How to Build a Business When You Hate Marketing & 5 More Dilemmas — Solved!

In this episode of MarieTV, we do have some adult language. So if you do have little ones around, grab your headphones now.

Hey, it’s Marie Forleo, and you are watching MarieTV, the place to be to create a business and life you love. This is Zach Bliss. He works with us here on MarieTV.
Hello.

He zhooshes, makes everything really, really gorgeous.
I’ve been designing for you for how many years now?

Years.

Years. And it’s been a delight.

And he’s a really dear friend.

Yeah.

So we have a lot of fun.

A lot of fun.

Anyway, this is the MarieTV call-in show where we actually call you guys and we get to answer some questions live. And I think it’s gonna be a lot of fun. So let’s rock it.

Our first caller.

Hello, La Shawn speaking.

La Shawn!

Hello, La Shawn.

It’s Marie Forleo, how are you?

I’m good. How are you?

I’m so good. So if you hear some people in the background, we have our MarieTV crew here and we are so excited that you’re on. La Shawn, tell us your question and we’ll do our best to help you out.

Okay, awesome. Thank you so much. I’m so excited to be talking to you. Okay, so I have been a hairstylist and a makeup artist for 20 years. And starting in 2010 I’m on the journey to transform the way I was dealing with life. Since then it hasn’t stopped and my goals and my life have changed. I now want to transition from being a hairstylist to being solely a makeup artist and a relationship coach. And there’s a part of me that feels that it’s too much. I fear that I won’t have time to do both and will people take me seriously? And lately I’ve been like going back and forth about it and feeling really stuck. So, help me.

Yes. I love it. Well, as you know, I’m a multipassionate entrepreneur. Many of the folks here in MarieTV land are, and so many folks in our audience are. So I have some questions for you, La Shawn. When you look at those two possibilities in terms of focusing on relationships and focusing on being solely a makeup artist, if you look in your heart, which one to you feels more expansive? The one that you’re just like “oh, my God. This is a huge yes.”

Relationship coaching.

Woo! Okay, good. So the fear probably that’s popping up, and please correct me if I’m wrong, is that for so long, right, you’ve been in the beauty world and so you’ve got some level of comfort there?

Yes.

Yes. And so it seems to me just listening to you that, you know, focusing in on being a makeup artist is a little safer, at least in your mind at this point. Would that be accurate?

Yes. With the financial stability part, yes.

Yes. Okay, cool. So I want to give you some possibilities. You know, in terms of you feeling that that could be too much, that is possible. But I’ll tell you this. There was a period in my particular career where – probably about five to seven years where I did multiple things. So I was in the dance and fitness world, I was a Nike athlete, I was running my coaching business and starting to understand how to build that from the ground up.

And so all of those things were happening simultaneously. And what that did for me, even though I consciously knew that none of them would grow as big if, you know – as they would if I would just focus on one, I just wasn’t ready to.

So I want to offer this to you. You know, rather than having to make a hard choice right now, what if you gave yourself permission to go more fully into makeup so that you can have those finances coming in, you can keep building that wealth, because I think for me, especially for woman, and I always say this, taking care of the money is one of the most important things that we can do for our long-term health, our happiness, our stability, our ability to contribute our gifts to the world. It’s vital. And at the same time you can start developing your comfort level, your skill, everything that you need in terms of being a relationship coach. But you don’t have to go all in at once. Does that make sense?

It totally does.

So you can dip your toe in the water, so to speak, and then perhaps in a year or two you can reevaluate and say, “You know what? Do I really still want to keep going with this relationship coach thing?” And then you can start perhaps transitioning yourself, you know, from doing it 20% of the time, 30% of the time, 40% of the time. And you might reach a point where you get so confident in your skills and your ability to bring in income and clients from that work that you’re like, “Oh, I’m really ready to make this transition.”

Mmm, okay. Yes. Thank you so much. That totally makes sense.

Yeah. This is a way to mitigate the risk, and it’s also a way to help yourself build confidence without pulling out the financial rug from underneath you. Because from what you’ve shared and, again, I’d love to hear if you disagree with this, it doesn’t feel like to me that you’re like, “Oh, I can’t stand the beauty world anymore. I’m just done with it. I have to get out. It’s toxic.” I took a look at your site, actually, and you’ve really – you’ve got so much great energy around you that I think you still have more to contribute in that world. Would you agree?

