset that not only tightly serves your target market, but also reflects who you are and how you work best.

Why the need for connection and human relationships remains unchanged—and how “selling” fills that need.

Quotables

“There’s no shortage of bad examples of selling.”—JS

“The core question we ask ourselves is: how do I (sell) in a way that uses my time in the right ways and is still giving value to my audience?”—RM

“The key word is empathy. You need to have empathy with your ideal buyer.”—JS

“The “game” isn’t to sell this thing, the game is to get the person’s wants and/or needs met and to have a meeting of the minds about what that outcome is going to be.”—RM

“There’s a type of person I relate to better than other types of people I relate to, so it’s way easier to produce desirable outcomes for people I have a natural affinity for.”—JS

“What you’re trying to do when you’re selling is you’re trying to make a connection.”—RM

“Having conversations, building empathy (with your ideal buyer) and helping them achieve their goals—to me, that’s selling.”—JS

“We want someone who gets us, who understands us—whether it’s a product, a service or a productized service, we want something that really speaks to us.”—RM

“If you don’t like the idea of sales you’re probably thinking of it as talking, but really, it’s mostly listening.”—JS

Links

The Secret of Selling Anything

Never Split The Difference

LINKS

Selling At The Intersection

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 12 Apr 2021 10:00:00 +0000

How to pinpoint the intersection of your talents and passions with a demonstrated market of people ready to buy.

Identifying your superpower talent (and why it’s sometimes challenging to see it for yourself).

Why your goal is to create white space in your market—and how to use your talents and passions to carve it out.

Engaging your target market in unique ways that tie to your brand, your positioning.

The power of research and why we don’t do it nearly often enough (and how to change that).

Quotables

“A lot of times our greatest talent comes so easily to us that we don’t even think of it as a talent.”—RM

“You could do an exercise with sticky notes where you write down a bunch of things you’re good at—not just business things, but every thing—and a bunch of things you really love doing. You look for the overlaps.”—JS

“We don’t hire cardboard cutouts—we hire real people and real people have talents and passions.”—RM

“Since we’re no longer limited to the accidental geography we find ourselves in…there’s no reason for you to be limited by your immediate vicinity. Your market is global, almost certainly.”—JS

“You have to research who’s in your space: what are they saying, what are they doing, what are they selling—because you want to carve out white space that no one else owns.”—RM

“If you’re putting yourself out there, being an entrepreneur, starting your own business, why not start one that makes you jump out of bed?”—JS

“Building authority requires confidence.”—RM

“Go “painstorming” in the watering holes of the people you want to help. Find a place where they hang out on-line—find places where they vent…to give you a crash course into this market.”—JS

Links

How To Work A Room: The Ultimate Guide to Making Lasting Connections

LINKS

Keeping Your Edge

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 05 Apr 2021 10:00:00 +0000

Expanding your knowledge through books, podcasts, programs and even coaching from those in your market-adjacent space (or completely outside it).

The connection between moving and feeding your body with your mindset (and sometimes your spirit).

What to do when your ideal routine gets whacked sideways—by COVID, a change in work schedule or your home life.

Wiring your habits—including your physical space—to support your goals and minimize relying on discipline (hint, hint: reduce friction).

Understanding the relationship between spirituality, being of service, contentment and confidence.

Quotables

“It’s pretty reliable that you can read a book that has been a business best seller for 40 years, 50 years and be like ‘Wow, that is really good.’”—JS

“Sometimes we just have to find the right combination of messages to get to us—and it doesn’t come with the first things you read or the first thing you buy.”—RM

“It’s almost like you need a surrogate brain to figure stuff out.”—JS

“There’s something about that flow of energy where everything is firing on all cylinders—that once you experience it, it’s really hard to go back to not having it.”—RM

“You add a little bit of friction in front of the bad habits and take away a little of the friction in front of the good habits—put the apples on the counter and the Oreos in the cabinets.”—JS

“If you don’t put the temptation in front of you, you don’t need discipline.”—RM

“No one is in charge of you anymore—so you have to be in charge of you.”—JS

“If your spirit or your spiritual practice is working for you, you’re going to be more comfortable putting yourself out there and putting your ideas out there.”—RM

LINKS

When To System-atize

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 10:00:00 +0000

The signs it’s time to systematize components of your business—and which to tackle first.

How to find the right balance between building automations and developing manual tools like checklists and reminders.

Using any friction in your business processes as a signpost to ask yourself: Is this necessary and if so, what’s the best way to deal with it?

The role of triggers—business and personal—in deciding what needs systematizing.

How to delegate to external partners and still sleep at night (hint: think mutual documentation pact).

Quotables

“I don’t rush to program stuff just because I can. My experience when I do that…is that it creates an inertia for me to not want to change the system.”—JS

“I tend to err on the side of I wanting to know what is being done by any system…I want to know what it’s doing, how it works and how it interacts with anything else.”—RM

“I collapsed an hour of stressful scrambling into 10 minutes of successful execution.”—JS

“We only have so much attention…to think and interact at our highest level. So take all this “stuff” that you really don’t need to worry about and put it in a checklist or procedural outline so you don’t have to waste your brain space on it.”—RM

“Structure is freeing. It allows you to focus your brain on stuff your brain is good at and not burn your brain out on stuff that’s a waste of time.”—JS

“There is power in writing down every procedure that you outsource.”—RM

“You can’t go on vacation if you’re the only one who knows how to do everything.”—JS

“The time to hire a VA is when you decide your time is more valuable than money.”—RM

LINKS

Taking Risks

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 22 Mar 2021 09:00:00 -0100

The difference between “dumb” and smart risks.

The two questions to ask yourself when evaluating any risk.

The role of the lizard brain in how you react to risk and how to move beyond it.

Why having a clear strategy allows you to quickly assess risk and separate real opportunity from distraction.

How to recognize and deal with the emotions risk taking arouses in you.

Quotables

“If you’re not placing some bets that have a big pay-off, then you’re not taking risks or you’re taking dumb risks.”—JS

“We ought to have a few sleepless nights or we’re not working hard enough on taking risks.”—RM

“It’s very common for people to be scared to do something and they interpret that as the thing is risky, but... the impact is a mildly bruised ego and it’s even a private bruising.”—JS

“Sometimes what we’re looking for (when evaluating risk) is an excuse not to do it.”—RM

“You need to stand out from the crowd. You need to. And it feels risky.”—JS

“We choose the vetting (of our partners) based on our perceived risk.”—RM

“It’s important to know what failure and success look like.”—JS

“If you’ve got a strategy it makes it easier to figure out who to say yes to.”—RM

LINKS

Exploring Failure

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 15 Mar 2021 09:00:00 -0100

How to think about your business as an experiment and failures as practice.

The value of postmortems to understand—and rebound from—failure.

How to put failure in service to your story, your audience and the change you want to make in the world.

Reframing failures (after you’ve worked through the emotions around them) and the role of resilience.

Why being willing to fail is part of the mindset of an authority.

Quotables

“My philosophy (on failure) for years has been that everything is practice for the next time.”—JS

“When you have a big failure…you’ve got to go through that experience of feeling the pain, feeling the crap and then you come out the other side.”—RM

“What’s the worst that could possibly happen—what’s really at risk?”—JS

“Most of our failures are not nearly so public as they feel to us.”—RM

“Have lots of little failures instead of betting the farm on one big thing.”—JS

“It’s about getting comfortable that all those external things—your job, your bank account, what people think of you—if they all go away, you’ll still be OK.”—RM

“If you have a catastrophic failure, you can’t come back and play again tomorrow—you’re more or less forced into a pivot.”—JS

“You have to find the right support from the right people in the right places. We all know who NOT to go to.”—RM

LINKS

Marketing vs. Selling

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Mar 2021 10:00:00 -0100

The difference between sales and marketing—and why both are necessary to run a sustainable authority business.

How aligning sales with your values allows you to sell in line with who you are (and avoid those slimy sales tactics we all hate).

Why one part of successful consultative selling is reserving your right to say no—that this client, this work is not the right fit.

When your prospective clients arrive with different mindsets about their presenting problem that have nothing to do with you.

How successful consultative selling makes your ego disappear as you put yourself in service to the client’s vision of the future.

Quotables

“You don’t have a business if you don’t sell stuff.”—JS

“Marketing is creating demand. Selling is closing the deal.”—RM

“If you don’t like sales, then you’re gonna have a problem running your own business.”—JS

“Are you reacting to what’s coming in or are you going out and killing what you eat?”—RM

“Sales mode is not synonymous with trying to close the deal. We’re talking about a potential engagement here, but either one of us can walk away from it.”—JS

“Know that they (people who enter your sales stream) come in with ideas and expectations that have nothing to do with you…along with what they think might be possible with what they’ve seen of you.”—RM

“I’m the type of “shopkeeper” that is perfectly happy to send somebody to the shop across the street if I think they’ll find what they want over there.”—JS

“In the best consultative selling, your ego goes away. Your client feels that you are there for them to succeed.”—RM

LINKS

Tweaking Your Business Model

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 01 Mar 2021 10:00:00 -0100

Why providing services (vs. products) may be where you start your business, but not where you necessarily stay.

The impact of turning services into products—leverage—on your business and revenue models.

How to package your expertise in new ways so that the delivery is inexpensive—and morph your client/audience base to reflect the change.

Dealing with the identity shift that happens as you morph your role away from 100% supplying services.

Thinking about your business model when you’re starting “clean” with a brand new idea.

Quotables

“The fundamental proposition here is that services are really expensive to deliver…you’re forced as the seller to set your price high enough that it’s worth doing.”—JS

“If you’re selling expensive services—maybe you have 3-5 clients in any given year. But to do something where you’re selling a $300 product or a $700 product, you’ve got to have a lot more people in your pipeline who can buy this, so it changes…who you reach out to and how you deliver.”—RM

“You write your first book and…monthly or quarterly out of nowhere you get a check—it’s a completely different kind of money.”—JS

“You might find you’re making trivial income from a book, but it’s powering non-trivial income from speaking—which makes you look at your revenue mix (how you’ll make money).”—RM

“Package your expertise in a completely different way—it’s the same expertise—but you’re packaging it in such a way that the delivery is inexpensive.”—JS

“As you as you do each “thing” you’re gonna learn who is your ideal audience for this thing. What do they have in common? What about this makes it really attractive to them?”—RM

“Part of the benefit of doing these little experiments…is it gives you time for your identity to catch up with your brain.”—JS

“Once you start to see leverage, it’s kind of hard to unsee it.”—RM

LINKS

Humane Email Automation with Jason Resnick

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 22 Feb 2021 10:00:00 -0100

Why getting clear on the critical path your clients and buyers travel with you may be the single most important thing you do.

Defining the singular purpose of your emails and automation.

Not getting ahead of yourself with “fancy” automation and why keeping it simple will pay dividends.

Making more sales through your email automation by meeting your buyers where they are and helping them solve their problems.

Another way to think about your “cold” subscribers and when/how to let them go.

Quotables

“There are two trigger points in any purchase: one is the intent and the other is motivation.”—JR

“The faster you can understand your audience base and who your customer is, the faster you can make a sale, the faster you can help them and the faster they become repeat customers.”—JR

“Segmentation is understanding a group of people and who they are at the level where they’re all the same…and being able to tailor their experience according to that.”—JR

“What’s your critical path? When somebody comes in, what do you want them to go to next, what do you want them to buy first, what do you want them to buy second, what do you want them to buy third…then figure out what those conversion points are.”—JR

“That daily (or weekly) blast or broadcast or newsletter has a single purpose: and that’s to offshoot people into your next step…I always call it the “tell me more” campaign.”—JR

“If you’re selling virtual workouts, don’t give recipes as your lead magnet.”—JR

“It’s best to write all of these things (how you want the automation to flow) out in a document first and then apply them into the platform second.”—JR

Links

NurtureKit

Jason on Twitter

LINKS

Four Authority Engagement Models

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 15 Feb 2021 10:00:00 -0100

Why being the Pharmacist is a frequent first stop when you start a business (but needn’t be the last).

When operating as the Nurse is the perfect fit—working on a standardish process with clients who want to understand what’s happening and participate in the outcomes.

How combining high levels of creativity and innovation with very little client interaction makes for the unique marketing and branding challenges of the Brain Surgeon.

Why operating as a Psychotherapist means balancing some Brain Surgeon wisdom with serious collaboration skills—and how to market to clients who want to be intimately involved in the problem solving process.

How to decide which engagement style makes the most sense and whether switching your focus might be the right next move.

Quotables

“Compare the interaction you’ve had between a nurse and a pharmacist…the level of attention they bring to bear is noticeably different.”—JS

“I don’t think there is any one profession that always falls into one of these buckets, it’s how the professional decides to position themselves and work.”—RM

The nurse will understand a whole bunch of lingo but hopefully they won’t deploy that on the patient and the patient can speak their normal sort of non-medical terms.”—JS

“If you have the misfortune to need a pediatric neurosurgeon, you probably don’t care so much whether they talk to you in the way that you want—you probably care more that they’ve done the kind of surgery your child needs.”—RM

“When you kind of just care about your craft—you’re consumed with your craft—then the positioning is to be recognized as the best in the world at this thing that somebody cares about but doesn’t want to do themselves.”—JS

“Depending on where you fall (in this model), you’ll want to design everything else around that—your marketing, your branding, how you make money within your business model...”—RM

“A brain surgeon is not going to send direct mail postcards and blanket a neighborhood or put flyers under your windshield wiper.”—JS

“You want your voice—which is part of your brand and your marketing—to match your engagement model. You don’t want to sell someone on being a pharmacist and then oops—you’re acting like a brain surgeon.”—RM

Links

The Anatomy of a Consulting Firm

Managing The Professional Service Firm

True Professionalism

The Trusted Advisor

LINKS

When YOU Are The Client

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Feb 2021 10:00:00 -0100

Getting hyper-clear on what you most value from each specific relationship.

Considering the degree of collaboration you’re looking for (and how to avoid micro-managing).

Choosing wisely when you have a high risk/high reward, bet the business situation.

Ensuring the people on your team “get” your business and your vision while sharing your essential values.

Quotables

“The best way to see how nuts hourly billing is is to pay someone hourly for a little while.”—JS

“Part of being the client is getting clear on how you want to work and how you’re going to measure your happiness.”—RM

“The way to be the leader is to act like the leader…a leader would say no to way more customers than you’re taking on. A leader would be the most expensive—by 50% at least—that’s going to make you look like the leader.”—JS

“When you are the client, you still have the responsibility to choose someone who’s going to work well with you. You’ve got to use your spidey sense.”—RM

“The danger is when the risk is very high the person who is taking the risk can get very hands on at…the worst possible time.”—JS

“It’s really important that you know that they (your providers) know what you want.”—RM

“If you want someone to hit a home run for you, you need to define where the wall is so they can aim for it.” —JS

“It’s relatively easy on the front end to decide if you could trust someone. You can look at their website, you can see how they talk, their testimonials…and you get that sense for how their values and their style connect with yours.”—RM

LINKS

Selling Transformation

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 01 Feb 2021 10:00:00 -0100

Why getting to selling transformations is a process and the multiple ways to move yourself further along the curve.

The elements of selling transformation—from positioning the outcomes you deliver, understanding your client’s definition of a home run and ensuring their buy-in to the process.

Moving from being a master of your craft to fostering transformational outcomes in your ideal client base (including mustering up the courage to make the shift).

Mapping what satisfies your clients to what satisfies you—and vice versa.

Building transformations into your business model—how you work, what you deliver and how you get paid.

Quotables

“When you get to the phase where you’re focusing on transformations, not coincidentally you’re also to the point where you can start value pricing for projects.”—JS

“It’s really tough to get to transformations if the client is telling you what to do.”—RM

“It’s a mindset shift…where all of a sudden you start to notice what’s happening in the other people involved and you aren’t just thinking ok, here’s my punch list of to-do’s for today.”—JS

“We think ‘I’m gonna sell you on how smart I am’ but really what we’re selling is the transformation of the client—the outcome.”—RM

“Saying ‘here are all the answers, see ya later, bye’ doesn’t work.”—JS

“You start to say oh—so I did that, I did this great thing but that client put it on a shelf. But this client used it and then told me how great it was. What’s the difference between those two?”—RM

“It’s more likely you’ll produce raving fans if you know what the outcome is that they’re looking for.”—JS

“Helping a client think through all the strategic “stuff”—the picture of where they’re going and the why plus all the outcomes—is a gift you give the client. Even if they don’t hire you.”—RM

LINKS

Marketing Mindset

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 25 Jan 2021 10:00:00 -0100

How to think about “good” marketing so that you naturally build it into running your business.

Why your big idea—your mission—gives you everything you need to always be thinking with a marketing mindset.

Thinking about marketing as helping other people with your brand of wisdom—in ways and on platforms that suit you, your audience and your message.

Why sharing your biggest insights is a far better strategy than holding onto them for a select few.

How to scale your marketing to serve both your audience and your business.

Quotables

“You don’t see good marketing and you do see bad marketing.”—JS

“Marketing is fun! It’s sharing your expertise and your mission—the transformational change you want to make in your audience.”—RM

“If the people whose condition you can improve don’t know you exist then you can’t help them.”—JS

“What we want to do with good marketing is to get an emotional response in our audience.”—RM

“Don’t keep anything back—share your biggest insights.”—JS

“Identifying your mission and the outcomes you want is critical to making your marketing work...what’s the transformation you want to make in your audience?”—RM

LINKS

Email Challenge 2021

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 18 Jan 2021 10:00:00 -0100

Getting started with an email list—how to write, what to write, where to write (and how to know when you’re ready to begin).

Growing your list and deciding what moves to make if your list growth stagnates.

The power of collaborating—appearing on other podcasts for example—to grow your audience.

How to use launches—both free and paid—to grow your list.

Top strategies and tactics to reliably grow your list—from using lead magnets to live digital events (and how to avoid the social media trap).

Quotables

“Email has got the best combination of features for someone who’s trying to grow an audience and be perceived as an authority.”—JS

“People for the most part are thoughtful and kind and sometimes they’ll give you an atta boy or atta girl just when you need it. And other times they’ll give you a perspective you just hadn’t thought of.”—RM

“There are two factors (about sharing other platforms): the size of their audience and their compatibility—how open they are to your particular message.”—JS

“When you have a good editor (of a media site) they’re protecting the voice of the outlet. But make no mistake—you’re working for them for free.”—RM

“The structure of a webinar—and the expectation when you sign up for a webinar—is that you’re gonna be giving your email address.”—JS

“When you do these kinds of free challenges—whether they’re audio, video, writing, with or without a slack channel—they will increase your email subscribers.”—RM

LINKS

Distraction vs. Opportunity

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 11 Jan 2021 10:00:00 -0100

The role of your strategy in deciding whether something is a distraction or an opportunity.

Why it’s worth your time to determine the motivation and mindset behind the people approaching you with ideas.

Aligning your goals with the ongoing decisions you need to make to keep delivering and funding your mission.

When saying yes to distractions becomes a form of procrastination (and how to kick the habit).

Knowing what’s a good use of your time and convincing yourself to stick to your own rules.

Quotables

“At the end of the day, strategy is the litmus test that would separate…distraction and opportunity.”—JS

“If you feel like someone is sweet-talking you..look to their materials—their website, social media handles—and get a sense of whether they’re me-focused or other-focused.”—RM

“If it can’t fail, it’s not a strategy.”—JS

“You have to decide what you’re going to get out of this so you’ll know if it’s a distraction or an opportunity.”—RM

“You have a goal, you decide how you’re gonna get there—and if you change how you’re gonna get there, then you’re making a strategic change and that should be a big deal.”—JS

“You have to allow yourself the ability to stick to your path.”—RM

LINKS

Passion Is A Story

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 04 Jan 2021 10:00:00 -0100

Pursue intimacy at scale.

Only create value that can’t be easily copied.

The price you charge should match the value you provide.

Fewer passionate customers are better than a lot of indifferent ones.

Passion is a story.

Never be in the commodity business, even if you sell what other people consider a commodity.

Quotables

“In our world…authority and expertise businesses, when I hear intimacy at scale I immediately think podcasting.”—JS

“Let’s agree that price has to be about value—value is external and our job is to find out what clients value so we know how to price what we’re offering.”—RM

“If you find people you like and you find out what they want and you help them get it, there is value there. So then all you have to do is figure out how much they’ll pay.”—JS

“The important thing is that there are enough people in that niche that you can make a living doing what you love.”—RM

“Dry data is not what people need...data is not effective at generating action.”—JS

“You have a set of beliefs (your point of view) and you’re imparting them to people in as many different ways as you can think of so they get what you’re trying to say and they stick with you.”—RM

Links:

*The Passion Economy Podcast *

*The Passion Economy Book *

LINKS

The Passion Economy with Adam Davidson

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 14 Dec 2020 10:00:00 -0100

Why passion alone isn’t enough—we also need rigor and hard work to build a successful Passion Economy business.

Rethinking your client base as a very tight, intimate group, because fewer passionate clients beat a lot of indifferent ones.

