Joan’s post this morning got me thinking.  Maybe it’s time to take some bold inventory.  What’s working and what’s not?  Where am I heading in this adventure, and how is it different from where I thought I was going?  My last posts were about WordPress setup, and I’d like to go on with that (particularly about some of the interesting stuff I’m learning about the timing of content).
I haven’t posted in over a week now.  In the time I’ve been “away,” a whole lot of stuff has happened (in between trips to the twin purgatories of the mall and Costco for back to school shopping).

1.     I got word that my name change is final.  After 20 years, I’m using my maiden name again.  Hard to explain exactly, but taking my name back is helping me in all kinds of subtle and not-so-subtle ways. 

The identity that was there before the many layers of roles and “should’s.”  The person who was always free to decide what’s worth pursuing and what is not.  

2.     I got my first job for a national print magazine.  A 10-week stint as Interim Managing Editor of Parks and Rec, a trade magazine that goes out to regional park authorities and the like.   And it wasn’t one I had to go chasing after.  My online profiles and my website did the work for me (well, along with the writing samples contained therein).  So, I’ll be busy with that this fall—but I’ll still be carving out 20 hours a week to develop my niche websites.  

Having someone come to me saying, “You’re good, and we’ve already determined you’re the person we need” was just as powerful as taking my name back.

That event, along with the extra money it’ll bring in, fueled me to do the next thing:  get serious about one on one mentoring for my business.


3.    I guess I’m just feeling like the woman in that old L’oreal hair color commercial.  “Costs a little more…but I’M WORTH IT.”  (Remember that one?)

There are things I need to be taught, NEED to be coached in.  Not in a one-size-fits-all way…but in a way that is appropriate to my situation and budget.  And that comes from someone who has demonstrably achieved the same things I want to achieve.   You want to know what some of those things are?

• Appropriate automation and scaling.  This is crazy-time-consuming stuff, and I need to be smart about how I use my time.  I don't want to be penny-wise and pound-foolish.
• Following checklists and keeping records of everything I do
• Being smart in “the business of being a business.”
• Being told WHICH tools I pretty much have no choice but to invest in—and which ones I must ignore.  (Obviously, those kinds of things need to come from someone I trust not to swindle me.)
• Being held to a production schedule.
• Being allowed access into an expert’s projects as I follow along from start to finish.  Being allowed also to see the expert’s results—from early traffic generation to conversions and revenue.

I’ve had my eye on this one stellar teacher for a couple of months now.  Smart, smart, smart.  And smart in ways that I am not.  A low-key, sequence-oriented, statistics-minded guy.  Test, test, test, he says.  Put minimal efforts in until you see traffic.  Track EVERYTHING on a spreadsheet.    Last week, he had a 3-month coaching spot become available. BTW, you know what I really liked about the way he approached this?  He asked me several intelligent questions first to determine whether it would be a good fit. 

Ultimately, we decided to move forward with the coaching setup.  I have already learned a lot this past week from slavishly following along with his models as he goes.   I’ve also figured out what I need to do to streamline my own production process.  Since I am on a forum with his other coaching clients, I also get feedback from a handful of others who are trying to do the same stuff I"m doing.  It's good for me.

If I fail in my IM efforts, it sure won’t be from half-heartedness or refusal to invest.  And, as much as I want this to work, I’m not putting all my eggs in the IM basket either.  I want it more all the time.  I want it right down in my bones, and I want to be able to teach other people someday too.  Because being an online entrepreneur truly is one of the most liberating and creative business/lifestyle models I know of.

I may be here at WA a little less as I spend time at the magazine and in private coaching for my business.  But I won’t vanish.  Like my friend Joan, I’m eager to cut to the chase and do everything possible to see my efforts bring rewards.