I totally agree. I mean, I love doing – don’t get me wrong, I love doing hair. It’s wonderful. But I want to do – I want to focus only on makeup, because I want more freedom in my life, and financial freedom as well.

Yes.

And although if I just do makeup, not relying on the hair will kind of hurt me financially, but at the same time I do believe in going for my dream. So I’m just going to go that route.

Yes. So another assignment I would give to you is to take a look at your financial goals really seriously and understand exactly where you are right now in terms of your net worth. You know, we have some great MarieTVs that we’ll put links to below. If you haven’t seen them, I would suggest to go back and watch them so you have a really clear understanding of your financial picture right now. And then you can use that to support yourself as you move into doing makeup. Because I can hear, right, you might take a little hit on your money, at least initially, but I hear confidence in you that you’ll be able to build that up fairly quickly and then build in the relationship stuff on the side. I know you can do this.

And here’s the best thing, La Shawn, you’re gonna discover what’s gonna be the best route, how fast you should go, from executing. You’re not gonna come up with it in your mind. You’re gonna come up with it from actually doing it, and then you’re gonna be able to navigate as you go, and you’re gonna feel like a rockstar doing it.

Yes. Thank you so much. I do want to say that I am a B-Schooler. I’m so grateful to be speaking to you right now. Thank you so much for taking my question.

Oh, absolutely. And La Shawn, since you’re a B-Schooler, girl, come back this next round and do it again live.

Come on back.

You have it for free, so you can take all of these new ideas and this new focus and we can help you supercharge it.

I will do that. Most definitely.

Awesome. Thank you so much for your question. We’re cheering you on, we love you, and thanks for calling in.

Thank you. Have a wonderful day.

You too.

Bye-bye.

Bye, La Shawn. Yay!

That’s so interesting. You know, sort of like getting rid of a business to pursue another one. But you’ve done that a few times.

Yeah, but I think – here’s the thing. A lot of people see things in black and white. And some people thrive best that way. You know, they have to kind of burn all the bridges behind them. That’s the only way they’re gonna be able to focus on this new thing coming up.

But there’s many of us, and I’m one of these people, I like transitions. I like to do things gradually. I like to have a sense of financial security underneath me. And sometimes that means, yeah, I’ll work a little bit longer because I have more kind of plates spinning in the air.

Yeah.

But it gives me so much more jet fuel to take off from.

Good morning.

Is this Mandy?

Yes, it is.

What’s up, Mandy? It’s Marie Forleo and the whole MarieTV crew. How you doing?

I’m great, Marie. How are you?

I’m so good. We’re so excited to have you on the show. So let us know your question, and we will do our best to help you out.

Oh, absolutely. Well, I – first of all, thank you. I’ve been following you for years. I’m a huge fan.

Aw, thank you so much.

I’m an entrepreneur, an artist, and have been doing this for way over 20 years. And I do okay, but truly I’m a real creative at heart, and that is my passion and that’s what I’m best at. And what I struggle with is finding help with marketing. I feel like marketing to me is like trudging through quicksand in the dark. And I also know it’s just not the best use of my time or my talent. But I’ve struggled with how do I find the best marketing help?

It’s a great question. And Mandy, first of all, I want to congratulate you for doing what you’ve been doing for 20 years. As a creative, I just admire and appreciate that. Every time I meet artists of any kind, folks who do the kind of work that you do, singers, musicians, writers, I just – you’re my people. So I just want to acknowledge you for that.

Thank you.
And two, I also want to tell you, you are so not alone. And especially when it comes to the marketing bit. Right? And feeling this sense of resistance.

Yeah.

What I’m laughing right here, and I see – I just want to let you know, because I know you can’t see us. But I see Elsa in the back raising her hand, who is my stylist, I see Zack who’s sitting next to me right here, who’s a designer going – they’re nodding their head and raising their hands that, yes, the marketing piece is hard for them as well.

Yeah.

So here’s what I want to share with you. One, you want to ask yourself, are you happy with the level that your business is at right now? And I heard what you said about, you know, you said you’re doing pretty good. So I’m curious to hear if you feel like you want to see more growth in terms of your financial revenue, in terms of your profit, in terms of your work getting out there in the world.

Absolutely.

Okay.

Yes on all of those.

