306 – What is Your Brand Story? How to Talk about your Small Business with Confidence with Dr. Michelle Mazur

Gift biz,

unwrapped episode 306,

reminding yourself like,

Hey, it's okay to put myself out there and share the

work that I'm doing in the world because it's important.

I'm a big deal.

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Moving on to today's show.

This is part two of a short series we're doing on

confidence last week,

we did a fun but important episode on how looking good

on the outside.

Boosts our confidence on the inside today.

We're talking about that confidence and ensuring that you presented to

the world through your words,

meaning how you represent your business,

by the way you describe what you do,

because the way you show up and talk about your product

can make or break a sale.

What happens when people ask you what you do seriously?

Think about it.

No more stumbling over your words or timid talk for you.

Dr. Michelle shares her powerful three word rebellion concept that will,

along with the other things we talk about in the show

set you up to show people your best,

most confident self,

the maker behind a business that deserves to be held in

high regard whose products deserve to be talked about and highlighted

in all their glory.

Here's how to make that happen.

Okay. Today I am so excited to introduce you to Dr.

Michelle. Mazor Dr.

Michelle works with brilliant business owners who are shaking things up,

but having trouble talking about it.

She combines the tools of successful social movements with the qualitative

research skills she earned in her communications PhD to help them

craft their powerful captivating message.

The author of the three world rebellion host of rebel uprising

podcast, and featured in fast company,

entrepreneur and Inc.

She knows that.

Speaking about what you do in a clear and captivating way

is the key to reach the people you could help the

most and make more money in your business.

Dr. Michelle,

welcome to the gift biz on wrapped podcast.

SU I am thrilled to be here talking to you today.

Me too.

We are going to dive into something that could be potentially

life-changing for a lot of the people who are listening here

just in the way they bring themselves out to the world.

Yes. Before we dive in,

I have a little bit of a tradition here,

and that is for you to describe yourself in a creative

way through a motivational candle.

So if you were to envision the perfect candle,

so by color,

and then a quote or a saying that would be on

your candle,

what would it look like?

It's So funny that you asked this question because I love

it. And I have a candle that sits on my desk

and on it,

it says I'm a big deal to remind myself that my

work is meaningful and worthwhile in the world.

And it's scented.

It smells like cookies baking in the oven,

which is one of my favorite things.

And the only thing I would change about it,

it's a white candle.

And I would actually make this candle like a purple because

that's my favorite color in the whole wide world.

And it would just bring me much more joy in my

life. Well,

you know,

whenever I think of purple,

I think of royalty and boldness and visibility,

and that ties into being a big deal.

Exactly. Yeah,

Exactly. Like reminding yourself,

like, Hey,

it's okay to put myself out there and share the work

that I'm doing in the world because it's important.

I'm a big deal.

Right. But you know what we do,

we're all bright purple,

but we make our own Lilac.

Yes we do.

Yeah. It's like we mute our voices and our shine.

I think so.

And this is going to be the topic that I really,

really want to talk about and address today,

but let's talk a little bit about your evolution to where

you are now.

Give us a little bit of your journey.

Yeah. So I've always been involved in communication since my sophomore

year in high school.

So this has been a very long journey for me.

I've realized the other day that I got my PhD 20

years ago,

I've been in the field for a very,

very long time.

It is my passion.

So I started as an academic.

I was a professor at the university of Hawaii,

teaching persuasion and argumentation.

And although I love Hawaii to visit,

it's a very difficult place to live.

And it's very difficult if you're a single Polish girl from

New York dating was not a thing.

And I knew that I needed to move in order to

have the things that I wanted,

like a husband,

a relationship.

So I moved back to the mainland and was in corporate

for a while.

I did market research,

but all the while I was still doing a lot of

communication things because my boss,

my peers all knew that I was really good with messaging

and helping people get on stage to speak or help them

like figure out how to create a pitch.

And so I would always be called into those things,

even though they weren't my job,

my job had nothing to do with that.

I was doing like hardcore market research.

And eventually one of my friends said to me,

you know,

Michelle, you just have so much talent in communication.

You have so much knowledge.

And it's a shame that you are not sharing what you

know, with other people who could immensely benefit from it so

that they can get their messages out into the world was

like, just do something,

start a blog,

start anything.

And I started a blog and originally it was just focused

on public speaking.

Cause that was a big passion in my life was helping

people speak.

I think it's because I wasn't very good at it and

spend a lot of time in the woodshed making it happen

so that I could master that skill.

And I'll let you in a little secret.

I don't love the speaking industry.

I see an industry that undervalues speakers and undervalues the knowledge

and experience that they bring.

And by undervalue,

I mean doesn't pay people.

And eventually I was like,

Nope, not going to work with speakers anymore.

And that's when I happened upon my three word rebellion messaging

framework. And I'm like,

yeah, this is what I want to do.