How to get clear on the unique value you bring to your clients—and weave that into your business model (and marketing).

When letting go of non-ideal clients is essential and how it changes the dynamics of your work.

Why pricing should be a dialogue between you and your client vs. a static thing (and why a “shocking” price may be exactly what you need).

Quotables

“What do you want to be worried about at 3 in the morning—cause you’re gonna be worried at 3 in the morning if you’re an entrepreneur.”—AD

“The passion word should convey: I’m going to put me and the wholeness of me into how I make a living. It’s a strong choice. It’s not a trivial choice.”—AD

“You don’t want to be the same. You want to say I do this one thing and I do it really well and 99% of people have zero use for it, but there are people who will love it.”—AD

“You want to become THE brand for your micro niche.”—AD

“1/3 of your customers…are costing you money...if you actually add up the time and how much you’re making, you’d be way better off doing new customer development—or just sleeping.”—AD

“Price really should reflect a dialogue between you and your customer. That customer is getting unique value from you. What is THAT value?”—AD

“What if I doubled my prices tomorrow—what would happen? That probably for most people will provoke a crisis.”—AD

Links:
The Passion Economy
Twitter

LINKS

The Art of Gathering by Priya Parker

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 07 Dec 2020 10:00:00 -0100

How “pop-up rules” can replace traditional etiquette and avoid social awkwardness.

Hosting as a “generous authority” to protect, equalize and connect your guests (and the power of exclusion).

The value of a cold open.

How creating “good controversy” can lead to powerful experiences and decisions.

The importance of preparing people vs. preparing things.

Quotables

“The pop-up rules are so important because they tell us how to behave—what’s acceptable behavior just for that gathering.”—RM

“Having the rules of the road and being the host who calls party foul—that’s what allows people to get into the experience.”—JS

“We have the power to design these gatherings…to make them really meaningful.”—RM

“Exclusion is key to creating a good event…if the guest list isn’t really curated it creates a different dynamic.”—JS

“As the host of a gathering, your job is to be a generous authority.”—RM

“You give them something to stick around for, so that the end is a community experience.”—JS

Links + Resources

The Art of Gathering

Priya’s Newsletter: Text GATHER to 66866

Instagram

Twitter

LINKS

Wrestling With Procrastination

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 30 Nov 2020 10:00:00 -0100

Why there is no such thing as being “too busy” to give your attention to the most important things in your life.

Discovering the energy that comes from completing essential work (and the thrill of eliminating the unnecessary).

Defeat resistance before it starts.

How to keep investing in yourself and your business, even with a heavy client load.

Quotables

“When I finish a bunch of my stuff—I have like 15 things on my daily list—all in the morning, the day feels very different…it feels like I have a free day.”—JS

“When we leave an employer, we tend to take our habits with us…we work that many hours whether we need to or not.”—RM

“I have my to-do list open everywhere.”—JS

“Part of dealing with procrastination is re-wiring our brains.”—RM

“It’s so much easier to create a habit that’s daily.”—JS

“Once you make something a habit…you don’t have to think about it.”—RM

Links

Outer Order, Inner Calm

The Power of Habit

LINKS

Consulting Success with Michael Zipursky

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 23 Nov 2020 10:00:00 -0100

The mindset—and preparation—you need to leave a corporate job and build a successful consulting business.

Why consultants willing to develop an entrepreneurial skillset are more likely to create a sustainable business.

The role of leverage in growing your revenue, while decoupling it with your time.

How to build and run a highly successful business while traveling the world (or raising your family, practicing your art or any other personal ambition).

Why deciding to ignore limiting beliefs is the first step to creating a sustainable business.

Quotables

“Develop content and get those ideas out there. Don’t wait, even if you are employed right now.”—MZ

“Look at all the different people around you—colleagues, your boss, vendors, suppliers…and try to invest in those relationships now. ”—MZ

“Productizing parts of your offer allows your clients to get great benefit and value without your direct involvement.”—MZ

“Get very clear about the lifestyle you want…then figure out the right business model and the right strategy and the right approach to create the lifestyle you want.”—MZ

“People making the transition from corporate to consulting have a limiting belief: that they have to do what they’ve seen others do.”—MZ

“Complexity doesn’t scale.”—MZ

Links

Consulting Success

Consulting Blueprint

LINKS

Dreaming Big with Carrie Locklyn

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 16 Nov 2020 10:00:00 -0100

The role of early goal setting in propelling Carrie from mastering triple pirouettes to a world tour with Mariah Carey.

Working through transitions to break into your next business level—and the signs when a transition is hovering.

Taking the pressure off making money on your dream by keeping up other income streams.

Carving out a niche for your business while also building a personal brand.

Making Instagram work to grow your business without letting it take over your life (and how to use it to provide bona fides for your referral sources).

The value of giving yourself grace while you’re chasing your big dreams.

Quotables

“I always kept my side hustle…if I could take the energy and the power away from having to make money off my dream…then it left this creative space and it kept my mind clear.”—CL

“Finding your niche is paying attention to what’s getting you hired. How is your brand being pushed out there—what is the thing that people hang onto?”—CL

“If we’re showing our faces (on Instagram)…we’re showing that little clip of what we did this weekend, it makes us trustworthy, like someone can actually reach out and have a conversation with us.”—CL

“It’s accepting that lane that you’re in (your niche) and then focusing on that lane and becoming the authority within that lane.”—CL

“Early on, I was taught a few things and one of them was to always say yes when an opportunity comes your way in the area of what you want to do.”—CL

“It’s keeping the faith in those middle moments (between transitions) where you feel like the floor is coming out from underneath of you—remembering back to why you started it.”—CL

“Communication and building relationships within the areas of your expertise…is just as important as being an authority.”—CL

Links

Website

Instagram

Twitter

LINKS

Using Power To Build Your Authority

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 09 Nov 2020 10:00:00 -0100

Why the power of your expertise—arguably the key skill of a consultant—pales in comparison to the “softer” powers you’ll need to make sure your advice sticks.

How to think about the types of power you hold as a consultant.

Using your power to move client projects forward while building your business.

When the power-forward, speed-based mode of consulting is more efficient—but less effective.

Figuring out which person(s) on your project is the skeptic—and engaging them in the process so you win them over.

The role of generosity and charisma in building relationship power.

Quotables

“The power of expertise doesn’t work if you don’t get your expertise used. Consulting skills are a form of power that you wield when you use them well.”—RM

“People in the hierarchy have their own personal goals that may or may not align with the overall project goal.”—JS

“Sometimes that person who’s really quiet is actually undermining every thing you’re doing.”—RM

“If you don’t have buy-in, when you’re gone they’re just going to switch back to the old way.”—JS

“When we start working collaboratively, our ego tends to get tamped down…we sublimate our ego in service to the project.”—RM

“If the way the team wants to do it is going to get them to the goal and they’ll feel ownership over it, that’s probably more important than you jamming your beautiful design down their throat.”—JS

Links

Buy In

Impro

LINKS

Ask Us Anything 2

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 02 Nov 2020 10:00:00 -0100

How to create memorable digital content and leads that build a pipeline of future clients/customers.

What role does social capital play on the road to authority?

Positioning yourself to value price engagements when your projects don’t have an end date—and you’re currently charging hourly or by retainer.

How to apply positioning in the context of music and musicians—is this process different when dealing with an “esoteric” specialty?

What do you see ahead for The Business of Authority as you hit 250 episodes in 2022?

Quotables

“Show up with a posture of service and just help people. Turn strangers into friends and just genuinely care about helping—and do it as much as you can for free.”—JS

“You build social capital with your audience, i.e. the people that you resonate with…it’s about figuring out who your people are and building social capital with those people.”—RM

“The first thing you have to ask yourself is "am I going to be an artist or a business person?” because it will cause you to make different choices.”—JS

“You’ve got the opportunity—because you really understand your audience and the struggles they go through—to render them a unique service.”—RM

Links

How To Make It In The New Music Business

Your Music And People

Kevin Kelly

Got a question for us?

Do you have a question that you'd like us to answer on the show? We'd love to hear from you! Email a voice recording to Jonathan at asktboa@jonathanstark.com and we'll add it to the queue.

LINKS

Making The Leap To Consulting

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 26 Oct 2020 09:00:00 -0100

How to build a financial and emotional runway from your current job to freelancing.

Using difficult or turbulent times to build a new business.

Starting with a niche—and fine-tuning it after your first year of consulting.

Getting clear on your best clients and the right conditions to deliver your best work.

How to learn the two most important skill sets to run your consulting business (and neither one is your technical prowess).

Quotables

“The issue that people wrestle with here is risk mitigation…what can I do to decrease this perception of risk?”—JS

“Everyone has a different risk tolerance for having money in the bank or not having money in the bank.”—RM

“To get someone on a mailing list…there needs to be a value proposition.”—JS

“Experimenting with a side hustle…gives you an opportunity to try out different audiences to see what space you play in best.”—RM

Links

Flawless Consulting

The Trusted Advisor

E-Myth Revisited

LINKS

Startup Parent with Sarah K Peck

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 19 Oct 2020 10:00:00 +0000

The birth of Startup Pregnant (which led to Startup Parent) via a book proposal that led to a podcast that led to a business.

Turning a podcast into a money-making endeavor on your terms (hint: pitching people you know with a compelling story).

The power of connecting one-to-one vs. one-to-many—and how to build it into your routine without interrupting your flow.

The deep need for community among parents as the nature of work changes, society and parenting norms evolve and the pandemic creates new pressure on mothers especially.

Getting paid to do research as a way to fund your mission.

Quotables

“The lessons we learn from parenting are so powerful and presence-inducing. It’s very humbling to realize that maybe you don’t have control.”—SKP

“Friday is my marketing day. I have a project called Friday marketing, and one of my tasks is texting 20 people—because we just want to catch up…it’s really fun and all it takes is a tiny bit of instigation.”—SKP

“Underneath it all, connection is one on one. So it doesn’t matter what platform you’re using. If you’re on Facebook, if you’re sending a message to one person, if you’re doing a common thread that’s kind and generous with one person, that’s connection. Everything else is consumption.”—SKP

“We don’t have to do things the way they’ve always been done. We can create the future we want to see.”—SKP

“Everyone thinks that information or a strategy or a process or a template is the thing they’re selling, but the true value for almost every program they’re selling is the connection.”—SKP

“If you can’t do a big project, do a small project. Do what you can with the time you have.”—SKP

Links

Startup Parent

Sarah K. Peck

LINKS

Is It Time To Start Pitching Media?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 12 Oct 2020 10:00:00 +0000

The signs you’re ready to start pitching to media.

Identifying the right media for you today—bloggers and podcasters, niche media and name brand digital and print outlets.

How to think of and treat journalists to capture their attention and get your message heard.

The role of media attention in building your authority and your business (hint: it is often NOT a straight line).

Deciding which success criteria matter most and how to use them to guide your decisions and attention.

Quotables

“One sign that you know you’ve got something is where you have a hook to a really hot story. There are times—and 2020 is one of them—where there are only two or three really hot stories.”—RM

“You need to be measuring something—even if it’s intangible…know WHY you’re doing it (pitching media) or you’ll feel like you’re shouting into the void.”—JS

“When it comes to authority…we want our name associated with our ideas, and that means media.”—RM

“The “trick” is to look at media as a potential long-term relationship and you just start helping—you develop a posture of service.”—JS

“Sometimes you have a favorite publication and you realize they don’t cover your topic at all or they do it in a way you think is insufficient. Pitch them!” —RM

“If my strategy is to get a monthly column in a big publication then I’ll pick different outlets to reach out to than if my success metric was to increase the number of my email subscribers.”—JS

LINKS

Ask Us Anything

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 05 Oct 2020 10:00:00 +0000

What kind of pricing model would you recommend to a consulting agency that has traditionally relied on a retainer model?

How do you think international business and economics can and should impact pricing? I’ve seen agencies price certain fixed cost products lower in certain countries to make them more accessible.

How should small businesses consider reorienting their offerings within the current economic situation? Is now the time to be moving toward industries that are profitable or focusing on industries with high value problems to solve?

Do you have any specific tactics or strategies to get customers on the phone and ask them questions that will help you get insight into the problems they’re experiencing so you can better position and market yourself?

What are your thoughts on vertical vs. horizontal positioning and what sort of marketing would you do with either one of them?

Quotables

“For a recurring model, I like to go with an advisory retainer where you’re not doing execution, but making yourself available at the drop of a hat to answer questions.”—JS

“You want to make sure that you’re not giving away so much that you can’t stay with the mission.”—RM

“Help people you like get what they want. I’m not a fan of chasing opportunity. I like opportunity to come to me.”—JS

“Who do you want to help succeed, who do you want to transform…and what’s that particular transformation that you make in a way no one else does. There’s your power.”—RM

Links

Email Rochelle

Email Jonathan

The Introduction Game

Celeste Headlee TEDx 10 Ways To Have A Better Conversation

Got a question for us?

Do you have a question that you'd like us to answer on the show? We'd love to hear from you! Email a voice recording to Jonathan at asktboa@jonathanstark.com and we'll add it to the queue.

LINKS

Writing Proposals

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 28 Sep 2020 10:00:43 +0000

When it makes sense to write a proposal and when to take a pass.

The role of the sales interview in writing your proposal.

How to capture the essence of the outcomes you’ll deliver in non-jargon (and avoid weasel words).

Enticing your clients to actually read your proposal and learning to anchor high with the value you’re delivering.

Adopting the posture of an expert and carrying it through in your proposal.

Quotables

“If you do a good job in the sales interview the proposal writes itself.”—JS

“Every human being wants to be heard. So when you read a proposal and you go “Oh my God, they get it”…it’s huge.”—RM

“Imagine that your contact is going to take your proposal and show it to their spouse or their CFO or their Board…it needs to be thoroughly 100% clear to a 10 year old.”—JS

“Clients will tell you a low (budget) number and a newbie tries to hit that number. That’s the mistake.”—RM

“Budget doesn’t matter…it’s is a made-up number that they (the client) based on a self diagnosis.”—JS

“Consulting: you’re not an employee, they (the client) are not directing you. You are leading them to the promised land.”—RM

LINKS

Heck Yeah Headlines

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 21 Sep 2020 10:00:25 +0000

This week on TBOA, Rochelle and I talk about the importance of knowing how to get your clients to shout “Heck, yeah!”

Talking Points

What your website is for
Who your website is for
What you want to happen in the first second a visitor lands on your page
The importance of knowing the language of your ideal buyer
What to do if niching down on an ideal buyer feels too risky

Quotable Quotes

“If your site isn’t getting you leads, it’s broken. It might as well be down.”—JS

“It’s really hard to decide what to say when you don’t know who you’re talking to.”—JS

“It’s not about you. The client is the hero.”—RM

“One attention grabbing headline can make all the difference.”—RM

“Lots of people misuse Simon Sinek’s ‘Start With Why’ concept.”—JS

“If you can articulate your client’s problem better than they can, they’ll assume you have the solution.”—JS

“I know when people reach the right level of specificity because the words start flowing.”—JS

“I’ve almost never encountered someone who was too niched down.”—JS

“Before you give up on the niche, revisit your messaging.”—RM

“There’s no way around it. You need to have conversations with your ideal buyers and REALLY listen to what they say.”—JS

“To grow your business, listen to your ideal buyers and then speak their language.”—RM

Related links

We want you to be a part of our 150th episode!

We’re planning a special episode for #150 and you can have a chance to participate! Just record your question and send it to me at jstark@jonathanstark.com and if it’s chosen, we will play your question and answer it on the show.

Yours,

—J

LINKS

Leading vs Exploring

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 14 Sep 2020 10:00:02 +0000

We're planning a special episode for #150 and you can have a chance to participate! Just record your question and send it to either of us and if it's chosen, we will play your question and answer it on the show.

Evaluating the continuum from leading (like say thought leadership) to exploring in your space.

How to know when to explore vs. when to lead.

When “busy” feels productive, but is instead keeping you in exactly the same position—neither exploring nor leading.

Deciding where on the exploring vs. leading continuum you want to be (for now).

Making choices to give you quick wins while still playing the long game.

Quotables

“Exploring is about welcoming synchronicity, coincidence, luck and connection.”—JS

“You might have phases where you explore…maybe your business model isn’t working so you decide to pivot and you open yourself up to ‘what other things could I do?’” —RM

“You don’t have to have the map—you can make the map as you’re going. ”—JS

“We naturally gravitate to different points on the spectrum. Even if right now you’re in an explore phase, that doesn’t mean that’s where you’re going to stay.” —RM

LINKS

Defining Scope

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 07 Sep 2020 10:00:22 +0000

What is scope and when do you talk about it with your client?

How to make it clear that you’re a consultant, not an order taker.

Scoping with (and without) value pricing.

The relationship between mastery, value and scoping.

Shifting from doing full implementation to strategy and project oversight (hint: it starts in the scoping meeting).

Quotables

“Push it back to: what is the desired business outcome here or the transformation you’re looking for?”—JS

“You can feel good about your services at a lot of different price points.” —RM

“It’s super important to scope last and not go into the sales meeting assuming that you need to find a way to convince the client to pay you to do your thing.”—JS

“We can all find a way to strip off the things that we really love and focus on just selling those.”—RM

LINKS

Signs Your Message Isn't Working

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 31 Aug 2020 10:00:48 +0000

Note: We're planning a special episode for #150 and you can have a chance to participate! Just record your question (QuickTime is great for this), send it to either of us and if it's chosen, we will play your question and answer it on the show.

What to do when your audience growth stalls—or worse.

How to shake things up when you’re out of content ideas—and discerning the difference between a dry spell and when you need to make real change.

When someone keeps “beating” you—and you’re feeling like you’re in the shadow of a competitor. Hint: perception isn’t always reality.

Dealing with a true revenue plateau—including how to decide which signs and metrics to pay attention to.

What to do if your ideal prospects just don’t get what you’re selling or when they’re comparing you to the wrong options.

Quotables

“If you’re going on other podcasts or you’re doing livestreams with someone else and it’s just not moving the needle, then you have to start asking yourself: maybe my message needs to be refreshed or changed.”—JS

“When you’re out of content ideas, you’ve to fill the well. And that isn’t fingers poised over your keyboard…you have to go do something else.” —RM

“We all have our idols—the people we look up to. But that doesn’t mean our businesses and how we take our messages to market should look the same.”—RM

“The way out of (prospects not getting it) is all about conversations—optimizing for conversations. Having as many conversations—virtual or otherwise—to see if people’s eyebrows go up or down.” —JS

LINKS

Seeing Differently with Kristin Smedley

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 24 Aug 2020 10:00:51 +0000

Note: We're planning a special episode for #150 and you can have a chance to participate! Just record your question (QuickTime is great for this), send it to us and if it's chosen, we will play your question and answer it on the show.

What happens when you get so attached to a specific outcome that you become blind to other possibilities?

How to get to those epiphany moments that will open you up to experience a break-through.

Building resilience by looking to your past experiences and applying your existing learning.

How to find the tools, resources and role models to create extraordinary outcomes, even when the deck is stacked against you.

Using serendipity to push your agenda forward (and the plus side of a coffee addiction).

The benefits of getting engaged in your various communities across geographies.

Quotables

“It’s never a full 180 (pivot)—there are always whispers, signs, intuition leading up to that. ”—KS

“I’m fueled by being in service to the world. So that’s what I do when I’m in one of those pits.”—KS

“I was going to take those boys by the hands and guide them to the greatness that I knew they were destined for.”—KS

“I learned to develop relationships—not just asking for, but giving first.”—KS

Related Links

LINKS

Knowing When To Innovate

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 17 Aug 2020 10:00:15 +0000

How to think of innovation when we talk authority businesses.

Warning signs it may be time for you to innovate.

How to deal with and ride the wave of a sea change—in the world, technology, attitudes, your industry.

Acting on the cues that it’s time to innovate.

Incorporating innovation into your business model and routines.

Quotables

“Innovation is the opposite of resting on your laurels.”—JS

“Part of innovation is you’re testing the premise you already have and you’re asking where could it be better—where could I improve this?”—RM

“How does this create a new opportunity for my people that I could broadcast or share with them or some insight on what this makes possible for them?” —JS

“It’s understanding what your value is and finding the market that will pay you for that.”—RM

LINKS

Breaking Into A New Specialty

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 10 Aug 2020 10:00:24 +0000

How to know when you’re ripe for starting a new specialty.

Overcoming the challenges of changing your identity—how you see yourself in your business.

Questions to ask yourself for clues to defining a new specialty direction.

Recognizing when clients are actually pointing the way to a new specialty.

How to tell a connected story to your buyers as you enter a new specialty.

Quotables

“The people that make the transition successfully are the ones that don’t get too attached to their role.”—RM

“The first trick is being open to the identity shift.”—JS

“The second hard thing is just recognizing the opportunity—even if you’re looking for it, it can be hard to identify.” —JS

“The key is to connect the new thing that you’re doing to the old thing you did—in your mind and most importantly your buyer’s mind.”—RM

LINKS

The 80/20 Rule

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 03 Aug 2020 10:00:09 +0000

How to get clear right now on your 20%.

