Ep 6: Don't Follow the Leader: Part 2

EPISODE 6:

Don’t Follow the Leader: part 2

 
 
 

Learn the power-prompt to get you out of the space of following-the-leader and seeking perfection.

Episode highlights:

  • Executive functioning part of your brain  vs the Primitive part and understanding the "chatter" that your brain offers you

  • Why the best innovation comes from doing it your own way

  • How to figure out what you really want -- and go after it!

  • Your marketing strategy isn't one-size-fits-all 

  • You do not have to follow the leader - instead, run it through YOUR own filter

    Plus, find out:

  • Why I gave up TikTok and the internal business filter I created to figure out what strategies you want to do. 

  • The timeframe you should commit to, at minimum, before changing your strategy. 

Following the leader results in homogeneous, boring marketing. The same redundant calls-to-action and boring social campaigns. Your audience wants to hear YOUR unique point of view.

Thoughts to think, on purpose: 

  • The magic is in forging my own path.

  • I get to decide what's best for me in my business.

  • There is not one right next step, only the one I decide is right.

Enter The Purpose & Profit Club Giveaway! Get The Details Here!

Resources mentioned:

 
 
 

Welcome to the Purpose and Profit Club podcast for nonprofit leaders, mission-driven creatives, and social entrepreneurs. Get ready to stop dreaming and start doing here. Ideas become action. We prioritize purpose and profit. You ready? Let's go. So in last week's podcast, we talked about the idea of not following the leader, right? Not doing everything a. number. You learned about my third grade teacher and how she totally duped us, and maybe I'm still a little salty about it. And the way that my brain works, this is probably gonna happen quite a bit in this podcast, is I finished something and. Then I have like another layer of it reveal. And so today is going to be part two of that episode. So today is going to be taking this work a little bit deeper and adding in a couple more thoughts and a power prompt to get you out of that phase. So if you're like, I am stuck in it and I don't really know how to get out of this space of. Of almost paint number? Where you're like, in order to get the perfect landscape, I have to put this color here in this way, in this order. I actually got this watercolor, book for Christmas and it was something that I, I chose that an artist basically, it's, it's probably a beginner's guide to watercolor. An artist actually does the outline of like a very thin pencil drawing, and then you can fill in the colors. But what I noticed was, so I got the book, and then on the left hand side of the page, she's given you a, a finished version of it. So, Say it was vase full of PIs. number. So she's like made the vase blue and the PIs are kind of a pale pink and all of this. And this is very me but like I did the first one last week and. I followed her and she even says, she's like, step one, you know? Mix, mix your pinks and start to paint the pedals. Step two, all, all along the way. And she's giving you the steps so that you can make hers, yours look like hers, right? And that's how you're te that's how she's also teaching you how like you can lay watercolors and really how the medinumber works. And I just couldn't do it like, and. Couldn't help but make the entire negative space, like the background of it, like this deep, bright blue. Like I just, I finished doing it her way and then I was like, I'm not done yet. And so I wanna just give you that before we start. So, uh, that popped into my head, so like, do it your way. Do it both ways. Did I still get the outcome of the book, which was. getting myself nnumberber one to do some art, access some creativity, which was the goal, and learned something new about watercolors because I, I feel like I've hit kind of a, a ceiling there, so I feel like I started to go down that path. So it's like I didn't need to, to be exactly like hers. Oh wait. There was really one, one funny thing that happened in that story, which is that I left it out cuz it was drying. So like the book was open, paints were closed. But I left it out and my kids came home and my son, who's seven and a half, he looked at it and he goes, oh cool. Like you, you did, he, oh, look at your art or something like that. And then he said, is this something you did a long time ago? Like when you were a kid, which was basically his version of. This looks pretty amateur. Mom, And I was like, no, babe, I did this an hour ago. And he was like, oh, number. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Fu number. Looks good. And it was, I, I just loved it. It was so sweet. And that's why in those moments too, it's totally process and not product, right? That was all about the process and not about the product. All right, so let's talk about, don't follow the leader part. number. So I'm gonna give you a prompt that will help bring you back to you if you're like, I know I used the word intuition and gut last time, so if you're like, I don't know what that, I don't, I don't know how to go there. I don't know how to access that. This will help. The first thing I wanna start with is this idea of primitive brain or lizard brain. You might have heard it before, number, in, in childhood development. So if you're a parent, you might have heard of the idea of like, even just like executive functioning. It's just basically, Who's, who's, uh, who's driving the car. number. And when I learned this concept, let's see, quick math, I don't know, probably around 2015 