Stop trying to be Amy Porterfield. There I said it. Come on inside and I'll tell you the rest of it.

It's time for the Growth Strategies Cafe podcast designed specifically for female online business owners. I'm your host, Teresa Cleveland, and I believe we can all make a difference. And then having a successful online business is one of the best ways to do that. Let's be real, though. Growing an online business isn't always easy. It definitely doesn't look sexy all the time.

And it's one of the most fulfilling endeavors you can take on. There are no secrets to building a successful business. There's just the stuff you don't know yet. And we'll be talking about it all here in the cafe. Whether you're on your way to six figures or beyond, you are in the right place. So grab your favorite beverage and pull up a chair. Let's get to it.

Hey, hey, hey. Welcome to Growth Strategies Cafe. I'm your host, Teresa Cleveland, and I'm so happy you're here today. Let's just go ahead and jump right in.

All right. What's your name? Chances are it's not Amy Porterfield. And whatever your name is, I would love it if you would assume your most powerful pose and just say out loud, "My name is - whatever your name is - and I'm a bad ass business owner.

Ready? All right.

My name is Teresa Cleveland and I'm a badass business owner.

How did that feel? Let's try it again.

My name is Teresa Cleveland and I am a badass business owner.

Better? I sure hope so. And if you don't believe it yet, I hope that you build this into your day. Do it several times a day, morning, noon and night. Whenever it feels right. Do it because you have to believe it.

I'm going to take a minute here and just clear the air. When I say stop trying to be Amy Porterfield, I am in no way attacking a fellow businesswoman. I have nothing against Amy. I say the same thing about Marie Foreo, James Wedmore, Stu McLaren, and some of my dearest mentors like Natalie Gingrich and Sarah Noked and hell, even myself.

I'm simply using Amy as an example because most of the people in my circles know who she is and I have a working knowledge of her and her products. So this way we can all just be on the same page.

I actually had the opportunity to work with Amy back in the day in her Facebook Profit Lab program, and that came with some one on one time with her. And I've purchased a variety of her products and programs since then. I can assure you, based on our conversations and the time that I spent with her and as I've watched her grow, she's another girl out there getting things done - just like me, just like you.

Consistency has been a key component of her success from my perspective. As I've watched her rise over the years, she's crafted a business built on sharing what she's found to work for her and what she has found to be best practices.

So what is my beef? It's this skewed belief, no doubt fed by marketing - and that's a topic for another day. But somewhere along the line, we have gotten to the place that we seem to think that if we buy this course or that program, we too will have that magical outcome right now.

And even when pros like Amy say things like their first attempt at this was dismal, we still seem to think somehow that our result will not be dismal if only we do the exact same thing, the exact same way they teach it. And I'm sure that's because we see their success today and the testimonials of those who have succeeded as well using their program.

I remember hearing James Ray, who was featured in The Secret talk about how people would come up to him after he was on Oprah and just say, " wow, ever since you were on Oprah, you become an overnight success." And he said, ""right. It only took me 17 years to become an overnight success."

So anyway, I digress. In that I'm not at all saying that we have to take 17 years. Let me just put that disclaimer in there. I'm not saying we have to take 17 years or three years or any time frame at all. I'm just saying that there's work that goes into all of this.

And today I just want to remind you to be you.

I have no doubt that you're pretty freaking incredible just by being who you are with your unique take on the world, your skills, talents, your quirks and all the other things that make you you.

Having been out here in the online space for going on 13 years now, I've seen so many people who bought into this program or that program, and some people succeeded, some people didn't. And we're going to get into that in just a minute. But before we do, let me ask you a few questions, if you don't mind.

Why did you get into business to begin with? What was, and is, your vision? What did you see? What was it that made you say, OK, I'm going to put my flag in the ground here, this is who I am and this is what I'm going to build?

I'll be honest, I think it's imperative to go back to this any time you're considering something as large an undertaking as changing your business model or adding to it. And let's be real if you're going from one on one work to a course or a group program, whatever it is, when there's that shift, you're changing or adding to the business model that you already have. And it's actually very, very smart to find someone who can teach you how to do that.

Now that you've connected back with why you got in business and what your vision was. Let me ask you this. Do you really want to create a course or is it the allure of the possibility of all the money that you can bring in?

I've seen people in groups and different programs who are honestly in there trying to figure out what their topic is. So they're starting from that place of, oh, my goodness, I could create a course and I'm going to make all this money. I see so many people doing it, right? Or are you just simply frustrated because you aren't currently experiencing the success that you desired in your business the way that it is right now? I think it's a really natural thing to look around and say, OK, maybe this isn't the business model for me.

But again, I feel like you have to be really, really clear, getting clear on your vision and what it is that you're going to create a business around.

Also, let me ask you this. Have you done your due diligence? Have you any idea what it takes to create a course, to bring it to life, to market it, to deliver it? How are you going to troubleshoot it if it's not successful right out the gate? Do you really know how much money it's going to take to bring this thing to life?

Let me be clear here. I'm not trying to talk you out of creating a course by any means. This, what I'm talking about today, really applies to all of your business. So it's not just a course, but we're going to stay with that example because everybody is talking about it. There are so many people teaching how to create a course.

And this, again, this is in no way a review or a commentary on those courses or the course creators. This is just me sharing what I see as a highly overlooked piece of the puzzle.

So let's go back to courses. Do they work for everyone? No.

Do they work for some people? Sure.

