Does the idea of self promotion make you cringe? Does it make you uncomfortable to even think about going on social media to promote your stuff? If given the option to either promote yourself or drive to the dentist for an invasive root canal , would you need some time to make that decision?
If you said yes to any of these, trust me when I say that you are not alone.
This is especially the case if you are a creative entrepreneur. I joke that whenever the word creative is used in a business title, I’m fairly certain that the business is anything but creative. But the creative entrepreneur is a unique breed. We love the work that we do. We are not interested in doing nothing and living off of passive income alone- although that cash would be a nice support of our passions. But we actually like doing the work. Creative entrepreneurs take pride in the work they produce. It matters to them.
But the idea of self promotion or promoting their out work? Eeeeesh. Sit back and watch the insecurities and imposter syndrome come out. What’s funny is, these people are often great at promoting others work. They love to share the work of the people who help them. They just struggle to do it for themselves. It feels tacky. They worry of judgement from old high school friends, snide comments from their traditionally employed brother-in-law at Christmas dinner, or- even worse- their promoting being met with silence.
Why is it that so many of us love doing the work but cringe at the idea of promoting ourselves? Part of the reason, I believe, is because we have become jaded by the 'bro marketers', as my friend Greg Tosi labeled. Bro marketers are those dudes posing in front of the rented Lamborghini selling a course to make the quick cash. The ones that we know don't give a crap about their work, they are only in it for the money. And we wouldn't dare stoop to their level to be seen like that let alone act like them. At the same time, this creative entrepreneur is not only creating great work, but work that truly could help others. Yet, not enough people know about their work or how it can help them.
Jonathan Miri said something that made me reconsider my own fear of self promotion.
"If you developed the cure for cancer, would you promote it?" he asked during a mastermind call inside of the Total Life Freedom Community.
There wasn't one person who wouldn't promote that. No amount of concern for promotion would come up if we had developed the cure for cancer and we wanted to get it to to the world. But that begs the question. If we know that the cure for cancer solves a specific problem, why would we not promote something else we created that solved a different problem? Do we think it's just not as important? Not as useful?
Maybe that's the case. Maybe, not so much. What if someone doesn't have cancer but they really are in desperate need of getting their money together. What if they can't figure out how to build or grow a podcast? What if their only concern today was finding the best videographer for their daughters wedding?
And what if you created the solution to that problem? And if you did- in any niche or field- why would you not want to solve their problem? Oh, and when you solve that problem, you also will be financially compensated for it. And the more important the problem is (for them), the more you will get paid.
So it begs the question. Actually, two questions.
1) Are you creating something that actually solves someones problem? If you are- it's your obligation to let them know about it.
and
2) If your service, product or creation is not solving a problem (whether through knowledge, entertainment, services needed or whatever), it's time to rethink what you are doing. If it's more about you and less about them, that may be the reason why you are so hesitant to promote your stuff.
I discussed this topic on todays episode of The Total Life Freedom Podcast!
Have a great day!
Vincent
