Start to Build Your Tribe

The Age of Influencers 

Now, more than ever, we are living in an age of influencers. In years past, you had to be a well-known celebrity, politician, or leader to be considered an influencer. If you were just an average Joe, nobody paid much attention to you. The path to influence usually involved years of climbing social or political ladders. Then the internet, social media, and smartphones came along and changed everything. Now, anyone can build an audience and become an influencer. You don’t have to be famous. You don’t have to be good-looking. You don’t have to have access to the halls of power. You need to know how to create content that interests people.

The beauty of the internet is that it allows people to find others like them. It makes it easier to form “tribes” around narrow shared interests. And within every tribe, there are influencers. There are running, finance, gaming, knitting, coffee, business, mental health, beauty, vegan, keto, fashion, and spirituality influencers. Name a subject, and you can be sure that there are influencers. Of course, this does create a challenge. If everyone can be an influencer, it’s much harder to stand out. It can be challenging to cut through the noise and capture the attention of others. It can be hard to build an audience when many other people try to do the same thing. In this guide, we will walk you through the what, why, and becoming an influencer. You’ll discover a step-by-step process for finding your tribe, building an audience, and even monetizing that audience.

What is an Influencer? 

Before we get into the nitty-gritty of actually becoming an influencer, let’s ensure that we’re all on the same page regarding exactly what an influencer is. An influencer has a following at a high level and can influence that following to do specific things, such as purchasing products, attending events, wearing certain clothing items, and more. Celebrities who have millions of followers on social media are influencers. But you don’t have to be Kylie Jenner or Will Smith to be considered an influencer. Depending on your niche, you can be an influencer even if you have only 1,000 followers.

There are three types of influencers:

There are three types of influencers:

1. Mega-influencers.
These are celebrities with millions of followers. These individuals can charge hundreds of thousands of dollars for sponsored posts on social media. Unless you’re a well-known actor or rock star, you probably won’t fall into this bracket.

2. Macro-influencers. These are individuals who, while not precisely celebrities, have still built up a sizeable online following. They probably have somewhere between 50,000 – 1,000,000 followers. With hard work and consistency, you can build this following.

3. Micro-influencers. These are regular people who have built up an audience in a specific niche and are known for their knowledge and expertise. Maybe they run a sizable online group or have a devoted following on YouTube. Typically, they’ll have less than 50,000 followers but more than 1,000.

Platforms for Influencers 

Most people think about influencers in terms of social media, but the reality is that there are all sorts of ways to be an influencer. If you’re able to attract a following, you can be an influencer. Some of the most common platforms are: 

 

1. Blog. Blogging is a great way to be an influencer because it allows you to share your expertise and insights in-depth. 

  • If you want to be an industry-specific influencer, blogging is a great way to go about it. 

 

2. YouTube. If you can be engaging on camera, YouTube may be the right platform for you. There are influencers on every subject on YouTube, from makeup to mental health to spreadsheets. 

 

3. Podcast. Podcasts are exploding right now, and if you can develop an exciting show that attracts a lot of listeners, brands will want to work with you. 

 

4. Social media. Social media is both a blessing and a curse when it comes to being an influencer. 

  •  It’s a blessing because there’s a low barrier to entry, and it’s easy to create content. 
  •  It’s a curse because so many people use social media, and it can be challenging to stand out.

 

5. Email. 

In recent years, there has been a resurgence in email newsletters. If you know how to build an engaged email list and write newsletters that others want to read, this can be an effective way to become an influencer. The point is if you can build a substantial following on any platform, you can become an influencer that brands want to work with. 

You don’t have to be photogenic or able to speak eloquently. If you can command people’s attention and move them to take action, you are an influencer. 

social media income

Some influencers, like popular YouTubers, have a vast audience. Others speak to a smaller, niche group, such as business influencers on LinkedIn. Some focus on being fun and entertaining. Others try to deliver valuable insights and expertise. The bottom line is that no matter who you are, you can be an influencer.

Benefits of Being an Influencer 

There are several substantial benefits associated with being an influencer. If you build up a big enough audience, you can make significant amounts of money by partnering with various brands. But even if you don’t make much money, there are still perks: 

  •  Build your reputation. If you consistently provide your audience with expertise and knowledge, you’ll develop a reputation as the go-to person in your industry. You also may get invited to speak at conferences, appear on podcasts, or do in-person workshops at companies that Attract new clients. The more you grow your reputation, the more people will want to work with you. You’ll be able to grow your business without having to hunt for new clients constantly. 

