747: Live Coaching: Where to Invest at the Very Beginning of Your Biz

26:44Because, you know, I don't know, I just I have a trouble figuring out how people do that. And yet I see there are people doing that and have done that. And I just would love to know more about how to handle that. Well, I'm definitely not an expert in this, but I can happily share my experience with it as well. And just thank you for your vulnerability and ask that question and how you framed it. Cause I think everyone is different. Right. And one thing that's super interesting, I've been really digging into like human design and just trying to like understand like how, what days to push myself and what days to listen and honor myself and all these different things.

27:20Right. And so I feel like this is something we're going to be unpacking for the rest of our lives, which again can be very exciting, but also can be daunting. Here's a few things that I would love to have you think about. So one of the things I learned this in Marie Forleo's time genius course, but like the average person can be highly productive for only four hours a day. And it's wild when you think that like most people are working eight, nine, 10 hours a day, but like really focused work is usually capped around four hours. Now it can be a little bit greater, a little bit less, but when I learned that it really helped for me to figure out like, how do I want to block my days?

27:55And for the last few years, my oldest daughter was in half day school. So she was gone from eight to noon. So I was like, those are my four hours of like deep work. Like this is when I can actually focus. This is when the house is quiet. And I've kind of adopted this rhythm of figuring out, okay, I can really deeply focus for four hours. And then it doesn't mean I'm only working four hours a day. It just means that I leave more like free flowing space in the afternoon to do my work in a way that feels right, that honors my rhythm. This year, one thing that I'm doing that I've never done in over a decade of entrepreneurship is really building out structure to my week so that I can kind of honor what has worked the best for me.

28:35So for example, we switched to a four-day work week, which has been amazing for all of us. There's a lot of interesting science behind it and just like the passion and the joy, but also the productivity behind it. And so Fridays are off. And so I've started doing like no calls on Monday so I can do deep work on Monday. And then like blocking, like Tuesdays are for recording, Wednesdays are for meetings, Thursdays are for wrapping everything up in reviews. And so one thing that I would just encourage is think more so instead of looking at a full eight hour day, think about like four productive hours and start paying attention to your natural energy cycles to see if that's when you can do your most focused work.

29:12And then also one thing that's been really helpful for me is like a lot of productivity hacks just don't work for me, right? Because of our neurodivergence, it's just like great that it works for other people, but it doesn't work for me. But figuring out the different things that can actually support you, your energy and your mood. So for example, today I have a bunch of interviews. Last night, I came into my office. I got everything set up so that I could just sit down. Now I was running in one minute before my first interview because that's how my brain works, but everything was ready, right?

29:44So I went to bed knowing everything is set up. Everything's plugged in. All the cords are ready. All I have to do is just hit on. And so just start starting to figure out like, how can you set yourself up for success? What does deep work look like? When can you add more fluidity to your schedule? What sort of rhythm works best for you? And so especially when you start working with clients, maybe it's batching all the calls into one day. Maybe that drives you crazy and you're like, I just want to do one call per day. And so really just noting and honoring that. And the cool thing about entrepreneurship, and I know that some people might push back on this, is that we do get to establish our own rhythms.

30:20I know that it's a privilege to be like, I'm not doing any calls on a Monday. Not many people have the privilege to be like, no, I'm unavailable. But what's super beautiful about building your business is I'm still working my butt off on Mondays, but it's a different type of work. I'm just unavailable for certain things. And so when it comes to ADHD and mood and all these different things, you got to just really start tuning in. And I think one of my biggest misses in entrepreneurship, and I just want you to avoid this is that I like was just a pusher, right? Like I said my biggest fault and like something I often fall back on is like, I just work harder so I can work harder.

30:57And like, I'm done with that. And so it's like, how can you kind of honor your instincts and honor how you are actually feeling in that day while also providing some of the structure that our brains actually need to be successful and finding that balance? Yeah, that's all really, really good practical stuff that I can put into place almost immediately. Like the, even the tip you said, I guess it was the mise en place that I learned about from listening to your conversation with Marie. And, you know, it's like those sorts of things make so much sense. And I think to an extent, I think that's sort of in the past, maybe been one of my hacks that I didn't even realize was probably a really good thing for me to do consistently.

31:42And that's it. Like being able to be aware of the fact that these things like lead to better results as opposed to the way I currently am, which is basically if you don't have that awareness and you do it occasionally, you're not really putting like connecting the dots there. So you're not likely to keep doing it over and over again. So yeah. Finding those little things that like help get you into that deep work, because for us, deep work is so hard. Like, like you said, like if we're super passionate, we can like get into a flow state and like look up and it's like the lights are out. It's dark outside.

