When I first began practicing yoga over 14 years ago, instructors in classes encouraged everyone to “move like you.”
I was 20 then. Did I really know myself? (lol)
I didn’t know how to move like me. I was still learning about myself. About the yoga practice. I simply did the poses that were called out.
Today, moving like myself can mean popping into a handstand if I feel particularly energetic as I move through sun salutations. It can also mean curling up in a child’s pose and resting on days I have less energy. Turns out, fourteen years gives me the time to learn how to intuit my body’s needs and move and act in ways that feel much more authentic to me.
Nobody teaches us how to be authentic.
It’s not a class we take in school. Similar to intuition, it’s something we learn, build, and refine over time. What was authentic to us a year ago may no longer be authentic today.
Authenticity also matters big time in how we run our businesses as independent creatives. It plays a part in the clients we attract. The work we accept. The work that we turn down. How we communicate with our clients.
It matters in how drum up work, too. A few years ago, I felt fine shouting into the void that is Twitter dot com about stories and ideas I wanted to sell. Now? I’d rather just email editors and publishers I know quietly. If I need work, I’ll tell my referral partners what I’m looking for.
In the last few years, The Writers’ Co-op has published many an episode about how to market our businesses in an authentic way. Meanwhile, the economy has changed and now it’s more important than ever to always be marketing so we’re able to support ourselves and our families.
Sales people are sales people for a reason - they likely have a personality to match the job. Freelancers gotta sell things, too, but we often lack the guidance to be sales-y in a way that feels authentic to us.
That’s why I’m so excited for TWC’s May workshop: Austin L. Church — a consultant and business coach for freelancers — is going to help all of us come up with a daily marketing plan. I keep marketing the event as “coming up with a plan that doesn’t suck” because acting in accordance with what feels authentic to you won’t suck.
If you want more control over your freelance business, join us.
Spots are limited, sign up and join us on May 13! Discounts available when you join as a Patreon member.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/how-to-create-a-marketing-plan-that-doesnt-suck-with-austin-l-church-tickets-845091169437