 

  •  Connect with others. As an influencer, you can authentically connect with a large number of people. You can build meaningful relationships that you wouldn’t be able to otherwise. Becoming an influencer isn’t easy, and it takes a significant amount of work. But it pays off in the long run. Whether you want to become a full-time influencer or boost your career, it’s definitely worth the time and effort required. 
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Shaunna Leclair LapTop Rebel

How to Kill Your Distractions

You know the feeling. You’ve prepped yourself to buckle down and start crossing things off your to-do list. It’s a mile long, and it just keeps growing. You’re finally in the right mindset, and you’re ready to fly. You’re entirely geared up to knock out your list, and you’re 100% prepared for that feeling of relief and satisfaction you’ll have at the end of a full productive day.

Then the phone buzzes — it’s a text message—your laptop dings with a new e-mail. Your phone lights up with a new Slack message. An employee walks into your office with an important question. Your phone rings – it’s a non-work-related call. It would help if you had a cup of coffee. You have to use the bathroom. You’re starting to get hungry. Before you know it, the whole morning is blown, and you don’t have anything to show for it.

Unfortunately, distractions are one of the leading killers of productivity. You have things coming at you, and many of them are keeping you from focusing on what truly matters. While you’re busy with these distractions, you’re not accomplishing anything. So how can you eliminate these distractions and get to the most important stuff?

Here are 5 tips to get rid of the distractions and get back on track.

Tip #1: Make Plans the Night Before 

 

Making plans the day before can be a beneficial trick to help you stay focused on the following day. You don’t have to plan out every decision but make choices about simple things that might be distractions during the day. For example: 

 

● What you’ll wear for the day 

● What lunch you’ll eat 

● The way you’ll get to work.

 

When you’re tired in the morning, these decisions will probably be harder to make and can easily occupy your thought processes. You can also set a rough schedule for yourself. For example, you may decide that you won’t check your e-mail or answer text messages until you’ve completed two essential tasks. From 8 a.m. to 10 a.m., you’ll focus solely on a specific project. 

Tip #2: Cut Out Social Media

 

It’s now estimated that people are spending 2 hours and 22 minutes a day on social media. That’s a great start if you’re trying to reach customers, but a terrible one for productivity. Yes, social media can be a necessary resource for marketing and sales, but:

 

● Constantly checking your personal notifications 

● Taking the time to respond to various rants 

● Endlessly scrolling through pictures on Instagram 

 

Isn’t going to help your business. Social media is a black hole and a significant time suck. Notifications, and social media in general, can be incredibly addictive. 

 

Here are some strategies to help you manage your social media time: 

 

● Set a schedule for when you’ll go on social media – for example, between 10 – 11 a.m. and 4 – 5 p.m. 

● Use built-in tools like “iOS Screen Time” and “Android Digital Wellbeing” to monitor or restrict social media use on your phone. 

● Turn off all non-business-related notifications, so you’re not feeling the constant pull of “dings” distracting you. 

 

Use your business social media accounts to engage with real customers, tweet about your newest products and most beautiful pictures. After that, put your phone away and focus on your other tasks. 

 

Tip #3: Create Boundaries 

 

On any given workday, you’ll have to field essential calls. There may be some lines of communication that are necessary to your workday, but there are others that can be set aside. Give yourself periods during your day when you don’t check your phone, e-mails, or Slack messages. Some entrepreneurs choose the early morning to return e-mails and engage with customers on social media. Others choose to focus on their list of tasks before creating new jobs introduced by outside messages. Choose the rhythm that works best for you but ensure that you stick to it. It’s vitally important to set times of the day when you’re not in constant contact with outside interruptions. 

 

If possible, it’s also a good plan to leave at least one day a week when you’re not scheduled for a meeting. This can give you a free day to complete tasks and stay productive. 

Tip #4: Create a Productive Space 

 

If you’re working at home or in an office, it’s crucial to create a space where you can feel productive. Productivity produces productivity. In other words, if you were effective in a particular room, your brain will want to be productive there again. You’ll find and associate that place with the good feeling that you had the last time you were able to crush it at work. 

 

Likewise, if you have a specific space that you associate with entertainment — perhaps the living room where the TV is — you’ll want to do those fun things when you’re there. Keep your fun places, and your workplaces separate and make your workspace conducive for work. If you want your workplace to promote work, keep it tidy. A cluttered or messy space will distract you. Even if you don’t feel like you have to clean it up, the disorganization will keep you from getting to your tasks. Keep your workplace simple and easy to maintain, and ensure that it has a door so you can shut out distractions when necessary. 