ish, 2016 ish. It was really transformative for me. So basically our brains are designed to stay in the cave, like from a way back when, from when our, an ancestors were basically trying to not get killed, right? So, avoid pain, seek pleasure, like safety, safety, safety. Right. That is basically how we were, were designed. And if you google the motivational triad, you'll see that and you can go into the concept a little bit di deeper. But basically we all have basically the executive functioning part of our brain, which is much more logical. Right. The one that gets us to the gym. It's the one that got me to the gym this morning. number. And then we have the lizard or primitive part of our brain, which basically. You don't, you don't need to go. Why don't you just stay home? It's cold out, it's raining. Like all that chatter. Any chatter that you have around internal tasks with within your organization and your business, uh, external, like daring pieces, that chatter that comes up, it's hard. No, they'll think you're stupid. No, no, no. We shouldn't do it different. We should just do it the way everybody else is doing. That assimilation piece that I talked about in the last episode, right, of just like, let's just go with the group. Think let's not rock the boat. That is all that primitive brain chatter. number. So I realized, and when, when I realized that it made it really, really easy when I realized that basically there were these two parts of me, right? And two, two parts of you, which is basically that there's both, there is a person driving that is your prefrontal cortex, which is basically the logical kind of, number, uh, higher brain, right? Who is the one who's like, we're going to the gym today. It's happening, and then there. The toddler in the backseat who's like, you don't need to go. There's probably not the, you're sore. There's not even, it's gonna be too busy. There won't be parking. It's raining. Right? That's the primitive brain. When I realized that I don't have to listen to it and I don't have to get rid of it, everything just became like, whoosh. So much easier. So for example, let's, let's do the watercolor example, which. I'm rusty. I haven't used watercolors in a really long time. I floral of painting still life. Not my thing, not my thing. Follow the leader, not my thing. like in the sense of like, I just wanna do what I wanna do and I don't want to be put into the constraints of this. And so like that was kind of the chatter around it of like, well, I don't even know. I don't even know if I feel like doing this, but. what my, higher brain was thinking was, let's just get back into it. Let's just see, let's just try it. Let's just see. It came with a set of watercolors and I actually have a set that I really like and one of the things I was like, I was thinking was. I wonder if I'll like the quality of these paints better. And guess what? There's only one way to find out is, which is by using them. And so that was one of the thoughts of like, let's just try it. And again, I'm not looking to have a piece framed on the wall here, so it's totally fine to just take a moment. So I want you to think about. as as, as deep as something that it, that is a deep goal you're going after. Or as basic as something like going to the gym or doing something creative or doing something that is quote unquote you time, like, where is this creeping in for you? Take a moment and be like, where is the toddler in the backseat? Having a lot of chatter and a lot of air time, and then I want you to just go, number, it's fine. Like it's totally fine that it's back there being like, da, da, da, da, da. It's gonna be so hard. No one wants to hear this. Ba da da da da da. Right. number, so here is the prompt that gets me out of that loop gracefully. number? So when that loop is coming in, one of the prompts, it's really, really short and really, really easy to reference and remember, is this prompt that is just two words. It's a question I say to myself out loud or in my head who says, who says, Who says, who says is such a beautiful filter to change that, that it's almost like a, a spiral, right? So for example, it could be, I don't wanna work out for an hour, I just don't want to go, or I don't have a, I don't have the time in my schedule. Oh, today's gonna be busy, right? So then I would go through the filter of who says, who says I have to work out for an. Who says I can't? Why not do a 30 minute amazing workout? Like what are these weird constructs that we're giving ourselves that don't actually exist? Like who says the right way to work out is for an hour? Who says I can't get a good sweat in 20 minutes? Right. It just helps unravel the whole thing. So let's use some actual examples inside your organization who says, this is how you have to fundraise. One of the big things that separates me from so many other consultants and coaches, In this purpose-driven and nonprofit sector is that I don't come with years and years and years of, oh, I was a, a development director, or I was in programs. Right? I come from the outside and bring everything from the for-profit space and apply it to your space. So when somebody says, well, this is the only way to get a major gifts meeting, I. You're who says you're totally wrong. There's a thousand ways you can fundraise. There's a thousand RA ways to raise a hundred K. And I've watched people do it in a thousand different ways. There is not one Bible for it, and once you release that, it makes it so much easier because it's really boring and really uninteresting for everybody to wear the same power suit and go into