32:17Oh my gosh, where did today go? But that happens rarely for people with ADHD. And it's like, we almost have to crack the code on like how to get ourselves into that state and how to create an environment that allows us to. And so you have this beautiful opportunity of kind of really honing in on that at the beginning so that that's a consistent thing that you attribute with work and not just like a random spur of the moment, like, oh, today I did deep work. It's like something you can almost plan for, which is beautiful. Right. And so when you mean like that focused, trying to get into that state of like focus and deep work when you know, like, okay, so like I take my dog to daycare a couple days a week because he's so energetic that he needs to be around 50 other puppies or whatever.

33:00So I like, I know I have no distractions when he's there and my kids are all in school and my husband's at work and everything like that. So I'm like, I literally, you know, I can schedule things like that. It can't be every day, but like, you know, I can choose which days and what times of the day that those are. But during that deep period, I guess, I guess, yeah, for me right now, like, I don't know what to do during that time. Like I, I'm like, cool, I have this time carved out. And then I sit down and I just, because I don't have the ability to know where to go next, because everything seems important.

33:33Everything seems urgent and everything. I don't know what to do during those four hours. So I don't know. Let's break that down. So what? Okay. So let's break down some of those tasks that feel important to you and let's walk through them because we can kind of talk about like nice to haves when starting a business and then like need to haves when starting a business because there's a big differentiator, but everything feels like a need to have. And so let's talk through. look i've become kind of a systems nerd and anything that gives me more space in my day i'm all in and a reliable connection is a huge part of that because when the internet lags or cuts out everything pauses and suddenly the simplest tasks take forever i learned really early on that dependable internet it's not a luxury it is a must whether you're a content creator like me a restaurant owner or running a busy dry cleaning business you need that steady connection to support your team and your clients.

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35:05Can you believe that we're already wrapping up 2025? This year was packed with travel and so many new memories. One of my favorite moments was our team retreat in Arizona with the incredible women who helped me keep this business running. I also recently took the kids to Nashville during fall break and somewhere in between, I squeezed in a trip to Puerto Rico with friends. We booked some of our most memorable stays this year on Airbnb. There's something special about finding a place that doesn't just look great in the photos, but actually feels welcoming the moment you walk in. That this feels right kind of feeling.

35:38If you've got trips coming up, whether it's a family vacation, a retreat, or a work trip, your house will probably be sitting empty while you're gone. Have you considered hosting your home on Airbnb and letting it work for you? It's a simple way to earn some extra income that can be put towards a future trip or home improvement projects. Your home might be worth more than you think. Find out how much at airbnb.com forward slash host. Give me a list of four to five things that feel super important, and then we can kind of break them down each by one thing. Well, I guess the thing that keeps, you know, coming to the top of the list is client acquisition.

36:16Yes. Like, how am I going to find people, you know, who are willing to work with me. And, you know, for right now, I'm just happy to be doing work, you know, and to basically try to test out, do my methods and, you know, work in real life, because, you know, I don't know, I might think something in theory sounds really good. And then, you know, it will all fall apart right away. So the sooner I can get more of that sort of tweaking and, and, and practice in, I feel like the more confident I'm going to get in what I'm doing and my ability to deliver. So like right now it's just sort of like, you know, just finding anybody who needs my, you know, who needs my help.

36:58And that in and of itself to me is a block. Yes. Okay. Let's talk about that. How do you feel most comfortable getting clients? So would it be like cold outreach, social media, you know, through your website and SEO, like which ways of getting clients, word of mouth, you know, local community, there's so many different ways you can get clients, which way or ways resonates with you the most? So if I was being really honest about, I guess, the likelihood that that these things are going to pan out, I guess that's the thing, like things like SEO and being found and everything, to me seems super daunting because I don't know much about any of that.

37:41So like I have a website, but that's a, that's a nice to have, not a need to have. So I like it happening more organically. Like I like, you know, I have a really strong like LinkedIn community and, you know, I'm in Facebook communities that are other small businesses and, and, and things like that, ADHD moms, like all sorts of things like that. And, you know, I don't know, like, I feel like I just sort of keep my eyes open when I'm in those places to see if ever opportunities arise. But at the same time, that's not the whole reason I'm there. Not at this point. I don't know if some way down the line being strategic like that.

