Submitted by Sabina Hitchen on | 0 Comments
The gauntlet has been thrown down... A challenge is underway... You are invited to join in...And the best part? This challenge, should you choose to accept it, will better your business, your outreach strategy, and by default, your life. Have I whet your appetite yet? Here's the deal:
The Background:
Every week I get the awesome opportunity to speak to a live, "virtual studio audience" via the Tin Shingle #TuneUp chats. We talk about a variety of topics depending on the day that range from entrepreneurship, small business success strategies, social media, press outreach and more. The talks regularly combine education with motivation (an explosive combination if I do say so myself) and I regularly share personal anecdotes from my own life to illustrate my points.
Yesterday was no different, and while I was sharing some fail-proof and fear-proof ways to create powerful relationships with the press, I discussed the necessary yet fear-evoking phone call to the press too many small businesses refuse to make. Sure, email is easier and less scary, but when you're trying to create real, personal relationships with the press or any business contact they often require real, verbal communication. This is even more true when your target press person or business contact isn't returning your emails for weeks or months on end. You must make that call. Even if you've never done it before, you're scared, you hate your phone voice, you're afraid you'll look or sound silly etc. You must do it.
While planning my talk about making those daunting yet necessary phone calls to business or press contacts I realized that I was being a hypocrite! For months *I* I have been avoiding something that is scary, uknown, daunting and new to me. I have been afraid to go to a spinning class even though deep in my heart I want to, I need to, I'm sort of obsessed with the idea and I'm sure my body (and booty) will thank me. Yet every week I find some reason in my head not to do it. Well no more!
I decided that If YOU as a small business owner can conquer your fear and do something that could be a gamechanger for your business, I will do the same in my own life. Thus the Spin Class Challenge was born...
The Challenge:
On yesterday's call I laid it out. I am challenging you as a business owner to think of THREE places you have been avoiding calling. Perhaps it's a magazine editor you want to share your story or product with. Perhaps it's a retailer where you want to sell your wares. Perhaps it's a fellow service provider you want to cross-promote with. Perhaps it's somewhere you want to pitch yourself to as a speaker. Name it and claim it! Write down those three people or places who need phone calls, write down what you want to get out of that phone call (what is "the ask"), and make a plan to make those calls! The challenge doesn't lie in the result being a success (they can say yes, no, maybe) but it lies in making the call and following up with it until you reach your end result or answer. The making of the call is your success story. The saying "peace out" to your fears and "Welcome!" to future opportunities is the win!
Now where does the spinning come in? If TEN of you do this (come on, ten? I'm making this too easy) I will bravely attend my first spin class. Scouts Honor. Speaking of honesty, I'm expecting the same thing from you. I can't be there with you as you make the calls but I expect you to be truthful in this challenge. After all, lying about it hurts no one but yourself! You send me an email detailing who you called, why you called them and what happened, and when ten of you do this, I will strap on my spinning shoes, hop on a bike and face my fear! I will provide video proof for your pleasure.
So what are you waiting for? Go forth and make those phone calls! Face down your fear, give it the side-eye because it is slowing you down, and your business and life are waiting for you to leave it behind! As I said, the gauntlet has been thrown...let's do this!