Decreasing the friction (time, process, money) of any actions that don’t fall into your critical 20%.

A handful of ideas to leverage your time on activities that will deliver 80% of your results.

Identifying the actions that are not fun, not easy and don’t contribute to your 80%—so you can stop doing them (or hand them off).

Why freeing up headspace to focus on your 20% can make you not only more productive, but happier.

Quotables

“It’s clear to me that writing is the thing.”—JS

“When we’re talking about building authority, it’s pretty hard to do it without writing.”—RM

“For me, webinars are the thing that has been super productive…it’s fun, it’s easy, people love ‘em and they end up on my mailing list”—JS

“Social media is a distribution system for your content. It’s a way to get a broader distribution of your content and entice people to sign up for your list.”—RM

LINKS

Engaging A Community

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 27 Jul 2020 10:00:11 +0000

The value of starting small, including carefully curating the initial members you invite to your community.

Growing your tribe organically by tapping into existing members and setting a consistent tone.

How building an engaged community can build your authority quickly.

How to position yourself (and your ideas) inside a community to increase your chances of being successful.

How to think about the time you spend building community (hint: we’re talking business development).

Where you’ll get your value as a member or community creator and why fostering more connections is good for everyone.

Quotables

“Growing a community…is not tons of work. It’s just a little bit of gardening-type work where you go out and weed the garden, water it a little bit and come back every day.”—JS

“A community can be a warming plate—how you keep your people in motion or warming up until they’re ready to work with you.”—RM

“If you’re looking for community and can’t find it, maybe you need to start it.”—JS

“Part of building or engaging in a community is finding your people.”—RM

LINKS

The Tyranny of Metrics

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 20 Jul 2020 10:00:01 +0000

When nurturing what you already have is more important than trying to reach a specific metric.

How setting extreme goals can work provided they operate as motivation vs. a source of disappointment.

The difference between progress metrics and success metrics—and how to use them to understand the trends in your business.

Using social media metrics in meaningful ways.

The relationship between business maturity and metrics.

How the interrelationship of your services and products can impact how you measure both tangibles and intangibles.

Quotables

“When your estimate is kind of far off the actual, it can be extremely demoralizing.”—JS

“Social media makes it so easy to measure someone by how many followers they have—but that’s not what matters. What matters is how does it move the needle on what you’re doing?” RM

“You want to look for clients with more business maturity rather than less business maturity. Start-ups don’t have anything to measure—they have no numbers so there’s nothing to move.”—JS

“Look behind the surface level of metrics so that you allow them to show you how you’re doing, but also to feed you in ways that are positive.” RM

LINKS

The Value Of Brand

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 13 Jul 2020 10:00:17 +0000

Why the extremes get stronger during massive change and why you don’t want to be in the middle.

The real value of your brand and the experiences you deliver (vs. what you might think they are).

How price aligns with value and the bargaining power of the market leader.

Deciding which experiences and outcomes you want to promote.

The value of being the head or the tail—and why as an authority the head is way more attractive.

Quotables

“When the internet comes for your industry…the middle gets destroyed.”—JS

“The impact of the pandemic and people working from home is just going to accelerate the virtual nature of work.”—RM

“Be Amazon or Apple.”—JS

“As an authority, you want to be the head or the tail. The more you niche, the more opportunities you’ll have to be at the head.” RM

LINKS

Summer 2020

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 06 Jul 2020 10:00:04 +0000

How a mailing list can be your saving grace.

What to do if your business stinks right now.

Using the level of difficulty in your services and products to decide where/how to invest your resources.

The role of data vs. gut instinct in making key decisions.

Timing the launch of your business changes to when your audience is most receptive to your message.

Mapping out your year (and linking it to your website and other marketing collateral).

Refreshing your marketing with email sequences and podcast episodes.

Quotables

“It’s time to make an assessment. What happens if we keep doing what we’re doing?”—RM

“lf I was gonna make a better future for myself, I’d ask: what are the things I’m doing now that exhaust me and what would really excite me? How can I move over to the exciting things and still fund the mission?”—JS

“What is the experience I want to give somebody who goes through 100 days (of my email sequence)—and how can I give them the opportunity to go deep when they want to?”—RM

“The way to have a good podcast is to start with an OK podcast and make it better over time.”—JS

LINKS

Setting Up Your Ecosystem

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 29 Jun 2020 10:00:24 +0000

This week, Jonathan and I tackled a listener question: What’s the best way to set-up a supportive technical ecosystem—website, email, podcast, billing, etc.—for the first time?

We addressed this question strategically and then offered some tactical feedback on various platforms and systems to support your authority business:

Why email is the centerpiece of your ecosystem (hint: it’s your relationship-building device).

Looking for perfection in your systems is a waste of time—find the ones that give you the functionality you need with a small amount of room to grow into it.

Deciding what you want your website to do—and letting that guide you to the right messaging, platforms and technology.

Why SEO rarely moves the needle when you’re selling expertise—and what to use instead.

The systems and software that support building trust and intimacy with podcasts and video.

Quotables

“Of this list of things, I don’t think the website is the most important...in a heartbeat, I’d delete my website before I’d delete my email list.”—JS

“Your website is the strategic representation of you out in the world—so what do you want that to look like?”—RM

“Invent your own keywords instead of buying keywords people are already searching for.”—JS

“You don’t have to automate everything—you can start small and then move up…don’t let perfection be the enemy”—RM

Links

Later.com for Instagram

LINKS

Naming Your Big Idea

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 22 Jun 2020 10:00:31 +0000

The idea for this week’s episode of TBOA came from none other than Mister Rogers (as in Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood) who articulated his big idea perfectly to journalist Tom Junod.

How Mr. Rogers’ big idea changed the worldview of a cynical journalist—and how to apply the same framework to yours.

A formula to start pinpointing your big idea (with a live example to see how it works in real life).

Weaving the elements of a big idea into your marketing and branding.

The psychic rewards from having your own business and the role your mindset plays in naming your big idea.

Making your big idea crackle with emotion for your target audience.

Quotables

“A great big idea is really concise, really clear and really big.”—JS

“Your big idea is focused not on you and what you do but on the result—the outcome, the transformation you deliver.”—RM

“You know you’re onto something when you find the germ of an emotional reaction in your wording. You start thinking: that’s what I do—it makes me really happy and clients love these outcomes.”—RM

“The less clear your big idea, the more drag there will be, the more waste there will be…if you can streamline your big idea, you can start zooming.”—JS

LINKS

Expressing Your Brand

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 15 Jun 2020 10:00:06 +0000

Getting clear on the experiences and stories that have defined your life and your work (including an exercise to try on your own).

Why you want to suspend judgment around your experiences and instead look for the connecting threads that your clients will value.

Turning your experiences into powerful stories that align with your brand.

Specific actions that allow you to go deeper with clients and prospects and (not coincidentally) sell more great-fit work.

Using strategic graphic design to help translate your brand strategy into visuals (and how to choose a designer that is a good fit for you).

Creating alignment between the experience of working with you and your stories, actions and visuals.

Choosing powerful images that support your message.

Quotables

“Tactics work when they’re attached to strategy.”—RM

“A lot of people—when they hear the word “brand”—think about the visual: a logo, colors, font…but that’s only a third of what we really mean when we talk brand.”—RM

“It’s not a pitch. You’re not trying to impress anyone—you’re trying to find out if the client is a good fit for you.”—JS

“Copying someone else’s visuals makes no sense—it doesn’t pass the sniff test.”—JS

LINKS

Selling Services

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Jun 2020 10:00:22 +0000

NOTE: Rochelle and I recorded this episode before the terrible news about George Floyd hit. We both support the #blacklivesmatter movement and hope everyone will take action to support much needed change. Here’s a good place to start if you’re not sure how to help: https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/

How to make selling the invisible—your services—tangible in the mind of your ideal buyer.

Why once you reach a certain level of technical mastery, your most impactful investment won’t be in more technical knowledge.

What will drive sales far more than the technical aspects of what you do.

Using stories, actions and visuals to give your ideal clients a taste of what it’s like to work with you.

Fixing any disconnects between your marketing/sales collateral and the actual experience of working with you.

The advantages of podcasting in selling services.

Quotables

“We’re taking something that’s not tangible and trying to make it feel tangible to someone who’s not an expert at what you do. “—JS

“Once you reach a certain level of technical mastery, increasing it won’t change how much you sell or how well you serve your clients.”—RM

“Your client’s experience of how good you are is…going to boil down to your treatment of them and your relationship, not the actual nuts and bolts of what you do.”—JS

“All of the small…decisions you make on your website telegraph who you are to your potential clients.“—RM

LINKS

The Benefits Of Focus

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 01 Jun 2020 10:00:16 +0000

Learning to recognize (and redirect) the shiny ball syndrome.

Is this an opportunity or a distraction: how to tell the difference.

Getting comfortable experimenting with strategy-based tactics (knowing there’s no guarantee which ones will work).

Why tactics used by others are data points, not a personal prescription.

How focus—even boundary limits and some structure—can actually multiply your creativity and body of work vs. limit them.

An example from Apple…

Quotables

“Decide where you’re driving and how you’re going to get there. Because otherwise you’re going one inch in every direction all year.”—JS

“The more you focus on one strategy, the more serendipity occurs.” —RM

“If it’s an activity that is…incongruent with your strategy, I’m gonna yell at you.“—JS

“You can get lucky, but you won’t get consistently lucky until you have a strategy.”—RM

LINKS

Building New Revenue Streams

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 25 May 2020 10:00:07 +0000

1:15—Leveraging your expertise into an unconventional (short!) self-published e-book.

11:16—Developing a “set it and forget it” course: how to price it and target your audience.

14:06—Building (and pricing) high engagement virtual workshops.

24:13—On-line seminars (think a workshop/self-paced course hybrid) and the rewards of building a peer group cohort.

30:24—Starting membership communities and paid subscriptions, including how to leverage your time to increase membership value.

34:50—How to deliver virtual advisory and coaching options at various price points and engagement levels.

38:50—Evaluating the difficulty of selling vs. delivering each model to help you decide what to do first.

Quotables

“ Having three options is a really powerful way to increase the money you’re making, but also to deliver more value to people who want to engage with you at a higher level.”—JS

“When you align the way you like to deliver with what your audience prefers...that’s magic.” —RM

“Different packages of expertise create different expectations in the minds of your buyer.“—JS

“If your expertise is around something that really needs time to bake, then a seminar is a great solution.”—RM

LINKS

Inventing Your Future

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 18 May 2020 10:00:16 +0000

2:16—How you can look at the world right now and start thinking about (and even betting on) what’s coming.
11:20—The impact of potential fundamental shifts on how you work.
14:20—Why this can be a time to increase the “altitude” of what you discuss with your clients (and how to do it).
17:12—A strategic way to look at the future and how it meshes with your talents and passions.
24:15—Adopting a mindset that works even when bad things are happening around you.
31:11—Identifying your ideal sweet-spot—where your target market overlaps with your talents and passions.
33:45—Contingency plans to deal with the fear that comes with change.
37:30—The industry doing inspirational re-invention we can all learn from.

Quotables

“In this one year it feels like we’ll get 10 years of movement on this thing (working remotely).”—JS

“Being there for your clients as a sounding board is where you as a professional advisor can be helpful, valuable and rare.”—RM

“Maybe this is a time to be moving up—increasing your altitude in involvement with your clients—talking about bigger picture things.“—JS

“There’s an opportunity here to zig while everyone else is zagging.“—RM

LINKS

Social Media In Captivity

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 11 May 2020 10:00:13 +0000

2:36—What’s happening right now with social media and how to reflect that back in your interactions.
9:38—How to choose the right platforms for you and your message.
14:09—Why Instagram is so engaging right now (and how to explore whether/how it will work for you).
18:34—Joining the conversation that’s already happening in people’s heads.
23:18—The core question to answer to be successful on social media, no matter what else is going on.
27:09—How to create engagement in social media.
36:00—How to put together a social media playbook to keep you focused and on target.

QUOTABLES

“If that’s where the people are…then I’m going to go flap my jaw there.”—JS

“It’s about empathy—putting yourself in the heads of your clients right now…and then adopting that tone out on social media”—RM

“Every single thing I post…I always think: what’s in it for the reader? How am I going to not waste their time?”—JS

“People are going to remember this time. They might not remember exactly what we did, but they’ll remember if we were there or just slithered away.”—RM

LINKS

Social Media Playbook

LINKS

Letting Go

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 04 May 2020 10:00:23 +0000

Are you ready to let go?

Talking Points

The feeling of letting go
Re-evaluating your choices amid the pandemic
Spring cleaning different aspects of your life
Questioning whether you need all of the things you have
Emotional and mental letting go
Reframing your ideas and routines
Cutting little anchors while bigger roots help to ground you
Giving yourself an alternative dialogue
Doing the things that you’ve been thinking about

Related Links:

Your Money or Your Life

Quotable Quotes

“When it really came down to it and I’m staring at four 7-foot trophies—do I really want these in the house?” –JS

“How much better is it to do it not when your money changes, but when you change?” –RM

“I generally prefer when I’m less anchored down.” –JS

“It’s the idea that you can do things differently and that is good.” –RM

LINKS

Constructing Your New Normal

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 27 Apr 2020 10:00:28 +0000

Are you ready to construct your new normal?

Talking Points

How to prepare yourself for the recovery from this phase
Taking your own new normal and your clients’ new normal into account
Re-evaluating decisions and expenses
Giving yourself permission for things to change
Finding new niches and opportunities through being helpful
Questioning assumptions
Make time to really listen to what people are saying
Adapting to a catalyst
Using your extra time
Not holding on too tightly
The difference between worry and stress
Being more communicative during the quarantine
Smoothing out the transition between your old normal and your new normal

Quotable Quotes

“I think it would be no surprise to hear that I think doing nothing right now is the absolute worst thing you could do.” –JS

“I think there’s a part of this where you have to give yourself permission that things are going to change.” –RM

“There’s a strong percentage of people who are taking this time to evolve.” –JS

“The catalyst can get you started, but you have to adapt as you go, or the catalytic event doesn’t do you much good.” –RM

LINKS

Changing Habits

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 20 Apr 2020 10:00:13 +0000

How are your habits changing?

Talking Points

How a change in routine can end up having an effect on your habits
Habits are about long-term goals
Anchor habits
Taking an inventory of daily habits
Maintaining a sense of control with self-control
How personal routines can pay off in your business
How bad habits emerge during uncertain times
Being more conscious of bad habits
Habits that lead to a healthier business
The difference between a routine and a rut
Overcoming fear
Look for opportunities to develop new creative habits

Quotable Quotes

“The funny thing about habits is, it’s really easy to start bad ones, and it’s really hard to start good ones and stick with them.” –JS

“If you’ve got an anchor habit that’s been interrupted by what’s been going on now, or something else that’s going on in your life, you have to find a way to get back the core pieces of that anchor habit.” –RM

“We need to be emotionally healthy for our clients and for the people who depend on us.” –JS

“I’ve actually found it relatively easy to stay on point because I already had those routines to begin with.” –RM

LINKS

Charles Green - Building Trust in Trying Times

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 13 Apr 2020 10:00:29 +0000

What can you do right now to build trust with your clients, buyers and audience?

The Trust Equation to measure your trustworthiness
How to become more trustworthy
Why we and our clients are more emotional right now
What to do when you feel the desire to put your head in the sand
How to increase your intimacy with your clients
Making generous offers (including risky gifts)
What’s the “right” way to sell right now?
Finding someone to help
Doing the next right thing
Making memories with your clients
Leading from our highest selves

Quotable Quotes

“You need to pay attention to the fact that our emotional lives are front and center—raw edges, band aids ripped off—that needs to be acknowledged in our interactions with our clients.” –CG

“This is a fantastic time to reach out and have a deep discussion with your clients—not only to give advice…but to connect.” –CG

“Get over your damned self and pay attention to others’ freak out.” –CG

“The way you generate short-term revenue is with long-term behavior.” –CG

The Trusted Advisor

LINKS

Before You Cut Your Fees...

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 06 Apr 2020 10:00:26 +0000

What you need to hear before you cut your fees.

Talking Points

Why you might be considering cutting your fees right now
Why you should avoid making assumptions about your clients’ needs and financial standing
Having the conversation with your clients
Avoid making decisions out of fear
Change is going to happen regardless
Getting clear about your value
Products with the least personal investment
Why free is better than cheap
Group coaching prices
Adding more value for your existing audience
Giving away video or audio vs. books
Live events
Sending out invoices

Quotable Quotes

“If you have – especially for clients where you’ve got this tight one-on-one relationship – just have the conversation.” –JS

“Blanket anything is pretty much not going to work.” –RM

“Things change, and they keep moving forward. The pace of change is through the roof right now, but it’s normal, it’s just compressed.” –JS

“If nothing else, this whole mess is an opportunity to get really clear about what you’re contributing to your clients' bottom line.” –RM

LINKS

Your Implied Promise

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 30 Mar 2020 10:00:09 +0000

What’s your implied promise to your market?

Talking Points

A listener question from episode 100 (the Seth Godin episode)
What your buyer is paying for
Less tangible value-adds
How brand relates to trust
The “one-firm” firm
Maintaining consistency
Your implied promise
Meeting client expectations

Quotable Quotes

“The premium piece, the over and above part of the fee, is the part that they’re not paying for the advice. They’re paying for something else.” –JS

“Trust is really key here, because that’s what brand really does—it’s building trust.” –RM

“Standing apart from the crowd – there needs to be something different about you.” –JS

“Everything you do—your actions, your stories, your visuals—should align with this implied promise you’ve made to your market.” –RM

LINKS

Positioning + Pricing = Profits

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 23 Mar 2020 09:00:04 -0100

How positioning plus pricing equals profits.

Talking Points

The concept of value pricing
Price vs. hourly rate
Setting acceptable prices
Paul Newman’s Rolex
How to differentiate yourself from the competition so that price isn’t the only distinction
How big corporations choose between different prices
How positioning affects your leverage
Ways to set prices
How your prices can rise over time
Having the courage to keep charging more
A fixed price can be a meaningful differentiation
How hourly billing punishes experience
Selling access to expertise
Owning your space
Impact and influence

Quotable Quotes

“If you’re renting yourself out by the hour, then you’re not pricing anything. That’s not a price.” –JS

“When you lead with your hourly rate, it gives clients a point of reference that isn’t valid.” –RM

“If your audience are big corporates, a lot of times they have to choose the lowest price.” --RM

“If you are the obvious choice, then those other “competitors” are just not on the table anymore.” –JS

LINKS

Dealing With Chaos

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Tue, 17 Mar 2020 20:01:26 -0100

What to do when your business is unsellable at the moment
Staying client focused while so much remains in flux
How to apply your skills to the new reality your clients are in now
Avoiding a hoarder, everyone-for-themselves mentality
Why helping clients and your audience is your best path forward
Avoiding sounding “tone deaf” in your communications
Stepping up and being a leader for those you serve
Letting go of how you’ve done your business if it’s no longer working
Things you can work on now
Doing the next right thing
Adapting to our new reality
Discovering new talents and superpowers
Using any newly quiet space to develop your ideas

Quotable Quotes

“The most effective thing you can do is focus on who you can help.” –JS

“You do want to come up with ways that are client-focused for you to meet them where they are now…their new pains, their new anxieties, their new concerns or nightmares.” –JS

“Even if you’re a soloist…if you’re out there, talking about your big idea, trying to make a group of people better in some way, you are a leader. It’s our responsibility at times like this to step up and lead.” –RM

“There’s a hidden surprise in all this—when you start serving clients in a way you hadn’t expected, you might discover some new talents and even a new superpower.” –RM

LINKS

How To "Prove" Your Authority

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 16 Mar 2020 09:00:08 -0100

How can you prove your authority?

Talking Points

What evidence of authority looks like
Client testimonials
Clients talking you up
Social media following
Regular speaking gigs
Getting big guests on your podcast
Having a published book
Focusing on interviewees that your target audience will recognize
Third-party validation from a trusted brand
Building relationships with major players in your field of authority
Being the biggest fish in your pond

Quotable Quotes

“These signposts need to be difficult or everyone would have them and it wouldn’t be proof of anything.” –JS

“I like the idea of clients talking you up.” –RM

“It’s definitely a big deal to get big guests on your podcast.” –JS

“It’s not about vanity, it’s about literally these building blocks in your authority.” –RM

LINKS

When Prospecting Builds Authority

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 09 Mar 2020 09:00:12 -0100

When does prospecting build authority?

Talking Points

What prospecting means for an authority
3 different pivots
When prospecting is the perfect play
Shifting to a different audience
Techniques for getting your message out
Being a good listener
Being interested in order to be interesting
Getting feedback that starts conversations
How to ask for feedback
How reciprocity helps build a network
Practicing reaching out even when you’re not at a pivot point

Quotable Quotes

“Prospecting is a natural part of what you expect to do, typically, when you start your own business.” –RM

“The skills that you use to prospect are the same no matter what the pivot point.”