I want to help amazing business owners who either create transformational

results, make amazing products and gifts and candles and whatever else

communicate their message so that they can show up and market

and reach more people.

And so that kind of brings me where I am today.

I love that first off.

I can't imagine it would be hard to be in Hawaii.

I've just have to say,

but that's an aside because I understand why you'd want to

come back,

but I'm just like,

Oh no,

that sounded pretty good.

It's interesting.

Cause you get to a point.

I think I was eight months in and I started watching

the planes every day,

leaving the Island and wishing that I was on them.

And when I ever,

I would go back to the mainland,

it was the funniest thing because like I'm the person at

the airport in Hawaii who was like,

yes, I'm leaving.

And then when I was coming back,

I was the only person on the plane who was like,

Oh man,

do I have to go back?

Ah, I have to go back to Hawaii.

And everybody else is like,

Oh, I'm on base.

Yeah. I mean,

my vision is landing in Maui and getting those beautiful lays

and seeing the whales and all that.

But then again,

that's vacation.

That's not living.

Yes, I get it.

But this mission that you're on,

I can't underscore enough how important this is because I feel

like in my community and gift biz listeners,

I know you're going to feel it because we feel it

in ourselves.

We have so much passion around what we make,

but for some reason,

and I don't know that it's just handmade creators either,

but it is really prevalent in our communities.

It's hard for us to transmit that light and that excitement

and that joy with confidence and commitment and all that our

products really do deserve.

So I'm really excited to get into that.

But before we do I'm of course I'm delaying,

right. But I think that this will be important.

You were mentioning in our conversations earlier about this whole bro

marketing, what does that mean?

Where has that gotten us or not gotten us?

Is this a good place to start?

Yes. I love this question.

Fro marketing is the use of psychological triggers and hacks things

like scarcity and social proof and liking and authority to basically

shut down.

People's ability to think about a purchasing decision,

thereby taking away their consent and really manipulating people and coercing

them into buying.

And that probably is making your listeners feel like,

Ugh, that's a terrible way to market and sell.

And I 100% agree.

But if you have an on-line store,

bro marketing is what is primarily taught as the way to

market your business.

In fact,

it feels like it's the only way to market your business

on line and that's not true.

And I also think what happens when we're taught a way

to market,

a way to sell that isn't in alignment with our values,

our ethics,

our principles.

It makes us feel like we're terrible at marketing.

We're terrible at sales because we wouldn't want to be marketed

to that way ourselves.

We've been in that situation and then we're taught to do

it. And so it undermines our confidence.

And as I was telling you,

before we started recording,

I had a client recently who had this aha,

that kind of shook me to my core because it was,

Oh, I thought I was terrible at marketing and sales,

but really I'm terrible at borough marketing.

And so that type of marketing just cut away at our

confidence for showing up and marketing our amazing gifts to the

world because we think we're doing it wrong and we're not,

Well, this brings to mind,

to me,

you're talking about online that this is how you're taught online.

I also remember going to conferences where there are speakers on

stage and how manipulative,

not all speakers.

Now. I'm not saying that right now,

even though I know you're not a fan of the speaking

industry overall,

but I'm not talking about that.

I'm talking about the people who strategically and I'll use the

same word you dude,

because it came to mind for me to manipulate the audience,

right? Like the whole psychological,

emotional upswing,

and then scarcity,

if you don't act right away,

because the price is going to go up,

the books are going to be sold out.

Like whatever classes are going to be filled,

any of that,

that do it now or don't do it.

And that just feels so what is it?

Snake oil salesy to me.

Yes. No,

I know exactly what you're talking about.

The speak to sell phenomenon where you ratchet up the buying

tension and it's even worse in person because you see other

people running to the back of the room to buy,

Do it.

I know it's terrible.

And then you feel that pressure to like,

Ooh, am I missing out on this?

And like,

you can manipulate the environment,

like making it colder.

So people feel more anxiety like,

Oh Yeah,

Ooh. I didn't even know that.

Oh yeah.

Like it's way worse in person than it is when you're

just like reading a website or getting emails way worse in,

well, I have to say you've already given me a realization

about this confidence thing,

because I also want to share with you that back in

my corporate world,

I was in sales and marketing.

And when I was first learning sales,

the idea was you went into a client,

you found out what their need was and you made sure

to work it so that the product you were selling merges

into the solution of their need.

If they didn't have a need,

you would create one for them.

Like tell them the problems with their business.

Like this is the way I was taught to do it.

Right? Yeah.

Yeah. So you are manipulating and I'm used,

there goes that word again,

the events so that you could sell,

it was all about sales.

And I'm talking about in the late eighties,

early nineties timeframe.

So I'm dating myself.

I know,

but this is important or else I would never reveal it.