Tip #5: It Can’t All Be Work 

 

While there are a few successful individuals who are truly all work and no play, most human beings aren’t geared that way. We’re not meant to be. Psychiatrist Stuart Brown, the founder of the National Play Institute, understands the importance of taking time to play. In his book Play: How It Shapes the Brain, Opens the Imagination, and Invigorates the Soul, he writes, “The truth is that play seems to be one of the most advanced methods nature has invented to allow a complex brain to create itself.” 

 

Play opens up a person for creativity and relieves us of our heavy workloads. Some workplaces like Google even have built-in areas at work for play. These spaces are meant to foster creativity and reduce stress in the workplace. Dr. Brown also explains in his book: “…there is a kind of magic in play. What might seem like a frivolous or even childish pursuit is ultimately beneficial. paradoxically, a little bit of “nonproductive” activity can make one enormously more productive and invigorated in other aspects of life.” 

golf

1. Make work enjoyable. Find ways to make the things you do at work pleasurable and exciting as opposed to drudgery work.

2. Plan to have breaks during the day. Walk around the building, eat a good lunch, or take a coffee break.

● It may seem like these things are distractions on their own, but when coupled with more intense work sessions, they are simply something to work forward to.

3. Choose a quitting time. Choose a part of the day to set aside work and be finished. It’s imperative to have time set aside in the day to give attention to friends and family.

● It’s also essential to enjoy relaxation, play, and leisure. This gives you time to bounce back from the workday and start fresh the next day.

4. Take a vacation—plan for certain times of the year to be non-work times. Enjoy your relationships with others and find ways to have fun. Set aside the phones, e-mails, and messages and focus on the other things in life that matter to you. You may never be able to cut out all distractions, but limiting them can significantly enhance your chances of success. Reduce social media, limit communication, and make time for play, and you’ll soon see that your productive periods are a lot more successful.

12 Highly Effective Ways to Make Money Online

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Click on the R to check out 12 Highly Effective Ways to Make Money Online!

1. Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing is a fantastic way to get started making money online. You can get started with it right away. Essentially, affiliate marketing works like this:

● You promote an online product or service created by someone else.
● If some purchases a product or service through your promotion, you get a commission or portion of the sale. Typically, you promote the online product through a unique link that is connected to you. That way, the company knows that the sale came through your promotion.

You might be thinking, This sounds great, but how exactly do I promote these products? There are numerous ways to promote the products. Your imagination only limits you.

You can:

● Write reviews of products on your blog and include affiliate links
● Have banner ads on your website promoting the products
● Post affiliate links on social media
● Promote products to your email list

For example, you could write a blog post about the top 10 hiking shoes.
Or you could have a banner ad featuring hiking shoes on your website.
Or you could post links to deals on hiking shoes on Facebook or Twitter. Or you could let your email list know about a great deal on hiking shoes.

If you have an audience, whether that be on social media or through a website, you have the opportunity to make money through affiliate marketing. One of the reasons affiliate marketing is such a great way to make money online is that you don’t have to create any products.

You’re simply selling what someone else already created. You’re a promoter, and if someone purchases through your promotion, you make money. Creating your own products can be tremendously difficult, and affiliate marketing removes that difficulty from the equation.

The best affiliate marketers can make thousands of dollars each month through their efforts.

2. Sell Products Online

There are numerous ways to sell products online (even if you don’t manufacture one yourself). Before you can sell products online, you’ll need a website on which to sell them. If you don’t want to set up your eCommerce store, you can easily sell products on:

● eBay
● Amazon
● Etsy
● Poshmark
● Craigslist
● And many others

If you want to sell products on your website, you’ll need to go one step further and create an eCommerce website on which you can list your products and accept payments.

3. Sell Your Services on a Freelance Basis

There’s a good chance that you have
certain skills that you can sell online on a
freelance basis.
For example, are you a…
● Designer
● Writer
● Translator
● Assistant
● Bookkeeper
SEO Expert
● Voiceover Artist
● Audio Engineer
● And more
If so, then you can sell your services
online. There are literally hundreds of
thousands of businesses that need these
services and you can make good money
working for them. 

4. Become an Online Coach

This is somewhat similar to freelancing but with a bit of a different flavor. If you have significant knowledge in a particular industry or area of expertise, you can package your knowledge and sell it.

In other words, you’re selling your expertise as opposed to a product or service.

What sort of coach could you become? The options are endless.
You could be a:
● Health coach
● Life coach
● Music/vocal coach
● Finances coach
● Executive coach
● Sales coach

There are also several ways to package coaching services. You can offer:

1-on-1 coaching
Group coaching
● A course with accompanying coaching support
● Or other formats that would work for your field

5. Create Online Courses

Online courses are a fantastic way to monetize knowledge that you already have. And unlike coaching, which requires regular meetings with a small number of clients, you can sell your course to hundreds, if not thousands of people. The good news is that you can create a course around almost any subject and find people to purchase it.