And the things that contributed to the success or lack thereof can be as different as the individuals creating them. It could be experience, personality, copywriting ability - now there's a big one for me. Not everyone should be writing their own copy or creating their own graphics or writing their own ads. Yep, not even with fill in the blank templates.

Here's a thought. And I think it's really important to understand that the majority of courses are like recipes. Think about it, right? Where do recipes come from? Someone created a dish that turned out really well and they documented it as they went along so that they could repeat it in the future. Somebody else saw how great it was and they asked, "well, how did you do that? How did you make that? Can you show me?" Right? And and they share their recipe.

Have you ever done that? I know I have. And I don't know about you, but unfortunately, not all of the recipes that I've made have turned out as good as the original. Has that ever happened to you?

And what happens after a few failed attempts? You got it. Much like the many purchased programs and courses that didn't pan out and are gathering digital dust on our hard drives, that recipe becomes forgotten in time and we look for a better or a new recipe. Sound familiar?

Look, my point is this. Amy is successful because she approaches things as Amy. With her mission, her vision, her values. I haven't talked with her in years myself, but I'm pretty sure that she has dealt with and probably still does on some level, many of the same things that you and I do.

Buying her course or anyone else's program is not a magic carpet ride to success, regardless of how the marketing makes us feel. We're not going to just end up where they are at the end of the course because we followed all the steps in the program. And here's a little nugget that not a lot of people realize. Just getting to the end of the program, just because a program is 8 weeks or 12 weeks or 6 months, that doesn't mean that you're going to accomplish all the things that you want to accomplish in that time frame.

There's a lot of work that goes into these things. What I'm here to share with you today is that you are your key to success, getting crystal clear on who you are, what you stand for and who you help.

Look, I know the impulse to leapfrog over this part and get to the actual doing is strong. Believe me, I've been there. And that's all the more reason that I'm urging you to resist. Taking the time to do this now is going to save you so much money, so much frustration, not to mention your sanity. Your products and services and even your courses will be so much richer when you operate with this foundation in place.

It's going to give you the confidence that you need as you're going through any course or program, as you're answering questions, as you're building out whatever it is that you're building. And that confidence is so, so important because there are going to be things that come up as you work through a program, as you work through a course where you're going to be able to decide, you know what, this doesn't feel right for me. And you're going to trust yourself on that because, again, you're not trying to be someone else.

You're going to be able to achieve your success based on who you are and what you stand for - and what you don't. And you're going to be able to mold that and build that into something that represents you, where you are. And sometimes things do feel out of alignment.

I've worked with people before who said as they were going through a program, they've said, you know what, I just don't know about this part. And I said to them, well, you get to decide it's your business. This thing that you're creating, it doesn't have to be word for word, and every nail, and every piece of this doesn't have to be exactly what it says in the course. And they've said, "oh, but you know what? She or he is very, very successful at this. So I feel like I have to do it the way that they did it, because this might be the piece that, you know, if I change it, then that'll probably be the reason mine doesn't succeed."

Even in that statement, do you hear the lack of confidence? It's like they're almost thinking like if I do this on my own, if I trust myself, then I'm bound to fail. So being very, very clear about who you are, what you're doing out here, that's going to give you the confidence that you really need to support you in those moments.

And again, as you're looking at these different programs and courses, even when you know yourself and all of that, be sure to do a little bit of research on them.

I have seen people in groups who have said, "oh, I put I spent my last two thousand dollars on this program. I didn't know that doing this I was still going to have to spend X amount monthly to get this up and running and keep it running." So always, always do your due diligence. Ask them questions. Any good business owner, I've said this before, any solid business owner is going to welcome your questions. So ask away, make sure that it's right for you, showing up as who you are.

And it's OK to be realistic. I mean, I see a lot of people and I know some of these things I'm talking about, I have done myself. And so, so much of it comes from experience, being on the other side of it. And looking back and saying, I wish I knew that, I wish I knew this then. I've seen it, I know you have too, may have done it, same as I have, and bought the exact tool that the course leader or whoever the program, whatever it is, buy the same tool that they're using, because surely if this works for them, this is what I want, too.

So when I say be realistic, if that's really out of your budget, don't stretch it like that, you know, don't stretch your finances like that because it's just going to create stress. And that's the last thing you need as you're building this stuff out. It is hard sometimes and if it's not hard, it is very time consuming and we need to stay focused, so we don't need the added distraction of stress and all the worry and everything else.

And coming back to you being you, I think when you're solid in that and you've laid this foundation, it's going to be less likely that you're going to make those decisions that are going to put you in those precarious positions.

Well, that's it for today. Please, please take some time, set some time aside. Even if you've already figured out your mission, your vision, your values, go back, revisit it, make sure that everything's still in alignment. See if you need to make any adjustments, whatever that looks like, go back to that foundation. That's always going to be the thing that you can depend on to guide you forward.

If you need any help with it, reach out. I'm more than happy to walk through some of that with you. It's one of my favorite things to do and I can't wait to see you out there being you.

Be sure to join me next week when my guest is the remarkable Sarah Khan. She's sharing a pivotal moment in her journey and how it's impacted her business. And I thought this was a great way to introduce you to her because she's also going to be joining me once a month for the rest of this year, for the rest of 2021, where we're going to call out some of the questionable things that we see in the online space. I can't wait!

Until then. Let's go make a difference.

Thanks for tuning into this week's episode of the Growth Strategies Café podcast. If it resonated with you, be sure to share it on Facebook and tag me to let me know how you're using this info to grow your online business.

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