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How To Stay Visible In Uncertain Times

This article is more than 3 years old.

Navigating a global pandemic wasn’t on anyone’s radar for the new decade and a lot of business owners are figuring it out as they go along. Sell more? Do not sell? Slash prices? Do not slash prices? The current landscape has made business owners skittish in how they show up. The problem is that these external market forces can make us panic and take action that is not aligned with our big vision or goals.

In order to stay visible right now, and do it intentionally, I reached out to Juliette Stapleton, a Personal Brand Strategist, who works with entrepreneurs on creating a personal brand through her V.A.L.U.E. method. Juliette gave me some tips on how we should be showing up in our businesses right now.

1. Shift Your Energy

Don’t get sucked into the panic right now. Staying calm and focused is how you can maintain visibility and also show up as a leader for others.

“Step back, take some time to disconnect from the noise and reconnect with who you are and the big why, that made you start your business in the first place,” advises Stapleton. “Restoring your inner flow is crucial if you want your visibility to make a difference in how successful you come out of the current crisis. Tap into your dreams, get as clear as you can on the reasons behind the goals you had and adjust with a long term benefit in mind. This will help you choose the right strategy for your visibility right now. Take 2-3 minutes every hour to place your hands over your heart and breath in and out calmly to restore your inner peace.”

2. Leverage Your Personal Brand

While you may be feeling uncertain, others are going through their own rollercoaster of emotions.

“Focusing on your Personal Brand is paramount right now - it can be something as trivial as going live on Facebook to simply connecting and building relationships with members of your audience. People are craving personal connection while whole countries are under lockdowns, and they also crave normality: simple conversations, sharing some thoughts, having a discussion,” says Stapleton. “Choose to be there as an example of someone who illuminates calm and makes them trust that things will work out. Share your knowledge as well as sharing your heart. If you feel inspired, invite them into doing business with you, but without any attachment to the outcome.”

This energy is contagious, it allows you to be there in your most authentic form, and in itself, it will empower you to steer clear of the hype-induced decisions and adds extra magnetism to your visibility. With every action you take, focus on the energy of giving, and you will be re-given new opportunities and inspiration.

3. Detach From The Outcome

More than ever, we are called to practice detachment of the outcome and management of expectations. Uncertain times will always make people re-evaluate priorities. This may affect your business directly, especially if what you offer is perceived as “nice to have” and not essential.

“Focus on your messaging and see if there are benefits and elements you can highlight that may not have been on the top of their list before, but are really urgent and must-haves now. Allow for the lack of sales and slower business to happen, but continue to do what you normally do when it’s business as usual,” notes Stapleton. “Focus on teaching, sharing and educating your audience around various topics relevant to your business. Focus on making offers, invitations and proposals without attachment to immediate results. Focus on having more one on one conversations - you may find people sharing their problems and aspirations more than ever, which can give you great ideas to implement immediately and generate some unexpected income. Choose solution-based creativity over despair and anxiety.”

4. Do Not Hold Back

“If you implement the ideas above, you may find yourself inspired, uplifted. You may be quite surprised how connected, and in the flow, it will make you feel inspired by anything that is going on around you. Act on it. Not because you feel like you are missing out, but because you feel ready!” says Stapleton.

Every cloud has a silver lining, and every dark time presents hidden opportunities that can transform your business beyond what you expected. Shift your energy, detach from outcomes, get personal and trust your journey.

“Don’t be afraid to dream big right now - so many groundbreaking accomplishments started as an inspiration in the moment of darkness. My dream to build an online business around my expertise and my personal brand started when my husband was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer,” Stapleton remembers. “While most would choose to focus on the darkness, I decided to focus on making the dream life we both always talked about for a decade, our reality. Three years later, this dream life is here, and he has miraculously recovered entirely from a near-death condition. How could that happen? Because the right mindset has the power to overcome any obstacle and transform it into an opportunity or a springboard to your dreams.” 

Get centered and remember why you are in business and people you serve. Make sure you aren’t adding to their panic, but become a calm source of leadership for them and show up!

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