“Another word for this that I hear used regularly instead of “prospecting” is “outreach”. –JS

“I think everyone’s interesting if you ask the right questions.” –JS

LINKS

The V Word

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 02 Mar 2020 10:00:08 -0100

What’s the V-word?

Talking Points

Vision shame
Where the confusion around vision comes from
Imagining the way the world could be if your big idea comes to fruition
How your mission relates to your vision
The big V and the little V
Your values
How vision helps you filter out distraction and keep moving forward
Changing outcomes for the future
How to articulate a vision
Finding the vision in the stories
Working as if you have a vision before you have one
What to do to uncover your vision

Quotable Quotes

“There’s shame around not having a clearly articulated vision.” –RM

“It’s your vision for the future. It’s the way the world could be if your big idea comes to fruition.” –JS

“Values is the kind of stuff that no matter what business you’re in, they’re not going to change.” –JS

“Your vision is the story you tell about where you’re going.” –RM

LINKS

3 Questions to Ask Yourself in the Sales Process

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 24 Feb 2020 10:00:04 -0100

What three questions should you ask yourself during the sales process?

Talking Points

Why you need to answer some questions yourself during the sales process
What resources you need to serve the client
Calculating how your time and costs are incurred on behalf of a client
Whether the job allows you to work from your genius zone
Knowing when to say “no” to working in a different way
Knowing how to say “no”
Burning out and checking out
How a particular project or client advances your authority
Learning and advancing your skillset
Creating momentum for your business
Being intentional about broadening your target market
Treating other aspects of your business the same way that you would a client
Tricking yourself into getting things done
Getting your business into alignment

Quotable Quotes

“These are the kinds of questions that are going to help advance you, your business, and your authority, and I think we get into trouble when we don’t ask these kinds of questions.” –RM

“If you’ve recognized in the past that clients tend to lead to more clients that are similar, then you’re really going down a rabbit hole.” –JS

“Everybody’s genius zone is different. That’s the glory of it.” –RM

“By definition, it feels like you have a smaller pool of potential opportunities. But the reality is that the exact opposite ends up happening.”

LINKS

Positioning vs. Branding

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 17 Feb 2020 10:00:14 -0100

Do you know the difference between branding and positioning?

Talking Points

Understanding branding
Stories, actions, and visuals
Narrow or broad focus
Positioning as a first step
Not being limited by your existing skills
Learning new skills
When branding becomes critical
Being intentional about your branding
Telling your story your own way
Personal brands
Figuring out which stories and visuals will advance your brand with your audience
Consistency in branding
The importance of the mark
Defining what makes your projects great or terrible
The value of stories

Quotable Quotes

“To me the brand is what people say about you behind your back.” –JS

“Literally everything that you do telegraphs a message to the people who are watching.” –RM

“You can build authority without having had 25 years doing one thing.” –RM

“If you keep at it, they get imbued with meaning, and it becomes meaningful to other people too, and before you know it, you’re leading a movement.” –JS

LINKS

Time To Write

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 10 Feb 2020 10:00:34 -0100

Are you making time to write?

Talking Points

Jonathan’s plans for 2020
Doing more work without being a workaholic
Why Jonathan created a Slack channel
Making the time to write
Writer’s block
Developing and sharing your point of view
Honing your ideas and your audience
Focusing on the transformation of your ideal audience
Making a commitment to write
Thinking of writing as giving
The importance of editing
Striving for excellence
Getting into the habit of daily writing

Quotable Quotes

“I started to feel myself going back to letting my brain stop. Like, check out.” –JS

“I know that in order to write ten books that don’t completely stink in one year, I’m going to need a lot of help.” –JS

“We need to have a challenge in our own mind about what we’re going to do.” –RM

“You can’t say, “Oh, I’m blocked.” Just write. Just write something. Write anything.” –RM

Related Links

10 in 2020 Slack

LINKS

Can You Be An Introverted Authority?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 03 Feb 2020 10:00:09 -0100

Can you be an introverted authority?

Talking Points

Adam Grant’s book
Giver and taker personalities in sales
Why givers make more sales
When people want someone to be dominant and when they want authorities to connect as humans
Authenticity
Putting ego aside
Methods of giving things away
The evolution of business practices
Otherish
Finding a way to give while also getting your own needs met

Quotable Quotes

“The power is all with the givers in the sense that you can create what you want by helping other people.” –RM

“If you’re an authority and you’re leading people to this new vision, you need to sell them on the idea, if nothing else.” –JS

“We’re looking for cues that the people that we really respect as authorities or experts, authorities in the making, that they’re real people.” –RM

“Another way to put it is you’re giving in a way that’s going to energize you immediately.” –JS

LINKS

Positioning For Soloists

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 27 Jan 2020 10:00:19 -0100

Are you in the best position as a soloist?

Talking Points

The definition of positioning
April Dunford’s components of effective positioning
Positioning people vs. products
Focusing on the clients that already love you
How a soloist can think about forming a positioning team
Positioning vocabulary
Charting your point of view
Alternatives and competitors
Listing your true competitive alternatives
Taking inventory of major life experiences
Positioning exercises
Mapping attributes to value themes
Finding a market frame of reference
Changing your positioning in every place where you exist publicly
Getting your sound bites down on a single document

Quotable Quotes

“I think what happens a lot of time when soloists struggle with this is that there hasn’t been a deliberate defining of that market.” –RM

“People either get you energized, or they suck it out of you.” –RM

“You want to take financial advice from Warren Buffet, not your buddy who blows his whole paycheck on Keno.” –JS

“If you’ve got some feature or attribute that is unique between you and the alternatives that someone might choose, you still need to translate it for your buyer, who is not your peer.” –JS

LINKS

April Dunford - Obviously Awesome

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 20 Jan 2020 10:00:10 -0100

Do you know how to position your product or service?

Talking Points

April’s background
Why positioning is important
What positioning is
Email for lawyers
Problems caused by weak positioning
How solos can identify positioning problems
Choosing criteria that ensures clients will be happy in the end
Positioning the business itself versus individual offerings
How publishing a book affected April’s inbound leads
Books as part of the overall business

“Now I think there’s more of an awareness around positioning.” –AD

“If you’re going to make that investment in doing marketing, there should be a call to action in there.” --AD

LINKS

Selling Confidence

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 13 Jan 2020 10:00:02 -0100

Do you know how to sell confidence?

Talking Points

When clients are buying confidence
The availability of ideas
The link between trust and confidence
Choosing who is going to be a good fit
When clients don’t have confidence in themselves
How trust factors in
Building your authority so that they know who you are
Corporate coaching
Parachute consulting
Building trust without face-to-face meetings
Understanding the points that inspire confidence in your ideal audience

Quotable Quotes

“What I realized was that the people who bought me and my services for this were really buying confidence.” –RM

“Every thought that comes out of my brain, you can get for free on my mailing list.” –JS

“You’re not going to share things or be vulnerable with someone you don’t trust.” –RM

“If somebody needs that in-person experience to feel like they’re getting their money’s worth, they’re not a good fit.” –JS

LINKS

Joe Jacobi - The 5 in 5 Challenge

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 06 Jan 2020 10:00:11 -0100

Listen to Joe Jacobi, winner of our five in five challenge, talk about the art of a good start!

Talking Points

Joe’s background
Whitewater canoeing
The progress from winning a gold medal to performance coaching
How lingo can obstruct a good dialogue
Translating your belief system to client transformations
When Joe started writing and coaching
What Joe liked about the five in five challenge
Whether Joe will continue writing going forward
Finding value in the process of creating
The feedback Joe got from LinkedIn
Joe’s advocacy
Getting out of your comfort zone
Determining what you want out of life
Joe’s feedback for people who didn’t take the challenge

Quotable Quotes

“I’m not scared of slow growth. In fact, I’m a big advocate of it.” –JJ

“What I liked about five in five the most, even more than connecting with people and seeing the content do well, is what you guys are advocating for in the daily communication: it helps you find your voice.” –JJ

“I think people enjoy when I find ways to take them into Catalonia or share Catalan values.” –JJ

“I want to be one of those people that really squeeze the orange dry.” –JJ

Related Links:

Joe Jacobi

Twitter List of Participants

LINKS

Knowing Your Audience

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 16 Dec 2019 10:00:04 -0100

How well do you know your audience?

Talking Points

Translating what you do into the language of your audience
Knowing your goal
Picking an audience
Learning what your audience is talking about
Speaking to your audience in a way that gets your message across
Where to find audiences who are talking about the problems you want to solve
Locally focusing
Conversations in service of a mission
Using the vocabulary that your audience understands
Thinking about clients as an audience

Quotable Quotes

“A lot of people just think about their skills, they think about what their capabilities are, they’re very much thinking about themselves in sort of an employee/resume type mindset and not what they can do for their clients. And when I say do, I mean transform.” –JS

“You want to start with this idea, this picture in your head of who your audience is.” –RM

“If you want to know what your clients are thinking or you’re trying to pick a niche or whatever, go online and find where they’re talking.” –JS

“It may strike fear in your heart, but you have to do it anyway. If you can’t bring yourself to do it anyway, yeah, rethink leaving the salaried job.” –RM

LINKS

Is Selling Subscriptions For You?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 09 Dec 2019 10:00:04 -0100

Is selling subscriptions for you?

Talking Points

How subscription services became mainstream
Applying the subscription model to a services firm
The Porsche passport
Consider what the buyer is actually buying with a subscription service
Buying an experience instead of a product
The types of clients who would be interested in a subscription service
The safest type of service to sell by subscription
Selling access
Looking at the big picture when it comes to profitability
Thinking about which services you’d like to pay by subscription
Getting a sense of what your clients value about your work and whether they’d be interested in a subscription version of that

Quotable Quotes

“I think it’s pretty clear that the idea of subscribing to things that we used to own has become fairly mainstream.” –JS

“I think that our audience has an advantage because most of the people in our audience are solos. If you were trying to do this as part of a firm, it’s a lot more complex.” –RM

“The amount of money I would have paid to not have to go to the DMV was in the low four figures.” –JS

“If you created this subscription service in a certain way, you might find that it’s not your current clients that are interested in it. It’s a different kind of client.” –RM

Related Links:

Implementing Value Pricing by Ron Baker

The Soul of Enterprise

LINKS

Moving From Execution To Strategy

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 02 Dec 2019 10:00:33 -0100

Are you ready to move from execution to strategy?

Talking Points

How to get out of execution when you get stuck
3 layers of strategy
What would cause someone to want to move from execution to strategy
When the client suggests features that won’t work
How to sell and price strategy
Opportunity cost
Separating clients who are interested in strategy from those who aren’t
Why people in the strategy space are needed
Developing the language to get more strategy clients
If you’re an authority, you’re likely to attract a lot of people who want your advice, opinions, and plans
It’s more difficult to be an authority if you’re all about execution
Whether or not you have to keep consulting
Why you don’t need to know 100%

Quotable Quotes

“There is an execution piece and there is a strategy piece, and you can think about any place along that curve, you can set your business.” –RM

“Strategy is probably one of the most misused words that I get questions about.” –JS

“Don’t pretend you’re doing strategy when that’s not what you were hired for.” –JS

“I’m going to argue that we have a real need right now for people in the strategy space.” –RM

LINKS

Five Ways To Specialize

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 25 Nov 2019 10:00:21 -0100

Get ready to specialize!

Talking Points

Focusing on a smaller market may seem counterintuitive, but establishing a niche works
Horizontal specialization
It’s easy to think of horizontal specialization first
Pitfalls of thinking too much about yourself
Consider training
Platform specialization
How platform specialization differs from horizontal specialization
Piggybacking off of a platform’s marketing
Vertical specialization
Niches that you can own
Clients are more concerned about competence than whether you work for competitors
Demographic specialization
Power of demographic specialization if done correctly
How demographic specialization can creep up on you
Psychographic specialization
What psychographic specialization means
Attributes of your ideal clients

Quotable Quotes

“Trying to sell anything to everyone is like selling nothing to nobody.” –JS

“You can be excited about a trucking company. You might have a story to tell about why you’re excited about that.” –RM

“The better the website, the better the leads.” –RM

“I think it’s pretty clear that in the beginning, you’re thinking way more about yourself, and then as you get to the end you’re thinking way more about the other person.” –JS

LINKS

Who You Need On Your Team

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 18 Nov 2019 10:00:07 -0100

Who do you need on your team?

Talking Points

The different categories of assistants you need
The right hand
How many of the things an assistant could be doing are you doing yourself?
Your cheerleaders
Your drill sargeants
Coaches
Peer groups
A few sages
Growing through reading books, listening to podcasts, and finding personalities that communicate in a way you understand
Binging on content
Crossover between sages and branding
Channeling people you admire
Taking inspiration from someone vs. copying or impersonating
Recognizing the ways in which you are different
Charging for the things that come easily to you

Quotable Quotes

“I think it all boils down to what you feel you need to push you, or to keep the momentum going if you’ve already got it started—you just want to keep feeding the fire.” –RM

“When you’re at an inflection point of some kind, it can be paralyzing.” –JS

“When you get right down to the content, the core content, there’s not that much different between Gary V. and Seth Godin. But there’s a huge difference between them.” –JS

“Who do you really admire in terms of the content that you absorb? Because that tells me a lot.” –RM

Related Links

Company of One by Paul Jarvis

Seth Godin

LINKS

When Your Niche Turns Into A Rut

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 11 Nov 2019 10:00:10 -0100

What can you do when your niche turns into a rut?

Talking Points

Are ruts always bad?
What to do when you feel stuck
Narrowing your niche may help you get out of a rut
Importance of picking the right niche
How to identify the group that you’re trying to serve
Looking beyond the edges of your rut
Your unique twist on your specialization
Thinking more broadly about your skills
Being adamant about both your audience and your service might get you stuck
Consider your systems and habits and whether they’re working for you
The ten-day systems challenge
When you need to fire a client
Working with clients you like
Experimenting with new tactics

Quotable Quotes

“It may be that your niche is still too broad.” –RM

“The niche isn’t just who you’re serving and what industry it’s in. It’s all those other things that are how you uniquely bring yourself to market with your audience.” –RM

“I’m against time sheets. I’m not against time tracking.” –JS

“The engagement will not last forever. You don’t want it to. That means you’re not growing.” –JS

LINKS

Wrestling with Imposter Syndrome

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 04 Nov 2019 10:00:05 -0100

Are you wrestling with imposter syndrome?

Talking Points

Why you feel imposter syndrome
Using your fears like a compass
The authority mindset
Taking feedback
Recognizing when something is a learning experience
Deciding what’s best for your audience and how to have the maximum impact
Feeling uncomfortable is a sign that you’re going in the right direction
The confidence that comes with overcoming imposter syndrome
Forming habits that force you to put yourself out there
The difference when your ego isn’t on the line
Getting nervous about a pitch

Quotable Quotes

“If you want things to be better you have to change something.” –JS

“It’s harder to break through with your ideas and your content if you’re holding back.” –RM

“If nothing you’re doing is scary, that makes me nervous.” –JS

“Who wants to work with a know-it-all anyways? We love to work with people who ask us questions.” –RM

LINKS

The Publishing Challenge

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 28 Oct 2019 09:00:28 -0100

Are you ready for the publishing challenge?

Talking Points

The 5 in 5 publishing challenge
How writer’s block relates to your audience
Developing the discipline to create habits
What to write about
Beginner’s mind
Figuring out what pain your expertise can solve
Experimenting with different markets
Passing on your knowledge
Different ways to leverage what you do
Scheduling interviews
Audience preferences for different mediums
How long published work should be
Narrowing it to one idea

Quotable Quotes

“If you feel like you have writer’s block, double-check that you really have a clear idea of who you’re writing for.” –JS

“I would say, go with where your passion and your heart is, related to your area of expertise.” –RM

“Find pains, find questions, and just answer them.” –JS

“I think the key is to just put it out there and to have the feeling that we all have when you hit that publish button.”–RM

LINKS

Getting Better Clients

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 21 Oct 2019 10:00:08 +0000

How can you get better clients?

Talking Points

Getting clients who will trust you more and pay you more
What can happen when you take on a bad client
Improving your client base as you go
Narrowing your niche
How taking on clients outside of your niche may affect your business
How your point of view and messaging informs which clients you attract
Being responsive to how your target reacts to your message
Make a list of dream clients
Draw boundaries of who you won’t work for
Figure out the best way to get your message out
Imposter syndrome
Asking business outcome questions
Defining better clients
Not playing small ball
Strategizing
Knowing what to say no to
Looking at what people you admire are doing
Knowing what it is that you do best

Quotable Quotes

“Every client you take on, you want it to be better than the last one.” –JS

“Each one will teach you something that you didn’t know before about how to attract that client.” –RM

“Courage is acting even though you feel the fear.” –JS

“We have to have this headspace that says we’re not going to play small ball. This is the major leagues.” –RM

LINKS

Seth Godin - The Generosity of Authority

Seth Godin — Mon, 14 Oct 2019 10:00:08 +0000

Seth Godin joins us to explain the generosity of authority.

Talking Points

What “authority” means to Seth
The first things that Seth thinks of when it comes to funding a mission
Two different games
Writing every day
Levels of freelancing
Imposter syndrome
Podcasting
Akimbo workshops
Comfort zone vs. safety zone
Publishing
Word of mouth
Writing a book
Finding your alignment
Making a decision

Quotable Quotes

“The more they charge, the more authority they actually get.” –SG

“If you win the game to be the most generous, then you earn the privilege in the area where you seek to have authority, to exchange status.” –SG

“If you’re not feeling like an imposter, I would argue, you’re not working hard enough.” –SG

“If you think your secret is what people are paying for, you’re crazy.” –SG

Related Links

Seth Godin
Akimbo Workshops

Transcript

Jonathan Stark

Hello and welcome to the Business of Authority. I'm Jonathan Stark.

Rochelle Moulton

And I'm Rochelle Moulton.

Jonathan Stark

And today we are joined by legendary marketer Seth Godin. Seth, welcome to the show.

Seth Godin

Thank you for having me.

Jonathan Stark

Thank you so much for joining us. I'm very excited about this conversation. I've been thinking about it for two years, so I'll try not to pummel you with random questions that are too weird but the first we want to start with, given the show title, it's the Business of Authority, what does the word authority mean to you in the context of a business?

Seth Godin

That's a great place to start. I don't think it means what most people use the word authority to mean. Authority usually means what a manager has, which is power, which is the ability to get other people to do what want even if they don't want to do it. I would say that in your case what we're actually talking about is reputation. What we're talking about is a variation of trust, which is trust to the power of provability, meaning not only do I trust you but I can go to my partners, my bosses and my employees and insist that they trust you as well because you have earned that through your reputation.

Jonathan Stark

Yes, I love the distinction. It's not the boss kind of authority. You will "respect my authorita", fabulous. Okay, so what are first things that come to mind when someone is starting to establish authority? I think it happens over time, has a lot to do with, like you said, trust and that trust has to exist in something and that something is the audience. So, you're on a mission and authority is on a mission. They're moving toward a vision that they see in the future. They're trying to lead people to that goal. What are the first things that come to mind when you think about funding that mission by building a business around it so that you can keep doing it?

Seth Godin

There was a pre-question which I'll do first. Yes, as you pointed out it is in the eye of the beholder. There's a funny joke, being headed executive gets bumped off a flight on Delta and marches up to the counter and says, "Do you know who I am?", and the person behind the counter gets on the PA system and says, "Medical alert, we have someone with amnesia at the front desk. He doesn't know who he is." If she doesn't know who you are then it doesn't matter who you are and this is the McKinsey Trap. The McKinsey Trap is you're getting paid X number of dollars at McKinsey and you realize they're marking you up 4X, so you quit McKinsey and go out on your own and you can't even get paid a quarter of what you used to get paid. Well, it's the same consultant giving the same advice, so why is there a 16X difference in the comp. The reason is because when you hire McKinsey you are not buying advice. You are buying the privilege of telling the board what McKinsey said and that's what they sell. That is my current definition of useful authority in this case. It has nothing to do with proving you are right and everything to do with the mantel that you have earned in the eye of the consumer.

Seth Godin

Now, what that gets us is to is this whole riff about status roles because status roles are everything in our culture. Who's up? Who's down? Who gets to eat first? Why is someone dating a supermodel? Why did you buy that car? What neighborhood do you live in? All of these are status exchanges where we are trying to buy safety, or leverage or authority by acquisition of something that gives us a sense of status, so McKinsey maintains their status by acting like a diva, by not making sales calls, by charging extra. The more they charge the more authority they actually get and so while we may be tempted to hustle to get our authority, to somehow prove that we are right we are actually giving up authority when you do that because in our culture the signals that come with authority are not the same as the signals that come from the desperate chase of proving you're right.

