What type of entrepreneur are you?

Just got off a call with a person I met online at a Trends Newsletter networking event. (If you don’t know what Trends is – I’d highly recommend you check them out. Especially if you want to connect with like-minded entrepreneurs.)

The funny thing is I’m not usually on these networking calls. And the only reason why I was on it was because I didn’t read the whole email. I thought it was their newsletter expert speaking – my total bad for quickly skimming that email.

Please tell me I’m not the only person who’s jumped on a Zoom call thinking there was a speaker and I could be invisible — turned out there were only 12 of us, and they were breaking us up into small groups – yikes!

As it always happens, I met some interesting people on the call and ended up helping several of them, who actually called me out in front of the group for doing so. I’m not saying this to brag.

I’m saying this to inspire (and remind) you because you have way more knowledge than you think you do. So don’t let your inner critique ever tell you otherwise!

As for me — I haven’t talked about newsletters in years. So who knew my 16 years of experience in writing and newsletters would be able to inspire and give some terrific strategies to help others.

I offered to hop on a call with anyone in the group – and they just needed to simply email me, to set up a time.

This leads me to some questions –

What type of entrepreneur are you?

Are you someone that takes immediate action?

Or do you sit and think before you take action?

Neither one is right nor wrong – no judgment here.

And I do know it’s scary sometimes to ask for help. Yet, when you take that leap, some pretty cool stuff can happen…

I enjoyed connecting with the person who followed up with me from that newsletter call. He was smart, funny, personable, and knew a ton about his dream subscribers.

He was trying to grow his subscriber list and then create products, services, and courses to start monetizing it.

We both learned a lot from our call. I got some interesting tech ideas from him. And he got some terrific ideas about how to share more about himself to create a deeper relationship with his subscribers. And some ideas on how to grow his list. It was a win-win.

Here are a couple of nuggets to inspire and guide you:

1. Dual Readership in Your Copy – For his newsletter, there was a ton of copy, much like mine! Yet he had several sections that made it cumbersome and more difficult for the skimmers like me. (Dual Readership is two types of people – those that read everything and those that skim.) I suggested he break up his copy more and make it easier to view each separate section.
   
2. Share Some Stories – Info About You or your readers, clients, and customers – He was awesome at sharing his email subscriber’s stories. Yet, hadn’t shared too much about himself. This is understandable if you don’t want to be the face of the business. Or go for a more professional business-type newsletter like The Hustle. In that case, do what he’s done and have your subscriber’s stories be the highlight of connection.
   
   Yet, creating more of a connection with your dream clients is best. We all have an inert need to connect with like-minded people and be heard and understood. People want to know you understand them, care about them, and are genuine. Sharing your thoughts, values, pets, stories, ideas, and more will create a connection. Especially letting them know you’re human and you’re kind of just like them in many ways – assets, flaws, and all.
   
3. People Want to Be Seen – It’s part of human nature to want to be seen, heard, and recognized. This is a terrific way to build connections and a relationship with your subscribers. When I had a print newsletter, I highlighted a subscriber each month, and my people loved it.
   
   This is a terrific strategy to incorporate to create more conversations with your dream clients. And to go deeper, your dream clients also want to know how much you care about them. You can do this by sharing about yourself and also creating and giving them things of value that will help them solve their challenges and frustrations.
   
4. Create Engagement – This is much like what we do on social media. Yet, doing this with our communication vehicles, like email, texts, etc., are also valuable. The three points above will help you tremendously in engagement. You can also ask questions, encourage folks to share, and do a survey/questionnaire. Or make a statement in your email something like, “I always answer all my emails – try me!”
   
5. Align Your Content with Your Mission & Values – You want to ensure you’re attracting your dream clients. When you share to connect, inspire, and give away strategies, ideas, and more to your dream clients – they will follow, subscribe, and even buy from you. Remember, people want to connect with people, not corporations. You’re not just a business – you’re an expert, an influencer, a coach, a leader, and more.

Last thing – You have so much knowledge to share to help and inspire others.

When you’re feeling inadequate or like you don’t know enough to be on certain calls, panels, or as a speaker – please know YOU DO!

And if it helps, refresh your memory on the core things you love to teach and share. Think back to all those you’ve helped, even if it was just a few. THAT’S how it starts!

You got this!

Quote I’m Pondering:

“We don’t devote enough time and resources to reflecting on how we can resonate with the right people – just as we are. We fail to harness the true potential of our nature.” ~ Bernadette Jiwa – Story Driven: You Don’t Need to Compete When You Know Who You Are.

Two Powerful Mantras to Inspire: (From Tosha Silver)

“May I know my own value, beauty, and worthiness without question.

“May I feel worthy to receive in every possible way.”

What I’m Reading:

Just Feel Good: The Secret To The Life You’ve Always Wanted by Andrew Kap

Latest Book Review: Great Leads: The Six Easiest Ways to Start Any Sales Message by Michael Masterson & John Forde

Weekly Photos: Everything is coming up spring here in Northern CA. Today was the first day that we hit 90 degrees – yikes – short spring! At least it’s still nice and cool in the mornings. Emma’s liking the warmer weather.

And all our flowers are blooming. Those roses just smell so divine. And there’s still snow on the mountains and some wonderful sunrises. Plus, Mt. Shasta is still covered and looking as majestic as always.

NOTE: This is pretty cool – help a Netherlands fish. In the spring, the fish swim from the Netherlands’ Oudegracht (“old canal”) to the Kromme Rijn River so they can lay their eggs. The challenge is that they need to go through a locked gate. And sometimes, they need to wait a long time to get through. That’s when a unique solution was created for you to help — Watch this live stream. (Use your Google translator, as the site is in Dutch.) When you see a fish, ring the doorbell so the lockkeeper knows to open the gate.