Tag: coronavirus

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How to Sell During COVID-19

I have an Instagram page where I post quotes from the novel I wrote, books I’m reading, funny memes, that sort of thing. Because I list myself as an author, I receive solicitations from people who want to sell me consulting services or offer me tools that I could use to promote my book (if I had one). I’ve noticed a trend in the way people are pitching to me lately that feels disingenuous.

They start off with a compliment (“Wow! You have great content!”) and then follow it up with a question (“How long have you been doing this?”). When I reply, they come back with another compliment (“That’s incredible!). And then they hit me with the sales pitch, which feels like the real reason they reached out in the first place. Do they actually think my content is great or are they only saying that to butter me up? I don’t have a problem with appreciation, as long as it’s real. But saying the same general thing to me as 50 other authors make me feel devalued.

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I’m not interested in the services being pitched to me for a variety of reasons, but the sales people keep pressing, asking why not and if they can work around my hesitation. I have no doubt this strategy is an avenue for selling, and it likely works for some people, but for me it’s a huge turn off. My philosophy in business is to establish a relationship. I strive to be friendly with my clients because we’re both giving and receiving. I don’t want to take someone’s money and run – I want to provide a service that my client can actually use.

I’m reminded of a story from Tosha Silver’s book Change Me Prayers. She said for her first book, she shopped it around to several bookstores and in one store, the manager said, “You can leave a copy for our ‘pile’ in the back room. Then you could call a ton and plead with us. If you get lucky, maybe one day we’ll stock it. Just keep hoping.”

Tosha’s response was, “Oh, my God, no! Why would I keep twisting your arm? It’ll go easily to the places that are right. You never have to convince someone. The people who are right will just know.” And sure enough, that happened with other store clerks. They were thrilled at the idea of stocking her book and one even threw her a party. That’s what I want for me too (maybe not the party, unless it’s over Zoom!).

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I want selling to be easy and smooth. That’s not to say no effort is required because of course action is always necessary, but the energy is different. Instead of twisting someone’s arm, pressuring them to work with me, I understand the right clients, customers, partners, etc. have already been selected and we’ll be guided to each other easily (and gratefully). I want to work with people who want to work with me. If I have to convince someone, are we a good match? Likely not.

I feel like especially now when most people are stressed, sliding in and out of depression, and struggling in some form or fashion, the best thing I can do is offer my services as a freelance ghostwriter, content writer, and editor. Emphasis on the “offer.” I’m opening my hands, saying “here you go,” and letting people take me or leave me. I’m not waving my hands in front of their face and saying “take this, take this, take this.” For me that makes all the difference.

If you’re a busy professional like a therapist in need of a ghostwriter, connect with me. If you’re looking for a unique way to promote your business through storytelling, I’d love to help with that too. If you just want someone to make sure your resume doesn’t have any typos, I can also handle that! Just reach out and I’d be glad to help.

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Still One Day at a Time

Last night I started to spiral as I thought about how much longer this quarantine could last. A year? A year and a half? Even typing that my heart starts to beat faster and my stomach clenches in anxiety. I can’t go there. If I start thinking too far into the future I sink into despair. I realize this is a business blog, but the reality is my personal life and business life blend – they always have. One affects the other as much as I’d like to keep them separate. What that means is how I respond in my personal life will also apply to my business life.

What I’m focusing on is taking things one day at a time. A quote that comes to mind right now is from Sarah Orne Jewett who said, “Tain’t worthwhile to wear a day all out before it comes.” Yep. When I spin out into worry over what will happen to me, what will happen to my business, how I will make money, I’m absolutely wearing the day out before it comes. Some planning is important of course, but I’m finding the only way to stay sane in this insane period is to take things one day at a time. Or even one hour at a time.

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I think pretty much every spiritual teacher encourages people to stay present and in the moment. That’s never felt more relevant for us as a collective. I’m used to applying that principle on a micro level, but now we’re applying it on a macro one. If anything, COVID-19 has shown us we don’t know what will happen. We can’t predict the future – we’re all just guessing. In the meantime, what can we do here, now?

For me, it’s continuing to freelance as a writer. It means content writing for my clients, telling stories of transformation. It means contacting new people about how I can serve them in this time with my writing skills. It means keeping my finances up to date and billing the people I work with. It also means understanding some people will not be able to pay me right now, or won’t be able to pay me in full.

COVID-19 has taught me how to be nimble and flexible, to let go of expectations and surrender to what is both in my business life and my professional life. I am not in control of what’s happening. Not even a little bit. But I am in control of how I respond to what’s happening. I’m in control of how I’m spending my days.

The best way I know how to spend my days is to stay in the day. To be where my feet are. I feel more grounded and less anxious when I think about what’s next instead of what’s to come down the line. Because again, honestly, I have no idea what’s to come. But neither does anyone else. That can be a scary prospect or it can be empowering. Regardless, all we have is what’s in front of us: today.

