Ask Yourself These Questions for Clarity Surrounding Your Business & Offerings
On my contact page, I ask folks to fill out a questionnaire that will help me dive deeper into their desires for wanting to bring this website project forward. My hope is that by answering the questions, my potential clients will also gain some clarity on the products they are offering and who they hope to help in the process. Plus I love to read the responses :)
I came up with this questionnaire a few months ago when I found myself in a very anxiety-fueled transition phase. I had just spent half a year building a non-profit but found myself feeling consistently overwhelmed and unfulfilled. Looking back I think I was approaching burnout. Either way, it was exhausting and taxing on my nervous system. Months prior I felt like I was FINALLY on the right path, that I was aligned with my greater purpose and passion. My job was to help others gain life-changing skills and take control of their lives. How cool is that?
But a few months deep into the project, I found myself having major communication problems with my co-founder and feeling the most disempowered I’d ever felt in my life.
To help me get out of my own way, I sought out a channeling empowerment coach. I couldn’t afford her services (I was co-founding an NGO and getting paid zilch while still hustling/freelancing in my spare time to pay the rent.) Though her prices were out of my budget, I felt a good vibe with her on the initial consultation and asked if she would want to engage in a skill swap. Turns out, she was in need of a website and was willing to work with me in exchange. Score!
After a few weeks of working with her, the anxiety grew more intense and I could no longer pretend it was a normal part of co-founding a nonprofit. Though I initially started empowerment coaching with the hopes of overcoming my self-doubt and widening my perspective, I actually realized something much different. This wasn’t the path for me AT ALL. And so I made the very tough decision to walk away from the project.
Through the process of helping my coach build out her site, I realized I actually enjoyed the process a lot. So THIS was what it was like to like your job! Though I’d always built sites for clients on Squarespace, I’d never considered it something I could focus on full time. Nor did I realize that website building can actually be as impactful, as co-founding a nonprofit because you are helping others share their gifts and healing abilities. It was then that I decided to zone in on helping demystify and lessen the cost of the website building process especially for healers, conscious business owners, and non-profits - so that they can share their gifts with the world.
Below are the questions I started jotting down while trying to gain clarity around my new career focus. Answering them helped me define my target market and understand why I was doing what I was doing. I hope they help you too!
Why do you want to bring this idea forward?
Why haven’t you been able to bring it forward so far? What are your biggest challenges? Why do you want to bring this idea forward?
How do you want to feel once your offerings are available?
Who is your dream target market?
How do you hope your clients’ lives will change after your offerings are made available?
What is your biggest fear surrounding this project?
Dream up an ideal client testimonial. What did they say about the process/working with you? How did their life transform? What was their pain point and where are they now?
And for inspiration, here were MY original answers to the questions above.
Why do you want to bring this idea forward?
To help healers, artists, nonprofits and conscious business owners reach a wider variety of people, heal more people, bring light into the world. To drown out the fear and darkness.
Why haven’t you been able to bring it forward so far? What are your biggest challenges?
I never realized THIS was my thing. I thought I needed to be part of a team to make a big impact. I suppose I had imposter syndrome. No clarity. Distracted easily. Swept into someone else’s dreams because I didn’t trust my inner longing. My biggest challenges are NONE- I’m doing this. I hope to stay connected to my why and inner trust.
How do you want to feel once your offerings are available?
I want to feel like my talents and skills are helping others break free from their conditioning, feel confident, feel inspired to uplift others. I want to feel like my existence helps someone else feel comfortable in their skin and not alone. I suppose I want to feel not alone. I want to emanate joy and love.
Who is your dream target market?
My dream client is a healer, energy worker, author, intuitive, coach, therapist, yogi, or masseuse with conscious awareness and nonprofits.
How do you hope your clients’ lives will change after your offerings are made available?
I hope they’ll feel more confident and excited to share their gifts. I hope they’ll feel excited to share their website. I hope they’ll earn tons of money doing what they love and change others’ lives in the process.
What is your biggest fear surrounding this project?
My biggest fears are not embarking on it at all, losing momentum once I start, falling victim to self-doubt, overworking myself, or burning out.
Dream up an ideal client testimonial. What did they say about the process/working with you? How did their life transform? What was their pain point and where are they now?
“I didn’t feel comfortable putting myself out there. I started to develop healing abilities but didn’t feel I had the right to. I also didn’t feel it was right to ask for money in exchange for readings. I still felt like this couldn’t be a legitimate job. After working with Nicole, I was able to gain clarity around my offerings and confidence about pricing. She helped me realize that money is an energy exchange and that it was necessary to charge for my services so I didn’t burn myself out. My business is thriving and my clients are using their new insights to transform their lives.”