Ever wonder if you stand any hope – any hope at all – in cutting through the noise online to have your voice heard?
Do you find yourself reading mediocre blog posts, subscribing to formulaic newsletters and watching Pinterest quotes fill your Facebook feed, and ask yourself, “How on earth can I contribute anything unique to this cacophony of sameness I see everywhere I turn?”
I’m betting that if you’re striving to go PRO, it’s on your mind – a lot.
Let’s face facts.
The barrier to entry is lower than it’s ever been. Today, you need all but an idea and an internet connection to start a business.
This is amazing and dangerous at the same time.
Yes, it’s easier than ever to set up a website and start making money. The possibilities for income potential are significant, and the dream of leaving cubicle nation really can be realized for anyone who wants it badly enough.
But it’s not without it’s pitfalls.
As of this writing, there are over 59 million WordPress sites online, with numbers only expected to rise significantly. And chances are good, a number of them are talking about the same thing you are.
Which means you need to be pretty damn remarkable to get noticed in a sea of sameness.
And that might be where you’re stuck – wondering HOW to be remarkable without being someone you’re not or working yourself into the ground.
Ready for the good news?
It’s not that complicated. We overcomplicate it because it keeps us safe, but being remarkable starts with one simple choice:
Do you want to be good, or do you want to be great?
The blogosphere is filled with good. Good content, good ideas, good products and good business people.
But I’m challenging you to be great. And so is your audience. They’re craving a distinct voice, a distinct perspective and a distinct offer in a marketplace saturated with me-too brands and half-baked ideas.
“Good is the enemy of Great.” ~ Jim Collins, Good to Great
Good is not on the path to greatness. You don’t start with good and hope one day you become great.
Don’t strive for greatness as some long-shot ideal. It’s a mindset you can claim now. Be great TODAY!
Here are 3 distinct ways you can move toward your own leading edge:
1. Look for the gaps:
The GOOD approach
: Spend too much time studying your competitors. Look at their offers, price points, positioning and marketing tactics and create your version of them.
The GREAT approach
: Study your competitors and identify the gap. What problem isn’t being addressed? What’s being overlooked? Where can you fill a gap no one else is filling?
2. Show up like you mean it:
The GOOD approach:
You run your business spontaneously – blog posts for three weeks straight, then nothing until inspiration hits a month later, offers made in rapid succession because you’re feeling a little, well, tapped.
The GREAT approach:
A solid plan that works. A consistent presence across your targeted marketing channels. A growing platform that you feed and seed regularly. Supports in place to keep you moving, even during low-energy or low-inspiration periods.
3. Identify the HIGH barrier to entry area. Play there.
The GOOD approach
: Do what everyone else is doing. Telesummits all the rage? Create one. Newsletters being touted as your 6-figure solution? Create one according to the prescribed template.
The GREAT approach
: Play where most won’t. Create a premium product that solves your ideal customers most pressing needs. Set up a back-end sales strategy that keeps you off the cash flow roller coaster. Write the book. Pursue the speaking gigs. Go after the big fish client.
It’s not that good doesn’t work. It does. Many a business was built on good.
But as new businesses sprout up every minute, good just isn’t good enough.
So make the decision to go for great.
Greatness is far easier than being good. The air is much clearer, quieter and calmer in the spaces where few dare to play.
P.S.
Want to learn how I took my business from good to great? I’ll be announcing my newest program – a joint project with Gina Bell on how to publish + promote a digital magazine. This ONE great idea took my business from virtual obscurity to a thriving, successful company. Stay tuned for details.
