Can we talk about how appearances can be deceiving for a minute? I think we all know this but our mind is good at tricking us into not believing this.
Case in point….one of my dear friends said this to me recently:
“How does it come so easy to you? I don’t know how you do it?”
At face value these questions aren’t anything to write home about but let me give you the context. My dear friend said this to me the first time she saw me after I launched my digital course, Intentional Instagram. She was referring to seeing my Instagram stories about recording and editing and marketing the course.
My answer to her:
Bahaha! Easy?! Girl, there was nothing easy about that. I did the best to have fun while I did it but the learning curve was steep, I was pretty stressed and I realized how much I actually talk to myself (and answer my own questions) during the day too so…..now I think I’ve gone insane too.
So I want to set the record straight about this just in case you felt the same. When I was planning, recording, editing and marketing this digital course, here are just some of the thoughts and emotions that occurred:
I realized that I seriously underestimated the time it took to edit video and shoot video and write a script for a digital course. Lesson learned!
After all the time it took to accomplish each of these tasks, I was exhausted! There was one full day that all I did was record video for all 8 modules and I was wiped out that day. I had no clue how exhausting it was to be on camera all day. Serious props to all the actors out there!
Due to the lack of understanding time, I also didn’t account for this in my schedule so everything was thrown off. Everything! From blogging to eating, it was all off. And if you know me, time management is my thing so this through my mindset off a few times too.
Overwhelmed. It all overwhelmed me. The planning, the production, the marketing. All of it. I’m still overwhelmed thinking about it! Ha!
Worry. I worried if I would get it done in time. I worried about what the “set” looked like. I worried about if the microphone I had was good enough. But most importantly, I worried that I wasn’t going to provide enough value to those who purchase the course. And that is the absolute last thing I wanted to happen. Seriously, the last!
Excited and nervous. I felt these emotions all the way through the process. I was so nervous about producing the right thing for you but so excited because I have seen the tactics work so I knew if I could bundle it up in this way it could help more people. And that excited me more than anything.
Proud. Once it was all said and done, I was (and still am) proud of the product. I have no doubt that I will want to change things….because I already have a list...but I’m still so dang proud that I did the work. I showed up. I planned and I did it. And if one person is helped with this product, then I succeeded.
But it was her perception that truly opened my eyes to this. How often do we look at others and think “how does it come so easy to them?”. Whether it be teaching a yoga class like a champ, launching an online course or product, or being a working mom. Comparison is all around us and it does us no good.
But since comparison is entangled in marketing, I want to address this head-on. Here are my 3 take-away lessons from marketing comparison:
Recognize - we need to start identifying when we are comparing ourselves. The earlier we can catch it, the better!
Review - once you notice it, ask yourself why this is triggering you. It will likely bring up something that’s a little uncomfortable but if you can identify it, you can move past it quicker.
Release - move on, girl. Keep your eyes on your own mat and move on! This is WAY harder to do than to say but I tell myself this often. Just like in a yoga class, focus your eyes inward instead of on other people.
I say all this like I’ve got it figured out. But the truth is....I do the same thing! You better believe that my eyes wander from my mat often. I’m not the only marketing coach out there for yoga teachers so it’s hard not to compare myself. They are years of business ahead me and that’s tough for me. But I try my best to remember that I’m unique and offer something different, even if it’s simply my personality, and that’s enough. There’s enough out there for all of us. So come along this journey with me, friend, and let’s stop our eyes from wandering.
