Will someone pay you for this?

Have you ever thought to yourself, “I just want to be paid to be ME”?

If you’re Gen X, Millenial, or Gen Z, it’s likely you’ve thought this at least a hundred times in your life and for a good reason. These are the generations raised by folks who wanted their kids to have better experiences than they did, who wanted their kids to break the mold, and who taught their kids that anything is possible.

That coupled with the birth, and consequent takeover, of The Internet, where people literally make a living teaching others to live just like them, so many of us have learned to turn our backs on the 9-5 in service of creating wealth from our very own desires and passions.

The good news?

Some people can actually do this!

The bad news?

It’s a lot harder to do than it looks like on the Internet.

But the good news?

These are very learnable skills that follow a blueprint.

I’ve been a business coach for 15 years. I’ve seen thousands of businesses either make it, or never get off the ground. And there are some commonalities I’ve seen throughout the years on why that is, and these are the things I’ll be sharing with you in this Stack.

Today, I’ll be sharing about why you shouldn’t ever be paid to be YOU, and why getting into business wanting that is preventing you from getting the results you want in business (ie swimming in money while you get tan on the beach).

You ready?

The reason you shouldn’t get paid to be YOU, is that business isn’t about YOU.

It’s not about what you think is interesting, or how brilliant you are at your work, or what you’re doing in your life, or what you’ve personally done to cure your IBS, create joy, or make the perfect bundt cake. Business isn’t about who you are as a person, how cool your outfits are, or how well you know how to play the violin.

Business, my friends, is about solving problems FOR OTHER PEOPLE.

It’s about helping THEM cure THEIR IBS, teaching THEM how to play THEIR violin, or teaching THEM how to make a bundt cake.

Can you use your experiences as a way to show them that you can help them? YES, and please do. Can you use your personality as a way to help engage the right kind of customers? YES, and you should. Can you share what you think is interesting? Yes, but only as much as you show how what you find interesting helps them solve their problems.

People are 100%, all of the time, only thinking about themselves.

People are only ever concerned about their own problems. People are only really motivated to buy something based on their own needs. So the degree to which you can show others that you can help them solve their problems, is the degree to which you’ll be making the money and impact you want to make.

But most people do the opposite of this. Most people think that because they’re good at something and put a couple posts up about what they are selling, that customers should just be buying it. But that’s rarely how what happens, and my guess is that you’ve experienced this.

And the fix is to do a really amazing job at making your work about your customers and showing them how what you have solves their problems. If you’re like 99% of the people I encounter, you’re also likely so concerned about whether or not you’re making money, or who’s buying, or who might judge you for having a business, that you’re putting more focus on how you feel about your business than putting most of the focus on how you solve problems for your customers.

When you focus on yourself in business, and your skills and knowledge and credentials and schooling and how to get your own self paid and onto that beach, you aren’t focusing on the thing your customers actually want….

Solutions to their own problems.

Solutions that they are actively looking for and willing and happy to pay for.

And understanding this, is a big part of the difference between having a successful businesses and not.

Now I know you’re probably thinking, “But if I can’t be me, why even have a business?”

And I’m not saying you can’t be you. I’m saying be ALL the you you are. But use your unique personality and experiences to show other people how you can help THEM. Shine the flashlight more on them, than on you and your own needs. And by doing this, you will attract more customers and convert more sales.

Now you might be thinking that some people DO get paid to be themselves, and please comment with those examples and I’ll show you how they’re not. :)

I will say, the one profession where this is slightly different is art. But that’s another post, and even then, you still have a customer who wants something with your art (to feel something, be delighted, be entertained, to not feel alone, etc).

If you want some examples of what I’m talking about, here you go…

A copywriter isn’t selling their writing skills. They’re selling getting you more customers and money with their copywriting skills.

A life coach isn’t selling you the lifestyle they currently have or inspirational quotes. They’re selling you a vision and promise of the lifestyle you want.

A painter isn’t selling you their creativity and vision. They’re selling you a feeling you want to have when you buy and look at their painting.

A florist isn’t selling you their flowers they took a year to grow. They’re selling you what you want their flowers to mean to yourself and/or your loved ones.

A spiritual healer isn’t selling you healing services. They’re selling you the way that their healing services will specifically and directly impact your life.

And so on.

Think about the last thing you bought, and think back to why you bought it. My guess is that the person selling it to you showed you how buying it will give you what you most want right now. Like for me, when I just bought an at-home bang cutting class because the hairstylist showed me how I can cut my own bangs between haircuts, saving myself time, energy, and money, and giving me cute-ass bangs whenever I want without having to wait the 8 weeks it takes to get into the salon.

So now I want to hear from you. In the comments below, let me know…

• What’s an example of one business that’s done an awesome job at selling you the solution to your biggest problem? How did they do it?

• How do you think you’ve been selling YOU instead of selling a solution to your customer’s problem? (no shame…we ALL do this)

I can’t wait to hear more.

XO

Sally

P.s. I wanna know more about you and your biz! If you haven’t already, please fill out this survey so I can tailor my shares to exactly what you want to learn.

P.p.s. If you’re not already signed up for the Substack App, I highly recommend it! It’s free and I’ll be hosting some biz conversations in the chat in that app.

P.p.p.s. If you found this helpful, feel free to forward it to anyone who could benefit.