Okay, great. That’s awesome. So that being said, what I think is gonna help you most is, first, not even finding someone to help with the marketing. We can get to that. But I also truly believe in my heart that having a reframe around marketing itself, right? Because right now – and I loved your analogy – your metaphor. You’re like, “gosh, it’s like trudging through quicksand. And it just feels so arduous and it’s not a good use of my time.”

I’d like to invite you to revisit that and to reconsider that as an artist, as a creative, yes. It might not be the best use of all of your time. But if you can flip that mindset and start to embrace it. So perhaps a little bit less like trudging through quicksand, and maybe actually it’s a little like walking on a beach. Right? So rather than sinking you’re like, “you know what? This could actually be kind of fun and I’m gonna see some beautiful things. And this could actually invigorate me and help me reach some of those beautiful goals that I have.”

Because one of the things that you’ll need to do, even if you don’t execute on all the marketing yourself, you need to understand it. You need to educate yourself about it so that you can hire people who will do a great job. And you have the intelligence and understanding to realize whether or not they’re good at what they do. So for me, here’s what I would recommend. And I’m gonna say this very plainly because, as you know, I’m a plain spoken woman and I don’t hold things back.

If you haven’t done B-School, I would encourage you to strongly consider it. I think one of the best gifts that I have in the world is my ability to take people who feel about marketing, the way you feel about marketing, and literally give them an inner transformation. Where not only will you understand how it can serve you, but for your goal of finding people that would be able to help you, you’re gonna be able to spot them a mile away. And, quite frankly, you might even be able to find those people in B-School in the community itself.

Now, you can go read books, you can do any other things. So if something else resonates for you, awesome. I want to see you get educated, no matter what. I just know my product, I know my people. We’ve been doing this for almost 10 years, so I feel utterly confident that I can help you transform this whole thing. I just can’t vouch for other people, because I don’t know what the hell they do.

But no matter what, my friend, you’re so talented, you have the stamina. You’ve been doing this 20 years. You understanding marketing, and changing your mindset about it is what’s gonna open up a whole new world. And you don’t have to do it 24/7. You don’t have to leave your creative act.

And I also want to tell you one more thing, and this is something I don’t think most people understand about marketing. Mandy, marketing when done right is the ultimate vehicle for your creativity. It challenges you in ways to think about connections, to think about beauty, to think about emotions, to think about pulling things together in fresh, new ways that inspire people to pay attention to you, to care about your product, and, most importantly, to buy it. So I think there’s so much opportunity for you in this that it’s crazy. And so my invite for you would be the next time B-School comes around to really at least pay attention to all the free videos. Because those on their own, that’ll help you start making this mindset shift.

Gotcha.

And then if it feels like the right fit, come join us. I guarantee you will flip the whole thing and you’ll probably find the right people to help you.

Fantastic. Thank you, Marie.

You’re so welcome. I hope this was helpful. Keep doing what you’re doing and keep looking for opportunities and ways that you can start to fall in love with marketing, because it’s possible.

Alrighty.
Awesome. Thanks, Mandy.

Thank you, Marie. Take care.

Okay, bye.

Bye.

It is a universal problem for artists. You know, whether it’s the financial part or the marketing part, you know, anything outside of the thing that we’re so passionate about that drives us. But there is something, like when I’ve been working like, you know, I need sometimes you to send out like to potential clients sort of like a little bit about me

Yes.

And after like writing it, you know, and definitely you’re making it sound like the best part of you. You’re not going, “Yeah, but I could’ve done a little bit better.” You just feel so good about yourself and your craft.

Yeah, yeah.

Hello?

Hi, is this Hannah?

It is!

Hey, Hannah. It’s Marie Forleo and the whole MarieTV crew. How you doing?

I’m doing wonderful. Thank you so much for calling.

Absolutely. Thank you for letting us give you a buzz. So, Hannah, tell us your question and we will do our best to help you out.

Perfect. So my name is Hannah and I’m 16 years old. I’m one of three sisters, and you are one of our biggest, biggest role models. We watch you every single week.

Thank you!

The three of us are developing a mobile app for young women, and I would love your advice. How do you succeed in a field that’s primarily male-dominated? You know, we’re determined to make this dream a reality, and when our ages or gender or anything else hold us back. So what can we do to ensure that we’re taken seriously in the business and technology world?

Hannah, this is a freaking awesome question. I adore you. Everyone here on set, I know you can’t see us, but you will when this airs. We’re all like cheering you, smiling, high five’s.