For example, you can find courses on many topics, such as:

● Losing weight
● Learning to play the piano
● Painting
● Singing
● Creating a budget
● Investing in stocks
● Running
● Tennis

The list goes on and on.

To create a course, you need a platform to distribute it. There are many ways to create and distribute a course:

● You can create an email course in which all the lessons are delivered via email.
● You can build a course that’s primarily text-based and involves more reading.
● You can create a video course where you film yourself teaching.
● You can create a hybrid text/video course that features a variety of resources. You need a method for getting your lessons into the hands of your eager students.

Several platforms make it very easy to create courses, enroll students, and accept payments, such as:

● Teachable
Thinkific
● Kajabi
● TalentLMS

These platforms allow you to upload a variety of materials, including video, audio, and text.

One way to get an excellent feel for what a course should look like is to take a few courses yourself. Udemy offers thousands of classes for relatively low prices. Consider taking a few lessons in your niche for ideas about what to include in your course.

 

6. Create YouTube Videos

7. Write and Sell a Book

8. Start a Blog

9. Become a Virtual Assistant

10. Tutor People in English

11. Sell Stock Photos

12. Do Odd Jobs on TaskRabbit

Systems over Goals

You’ve probably been told that to be productive; you should set goals. Big goals. S.M.A.R.T. goals. Stretch goals. The thinking goes that to achieve anything meaningful, you need to turn it into a goal. Well… maybe. While goals can be beneficial, they aren’t always ideal.

The Problem with Goals

Goals have one big problem: they have a termination point. In other words, you’re not successful until you’ve reached your goal, and until you’ve reached the goal, you might feel like:

● You’re spinning your wheels, not going anywhere.
● You’re a failure.
● You haven’t achieved anything since the goal seems so distant.

Measuring success this way can make you feel defeated, especially if you have big, ambitious goals. For example, if you want to own a Fortune 500 company, nothing you do until you reach that goal will make you feel like you’re succeeding. You may be making incredible strides in your business, but they will fall flat compared to your hard-to-achieve goal.

Since goals have an “end,” you never feel like a success until you’ve achieved your goal. And even when you achieve your goal, you have to start all over again with the next goal. And the reality is, you might not even know what the “next” goal should be. So, you feel aimless. You know you should be seeking to accomplish something, but you’re not sure what that something should be. Even worse, you might feel like since you already accomplished your goal, you can go back to your old habits instead of pushing and growing. You lose all the forward progress that you made. It’s a setup to make you feel like a consistent failure.

The Power of Systems

There is another, better way. They’re called systems. Systems allow you to:
● Make progress on your goals every single day
● Guarantee your success
● Help you reach your milestones
● Avoid the feeling that you’re just spinning your wheels

 

goals-list

What are Systems?

Scott Adams, who you may know as the author of the famous Dilbert cartoons, wrote about systems in his book, How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big: Kind of the Story of My Life. He explained the difference between systems and goals like this: “Losing ten pounds may be a goal, while the system is learning to eat right.”

Here’s another example. Suppose your goal is to clean the house from top to bottom. You’ve spent the whole day cleaning, and you momentarily feel satisfied with what you’ve done. However, if you have no system in place, your home will quickly go into disarray shortly after that. After a few days…the dishes will overwhelm the sink, the laundry will pile up, and the floors will be a mess.

A system, on the other hand, would be a cleaning routine. Instead of cleaning the entire house in one day, you train yourself to do small tasks each day. The result is a house that’s tidy for more than a few hours. Here’s a business example:

● Goal: Generate $50,000 in revenue over the next two months.
● System: Every morning, you make three cold calls (or however many is necessary) to potential new customers.

The system ensures that you reach the end result. Using a system doesn’t mean that you have no goals. It just means that you start to focus more on the process than the final destination.

So, What’s Wrong with Goals?

 

You’ve probably been told your whole life to set lofty goals and work hard to achieve them. On its face, there’s nothing wrong with having goals. Goals can inspire, motivate, and challenge us. They give us something to look forward to and a reason to continue striving. But goals can also be rigid and unmoving.

 

Let’s imagine you’ve set a firm goal for your company. You would like to make X amount of sales by a specific date. You hustle to make those sales. You push your employees to do the same. You may make a lot of sales. But what happens when you don’t reach your goal amount? Chances are… you’ll feel like a failure. All the sales that you did make won’t bring you joy because you didn’t sell enough. You’ll feel unproductive, and you may even want to quit. What’s unfortunate about this scenario is that you may have missed many opportunities along the way. Bottom line? Being overly focused on a distant goal can easily give you tunnel vision. Your determination to complete a singular goal may have kept you from taking the time to develop a new product that could be sold for twice as much.

