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Tales from the Online Marketing Crypt – Vol. 2 Transforming from a Shallow Entrepreneur to a Successful Businessperson When I was 9, I joined a group called The Pioneer Girls. We met in a single-room; 3-grade classroom school located a few doors down from our farm in Mt. Lehman. I found out this group was religion-based, so I wasn’t all that interested in joining until I discovered I could earn badges and wear them on a red sash for display. Badges? Where do I sign up?! I loved earning badges. They were a source of immense accomplishment for me. Who needs A’s on their report card when I could earn all these glorious badges instead? I became obsessed with earning my badges. (And yes, I was also a Brownie and Girl Guide with the same obsession in case you were wondering.) I have fond memories of sitting on my bedroom floor poring through the badge book, trying to find the easiest badges I could earn. Memorize 10 bible verses? Done.? Check. ?Next. Memorize the order of the Old Testament Books? Done.?Check.?Next. I was literally drooling over the hundreds of badge possibilities. I just needed to find the easy ones and I was set. I could earn more before our next meeting if I cleared all the easy ones first, I reasoned. Come Monday evening, I’d excitedly hand my badge book over to our leader, ready and prepared for my quick “exam” to ensure I did all as required to get my new badges to sew on my red sash. Now aside from the tongue lashing I received from said leader about signing my own initials in that book instead of giving her the honour of doing so once I had proved I passed, I am quite confident I was her star Pioneer Girl. Or was I? Thinking back, I had no idea what I was memorizing. It didn’t even occur to me to actually understand what it was I was learning or why it was important. I mean, I got a badge out of it, what else was there? I think back and I’m pretty sure my leader saw me for what I really was: Shallow.? Self-Centered. ?Ego-Driven.? Selfish.? Capitalistic even. At 9 years old, I had no idea because, well, the badges were all I was after. I got to thinking about this the other day and wondered about entrepreneurship. What if…. Badges = $$ ?The red sash = a bank account? The tasks from the badge book = marketing What if being an entrepreneur only meant making money and nothing else? What if having a lot of money in the bank was all that mattered? What if doing anything necessary to get there was totally fine as long as the goal was reached? Feels pretty icky to me. How about you? I’m so thankful I’ve grown from that 9-year old girl I once was and now realize how much richer my life would have been had I actually leaned in and explored to understand what it was I was memorizing. That life is not about earning badges. Have you seen any of these kinds of entrepreneurs on social media lately selling their wares? I sure have. And it makes me sad to see their desperation in everything they say and do. It’s all about the badges for them. What would it look like to be an entrepreneur with a different goal in mind other than earning those badges? To make a difference.?To create change.?To inspire others.?To make someone’s life better. To fulfill our purpose of being here on Earth. When that’s the focus, the need to earn badges is secondary (still necessary of course, but it’s no longer the driving force). If you’re struggling to know your purpose, I highly recommend reading Simon Sinek’s START WITH WHY. And once that becomes clear, that’s when the shallow entrepreneur blossoms into a successful businessperson. Thoughts? To your business success,? Susan Friesen P.S. If you liked what you read (and heard) here, you will want to sign up for our newsletter where you'll get notified every week of our blog posts, announcements and business-building strategies. Click here to also receive our free website guide: www.UltimateWebsiteGuide.ca RECOMMENDED RESOURCES: 1. Book: Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action 2. Book: Find Your Why: A Practical Guide for Discovering Purpose for You and Your Team 3. Sacred Gifts can leave you feeling on purpose and making a difference in others’ lives and with great meaning for you in your business. Here’s why: What’s Not ‘Feeling On Purpose’ in Your Business All About? 4. The best way to engage your audience on social media & increase your social media reach during a crisis is using the empathetic marketing model. Read how: How to Use Empathetic Marketing in Your Social Media Strategy 5. Susan Friesen of eVision Media featured in Fresh Magazine where she talks about what it means to her to help female small business owners and entrepreneurs. Read: Helping Entrepreneurs Find Long term Success
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