Yeah, we’re stoked right now.

Yes. Zach, who’s sitting next to me, he’s saying “I’m stoked right now.” Yes. So a couple things. One, I can relate to this. Because, you know, when I first started my career I was on Wall Street, and it was a very male-dominated industry. And even, quite frankly, today, you know, I’m still in a place often times where a lot of my counterparts are men. That’s changing slowly, but I understand this feeling. Right?

And so one of the things that I’ve always focused on that I would encourage you guys to as well is being the best that you can be. Like taking your time to know your numbers, to understand what you’re up to, to investigate every resource. Like great resources like the show Shark Tank. We’re right here. Obviously you guys watch MarieTV, and that’s friggin’ awesome.

But knowing your industry inside and out. Being able to just dominate on a level where you guys are constantly upping your own standards. In terms of your preparation. Being on time, being willing to work harder, work longer. Just get in there like an animal. I’ve found that nothing, nothing proves how valuable you are than your performance. It’s all about performance. So in terms of male-dominated fields, it’s almost like we want to remove that from our mind and focus on being the best that we can be.

You guys are gonna encounter some bullshit, like every woman does. Okay? And you’re going to encounter that bullshit, and you’re gonna be able to tackle it like a pro. You’re gonna have people around you. You can always write to us. I’ll be happy to give you guys advice. We want to surround you with other strong creatives, both women and men, who will support you as you take this project out into the world and be able to help you navigate the inevitable crappy situations that every business owner runs into.

But the basics of knowing your product, working harder and longer than anyone else, educating yourself about marketing, about technology, constantly being persistent, never letting yourself not follow up because you’re afraid of rejection or you’re afraid of what someone will think about you, continuing to push yourself to be the best that you can be, you and your sisters, that is what’s going to help you make this dream a reality.

That was amazing. 100, 100%.

I’m serious, I wish I could reach through the freaking camera and the computer right now and squeeze you guys. Like, I cannot tell you how excited I am for you. And, again…

Marie.

Yes.

I need to tell you, we have seen ourselves on your show in visions, in manifestations, whatever you want to call it, so many times. And we know that this app is gonna change what it means to be a young woman and to be a team. I’m 16 and I need this app more than anything. So I just know we’re gonna be sitting next to you, and this is just the beginning. So I’m so grateful to you for everything you’ve done so far.

Hannah, I love it. And, you know what? You just mentioned something else too. I love that you guys visualize. You know, it’s one of the things we’ve talked about on the show, but keep doing that. Keep doing that for your performance, keep doing that for your company, for any meeting that you want. You know, if there’s a skill that you guys feel like, “gosh, we’re not really up to the level we want to be up to yet.” When it comes to perhaps pitching your product or maybe if it’s even about like what time you get up in the morning or how productive you are, use those visualization skills to keep picturing your ideal outcome and you will start to step into it.

You know, for anyone watching this right now who’s like, “Oh, that’s some woo woo bullshit.” It’s not. We have this incredible creation machine in our brain, and the way that we bring things to life is by first imagining them, and then stepping into it. It really is something so powerful and not enough people know it, so the fact that you guys do this at 16? Oh, my gosh. I am so excited.

Hannah, you are the best. Thank you so much. I hope this was helpful, and please keep me posted because I want to support you guys in getting this business up and out.

For sure. This is just the thing. And when my sister told me about this call yesterday I said, “We are gonna be on the show.” And so I knew it, and we all three did, and so I can’t wait to be able to thank you in person and give you that big hug.

Yes!

Awesome. Hannah, you’re the best. Good luck to you guys. Have a great day. We’ll talk soon. Thanks, darling.

Thank you so much.
Thanks. Bye.

Loved hearing that enthusiasm. She’s awesome.

I can’t even handle it. It’s too much.

The visualizing thing. Like, that’s – I was just thinking like that’s a way to prep yourself for things that haven’t even existed yet. So like thinking about the meeting and thinking about all of this stuff. So you’re sort of ahead of the game. Even if it goes a different direction.

Yup.

You’ve already sort of put yourself in that position.

You brought up a great point. I think sometimes when we’re walking into a situation where we don’t know how it’s gonna go, one of the best ways that you can use the tool of visualization is actually to imagine it going great, but then also imagine it kind of getting taken off the rails, and how you would respond.

