When we think about showing up and being visible in our business, all sorts of fears and unhelpful thoughts can pop into our awareness.

It was a real pleasure to interview the lovely Helen Evans recently, to get her unique view on how changing our perspective can make it safer for us to be visible.

Helen described how it’s useful to imagine looking at our lives through the ‘metaphor’ of a diamond with many facets.

Click below to watch the video: But wait, there’s more!

When you’re a heart-centred self employed woman, you want to make your website as effective as it can be, right?!

Yet it’s really common to spend months tweaking the page content…

and gathering courage to put more information about yourself on it – because there’s a massive amount of FEAR.

Fear of being thrust into the spotlight, fear of being judged or criticised …

It feels really uncomfortable and also frustrating as the website is such an important piece to get right!

I recently had a very interesting conversation about this with Keri Dawn, a website and social media expert, who also runs a thriving, supportive community on Facebook.

Do You Want…

• A website that’s effective in attracting clients?
• To know who your ‘ideal clients’ are, but still not sure?
• To banish your tech fears around creating your own web pages ?

Click to listen to our interview!

But wait, there’s more!

I have spent the past two years skirting round an issue,

dancing feather light, in and out of the shadows, learning as much as I can about marketing my business, but not putting it into action.

I wrote some powerful blogs about finding confidence, challenging old beliefs, and even how to be your real self.

Yet I’ve changed my mind so many times about who my ‘Tribe’ are, that I’ve lost count.

I recently had a massive revelation and light bulb moment – and

I realise I’m here to serve introverts who want to build their business and share their passion, but who are scared to be visible,

so they never get to attract the clients and income they really want.

I stayed confused for two years, but now I’m taking a stand for being CLEAR!

Being confused allowed me to stay in hiding

Being confused meant I didn’t have to talk to strangers about what I do, because … “I’m still working it out.”

Being confused meant I didn’t ever have to get overwhelmed with too many business building activities because … “I’m still learning.”

Being confused meant I could stay mostly invisible (and therefore safe).

But being confused also means that I never get to have the impact I really want, and make the difference to people’s lives that I deeply care about.

So now I’m taking a stand for being CLEAR.

Why has this taken me so long to realise (and blog about?)

But wait, there’s more!

Ok so having conceded that social media can be a good thing, (after my last post)

You might be asking yourself – How can I maintain that balance between showing enough of the real me while at the same time maintaining my privacy and boundaries.

Does that resonate with you?

You too might be wondering,

How can you stretch outside your comfort zone to be more visible … and why should you?

In the second of three interviews, I chat with social media expert Holly Worton, from Socially Holistic, to demystify social media and begin to take away the fear.

Watch this 11 minute video to find out:

• How to figure out what’s right for you – where are your sharing boundaries?
• Why it’s so important to be even a teensy bit vulnerable
• How to build up a rich resource of ideas that move and inspire you
• Why it’s so important to be *YOU*

This is something that I’m passionate about, yet I find it really hard too!

At risk of sounding like a gibbering idiot, I wondered whether I should edit out all the umms and errrmmss and mistakes in my questioning – but I decided not to because I don’t want to end up sounding slick and polished … that’s not me!!

So there you have it –  a simple conversation with important tips about how to make social media more ‘do-able’ for you.

Over To You:

Have you found your ‘right level’ of sharing on social media yet?

Who do you admire, or particularly warm to, online?

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Just Do It!

This is a complete change from my usual style of blog – I decided to record a VLOG instead!

The wild, wise crone in me came out yesterday morning, and inspired me to show up and just be real – because that’s the most powerful thing you can do (I believe) – and it’s the thing that I want to enable my clients to do.

I had an epiphany recently, and I figured I can’t ‘hide’ behind my words alone – spouting at you from behind my safe, anonymous computer screen encouraging you to ‘be your real self’, if I don’t lead from the front!

I had the wild, crazy idea to do a video blog, without preparation, without a new outfit or hairdo or makeup – to just show up and be real.

You’ve got to do that thing that scares the life out of you, because it might just breathe life INTO you!

I did just that, and I can confirm that it definitely did!

I feel bizarrely free and exhilarated!

The video here is the result: (I’ll record in landscape mode for next time!)

Over To You:

I would love to know what’s the biggest thing that scares you? And how are you inspired to take action to overcome that ? Please leave me a comment and let me know!

Please pass it on!

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What is ‘REAL’ anyway?

We can all spot things that are ‘fake’, can’t we?

That ‘Gucci’ handbag with the label that’s glued on wonky.

Those ‘bargain’ perfumes you can buy from market stalls that just smell nasty.

The politician’s smile that doesn’t make it to his eyes.

We have an internal radar for what’s fake and what’s real when it comes to things outside of ourselves.

But what about internally?

Many introverts I’ve spoken to say they  “want to be their real self.”

That really resonates with me. It’s what held me back for so many years, and I’ve now begun to peel back the layers and open up more.

Can you imagine what benefit there might be for you to be more of your ‘real self’?

I’ve been on a long internal journey, and for me, being ‘real’ can mean being ok with finding certain things hard, and not trying to pretend that I enjoy something (just because ‘everyone else’ does).

It’s enabled me to be kinder to myself, and given me permission to be more open and vulnerable.

Even just writing publicly ‘from the heart’ would have been impossible for me a few years ago. It would have felt too dangerous and exposed.

But as I peel back the layers and ‘expose’ myself to others, I realise that we’re all the same underneath.

Everyone gets scared sometimes.

We all have things we find hard.

We all long for love and acceptance, and to know that we’re not alone.

We are all naked underneath our clothes.

That knowledge makes me a feel a little braver, and to risk being seen for who I really am. And THAT allows me to step up and follow my calling, knowing that I’m being true to myself and fulfilling my potential.

How do you know when you’re NOT being real?

But wait, there’s more!

The truth will set you free…

Do you ever hide away in fear of being ‘seen’?

Do you ever hesitate before speaking?

Do you ever stop yourself from doing something or saying something and you’re not sure why?

I’ve had an epiphany in the past week or so …

I’ve been in hiding for a long time …

I dug myself a deep hole when I was a child, for protection, security and quiet, and I hid in there until my life changed dramatically in my mid thirties.

My husband died suddenly, and that forced me to confront my demons and to gradually realise that the walls of earth I had built for protection were actually a prison cell.

Over the past few years I’ve found a way to open the cell door. Yet just in the past week, I’ve noticed I’m still in prison.

I’ve been gradually coming up and out over the past year, peeking my head through the front gates, but I’ve still held back… afraid, uncertain.

That hesitancy is costing me dearly … in wasted energy, wondering how much of me is visible, am I hidden well enough, could I run back inside if I really wanted to..?

One phrase that popped into my head is ‘The truth will set you free’ …

But wait, there’s more!