Right. And then what would happen is when a new,

and I know this happened in all industries,

I have friends who are in the big name,

computer industries.

We would talk like Friday night drinks,

whatever. We'd talk about our sales jobs,

right? So I know this happens everywhere.

But then when there is a specific product of choice that

the company wants to push,

then you have to change your need statement because you need

to be selling the products that the company wants you to

sell, regardless of whether they're the right solutions for your customer.

Yeah. And I say all of this because it leads to

the idea and it may be,

everybody has their little version of this,

but that leads to lack of confidence from someone like me,

who's forward facing to the client who wants to do the

best for the client and the business at the same time.

But I don't want to sell something that I know darn

well, we either have no solution for them right now,

or a better product solution.

But don't,

you know,

if I go back and tell the wrong thing,

I'm gonna hear about it.

Yes. And that,

I never thought of it this way before that this is

the origins of losing confidence,

because it doesn't align with what you feel is the right

thing to be doing.

Yeah. I mean,

as a sales person and when you're a business owner,

you're a sales person.

You want to give your client what they need,

not what somebody else is telling you what they need.

So being able to show up and say like,

Oh, this is your problem.

Oh, this is the solution that you need.

And I feel like sales has moved more in that direction,

in the corporate landscape now because they realized that it created

a lot of resentment and dissatisfied customers and no loyalty.

Buyer's remorse it,

creating all of that when you're pushing a solution that doesn't

actually solve the problem.

And then yeah,

you feel like you're a terrible salesperson when you know that

that's not what they need.

They need something else.

But the good news is that when we own our own

businesses, we steer the ship and we can do what we

want. Yes.

So that leads us to where most of us are today.

But if any of you have had experiences like I have,

and you felt less than confident in speaking or in a

sales situation,

because you've maybe been tainted by past experiences.

I think when you recognize where some of this lack of

confidence comes from,

it's the first step to changing it.

Not everybody,

not everyone will be this way,

but a portion of people who are listening well,

you guys know if it resonates with you or not.

So bro marketing,

having a specific strategy and way to psychologically arrange your material

or the way you say something or the way you position

things that walk people into purchasing.

Right? Yeah.

And you're usually like manipulating making them fearful or fear of

missing out a lot of,

especially more in the services,

like poking at people's pain points so hard that they're pretty

much paying you just to shut up and stop it versus

like, Oh,

this is the thing that's going to solve my problem.

It's like,

no, just take my money.

So you go away.

Well, so let me challenge this a little bit in our

industry. A lot of things that we make are one of

a kind or original batches.

So there is a level you're either going to get it

now or we're going to run out.

And that really is true,

right? Yes.

And that is kind of a scarcity tactic.

Right? Buy it now,

or it's going away.

I love the ones where they're online,

digital programs.

So they're infinite.

But if you don't get it now,

you can't have it.

And I get cart closing and all that.

But in our industry,

that can really be true because you may have only made

five that looked like this,

and you're not going to make more than that because you

like making pieces original almost every time in that way.

I think that's not real marketing.

Cause that's an honest,

no way it is,

right? Yeah.

Not at all.

Yes. You are completely correct.

Like when something is actually scarce,

like you've only made five pieces or you used a,

one of a kind stone in the jewelry that you're creating

then yeah.

There's natural scarcity built in.

And when it's real,

when it's truthful,

then you're in integrity.

When you tell people like,

Hey, I only have five of these to sell and I

won't be able to make any more because maybe you don't

have the materials or you have a new idea you want

to play with.

So think that is being honest and truthful and actually just

giving information to people.

Yeah. That's also a strategic play.

I mean,

that may be the way your product is.

Something might only always be one of a kind.

If someone wants the exact one,

you're showing whoever buys it first gets it.

Yep. It seems to me,

tell me if you agree with my thinking.

It seems to me that if you're using that as a

strategy to drive sales,

which I don't think is a bad idea when it's honest.

Nope. You also explain why it's that way.

These are one of a kind based on the materials that

we use.

I'm thinking of one company in particular and every single piece

is a little bit different.

Like they have different colors.

Like you can look at grays and blacks.

You can look at brighter,

bold colors.

You can look at more citrusy colors,

but in those different color streams,

every single piece is different.

And so I'm thinking when you present that,

you still explain why there's only one of each one.

So that adds some credibility to what you're talking about.

Exactly. And here's the thing like Robert Cialdini in his book

influence where a lot of these bro marketing tactics come from,

it's a really excellent book,

but it's been very abused would say that when something is

one of a kind and it makes it scarce and it

makes it more valuable.

So someone who knows like,

Oh my gosh,

there's only one of this.

There's only one piece.

Then they're going to be more likely to buy and even

pay more because it is a scarce resource.

