Being Vulnerable: “I have No Idea”

Falling into a vulnerable digital abyss

Those of you who have been reading along for a while will recall that in December I was struggling with motivation for writing this blog. I was wondering about the point of it all, and whether anyone cared whether I continued or not (including me). So here’s me being vulnerable.

I’d like to say that’s all resolved, but I can’t say that. I have just as many questions as I did before. Some of them the same, some of them different. Some of the ones that are the same are what I’ve come to call ‘unbudged’. (For a definition of unbudged, read The Zax by Dr Seuss.)

So to mix things up a bit, and in search of a break through, I’ve been trying to make what I’m doing here a bit more ‘business-y’. You know, with a plan, and some targets, and potentially some ways to make money.

Now any of you who have spent any time at all researching ‘internet-based businesses’ will understand what I’m talking about when I say ‘sales funnel’ but for most people (including me until a few months ago), it is part of a plethora of jargon that has started to make me feel a bit icky. Along with ‘lead magnets’ and ‘landing pages’. There is an entire world of people (a population I’m sure on a par with the United States of America) who have made it their business to perfect the art of separating people from their cash (via PayPal mostly – much more seemly).

I have no problem with this – they provide products and services that are of value to many people – and most of them offer credible money-back guarantees. It is the digital equivalent of small consulting firms without the bricks and mortar overhead of maintaining a shop-front.

The magical promise of an online money-making machine

So here’s the premise.

Build a ‘sales funnel’, entice a large number of qualified ‘leads’ into said ‘funnel’ with great ‘sales copy’ and a kick-arse ‘lead magnet’ and money will start to magically appear in your PayPal account.  Or something.

Hell, I have no idea. So far I’ve made about twenty bucks. Probably from my Mum. How’s that for vulnerable!

Writing great ‘sales copy’ seems to involve creating a one-dimensional version of myself that people can ‘instantly relate to’. But I’m not sure whether I want to be that relatable. I’m an introvert for goodness sake!

I want to change the world – try convincing people what that actually means and whether it’s doable in 30 to 60 seconds worth of text!

Am I trying too hard? Am I not trying enough? Am I too sales-y?

“Show people you can solve their problems!” the self-help guides say. Hell I know about putting yourself in the customer’s shoes, I worked in customer service for years and was damn good at it. In many respects, that’s the majority of my role as a CE! And I know I’m great at solving problems – all problems. Not just one specific problem.

I guess I’m not good at seeing the world as black and white. I’m all about the grey.

“Niche Down” they say. Get really focused on the exact person you’re trying to serve.

Leadership development isn’t really a niche – it’s like a massive group of people who want to accomplish completely different things, have completely different problems, and many of whom are earning plenty of money and can buy the things they want and need when they want and need them, not because I recommend them on my Blog.

So far, I’ve earned commission on about six books.

Oh yeah, and five pounds of coffee beans. Go figure. As a kiwi it’s hard to imagine buying coffee beans on Amazon, but somebody does.

This is a weird post

Search engines won’t like it.

It’s not optimised. My keyword doesn’t appear in any of my headings. I haven’t linked to anything except Dr Seuss.

My bounce rate will be through the roof. It’s a wonder you’re still reading, to be honest. You must be hardcore.

But I am putting myself out there.

So here’s what I know about me

I’m Rebecca Elvy. I grew up believing my brain was my greatest asset.

I wasn’t pretty, rich or particularly athletic. If I was going to make it in the world, it would be me and my brain.

And it’s a pretty good brain. I aced the Mensa entrance exam with a score in the 99th percentile (you only need 98 to get in).

But at age 26 I was diagnosed with probable Multiple Sclerosis. A debilitating condition that attacks the central nervous system… that gray mushy thing between my ears that I was rather fond of. I’ve never really told anybody about this.

So for the past 12 years I’ve made it my mission to learn everything I can about how the brain works, and to take advantage of that learning to build a kick-arse career and an awesome family life filled with meaningful moments.

What I’ve learned is that most people are wasting their lives on stuff that doesn’t matter because they don’t know any different…

I want to help you wake up from that. To stop waiting and start living. Because you can.

I want you to live on purpose and be the CEO of you.

I think the best way for me to do that is:

• Coaching – the one on one stuff for people who want to develop their personal and/or professional leadership
• Writing – Books, blogs – for people who aren’t sure, but wonder if there’s more to life than showing up to work everyday
• Teaching – Sharing what I’ve learned over the past 12 years of my career where I’ve gone from Admin/Finance Assistant to Chief Executive
• Speaking – Sharing my insights (and hopefully inspiring) larger groups of people to take action and make the most of the one life they have

The common thread in all of these is communication – reaching people – wherever they’re at. Not just because they made it to the bottom of some virtual funnel.

I don’t love sales. I don’t love funnels or search engine optimisation. I don’t even love networking (there’s that introvert thing again).

I am what I am. If I keep trying to be what I’m not, there’s a risk I start thinking I’m useless at everything…

And that won’t help anyone.

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Leading From Within – Getting Started

Can you imagine what would happen if all the high achievers in the world actually stood up and were counted? Little problems, big problems, global problems, local problems… they’d all become things that could be solved. Not quickly, but gradually,

To whet your appetite, I’ve created a little sneak peak of the system I’ve created to do just that. It’s an ebook called Leading From Within: Getting Started.

You can get it in three different ways, depending on your preference:

• Subscribe to i3 Insiders
• Buy it

But whatever you do, don’t settle for another year of feeling unfulfilled. It’s a massive waste, considering your talent, skill and experience.

Let’s make a difference, and get something happening!