Be a Business Evangelist!
So often in my readings I find I am speaking with talented entrepreneurs and would-be entrepreneurs. Many times the reading focuses on what they need to do to create and build their business. Many times these talented people are artists or healers; often, people who are very much like me.
I find a similarity in what comes up in the cards for many of these people. They are talented, trained and motivated. They are great at what they do. But they are afraid to market their business.
Truly, if we had wanted to become professional marketers, we would have majored in marketing and would now be working in a marketing firm. But the truth is this. Every entrepreneur must be great at marketing; there is no choice.
What are the problems people tend to have with marketing?
Often, they don't want to sound like they are tooting their own horn, or coming from a place of ego. Sometimes they are afraid that they just aren't good enough.
The similarity in these people's stories, and the cards that tend to show up in their reading, is mind-blowing.
One of the cards that comes up often is Judgment, Major Arcana 20. In the traditional Judgment image, we see an angel blowing a horn. For the shy marketer, this is the wake up call to get the word out! Go ahead and blow your horn!
Other cards I often see are the World and the Wheel of Fortune. In the Waite images, these two cards share a set of four characters in their four corners. These four characters are representative of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, the writes of the Gospel who are known as the "four evangelists."
Of course the World, Major Arcana 21, and the Wheel of Fortune, Major Arcana 10, have different interpretations and different applications when it comes to business.
I see the World as saying "tell the world and take over the world," or "the world is yours!" I see the Wheel of Fortune as saying "You'll never know unless you try. Give it a go and see what happens! Now is the time to create your own fortune!"
In either case I take note of those evangelists. In the Wheel of Fortune image they are busily writing in their respective corners. In them, I see two strong pieces of advice for business people.
The first is the need for quality written material. You need a strong website, a good brochure, a relevant blog. The second is to be an evangelist for your own business.
As annoying as they can sometimes be, evangelical Christians have a lesson to teach us. When they arrive at our doorstep to witness, they are not there because they believe in their own greatness. They are there because they believe in the greatness of their message. They may be shy. They may be afraid. They may have other things they would rather be doing. But they feel a mission to share their message because they believe in their message. It's not about them, as people. It's about the message.
When we own a one-person business, it is easy to confuse the business with the self. No one wants to go around bragging about themselves. But that's not what solopreneurs need to do. If it feels like bragging, or comes off as bragging, we are doing it wrong.
The lesson of the evangelists is this. Develop the message of your business, and recognize its greatness. When you communicate that lesson, you are doing a favor for the people who receive it. You are offering them the opportunity to avail themselves of your skills - the skills you graciously make available to them. You are not bragging on yourself, you are sharing an important message, and offering a helpful opportunity.
No matter how shy you are, or how much you hate marketing, you probably really do believe in your skills and the product or service you offer. Share that belief with others. Don't make it personal. Don't make it be about you. Make it be about the business, and what you can do for others. Be an evangelist about the good news of your business!
