I love working in e-commerce. I am responsible for on-boarding customers, testing new functionalities, first line of troubleshooting, training and demoing the platform to internal as well as external users (customers) convincing them, that it is easily manageable and efficient way of purchasing these days (and trust me, well-built e-commerce platform speaks for itself, there was no customer that remained reluctant and said NO to me so far 🙂 ).
But do we necessarily associate ‘e-commerce’ with that piece of market, where you actually don’t ship anything? I suspect we might have mixed feelings about it. But why would we not consider e-commerce being also perceived as that area, where you can also buy and sell digital products, your own unique (niche!) know-how, interesting facts about different topics put together in one place as a tutorial, excel spreadsheet build for a certain purpose, podcast etc.?
What is it that you are prompted to think about here?
I am myself at the stage of getting more and more amazed with possibilities this gives people like you and me, a bit tired, maybe lethargic in working for someone else, wanting to finally change SOMETHING in their lives (but what??) that deep down inside feeling, that there is more out there for us, but blogging, posting, shyly promoting from time to time with not much achievement but with hope to finally find the a magic incantation or at least a wizard, who will turn your webpage into something, that not only stands out, reflects who you want the world to perceive you as, but also makes changes in your financial stabilization.
I am at the stage of learning these things proactively as I want to prove, that if I can do it, you can do it too. But the words of wisdom say ‘no pain – no gain‘. What can be perceived as most painful here? YES, you already know this subconsciously 🙂 and you are right. Leaving your COMFORT ZONE!
There is no harm in having your own website, blog followers, social media audience, that is fine and that is NECESSARY. You need to get to people to grow your business. But the things to remember are:
- you need an AUDIENCE, but not a random group of people, especially if your skills and knowledge are niche but those that need your know-how
- you need to be GENUINE and honest with your audience, otherwise people will smell b******t 🙂
- being a PASSIONATE about something always helps to attract people like you
- leaving your COMFORT ZONE might need to become your second nature
- you will need to… FORGET ABOUT YOURSELF!
Happy to read further? Go for it, I am here to share as I am at the same stage – a student learning how to live my life in a way I want to, not someone else. Because if you don’t work to make your dreams come true, you are working to fulfil someone else’s dream I am afraid.
1. So first thing is first – people – your AUDIENCE
Let the right people find you – for instance join the groups on social media, that do similar things. Learn from them, but the more you know, the more you can share with others. Do it for free to begin with, make some friends with the same interests, share thought and ideas, BE PRESENT and VISIBLE. If you are good at what you do, it will be recognized. And even if you share your knowledge for free, some people will still want to pay you, as the more you give them, the more some of them will feel obliged to pay you back. And if not – you help them tackle their issues and you learn (WIN) and they have someone accompanying them and helping out (WIN). So win-win situation is always good.
2. GENUINENESS is your big advantage
There are sooo many people in the 8th continent(internet), groups, fan pages, podcasters and self-elected online “business founders” or even swindlers. Don’t want to be perceived as one of them, do you? Make sure you are genuine, your intentions are crystal clear, if you do not know something, don’t pretend you do. Lots of answers can be found online, that’s for sure, but if you honestly admit that something is new to you but you are more than happy to study it and come up with suggestions, do it. If you know people, that can help you – do it. Don’t just guess or pretend you know everything. If you want someone to invest in you, be humble and learn, absorb, build trust. Unless you don’t want to… 🙂
3. PASSIONATE about something?
Best news! Even if it is cooking or teaching others your native language (unless a very niche one!) which you can see everywhere on YouTube, don’t give up! Find something unique in it (your ‘selling point’)! Whether it is encouraging people to not be afraid to experiment in the kitchen with a bit of self-motivation pieces in between, or using basic, not too sophisticated ingredients to create miracles, or maybe showing different, themed decorating options etc. or including types of alcohol or sorts of cutlery that go best with it – if you are a passionate, you will attract your audience! As I mentioned here and can confirm now – your charisma, uniqueness, passion will help you! There are millions or hairdressers across the globe, but if that meant that the world does not need more of them, there would be no schools or courses anymore. And if you are good at it, your reviews will find their way to help you build your brand. And it is same with most of the things. My goal is to show the world, that people like me and you can share our awesomeness with the world and win yours as well as my dreams. Helping others to grow brings loooads of satisfaction and motivation to carry on!
But it starts from a decision 🙂
4. COMFORT ZONE? No thank you!
“A ship in harbour is safe – but that is not what ships are for.” John A. Shedd
Yes I know. I feel insecure too. But everything you dream of is on the other side of your comfort zone and your fears. Is it a good news? Surely!