So that you give yourself these rehearsals, so that when something comes up and you’re like, “I didn’t expect that,” somewhere in your mind, you did. And you’re that much more prepared, and you can stay calm and cool and collected and be able to navigate it way better than if you’re just like, “Everything’s gonna go perfect and nothing’s ever gonna happen and go wrong.” Because that just ain’t real life.

Yeah.

Good morning, Terri speaking.

Hey, Terri. It’s Marie Forleo and the whole MarieTV crew. How are ya?

Oh, I am pretty fantastic. Thank you.

Yes! I was so excited when I heard about you and your company, so we wanted to have you on the show. So tell me about your question, and we are gonna do our best to give you some answers.

Sweet. So my question is, my award-winning wine and craft beer company is really small by design. And I’ve worked hard to keep it that way. When your entire business is based on your personal brand, reputation, and reviews, how do you bring in others without ticking off potential guests? For example, I worked seven days a week for six months straight in the summer, and when I tried to take one day off for my 25th wedding anniversary, my potential guest said, “I only have one day in town, and it has to be you.”

Woo! Woman. Woman, woman, woman. Okay. So a couple things. First, I need to acknowledge you. Like, 25 years married. Can we just give Terri? Hello. And all these years that you are in business. And I will say too, just the fact that, and I know this isn’t healthy and we’re gonna talk about this in a few minutes, but just the fact that you’re like, “you know what? I work seven days a week for a good portion of the year.” As someone who’s a crusher myself, I just commend you. Because a lot of people, you know, they shy away from that type of drive and that type of commitment, and I actually think it’s awesome.

Now, that said, I do understand the crux of your question. I love that you keep your business small by design, and obviously that’s creating a little bit of conflict for you right now because you never feel like you can take off. That’s not a good thing. So what I would encourage you to consider, Terri, is to start thinking about, “okay. If I could have this situation be any way I want, what would it look like?”

So your company would probably remain small, but if I’m hearing you correctly, you may want to have someone who’s perhaps under you, like one or two other people, that could give craft tours so that you could take off a day or two here or there or have a little bit of growth that isn’t always dependent on you. Is that accurate?

That is absolutely accurate.

Okay, cool. So we’re gonna stay small, but we’re just gonna get it just a little bit bigger so that you can have more freedom. Now, the way to start doing that is think about your ideal person that you would love to hire. Right? So if you’re familiar with my work, we teach something in B-School called the Ideal Customer Avatar where we’re understanding who our ideal customer is so that we can do a better job of attracting them and taking care of them and just wowing their pants off in the best way possible.

For this particular task, we want to do an Ideal Employee Avatar. Starting to dream up who this person would be, what are their strengths, what are they looking for, what are they passionate about, what are their values, what is their attitude towards work, how flexible are they? So that you, my friend, can start putting out the feelers to get this person to join your team and your company.

Now, I understand that you’ve built your entire reputation up until now with all of you in terms of, “Oh, my God. Terri gives the best tours.” Everything is about Terri, Terri, Terri, Terri, Terri. Now, that’s the precedent that you’ve set, but that doesn’t have to be your future story. You can start to change that. You can start to use language, like “we.” You can start to create an offering where perhaps your tour is even more expensive than the one that people underneath you get.

What that does is it starts to create some psychological separation so that you’re the founder, you’re the person. You even get to have higher profit margins, right, and the people underneath you, one or two people, that might be a better economical option for some of the new customers that are going to come in.

But realize that as a business owner you get to set the boundaries and you get to set the stage for expectations of how people can work with you. This is just gonna be a little bit of a transition, but it’s totally possible. What you’re gonna want to do too is think about this strategically. So when you do find that person, and I have every confidence that you will and you can, you’re gonna want to do everything in your power to have them do their tours, and then very strategically start to have those customers leave reviews on whatever review site about those humans so that you can have proof and evidence that you’re not the only capable person. This isn’t how the business runs anymore, and it is growing.

Awesome. I’m looking forward to a day off in the summer.

Yeah. So let me ask you a question, is your entire business seasonal?

Pretty much. The wineries in our area close down at the end of October, although there are some breweries that I can utilize year-round and one winery.

