The SPARK 131 ~ What Was I Thinking?

Hi, {{ subscriber.first_name }},

Last weekend I did something I swore years ago I’d never do.

I went to Costco on a Saturday… midday.

Never again.

Usually, when I run errands (especially Costco), it’s during the week and I’m listening to something with AirPods (I have yet to venture out wearing my noise-canceling headphones haha…).

Usually, I’m listening to a book or a podcast. Something that keeps me in my own little world and I happily get my errands done.

My Dad wanted to take me out for Mother’s Day and I suggested Saturday instead of Sunday (both my kids are out of the area and since my Mom passed away in 2019 I’ve become a little indifferent about the day).

It was complete & total sensory overload.

As dramatic as this might sound, it was the first time I’d been to Costco since moving back from Costa Rica a few months ago. The Costa Rican version of Costco is Pricesmart and it’s about 1/4 the size.

The only other “big box” store there is Walmart (both were an hour from me and living alone I didn’t need to go too often).

This little outing helped me get clear and confirm that while being back here (for now) was the right decision, this won’t be long-term.

Often the path to clarity comes from first getting clear on what we don’t want.

I’ve run my business this way.

It’s O.K. to try different things in your business until you find the one that deep down feels like, “YES! This is it!”

Ignore people who tell you that you have to focus or pick one thing. Focus is good when you can stay present on the work you’re doing, but to stick with something simply because that’s what “X Guru” or book said you need to do?

Garbage.

After 15 years in business, I’ve never felt more clear. In some ways, it feels like AI was the missing piece of the puzzle.

However, I’ve spent this time getting better at the things I enjoy doing, letting go of the things that no longer serve me, and being willing to take chances.

My only recommendation is that you build a solid foundation of skills and choose something you love doing that you can be consistent with (newsletter, podcast, video, etc.).

Here are a few pieces of the foundation that will make a huge difference:

Writing: learning to write on the internet will help you with everything (yes, audio & video too).
Copywriting: You don’t have to become a copywriter to learn how copy works. Study what resonates with you and pay attention to processes (launches, emails, social)
Traffic: Every online business needs traffic that can convert to subscribers and customers. You can pay for it with time and/or money. What that looks like is up to you, but you need to do it. Which means effort and energy.

You might be thinking “I have referrals and don’t need more business.”

Hats off to you… it means you’ve been doing this a while and are good at what you do. But if you want something different (less time for money), you need to take a chance.

And, as much as I’m a fan of “doing what you love”… you also have to learn to be comfortable with the discomfort.

Whenever we step into growth and need to stretch a bit there’s going to be some discomfort.

Do it anyway.

Spark Spotlight

The Events Calendar is the premier WordPress calendar plugin for managing your events. I’ll be using this for virtual events and have a marketing test in mind… stay tuned.

Get The Events Calendar here

Featured Articles

Circling back to traffic, here’s a great way to utilize Medium and your own blog posts. Read, ”My Unique 3-Way Medium Redirect Tactic to Tackle External Views.”

Another brilliant case study by Chenell Basilio (have you subscribed yet?). Read, ”How Erika Kullberg Built an Audience of 15 Million in 3 Years.”

✔ This is pretty exciting. Meta is upping their AI game for ads. Read, ”Introducing the AI Sandbox for advertisers and expanding our Meta Advantage Suite.”

Tool Time

Productivity: A clean and simple way to manage your daily tasks and schedule. Try Orrderly free here.
Linkedin: Supercharge your Linkedin content with this AI tool, in just a few minutes a week. Use Hushl free here.
Calendar: Replace Calendly with this free tool (or get the lifetime deal). Add a video to your bookings page too. Try Callendo free here.
Note-taking: I’m always looking for visual note-taking options and am testing this one. Try Scrintal free here.

AI Insider

Tool: SO many tools, it’s a little nuts (hard to keep up). However, this looks like an easy way to add a custom chatbot to your site. Check out Bubbly here.

Video: Looks like SEO is in for a BUNCH of changes. This video shows you how to use a ChatGPT SEO plugin. Watch “ChatGPT SEO plugins are INSANE” here.

Newsletter: One of the premier AI newsletters (worth subscribing to). Sign up to receive Superhuman here.

News: ChatGPT now has web browsing (real-time access) and plugins are being released. I have access to both but haven’t tried plugins yet.