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The “Shoulds” and “Shouldn’ts” of COVID-19

Right now I’m hearing a lot of shoulds and shouldn’ts circulating about how to act, respond, or work during this pandemic. “Now is the time to do all the things you didn’t have the time to do!” “Move your business online!” “Use Zoom for all the things you need!” “Contact every client you’ve ever worked with and pitch to them!”

I get it. I want someone to tell me all of those things too. I want a leader to help me navigate this crisis. Some suggestions have wisdom to them and some do not, but the important piece I think is determining which is which. Glennon Doyle says, “As Kathleen Norris reminds us, the Greek root of the word crisis is ‘to sift,’ as in, to shake out the excesses and leave only what’s important. That’s what crises do. They shake things up until we are forced to hold on to only what matters most.”

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That certainly rings true for me right now. I’m learning what’s important to me and what’s not. But more than that, I’m learning about my inner compass. I’m easily swayed by other people and also susceptible to suggestions. If someone tells me the best way to grow my business is to beat down 10 doors, I’ll beat down 10 doors. If someone else tells me the best way to grow my business is to let the doors open for me, to offer everything up to the universe, I’ll offer everything up to the universe.

I’m like a ping pong ball batted around a table. Every few minutes I’m changing my mind about what to do, about what makes sense. I’m letting other people lead and become the authority for, well, everything. The reality is almost none of us were alive the last time this sort of thing happened with the Spanish flu. And furthermore, technology back in 1918 was vastly different than it is now so we’re truly navigating something brand new. No one knows what they’re doing. Not really. The best any of us can say is, “This worked for me and it might work for you.” But who wants to say that? Don’t we all want to seem put together or authoritative? That people should come to us for the answer?

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Through this crisis I am indeed learning to sift, but I’m not sifting what I anticipated. Instead I’m filtering through the noise. I’m wading through the 10 million advice columns people are churning out. Don’t get me wrong, I think advice columns are useful and I’ve written a few myself, but often what’s missing is choice. You get to choose what’s best for you and nobody else knows what that is. Sometimes even I don’t know what’s best for me, but that’s what I’m figuring out.

What’s best for me one minute might be resting. The next it could be answering all of my emails. Or going for a walk. Or writing an article about the shoulds and shouldn’ts of COVID-19. In this time of uncertainty and chaos, perhaps the best thing we can do is become our own authority. To ask ourselves what’s best for us and remember we don’t have to do everything other people tell us we “should.” I’m not a fan of the word “should” and I try my best not to use it. Instead I say “could.” I could reach out to all my old clients. I could wash all my dishes right now. There are many things I could do but what do I want to do? What feels best to my soul? And that I think is the best possible use of my time. And maybe yours too. I’m not sure – I’ll let you decide.

Do you need writing help? Are you underwater with transitioning to a virtual presence? I’m available for quick-turnaround assignments. Reach out to me. I’m here.

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Working During COVID-19

I don’t have to tell you life is different now. None of us will come out of this experience the same. We can’t predict what life will look like days, weeks, or months from now, but in this moment as we’re trying to establish some semblance of normalcy, what does work look like? Below are some tips I have about working during COVID-19.

Have Patience

For one, work won’t be business as usual and I think it’s important we all keep that in mind. It’s unrealistic to believe or try to operate in such a way that promotes that idea. Parents now have to contend with children underfoot, or sharing working space with their partners. Everyone is undergoing some sort of upheaval so the best thing any of us can do is be patient with one another. Everything will likely take longer than it normally does so patience is key here.

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Practice Flexibility

It’s also important to practice flexibility. Ideally managers established work goals based on output – meaning the projects themselves and not whether the person spent four hours working uninterrupted. Or whether they worked specifically from 9 to 5. Parents especially might find themselves working in the later evenings and early mornings when their children are asleep because childcare is unavailable. The more employers understand that, the better for all of us. Also, the reality is parents likely won’t get as much work done as their childless colleagues. It doesn’t feel fair, but when is life ever fair? We work with what we’ve got and do the best we can.

Wikimedia CEO Katherine Maher put it best in a Medium piece: “It is unreasonable and unrealistic to expect someone to be fully present, eight hours a day, when they have a three-year-old with crayons drawing on the wall, or an elderly parent who needs help navigating the stairs. We all have loved ones who need care, groceries that need purchasing, doctor’s appointments to keep, neighbors who need a phone call. And you know what? We trust our colleagues. People will work when they can, and when they can’t, we trust they’ll be right.”

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Push it Back

If you can push a project back, push it back! Whittle priorities and projects down to the most crucial, the most pressing. Now is not the time to be ambitious and pretend the only difference with work is the location. Use this time to slow down, not speed up.