Right? So one other thing that comes to mind here,

I'm not saying supporting the bro tactics,

but twisting some of the tactics a little bit to be

acceptable is we all know how often people will say,

yeah, I'm going to do that,

but I'll do it tomorrow.

And then tomorrow comes and you forget.

So sometimes some things that I think would fall into bro

tactics are really on our part trying to get people who

want it to actually take that action because they might still

have wanted it,

but just forgotten.

Yeah. They jumped off your website.

The kids are throwing things across the room and they never

get back to it.

Even though they wanted it.

Some of us is just prompting the action to be taken

now. Yeah.

And I think what's important to keep in mind is like

these psychological triggers are actually very neutral.

In fact,

we rely on them all day long to make decisions,

to make purchasing decisions.

When you go to the grocery store,

you are relying on most of these tactics to get in

and out of the store because you're not going to weigh

the pros and cons of yogurt,

right. We're not there to do that.

And so when we start thinking about how we're using the

tactic, how we're using scarcity or something,

being a one of a kind or sending an extra email

to remind people like,

Hey, I noticed you were looking at this thing,

are you still interested?

That is more in service of them making the purchasing decision

versus shutting down their critical thinking abilities so that they just

buy because they feel fear or FOMO or whatever else.

And if you're doing it in service of making a purchasing

decision, you're helping people process the message and get to a

yay or nay for my ethical principles.

There's nothing wrong with that.

I like that in service to go through in your mind

and think,

are you being in service of somebody versus your trying to

push your product at them?

Exactly. So let's transition the conversation to the biggest challenge.

I think we all have,

and I even have it still from time to time,

even though I'm way better now.

And that is talking about what our business and our product

is when we're introducing ourselves to people or sharing like at

a craft show,

when people come up to a booth or something and it

breaks my heart.

When I see people who I'll ask them the questions,

cause I go out to shows all the time and they're

very demure and shy and timid about the product versus the

person who I'm not going to say,

being obnoxiously bold,

but bold,

confident, clear,

excited. It's a whole different feeling that you get about the

business and buying the product.

When you have those two dynamically different ways of communicating,

the products could be equal.

In fact,

the product of the more timid person might even be better,

but the messages and getting across,

yes, we need help.

Dr. Michelle.

Okay. So a few things to think about is you hit

on something very important.

The excitement,

I think for me before messaging always tapping into the excitement

of creating whatever it is that you create and speaking to

people, especially in a one-on-one setting from that excitement to think

about like,

Oh, this person is right in front of me,

they're at my booth at the show.

And they're looking at my stuff.

This is amazing.

And harnessing that to talk about your work,

talk about how it was created or how they could wear

it or how they can use it in their house from

that place of excitement.

Because then I think selling becomes natural and easy because if

you're excited about your thing,

the person you're talking to is going to be excited about

what it is you're selling.

And then I think the second part of this is also

knowing what to say in order to sell.

And that comes with your messaging,

right? It comes to how you're describing your product.

It comes from thinking about your audience or your potential client,

why they would be interested in purchasing it and how they

could use it in their life.

And speaking to that need when we're in communication with them

and really making the conversation more about them than about you.

One of my,

like I love buying jewelry from makers.

I have so much jewelry from different makers over the years.

And what I love is when I'm buying an in person

and they're like,

Oh, I see you're looking at that piece.

What do you like about it?

Ooh. And I'd be like,

Oh, you know,

the color is just so great.

And I have a photo shoot coming up and I really

want something that's gonna stand out from the outfit I'm wearing.

And I think this might be the thing.

And then they can start a conversation from there and maybe

they have something else they want to show me and I'd

be open for it because now they know what my need

is. They had the conversation with me.

It's great market research too.

Oh my gosh.

Yes. I am a big fan of capturing your client's language

and how they talk about your product.

Like, you know,

at the beginning of this,

I was talking about the candle.

That's sitting on my desk and I was like,

yeah, this candle gives me confidence.

I look at it every day and it is a reminder

to me that my work has worth now the maker might

not even know that,

but it's an important insight into the candle that created Well,

that also makes me feel,

we talk and that's not for this show,

but it's going to lead in to what we're talking about

here is that it's standard best business practice to ask for

product reviews.

And usually that is so other people have confidence that you

turn around the product quickly.

The product is of good quality,

all of that.

But I'm thinking about it from a different end here with

confidence that one of the things you talk about is think

about the excitement that you have in making the product and

the love of the product,

because that allows you to share your story.

But also think of some of the reviews,

or maybe if you don't have reviews,

some of your customers who've told you how much they love

the product,

because I'm also thinking our confidence is our uncertainty.

Whether people,

We like what we have,

Like our continuing questioning of is my product really any good.

And that comes out to me more than anything when see

people who are a little more timid,

they're new.

So they don't have a lot of experience in those successes

yet, but they're also then inhibiting getting to that place because

they're representing themselves so much less than what they all are

Already are.