Jonathan Stark

Yeah and that's something we talk about all the time. I think the tricky part for people who are listening who probably agree with that, it's like, "But you can't start off by acting like a diva", right? I mean, that doesn't seem to track. There has to be this sort of progression where there's trust built and then later when you're IDEO and you've got every Fortune 500 logo on your homepage and they're all amazing brands, at a certain point it feels like you reach a critical mass and you can maintain that authority position with these status games that you just referred to. Is that the way you start though? You just go out on your own and you play hard to get with your clients. That doesn't seem like it would work.

Seth Godin

Correct, another great insight. In fact, there's two games and I just described the second game. The first game is a completely different game. It is not a junior version of the other game. It is the game of who can be the most generous, that if you win the game to be the most generous then you earn the privilege in the area where you seek to have authority to exchange status.

Seth Godin

So, I'll use my example. Not because I have an enormous amount of authority because I haven't sought to do that but you blog every day for a thousand days in a row. That's free. You make YouTube videos. That's free but then someone calls you up to give a speech. That's not free. That's expensive and what that means is you don't give speeches for a while because you're not willing to give a $500.00 speech because people who have something to say don't give $500.00 speeches. You will give a free speech at Ted. You will organize your own conference. Organizing a conference is generous but if you want me to get on a plane and come give a speech to your organization, that's expensive and I'm fine if you don't want to buy it because I got other things I can do that are generous instead.

Jonathan Stark

Well, that tracks with our normal story here, that's for sure. You may or may not know this but both Rochelle and I are daily emailers inspired by you and a friend of mine, Philip Morgan. It's transformative on your business. It's not just in the sense of you're "giving away the farm" so to speak in a particular format and being generous and sharing the ideas, honestly I think of it every day as "who can I help today," how am I going to help them, what can I write today that's going to help the kind of person who's on my list. That's great and it leads to all the things we're talking about, the expensive speeches for example, but the thing about it that it is not obvious from the outside is that i...

Marketing Productively

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 07 Oct 2019 10:00:07 +0000

Talking Points

The importance of marketing yourself
Having a strategy for your marketing tactics
Why you have feast and famine cycles
Target markets
Being specific in your marketing
Distribution
Building marketing into your routine
Picking a marketing method that has the least friction for your personality and skills
Amplifying your message with social media
Using social media in a way that fits your brand and style
Avoiding getting sucked in by social media
Why a rut is a good sign
How your body of work can add up
How you can leverage content that you’ve already created
Marketing as a form of teaching
How to form a marketing habit

Quotable Quotes

“If you’re running a business, you need to be marketing, full stop.” –JS

“Until you get really specific, those doors are closed.” –RM

“You may spend – especially when you first start something – as much time distributing, or even more, as you do creating the content.” –RM

“I really want everyone to have a daily habit around marketing their business.” –JS

LINKS

Don't Bury The Lead

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 30 Sep 2019 10:00:03 +0000

Start by answering "What's in it for me?"

Talking Points

Is it lead or lede?
What does it mean to bury the lead?
Burying the lead in conversation
Using the pain point as your headline
Knowing when to ask the question
Letting the audience know what’s in it for them
Conversational emails that aren’t about content
Burying the lead means you’re not exhibiting authority and confidence
Making sure that you’re being clear for your audience
Choosing the right audience

Quotable Quotes

“Burying the lead in a conversation is just as bad an idea when you’re having a sales conversation as it is on your website.” –RM

“If you know what your ideal buyer's pain is, and you can just say ‘hey, do you have this pain?’ That’s the headline.” –JS

“If you do nothing else before a conversation, an email, a point on the website, the way you’re restructuring your website, you just ask from your viewer’s perspective, “what’s in it for me?” What do they get from this page?” –RM

”You want to find the perfect language that will resonate with the people who you’re trying to reach, right? Well then you’re going to have to decide exactly who you're trying to reach.” –JS

LINKS

Staying Solo

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 23 Sep 2019 10:00:13 +0000

Is staying solo the right choice for you?

Talking Points

The difference between “small” and “not a lot of employees”
The advantages of staying solo
Being able to be very specific
Building alliances
Ways to address David and Goliath matchups
When you’re a solo act, your clients always get to deal with the number one person
What soloists need to watch out for
Whale clients
Why you need to always be marketing
Learning how to say a really firm no

Quotable Quotes

“One of the advantages of staying small is that you can compete with those big players by going super, super specific.” –JS

“Big firms are made up of individual people, and those individual people may refer you!” –RM

“Big firms bill by the hour, so… they like slow computers.” —JS

“Some would say ABS, always be selling, as opposed to always be closing, but I think you have to always be marketing.” –RM

LINKS

Do You Do Or Do You Know?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 16 Sep 2019 10:00:20 +0000

Talking Points

How do you know if you’re limiting yourself?
What are skills which aren’t risky and are easily priced?
The difference between someone who does something or someone who knows something
Addiction to “saving the day”
Gouging versus getting money for your services
How the “hero’s journey” works with our clients’ stories
The importance of delegation
Guide versus “Doing It for Them”
Why do when you can teach?
How to keep your skills sharp when you are teaching
Letting go of what’s not strategic
Writing a book
Charging services for “knitting”
The problems with hourly billing
Developing your IP (intellectual property)

Quotable Quotes

“If you really care about your craft, and you want to spread it, you’re not going to be able to do that if you’re always a fireman putting out fires.” – JS

“You don’t really want to be Luke [Skywalker] in your marketing, you want to be Obi-Wan.” – JS

“There’s that shift in your mind where you don’t just have to ‘do’, you can teach, you can coach, you can show the way, you can be the guide.” – RM

“If you approach your consulting as a technician, you’re never going to solve the bigger problems of the organization.” – RM

Links and Resources

The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber
Building a StoryBrand by Donald Miller
Flawless Consulting by Peter Block

LINKS

How To Pivot

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 09 Sep 2019 10:00:08 +0000

Do you know how to pivot?

Talking Points

Taking a new direction while keeping your core business running well
Taking a half-pivot
Tying a new idea with a different message into your core business
Getting people on your side
Helping people
Having confidence in your idea
Marketing your new idea without losing current clients
What clients do notice and what they don’t notice

Quotable Quotes

“You don’t want to be locked into your own success. You want to be able to go out and do something different.” –RM

“All you need is like a magnifying glass, focus your energy, and boom! It’s on fire.” –JS

“If you’re helping people, you will make money. It’s like a law, almost.” –JS

“If you’re worried about changing your website without confusing your current clients, remember that unless you’ve got a membership site, your clients aren’t visiting your website.” –RM

LINKS

Authority Marketing Round-Up

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 02 Sep 2019 10:00:06 +0000

The authority marketing roundup.

Talking Points

Speaking and writing as an authority
Who your content is for
What promises you’re making
What’s good about starting a podcast
Picking something from the speaking category that you’re comfortable with
How you can make your audience feel
The power of webinars
Running a workshop
Livestreaming
Email lists
Video compared to audio
Writing for other publications
How speaking and writing inform each other
Continuous practice
Social media activity
Answer bombs

Quotable Quotes

“Whenever I’m creating something, the first thing I want to know is who’s it for?” –JS

“Your opinion of yourself may be completely warped.” –RM

“Just remember that people learn in different ways, and there are some people who would so much rather watch a video than read anything you’re going to write. And vice versa.” –RM

“When you’re watching video, you’re watching it. You’re probably sitting down, you might be at your computer or in a chair or whatever. When you’re listening to this show, you’re probably in your life.” –JS

LINKS

Making Time For Marketing

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 26 Aug 2019 10:00:04 +0000

Are you making enough time for marketing?

Talking Points

How many hours a week to spend marketing
How marketing can be devalued because it’s not billable
Making the time for marketing
How to block out marketing time
Thinking of marketing as a deadline
Reaching the point where marketing becomes an automatic thing
Making public commitments
How daily marketing can add up
Farming vs. hunting
Being honest about what isn’t working

Quotable Quotes

“It doesn’t happen if you don’t make time for it. Even when you’re not billing by the hour, it can be hard to create – I would call the marketing habit.” –JS

“Marketing should always be on your mind if you have a business. That’s part of the mindset, you never let it go.” –RM

“I think when you enjoy something, it’s sustainable. And if it feels like horrible, dragging work, you’re not going to do it.” –RM

“If I’m scared of it, it’s probably a good idea.” –JS

LINKS

The Path To Authority

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 19 Aug 2019 10:00:00 +0000

Are you on the path to authority?

Talking Points

How pricing relates to where you are on the path to authority
Different types of specialization
The line between freelancer and consultant
Consultant, or expert?
Creating and selling a process
Saying no and asking why more often
Identifying the client
Clarifying the end goal
Moving from expert or consultant to authority
Consulting as an authority
Differences in authorities in different industries
Behavioral habits of authorities
Socializing a point of view
Getting off the hamster wheel

Quotable Quotes

“If most of the time, you’re in your basement coding and you only talk to the client once a week, you’re not a consultant.” –JS

“On this particular line of the matrix, I think it’s about a really deep knowledge.” –RM

“It feels to me like the one-on-one consulting engagements that an authority would engage in would be less and less as their authority grew, because they could have a bigger impact doing something like a keynote presentation to 10,000 people.” –JS

“If you’re an authority with big corporates, you need to be seen.” –RM

LINKS

Why Become An Authority?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 12 Aug 2019 10:00:06 +0000

Why would you want to become an authority?

Talking Points

Main reasons to become an authority
Making more money
Choice of opportunities
Clearly defined thought leadership
Building a business model that suits the way you think and work
Shorter sales cycle
Simplified selling
Power to influence
More effectiveness
The difference between an expert and a thought leader
Energizing others to further the mission
Momentum over the course of a career
Stages along the way to being an authority

Quotable Quotes

“The way that an authority is in the market is automatically going to be seen as a luxury purchase.” –JS

“Really, most of us didn’t get into this business to sell, and what we like about the selling process is that we’re solving a problem.” –RM

“An authority to me, has an imperative to teach other people, and to keep thinking about what’s the next thing in their area of expertise.” –RM

“My way or the highway, to me, is not a leader.” –JS

LINKS

Aligning Your Client Experience With Your Brand

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 05 Aug 2019 10:00:04 +0000

How can you align client experience with your brand?

Talking Points

How client experience relates to brand
How appealing to potential clients differs from the actual client experience
Disconnects in marketing
What bad client experiences feel like
Aligning experience with intent
How technology contributes to your customers’ experiences and your brand
Your responsibility to clients
Customer satisfaction as a product
Being professional without being fake
What being a pro looks like
How the clothing you choose speaks to your brand
Finding clients for whom you’re a good fit
Client feedback

Quotable Quotes

“Marketing and branding should not be about pretty pictures and telling a story that is not real.” –RM

“I can feel the difference when I onboard people now, I can feel them sit back and relax.” –JS

“In an ideal world we use technology in a way that makes our brands stronger, that ties people more closely to us.” –RM

“My actual product is customer satisfaction.” –JS

LINKS

The Experience Economy Aftermath

Jonathan Stark, Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 29 Jul 2019 10:00:13 +0000

Thinking through the ramifications of the experience economy.

Talking Points

How the economy has changed over time
The journey from providing services to providing experiences and then transformations
Customization
Clients or customers as guests or aspirants
How language can change the way you think about your work
Creating memorable experiences
Work as theater
The backstage part of the theater
Avoiding dissonance

Quotable Quotes

“If you’re like me and you want to charge for outcomes and not hours, then it’s incumbent...to try to be climbing up that progression.” –JS

“Even transformation experiences, there should be some parts of those that are fun.” –RM

“We’ve been taught we have to take ourselves very seriously because we’re an expert and we’re becoming an authority on whatever it is so we must be formal and we have to do all those things. But really, it is theater.” –RM

“When you’re on stage it doesn’t matter if you’re in the performance or in pre or post. It all counts.” –JS

LINKS

Joe Pine - The Experience Economy

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 22 Jul 2019 10:00:25 +0000

Are you in the transformation business?

Talking Points

Applying the concepts in The Experience Economy to small authority businesses
Moving from economies to experiences and transformations
How better experiences can lead to worse service
How acting factors into your business model
Why acting isn’t equivalent to being fake or phony
Pricing transformations
The stages of transformation
Choosing who you work for
When to reject clients
Guiding transformation

Quotable Quotes

“We only ever change through the experiences that we have.” –JP

“Understand that embracing theater as a model requires zero capital or equipment. It just requires understanding that you’re onstage.” –JP

“Acting is simply being intentional about everything that you do.” –JP

“With transformations, the customer is the product. The inputs you do, the activities you do, the functional things that you do, the whats – don’t matter unless the customer achieves the aspiration that they want.” –JP

Joe’s Bio

Co-author of The Experience Economy, Joseph Pine II is an internationally acclaimed author, speaker, and management advisor to Fortune 500 companies and entrepreneurial start-ups alike.

In 1999, Joe and his partner James H. Gilmore wrote the best-selling book The Experience Economy: Work is a Theatre & Every Business a Stage, which demonstrates how goods and services are no longer enough; what companies must offer today are experiences – memorable events that engage each customer in an inherently personal way.

LINKS

How To Keep Your Network In Motion

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 15 Jul 2019 10:00:09 +0000

How do you keep your network in motion?

Talking Points

What it means to keep your network moving
How to keep reaching out on your radar
Scheduling
Sensitivity to organic opportunities to reach out
Maintaining relationships
Keeping tabs on what’s happening in your industry and who needs to know about it
Working with people you like
Helping people
Making introductions

Quotable Quotes

“We’re in the relationship business at the end of the day.” –JS

“There will be things that trigger your thinking of someone.” –RM

“It is about helping. That’s really what this is all about. It’s about helping people.” –RM

“Almost always, at least with the folks I work with, the thing that the other person needs to help you is more specificity.” –JS

LINKS

Is It Marketing BS Or Genius?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Jul 2019 10:00:02 +0000

Is It Marketing BS Or Genius?

Talking Points

The $36 jump rope
Sometimes you pay a premium for things outside of the thing you’re actually buying, like an experience or a lifetime guarantee
Why it’s important to understand why people are willing to pay more money for a thing or a service
Understanding how your audience likes to get information
Getting past the demographics
Being clear about your values
Best is subjective
Noticing the story that you tell when you recommend something or give a gift
Picking your battles
Connecting a desire to a product

Quotable Quotes

“When it’s real, it’s not BS.” –RM

“It’s not just the information transfer. If it were just information transfer, then everything would probably be a book or an audio file. You’d do everything in one medium. But you don’t.” –JS

“You’re not making it up, it’s your story but you pick the points you want to tell and how to tell them based on what the pull is between you and your audience.” –RM

“If you’re trying to help people who are into renewable energy, it’s going to be pretty hard to sell to climate deniers. Pick your battles.” –JS

LINKS

What's The Best Home For Your Content?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 24 Jun 2019 10:00:11 +0000

What is the best home for your content?

Talking Points

Controlling your content
Are you building someone else’s platform with your content?
How search engine and social media platforms get in between creators and their audience
Putting the same content in more than one place
Knowing how much traffic you’re getting when you post on a platform
Guesting on someone else’s podcast
Sharing audiences
Yelp as an example of not being able to control your content
Platforms that can help you build an audience can also take you down
Hedging your bets
Breaking through the gatekeeper to get to an audience
Working with editors
Custom domains
Controlling your links

Quotable Quotes

“Google being between me and the people I want to help – I don’t like it.” –JS

“You do have to have control, at the end of the day, of your content.” –RM

“If I’m going to be chipping away at something every day, you’d better believe I want those chips to fall in my basket, not someone else’s basket.” –JS

“Own your content. Let it live with you.” –RM

LINKS

How To Keep Producing Killer Content

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 10:00:13 +0000

How can you keep producing killer content?

Talking Points

How to measure engagement
What’s repeatable about going viral
Knowing your audience
Understanding your audience’s baseline knowledge
Terminology
How often you should put out content
Why you should write every day
How often podcasts and videos should come out
Separating what you have to do from what adds value but isn’t strictly necessary
People trust videos more if they’re more natural

Quotable Quotes

“Killer content is content that engages your ideal audience.” –RM

“If you know who you’re talking to, it dramatically increases the odds of being able to help them.” –JS

“If you go from publishing weekly to every weekday, that’s five times more chances at bat.” –JS

“There’s something about being accountable every single day that makes you literally look around you to find that inspiration.” –RM

LINKS

Take Your Summer Back

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 10 Jun 2019 16:12:17 +0000

Are you ready to take your summer back?

Talking Points

How client work downshifts in the summer
What you can do instead of client work during the slow season
Planning marketing for the fall
Taking care of things that you’ve been putting off or that weren’t high enough priority to get done at other times of the year
What energizes you during the summer months
Using the block of time to get yourself ready for the next thing or set yourself up for a new phase in your business
Diversifying your income streams
Ranking clients
Rethinking your technology choices
Cleaning up broken links and stale language
Avoiding the hamster wheel

Quotable Quotes

“There’s all these little things that you can do that don’t usually make it up to the top of your priority list.” –JS

“Take your summer back. Don’t just sit there at the whim of the client” –RM

“There’s something about having a great idea to work on in the summer that’s energizing.” –RM

“So when things slow down it does, for me at least, give me that headspace to be like “let’s sit back for a second and think about what’s working, what’s not working as well and what I could do to do more of the stuff that’s working.” –JS

LINKS

Choosing An Unconventional Niche

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 03 Jun 2019 10:00:05 +0000

Do you have an unconventional niche?

Talking Points

How to choose a specialization
What you can find out when you go deep into a specific area
Picking a niche that’s intriguing to you
How much choice people really want
The Why Conversation
Focusing your limited resources onto a specific point
Why you should do a search to see what clients will see when they search for businesses like yours
Incorporating your interests or passions into your branding
Why money-based decisions don’t help you find your niche
Who you want your message to resonate with and who you don’t want it to resonate with
Making changes for the better
Experimenting with a change in order to test the market

Quotable Quotes

“Best practices only get you so far.” –JS

“The easiest way to solve problems is to focus on some aspect of who you’re serving and figure out how your expertise can tackle that problem.” –RM

“It’s like hope is not a strategy—luck is not a strategy either.” –RM

“If you want things to be better, well, better is a change. You have to change something if you want things to be better.” –JS

Sharing is caring!

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The Twilight Zone

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 27 May 2019 13:00:18 +0000

How do you handle the twilight zone between when a client buys your stuff and you actually start delivering it?

Why the time between purchase and delivery is the twilight zone
Different twilight zones for different products
Explaining the onboarding process
Giving buyers something to do while they wait for what they ordered
Setting expectations
Helping clients trust the process
Envisioning what you want the client experience to be
What happens in more high-touch sales scenarios
How much contact you need when you’re billing by the hour
Keeping clients engaged

Quotable Quotes

“You’re treating that book like a product, like a service, like part of your business. It’s not something that’s separate.” –RM

“Even though I’m not winging it, I want it to feel like I’m not winging it.” –JS

“For somebody to see that you’ve laid some breadcrumbs… it’s reinforcing. It builds confidence.” –RM

“In a coaching situation, the person who’s being coached really does have to do all the heavy lifting.” –JS

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What To Do When You Screw Up

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 20 May 2019 10:00:07 +0000

What to do when you screw up.

Talking Points

How you can turn a screw-up situation around
Thinking about how the story is going to be told
How empathy can help you understand how the story will be told and how you can turn it around
Asking clients to trust you after screwing up
Avoiding defensiveness
Helping clients dealing with difficult situations
Responding to unsolicited criticism
Remaining respectful in the face of aggressive criticism or complaints

Quotable Quotes

“We ask our clients to tell us what’s wrong, what isn’t working, to be vulnerable that they’re not perfect.” –RM

“Step one for me when it happens is don’t get defensive.” –JS

“Sometimes maybe it’s not about you.” –RM

“Take a breath, think about the other person, try and be empathetic to their situation, try to see it through their eyes.” –JS

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Trusted Authority

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 13 May 2019 10:00:00 +0000

What do you need to do to build trust as an authority?

Talking Points

Charlie Green’s mathematical equation for determining trustworthiness
Getting feedback about what you need to work on
How your website or marketing materials could reveal gaps in credibility
Seeing your credibility indicators through the eyes of your ideal client
Demeanor as a credibility factor
Making and keeping promises
Consistency
Being on time
Intimacy
Making yourself vulnerable
Building intimacy by asking questions
Taking the low-status role
How to look for self-orientation on your website

Quotable Quotes

“The easy box to draw is what the world sees as credibility.” –RM

“I’ve had people tell me a bunch of times that my demeanor is what convinced them.” –JS

“In a service business there’s a whole lot of collaboration with your clients.” –JS

“One way to build intimacy is to ask questions – about them. And listen to the answers.” –RM

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Charles Green - The Trusted Advisor

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 06 May 2019 10:00:00 +0000

Charles Green, legendary author of The Trusted Advisor, shares years of wisdom on building trust with clients.