Americans especially are on the goal-oriented and workaholic side. I’ve seen several memes about how Sir Isaac Newton discovered gravity during a quarantine, as if the same could be or should be true for all us. There’s an expectation during this period we’ll be our most productive, our most creative, indulging all our hobbies. “After this quarantine I’ll be in the best shape of my life because I’ll have so much time to work out!” Or “I’ll write the next great American novel in my free time!” I applaud the sentiment, and yes, it might be true for some people, but for many of us, we’re just trying to get by. During stressful times, it’s important to lower the bar, not raise it.

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Be Gentle

The last thing I’ll say about this topic is to be gentle with yourself and others right now. We’re all feeling lots of feeling and in a period of high stress. This is one of the few times when everyone across the globe is in a similar situation. That calls for understanding and kindness because we’re all navigating something new. We’re not alone here and gentleness will go a long way.

What are your tips for working during COVID-19? Tell me in the comments below.

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How to Conduct Business During a Pandemic

First off, I want to say I’m writing this article for me. Primarily I want to know how to conduct business during a pandemic. I also want to acknowledge here for some people they won’t be able to conduct business. If someone makes a living that requires in-person contact, a cuddle therapist for instance, they won’t be able to go about business as usual. There are many people who are or will be impacted by a pandemic either through a slowdown in their business or a temporary halt altogether.

A question on my mind is what can be done for people who don’t have the luxury to work from home? If anyone has ideas, I’d love to hear them. My university set up an emergency fund for students who now find themselves forced to return home.

But let’s say you can work from home. How do you ensure you’re as productive as if you worked in an office? In my more than a decade of experience of working from home first as a journalist and now a freelance content writer, I have some tips to share.

1.) Feel Your Feelings

First and foremost, feel your feelings. These are not normal times. Things are scary. Even if you’re not worried about the coronavirus yourself, you likely know others who are worried about it. Fear is contagious. So is panic. Let yourself cry and shake and scream or whatever it is you need to do to move the fear. Otherwise, the fear stays stuck in your body like a whirlpool sucking much of your energy.

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After your freak out, take a deep breath and remember your resilience. Remind yourself of all the hard times you’ve already gone through and how you’re still here. You made it! You wouldn’t be reading this if you hadn’t. Also remember human history is filled with episodes of pandemics. This happens. I’m not saying pandemics come without costs because they do. Millions of people die, which is tragic, AND millions of people also live to tell the tale. It’s likely your parents or grandparents or great-grandparents lived through the Spanish Flu of 1918. Some of them died, but more of them lived. That’s worth remembering.

2.) Maintain Set Hours

Working from home it may feel like you have all the time in the world, that you can work whenever, and that’s true. But that mentality is also how you can idle the day away and not accomplish anything. You don’t have to keep the same hours you had while in the office – for instance you could work 9 to 5 instead of 10 to 6 – but set aside certain hours for work. I’m more of a 10 to 6 gal myself and that means from 10 to 6 I’m working. I’ll take a break in the middle of the day for lunch, but if I have work to do, those are the hours I’m working.

Having the mental boundaries around when it’s work time and when it’s playtime will help you stay productive. Otherwise it’s all too easy to say, “I’ll do it later.” As my parents often said, “Later never comes.”

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Photo by https://photos.icons8.com.

3.) Keep Your Rituals

If you have certain rituals around going to work, keep them. Maybe not the ones that involve going to a coffee shop, but the ones like taking a dog for a walk or going for a run. The normalcy of your routine will help you feel like it’s any other workday, because it is, minus the location.

This also means changing out of your pajamas, for some of you. Some people revel in being able to stay in their pjs all day, but I find getting dressed helps me step into work mode. There’s a clear delineation between sleep and relaxation time versus work time. Similarly, I find getting out of bed to work makes me more productive. There’s a space in my house that’s my work space. All my serious writing takes place at my desk, which means I associate my desk with work and the rest of my house with relaxing. You may not have a desk, but do you have a table or a counter top? Sequester a section of your place specifically for work and that will help with productivity.

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4.) Minimize Distractions

Working from home it’s easier to get distracted – your phone doesn’t have to be on silent and there’s that Netflix special you wanted to watch. And it’s such a beautiful day. Wouldn’t it be better to go for a hike? If you’re someone who can work in that way, more power to you. But I think that’s the trouble of working at home for many people – it’s too easy to get distracted.

Minimize distractions by silencing your phone because hey, you’re at work remember? However, if you normally keep your phone on at work, then do that. Whatever method works for you to minimize distractions when you’re at the office, employ the same strategies when you’re at home. You can give in to all the tantalizing distractions after you’ve accomplished your work for the day. Luckily for you, there’s no commute to take into account.

What are some tips you have for working at home? Let me know in the comments. As always, if you need any writing help, reach out. I’m here.