Yeah. And one of the things I tell my clients all

the time is to create what I call a love file,

which is basically taking those positive reviews,

taking nice emails that you get from people and putting it

in one place so that when you are feeling like,

Ooh, maybe my work,

isn't all that good.

Like, I don't know if I should be selling this.

Even you can go into your love file and remind yourself

that your work has value.

It has meaning it touches people's lives.

It makes their life better in some way.

And that way you can kind of tap back into that

enthusiasm and excitement about the products you're selling.

Yes. I'll also say that that file doesn't have to be

huge because when you have one or two people who have

said that they appreciate and love your product and probably not

your friends and family one or two strangers,

then there are more of them out there.

Yes. Because those are the people you know about.

Right. There's a whole host of people that you have no

idea that have been to your website,

or maybe they purchased something small from you and didn't leave

a review,

but they love it.

And they use it every day.

So we've talked.

What about like the mental state of if someone comes up

or you've been approached,

whether you're at a networking meeting,

you're at a farmer's market table,

you're at a cocktail party and someone says,

Oh, well,

what do you do?

And you go into,

you know,

they call it an elevator speech.

I like to call it an introduction message.

Yeah. But any tips for that,

just like from zero to talking about your business of how

to establish that confidence,

We're going to get Dr.

Michelle's tips on how to establish confidence when talking about your

business right after this quick break.

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Yes. The big thing is to know what you want to

say. Right?

So preplan it.

Yeah. Already know your words.

Yes. Especially like you're at an event or you're doing like

some online networking and people ask you like,

well, what do you do?

What do you create?

And you're like,

well, I make jewelry.

And it's nice.

Like people seem to like it.

This is exactly what people do.

Dr. Michelle.

Exactly. Versus saying something like I creeped jewelry that are statement

pieces for bold women who want to show up fully for

their lives.

Oh my gosh.

That's perfect.

Right. Because then if it's the right person,

they're going to be like,

Oh, what does your jewelry look like?

Like I'm a bold woman.

Show me what I've got.

And we try to wordsmith this like crazy and come up

with all these fancy words that nobody even understands or knows

what you're talking about.

And what I heard you just say were nice.

I should've been writing it down as we went,

but all of them are easy words,

but they lead to,

like, you just covered all of it.

What someone makes,

who it's for and why it's different.

Yeah. You just did all three of those right there.

Yes. And it should be really short,

really conversational and a little curiosity provoking because now when I'm

talking about statement pieces for bold women who want to show

up confidently in their lives,

I'm like,

Oh, well,

I'm that show me,

give me some examples.

I want to see it now because now I'm interested and

you probably ought to be wearing one of your pieces.

Yes. Oh,

please. Especially if you're in a business environment where you're representing

your business,

because then you could say,

Oh, like this piece,

and then you can tell a story about that piece or

whatever it would be.

And then it's a conversation and it's not selling.

Yeah. I work with like a lot of service providers and

with the three word rebellion framework,

it's something like one of my clients,

hers is like profit without worry.

And so when she introduces herself,

she's like,

Oh, I help business owners to profit without worry.

And immediately be like,

Oh, tell me about that.

What does that look like?

Like I worry about money,

right? So you're always wanting to create some kind of conversation

because I feel like most elevator pitches they're dead ends.

Right. You don't know where to go.

It's like interesting.

Always think about like,

how can I say this in a way that's intriguing,

curiosity provoking.

That's going to make the right person say,

Oh yeah,

give me your card.

I want to see your shop.

Where is it located?

Right. Like that's what you're going for.

It's very interesting.

Cause I have my little spiel that I do when you're

familiar With it.

It comes out different each and every time because you're just

talking naturally.

But that doesn't happen until you say it sometimes over and

over again.

Yeah. So often what'll happen to me is people ask me

what I do and I'll say,

well, I help women transition from a product that they made

as a hobby,

into a profitable business.

And inevitably what I'll always get is someone.

If they don't make anything,

if they make things,

they'll tell me about their hobby.

Yeah. Or they'll tell me about a cousin,

a friend,

a mother.

Like, there's always a story that comes up.

Yeah. And then we can talk about that.

Yeah. Because the goal is to establish the relationship,

to keep the conversation,

going to learn about the person in front of you.

And then you can decide like,

Oh, I have something that might be great for them that

I would love to show them.

Or maybe they're just not the right fit.

Maybe you're not talking to a bold woman or they don't

know anyone who has a maker business.

And that's okay too.

And we were starting to merge into networking here,

but then,

you know,

when to stop talking and ask about them to not override

the conversation.

Yes, exactly.

Because That is a no-no of selling also,

no matter what environment you're in.

Exactly. I was talking to somebody in my VIP group just

yesterday and she was saying that she had a meeting recently

and this was like an extension of a virtual chamber of

commerce meeting or something like that.

