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April 3, 2008

Your Personal Tale of Survival — and Success

ME Liz Strauss wrote this at 12:51 pm

Yesterday J.C. Hutchins told his personal tale of survival. Today I asked him to say a few words how we might use his model in our own lives.

So J.C.’s brought us this.

Your Personal Tale of Survival — and Success

by J.C. Hutchins

Now to your personal tale of survival and success. We all have had a creative idea, or business model, or blog concept that we’re ferociously passionate about. Often, we don’t pursue that passion because it is untested — in fact, it probably appears to be doomed before launch, when viewed through the filter of conventional wisdom. After all, if it doesn’t already exist, how could it possibly be profitable?

My suggestion: If you are soul-certain that your idea is a great and sustainable one, tell the world to bugger off. Ignore the “no” noise. Say Damn It All and make the leap of faith in yourself and your work. And if you make it to that point — the edge of the precipice, the moment before you take that leap — remember these things:

  • You’re going to work harder for this than you’ve worked for damned-near anything else in your life: In the beginning, this passion project will be yours, from soup to nuts. You’re the one-man band: the boss, the employee, the cheerleader, the bookkeeper. It’ll suck more time than you’ll anticipate, it’ll be in your capillaries, and it’ll be exhausting.
  • You’re going to doubt yourself, your idea, and the commitment you’ve made: It’s okay to slip into “what am I doing?” mode. That’s human nature, particularly if your project’s success hinges on the long tail (as so many online businesses do). But as Journey once famously sang, “Don’t stop believing.” You’ve got a killer product, and you’re soul-certain of it. Which leads us to …
  • Do everything you can to evangelize your work: You’re a one-man band — a frickin’ maestro! — but what good is that if you’re playing to an empty room? Reach out to friends and family to spread the word. Invite online influencers to either blog/podcast about — or participate in — your endeavor. Find creative ways to engage your audience and these influencers. Answer every email. Make yourself available on platforms such as AIM, Twitter and Skype, should it be appropriate for your project. Promote your availability.
  • Empower your audience to become participants: If you do indeed have a killer product, and you’re funneling your energies into promotion and making yourself available to consumers, you will indeed find an audience. They’ll be supportive, emotive and hungry to contribute. So let them! Welcome them into your sandbox, beyond mere blog comments. Liz does this with great effect with her Open Comment Tuesdays, in which she’s there, interacting with you, during the experience. For “7th Son,” I solicit fan-created fiction, artwork, music and voice mail recordings that are inspired by the story, and post them on my site. This builds a community that defies the geography and ones and zeros that separate you from your consumer.
  • Ask your audience to evangelize on your behalf: There is no shame in questing for success, and there’s no shame in asking your consumers (who are now hopefully “fans”) to spread the word. Doing all of the promotional on your own will likely burn you out … and worse still, denies another opportunity for your audience to contribute. If appropriate, create an online street team and offer fun incentives for your community to participate. (I have a “Ministry of Propaganda” that offers branded swag to helpful evangelists.) If you’re audience is engaged, they won’t be spreading the word for the prizes. They’ll be doing it because they believe in you, and what you’re doing.
  • Don’t be afraid to experiment: Be wily with your promotion, your content and your relationship with your audience. Find what techniques work best to further your influence in the space, and enhance your relationship with your consumers. If you’re a blogger, try releasing a pod- or vidcast post, just to shake things up. Be daring. Never sit still. Solicit feedback. See what sticks.
  • Finally: Don’t be afraid to shift your goals: If your project is more (or less) successful than you originally anticipated, don’t be a bonehead and squander an opportunity to ramp-up (or scale back) your ambitions. Too often, we commit to a course of action and — through either stubbornness or inertia — forget that we are empowered and can control the direction of our endeavor. When I launched my podcast novel in 2006, I did it as a lark, to see if I could find an audience for my work. When that goal had been attained, I shifted priorities and began questing again for publication. I heard more than 100 more “no’s” from literary agents my second time around, but I persisted and eventually found an agent, and a publisher. You can similarly find opportunities to change your own course when needed, while remaining faithful to your original concept.

Remember that you already are a walking, talking survival story, and that you claim victories every day in your life. But if you have an idea for a great business, service or blog — that untested thing inside your mind that just won’t shut up — and have the gumption to pursue it, do it. Let your passion drive you, and know that you’re doing a brave thing, one that may be filled with risk.

But bravery, risk and beating the odds are the best part of every story of survival — and success.

What’s your great idea? What other suggestions do you have for saying Damn It All, making the leap of faith, cultivating communities and evangelism, and realizing your goals? I’d love to hear them in the comments.

——
Thanks, J.C.! This is just what we need to do to invest in our ideas.

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Invest in Yourself! Work with Liz!!
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11 Comments to “Your Personal Tale of Survival — and Success”

  1. April 3rd, 2008 at 1:00 pm
    Jersey Todd said

    …and most importantly, be a good person - so people really enjoy working with you (and for you) - like the example set by Mr. Hutchins.

  2. April 3rd, 2008 at 5:58 pm
    sunny said

    Jersey Todd — let me add a second to that! This is a very inspirational post and oh so true. It’s also important to have a support group for those days when you doubt and hurt. Also, know what works for you in the way of a motivating environment. Everywhere you look you should be reminded that you’re worth the effort.

  3. April 3rd, 2008 at 6:40 pm
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Hey Jersey Todd!
    That’s great advice to add to what J.C. has already sent along here. He’s having a great day today. :)

  4. April 3rd, 2008 at 6:42 pm
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Hi sunny!
    Glad to see you back!
    A support group can mean the world on days that things get overwhelming, and on other days too. :)

    We should attract folks who know our value and then value them back. :)

  5. April 3rd, 2008 at 6:55 pm
    Pablo Barrientos said

    Thanks a lot for this post. It has been really inspiring for me. Visit my blog and find inspiring, motivating and success quotes on a daily basis.

  6. April 3rd, 2008 at 10:49 pm
    J.C. Hutchins said

    Thanks so much for the kind comments about my guest post! Everyone here has made me feel so welcome, and I’m flattered to know that my posts have resonated with this awesome community.

    I’m grateful for the feedback, and hope my advice helps you make that leap of faith in your talents, your worth, and your ideas. Onward and upward!

  7. April 4th, 2008 at 4:49 am
    Stephen Hopson said

    Fabulous - just fantastic! I really enjoyed reading JC’s second article about his experience of success and survival. It pushed me further with respect to the launch of my first ever e-book. I’m now more than ever encouraged to just experiment, give it a try and see what happens.

    Thanks Liz for bringing us J.C. I’m so inspired by his journey. Amazing to learn about how he decided to give podcasting his novel a try and to see how that took off so amazingly well.

    Wow.

  8. April 4th, 2008 at 8:14 am
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Hi J.C.
    How could I not share a guy like you with my friends? Your generosity of spirit and your hope in humanity is inspiring to us all.

    You are no stranger here anymore.

  9. April 4th, 2008 at 8:15 am
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Hi Stephen!
    Yeah, I know — wow!
    Go for it with all of the passion you have!

  10. April 6th, 2008 at 4:24 pm
    Freelance Writing Jobs » Blog Archive » Sunday Afternoon Link Love for April 6th, 2008 said

    […] Your Personal Tale of Survival and Success at Successful- Blog. […]

  11. July 1st, 2008 at 9:06 am
    How to Overcome Doubt: Business Blog Tips by Visionary Blogging | Visionary Blogging - A New Look at Blog Improvement said

    […] Until you overcome doubts about your blog, you can’t succeed. You may not even survive. […]

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