Yesterday I gave a no holds barred presentation at the Ladies Who Launch Global Conference in Seattle. My topic? The Girlfriend’s Guide to Making a Living with Information Products: Real Life Versus the Fairy Tale. There was plenty of authentic sharing during the talk, and you could hear the laughter a few doors down!
If you’d like to listen in, click on this link to enjoy the audio file: Ladies Who Launch. If you would rather read the highlights, here are some of my observations along my journey so far — with inspiration from some of my favorite movies and books enjoyed with my son Kyle, who is now 13 years old.
1) When the star chicken in “Chicken Run” had a feeling that life could be better beyond the chicken coup, he was right. But there are always naysayers. You have to believe in the journey you wish to travel and keep moving ahead, even in the face of doubt. It’s not easy to blaze a new trail. My CPA looked at me sideways when I said I wanted to walk away from fee-for-service public relations consulting to launch an information products and training business. I knew it would take time to make the transition, and I remained undaunted. I am glad I made the journey because I how have better control over my own destiny and my income potential than before. I have more control over my time and my life. I enjoy my work more. It’s been a good decision for me.
2) Take a lesson from “Green Eggs and Ham” and taste a lot of options to find the perfect success recipe. Your first information product may not be the key to riches. You have to keep revising the recipe to create tools that ideal clients truly need and are willing to spend money to enjoy. I created a family of do-it-yourself information products over a period of three years before creating Bye-Bye Boring Bio. This has become the best-selling item at my DIY Publicity Store and is the foundation for a suite of products and services that earn raves from clients in my own backyard and well beyond.
3) “The Tortoise and the Hare” fable is a good metaphor for what it takes to win the race. Slow and steady progress toward the end goal really is effective as opposed to getting distracted with shiny bright object disease. It may not be the glamorous path, but it is the path that has worked for me. While others may have dabbled with their information products, I’ve been steadfast and consistent. That makes a difference.
4) Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you are going to get. These sage words of advice were spoken to Forrest Gump by his momma in “Forrest Gump.” You make a post on a popular social networking site one day, and nothing happens. The next day, someone influential responds and opens up a whole new world of opportunity, including introductions to influential internet gurus who now become your colleagues, friends, and co-collaborators. It’s important to walk through these doors of opportunity when they strike because wonderful things often flow.
5) Just like Dorothy in “The Wizard of Oz,” it is an odd feeling to realize that you are not in Kansas anymore and are along a yellow brick road to a destination that is all too unfamiliar. Dorothy had to learn how to avoid hazardous poppies, flying monkeys, and angry apples along her journey and remain resilient in her quest to reach the wonderful world of Oz. Along my own journey, this former writer/journalist has had to learn a host of new skills and abilities that had prior been completely foreign.
– How to speak in public with confidence
– How to use a digital audio recorder and convert WAV files to MP3 files
– How to use WordPress to blog
– How to set up and use Skype
– How to set up autoresponders
– How to set up and host teleseminars
– How to write sales copy that earns consistent sales
– How to set up a squeeze page
– How to set up and produce YouTube videos
– How to set up an affiliate program
– How to write Tweets to make it easy for affliates to advocate for featured products
– How to set up a Facebook Fan page
– How to launch, sustain, and grow my ezine and the list that grows with it
– How to set up a merchant account and choose an online shopping cart
– How to interview on the radio and create action by listeners
– The list goes on and on.
There is something new to learn every day. It is humbling. It is never-ending. And it is at times exhausting. Tomorrow, I’ll share among the most humbling lessons I’ve learned so far. Stay tuned.
And, just curious, is this a topic you would like to learn more about? Let me know!
Special thanks to Linda Snyder of Ladies Who Launch, who encouraged me to share my journey with the guests at this global conference. She has put together two amazing days of keynotes and breakout sessions to inspire us to live, launch, and live our dreams. I am heading out the door right now to enjoy the bounty of great content that awaits. Can’t wait!