38:20But for right now, it's just sort of like, oh, like I fall down this rabbit hole. Like, I'm like, oh, that's really cool. Maybe I need that too. And I'll click on it. And then I'll see this person's website. And I'm like, wow, they do some really cool things. And then I'll read it and I'll be like, oh my gosh, like they have three typos on their homepage and it's not in a judgmental way. It's literally just in a sort of almost like a surprise way, sort of like, like, oh, I wonder if they know that this is even here. And, and, you know, and then I, and then it starts to spiral of like, what if it's turning certain customers off that these people are trying to attract?

38:53And I love this. Okay. So here's what I would say. So you're taking a more passive approach and I think we need to get a little bit more active in it. So I honor the organicness that you want, the nature of how you want it to be. But I also think that you're doing a disservice to your potential clients as well as your gifts by not being more active in the role of acquiring customers. So here's one thing I would love to have you think about. And again, I told you before this call, certain things I say just might viscerally not align with what you envision, but just hear me out on this one. And this might be something that 30 days from now, you're like, okay, I'm willing to give this a try.

39:35So let's say you land on somebody's homepage and you notice the three typos. There's a program called Loom where you can record your screen and your little picture in the corner. And you could really quickly just say, hey, I love your website. My name is Allison. I am a copywriter and a proofreader. And I just wanted to give you a heads up. Your website is amazing. You are attracting so many amazing people. I can't help myself, but I noticed a few mistakes. And I just wanted to send this over to add a little value in case you have the bandwidth to pop in and fix them. And you can just literally walk people through the mistakes on their site and be like, if you have any need for additional services or if there's anything you want to get in front of my eyes, please hit reply to this email.

40:19Let's connect. And something like that, you're adding value. You're introducing yourself. You're introducing your services and you're serving people right off the bat. In fact, I'm pretty sure you did that for us. Didn't you reach out with a typo that we had? And like, but that, but that was part of why we chose you is that you were active in serving us with your gifts. Like that made us pay attention to you. So I want you to know that that's a service, right? Like you actually did something beneficial to us. And that was part of the reason why we chose you is like, you're an active member of our community who's engaged with what we're doing.

40:54And so I just think that like, I have hired people off of cold pitches like that on a loom video, because they saw a gap that I didn't even know I had one. So it's like a blind spot. And two, they were right there to offer to help fix it. I didn't have to go out looking. I didn't have to go search on LinkedIn for other copywriters. This person has already proved that they're good. They gave me value for free. Right? So tell me, does that resonate with you? Or does it give you the heebie jeebies? No, that completely resonates with me because I have done this in small batches, just not intentionally or like methodically or, and I haven't like sort of like, you know, I haven't like crafted it in any way that makes it repeatable.

41:38It's just sort of like a very sort of off the cuff, like, oh, like, I don't have a template. I don't have like, I just kind of just do it. Right. And I feel like there's so much emotion in this. And it surprises me so much. Yeah. Because I think when people think of people like me, like a proofreader or like copy editor or whatever, someone who notices mistakes, like, like right away, as being this type of person that I feel like I don't want to show up as and I really at my core don't feel like my heart is that is my that is me. Yeah, I'm not sitting here trying to judge people. I'm not trying to shame people.

42:14I'm not only noticing the bad. Yeah, I'm just happen to, you know, while I'm enjoying all the other stuff saying, Hey, this seems out of alignment with everything else I'm seeing about you and your business. And, you know, Hey, this is my superpower. Like, is this something that like you care about? Yeah. And it's so individual, like people I think are going to care about these things. Some of them are just like, so what I'm a recovering perfectionist and you know, no big deal. Like nobody's going to not going to buy my product if I have a typo, which is absolutely true. And do you know what I mean?

42:48Like I do agree with that as well. Yeah. Those are not my customers though. You know, like I don't feel like at this point, like I'm not going to push up against people like that because they know what they're doing in their own bosses. But I, you know, I guess what I'm trying to figure out is like, I'm just very sort of hesitant to make people feel bad or to turn people off before they even get to know me. But I don't know how. This is a beautiful opportunity to like create a framework around a script of like, I promise I'm not your third grade English teacher, like, and, and like just making jokes about it and like, be like, you are obviously crushing it with things as is.