They didn't get together obviously in person yet.

Yeah. But online.

And she's like,

Oh my gosh,

45 minutes.

All he did was talk about himself.

And I'm looking at things saying,

I have a lot of stuff to do.

How do I get out of this conversation?

Not one thing was about her.

And then at the end,

the guy had the nerve to say,

Oh, and she was happened to be in a gift basket

industry. And she said,

Oh yeah.

And I use a gift basket company down the way from

me all like not even anything to do with her business

at all.

I mean,

it was like so crazy.

I hate,

yeah. It's like conversations like that.

They're not great for business.

They're not good in dating.

No, no one wants to be the person who talks about

themselves. It's not all about you.

Like don't get overconfident because that may be where it goes.

Like, you know,

when you're feeling really good,

you there's a place to back off.

Yeah. Exactly.

Or give and take,

because if someone's really interested,

they'll talk more about it.

Obviously that's different if you're at a show because the intention

is to be talking about your product.

I'm curious about the three word rebellion.

Tell us about that.

Yeah. So the three word rebellion is this concept that I

developed to help you basically position your business in a way

that makes other people talk about it.

It's essentially a message for your audience,

for your right clients that demands attention.

It makes them curious.

And how I developed this was I was in my transition

from speaking to doing the work that I do now.

And I was at this crossroads of,

I recorded at a podcast episode.

It was my last one for the year.

And I was like,

I can't talk about this stuff anymore.

Like I know I am dun dun dun dun.

And I didn't know what was next,

but I felt like there was this idea percolating and what

I observed because ultimately like I look for patterns and it's

the way I do my work is like spotting patterns and

noticing trends.

And I noticed that social movements like black lives matter,

me too.

What they do particularly well is summarize the change they want

to create in just a few words.

And then I noticed the books that I love to read

and the entrepreneurs that I love to follow,

like Simon Sinek and start with why or Mel Robbins in

the five,

second rule,

they were doing the exact same thing they were saying,

here's my change that I want to create.

This is the flag that I'm flying.

This is what I'm showing up with every day.

So I applied questions from social movements,

like, what are you rebelling against?

What change do you want to create?

And from there,

I was able to use my pattern,

spotting research analysis,

and quickly create these three word messages.

Or actually they can be two to five words and help

people position their business more from that place of what is

the change?

What is the result that my client experiences when they use

my service or when they buy my products.

And that is far more sticky and far more memorable for

people then the regular elevator pitch or any other kind of

positioning statement that you can,

I have been thinking about a little bit of an idea

and I'm not going to say it here live yet because

it's still running around.

Okay. But it's exactly along those lines.

So I want to tell you after we're done and I'm

not trying to not tell everybody who's listening right now,

because I want to develop it a little bit so that

it comes out in the way I really want it to

come out.

But so this is really interesting,

but I'm going to swing it back to products.

So if you made Michelle,

you don't know this,

but my very favorite thing in the whole world is candles.

Well, candles and snow,

but no,

one's making the snow.

So we're going to go with candles.

Okay. So how could you see three word rebellion working for

candles? Let's just brainstorm it a little bit.

So this will be kind of fun.

This is just a test.

This is dosed to toast.

Yeah. Well,

I'm thinking about the candle that I have in front of

me and what it does for me.

It really helps me change my mindset.

It gives me good energy and they have a lot of

candles with these affirmations that are written on them.

So if I was creating a three-word rebellion,

I would want something around how this candle like changes your

mind or creates positive energy.

So you can go out and kick butt in life.

So that's the kind of the flavor of the messaging I

would be looking at for a candle company that has this

like very positive affirmation oriented message.

Right? Yeah.

And every company obviously should be different.

Yeah. Because if this three word rebellion concept needs to be

focused, specially on you like Mel with her five second rule,

I mean,

there are other motivational coaches out there,

right. And each person is a little bit different.

So I like what you're saying is what is the benefit

that you get?

What you just said with candles,

for me with candles,

I'm in the office right now.

I'm not at my home office,

but when I'm at my home office,

I always have a candle going because it helps me feel

energized because of the scent.

And I'm more productive.

Yeah. Something like ignite your productivity could be the change that

your candle is creating.

Right. It's igniting your productivity.

So that was like the top of mind thing that kind

of popped in my head.

That's a beautiful example.

Yeah. And I'm thinking,

but you want a three word rebellion that represents your business

overall, right?

Yes. Oh,

absolutely. That's where you're going to write.

Not just one candle or one situation,

but your business overall.

I mean,

this would cause some thought and some brainstorming sessions for sure.

But I totally understand what you're talking about and when you've

landed on what that is,

let me share one of mine.

Okay. And I don't know if I said this to you

before Dr.

Michelle, and this is not really what it is,

but it gives you an example.