Awesome. So knowing that – I was just curious. There was no reason for that in terms of answering your question. I just want to give you one more idea. I want you to really do an idea like, excuse me, an ideal visualization of your perfect business. You know, what would that look like in a year or two if you had your business exactly as it was. You know, maybe in the summer months there’s just days that you have to set a good boundary for yourself, you know, on your 26th wedding anniversary you’re like “screw this. I ain’t doing a tour no matter what. No amount of money is gonna tear me away.”

And that day is just booked. And whoever calls up and says, “I need Terri,” you could say, “Well, you’re just gonna have to sit down and be humble because Terri ain’t around.” So that’s gonna be part of it – is you also setting really strong boundaries for yourself about what you will say yes to and what you won’t. And then also just really having a clear vision of your ideal business so we can start to bring it to life.

That’s what I need to do. That in a nutshell.

Bam! Well, I hope this was helpful. Was it helpful, Terri?

Absolutely. I can only aspire to one day take two weeks off at a time like you do.

Oh, yes. And I’ll tell you, put that in the calendar. Put it on your ideal vision of your business and, I promise you, you can work towards it. Because, you know, even though we’re in very different industries, there was absolutely a time a few years ago where I was panicked. I did not think we could close down. You know, we’re a digital business and in this particular world it’s like everyone wants you creating content and engaging and being everywhere at once 24/7 and never sleeping. And it’s like ba ba ba ba ba

And I was like, “This is bullshit. I don’t want to do that. It’s not sustainable. It’s not sustainable for my people. So I need to take the reins back and get all of these societal ideas out of my head. I get to write the rules for my business. I get to kind of push against all of those assumptions, and I get to create the business that I want,” which is exactly what you get to do as well.

Thank you so very much for everything you do.

Oh, thanks Terri. Well, we’re wishing you luck. Keep us posted and thank you, again, for being on the show.

Okay, enjoy the rest of your day.

You too. Bye Ter.

Bye, now.

It’s kind of nice not being available, too.

Yeah, it is.

You know what I mean?

Well, because people always want what they can’t have.

Hello.

Hi, this is Marie. Is this Kristen?

Yes, it is.

Hi. You are on with myself and the entire MarieTV crew, and we are so excited to have you on the show.

Well, thank you.

Absolutely. So Kristen, tell us your question and we will do our best to help you out.

Okay. Okay. As a transgender female and a psychic medium, I’m finding out more and more just how much the trans people are hated and rejected as non human by the Christian community, and they’re trying to make our lives absolutely miserable. And being a psychic just doubles this hate of us. What can we do to get this changed and go on with our lives? We just want to be accepted and equal.

Kristen, I am so glad that you wrote in this question. And can I just say, I wish I could reach through my screen right now and just give you the biggest hug. I don’t know of anything that pains me more than seeing people treated unfairly, unequally, and being judged by the color of their skin, their gender, their profession, any of those pointless, meaningless things that other humans judge each other by. So I am so sorry for that. But I do have ideas that I really do think can help.

So one of the things that I have discovered in my life is that we can’t make people accept us. We can’t make people like us. We can’t change their minds about who we are even though it’s really, really painful. However, there’s a few things that we can do. We can keep the love in our hearts as big as we possibly can. We can keep moving forward in our professions and in the way that we hold ourselves, so that we keep extending the love that we want to see other people extend to us, and hold ourselves as high as we possibly can in terms of our integrity.

You know, I want to actually go back on something in terms of you can’t change how other people view you. I wanted to share a resource with you that I don’t know if you know exists. It’s a documentary by a gentleman named Daryl Davis. Have you heard of it?

I believe I have.

Yes. Accidental Courtesy. It’s about – Daryl Davis is a black man, he’s a blues musician, and he has convinced 200 Klansmen to give up their robes by befriending them.

Okay.

I know, right? And you’re like woah. If you hear that you’re like “there are miracles that are possible.”

Yes.

Now, Kristen, I don’t know if that’s necessarily the approach that you want to take. Obviously Daryl has a particular mission in life, and he was going hard in this. And I think his story is extraordinary. But I want to tell you that by you embracing who you are, by you being proud of everything that you stand for and everything that you offer this world, I can promise you, you are gonna find like-minded souls.

And the more we can surround ourselves with people that understand us and appreciate us and allow us to step into our greatness, the easier it then becomes to face these challenging situations where people don’t get it.

The other resource that I wanted to share with you is this incredible book called The Principles of Nonviolent Communication. Have you heard of that one?

Yes, I have.

Good. Have you read it?

No.