I am not going to make you yawn, so I will keep it not too short and not too sweet 🙂 When I applied for my current job, it made no sense to me! My language skills were not enough (blocker in my head). The distance and commuting was ridiculous (another one). Driving on another side of the road was outside of my perception abilities (everyone, but not me). Working in an international company including picking the phones up from Australia all the way to Americas was outside of my capability to adapt (what are you trying to achieve ‘kiddy’? you know you are not capable). But because I was curious as to why they called ME, I just forgot about these things for a minute and applied for the job I was not even looking for (the job ‘found me’). Funny because getting a job like this was so unrealistic, that I was totally convinced I was not going to make it and I think it actually was a blessing.. After each step of recruitment process my eyes were getting opened wider and wider. To the point when they phoned me and announced that I was exactly who they were looking for! Believe me or not, the decision making process I had going on in my head is indescribable. I had to go through all of the above again, and again, and again (took me two weeks…)! I’d thought – if they offered me a position considering all of the grammar mistakes I’d made on the interview, there is nothing else I should be worried about. If I was to take this job, I had to buy a car, insure and tax it etc. etc. “Can I do it, do I have friends to help me?” Suddenly it appeared that I did have people willing to help and I did it! Driving? Oh this was a tough one but I thought of another friend of mine, who was really panicking to drive, but still forcing herself to do it, so I thought, I should also try! Picking the phone up? It was few of us in the team and everyone made sure I had the time to adapt, I had the support I needed in order to deal with every inquiry. If I was ever unsure, they were there to help, and if not – it just had to wait until they were back.
So from all of these obstacles I have grown so much that I have now become a person regularly training people across the globe (from Shanghai, through Europe all the way to Massachusetts). I have been promoted, I am working on the another “role upgrade” now, I am given lots of responsibility and trust and recognition.
And what if I was too feared to apply? I would be still working as a lethargic receptionist in one of the medical clinics with not a chance to grow, to help others grow, to find my own ways to succeed, to discover what my dream always was. I now know that my goal is to help others grow, because I have been there and I did it the hard way.
5. FORGET ABOUT YOURSELF
Sorry but yes.
Expressing yourself is your main ambition?
That’s perfect, but make sure you understand what your audience is looking for. If you want to turn your passion into your source of income, remember, it is not about you anymore! If you have a portfolio, great, make sure people can find it. If you have testimonials – awesome, make them visible for your visitors. But the main thing is – do you really care about others? Do you want to help them solve their problem? Do you know how to guide them to get to the solution because you have been there “in their shoes” and you can support them?
If your honest answers to these are ‘yes’ – smashing. What people really seek is someone that CARES. Someone who is WILLING to and knows how to help them. To teach them something new they need to learn because of the circumstances or troubles they are in. To show them the light in the tunnel. To guide them. To help make their life better, less stressful, more under control, more enjoyable and relaxing an give them hope and the tools to create their own reality that reflects these values.
As I am working on sharing my experience and skills with my dear audience and creating my own niche, my place, my uniqueness, that will encourage you to grow, reach for your dreams, leave your comfy zone for something bigger and better I am glad to know, you are taking part in my journey.
And I know it can be done, I have done it and I will carry on with no excuses 🙂 Follow me so you can find something for yourselves.
I will challenge my status quo shortly and expand my comfort zone too. I will have to break the limits in my head and once again prove myself, that they only exist until we allow them to remain present. As soon as we say NO, the process of change starts and then… expect the unexpected!
My first results of my effort will come into existence to make their way to above the surface of my own limitations an fears shortly and you will be the first ones to see how I challenge myself, still possibly the most shy and underestimating myself person to hopefully convince you, that everything we all need is on the other side of our comfort zone!
Just a teaser of what is coming up next: e-commerce Q&A, stay tuned if you want to find out more about practical aspects of having your own web shop. Questions you need to ask yourself – already answered by someone that’s running their own shop, selling hundreds of products, based 100% on dropshipping model! Exciting, I cannot wait, can you? 🥰
If you liked my content here, please please leave me your feedback, I would love to interact ❤ (does not have to be nice but constructive 🙂 )! Let me know if any of the above bullet points made you crave for more details or if you want to share your story with me! If it is an interesting, weird, unusual, extraordinary or touching one, I am happy to maybe even introduce your story to the wider group of people here along with your blog details, so we can support each other in sharing our awesomeness! If you’d rather stay anonymous, that is also fine but story telling is also a very good way to make e-friends and getting people to know who you are and where you come from.
Join my Facebook group of fans for more personal interaction and podcasts about ecommerce, digital products, dropshipping and more, they are queueing in my head ready to be put into tangible form 😉 and I have joined forces with my lovely friend-expert so it’s going to be very exciting!
Looking forward to seeing you again! ❤
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