Have you already tried to take the first step of putting yourself out there on your own? If you did, I wonder if something like this happened:
You were so excited to share your offering with the world & were so confident your teaching could change lives.
You decided to share with your world that you were offering a class.
You show up on social media, and announce "Hey friends, i'm teaching a class this Saturday and i'd love you to attend!"
And then...
Friday night rolls around and no one has signed up.
You check again in the middle of the night, still nothing.
Saturday morning rolls around and no signs up, but your sister shows up to class because she supports you in everything you do (may or may not be talking about myself here).
You teach class anyway because you showed up & have a great sequence planned, but you leave feeling dejected, losing confidence in yourself as a teacher, and think "I don't want to do this again. this isn't going to work."
Has this ever happened to you? or a version of this?
If you didn't catch on yet, this happened to me the first time I was ready to teach on my own. I felt the same way. And I almost let myself get caught up in this cycle that would have stopped me before I even started.
BUT, I am so glad I didn't. There was a little bit of spite, some pep talks in my mirror, and a lot of hope inside of me that kept me going.
And i'm glad I did because teaching on my own terms & growing a business is one of the most fulfilling things i've done in my life.
Want to know the secret of how to break this cycle?
It is a step that comes way before sharing with the world that you have a thing to offer (a class, a workshop, private sessions).
I mean waaaaay before. Like weeks before.
What is the secret? You have to 'warm' your audience up.
What does that mean? No, you don't have to bring blankets to class.
You have to slowly build trust and engagement with your following (whatever size) before expecting them to buy from you.
This can look like a weekly newsletter or social media and blog posts solely focused on content that truly helps them.
And the KEY - you are not selling during this time.
"Well how long should I do this Jenny?"
4-6 weeks is my suggested timeline.
Your giving, and communicating, and engaging with folks before you ask them to join you so when you do make the ask, they are more likely to say yes!
To recap, when you're thinking about starting something:
1. Plan what you want to offer
2. Plan the date you want to ideally offer it by
3. Go 4-6 weeks back in your calendar
4. Plan out some bangin' content & information for your audience in the meantime.
5. About a week before, start to share!!!
More on all of these steps to come. Let me know which of these steps you want to know more about!
xoxo,
Jenny
Ps. You're still building something amazing if 2-3 people show up to your first thing. And don't ever forget, you showed up which is pretty amazing too.
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