Hey friends! Before we get to today’s episode, I wanted to let you know here first that I’m now offering VIP Days in September & October 2020.
Your offers are more than worthy of a profitable launch design. I’d love to help you transform your launch into a record-breaking blockbuster with a VIP Day! If you’re interested in working with someone who can help you get actual results in your business, head on over to https://melissaburkheimer.com/vip/ to save your date!
Questions? Send me a DM over on Instagram! You can find me over there @melissaburkheimer, and I can’t wait to connect with you!
You’re listening to The Design Business Show, and I’m your host, Melissa Burkheimer. I’m back today with a quick solo episode.
Before we get to today’s topic, and one thing I’d love to know from you is if you like these solo shows. l’m in a season where I have this itch to share more of the behind-the-scenes of my business and some of the things as they’re happening.
So hop onto Instagram and send me a DM (I’m over there @melissaburkheimer) and let me know what you think!
I just wrapped the beta sales page design course experience where I taught 375 entrepreneurs sales page design principles, how to draft sales page copy, plus design + build the page, and then gave them a design template they can use – no coding necessary!
My intention with the launch was for it to be a chilled launch, and for the most part, it was, until the second week which turned into a couple nights with 3 hours of sleep while I finished creating the course. I did 90% of the tech myself, and that’s not usually a good thing but a great lesson learned to not do that again.
I worked on the debrief today and one big win was that I made the top 10 most engaged list (more than once) inside Membervault, the membership site I’m using for my courses now.
I’m not sure if I’ll sell the course again – but I’m adding it as a bonus inside Conversion Design School™, and I’ve spent the last few weeks to chill, get my youngest kiddo ready for virtual learning, doing some volunteer work, and decluttering my house and business.
Today I want to talk to you about a not-so-fun but very real thing that we all experience.
I joke that Beyonce might not experience it, but most of us do.
That thing I’m talking about is Limiting Beliefs and thinking you’re not good enough.
Limiting Beliefs can often be masked as self-sabotage.
Fear sometimes manifests itself as procrastination.
Self-doubt can show up when you’re exploring territory that’s outside of your comfort zone or it’s new, and you’re not sure what the outcome will be.
Or you’re an introvert, or you don’t like putting yourself out there, even though you like being recognized for your accomplishments.
Maybe you know that you’re really good at something, but you’re too busy being focused on making it perfect or worrying about what could go wrong instead of sharing it with the world, like I did when I launched this podcast. 🙂
I sat on the first episode of this podcast for 6 months, and then published 4 episodes and didn’t take it seriously until 2019. Confession: I’m really good at getting in my own way. And over complicating things.
I’m full of limiting beliefs, self-sabotaging habits, and I’ve learned a few things that to help me crush those beliefs and habits and that’s what I wanna share with you today.
I was first exposed to the world of manifesting and alignment in December 2012, when I joined a pilot program with other female entrepreneurs lead by Elizabeth DiAlto.
Joining that program helped me see the potential for success outside of my little freelance design world.
It felt like 100 little doors opened, and through them was the path that taught me how to think bigger.
I’m not an expert in “alignment or manifesting.” The more I dabble, the more the higher powers shift things into my favor. Kind of like I just know that I’ll get a close parking spot when I go somewhere, because I believe and know it’s true.
I’m sharing what’s worked for me, so you can maybe try it too.
I want to talk about 3 limiting beliefs that service providers experience, and talk to you about how to move through them and on to bigger and better things that you desire.
Disclaimer: Not everyone is dealt the same cards. Some people have more privileges than others. I’m solely sharing what I know for my own personal experience and from working with dozens of entrepreneurs for the last 9 years.
1. I’m not good enough.
I consider myself a very confident person, but I was not always confident in my design skills, and I definitely was not confident as a launch manager when I was actually working with someone that people consider to be an online celebrity.
I really felt like I wasn’t good enough as a designer in college – and I even won a design award in college.
If you don’t think you’re good enough, I can tell you that you’re among many people who feel or have felt the same.
You get confidence in your skills by practicing again and again. And believing you have something to offer the world as a designer or whatever your expertise is.
When I’m experiencing the “I’m not good enough” thoughts and questioning my entire life and every decision I’ve made (you know I like to keep things really real!), I like to invite you to take a minute to really look at that statement.
Is it really true? I would guess that it’s not.
Can you take a few minutes and celebrate all of the awesome things you’ve accomplished? Or read all the awesome testimonials you’ve gotten for your clients?
And then can you take a look at where you want to improve your skills?
Or if it’s possible to go from basic to next level at a few select things?
I narrowed down all of the design services I could offer my clients, and slowly just focused on sales page design and moved away from all the other stuff.
