✨ the SPARK 169 ~ The flip side of “No”

Welcome to the 169th issue of the SPARK. A weekly newsletter where inspiration meets real online strategies, behind-the-scenes stories, and a boatload of valuable resources.

Hi, Reader,

Back when I was doing websites, I had my fair share of people who would reach out and ask to barter with me.

I’m sure most service providers have similar stories or requests they’ve received at one time or another.

Most of these requests were in the early days of doing business and, more often than not, came from people in the spiritual/manifestation space (not throwing shade; I love a lot of that stuff).

Besides wondering why they couldn’t manifest the income they desired to pay me(they were, after all, teaching this stuff), I also noticed they tended to be incredibly demanding.

Before starting my business, I had always been in managerial roles, so providing a service was new, and I was willing to pay my dues.

Until one day when I realized I had paid enough dues (love & light doesn’t pay the bills).

And from then on, the answer would be “No” to any requests like this (well, minus the Spa website I did where I knew the owner and had a year of free massages!).

After that realization, I said yes to one more person but quickly course-corrected and told them no a couple of days later.

I felt empowered.

This is when I realized that the flip side of “No” is a resounding “YES” to what you do want.

It also anchors in your worth.

I know, I might be stating the obvious, but how often when you say “No” to something that doesn’t serve you, do you actually look at ALL of the things you’re saying “Yes” to?

And to be clear, this also means saying “No” to things that pay you.

The obvious payoff/reward to saying “No” is you gain (or retain) the time and energy you’d be applying to the project/person you said yes to.

The other payoff isn’t as tangible, but I’d go so far as to say it’s more important.

It’s the energetic payoff.

You can feel the difference with these images, right?

Stay with me here.

How often have you said no to something, then another opportunity shows up that pays better? Or is someone you’d rather work with requiring less effort or more in your zone of genius?

We’ve all had these experiences.

It’s also vitally important to do this when things you were hoping for don’t come to fruition.

• A potential client says no after you’ve had a call with them
• A project flops that you thought for sure was going to do well
• A course you’ve created only sells a few (or none at all)
• Another client doesn’t renew

It’s super easy to get caught up in the negative thoughts, no matter how much you’ve worked on your mindset.

Here’s a crazy fact for you:

The truth is entrepreneurship is hard.

It’s certainly not for the faint of heart.

Besides the obvious wins and joy derived from the work, trust, and faith in what we’re doing and why we’re doing it keep us going.

Next time you say “No” or someone says “No” to you, start looking for the magic.

Ask yourself, “I wonder what’s going to show up instead that’s even better?”

It’s always the internal work that creates the most impactful change.

SPARK Spotlight 🔥

Are you struggling to create content that showcases your individuality and effectively drives leads and sales? Tired of feeling lost in a sea of generic content strategies?

Introducing ‘Everything Is Content’ One-on-One Sessions – a custom approach that fuses your personal brand with proven digital marketing strategies to create a content plan that attracts, engages, and converts.

This is a 90-minute, one-on-one session with me where I do all the heavy lifting. You just show up and answer questions. 😉

Click here to learn more & book your session!

A Little Brainpower 🧠

Thinking about starting or getting back into livestreaming? Read “Crickets? Rethink Your Livestream Strategy” here.​

This is so me (although I’m slowly starting to change my mind). “Hate Marketing Yourself on LinkedIn? Here Are Ways to Make It Less Cringe.”​

If you want to start selling sponsorships in a newsletter, read “Sponsorship formats of the top 1%.”​

Tool Time 🛠

• Twitter/X: This is interesting. Turn your tweets into videos! Try RepurposePie for $7 for the first month.​
• Video: Turn to text to video in minutes. Use their images and audio, or upload your own. Check out Typeframes here.​
• WordPress + Coaching: A new Memberpress add-on plugin to manage your coaching on your WP site. Check out CoachKit here.​
• For Podcasters: A quick and easy way to let your listeners send you voice messages. Use Podline free here.​

*NEW* Content Snackz 🥨

Type of content to create: Reverse Case Study
​Difficulty: Easy
​What it is: Instead of writing a case study about someone you helped, write a case study about someone/something that impacted you.

• Coach/mentor
• Book
• Strategy
• Podcast
• Tool
• Service

Be sure to include: In addition to what it is, explain why it was helpful, how it’s impacted you (be specific as possible), the problem it solved for you, and who you think it would help.

Links: In addition to sharing something helpful, be sure to link back to the resource you’re mentioning. Then, when you share the content socially, tag the person/company you’re mentioning.

Too cute 😉

We’re heading into Superbowl weekend here in the States… go Niners! 🥳 🏈

I like football, but I’m not sure if I’ll watch the whole game (my family had season tickets to the 49ers for 20 years. I’m a 5th generation San Franciscan…, so it feels like I should watch it).

They’re certainly a fun team to watch this year.

Either way, this weekend means we’re closer to Spring and warmer weather. HALLELUJAH!

I’m almost done with the “Everything is Content” post (the email series I sent and am turning into an epic blog post that will be the front end of a content funnel).

I’ll share the link and video soon!

Have a fantastic day, my friends,

Kim