Okay. So I would encourage you to read that particular book. It’s one of the things that is required reading on our business team, because it allows us to engage with people in a way where we can stay connected to our humanity and we can stay connected to them despite how uncomfortable it is.

But I would encourage you to read that book and to watch that documentary, because I think it’ll help give you some concrete tools and some frameworks for when, if you do want to engage with people, that you retain your integrity, you retain your sense of humanity and love, and can stand tall and proud without shying back.

Okay, and I do want to engage with people.

See, I love that. And that tells me even just more about the possibilities that are there for us, especially in this particular climate. But we certainly love you and we’re by your side.

Well, thank you very much. And I love your show and I love everything that you do. You’re just wonderful. Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Hello?

Hi, is this Tammy?

Yes.
Hey, Tammy. It’s Marie Forleo and the whole MarieTV crew. How you doing?

I’m good. How are you?

We are so good. We’re thrilled to have you on the show. So let us know your question, and we will do our best to help you out.

Okay. I have been a graphic designer for over 15 years and a small business owner for 9 years. I love helping small businesses and watching them grow. However, with all the 20 dollar logos out there in the world, how do I make people understand why it is important to invest in a unique brand that reflects who you are? I have a process that I am confident about, but sometimes I get burnout explaining myself. Signed, I still love my job, damnit. Let me love it.

Tammy, well, I love your sense of humor and I have a few ideas for you. I think you can actually use this sense of humor to your advantage in addressing this very issue. And here’s how. So if I were you, I would construct a page on your website and construct some copy that you can use to communicate to anyone who’s thinking about working with you that it’s almost like the hurdle that they have to jump through before they can take any of your time. You know, so you might have a whole FAQ section on your site that talks about, you know, well, “why should I hire you rather than getting a $5 logo off of Fiverr or a $20 logo here” or whatever.

Okay.

And you can say, “that’s a great question. I’m so glad you asked.” So you don’t make someone wrong for asking that question. You could say, “I would think that too. Let me explain to you why I’m different.” And then here’s where you want to roll up with some evidence about why you’re so amazing. But not from you, from your clients. Okay? So testimonials.

I would go back to some of your happiest clients and interview them. And ask them. Say, “Hey, Happy Client A, did you ever consider going for like a $20 logo or a $99 this or that or whatever?” And they might say, “You know what, Tammy? I did. And here’s what I got from you that was 100 times better.”

Do that with five of your clients. Put their words right in that section on your FAQ page, and that will handle it. And you can create a version of that that’s almost like an email responder or something on a forum. Where if someone is considering working with you, you can say, “Hey, before we set up an appointment I’d love you to review this. Let me know that you’re cool with everything. Because, you know, I’m not cheap. I’m expensive, but WorthIt.com. And if you’re not willing to invest in your own brand, I’m sorry, but I’m not going to be able to hop on the phone to talk about your project.”

Okay.

Cool?

That’s great advice, actually. Yeah. That’s really good advice. I like that a lot.

Hey, you know what? I might start doing this for a living. Thank you, Tammy. Thank you so much. Thank you for your call. Keep us posted.

I follow you all the time, so thank you.

Absolutely. You’re so welcome. Keep doing what you’re doing.

Have a great day.

Okay. Bye.

Thank you. Bye-bye.

I was told this story once about an interior designer being taken through a potential client’s house, and the client goes, “So what do you think?” He’s like, “Why would I tell you that? That’s what I’m paid for.”

I kinda love it.
Yeah, I mean, I wouldn’t ever do it myself, but…

Well, guys. That’s a wrap for today. Zach Bliss, thank you so much for joining me.

It was really nice being here.

Always fun. And thank you so much for watching. Now, in the comments below I would love to know, what was your favorite Q or A? What was the thing that most resonated for you? And, of course, if you want to be on the show in the future, you need to get on the MarieForleo.com email list, because that’s when we let you know we are shooting and we are looking for Q’s to A. So stay on your game and keep going for your dreams, because the world needs that very special gift that only you have. Thank you so much for watching, and we’ll catch you next time on MarieTV.

B-School is coming up. Want in? For more info and free training go to JoinBSchool.com.

Alright.
Let me ask you, Mandy, can I ever really be a 10?

And, Mandy, can you hear me? Not that anybody cares.

Just I came off the street, I saw you guys were filming something, I thought I’d sit here.

Thank you so much for dropping your phone.