How Do You Make Your Brand Sizzle?

Let’s talk about branding! Why would you want to? Because your brand is so much more than what you might think, and because your brand is so much more important to your success than you might think!

First of all, I want to dispel some myths about what a brand is, and what it isn’t. When most people think about branding, they think about a logo, or a font, or a tag line. Even though those are all parts of a brand, they are not ‘the brand’.

Your brand is the PROMISE of an EXPERIENCE.

Just let that soak in for a moment.

OK, so that sounds great, but how do we figure out what promises we want to make to our potential clients, and what experiences we want them to have? We want our brand to have a huge impact on our potential clients, to dazzle them, to make them feel something. So the question is: how do we go about creating a Sizzling Brand that will make us stand out in the crowded marketplace?

The process is both simple, and not so simple, depending on how willing and open you are to exploring the deeper realms of who you are, and what you bring to the table. Of course, I’m talking about small businesses here, where you are the owner, and the main driving force behind it. I’m sure giant corporations go through similar steps, but each step is a lot more complex.

So let’s dive in a little deeper into the making of a brand. There are three basic questions you need to answer in the process of creating your brand: ‘Who am I?’ ‘What’s REALLY important to me?’ and ‘What am I fantastic at?’

#1 Who am I?

Of course we could write a whole book just about this subject, and many have been written. The important part here is that you’re willing to explore this question honestly. It’s about what you bring into your business that nobody else could possibly duplicate. This part is about bringing all of you in. It’s about giving yourself permission to show up fully and authentically. When you’re able to do that, that’s when your brand starts to sizzle!

#2 What’s REALLY important to me?

This question is about those things that are so important to you, that you can’t imagine your life without them, or at least, you can’t imagine a happy life without them. For some people that might be vibrant health and energy, for others it might be living on purpose, or having a loving relationship. Think about what those things are for you, and how they show up in your business. I will say that if your business is in alignment and harmony with who you are, then these values will also be showing up in your business…there is no other way.

#3 What am I fantastic at?

When you finally start your dream business, it is usually born out of a deep longing to be doing something that you’re passionate about, and have most probably been practicing most of your life to perfect. Am I right? Well, at least that’s how I feel about my business. The point is, we often are very good at what we do, without really realizing it, because it comes to us very naturally. So often we don’t think of ourselves as experts at what we do…but we are. Once you get clear about what it is you deliver, with ease and mastery, it’ll be much easier to create a sizzling brand!

Alright, there is obviously a lot more to creating a fantastic brand, and this is just a taste of it, so you can get started right away.

To the bright and sparkly Sizzling You!

If you’d like to continue this conversation, email me, or leave me a voice mail by clicking the ‘Send Voicemail’ tab right here on the website.

As always, I’d also love to see your comments below.

With love and bliss,

Julia

The Breakdown before the Breakthrough – what to do when the gremlins strike?

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OK, so today I want to talk about the famous ‘breakdown before the breakthrough’ situation.

So this is more or less how it goes: you’re motoring along just fine in your business, things are going well…maybe even great, and you’re feeling proud of yourself, maybe even a little smug…you’ve got it in the bag! And then….all of a sudden, out of the blue, the darkness descends. we often find ourselves in, especially as entrepreneurs. Do you know what I mean? Before I move on to describing the ‘breakdown’ phase, I really want you to hold on to the ‘breakthrough’ part, because that’s where ultimately we’re going with this.

Things that worked well so far, don’t seem to work any longer. You’re working very hard, but your income isn’t growing, new clients aren’t coming. The panic sets in. “Have I done something wrong? Am I being punished for being too greedy? Maybe it’s not OK, after all, to want to make good money for my gifts? Am I even cut out for this? What made me think I could do it?”…and so on. Sounds at all familiar ladies?

This, of course can happen to anyone, and men are not entirely immune to it, but we ladies are by far the experts in this emotional roller-coaster…I know, I’ve been there a few times lol. I’m being really open here, and if my honestly can help you in any way, than I’m willing to be vulnerable.

Heart and authenticity, by the way, were the two words that popped out at me from my little word game in the last article. Do you remember yours? Check it out here, if you missed it last time.

This form of self-bashing, self-sabotage, the doubt and fear attacks…are what I call gremlin attacks. Have you heard ‘of them gremlins’ before…lol? Yeah, they feel like foreign creatures living inside of you, but they really only are the voice of your subconscious…aaahhh, the famous subconscious lol. So what can you do to survive these attacks, these temporary breakdowns, and get to your BIG BREAKTHROUGH that awaits you, that much faster?

The truth is, more likely than not, this is happening to you, because you’re ready to up-level your business; to go much bigger, and impact many more people. Think of it as shedding the old to make room for the new, like a butterfly coming out of the cocoon, or a snake shedding its skin. You’re becoming the person you need to be, to embrace the new reality. Is it painful? Heck yeah, it can be. Is it worth it? Heck yeah, definitely!!!

So here are a few things I find helpful, while going through the ‘breakdowns’:

SURRENDER and let go of control! Acknowledge what’s happening, relax into it as much as possible….and let go. Have you heard the saying ‘Let go, and let God’? Well, this is it exactly. Nothing new can come in, while you’re desperately trying to hang on to the ‘old’. Create some space energetically for the new inspiration to come.

FORGIVE yourself for not being perfect! Even more than that, acknowledge yourself for everything you’ve accomplished so far. List all your recent accomplishments on a piece of paper, if that’s going to make it more real for you.

BE GRATEFUL for everything you already have in your life, down to the smallest detail! Again, we women especially have a tendency to always look at what’s still missing, or what we haven’t done yet, overlooking what is already there. I’ve read this recently, and I thought it was right on point: “if you’re not happy with what you already have, what makes you think that having more of it, will make you feel any different?” Again, if it helps, write down everything you’re grateful for.

BELIEVE in your services and the value you offer to others! I can’t stress this enough, how important this point is. Especially when you’re in your black hole of fear and doubt, it’s so easy to start doubting your value, and the value you give to others. Here again, making a list of all the benefits and results your clients get when working with you, can help you enormously.

HAVE SOME FUN! Go dancing, have a massage…give yourself some love, and do something you love doing. When we’re in this ‘vortex of transformation’, as I like to call it, when the ‘old’ is disintegrating, and the ‘new’ hasn’t formed yet, our tendency is to push even harder, as in the old ‘no pain, no gain’ saying. So have faith that the new is coming, and it might even come faster if you have some fun in the meantime!

I hope this was helpful for you. As always, I’d love to hear your comments, and your experiences, and your ways of moving through tough ‘breakdown’ situations.

With Love and Bliss,

Julia