Talking Points

What a trusted advisor is
Why people in the authority space want/need to be trusted advisors
The trust equation
How people view women and men in terms of trust
Most trusted profession
How taking risks builds trust
Strength of ego
The trust-building process
Cues clients give that show they feel heard
Trust mindset
Social media and trust building
What Charles would change now if he could
How the book fits with Charles’s business model
The evolution of the products and services Charles created around the book

Quotable Quotes

“A trusted advisor is someone you feel comfortable telling your innermost as well as your outermost thoughts.” –CG

“The truth is trust doesn’t just aggregate naturally over time. It accrues in little step functions, moments when you say the right thing and somebody opens up to you.” –CG

“If you aspire to be a trusted advisor to your clients, the wrong strategy would be sitting around aggressively waiting for the phone to ring.” –CG

“We said it’s really not a data book, it’s more kind of a wisdom book.” –CG

Related Links

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Defining Your Competition

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 29 Apr 2019 10:00:00 +0000

How do you define your competition?

Talking Points

Why you need to define your competition
Brand neighborhoods
Communicating with competitors
Being choosy about who you work with
Empathizing with potential clients
An authority versus_ the_ authority
What you can learn from sales interviews
Defining yourself as well as the competition
Researching the competition

Quotable Quotes

“I think it’s important for authorities to understand who around you you should pay attention to.” –RM

“I find that a lot of people who I work with have a really hard time defining their unique difference.” –JS

“I don’t want to take somebody on that really should be with someone else, because it’s not going to go well.” –JS

“You’ve gotta get really clear on your special sauce.” –RM

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Packaging Your Expertise (aka Put It In A Box)

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 22 Apr 2019 10:00:00 +0000

The benefits of packaging up your expertise in novel ways.

Talking Points

The Lambda School
Changes in Schwab’s financial planning model
Value pricing
Packaging your expertise
Making your knowledge affordable to the people who you want to help
Prioritizing money
Connecting the dots for clients
Diversifying your income stream
Starting smaller at the beginning
Knowing how your product can transform a business
How past client testimonials can help you box your expertise
Getting feedback before you’re ready to sell

Quotable Quotes

“You want the price of whatever you’re creating to reflect its value to your ideal user.” –RM

“Sometimes money is more of a priority than a resource.” –JS

“You can create a business model out of almost anything if you approach it as a business.” –RM

“If you want to come at it from an expertise standpoint, the less me-focused it is, the easier it is for other people to connect the dots for you.” –JS

Links

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Building Trust

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 15 Apr 2019 10:00:00 +0000

Do you know how to build trust?

Talking Points

Defining trust
Pre-sale trust and post-sale trust
Domain-specific trust
How to project an image that elicits trust from the right kind of audience
How consistency builds trust
Why clarity is important
Who should extend their trust first
Building trust during sales calls
Making an impression that inspires trust
Designing a website that builds trust
Making yourself easier to contact
Creating a page on your website that answers some of the questions you get asked most frequently
Writing the way that you talk

Quotable Quotes

“I feel like trust is just an implicit part of that relationship, and the more we can make it explicit, I think it’s easier.” –RM

“If we trust first, then the other person has the opportunity to trust back.” –RM

“I don’t even call it a sales call. I call it a sales interview, and it’s just like a job interview. It goes both ways.” –JS

“Tell me if you have a customer service person and I’ll tell you whether or not you should have a chatbot.” –JS

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When To Say Yes (Or No)

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Apr 2019 10:00:00 +0000

Do you know when to say yes – or no?

Talking Points

Mile markers for when you want to say yes or no
Knowing the difference between opportunity and distraction
Creating a strategy for choosing yes or no
Conscious yes
How saying yes to the wrong things can spiral
Outsourcing when you need to say no
Recognizing the kinds of people you want to say yes to
Recognizing what is and isn’t a good fit
The effect of maximizing productive yeses

Quotable Quotes

Without a strategy for your business, there’s no way to distinguish an opportunity from a distraction.” –JS

“A 'Yes' can spiral into a whole bunch of unexpected work and distractions.” –JS

“You don’t want a client nitpicking everything you’re doing.” –RM

“It’s always easier to say yes to somebody who’s got a track record.” –RM

Related Links

Start With No by Jim Camp

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How To Switch Your Niche

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 01 Apr 2019 10:00:00 +0000

Do you want to switch your niche?

Talking Points

Pivoting from one niche to another
Avoiding customer confusion
Building credibility with a new audience
Getting recognized in the new niche
How to handle audiences that don’t mix
Handling social media during a pivot
How to manage your website during a pivot
Whether you can leverage your existing audience
Opportunities to leverage the old business

Quotable Quotes

“Looking back on it, it really didn’t take that long, but it (switching my niche) felt like it took a long time.” –JS

“The more you are recognized for the first niche, the harder it is to transition to the second.” –RM

“You have to find that way, not just for your own confidence but to build your future clients’ confidence in you.” –RM

“You’re going to spin down the old business one way or the other. You’re either going to sell it or you’re going to let it peter out.” –JS

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Positioning In 5 Words

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 25 Mar 2019 09:00:00 -0100

Can you state your positioning in five words?

Talking Points

The single client need
A minimum viable positioning statement
Choosing a target market or ideal buyer that is specific enough
Choosing the right language when describing what you do
Describing outcomes that you know your clients will want
Brand neighborhoods
Getting new clients by focusing on a smaller segment

Quotable Quotes

“Basically, love and fear are the two main motivators with people.” –JS

“I believe that the way you pick your specialty is you start with what you really love to do and for whom you love to do it.” –RM

“The feeling is more important than the words to get you motivated and started and talking to people about what you do.” –RM

“One thing you’ll always see is a huge list of really impressive clients that they’ve worked with. And that, to me, becomes the thing that attracts new clients.” –JS

Related Links

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Practical Leverage

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 18 Mar 2019 09:00:00 -0100

What are some practical examples of leverage?

Talking Points

Using your time in a way that it’s most valuable
Paying to have work done so that you can focus on more important things
Not giving up the things you like doing that are beneficial
Setting up a standard operating procedure
How to leverage getting on more podcasts
Knowing what to delegate
Billable hours
Writing down your operating procedures

Quotable Quotes

“Once you find someone that’s good – I don’t forget about it, but so many things happen now by magic.” –JS

“When you’re working with another professional, you’re not saying “do this, do this, do this, do this, ” which is a little, kind of rote to me.” –RM

“So, what are you doing that drives you insane? Chances are it’s not going to be the thing you’re really good at.” –RM

“Even if you just write it down for yourself and then use it each time, you’re already ahead of the game.” –JS

Related Links:

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Todd Tresidder - The Leverage Equation

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 11 Mar 2019 09:00:00 -0100

Guest Todd Tresidder joins us to talk about generating wealth by creating leverage in your business.

Talking Points

How Todd came to start Financial Mentor
Understanding compounding wealth
3 Primary asset classes
How entrepreneurs and freelancers can use leverage
Leveraging knowledge and experience
Delegating tasks
The freedom of having a structure
The time leverage angle
10X exercises
Scalability
Managing risk by starting with just your time
6 types of leverage that are solutions to obstacles
How people can get started with leverage

Quotable Quotes

“Through coaching I really learned how much there was that I still had to learn.” –TT

“The beauty of this is you can literally separate your equity growth from your earnings capacity or your time.” –TT

“The whole idea is that you look at everything you spend your time on as a failure of your business systems.” –TT

“Leverage is how you build the scalable large win, and risk management is how you control the losses.” –TT

Related Links:

Prefer to read?

Here's an interactive audio transcript of the raw audio of the episode.

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Relationships Rule The World

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 04 Mar 2019 10:00:00 -0100

Relationships are key to being in an authority business.

Talking Points

How relationships manifest between clients and consultants
Different ways of connecting with people
The network effect
You may be surprised by how willing people are to talk if you approach them the right way
How connecting with one type of person can potentially open up a whole new branch of connections
Helping other people connect can help you build new relationships as well
How to set up systems that help you connect with other people

Quotable Quotes

“I’m pretty promiscuous on LinkedIn.” –JS

“Part of your relationship-building process has to fit with what you like, what you love to do.” –RM

“With social media, you can just explode your results 100 times over. You create the equivalent on Twitter especially, of these virtual rooms, these virtual cocktail parties.” –RM

“The more interesting people you’re connected with, I think, I just keep coming back to magic. It’s like magic. Magic happens.” —JS

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Deciding Whose Voice To Listen To

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 25 Feb 2019 10:00:00 -0100

How do you decide whose voice to listen to?

Talking Points

How to develop filters that help decide who to listen to
Figuring out where someone is coming from when they give feedback
Responding to unwanted feedback
When you should be open to new opinions
Avoiding echo chambers
When asking for feedback, make sure that you ask specific questions
Giving graceful feedback
The role of your spouse

Quotable Quotes 

 “Just because it’s something that we don’t want to hear doesn’t mean we can’t still be grateful that somebody felt the need to tell us.” –RM

“Being able to communicate a complex idea to a whole bunch of different types of peoples from different cultures and different languages – it’s brutal.” –JS

“It’s all in who you ask, how you ask, how likely you are to get the response that you want.” –RM

“In my intake form for private coaching, I have two questions on there. Are you single, what’s your marital situation, and do you have any business partners. Because both of those things need special handling.” –JS

Related Links

Seth Godin

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Should You Build A Course?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 18 Feb 2019 10:00:00 -0100

Should you build a course? How do you get started?

Talking Points

Once you create a course, it’s really hard to change it later
Formulate a big idea and know your audience for the project
Writing or speaking can help you get feedback on your ideas and help you get them into shape before creating a course
Look into your options for where to develop the course
Shorter courses are easier to sell
You probably don’t need to communicate everything you know about a subject in one course in order for it to be useful to others
An outline can be a good way to get started on your course
Optimize for ease of recording
Live takes
Keep editing to a minimum
Transcripts and video players that allow people to listen at their own speeds are helpful for students
Self-host or use a hosting service

Quotable Quotes

“I kind of go back to this all the time and it might be just my personal bias, but I feel like writing a lot is almost a necessary precursor.” –JS

“I think maybe one of your questions should be, “where do I want to develop this course?”” –RM

“Any whiff of perfectionism can spiral out of control very quickly.” –JS

“If you’re at all a person who gets into detail, you may decide you really love doing the editing, and that may not be the highest, best use of your time.” –RM

Related Links

How to Kick off a Successful Launch

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The Authority Mindset

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 11 Feb 2019 10:00:00 -0100

Do you know how to develop an authority mindset?

Talking Points

An authority mindset includes wanting to help others who need your expertise
The difference between an abundance mentality and a scarcity mentality
Knowing when to say no
Listening more than you speak
Pricing mindset
Courage and confidence
The courage to specialize in a specific niche
Putting yourself out there
Having a thick skin
Everything is content

Quotable Quotes

“I think the first rule is you want to help kindred spirits whenever you can.” –RM

“Lighting somebody else’s candle from yours – you’re not losing anything.” –JS

“I want to make it clear that adopting a service mentality does not mean that you become a doormat. To use the restaurant mentality – I’ve kicked plenty of people out of restaurants.” –JS

“I think as you get out more and more and your name becomes known and you build a thriving business there actually can be an uptick in your fear, because now you’re not just starting out wondering where the next dollar is coming from. Now it’s coming in nicely, and you don’t want to rock that boat.” –RM

Related Links

Seth Godin

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Humane Selling

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 04 Feb 2019 10:00:00 -0100

Why “selling” shouldn’t be a dirty word.

Talking Points

Despite the pushy salesperson stereotype, most things are not sold to consumers in pushy way
You can sell without acting like a pushy salesperson
Words like marketing or negotiating are often more palatable than selling
Selling is necessary, because people won’t just show up to buy unless you put in the effort
Reframing the concept of selling can help
You can think of selling something that somebody needs as a mutual profit – both parties get something they want
It’s important to involve the client in the process along the way
Chemistry with a person matters in some types of sales
Importance of having the right mindset

Quotable Quotes

“What that means to me, I think, if you think about it, is that 90% of the things that are sold to you are not done in this gross way.” –JS

“What difference does it make, really, what you call it? It’s the activities that you do that are going to get the result that you want. –RM

“If you don’t want to talk about marketing, if you don’t want to think about it like that, just go into the world and help as many people as you can.” –JS

“When a consultant figures that out, it’s like a bell rings and you can’t unring it anymore. You can’t go back and work with somebody who doesn’t fit in your parameter of genius.” –RM

Related Links

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Speaker vs. Consultant

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 28 Jan 2019 10:00:00 -0100

Where are you on the spectrum?

Talking Points

It’s important to clarify for yourself why you’re offering speaking services
The difference between a speaker and a consultant who speaks
How speaking provides challenges for the speaker
The differences between subject matter expert speaking and inspirational speaking
The overlap between speaking skills and consulting skills
How to know which things to say yes to and what to say no to
How speaking fits into your business model
Finding a balance between performance and content
Knowing what the audience needs to know and filtering out extraneous details
Keeping track of your stories, findings, and observations

 Quotable Quotes   

“The expertise that I gained from doing client work is what I would base my talks on.” –JS

“I like the give and take of an audience, because it tests you in really good ways.” –RM

“Knowing where you fall – it’s a strategic decision. It’s going to decide what things you say no to, and it’s going to be saying no to a lot of things, and then you’re left over with the things you actually have time to do well.” –JS

“It’s helpful to understand where you are right now, because that will tell you what you need to do, and most importantly, which things to say yes to and which things to run screaming from.” –RM

Related Links

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Location (Mostly) Doesn't Matter

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 21 Jan 2019 10:00:00 -0100

Does your location matter?

Talking Points

Building trust online
Competing online means competing globally
Translating the skills needed to work locally to the skills needed to work remotely
Going to meet-ups and conferences
The best platforms for approximating in-person interactions online
Content marketing
Using video and audio

Quotable Quotes

“Going from virtual to in-person or vice versa – I think those are skillsets and the translation to that is a process. You have to do it a little bit at a time.” –RM

“Once you make the shift to operating on the internet, operating remotely, now all of a sudden, not only do you feel like you’ve got one hand tied behind your back, but also you’ve got way more competition.” –JS

“Pick that platform, and then try to make it – when I say conversational, I mean experiential. So it feels like they’re working with you, however that is.” –RM

“I would suggest, if you are the kind of person who is good in person, then maybe video is a good fit for you, or at least audio.” –JS

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How Do You Know When To "Kill" Something?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 14 Jan 2019 10:00:00 -0100

You have to know when to hold ‘em and know when to fold ‘em.

Talking Points

Signs that it’s time to kill off a product or service that you’re offering
Differentiating between second-guessing yourself in the middle of a project and actually being ready to end the project
Recognizing when a product or service that you’re offering is no longer making you happy
Acting thoughtfully
When changing things and trying new approaches doesn’t create new business or solve any problems, it may be time to quit
Recognizing when you are or aren’t getting traction
Changing your website
Avoidance is not a good strategy

Quotable Quotes

“The first thing that occurred to me (because this is what happens to me), is I start to clench my teeth when I’m working on it or even when I’m thinking about it.” –RM

“It’s usually client work where I just get exhausted by the thought of a particular thing, whatever it might be.” –JS

“So, I’m sitting there saying to myself, oh my god. I have to invest more money to do more of what I don’t like. I mean, that’s just – that’s insane.” –RM

“The first time it happened to me was in 2011, when I had like viral traction for an idea. And it like picks you up like a tornado and throws you.” –JS

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Raising Your Rates

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 07 Jan 2019 10:00:00 -0100

Are you ready to raise your rates?

Talking Points

Price points
It can be easier for service providers to raise prices than for people who produce products to raise prices
Hourly rates vs. price for a project
Talking to clients about your rates
How to raise rates with long-term clients
How to quote per-project prices
Pricing products instead of projects
Pricing based on the benefits that you’re providing
Why you should tinker with your prices

Quotable Quotes

 “But for folks like us, it’s actually not that complicated because by and large, we’re not getting bulk discounts on anything, we don’t have, like, a supply chain or anything like that.” –JS

“There’s all sorts of reasons why hourly rates are bad, there’s a couple situations where they can really work, but the thing that I find really difficult with them is you’re inviting your client to speculate about how you spend your time.” –RM

“Folks who bill by the hour usually in their marketing don’t project themselves in a way that’s clear to their buyers exactly what the heck they do.” –JS

“It doesn’t make them a bad client or you a bad consultant, but there are times when you just need to go out and get new clients, new people, experiment with different approaches and learn.” –RM
 

LINKS

David A. Fields - Making Your Business Work For You

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 31 Dec 2018 10:00:00 -0100

Meet David A. Fields, author, speaker, and consulting firm expert.

Talking Points

How David got into the consulting space
David’s website redesign
David’s books, and the difference between the first and second books
David’s writing process
How books work as a marketing vehicle
How David pictured his book fitting into his business model
The difference between traditional publishing and self-publishing
Advice for people who are considering writing a book
What happens when you are the brand
David’s story about speaking
Speaking as a marketing tactic

Quotable Quotes

“What do you consider part of the writing process? Because there’s writing, then there’s rewriting, there’s having the beta readers give feedback and tweaking based on that.” –DF

“If you want something fast, you get up on stage and you speak. If you want something enduring, you write.” –DF

“It’s not worth holding back your book because you can’t get a publisher. If you’ve got a book to write, write the book.” –DF

“I don’t consider myself a professional speaker. I’m a consultant who speaks.” –DF

David's Bio

David A. Fields is a true consultants' consultant who works with boutique consulting firms worldwide. He's a best selling author, speaker, consultant, and mentor. David also heads the Ascendant Consortium whose clients are who's who of the business world.

Related Links

David A. Fields

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What Kind Of Growth Do You Want?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 17 Dec 2018 10:04:00 -0100

There are lots of ways to measure growth.

Talking Points

Not all growth is good
Growth is often measured by the number of employees, but that may not be the best measurement
Q Scores
The difference between strategy and tactics
Other ways to measure growth
Progress vs. growth
The importance of valuing yourself and your services
Measuring growth by the number of clients
Measuring growth by social media followers or subscribers
Vanity metrics
Different businesses will have different measures of growth that are right for them

Quotable Quotes 

 “This may be a uniquely American phenomenon--I think we define how many employees we have as almost a bragging right.” –RM

“I don’t think it’s automatic that people think of profits as the money number counts as growth.” –JS

“Just don't let what the external world sees drive you if it’s not what’s good for you.” –RM

“For me, growth is all about funding the mission.” –JS
 

Related Links

A Company of One

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Testing With A Tweet

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 10 Dec 2018 10:00:00 -0100

Is it a good idea to use tweets for testing?

Talking Points

Paul Jarvis’s experience testing with tweets
Why you need to identify an audience before running with a project
What to do if you don’t already have a large email list or Twitter following
Why you need to be able to describe your idea in a sentence or tweet
What the market is good at
Why it can be helpful when your followers shut down your ideas
When you’re pitching a new idea, you need constructive feedback, not unconditional encouragement
Make sure that you’re pitching to your target market

Quotable Quotes

“When I have an idea for something, I’ll just ask my list.” –JS

“What that means for us is that we have no excuse not to test.” –RM

“I’m not saying Facebook ads and Google ads don’t work, but they don’t work that great.” –JS

“I also like when they just shut you down.” --RM

Related Links

Paul Jarvis
Twitter
Github

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Paul Jarvis - Company of One

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 03 Dec 2018 10:00:00 -0100

Today’s Guest is Paul Jarvis, designer, consultant, and author.

Talking Points

Paul’s background in tech and what he does now
How Paul handles picking new projects and working with several different projects
Paul’s testing process
How to do things at scale without taking more time
What Paul does with projects he no longer has time for
How Paul attracts an audience for his projects
Why Paul chose Sundays for his newsletter
What “growth” really means
The Company of One mindset
Paul’s long game
What success means to the individual

Quotable Quotes

 “I know what questions you’re going to ask, and I’m going to answer them before you have to email me to ask them.” –PJ  

“I’ve killed off software products, courses, podcasts… so many things.” –PJ

  “Others are really good at managing; I’m really good at making stuff.” –PJ  

“I’d rather hire the top of market people to do what I need done, and I’d rather pay the premium of the top of market, A-list players, because I don’t need to manage those people.” –PJ 

Paul's Bio

Paul Jarvis is a veteran of the online tech world, and over the years has had such corporate clients as Microsoft, Yahoo, Mercedes-Benz, Warner Music and even Shaquille O’Neal.

Today, he teaches online courses, runs several software businesses and hosts a handful of podcasts from his home on an island off the West Coast of Canada.

Paul's new book is called "Company of One: Why Staying Small is the Next Big Thing for Business", and is available for pre-order now.

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Anatomy Of A Best Seller

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 26 Nov 2018 10:00:00 -0100

Bestsellers don’t just happen on their own. What do you have to do to create one?

Talking Points

Big ideas
Why you need to be entranced with your big idea
A distinct point of view
Delivering content that serves your ideal audience
Build your email list
Start building an email list a year before you launch
Write the book that your audience wants or needs, but in your voice
Approach where they are, not where you think they should be
Repeat with new books

Quotable Quotes

“It’s not just about your topic, it’s about who you’re serving.” –RM

“Delivering the content in advance – there’s so many advantages to that.” --JS

“It’s not like there’s one way to success. There’s certainly a formula, but the formula needs to have your essence in it.” –RM

“You kind of need to meet people where their awareness is. –JS

Related Links

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How to Market Yourself Without Feeling Like a Sleaze

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 19 Nov 2018 10:00:00 -0100

How to find a marketing style that you feel good about.

