I had done the list so many times, written my smart goals, created tons of vision boards, made the pros and cons column, journaled, and did everything that I was supposed to be doing. But then, was stuck in the very same place. Now what? Okay! I got my images glued to a piece of cardboard, and I am looking at it every day. So what? What do I do now? What is supposed to happen?
So, I started to look for the next steps. I read multiple books on self-help and somehow, I was not able to know a clear path or system to know what to do with all my lists and hopes and dreams. Just like taking the analogy of a kitchen renovation, I had my folder ready with the samples of everything I wanted in my new kitchen, paint, floor, countertop, backsplash samples, etc. but all that was was a folder. I could not entertain in my folder. I could not cook in this folder. It was not a kitchen. I have found in some books how to install the new cupboards and the new countertop, but wouldn’t that be the third step? How am I supposed to install the new stuff on top of the existing outdated kitchen? Nobody was able to tell me how to get rid of the existing old stuff? How was I supposed to gut out the old kitchen to make room for my new dream cooking spot? Having a plan is awesome. It is crucial in order to succeed, but somehow, if we don’t get rid of our self-sabotage, negative self-talk, limiting beliefs, bad habits, etc. it is just like trying to install a brand-new fridge overtop of an old one.
I then decided to study neuroscience and after years of practising the art of juggling with neural pathways, I finally created a proven system in order to do just that. Self-sabotage is part of my past now. I know what to do with it and I have been able to experience it over and over with the thousands of clients I have helped over the past ten years. I don’t even have competition. I don’t even know anybody that specializes in that second step. How to get rid of self-sabotage, bad habits and negative self-talk? How to clean up and make room for abundance and success? The D.N.A. System positioned me as the Expert. It is only when I combined neuroscience and cumulated the years of experience I had with my clients into creating my own intellectual property and created the system that my career started to explode.
Building a system and creating intellectual property and positioning yourself as an expert is vital in business today. It was such an amazing refresher on Thursday night at CAPS Vancouver as I sat through a captivated audience, hearing more about the necessity to position yourself. In any business.
Steve Lowell, CSP and our CAPS 2018 National President, THE Speaker Guy, finished his tour through all Canadian chapters with CAPS Vancouver. Steve taught us how to create a model that shows our prospect the reason why WE are the logical choice, in two minutes or less.
Here are my notes from his extremely valuable insights:
You don’t have to be different, you have to appear to be different.
You have to change the language that you use in order to do that. It’s not enough for people to be able to understand you, they have to be able to repeat it.
The repu-meter (your reputation meter). How you are perceived in the world:
- Obscurity – nobody knows you are, you are alone
- Competitive: nothing differentiate you, you are one of many
- Branded: everything changes because instead of being recognized by your title, you are recognized by your results, instead of Nathalie as a trainer or author, it’s Nathalie made me feel xyz
- Expert insights and Intellectual Property: People know you for your expert insights and I.P. The end result of that is that you become the ONLY logical choice. You are T1 (The One)
Being at the competitive stage
You are stuck and you can’t get ahead because you always have to worry about being competitive. You don’t have much influence.
The branded stage
Amazing experience, attach your name to it. Now you have more influence.
Influence is creating people to take action following what you do.
Better to be operating at a creative level. When you create content in the competitive stage, you fear that you have to do it because you have to keep up. You ‘gotta’ do it.
When you are creative to serve instead to compete, your mindset is different and therefore the content is better, it is not intended to sell as much as it is intended to serve.
How do we make that position? It is not about making a unique product. We don’t need a new different product. What Steven is showing us has nothing to do with our services.
Here is the explanation: in our world, there are a few primary motivations for what we do:
ONE:
Mess or moment in time that brought your awareness to a gift you have, a purpose, THAT is what I am good at, THAT is what I am here or a Mission: a cause, something that is bigger than you, something you want to change, transform, that is what drives you.
TWO:
Then we use our Mess/Moment/Mission to create our Message. We go to the world and we deliver our speech and our message. The problem is that too often, we stop there. We don’t go any higher. We need to add expertise and a solution.
THREE:
The expert insight gives them a snapshot about something that they may not have seen before.
FOUR:
Then their message becomes masterful. It makes the audience want to reconsider their world. FIVE:
The marketing is now happening by itself. Then the audience is posting about us.
$$:
That is when you start making more money.
Keys to get there: CONTROLLED BRANDING
- Outstanding client results & experience. You have to make sure you create that for your audience and clients.
- Raving Fans (through social media), when someone tells you that you did something awesome, take your phone out and ask them to say it again in front of your camera and share it.
- Circle of Influence: the population within you can catalyze action as it relates to your business. You want to change simple contacts into people taking action.
– You are first in your circle of influence. You want to increase it to get people to follow you, share what you do. You may need to meet 50 people before you are able to have one person that actually follow you. Otherwise, they are simply 50 acquaintances.
– The first criteria for an influencer are for them to at least as the branded stage in what they do. So that your influencer actually has influence. Google people and see how people are talking about them. They have to have a large targeted circle of influence.
– The second criteria are that they need to have their own circle of influence needs to be targeted and complimentary. You are not competing with them and you complement them.
– They need to advocate for you. How do you get them to do it? Do you start to advocate for them? Provide that person with an outstanding result.
– You go to their event and you speak to them. Steve met an influencer and told her: “You don’t know me yet, but you will.” Then you create curiosity. He positioned himself as THE Speaker Guy. She then invited Steve to speak (for free) at her event and he did it in order to get her to become a raving fan.
– Find ways you can make them look good and offer something to them and their clients. Make yourself available to them. Offer them your skillset. Offer them your brilliance.
4. The Experts Insights. Present a problem they did not know they had and position yourself as the solution to this problem. Make sure when you work with your clients, you know their world better than they do.
You know their symptoms, their problems, you show them a visual representation of where they are as you are suggesting to them the different spots they can be positioned in and ask them to tell you where they think they are at.
What is their currency: Money? Influence? What costs them? What don’t they want to lose? Bring their awareness to the problem.
Why do they have the problem? Show them the different levels and keep yourself out of being the solution because they are not there yet. They don’t care yet.
Then, you start analyzing the results that you have and start collecting raving fans. Then you start to show them your expert insights. You are THE ONE they will call because you are the one that understands their world enough and that showed them the problem that they had. You are the one that brought awareness into their own world and found out about their problem.
Leave yourself out of it until it’s time.
The main point is to give people a reason for people to listen to you. Show them the problem, why they have that problem, why you know all about it and that you are the expert in this. Have strategic models, show them how the world is split, the different spots they can be in and what is the most desirable spot to be in.
You need to be able to master the content of your system in the back of a napkin, anywhere, anytime. It gives people a reason to listen to you, other than just being entertaining and fun and well spoken. You are now useful. You are now facilitating change in them.
In short:
- Problem. Insights into their world.
- Cost of having that problem
- Here is what causes this problem
- Here are things you can do about it
- Here is what needs to be done
- Here is what I do, here is what I am expert at.
Change the language that you use. Keep yourself out of the model. Make sure you don’t bring yourself in until the entire system is done.
You can learn more about Steve Lowell, THE Speaker Guy, by clicking here. Appear to be Different. Become THE ONE! If you are serious about your speaking Business, Steve is THE ONE you need to get in touch with!