 

Scott Adams writes, “…if you focus on one particular goal, your odds of achieving it are better than if you have no goal. But you also miss out on opportunities that might have been far better than your goal…You are less likely to miss one opportunity with a system because you were too focused on another.

 

With a system, you are constantly scanning for any opportunity.”

Goals Limit Your Threshold for Happiness

 

The big issue with goals is that you’re so narrowed in on a future time that you aren’t happy until you hit that mark. Once you reach a goal:

 

  • The feeling of happiness will likely fade quickly.
  • You’ll then feel the need to achieve the next goal and the next.
  • You’re continually chasing something that is, at its best, fleeting.

 

Productivity expert James Clear has also written extensively about systems versus goals. In his book, Atomic Habits, he explains: “When you fall in love with the process rather than the product, you don’t have to wait to give yourself permission to be happy. You can be satisfied anytime your system is running. And a system can be successful in many different forms, not just the one you first envision.”

What Happens When You Reach Your Goal?

 

You may also realize that you have nothing else to work towards once you’ve achieved a specific goal. For example, let’s suppose you set a personal goal to run a marathon. To achieve your goal:

 

  • You forced yourself to go to the gym four times a week.
  • You went running even though you didn’t feel like it.
  • You cut things out of your diet even though you didn’t want to.

 

You worked hard, but you didn’t enjoy the process that got you there. Once you met your goal, you couldn’t stand the thought of going back to that regimented schedule. Pretty soon, you’ve abandoned your running routine, and you’ve gone back to your former lifestyle. Your muscles soften, you put the weight back on, and you can’t stand to look at your running shoes.

 

What went wrong? You were focused on the goal, but the system was unbearable. You probably started training for a marathon because you wanted to be healthier and stronger. Scott Adams explains that while you can set a goal to exercise three to four times a week on a rigid schedule if you’re not enjoying the exercise, there’s a much higher risk that you’re going to give it up. You may do it for a time, but in the long run, you’ll probably lack the willpower to continue because it feels like a punishment. Instead, he suggests choosing to be active each day to a level that feels good. In this scenario:

 

  • You’re training yourself that being active is positive.
  • You’re going to get a psychological lift from the exercise.
  • You’re slowly training your body and mind to enjoy being active as opposed to hating it.

 

You’ll naturally want to challenge yourself as you continue to enjoy being active more. Your original activity level may start with short, slow walks, but you may eventually find that you like running as well. You’ll do so because you want to and not because you’re forcing yourself.

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How Do Systems Help Entrepreneurs?

 

First and foremost, systems are much more flexible than goals. If you have a type-A personality, this shift may make you feel a little uncomfortable at first. It may feel like you’re giving up control by not focusing so much energy on a future outcome. The big question you have to ask yourself is: What happens when you shift your focus from a concrete goal to the process that gets you there? If you’re focused on the system, does that mean you’re abandoning your goals and wandering?

 

The short answer is: no. Here’s why. Suppose a sports coach chooses to focus on picking great players, developing incredible plays, and creating effective practice routines instead of winning. What would be the result? They’ll probably have a winning team. James Clear writes: “Every Olympian wants to win a gold medal. Every candidate wants to get the job. And if successful and unsuccessful people share the same goals, then the goal cannot be what differentiates the winners from the losers…The goal had always been there.

 

It was when they implemented a system of continuous minor improvements that they achieved a different outcome.” To be successful, it’s vital to understand what is working and what isn’t working in your process. Think about the things in your system that are working and the things that are not.

What does your hiring process look like?

 

  • Do you have strong employees that fit your vision?
  • If not, what practices can you change to hire better employees?

 

Think about your marketing campaign and the system that drives it.

 

  • Is it working?
  • What changes can you implement in your system to reach more customers and drive more business? Now think about your products or services and the systems you have in place to support them.
  • What can you do to improve your product?
  • How can you streamline the process and make things more efficient?
  • Are your products or services testing well?
  • If not, what can you do to improve them?

 

These minor, day-to-day improvements will make you feel successful, fulfilled, and productive. Learning how to push through daily struggles will bring you confidence and happiness in a way that hard-to-reach goals never will. A system teaches you how to become better at what you do, and it dramatically develops your skill level. If something isn’t working well, you have the flexibility to change it and move on. You still have the skills you developed, but you can now use them in a new direction. That’s the gift of a system.

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