Me: I want to start my own coaching/consulting business.

Hubby: LOL.

He literally burst out laughing. And then told me that I would need to "sell" myself.

As a business coach, it’s embarrassing to admit that I used to feel awkward about marketing and selling myself (which Jeff knew).

But we were both wrong about how we viewed marketing and selling because we thought of it as convincing people to buy.

Good marketing/selling does not try to convince people to pick you or your product. That comes from a place of neediness (which is what makes it feel so awkward - even pushy).

Instead, I needed to answer a simple question…Why me?

Here’s what I mean (and why this concept applies to you, Friend, regardless of what you do)…

Whenever someone is considering whether to invest their time, money and/or energy into you (be it purchasing your services, giving you a promotion, agreeing to be your mentor or something else), they need to know “Why you?”.

Part of this is obvious because it’s about what you bring to the table (generally and for them):

• What are your skills?

• What are your strengths (and how are they best used)?

• What’s your personality?

But some of this isn’t as obvious, and gets to things like:

• What’s your story?

• What do you value?

• What is your viewpoint/mindset?

Don’t be afraid to make a stand so as to answer another question…

Why not you?

I am not the right-fit coach for every attorney out there. Which is why I am very clear on who I am, what I bring to the table, how I do what I do and so on.

You are not the right-fit person for every position, person or client out there either.

Here’s another example of what I'm talking about (that has nothing to do with marketing):

A client hired me to regain her confidence after being transferred into a new division (and “losing” a title that had been important to her).

Losing that title felt like a demotion. Yet 6+ months later she’s learning that the transfer was a good thing (and regaining her confidence as a result).

She now sees that her new position maximizes her strengths and the old position is more technocratic (a waste of her skills + strengths).

The prior position was clearly a why-not situation, the new one is a perfect why-her.

Time to ask - and answer - both questions.

Because there’s nothing worse than discovering you’ve spent years climbing a ladder that’s leaning against the wrong wall.

XO,

Heather

P.S. Struggling with how to effectively market “Why you”? Listen here to find out how to answer this question in an authentic and non-salesy way.