43:25And so if you want to leave things and keep moving and if done is better than perfect, that's amazing. I just wanted to give you a heads up on this, right? Like, I think that there's ways that you can communicate all of that because I think it's beautiful, but I also don't want that to hold you back from even like getting yourself in an active position. Like I almost see you if we think of like a sports analogy, which I don't know why, because I don't even really like sports. You're like sitting on the bench, like you're not even like ready to get into the game. And so I feel like we've got to like at least get you in the position where you're communicating with people and starting to build out some of those things.

43:59And the beautiful thing is, is that because you're an amazing writer, I saw your website. It's incredible. You can create these beautiful templates that are heartfelt and honest. And here's where I'm at. And this is what I do. And this is how I do it. And it doesn't have to feel spammy or anything. Again, you're adding value. And one thing that I think about, I think of my friend, Natasha Willis. She was the first person that I hired off of a cold pitch. And she had literally just sent me a loom and said, and she took the time to like understand who I am, what I do. She had listened to my podcast.

44:32She knew about my team. And so she like even addressed the loom like, hey, Jenna, Marissa, Kylie, anyone who's watching this video, I've noticed that you guys aren't leveraging this. Give me two minutes to just explain why this would change your business. And like it was beautiful because it was like, oh, this isn't just like a random person who found me on LinkedIn and found my email and now they're just hitting me up. It actually was like a very thoughtful approach. So I just want to make sure. And I think to Allison, something that you and a lot of other listeners experience is there's just so much mindset stuff, right?

45:04Like I avoided personal development for as long as I freaking could because I recently heard the quote, like if you want to heal yourself, become an entrepreneur because it's going to bring up all of the limiting beliefs that you have, right? And all of these things that you're like, oh my gosh, I thought I was over that or I thought I had processed that. And so I feel like we've got to focus on like two pillars, like your belief in yourself and your gifts, as well as like the systems and structure that will support your neurodivergent brain, but allow you to be creative. And so it's like, how do we make sure that we're growing both of those pillars at a conscious level of really asking yourself like, well, why am I not putting myself out there?

45:46Or why am I not being willing to tell this person that I see this and I can help make it better? And so I just feel like it's going to have to be kind of these two things that will really help you. So again, the personal development side of just like addressing some of those ugly shadows that pop up for all of us and that consistently help us grow and really challenge what we believe about ourselves and what's possible for us. But then also creating some of those things like templates, like you said, and structures that still allow you to be really creative, but allow you to come at it from your perspective where you're not shaming anyone.

46:21And you're not just looking at mistakes. You're looking at how to impact and the benefits and all these beautiful things. And I think you could have so much fun with this copy. Like I think making fun of it would really actually attract people to be like, I'm not like every other copy editor out there. Like I actually care about this and I'm so excited. And so I think that you have a really beautiful opportunity. That got me excited. This has been like twirling around in my mind. I have nobody to bounce any of this stuff off of. Yes. Like I, yes, that's wonderful hearing you say that. And, and I definitely have issues with owning, owning things and, you know, into the point where I'm actually actively doing things as opposed to worrying about them happening or thinking I'm worrying about how other people are going to perceive me and all that stuff.

47:10Well, you're not alone. Yeah. Like I know I'm coming from a certain place and, and I guess I want to make sure my messaging matches that. Yep. And you are the perfect person to ensure that because you write, right? Like you can actually, one thing that I would say, Allison, that might be helpful and you are the writer. So if this is the dumbest thing you've ever heard, just release it, but maybe record a voice memo of all the things of like all the objections that you have. And like, I am not like your English teacher that, you know, slapped your hand with the ruler. And I totally believe done is better than perfect, but I think perfect is better.

47:44You know, like just like writing down some of those like analogies and things so that they can show up in your writing because sometimes it's easier to like say them or when you're thinking I'm like, get it out of your head so that then like these email templates actually have your soul and your spirit in them. And they're not just these like cold outreach things that they're actually like really beneficial and serving and just like a beautiful introduction to what you do. Thank you so much. Yeah. We have time for one more question. Yes. Oh my gosh. All right. So can you think of anything? This is just sort of probably more of a general one.

48:17At this point, I feel like I am all in, right? And I want things to be drastically different a year from now for me. I want to, and I have this time and I want to use it intentionally without burning out. So I have a little bit of sort of emergency savings from like both of my parents passed away in the last few years, which is horrible. And so what I'm trying to be very intentional about is saying, hey, maybe I'll take a little bit of money that I have set aside and use it to feed me in a way that's going to eventually feed everybody. It just might take a little bit of time. So I have like a little bit of cushion there in terms of like finances or whatever, but not like a whole lot.

