Episode 11: When in doubt, ask your friends

Episode 11: When in doubt, ask your friends

Running a business can be a lonely business, especially when bad, scary or difficult things happen. The thing is, you’re a smart person, but when it comes to your business, it’s hard not to take things personally. That’s kind of what I’m talking about in this episode. Enjoying the podcast? Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. It never gets easier I’ve been running a business since 2012 and even after all this time, bad feedback can knock me sideways. That’s exactly what happened recently, when I got less than ideal feedback from a client I’d thought I’d done a really good job for. Without going into too much detail, my initial reaction was “I need to do something about this, I need to fix this.” My gut reaction was to jump into my emails and get in touch to figure out how I could make this better. Thankfully, I took a second to think and, instead of emailing the client, I sent a message to my business bestie, Carla Watkins [https://substack.com/profile/313291169-carla-watkins]. And I’m really glad I did. She talked me off the ledge and helped me to see the feedback wasn’t a direct critique on my work, but rather on their experiences of the process, something no one else had ever had an issue with before (after many years of dealing with this type of offer in the same way every time). Without reaching out to my friend, I dread to think what I would have done that day. The funny thing is… I know all the stuff my business friends advise me. It’s just so much easier to hear it from someone else than to try and tell it to yourself. Right? If you’re nodding along to that, then you definitely need some business friends in your pocket. Keep listening for tips on how to widen your business friends circle. Links: 👉🏻 The Creative Reboot [https://substack.com/profile/496407066-creative-reboot] Podcast 👉🏻 Carla’s website [https://carlawatkins.com/] 👉🏻 And if you’d like one of those “Little Chats” with me, drop me an email [hello@sarahwayte.com] and I’ll send you the link! You can learn more about me, Sarah Wayte, on my website [https://sarahwayte.com/]. Thanks so much for listening! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sarahwayte.substack.com [https://sarahwayte.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Episode 10: Ways to be visible when you’re an introvert

Newsflash: Marketing your business isn’t just social media. I know, right? I’m often surprised how many people only ever consider social media as a marketing tool and nothing else. But there’s a lot more tools at your disposal (and no, it doesn’t have to be icky networking or paying for ads, either). Enjoying the podcast? Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. An apology Forgive me, this episode is definitely longer than my usual 10-ish minutes but only because there were a lot of things I wanted to share with you. So, I’m hoping that the additional 5ish minutes won’t be too painful for you. What can I say? Grab yourself two snacks while you listen? ;-) In this episode I figured I’d talk practicalities (given my last episode [https://sarahwayte.substack.com/p/episode-9-start-talking-about-what] was all about you being more visible in your business). So, I dig into all the ways in which you can market yourself and your business outside of posting on Instagram. The overriding message, though, is that you don’t have to do ALL the things. Just pick the ones that feel most doable and stick with those. And I’m betting you’re already doing more of them than you think! Got questions about any of this episode? Feel free to drop a comment below! Links 👉🏻 Quiet by Susan Cain [https://susancain.net/book/quiet/] 👉🏻 Company of One by Paul Jarvis [https://www.penguin.co.uk/authors/138031/paul-jarvis] 👉🏻 Deanna Seymour’s guide on how to create a static grid [https://deannaseymour.com/static9grid/] 👉🏻 How to build an Instagram 9-grid [https://woodsmarcom.com/stories/how-to-build-instagram-9-grid/] (with practical sizing guide) You can learn more about me, Sarah Wayte, on my website [https://sarahwayte.com/]. Thanks so much for listening! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sarahwayte.substack.com [https://sarahwayte.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Episode 9: Start talking about what you do