Talking Points

A lot of people have a false impression of marketing and sales and dislike marketing and sales because of that.
Marketing is a way of making a change in the culture
It’s easier to notice bad marketing models because good marketing doesn’t feel like marketing
Marketing should help people as much as possible for free
Pushy hard-sell tactics can turn people off
If you believe you have valuable information that people should know about, you should share it
People won’t magically find you. You have to let them know you’re there
Know your audience, connect with them, and have empathy with them
Find a way to deliver value with your marketing
If you’re in a service business, you already help people. Incorporate that into your marketing
Say no to get to yes

Quotable Quotes

“Marketers are people who make change happen – in particular changes in the culture, which are very hard to make.” –JS

“In my mind, marketing is everything from how you position yourself in the market, to your overall messages, to how you reach out to a swath of your public.” –RM

“Our clients have a lot of choices, and it can be hard to find you amongst everybody else that’s in your niche.” –RM

“The more empathy you have for your audience, the more natural you’re going to be at it.” –JS

Related Links

LINKS

Chris Do - Disrupting Design Education

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 12 Nov 2018 10:00:00 -0100

Meet Chris Do, founder and CEO of Blind and The Futur.

Talking Points

Chris’s background
The vision for The Futur
Chris’s plan for funding his projects
Growing from $17K to $1.6M in annual revenue in 4 years
The benefits of using YouTube
Whether content can stand on its own without design
Motivation and intent
When to work with other people and when to go solo
What things can and can’t be outsourced
Which big ideas Chris presents to his audience
When to change your rates

Quotable Quotes

“I think it’s important that we have more creative people, especially to solve some of the most perplexing problems facing humankind.” –CD

“The worst that you fear never materializes, and if you have the courage to create content, it will be OK as long as you don’t go out of your way to hurt people. I think that’s the key.” –CD

“Here’s the way I approach it: I’d rather not do it than do a mediocre job.” –JS

“The business tools – they’re pretty straightforward. The miracle is when you’re going to use those tools.” –CD

Related Links

LINKS

The Difference Between Freelancers and Business Owners

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 05 Nov 2018 10:00:00 -0100

What is the key difference between freelancers and business owners?

Talking Points

Freelancers are business owners, they just don’t always know it
Freelancers end up spending their time working in their business instead of on their business
The difference is a difference in mindset. To be a business owner, you will need to think like a business owner
Freelancers who want to grow have to start thinking about business like a business – including marketing, finances, vision, and strategy
If clients can’t tell the difference between you and a cheaper freelancer, they will go with the person who is cheaper
To build a successful business, it’s important to understand what really adds value to your business
You need to have a strong story in order to reach clients
You have to be able to say no when asked to do something that’s outside of your expertise or the scope of your business
Your authority needs to be part of your branding and marketing
Putting the time into building the business
The three personality types that every business needs
The entrepreneur personality is the one that can’t be hired out
Working for a small agency before going solo can help you understand more of how the business end works
People who want to start an authority business need consulting skills
When you own a business, you set aside time to work on your business no matter how busy you are with client work
The time commitment involved in building a business

Quotable Quotes

“As soon as you hang your shingle out there, you started a business, whether you know it or not or like it or not.” –JS

“I think of a woodworker, for example, who makes beautiful furniture, but if you don’t have a way to sell it, if you don’t have a way to market it, if you don’t have a way to leverage the time that you put into it, if you don’t have a way to price it properly, then you don’t have a business. You have a craft.” –RM

“If you’re not making some enemies, you’re not making any allies.” –JS

“Freelancers, in particular, need to be reminded that it took a lot of courage to do that (leave their job). But the way to not have to go back and become an employee is to create a business around what you’re doing.” –RM

Related Links

LINKS

Systems For Building Your Authority Business - Part 2

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 29 Oct 2018 09:00:00 -0100

More systems that can help you build an authority business.

Talking Points

Content is an important aspect of marketing
A detailed checklist can be a helpful system
Speaking can be a marketing activity
It’s helpful to have a system that allows you to schedule promotions of your content
Creating a playbook can be helpful for busy people who need guidance in promoting content
Admin tasks are necessary, but can often be delegated to experts
Determine which tasks are integral and necessary to your mission. You may be able to eliminate those that aren’t
Keeping yourself healthy is necessary in order to keep performing at your best
Exercise that you enjoy is good for both physical and mental health
Set boundaries for yourself
Creative pursuits can help you relax after a tough day

Quotable Quotes

“With an authority business, your content is critical.” –RM

“Your strategy should follow the medium too. You have to be respectful of the medium that you’re on.” –RM

“I’m not anti-ads, but if it feels like torture, do something else. There are other things to do.” –JS

“There are very very few things in my calendar that are immovable objects.” –JS

Related Links

LINKS

Systems For Building Your Authority Business - Part 1

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 22 Oct 2018 10:00:00 +0000

What systems do you need to build an authority business?

Talking Points

An overview of the systems that authority businesses need
Writing regularly is essential for building an authority business
Rituals or routines can help establish a writing routine
Schedule writing for a time when you’re at your best and you can be most creative
Reading regularly can help spark ideas
Be observant for examples of your subject
Get input from others who do more in-depth research on your subject
Schedule client work
Have a plan for how to communicate with clients
Sales is a one-to-one touchpoint with your clients
Clear steps in the sales process help both you and your clients
The speed element to sales

Quotable Quotes

“For me, writing is absolutely the most important thing I do for my business.” –JS

“That’s the takeaway, find that right time – and that right system – so you can be at your best.” –RM

“I’m always looking for great real-world examples that will snap people out of the way they think about how they –air-quotes price – their work in an hourly billing way.” –JS

“We create the systems that we need to get our businesses and our lives in order. –RM

Related Links

LINKS

James Clear - Atomic Habits

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 15 Oct 2018 10:00:00 +0000

Author James Clear on getting remarkable results from making tiny changes to your habits.

Guest Bio

James Clear is an author, speaker, and entrepreneur. More than 400k people subscribe to James' newsletter on habits and performance. His work has been used by teams in the NFL, NBA, and MLB, as well as leaders of Fortune 500 companies. His new book "Atomic Habits, Tiny Changes, Remarkable Results" is available now.

Quotable Quotes

"Big goals make you feel bad about yourself."—JC
"When you focus on the practice instead of the performance, you can enjoy the present moment and improve at the same time."—JC
"I've found that goals are good for planning your progress and systems are good for actually making progress."—JC
"What you do now is a mirror image of the type of person you believe that you are (either consciously or subconsciously)."—JC
"You can't rely on being motivated. You have to become the type of person you want to be, and that starts with proving your new identity to yourself."—JC
"Amateurs are the victims of their habits."—JC

Related Links

LINKS

Why Specialists Rule

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 10:00:00 +0000

Why should you specialize?

Talking Points

Nobody wants a unisex haircut
People are often looking for a unique style, not a one-size-fits-all approach
It may be best not to put your portfolio on your website
Generalizing locks you into lower prices and more competition
Specializing minimizes your competition
Specializing leads to higher prices
Even if you only appeal to a small subset of the market, you can charge a lot if you offer something that subset can’t get anywhere else
You may gravitate toward a specialty over time depending on what is most profitable or what you enjoy doing the most
Specializing can allow you to close on a higher percentage of sales because your clients are specifically seeking out your unique service
Having a specialty means sometimes saying no to work that doesn’t fit within that specialty

Quotable Quotes

“When you don’t market to someone in particular, you’re marketing to everyone, and when you’re marketing to everyone you’re not marketing to anyone.” –JS

“If I knew that I could get high-quality vision and feedback, I would spend a lot more.” –RM

“You don’t really want options. You just want exactly what you want.” –JS

“The fact that you have your own special sauce is fabulous. You’ve got to own that. You don’t want to look like anybody else, much less everybody else.” –RM

Related Links

Dribbble

LINKS

Top 10 Tools For Building Your Authority Business

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 01 Oct 2018 10:00:00 +0000

Top 10 Tools for Building an Authority Business

Which tools do you need to build an authority business?

Talking Points

Most authority businesses benefit from email marketing
Email automation platforms have multiple useful features
A contact system can help you keep track of leads, contacts, and clients
Making physical notes with pen and paper is an alternative for people who don’t like digital to-do lists
Communication tools for both client communications and team communications
Payment platforms
Accounting and bookkeeping
Accepting credit cards is important for building trust
Calendar management
The sanity bucket
Importance of setting boundaries
Managing your email inbox
Starting and ending calls on time
Remember to move during the day

Quotable Quotes

“People do not mind getting good emails. They mind bad emails.” –JS

“You really have to match this to how you work.” –RM

“We’re professionals, we serve clients, we have this big idea we’re trying to spread and connect with people, we have to stay sane in the process.” –RM

“Getting out of my email inbox solves a million problems.” --JS

Related Links

LINKS

How To Kick-Off A Successful Launch

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 24 Sep 2018 10:00:00 +0000

There are a lot of things going on behind the scenes of a successful launch. What do you need to do to make sure launch day goes smoothly?

Talking Points

A launch is an integrated process that can be considered part of the product development
Figure out how to structure the product
Learn how to talk about the product in a way that will attract the interest of people who need it
Keep potential clients and buyers updated and get their feedback
Have a test group
Focus on the mission, the goal, and the impact that you want to have
Having a mailing list is an enormous asset
Focusing on a central point helps you pick up momentum
There’s an emotional investment in a launch. It’s about more than just the production of a product

Quotable Quotes

“Part of my mission here is to spread this concept of ditching hourly billing for something better.” –JS

“That’s the problem with social media – it’s that at any time, Twitter or Facebook could ban you.” –RM

“The more that you can focus, in a very real way, on your mission and your audience, the more likely it is that you’re going to have this kind of success with a launch.” –RM

“If I tried to change what I was doing tomorrow, it would be impossible. I couldn’t.” –JS

Related Links

LINKS

Asking For Testimonials

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 17 Sep 2018 10:00:00 +0000

Are you asking for testimonials as often as you should be? Learn how to make it easier.

Talking Points

Asking for feedback should be part of your process
Ask clients what their biggest concern was before hiring you
Testimonial feedback can help you learn how to serve clients better
Even if you don’t use it as a testimonial, feedback can be used to update your website, service offerings, or FAQs
When you ask for feedback frequently, you’ll start to notice patterns, and gain a better idea of what your clients value
Ask clients what surprised them about working with you
Ask clients what they would have wanted to be different about their experience
The last question to ask clients is “would you recommend me? Why?”
If you edit client testimonials, make sure to leave the client’s voice intact
Asking for testimonials can be an antidote to imposter syndrome
Clients are more likely to provide testimonials if you can ask questions that guide them through the process easily
When you get compliments from clients in the normal course of your work, you can ask to use those phrases as testimonials

Quotable Quotes

“Even if you don’t ultimately publish the feedback that you get, it’s really important to get it.” –JS

“The more you know, the better you’re going to be able to serve your next clients.” –RM

“I hesitate to say always – I want to say always, though. It always surprises you.” –JS

“The more you reflect what people really value about you, the more of those people you’re going to attract into your orbit.” –RM

Related Links

LINKS

Staying Creative

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 10 Sep 2018 10:00:00 +0000

How can you keep in touch with your creative process?

Talking Points

Focus on the objective, mission, or message
Have a daily practice
Avoid perfectionism
Set a schedule
Practice being creative
Work on something that’s bigger than yourself
Have a big idea or specialty to focus on
Feedback from other people can help you generate ideas
It’s OK to ignore certain kinds of feedback
Have accountability outside of yourself
If you get a streak going, you won’t want to break it
Having a coach can help

Quotable Quotes

“It’s shocking how much more output you’ll get from a daily habit than even a weekly habit.” –JS

“I help myself with my work as much as I help anybody else.” –RM

“Creativity is not a solo act.” –RM

“Not everybody’s on the same journey with you.” –JS

Related Links

Leonardo da Vinci by Walter Isaacson

LINKS

Should You Start A Podcast?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 03 Sep 2018 10:00:00 +0000

Is podcasting the right path for you?

Talking Points

It helps to have a focus and a clear audience
How podcasting and writing a book can go together
How the interview format can be helpful for podcasters
Podcasting as an income stream
Complications of ads and sponsorships
Podcasting as a way to build a network
Things you need to get started in podcasting
How to record voices on separate tracks
Podcast editing tips and strategies
Podcast hosting options
Three phases of podcasting
The importance of promoting your podcast
How social media can help with podcast promotion
Podcasting analytics

Quotable Quotes

“You don’t get speaker’s block when you’re talking to someone.” –JS

“Really what you’re doing is listening to your guest – you’ve got your standard set of questions and you’re listening to where your guest goes with it. And you follow them.” –RM

“Just as a listener...that sponsorship feel can be really negative.” –RM

“I love having something to invite people to.” –JS

Related Links

LINKS

Selling More: Optimizing For Conversations

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 27 Aug 2018 10:00:00 +0000

It's the most wonderful time of the year to initiate conversations with your network

Talking Points

How to revive dead deals
The best communication channel for making connections
Why outreach is both predictable and unpredictable
The importance of genuine curiosity
Networking for introverts

Related Links

Closing The Loop by Blair Enns

LINKS

Should You Use A VA To Grow Your Business?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 20 Aug 2018 10:00:00 +0000

##Talking Points

One of the critical growth points consultants and authorities-in-the-making grapple with is when to hire outside help with your business.

This week we discuss how to decide if you’re ready for a Virtual Assistant—and then dive into how to make it work. We cover how to decide what to offload, what kind of VA you need, how much to pay them and where to find them.

##Quotable Quotes
-“If you’re beyond the start-up phase—or you’re in the start-up phase with money and a vision—chances are you can use the help of a savvy VA.”—RM

-“You’re ready for a VA if you’re spending time on things you’re not good at or you don’t like to do and you could use that time PROFITABLY to grow your business.”—RM

-“What things could you do…if you added another person to take it the next step?”—JS

-“You want to hire someone who has experience and can take things off you. You want to feel relief, not annoyance.”—RM

-“What could you have someone do—not just recurring tasks—but what could they do to add value to your clients?”—JS

-“You have to get really clear about what you want to get done AND how you want to work.”—RM

-“A good, experienced, savvy VA is going to look at your business—and they will see things you could do better.”—RM

-“If you can find a way in your business to take the stressful pieces off you—and put them on somebody else who enjoys doing that (it’s their oyster), then do it.”—RM

LINKS

The Wisdom Of Taking A Break

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 13 Aug 2018 10:00:00 +0000

If you don't give yourself a break, who will?

Talking Points

Setting boundaries
Examples of small, medium, and large breaks
Identifying your "anchor habits/tasks"
Reusing content to give yourself a break
How our phones make taking a break difficult

Quotable Quotes

“I’m not a big fan of vacations.”—JS
“We need a break from sitting on our butts using our brains.”—RM
“Boredom is basically gone.”—JS
“Both the mind and the body need breaks.”—RM
“I’m not anti technology. I’m pro breaks.”—RM
“It’s about exercising a different mental muscle, or emotional muscle, or muscle muscle.”—JS
“If you don’t know what to do to recharge your batteries, experiment.”—RM
“You have to give yourself breaks, because nobody is going to do it for you.”—RM
“If you don’t do it, who’s going to?”—RM

Related Links

LINKS

What You Think You're Selling Ain't What Your Clients Are Buying

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 06 Aug 2018 10:00:00 +0000

There's probably a difference between what YOU think you do and what YOUR CLIENTS think you do.

Talking Points

How to find meaningful metrics
Why your craft doesn't matter as much as you think

Quotable Quotes

“Are you taking your clients on the scenic route to nowhere?”—JS
“Measure what your client values.”—RM
“How can you hit a home run if you don’t know where the wall is?”—JS
“There’s always something to measure. Otherwise, your clients wouldn’t know anything was wrong.”—JS
“If you don’t think you can have a positive impact, you shouldn’t be proposing.”—RM
“Consultants push back. Freelancers don’t.”—JS
“Billing by the hour sets the expectation that you’re interchangeable.”—JS

Related Links

Jonathan’s Daily List

LINKS

You Might Have A Positioning Problem If...

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 30 Jul 2018 10:00:00 +0000

Talking Points

You might have a positioning problem if

...your clients can't tell the difference between you and everybody else

...you're not getting any word of mouth

...you can't explain what you do in five words or less

...you're not leading how your target audience sees you

...you don't know who your target audience is

...you don't know--or you don't talk about--how you transform your clients

Quotable Quotes

"You want to give your clients the tools to spread the word about you" -JS
"What is the change--the transformation--you create for your people? That's where you want to focus." -JS
"The HOW we get clients "there" is less important than that we're focused on the same outcome." -RM
"Positioning is an organized effort to differentiate yourself or your firm to influence how your target audience perceives you." -RM
"A strategy is a litmus test for deciding what not to do. What's a good opportunity and a bad opportunity?" -JS
"If you're in the authority business, the single most important thing you'll do is position yourself or your firm." -RM

Related Links

Do You Have A Positioning Problem?

LINKS

Choosing Your Best War Stories

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 23 Jul 2018 10:00:00 +0000

How and why to use stories with prospective clients.

Talking Points

How to remember your war stories
The value of sharing stories in the sales process
Where to look for story triggers
How to use your values to test your stories
Credentials vs stories
How to prepare stories for client meetings
Why you shouldn't memorize your stories (and when you should)

##Quotables:

-“If someone wanted an arrogant cowboy, that would be the perfect story to tell.”—RM

-“It’s going to push away people who would create a disastrous project anyway.”—JS

-“Really good stories are sticky.”—JS

-“Lists of credentials can help narrow the field. Your story takes you to the next level.”—RM

LINKS

Getting Paid To Market Yourself

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 16 Jul 2018 10:00:00 +0000

A strategy for getting paid well even if your audience has small pockets.

Talking Points

The power of starting with the problem
Big pockets vs small pockets
Examples of paid marketing opportunities
What to do before you have an audience
How to craft a great pitch
How to create interest in a cold email
What to do on a pitch call

Quotable Quotes

“To increase the monetary value of your speaking gigs, have product available.”—JS
-“It may look really simple—an e-book or a guide—but how that gets marketed, whose hands it goes into, how your name is used, matters. They’re all part of your brand.”—RM
-“Ask yourself: how does this opportunity align with my message? How does it work for my people?”—RM
-“If you get people to sell out, you’re in trouble”—JS
-“Answer the question: what do you write about that serves their audience’s needs?”—RM
-“You’ve got to do your homework or you’re a spammer. And people smell spammers a mile away” —JS
-“If it makes you feel gross, you’re doing it wrong”—RM

Related Links

LINKS

Jill Konrath - Getting Paid To Give (Almost) Everything Away

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 09 Jul 2018 10:00:00 +0000

How to give away expertise for free and make good money doing it

Talking Points

Selling more in less time without pushing
How having a mission can help you strategically
The roles that writing a book can play in a business
How to give away expertise for free and make good money
The importance of a good mailing list
One way to constantly be in creation mode

Quotable Quotes

"I didn't sit down one day and decide I wanted to be well-known."—JK
"How can I help these people and not go broke?"—JK
"People in the consulting business fundamentally think about sales in the wrong way."—JK
"Sales is a skill. If you don't learn it, you can't create a sustainable career."—JK
"Sales is not pushy. It's consultative."—JK
"Your clients don't want what you have to offer. They want outcomes."—JK
"I'm well aware that my books are the lifeblood of my business, but that's not why I write them."—JK
"About 15 years ago, I asked myself 'How can I give my expertise away for free and make good money doing it?'"—JK
"I have passed up a significant number of revenue generating opportunities."—JK
"It's all about creating a conversation with someone you want to reach."—JK

Guest Bio

After an award-winning sales career in the technology and services sector, Jill is now an internationally recognized speaker and sales strategist. She’s a bestselling author of four books—Selling to Big Companies, SNAP Selling, Agile Selling, and More Sales Less Time.

Recently, LinkedIn named Jill as their #1 Business-to-Business Sales Expert citing her 1/3 million followers. Salesforce selected her as one of Top 7 Sales Influencers of the 21st century. Plus, she’s featured in the just-released “Story of Sales” documentary.

As a consultant, Jill has worked with companies like IBM, GE, and Staples as well as many mid-market firms. Her expertise has appeared in Forbes, Fortune, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Inc, Entrepreneur, Bloomberg, ABC and Fox News.

To sum up her career, Jill is constantly searching for fresh strategies to enable sales success n an ever-changing business environment.

Related Links

Transcript

Jonathan S:

00:00 Hello, and welcome to the Business of Authority. I'm Jonathan Stark.

Rochelle M:

00:04 And I'm Rochelle Moulton.

