You’re going to love this episode if

Anyone who’s considering starting has started or is stalled when it comes to getting that dream business off the ground is going to love spending twenty minutes with Kiki and Stephanie as they work through some of the biggest challenges and misconceptions about starting a business as a Health Professional.

One of the most inspiring parts of this episode is that Stephanie is a successful practitioner.  

She discovered her calling was helping vs. practicing after she started teaching nutrition at her alma mater.

That one thing standing in your way

For the professionals Stephanie speaks to, it always comes down to paperwork.  The tedious, not very fun, but fundamental aspects of setting up a business.  The licensing, the insurance, the domain name.  All behind-the-scenes administrative-type things that stand in the way of you getting your first client.

In the tech world, we refer to them as the ‘unsexy parts’ of building and running a business.

Stephanie’s advice?  

These are not things that take much time; they eat up energetic bandwidth and feel like significant hurdles when they aren’t.  Get them checked off early so you can focus your energy on bigger blocks, like client work and programs

Interestingly, there are hundreds of businesses built around this very problem, one of them being Wizforms, a company I came across over the weekend, or lawdepot.ca, a site I’ve visited many times over the course of my entrepreneurial journey.

To Niche or Not to Niche, what a great question!

Suppose you’re like me, and you’ve spent time exploring the Internet and listening to some of the more prevalent business coaches in our industry. In that case, you’ll agree that most if not all proclaim Niching to be one of, if not the most critical, component of a successful business.

But, if you’ve also listened to some of the Member spotlights in the Making it Real series, you’ll know that many of the most successful practitioners haven’t necessarily spent much time thinking about Niching.

It’s refreshing to hear Stephanie’s thoughts on this, and if you’re worried about this or considering a niche, you need to tune into this episode.

If someone else is doing it, that’s good.  It means there is demand and that you can do it too.  

Stephanie does a super job of:

• Explaining the benefits of niching as well as providing a quick-and-easy pro’s and con’s list
• Describing the best way to discover your niche and,
• Dispelling the myth of ‘crowded markets’

The last point is crucial because you might hesitate to ‘niche down’ even though you find your passion is working with a particular audience, but it seems crowded, or you know a few coaches that are doing a great job in that space already.

As Stephanie put’s it,

No one is going to do it like you, and someone who might resonate with you may not resonate with someone else, and that’s okay.  There are lots of people that want help.

This part of the conversation is essential because it reminds you that the mindset of abundance will serve you better than the mindset of scarcity.

Stephanie knows what’s missing from your social media plan.

Some of Kiki’s other guests have talked about how important it is to consider and make time for different aspects of marketing and downplayed the importance of social media.

Stephanie has a slightly different take.

For her, it’s more nuanced.  Stephanie suggests:

• Identify the platform (s) that you enjoy; this will make it easier for you to engage and be consistent.
• Consider where your customers are (bonus content: she walks through which platforms are more active for which demographics :)
• Get stakes in the ground (i.e., be ready to grow your presence across platforms)
• How to make it easier to post content across multiple platforms

Finally, Stephanie crystallizes what social is for and tells a great story about her experience engaging with a new follower on Instagram.

You aren’t showing up for you; you’re showing up for your clients.

When you’re starting, everything is intimidating.  It’s been that way for everyone who ever started a business since the beginning of time.  

But, to succeed, you need to show up.

Stephanie does a great job of providing you and her clients a ‘crawl, walk, run, fly’ approach to growth.

Do what you are comfortable with, but be sure to do something.

If you aren’t comfortable with video, post a pic; if you’re not comfortable with pics, post some audio.  Once you get started, it gets easier, and with each effort, you’ll get better and better.

Done is better than perfect.

Indeed, this is a thread you’ll hear through all Kiki’s conversations with coaches and successful practitioners.

Growing with Stephanie

If you like what you heard in the podcast (or read in this post), you can connect with Stephanie at her website, or on Instagram.

You can also check out her podcast or, join her new program!

Bookmark these if you liked what you read

For this post, I’ve included a few of Kiki’s interviews as well as a couple of gems from Stephanie’s Podcast (Next Level Nutrition Biz) that she thought you’d find value in.

Enjoy!

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Podcast, brand development, brand voice, wellness brands, nutritionist

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