the same donor meeting and say the same. The exact same way, like, that's boring. No, I want you to say it your way and do it your way. So let's go through this. A few with some other ones who says that I have to get up at 5:00 AM right? Sometimes there's those 5:00 AM club posts and I'm like, oh, I'm supposed to be meditating and I'm supposed to be, this is, this is how an entrepreneur does it. And then I'm like, no, I need sleep. Who says one is better than the other? Right? Who says, and then I just don't even have to make it a big. who says I have to work 40 hours a week. That is a construct. We were all given nine to five, right? Eight to eight to five, whatever it is. And once I, that's, that's one I've been working on really, really more deeply, and I will, I will go into in another podcast once I realized that that is, A, an idea that we are all doing, right? That is just something we've all agreed upon. Kind of like money currency, right? We are all agreeing that a dollar is worth a dollar and a $5 bill is worth $5, right? We, you can construct, particularly if you're a social entrepreneur and a small business owner, you might even work on the weekends and that's number. So it like gives you some freedom there. Who says this is how to blank? Whatever it is. number. There's not one way. Think about the bookstore example. If there was one way to fundraise, if there was one way to increase your client base, incl, increase your donor base, increase your profitability, there would be one book in each each section of the bookstore. There's not another way to help unravel this. Is this. of diet crazes. So think about it like I grew up in the nineties, which was land of low fat, non-fat, and snackwells. Do you remember those? And. That was the way everything was of all about being like get the fat out of the food. Right? which in hindsight made it very, very high sugar. Right? Which was, is pretty terrible for you. But there's just diet crazes and everybody's like, this is the one right way. And since then we've seen Paleo and then we've seen keto, and then we've seen Whole 30, and then we've seen all these things and it's just because it is not one size fits all. You get to find the right one for. So if your best friend says, keto is the best diet to be on, that is wonderful for your best. It does not mean that you need to be on it too, and this applies to your revenue. This applies to your bottom line. Like I, I, I can't drive this, this point home more. You do not have to follow the leader. You get to try it. You get to say, huh, she's really into it. He's really into it. Let me give it a go if it's interesting to you. That's why I like the idea of running it through this. So in the past year-ish, Instagram reels and TikTok have become just very, very popular. Right? We've seen a lot of chatter about it. We s I personally have seen so many people in my world who have said, oh my gosh, I've gotten so many new clients this way. I've built my email list because I. TikTok go viral. I get people into my funnel this way. It is such a good way to build my business. We're getting new donors this way, and that is one way to do it, right? That is one way to build your organization, to increase your revenue, to increase the people who go into your funnel, right? Who start to know, like, and trust you. That is not the only way. So I get to run it through my filter, and last year I started a TikTok, and here's what I. I realized I don't like TikTok I realized that it's, it's too much. Like it's just too much. There was too much content out there. It just was overwhelming. Some of the content I saw was like weird and disturbing, and at some point I was like, this is not my platform. And I ran it through my filter, which is, number, what is it I'm trained to achieve inside my. Is TikTok to the way to get there. It is a way to get there who says, I have to use this way to get there. I really love some of these other strategies I'm doing here, and we're gonna phase that out now. I deleted the app and that was that. And this past Christmas, my niece told me, she's like, well, you know you still have a TikTok I said, I know. I know baby. I know I still have a TikTok, but I don't use. I left it there. If somebody wants to go and find my funnel that way. Amazing. See a couple videos I did good. Go with it. It can go live. Kind of like a Pinterest pin at this point. At some point I can decide to revisit it and that's it, and I go, right, that's it. That's kind of that, that piece of like us feeling like. Oh, I have to do it because you are doing it. I have to do it, quote, air quotes, because everyone else is doing it. No, you don't have to. If it takes you three hours to concept, create, edit, post a TikTok or a reel, I'm here to tell you that's a terrible use of your time, right? If you don't love it, if you love it, fine, but in general, not a great use of your time, right? Not a good use of roi because a lot of times we're just pushing ourselves there. Or if you're finding yourself where you're just. Scrolling, scrolling, scrolling. Not a good use of your time. number, so that, let's deepen that filter a little bit. Sometimes I will ask, who says that I need to do this? What is it I really want? And is this a good, hard worth doing? So, For example, with a TikTok example, there was a learning curve, right? And it's like, is this a good hard, I'm gonna try it. I didn't go super deep, I didn't sign up for a course or go in a class. But there might be something else, like with this podcast, is there, is this a good, hard, worth doing, right? For me it is. Is the learning