Jonathan S:

00:05 Today, we're joined by Jill Konrath. After an award-winning sales career in the technology and services sector, Jill is now an internationally-recognized speaker and sales strategist. She's the best-selling author of four business books, most recently More Sales, Less Time. LinkedIn has named her their number one B2B expert, and Salesforce selected her as one of the top seven sales influencers of the 21st century. As a consultant, Jill's worked with companies like IBM, GE, and Staples, as well as many mid-market firms. Her expertise has appeared in Forbes, Fortune, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Inc, Entrepreneur. The list goes on. We're super happy to have Jill with us today. Jill, welcome to the show.

Jill K:

00:46 Hey, thanks for having me. I'm glad to be here.

Rochelle M:

00:49 Jill, I just have to comment on your big idea on your website, which kind of sums up everything Jonathan just said about you. Sales Accelerated. Yeah! Love it!

Jill K:

01:00 I do, too. In the niche that I'm in, it's about how do we make more sales and do it in less time. How can we make it faster? To me, it's not just faster, it's really about how do we have a better conversation that's more focused on the customer. That's what makes it faster, not just push.

Rochelle M:

01:21 Love it! Before we get into all this, maybe for some of the members of our audience who might be experiencing you for the first time, will you tell us a little bit more about who you are, how you work, what you do?

Jill K:

01:35 Who I am. I am a sales consultant. I have been in the sales field pretty much my entire career. I never wanted to be in sales. I wanted to be an entrepreneur, but they told me when I brought my business plan into SCORE, Service Corps of Retired Executives, that it was a really good idea, and then they said, "How are you going to sell this?" I looked at them. I thought, "I thought you said it was a good idea." They said, "It is, Jill, but somebody has to sell it," so I said, "All right. I'll go into sales for one year. I'll learn everything there is to know and then I will get out of it." Anyway, I never left.

Jill K:

02:14 I found it to be fascinating and totally different than I thought it was. I assumed most salespeople were slimy, manipulative con artists like you see on TV or the movies. I found out that, in the business-to-business field, salespeople are intelligent, creative, concerned about their customers, focused on their customers, trying to help them make good business decisions that enhance the quality of their work, and it was fun. I sold directly for a few years, like eight years, and then I actually started my own company, working as a consultant and did that for a long time, specializing in a very specific area of new products.

Jill K:

03:01 Then, my business crashed. I got totally wiped out because my two biggest clients came under pressure from Wall Street at the same time, and it took me a few years to get going again. I had to reinvent myself, and in the new iteration, I became me that people see on my website, which is not what I was doing before.

Rochelle M:

03:20 One of the things that's so fascinating to me, Jill, is that it feels like from the outside looking in that you've made some interesting pivots in your career. What made you start your own business? Leaving Xerox had to be a big deal.

Jill K:

03:36 I actually went into technology sales after Xerox. What caused me to start my own business was really, I have an extraordinarily low boredom threshold, and I'm a really rapid learner. I would throw myself into every new sales position, quickly learn it and, as soon as I learned it, I was no longer interested in it, which is not a good career choice then if you're constantly leaving as soon as you get good at something.

Jill K:

04:08 What I discovered was that I had the ability from a consulting perspective to go into massively complex situations, challenging business environments, and assimilate a whole lot of information about the buyer, the product, the sales process, the marketplace. I was so good at rapid learning, I could assimilate that all quickly and put it into a structure that would help my clients be more effective faster. I became a consultant, really to satisfy my need for continual interesting and challenging projects to work on.

Rochelle M:

04:48 I get you. I was thinking as you started to say that, "Well, gee! That's the definition of consultant." We keep creating our new assignments.

Jill K:

04:58 Yes, it's all about creating your new assignment. To me, to find a niche and to go off to the niche and to build it out and to get good at it and then to continually have new projects feeding me all the time, it was like, oh, I was in heaven as a consultant!

Rochelle M:

05:14 That sounds familiar. There's a description you have on your website, and I'm not sure why I hadn't seen it before, where you describe yourself as going from a quiet, unknown consultant, whi...

Writing A Kick-Ass Bio

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 02 Jul 2018 10:00:00 +0000

You’ve probably got at least a half-dozen bios (or maybe wish that’s ALL you had): your website ABOUT page, article bios/bylines, industry association profiles, speaking bio, media bio, LinkedIn profile, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, even your email signature…

What constitutes a truly kick-ass bio? How far should you go in adding personality and sizzle to yours? And the big question: first person or third?

This week we dig down into what makes your bio(s) compelling and irresistible to the right audience.

Talking Points

What types of bios do I need?
How personal should my bio be?
What is the difference between a press page and an about page?
Should my bio be written in the first person or third?
What should my social media bios include?
How can I experiment with different versions of my bio?

Links

Your Bio Needs A Makeover If...

When Your Bio Needs A Makeover

Quotable Quotes

"Write your bio like you talk.” JS
"When you talk in the first person, you have to own every single thing you say."—RM
"First person is not only good because it helps you relate to people more quickly, but it also forces you to be authentic."—RM
"You can’t beat on your chest saying how wonderful you are, you have to lead them to it with breadcrumbs."—RM
"You can experiment with email signatures easily—you can change it depending on who you’re sending it to and no one else can really see it."—JS
"Another great place to experiment is an in-person networking event where you can just tweak the language to see what clicks with people."—JS
"Your bio is the connective tissue to your audience.” RM
"Getting your headline really punchy is worth putting some effort into.” JS

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Should You Be A Thought Leader?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 25 Jun 2018 10:00:00 +0000

What does it take to become a true thought leader?

On this week's episode, we separate building thought leadership from building authority and show you how to decide if becoming a thought leader is the right direction for you.

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Declare Your Vision

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 18 Jun 2018 10:00:00 +0000

What's your vision for your business?

Talking Points

What's the point of having a vision for your business?
What's the difference between vision and mission or purpose or big idea?
What skills do you need to be developing (or discarding)?
How do financial goals fit into your vision?
How far out should you think with your business vision?
What about me-focused vs you-focused vision statements?
How do values play into your vision?

Quotable Quotes

"If you want to make forward progress, you need to know which way forward is."—JS
"A vision isn't something you change like your socks."—RM
"Get clear on the big picture first, and then you can tinker with tactics for the rest of your life."—RM
"Decide where to point the car before you mash on the gas."—JS
"Tactics are attractive because they represent a small commitment. Strategy is a big commitment and therefore it feels scary."—RM
"There is a 'unified theory of you' in there somewhere."—JS

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The Quest For Perfect

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 11 Jun 2018 10:00:00 +0000

Are you being a perfectionist... or just procrastinating?

Talking Points

How do you know when something is done?
Are you being a perfectionist or just procrastinating?
What things bring out the perfectionist in you?

Quotable Quotes

"If you want things to get better, you have to change something."—JS
"People aren't really looking at your website that much."—RM
"Your current clients don't go to your website."—JS
"Social media has made things both better and worse for perfectionists."—RM
"You have to start."—RM
"Press publish."—JS
"If your thing will make your audience better today than they were yesterday, you owe it to them to release it."—RM
"There's only one way to learn how to screw up like a pro."—JS
"If your ideas don't get aired, they can't take flight."—RM
"If you want to be an authority, you have to put yourself out there."—JS
"Perfect is in the eye of the beholder."—RM
"You have to put your work out there if you want it to get better."—JS

Links We Mentioned

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Speaking 101: Strategies and Tactics to Build Your Authority

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 04 Jun 2018 10:00:00 +0000

A few ways to think about how speaking might fit into your business strategy.

Talking Points

Three different types of speaking strategies
What business models make the most sense for speaking
The three stages of building a speaking practice
Should you ever speak for free?
How a product/service ladder comes into play when speaking
The importance of knowing what you're selling and to whom

Links We Mentioned

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Building A Product/Service Ladder

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 28 May 2018 10:00:00 +0000

Diversify your revenue streams by packaging your expertise in a variety of different ways.

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Your Ridiculously Reliables

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 21 May 2018 10:00:00 +0000

Talking Points

What's the one thing that you want to be known for?
How do figure out what you're ridiculously reliable at?
What do people expect from or get from you?
Who should you interview to become more self-aware?
What should you do once you uncover what others rely on you for?

Quotable Quotes

"Ask yourself, 'What do people get when they get me?'"—RM
"It's hard to read the label from inside the bottle."—JS (quoting unknown person)
"Double down on what makes you unique."—RM
"Sometimes people value qualities in you that you think are negatives."—RM

Links We Mentioned

The Brain Audit by Sean D'Souza

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Working Solo vs Starting a Firm

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 14 May 2018 10:55:00 +0000

The pros and cons of working solo vs building a firm.

Are you thinking about building a firm? Rochelle and I explore the pros and cons from every angle on this week's show.

Talking Points

What's the difference between a building a firm and hiring support staff?
Can you grow a business without hiring junior employees?
How to decide which approach is right for you.
Are there ways to experiment with building a firm without betting the business on it?
What are the differences between hiring contractors and employees?
Don't let the market turn you into something you hate.

Quotable Quotes

"When you're playing with other people's lives, small leaps are better."—RM
"If you're not ready to fire someone, you're not ready to hire someone."—JS
"To build a firm, you need cash, patience, and humility."—RM

LINKS

True Fans

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 07 May 2018 10:00:00 +0000

Some thoughts on how to attract your true fans.

True Fans

On this week's TBOA, Rochelle and I share some tips on how to attract your true fans.

Talking Points

You have to share your expertise freely and often enough to keep the audience warm.
Sharing provocative ideas will attract good clients and drive away bad clients.
If you're not creating any haters, you're not doing it right.
Choose a medium that you're comfortable with and is popular with your audience.

Quotable Quotes

"A true fan is someone who will buy anything and everything that you produce." —Kevin Kelly
"A daily writing practice builds true fans very quickly" —JS
"If your work is mostly about executing then it's harder to find the time to invest in the kinds of things that are going to attract true fans." —RM
"The problem with implementation work it is too easy to get sucked in to what the client wants you to do." —RM
"Any stage you can be on where you can build intimacy with people is going to build true fans." —RM

Links

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Daily Writing Practice: Brilliant or Insane?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 30 Apr 2018 10:00:00 +0000

The pros, cons, ins, and outs of writing for your audience every day.

Daily Writing Practice - Brilliant or Insane?

Talking Points

The difference between daily and weekly habits
How an email list is different from a blog
Why it’s important to respect privacy concerns in a community
Why journaling doesn’t count
How to write about the same thing every day without boring everyone
How often should you reply to your list
When to keep a rigid schedule and when not to

Links

Quotable Quotes

"Writing daily is actually easier than writing weekly" —JS

"I wake up, I put on my pants, I brush my teeth, and I write. It’s just something I do every day." —JS

"Thinking harder doesn’t solve everything." —JS

"Someone who's used to billing by the hour can start to feel like a supplicant. That is not where you want to be as an independent." —RM

"Your idea gets better when more people share it and play with it and give you feedback." —RM

"An email list is a closed community." —RM

"When you write every day, your bs falls away." —JS

"Text is where I play with my ideas." —RM

LINKS

Uncovering Your Client Avatar

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 23 Apr 2018 10:00:00 +0000

The more you know about your ideal clients, the easier it will be to attract them.

On this week's TBOA, Rochelle and I talk about client avatars: what is it, how to create one, and why you should care.

Talking Points

What exactly is a client avatar?
Questions to ask yourself to uncover your client avatar
Deciding how many client avatars you should have
How to make ideal clients more receptive to your message
The value of sharing stories of transformation

Links

The Brain Audit by Sean D'Souza
Book Yourself Solid by Michael Port
Value-Based Fees by Alan Weiss

Enjoy!

—JS & RM

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How Easy Do You Make It To Work With You?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 16 Apr 2018 10:00:00 +0000

Just how easy (or hard) do you make it for you customers to work with you?

On this week's TBOA, Rochelle and I talk about just how easy you should make it for clients to work with you.

Talking Points

Putting up hurdles for clients can be a good idea, but only if they're intentional
The types of product sales that should be frictionless, and the ones that shouldn't
When to require that clients jump through hoops
How to know when your marketing and sales processes are attracting the wrong kind of people
What to do when money and trust are not enough to get a client to make a change
What if your clients have a problem that they're embarrassed to ask for help with?

Quotes

"I'd rather put needles in my eyes than learn Asana."—RM
"The teacher tells you what to do, and you do it or you can leave."—JS
"If you let clients push you around in the sales process, don't be surprised when the push you around during the project."—JS
"You don't get 'speakers block' when you're talking to someone you know well."—JS
"Once it's on your website, you tend to forget about it."—RM

Enjoy!

—JS & RM

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Why You Need A Content Inventory

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 09 Apr 2018 10:02:00 +0000

Finding the threads in your own material.

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Creating Leverage

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 02 Apr 2018 10:00:00 +0000

How to package your expertise in ways that will increase your impact and revenue.

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Establishing Your Point Of View

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 26 Mar 2018 10:00:00 +0000

How and why to establish a POV for your brand.

Links

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Ramona Russell - How To Get More Media Attention

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 19 Mar 2018 09:00:00 -0100

Publicity advice (and war stories) from PR strategist Ramona Russell.

Links

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Accepting Risk (And Charging For It)

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 12 Mar 2018 09:00:00 -0100

Building Your Circle

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 05 Mar 2018 10:00:00 -0100

Who can you help today?

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Offending People

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 26 Feb 2018 10:00:00 -0100

Using your marketing to filter out bad fit clients and customers.

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When to Invest in Your Business

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 19 Feb 2018 10:00:00 -0100

Are you being frugal or are you afraid?

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Should You Write a Book?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 12 Feb 2018 10:00:00 -0100

What you need to do BEFORE you start writing a book.

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Validating Your Idea

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 05 Feb 2018 10:00:00 -0100

Which ideas you should validate, which you shouldn't, and how to do it if you're going to.

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Madalyn Sklar - Building Community

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 29 Jan 2018 10:00:00 -0100

Twitter expert Madalyn Sklar explains how to build a community around your big idea.

Madalyn Sklar is a social media power influencer, blogger, podcaster, and #TwitterSmarter chat host. She joins us on this episode to share decades of experience building online communities.

Links

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How Long Should You Keep A Client?

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 22 Jan 2018 10:00:00 -0100

Having "clients for life" isn't always a good idea.

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Unretirement

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 15 Jan 2018 10:00:00 -0100

Is the notion of retirement dead?

Links

A mission with no exit

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Intro to Value Pricing

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Jan 2018 10:10:00 -0100

How to stop trading time for money.

Links

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Business Models

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Jan 2018 10:09:00 -0100

Different ways to think about monetizing your expertise.

LINKS

Blair Enns - Pricing Creativity

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Jan 2018 10:08:00 -0100

Guest Blair Enns gives us a look behind the scenes of creating his new book Pricing Creativity.

Blair's Bio

Blair Enns is a 25-year veteran of the business side of the creative professions. In 2002, he launched Win Without Pitching, which has worked with thousands of creative professionals in numerous countries through direct engagements, seminars, workshops & webcasts. Blair is the author of "The Win Without Pitching Manifesto" and the forthcoming "Pricing Creativity: A Guide to Profit Beyond the Billable Hour"

Links

Transcript

Jonathan:

Hello and welcome to The Business of Authority. I'm Jonathan Stark.

Rochelle:

And I'm Rochelle Moulton.

Jonathan:

And today, we're very excited to be joined by guest Blair Enns. Blair is the founder and CEO of Win Without Pitching and the author of the Win Without Pitching Manifesto, and the forthcoming Pricing Creativity: Guide To Profit Beyond the Billable Hour. Did I get that right Blair?

Blair:

You got it right Jonathan thank you.

Jonathan:

Stressful :-) I am very excited and I [00:00:30] know Rochelle's very excited to have you on the show. We have just a lot in common, I've been following your work for years, we've read a lot of the same authors and we're super excited to talk about how you've taken this big idea, which to me started with the Manifesto, perhaps it had its roots before that, and turned it into a consulting business and then later a training business, and now hopefully, fingers crossed, a bestselling author.

So, could we start off by just [00:01:00] giving folks a little bit of background about who you are and what you do now and then we can sort of delve into the history?

Blair:

Yeah, sure. And thank you to both of you for having me on the podcast. I'm really looking forward to this and happy to be here. My name is Blair Ends, the company is Win Without Pitching and I founded it back in 2002, early 2002. At the time, it was a consulting practice, a new business development, sales or new business development consulting to creative [00:01:30] firms, typically independent creative firms, and I had come out of about a dozen years of working in advertising agencies and design firms and thought I'd launch this consulting practice.

So that was the first iteration of Win Without Pitching. And then over the years, beginning in late 2012, and I'm sure we'll get into this, I decided to shift the structure of the company from a solo consulting practice to a training company. So that's where we are now in late 2017, [00:02:00] early 2018. Win Without Pitching is about five years into its current incarnation as a training company. And for a few years; 2013, 14, it was both as I kind of played with training and had to make a decision about going one way or the other.

So we've been a pure training company for about three years. It really feels like this business is about three years old, but really it's more like 16.

Jonathan:

Wow. And [00:02:30] before that, you were from the agency world, you were inside the agency world, yes?

Blair:

Yeah, I worked for some of the world's largest advertising agencies and some of its smallest design firms. I was a suit, I don't own a suit anymore. Although my latest social media profile pic has me in a suit. I had a borrow a tie from my 18 year old son for that photo and I own one jacket. But I was a suit for many years and then I moved to this little mountain [00:03:00] village in the middle of nowhere where we live now when I started the consulting practice. So there's this kind of shift in the personal life that was the impetus for the business change.

And I had a Hugo Boss bonfire when I moved out here, got rid of all the suits. But I was a suit doing account services and new business at a very young age in the first ad agency I ever worked. When at I was 22, I was handed responsibility for new business. I wasn't great at it but I did have some natural skills at [00:03:30] it. So yeah, I came out of the account management and new business side of both advertising and design.

Jonathan:

Okay. So, how do you go from there to writing the Manifesto?

Blair:

Well, the Manifesto I wrote I think in late 2005, early 2006 so I had been running the consulting business for three or four years at that time. And the name, I think the of the business is kind of a fluke and I've been [00:04:00] told by some of my closest professional friends that, "Yeah, Win Without Pitching is a stupid name, you need to change the name." On some level, I think it is maybe not an appropriate, maybe not the appropriate ... There's something about the name that can sound a little bit schlocky maybe, like some sort of false promise, but on the other hand, that name has driven me to ...

It's really a great label for how I've always thought about new business, [00:04:30] and it's forced me to come at the subject matter from that perspective that is really true to me. And I think that's really been the difference, whether it's been a consulting practice or a training company or a book that I've written, i's always coming from that win without pitching perspective. So the name came first, the business came first.

And then in, I think it was, yeah, it was late 2005, I think early 2006, where I [00:05:00] was writing a piece. I've published an article, a blog post for years, for 16 years, either somewhere between weekly and monthly. And at the time, I think I was publishing closer to monthly. And I wanted something for the end of the year. So I tried on, I had this idea of like just wrapping up all of my philosophy into a few short pithy statements. And I was also trying on tone of voice. I'm a huge fan of Manifestos, [00:05:30] and I kind of collect them and I've read most of the big ones. I think the biggest, most important book ever written and religious people will be horrified at this, I think the most important book ever written might be the Curtis Creek Manifesto.

And I won't say anything more about that, people can go look at it and think, "Huh? What are you talking abut?" Order it, give it to every 12 year old you know and you'll change the world. I was writing a blog post and it was trying on [00:06:00] a new voice, I was trying on a Manifesto voice. And at the time, and even for a few years after, it was the riskiest thing I'd ever written, just because the tone was so different. And I thought it was going to be taken as too over the top. Like it's almost the biblical [inaudible 00:06:14] We shall, etc.

It's 12 proclamations, it's not chapters I imagine Martin Luther nailing something like this to the church door. So I was quite nervous when I hit publish. And then the response was really gratifying and inspiring, [00:06:30] because people were telling me that they had ... some designers that actually typeset it and put it on a poster and actually put it on their wall. And I kept getting feedback like that for a long time. So when it came time to write a book, and if you want to be seen as the expert in your space, then you probably should write a book. And I was feeling the...

Redesigning Your Website

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Jan 2018 10:07:00 -0100

How to decide what your website for and how much should you spend on it.

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Authenticity

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Jan 2018 10:06:00 -0100

Speaking truth that is consistent with who you are.

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Getting Your Name Out

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Jan 2018 10:05:00 -0100

Strategy and tactics to promote your personal brand.

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Jonathan's Starbucks Card Story

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Finding Your Sweet Spot

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Jan 2018 10:04:00 -0100

How to find the overlap between your expertise and your what your client needs so you can operate in your genius zone.

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Niching Down

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Jan 2018 10:03:00 -0100

It's counterintuitive but true: focusing on a narrow market segment is great for business.

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Uncovering Your Big Idea

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Jan 2018 10:02:00 -0100

We unpack the concept of a big idea, share some examples, and suggest how to start to define one for yourself.

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The Big Idea

Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton — Mon, 08 Jan 2018 10:01:00 -0100

Structuring your business around a big idea

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