So I have named our audience here.

Gifters bakers,

crafters, and makers.

So if ever those words are put together,

people think of me.

Yeah. But that's the intent of what you're going for.

Yeah. And not just your business name,

but if they see those words,

there's some type of meaning and context around it and it

funnels back to you.

Exactly. It's really interesting because that message can be more sticky

than your name,

like before COVID I was at an event and someone across

the room screamed,

Hey, you're the three word rebellion woman didn't know my name,

but knew the three word rebellion because that was like,

got them wondering like,

Oh, well what are my three words?

And how could I use this in my business?

So they knew what I looked like.

They knew what my message was.

No idea what my name is.

And that is what you're going for.

Like, you want words,

a message associated with your business,

with your brand.

And then that way,

when somebody says,

Oh, I got this beautiful candle.

And you're like,

yeah, it really helps me ignite my productivity.

And they go,

Ooh, I want to be more productive.

Who was that company?

Oh my gosh.

It makes so much sense.

Thank you.

I want you guys all to be thinking about this.

So what do you tell them?

Listen to the book.

I think maybe we're going to need to have the book.

Yeah. Yeah.

So the book takes you through the process.

There's some mindset stuff at the beginning about really stepping into

this role as a rebel leader,

somebody who's leading with a bigger message and that's a very

uncomfortable thing for people.

So I hope you work through that.

And then we go into the exercises.

So there are lots of writing prompts.

The book is really almost like a workbook.

So there are writing prompts where you do what I call

free writing and free writing is uninhibited.

You just want to sit down and pour your brain out

on paper,

do not edit misspelled things.

Swear if that's your thing,

like just empty your brain out.

When you look at these questions,

because that's going to give you the words that help you

formulate your three word rebellion.

So you work through those prompts and then you're able to

create a word bank because it's always fascinating when I do

this analysis,

like I was working with a client once and she literally

used the word joy 50 times in her writing.

And I'm like,

so joy is really important for you.

And she's like,

Oh, how did you know?

I'm like,

you used it like a million times.

So we're able to kind of see these patterns and what's

important and then start unearthing it.

Because the thing is like,

I believe your three word rebellion,

your message already exists.

It's in things that you've been saying for ever.

And then once you kind of get your words together,

I give you some different frameworks of like,

do you want to have a three-word rebellion?

That's a battle cry.

That's more active something,

you know,

like ignite your productivity for,

for our candle maker.

Or do you want to have something that's a little bit

more abstract,

but curiosity provoking something like the five second rule.

So I walk you through that whole process to how to

get your words.

And then the final wrap-up is like,

how do you start using this thing?

Well, that circles back to what we were talking about in

the beginning,

like how do you introduce yourself and your business and talk

about your business with a strong sense of confidence that sir,

like this conversation kind of circles all back with the three

word rebellion.

Yeah. Once you have those words and you know,

that people respond,

it's aligned with you,

what you're doing in the world.

For instance,

I just finished work with a spa owner and she's a

brick and mortar,

but she like in COVID started creating spa kits to send

to people.

Her business is very values driven.

Like she's very social justice oriented.

So we created the three word rebellion that was actually six,

but it had repeating words that was like,

invest in your beauty,

invest in your values.

And when she started,

like, she was like,

yup, that's it.

That's my message.

That's what I want people to know about us.

That you can get beauty products.

You can have an experience that are in line with your

values. And as soon as she started implementing that,

her online sales started to take off because people knew what

she was about.

And it just had this clear promise to it that was

attractive to her right.

Clients. I love it.

It then separates her from anybody else.

Who's a spa owner.

There's a distinction.

It's a different way of looking at the business.

Yes. I see so much the value of that.

Yes. Yeah.

Because I mean,

honestly I think she's probably one of the only spa owners

who has such a defined position and message that if you're

like, Oh,

I really don't like patronizing these spas that don't treat their

workers as well.

And don't use,

you know,

amazing products.

Then you see a message like that.

And you're like,

Oh yes.

Please tell me more.

Give me more,

Not that you want to point out the questionable things of

others. You want to point out the strengths of yourself,

but it naturally leads to,

well, your company has this.

What do other companies have or not have,

which is the reason why they come back to you.

Yeah. And sometimes people already know,

like they know that their nail technician isn't paid well.

And so then they start looking,

they're like,

Oh, you're here talking about paying a living wage and helping

these women like accelerate their career.

That is radically different than any other spa that's out there.

And you know,

sometimes they do also have nail technicians who are paid well,

but they're not talking about it.

You know?

So sometimes it doesn't mean that you have to be the

only one who has this,

but you are putting it front and center and talking about

it. Yeah.

Yeah. Because that's where your strength lies.

That's where your confidence is.

And it was so easy for her to kind of dismiss

like, Oh,

nobody's going to care about that.