curve enough to where I wanna, I wanna figure it. I wanna make it happen and go, right. And so that's like a fork in the road where it might be a yes or a no. And you can even give yourself a timeframe on some of this stuff. So let's think of it this way where you're like, you know what, I'm gonna give myself six months, right? Six months of IG reels and see what happens. That would be a caveat. And I like that idea. For some of you who are like, well, this is a, this is a trend and it's working for a lot of my, my colleagues and a lot of other people in the industry, and I'm interested in doing. Here's what I would say to that is, commit to a container of time and do not make that time, like 30 days. That's not enough time. number. I would say 90 days would be like the shortest amount of time. So if you think about, number, whether it's a social media strategy, an email strategy, uh, outreach prospecting strategy for new client or donor meetings, something like that, give yourself 90. I don't think 30 days is enough data to say it was a fail or it was a success. number. Same way we're gonna go back to the gym example, right? 30 days of going to the gym, you're like starting to get in the flow. I don't think it's enough to say. You know what? I'm not getting strong enough or not. I'd like to see 90 days or six months at least, right, to say whether or not you're into it or not. Same thing with keto, where you're like, unless it just made you feel terrible, I don't know. number, right out of the gate, I would commit to a container of time. and I know I read data recently that basically said they used to, they used to say it was 30 days to become somebody who the habit becomes like part of your routine. So we'll use the gym example, right? 30 days. And actually they actually said they studied it further. It's 60 days. It's closer to 60, so it would take 60 days of going to the gym Before on the 61st day, you're like, oh, I just go to the gym on Mondays. Right. it would take 60 days of doing watercolor. And it doesn't necessarily mean conse consecutively, but to where you start to just weave that into your schedule, the way that you would brushing your teeth at night, right? The way that you would with some of those other habits that are just part of your routine, setting the coffee machine at night, right? Those are just like easy, easy, easy. number, so let's. don't follow the leader. Part two. I gave you the prompt that works for me gracefully to get out of that loop when there is the toddler in the backseat, aka my brain chattering. Loudly about how difficult, hard, how much I need to do something, right? It's just the negative chatter, whatever that is, around whatever it is. So I gave you lots of personal and lots of professional versions of that today. number? So that chatter could really be either, number, watch it. Watch it today. It shows up for everything. It shows up for everything. It's the same chatter if you're like me. It's the same chatter when your alarm goes off in the morning and you're. I just am not getting outta bed. And you roll over and you hit the snooze bar, right? There's a subtle chatter there, but it's basically something to the effect of, no we're too tired. No. Right? And then it's, it's your higher brain that's like, no, we said we were getting outta bed at this time. Let's go. Right. Little bit more decisive, little bit more, uh, disciplined, right? And it's really weird at first, if this is a new concept to you to think of, of yourself. It's kind of like split personality to think of yourself in those two ways, but it's also really, really helpful because when you get in those low points inside your business, inside your organization, inside your work week, where you just feel heavy and everything feels hard, you can realize that that toddler climbed its way from the back seat to the front seat and is sitting in the front seat, right? And that's all that is. Right? And that's all. number, so you're gonna run it through the filter of who says, then you can even deepen that a little bit and say, what is it I really want and does this thing that I think that I'm chattering about? Help me get there. Snooze bar alarm goes off. The chatter is, I'm so tired, I just need 30 more minutes. 30 more minutes. number. Does that help me get to where I want to be? No. I said I was gonna go to the gym. I should be at the gym in 30 minutes. Is this a good, hard worth doing good, hard getting out of bed when I'm tired, it's cold, it's raining, whatever the thing is. Right? Right. That's a good, hard worth doing number for me. TikTok wasn't. You get to decide. So that's what I've got for you today. If you haven't entered or giveaway, please do go to splendid atl.com/giveaway. We're giving away. my top programs and some amazing prizes, and there will be more than one winner. So go over there. All you have to do is subscribe, rate, and review this podcast. I want to know what's resonating with you. Subscribe, rate, and review. Then you can send a screenshot to me. Over on Instagram at Splendid Consulting and that will be your entry. I'll see you next time, like what you're hearing and wanna take this to the next level. I wanna invite you to go to Purpose and profit.club to watch my free class in there. I will tell you the nnumberber one thing that's keeping your nonprofit or social impact business stuck and what to do instead. Go to purpose and profit.club.

You Get To Have Purpose And Profit. I’ll Show You How.

 
 
PodcastChristina Edwardspurpose and profit, marketing, entrepreneurship, purpose driven, nonprofit, founder, social impactComment