If you're anything like me, you've made a few pivots since you took your first leap of faith into starting a business. Are you in the middle of a pivot now?
On the one hand I think it's helpful to just give yourself permission to do the thing and go ahead and do the thing.
No big announcement needed, just go for it. And the truth is that no one is really paying as much attention to your business as you are, and probably won't notice unless it's a BIG announcement.
But sometimes you really just need to let people know. And that's okay, too! Sometimes when the thing you're pivoting toward is really important to you and feels intimidating, it's helpful to make it official and rally some friends to go forward with you.
My latest pivot in my business intimidates me, and I've been trying for months to do it quietly and just shift things as needed. But I also knew that I'd be changing from an Instagram-heavy strategy to a newsletter-focused content system AND writing a lot more on Linkedin, and that my current list is a mish-mash of lots of nice folks who found me at various points of my entrepreneur journey.
It felt right to send a "for real, for real" email to everyone and give them a chance to unsubscribe. And a lot of people have unsubscribed, which is great! That's the whole point of cleaning up your list.
The email I sent to my entire list can be found below. I create and automation out of it, so that anyone who opens it is tagged as "warm" (not really, but that's the gist) and anyone who hasn't opened it will receive it again in a few days, and again in another few days.
The content of the email can be found below. Read on to see what I'm working on and toward, and if you feel inspired to make your own pivot "official" like this, let me know! I want us all to build the businesses we actually want, and I'm here for you on the long, complicated, and sometimes scary journey.
Hi, friends!
It’s Rochelle Sanchez, and you’re getting this email because you signed up to get updates from me via my website or when you requested one of my free resources. If you’re not interested anymore, unsubscribe using the links at the bottom. I’ll be bummed to see you go, but proud of you for setting good boundaries!
This newsletter used to be called SUPER SERIOUS! but from here on out, I’d like to change it a bit and make it more of a direct behind-the-scenes view into the stuff I have going on.
Welcome to Good Reminders, the latest incarnation of my newsletter journey.
I know a lot of you are on this list because you like the resources I’ve created, perhaps:
- 15 Tasks to Outsource and Save 15 Hours with Your First Virtual Assistant
- Find Your Unicorn Virtual Assistant Swipe File
- Compassionate Side Hustle Strategy Podcast
- And other discontinued resources like Where to Focus, (Facebook) Group Promotion Strategy, The Group Guide,
And you’ll definitely get more of that kind of stuff.
It’s the stuff that “sells” and has “value,” as we entrepreneurs love to say, right?
In fact, once my upcoming plan launches (if you’ve been listening to my behind the scenes episodes this summer on CSHS, you’ll know this!) then I should have lots of resources available for purchase or registration on a monthly basis. We still need to get sh*t done and make money.
But I’m craving a more intimate connection with you, as a reader and friend and customer.
And to be honest I’m kinda hoping you’re a little more interested in my work than “How can this Rochelle person help me make money this quarter?"
Because yeah, I want everyone to have more control over their income.
Like, even your boomer aunties who are obsessed with retirement and real estate and keep haranguing you to follow in their footsteps (but in reality you know that the way things are going, they’re gonna run out of money anyway).
I want everyone to have enough money to not only survive but pursue the things many of us can only dream of.
(btw I learned the word “harangue” from the Iron Man movie and I am very excited to use it in a business newsletter, how fancy)
So yes, I do want everyone to have at least one independent stream of income you can rely on, and I can help you build them yourself or get to the point where you hire someone to do it for you.
But more importantly:
While I do want you to be rich, I want you to be healthy.
And feel fulfilled.
And create incredible friendships.
And release your trauma.
And experience all the art and music and go on adventures WHILE you get rich, doing good work in the world that you’ve always wanted to do.
And!
I want you to look forward to passing on what you’ve learned and experienced to the next generation, not just in a “I did my best, and I hope it’s better for you all,” but in a “If someone followed my example of exactly how I lived my life and helped my community from this point on, I’d be proud of that. Here’s how I came this far,” kind of way.
I know that’s a liiiittle bit pie-in-the-sky and idealist. But sue the Sagittarius in me. I’m optimistic. And I fully intend to back it up.
They say to be the good you want to see in the world, and the good I want to be is a creative, deep, out-of-the-box, socially responsible, and compassionate good.
Specifically for solopreneurs like you, because we’re gonna collectively change the world, someday. Just watch.
So we’re gonna embrace that everyone’s multifaceted and see what happens when we focus on good work among real humans actually trying to help one another (without burning ourselves out in the process)
Here’s what that looks like (in my mind and on my dry erase board):
- More frequent newsletters from me, sharing some behind-the scenes stuff to help you feel less alone on your entrepreneurial journey. Yes, there are other people like you doing this tedious, invisible work just to be able to sell some stuff on the internet. You are not alone.
- Continued content centered around strategy and systems, because that’s what my brain is good at and what a lot of you still need. Like I said, it sells and has value, so I won’t stop. But I’ll stop limiting myself to only that kind of stuff.
- Woke, progressive learning. Openly talking about mental health, fat-positivity, abortion access, medication, systemic racism, reparations, mutual aid, all of it. (Relax, if this bothers you, the unsubscribe button is at the bottom of this email, you’re fine, you’re still alive. But you probably won’t like any of my emails from now on, fyi). Why? Because business is political and we shouldn’t avoid that, but a lot of privileged entrepreneurs do.
- More guests on the podcast, co-hosted livestreams, maybe even some 30 day challenges just to break the monotony of how the back end of business can feel, sometimes. I have a wonderful, growing IG collection of “Dream Collab” people I want to pitch!
- Workshops (paid and free), printable resources, live co-working, letter writing meetups during election time, and more art from me. Like way more, a lot more ART. The weirder, the better. And honestly? I’d love to do some kind of happy snail mail. Like what if I tried a monthly sticker club? Or zines!
I know this changes things for some of you, especially if you haven’t opened my emails in a while. Yes, it’s a shift I hope will attract more money, visibility, and partnerships to my business. Because money is what our modern world is built around.
I hope that what I share with you in the coming weeks and months will give you something to think about, and perhaps apply to your own business model. Make it a little more YOU. And I hope it gives you a reason to share my work with your friends who are also business-hopefuls.
Let’s just say I plan to intentionally make this business stuff a lot more fun, and different.
And I hope you’ll join me to see what happens.
~Rochelle
P.S. If you’re keen, want to have a virtual coffee chat with me? It’ll be a pitch-free opportunity to share what you’re up to, and for us to get to know each other a little better. Just hit reply and I’ll send you the link.