And I'm like,

Oh, hold up.

Yeah. Yeah.

There are lots of people who care about that.

Like let's not dismiss what makes you different as something that

nobody's going to care about.

So I think What I'm hearing from you,

Dr. Michelle,

to summarize everything that we've been talking about is the gateway

to gaining confidence is more confidence.

We have confidence in the products that we make.

We have confidence in the skills and we're very proud of

our product.

It comes to when we open our mouth,

the problem start,

right? What I'm hearing from you is that gateway first starts

with figuring out what the words are going to be the

three word rebellion,

for sure,

but also who you are and what you present as I

define it,

your introduction message.

So that when,

cause you're not planning on going into an elevator and telling

everybody on the elevator,

what you do,

someone will ask you.

So you need to be ready in any of your situations.

Pre-thought and pre-planning even word for word initially what that would

be, right.

That would be the first thing.

And then the second thing is,

and they can be done together is what would be your

three word rebellion,

because that brings you to a deeper level with your business.

Yes. And I would add an extra step and I love

this. This comes from Mel Robbins.

She actually says that the only thing that helps us boost

our confidence is to act,

to do the thing.

So it means going out there and practicing and seeing like,

Ooh, how are people responding to this?

Are they responding?

Are they not responding?

What do I need to tweak here?

And really embrace that?

Like, let's get into action.

Let's try this out.

Let's experiment and see what works and what doesn't because yeah.

Action does breed confidence.

So get yourself like once you know what you want to

say, start trying it out and tweaking it and it will

change. Yes.

Oh yeah.

Cause you want something that rolls off of your tongue very

easily. It's in words that you normally use.

And once you start using words,

like, let's say your three word rebellion are words you normally

put together because you landed on something so amazing.

These words have never been together before and they make so

much sense.

Yes. It might take a little while for those three words

to feel natural to you,

but eventually they'll just roll off If your tongue yeah.

It comes from practice and using it.

But if you know that people are leaning forward and wanting

to know more,

after you say it,

you've got something like keep going.

Yep. You're so right.

Oh my gosh,

Dr. Michelle,

where can people go and learn more about you and also

where could they go for the three word rebellion book?

Yeah. So if you go to the number three,

w R book.com

that takes you to all the places that you can possibly

buy the book.

And if you're just curious about book and you just want

to taste her to see if this is the right thing

for you,

you can also go to three word rebellion.com

and there's like a free taster to do a couple of

the exercises and really kind of suss out like,

Hey, is this the thing that I want to do?

And for everything else I'm over at Dr.

Michelle mazer.com

and I love Instagram.

So if you are on Instagram and you hear this,

send me a DM,

I'm at Dr.

Michelle Mazer,

tell me what you took away.

Cause I would love to hear from you,

What would be the single message that you would give to

our listeners here about what we've talked about today?

Ooh, this is such a difficult,

but yummy question.

We've got that part Person who's listening,

who they know that they've been the timid one.

They've seen other people being much more confident in they're just

like, Oh,

like I just cannot seem to get myself to do it.

Ah, I would tell them your work matters.

It is deeply worth while.

And remind yourself of that on a daily basis.

Speak about that from that place of excitement,

for why you do your work and then create that message

that engages other people,

but just know that your work matters and it's worthy of

attention. Beautiful.

Thank you so much,

Dr. Michelle,

and I'm going to send those words back to you.

Your work matters so much because if we get just a

couple of people changing the way they're showing up for the

world, that will be amazing.

Thank you so much for being on the show today.

Oh, you are so welcome.

Sue. The five word rebellion.

Have you started thinking about your words yet?

It's worth taking the time to consider what they are for

you. It can set your business on fire.

Think of Mel Robbins and what happened to her after the

five second rule caught on and to think this was a

side thought that she almost forgot to bring up in her

Ted talk.

It literally changed her future.

Next week.

We're turning our attention to the world of e-commerce websites,

converting viewers to customers and more ready and waiting queued up

for next Monday morning.

Thanks so much for spending time with me today.

If you'd like to show support for the podcast,

please leave a rating and review.

That means so much and helps the show get seen by

more makers.

So it's a great way to pay it forward and now

be safe and well.

And I'll see you next week on the gift biz unwrapped

podcast. Last I want to make sure you're familiar with my

free Facebook group called gift is breeze.

It's a place where we all gather and our community to

support each other.

Got a really fun post in there.

That's my favorite of the week.

I have to say where I invite all of you to

share what you're doing to show pictures of your product,

to show what you're working on for the week to get

reaction from other people and just for fun,

because we all get to see the wonderful products that everybody

in the community is making my favorite post every single week,

without doubt.

Wait, what,

aren't you part of the group already,

if not make sure to jump over to Facebook and search

for the group gift biz breeze don't delay.