Now, I’m not having a pop at anyone here. I’ve been just as guilty of doing this myself… but I think it’s time we had a chat about this idea that talking about what you do is “bothering” people, don’t you think? Enjoying the podcast? Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. Here’s what I know… This belief is holding you back. It’s stopping you to be more visible (even just a little bit - I know, that’s an uncomfortable word for us introverts!). And yes, there are lots of ways to market your business but, for the most part, they all pretty much entail one thing… talking about yourself and what you do. That’s why I’m digging into this topic in this episode. I want to remind you that it’s ok to talk about yourself on social media. It’s ok to send out emails about your business and your offers. It’s ok to proudly stand up and say ‘Hey, I’m a [what you do]!’ and be confident in that. And if you’re up for it, there might be a teeny-tiny little challenge for you at the end of the episode. If you give it a whirl, please drop a comment below and tell me how it worked out! Links 👉🏻 Being Freelance podcast episode with Katie Chappell [https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/being-freelance/id959401077?i=1000746560309] 👉🏻 All the ways to get on my mailing list: The Home Page Copy Review [https://sarahwayte.com/home-page-copy-review-freebie/]The Brand Voice Guide Notion Template [https://sarahwayte.com/brand-voice-guide-template/]Get Great Testimonials freebie [https://sarahwayte.com/get-great-testimonials/]Just get the emails [https://sarahwayte.com/get-the-emails/] You can learn more about me, Sarah Wayte, on my website [https://sarahwayte.com/]. Thanks so much for listening! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sarahwayte.substack.com [https://sarahwayte.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Episode 8: Making more time for creativity

At the time of sending this podcast out into the world, I have just received my first real rejection for a piece I submitted to a short story competition late last year. If you saw my post on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/posts/sarahwaytecreative_got-my-first-official-rejection-today-and-activity-7453530181169750017-qycb?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAA3GBRgBLC68V8y0-KbSdnZ6t1GtKYFnRGU], you know that’s not something I’m mad at. If anything, I’m seeing it as a sign that I’m finally making it as a writer! All the best writers have had rejections, don’t you know. Enjoying the podcast? Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. But what does that have to do with making more time for creativity? Well, I obviously go into this more in the episode, but one of the ways in which I’ve made more time to write in the last 18 months or so has been to enter competitions, just to prove to myself I can do it. The delicious side effect of making more time to write, though? I’m feeling more creative than I ever have before. So much so, I’ve already got a title and idea for my next novel, before I’ve even finished my last one. Another thing I’ve dabbled with of late has been writing groups and writing buddies, both of which I’m very excited about. So much so, I’m actually considering setting up my own online writing group this year (drop me a comment or email [hello@sarahwayte.com] if that sounds like something you’re interested in). Links: 👉🏻 I couldn’t find the specific 100 rejections person I’d seen previously, but it seems this article might be the thing that started it all: Kim Liao’s ‘Why You Should Aim for 100 Rejections a Year’ [https://lithub.com/why-you-should-aim-for-100-rejections-a-year/]. 👉🏻 Lauren Kay’s free Critique Partner Connection [https://www.laurenkaywrites.com/critique-partner] directory. Well worth signing up to her mailing list too! You can learn more about me, Sarah Wayte, on my website [https://sarahwayte.com/]. Thanks so much for listening! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sarahwayte.substack.com [https://sarahwayte.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Episode 7: What are you keeping quiet about yourself?

What are you keeping quiet about yourself that we probably would love to know? I asked that question of myself recently, after reading a beautiful post or email (I can’t remember which) from the very lovely Laura Robinson over at Worditude [https://worditude.co.uk/]. She talked about how she knew she’d finally found her crowd after sharing about some of the more “secret” parts of her life when they made random comments to her about looking at the moon, or talking about being woo. Enjoying the podcast? Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. And then I got to thinking about “professionalism”. I have a love/hate relationship with that word. Not because I don’t believe in being professional and providing the best possible experience for my clients. I absolutely do! But more because I don’t believe to be professional you have to look or behave in a certain way. Yes, I get on my high horse about this (for just a minute!), but only to make the point that you can still be professional and be yourself, quirks and all, in your business and brand. Look, I might be neurodivergent and, as a result, a chronic oversharer, but even I have a line and I don’t share absolutely everything with you all. But there’s quite a lot that I do share. I don’t mind talking about my previous life as a paramedic, or sharing how frazzled my brain can get (with a combination of AuDHD and perimenopause, thankyouverymuch). I often share when I make mistakes (because #relatable) or when I’ve been a total klutz (read: A LOT). And everything I put out into the world very much is in line with my values, because it’s important to me that the people I work with align with them too. Consider this episode a reminder to talk about yourself a little bit more! I promise, your audience (the ones that matter, anyway) will stick around and love you all the more for it. And because I promised in the episode… here’s a photograph of me for the folks who haven’t seen me before! 👇🏻 You can learn more about me, Sarah Wayte, on my website [https://sarahwayte.com/]. Thanks so much for listening! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sarahwayte.substack.com [https://sarahwayte.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]