Before you create an online course or program, take time to really know your message.
Your message captures what you want to see change. It’s what people know about you and how they remember you and talk about your work to others. It encompasses why you care about your area of expertise and even your unique approach and solutions.
I have consulted for many health practitioners. Because I know their message and what they care about and focus on, I know who to refer to them when it comes up!
Having a message is that powerful. You receive more referrals. People know what to expect from you and they’re ready to hire you because they know that what you offer and create is for them.
Your message is the thing that you become known for talking about online, in-person, in your workshops, on stage, in your blogs, in your social media content, at networking events, wherever.
It’s also something that excites YOU. You’re excited to go into deeper conversation around it. It inspires you and you want to share it with others.
When I was a full time teacher and a coach, I noticed the way that people limited themselves based on the labels the world gave them. I saw clients who were initially so nervous about taking a non-diet approach to food and healing their relationship with their body because society had placed so many negative labels on different kinds of bodies and any kind of weight gain, even necessary weight gain.
My message was to challenge those internalized labels and to help people fully see their possibilities. And my unique approach was my relentless commitment to seeking solutions and challenging the status quo.
The thing about your message as well is that it follows you throughout your career, and it expands with you.
Whether I was a teacher, coach, copywriter, communications consultant, and course creator, I am always thinking about how we can challenge the labels that have previously limited and defined us so we can find the words to communicate who we truly are and see the possibilities that come with that self-awareness.
So I talk about labels constantly. I use the word possibility all the time. I bring up being curious and open minded and dedicated to solutions.
As you find your message, you’ll find those buzzwords and phrases to help you communicate it more effectively with your ideal clients and students.
Here are some journaling questions to try out:
- What problem or problems do you help solve? Or, a more positive way to word that question for your brain, what solution do you help people find?
- Where are people with this problem when they start working with you? Or, more positively worded, where are they with this solution when they start working with you?
- What is the most important thing for them to know that can really help them shift their perspective and experience for good? This is the start of really stating your message.