Every time I design a sales page (even if it’s for myself) I get better.
And I’m way better at directing the process than the actual production. I can do both, but often stay in the director seat because that’s my zone of genius.
Denise Duffield-Thomas is someone who’s work has had a lot of influence in my business – and one mantra that she teaches is simply taking a deep breath and putting your hand on your heart, and saying “I am enough.” Do that 5-6 times a day.
And remember, even if you don’t think you’re that great of a designer, the simplest things you know can make a world of difference for someone else!
2. “No one wants to pay my rates.”
We’ve all been there.
But knowing that we’ve all been there – and had clients tell us our rates are too high, we’ve also experienced working with clients who just pay our rates without questioning it, right?
Take a step back. Think about when you decide to make a purchase. It can be something for $5 or $5,000. Your perception of the value versus the price is different from someone else’s.
Your creative talents are worth what people are willing to pay.
And frankly, there will always be potential clients who are willing and unwilling to pay what you charge. Most of the time, it has nothing to do with you.
And just because there are other designers out there doing the same thing as you, it doesn’t mean there won’t be any clients for you.
There is plenty of work for all of us. Just yesterday I made 2 referrals for sales page designers I know and have personally hired myself.
And my sales page offer is my most profitable offer. I make referrals all the time.
When I first started my business, I was hired by local companies as their production designer and they hired agencies to do their big picture branding + web design work.
I have another client who works with another agency for his brand design, and me for his sales page designs.
If you’re not getting clients, start the client attraction process with these 3 simple steps:
- Make a list of 20 people / companies you’d like to work with.
- Make another list of people you know who have connections at these companies.
- Start making introductions, asking if anyone could use your help and start reaching out.
If you go to melissaburkheimer.com/newclients there’s an email script and a process map you can follow.
You could even take it a step further and set reminders on your phone to pop up 2-3 times a day and say “my dream client is out there and can’t wait to work with me!”
Also, you can decide what kind of job, opportunity, or projects you want. So take some time and decide what you really want. Get specific.
When I write down my goals – I’ll write down things like “I’m excited to attract a new client this week who can’t wait to pay my rates” or “My new Conversion Design School™ just sold out their offers & getting the results they want!”
The sales come from you being specific about what you offer, confidently presenting it during your digital sales process, and from experience getting results for your clients.
Also, do you see how we’re not even talking about whether or not people can afford you anymore? 🙂
3. I have to do everything myself because no one can do it like me.
You’re right, no one can do things just like you.
But you can teach them how.
You can mentor & lead them in the direction that yields the best results for everyone – the client, their mission, their team, their customers, and your team, your company and more.
That’s exactly what I do with the designers I partner with for projects – and for the expert entrepreneurs who join my digital programs.
I can tell you as someone who has no agency experience, there are entire creative teams who work on project campaigns – and there are different roles and humans who fill these roles for a reason.
And I can also tell you that when I started hiring designers who specialize in specific types of projects to support me and my clients on projects, it opened up doors for new opportunities, clients, and projects I thought I’d never get.
This can apply at home too. You’ve heard me talk about hiring a cleaner – and it saves me a ton of time and energy just knowing that the cleaning is done a few times a month.
Long story short – you don’t have to be everything to everyone, and you don’t have to take on projects that aren’t in alignment. Life’s too short for that. 🙂
To help you reframe & reset when these thoughts creep in, I wanted to share a few of my easy-to-do success habits that help me hit new goals. I’m not perfect, and I don’t do them every day, but when I do most of them, I’m more productive, cool things happen, and I believe even more than I did the day before.
Write down your goals every day
On days when I’m consistent, I write down everything I want, such as 5 VIP Days booked in September and October 2020 and 1 private design for the next 6 months. (Do you hear that, Big U?).
In 2017 I wrote down that I wanted to speak at an event I was attending. I let go of the “how,” and it happened.
Set Intentions for Each Project + Launch
During my launch manager days, the launch team would set an intention for the participants of our free content and for the people who bought the course. And, each team member working on the launch would set an individual intention for our performance within the launch.
Mine was always around confidence, cause I didn’t realize that I was actually good at what I was doing.
Track Your Incoming Money and Your Wins Every Day
Almost every day, I log in to my bank accounts, PayPal, Samcart and my biz revenue spreadsheet and track everything that comes in and goes out. Set money goals, and track your income as it comes in, and celebrate your wins every day. Gratitude over everything. 🙂
Any time one of these thoughts creep into your mind, work through them, journal out the fears, try some of the exercises above and it will help. I’m not an expert at this – but if you still need help, send me a DM on Instagram.
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