Tips & Talk 50 – Dare to Listen? You’re Full of BS!

Hi there.

It's Sue.

And thanks for joining me for tips and talk day.

These are bite-sized topics that I pull from community questions and

things that I'm observing in the world of handmade small business.

If you'd like to submit a topic,

DME, over on Instagram at gift biz unwrapped,

let me cut to the chase.

I'm not a betting girl,

but if I was,

I think I'd win this wager.

I'm placing my bet that you are full of BS.

And not only that,

I'm here to convince you that you should be showing that

you're full of BS to your community too.

I've got you totally confused now.

Right? I heard this BS statement from Allie love.

My favorite Peloton spin instructor.

The reason I connect with her is she's so grounded in

her thinking clearly loves and seeks out the fun in life.

And he has morals that align with mine and tells it

like it is when she told me and my virtual spin

class that we were full of BS.

My first instinct was to say,

not me.

I mean,

I know others who are,

but I don't really see it in myself.

As we continued spinning.

And Allie continued talking,

I spun faster,

breathed harder.

And when I was done stood prouder because she convinced me

that I am full of BS.

And that's what I'd like to pass on to you.

Now, I want you to believe that you are too,

from the soles of your feet,

to the top of your head,

you are full of BS.

You see BS stands for big stuff,

not what you thought.

I know big stuff you that's right.

You have big ideas,

big dreams,

and can achieve big things.

Do you recognize that you've already done this?

If you've gotten an educational degree of any kind,

learn to play an instrument or experienced success in a sport,

your big stuff.

If you've been hired for a job,

helped a friend in trouble volunteered for something,

your big stuff.

If you are,

or have been someone's chosen partner or raised a child,

then you're definitely big stuff.

If you step out of yourself for a minute and reflect

on what you've done to this point in your life,

you'll see that there's a lot of BS there.

Congratulations. As you listen to me now,

and I'm making the assumption that you're here because you're considering

or have started a business around your handmade skills.

Let's talk about how you are already big stuff.

With this first,

you have creative talents that not everybody in the world,

possesses, you've invested time and energy into perfecting the items that

you make.

Perhaps you've taken classes to learn your advanced techniques,

or you've invested in the proper equipment and learn the right

materials to use for the best results.

You've also,

here's the best one,

added your own layer of individuality and style to your handmade

products. You can't get around to putting part of you into

anything that's handmade.

And that's what makes it so special.

I'm thinking you're probably with me up to this point.

Now let's get to the hard part showing the world that

your big stuff,

so it can help you grow your business.

What does that mean?

Exactly. Part of this,

yes is tooting your own horn,

but it's mostly just getting out in front of people and

being you.

There's no need to reinvent yourself or put on a facade

because you think you're not worth the attention.

We've already established that your big stuff.

The truth is that the attention you attract is dependent on

being you and the degree at which you're willing to put

yourself out there in a genuine way and show who and

what you are.

Your BS.

This applies to small business owners.

Most we don't have millions of dollars to promote a brand

identity. Not yet.

Anyway, not like a company like Spanx where just hearing the

name. It brings you to an opinion of the product that's

been achieved through messaging and imagery that we've seen consistently for

years, as they've grown into what they are today,

our way of accomplishing the same BS notoriety in your small

sphere of customers and potential customers is by opening up the

curtain and showing people you,

because this bears repeating what makes you big stuff is that

you're genuinely being and showing you who you are.

How can I explain this to you better here.

Let me go with this.

Let's say you're looking for a necklace for a friend's birthday.

You search online and find something you like from Bethany's bead

works. You don't know Bethany,

but you like her items.

Her reviews look good,

but you want to look around just a little bit more

to confirm that this is the best choice.

Then you run into specialties by Samantha.

You've seen her before.

You've watched her on Instagram.

Even, you know that she's got a cute little golden retriever

puppy, and you've even seen her making her jewelry.

I mean,

you don't know her personally,

but you feel like you do.

And look,

she also has a perfect gift solution for your friend.

So based on these two options,

who are you going to choose?

Bethany, who you don't know or Samantha,

who you feel more connected to?

I think the choice is obvious.

How about if you've ever been in a direct message conversation

with someone don't you feel more connected and interested in supporting

that person?

Even if the interaction happened months ago,

I know I do.

This works even better in person,

which is why I'm such a huge fan of in-person networking

or selling at craft shows.

In addition to you having your online presence,

when you're in person,

you can have a genuine one-on-one interaction,

even if it's only for just a few minutes in just

that short time a relationship has been started.

If you do craft shows already,

you know what I mean?

Some of your customers come back just to see you,

right? These are the types of things that happen when you

get out of your own way and allow yourself to believe

that you are full of BS.

And then you take the steps to show up as big

stuff to showing up as big stuff in the way that

I'm describing doesn't mean being overly boisterous,

egocentric, or aggressive.

It means recognizing the greatness in you and letting others know

about it too.

In providing this look into you,

you're giving them confidence and validation that your products are the

right choice that they can trust in you.

And in turn they'll want to support you and your business.

As Gary V says,

dab, dab,

dab, right hook.

Have you read the book for us?

It give a look at who you are,

which gives a reason to like,

and trust you.

And then you offer a product that your audience wants and

then right.

Hook they buy.

So here's your homework for today.

Set 15 minutes aside and think about how you really are

full of BS and then get up on your stage and

show us what you've got.

Big stuff.

That's a wrap.

I'm a get to the point kind of girl.

And this is what you can expect from these quick midweek

sessions. Now it's your turn go out and fulfill that dream

of yours.

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