49:06So I guess, you know, in the whole scheme of things, can you give me an idea? Like what would be the biggest thing and the fastest way for me to sort of accelerate through this year? Yeah. In a way that maybe you didn't do at the beginning of your career and could maybe cut a couple of corners. Yeah. The biggest thing when I was thinking about like different business models that could work for you, I really think that having people on a retainer where you are doing their copy editing and reviewing consistently will one, help protect your energy to give you consistent income. And three, help you build those relationships that I know that you want.

49:45You don't necessarily just want one-off jobs though. That would be a fine place to start just to start getting the experience and the testimonials and the money in. But what I envision is like you working with people that churn out a lot of content. And like every Tuesday, you have two hours reserved for this client. And every Thursday you have two, you know, because then you can kind of estimate what your income is going to be. And it's not necessarily feast or famine. And you're not always hunting for new clients. And so I was just trying to think about like, what would that business model look like?

50:17And how would you do that? And if I were in your position, I would try to get recurring clients that are on retainers so that you can kind of plan your best moods and energies and different things like that while still getting the work done joyfully and also having that security that we talked about at the very beginning and having that safety and security in being an entrepreneur. So I would try to look for people that are willing to sign a one-month, three-month, six-month, year-long contract and really mapping out what that would look like. And that will also bring your pool down of potential clients from like thousands of people, anyone on the internet to, you know, you only need 10 clients, right?

50:56Like it just really helps narrow that pool. And for me, like when I was a wedding photographer, at first I wanted to appeal to every bride and groom that was out there in the state of Wisconsin or like in the world. And then I was like, no, no, no. I just need 20 brides and grooms from the state of Wisconsin to say yes to me and I will meet my goal. And so it really helped for me to make sure that I was reaching out to the right people, that I was showing the right type of work, that I was, you know, building relationships with the right type of people. And it just kind of helped bring in my focus so that it wasn't so wide.

51:27It felt overwhelming and paralyzing. Okay. That's awesome. You're awesome. So helpful. I'm so thankful for this opportunity. Yes. Okay. Allison, because they're going to be gold diggers out here who need you, they've been listening to this as a student, but now I'm going to paint the lens for them. You need Allison. You need Allison. There's so many things. I probably need Allison. There's so many people out there who were not born copywriters, aka basically all of us, who are not great with grammar, me. If you are listening to this and you need someone like Allison in your life, Allison, where can people find you and connect with you and hire you for your beautiful brain and the services that you're going to provide?

52:10so you can first find me at my website so that's www.ifixate.com an homage to my ocd and that's also my instagram handle i fixate and i hang out on linkedin a lot just for fun so i'm allison m saunders and linkedin oh thank you so much for doing this i am so excited to watch you grow can't wait to see where you are a year from now and here's a reminder to not overthink everything and to put yourself out on the field so that you can start scoring because I'm so excited to watch what you do. Thank you so much. So the only qualm that I have about these coaching sessions is that I want for them to be like two hours long.

52:55I love Allison and I just again want to recognize how brave she was for coming on and just her courage for showing up and saying, here's exactly where I'm at. And this is what it looks like. And I love being reminded about what it's like to be a beginner again, right? Like it is hard and you are facing so many limiting beliefs. You are facing scarcity and urgency. You are facing all of the questions of like, what is most important? How do I do what is most important? How do I get clients? And so I hope that today's episode left you taking notes that you can actually apply into your own business, no matter what stage you're at.

53:31Now, again, if you want to come on the podcast and get coached by me, make sure you are inside of our Facebook community. We've linked it in the show notes and show description for today. Join us inside of there. Each month we'll be asking for you and what types of questions you have. And we'll be choosing one of our listeners to dive on the show with me so that we can jam and do some coaching together. Thank you again, Alison. Again, if you guys need a copy editor or a copywriter, hire her. She already found some typos for us. Bless her. And thank you so much for tuning in to another episode of the Gold Digger Podcast.

54:04Until next time, keep on digging your biggest goals. I'm over here giving you a virtual high five because you just finished another episode of the Gold Digger Podcast. Did that go by way too fast for anyone else? If you want more, head over to golddiggerpodcast.com for show notes and all the discount codes from today's sponsors. And if you're looking for a new crew of movers and shakers like you to bounce ideas and ask questions, be sure to join my exclusive community for gold diggers on Facebook. The link's waiting for you at golddiggerpodcast.com.