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Welcome, welcome to episode 79 of Teachers in Business. I am Sara Torpey, I am so glad you're here, this podcast is for you, if you are a teacher, a helper, a giver, someone who loves on other people and wants to fix the world and also make money while you're doing it, doing your own thing your own way. So today, we're going to talk about what to do when your messaging feels murky. This is something that clients come to me with all the time, you know, that I feel myself that I hear about in my free Facebook group, which is called Teachers in  Business also, which you should come join if you haven't. And, and I think there are some pretty simple things that we can do, when we feel like our messaging is murky to help, you know, wipe away the mud, you know, it's, it's like swimming in lake water versus the crystal blue Caribbean ocean kind of thing. You know, what we can do is sort of sift away the mud and the goop to get to a place where like, oh, you know, that feels better. The thing about it is, often we make it harder on ourselves than it has to be to get this kind of clarity. So today, I'm going to share with you a couple of my favorite ways to clear away in the mind. And and hopefully they'll work really well for you. Before we jump into that, what I what I want you to know is that if you're not in my free Facebook group yet, you should be it's called teachers and businesses exactly the resource you're looking for. It's got we do free trainings, they're all pinned to the top, they're there forever for you. And there are people, all kinds of people in that group, who get you in what you're doing and why you're doing it. They get that you are here to help people and serve them in that sometimes there's you feel a conflict between serving and charging, and all the things so please come join the fun. Also, you know, if you are struggling with your message with clarity, with consistency, with making things harder than they need to be, what I do as a business coach is I help people simplify all the things. We simplify messaging and marketing, we simplify running a business, we simplify being nice to ourselves, we simplify your to do list and the things that matter for you to be successful. It can all be simpler, I promise, I promise, I see it every day in my clients and myself. And it is a practice coaching really makes a difference. And it's here for you if you're ready for it, you just have to send a message in Facebook or LinkedIn and book a time to talk. So what I have for you today about when messaging feels murky is is essentially four strategies. So one of the things that I teach my clients to do is to create a chart. This is like a three column chart. So picture three columns on a sheet of paper. One of the things I have them do when they're like well, but I don't know how I help people, you know, you've said this, you're like, well, but I don't know exactly what I do for people, I don't know how what I solve for them, I don't know how I'm valuable to them. If you're having one of those crises, this is for you. So you're gonna make a chart, it's got three columns, and the first column, you're gonna write down what the problem is that they're coming to you with. So like, I did this with a couple of clients in my small group program a couple of weeks ago, because everybody was like, well, but I'm not exactly sure what's happening and who I do what for. So what we did in small group coaching, which you are welcome to join when the next round kicks off in October is we made charts, we did it for everybody. It was really interesting to watch them play off of each other and go like, Oh, yeah, that's another way I help people. But for example, one of the clients in that group helps people navigate social media, and she consults to people with their social media. And one of the first things on her list is that people come to her because they say, you know, I don't know what to say on social media. So that's the problem they bring to her. The second column is how she helps them solve that problem i sentences I help them solve this problem by right so she helps them solve the problem by helping to pull out of them the ideas that they have, like their stories, their posts, their work that they do things that they've done for previous clients, like you know, she's helps them just simply articulated. And then the third column is the way we do this together. It's like how we do this work. So for me for example, I have client Hands come to me all the time. And they say the problem is they're inconsistent. They say, You know what I know what I need to do, I just can't do it consistently. I help them, figure out why consistency isn't working for them. I help them structure consistency and their time and work and to do lists in the things that are vital in their businesses so that they can be consistent we enable consistency, in the way we do this together is one on one or small group coaching. Like that's this chart for me. So you can think of it in three columns. And listen, if you can't picture this, after the podcast, after you're done listening, send me a message to my email or on Facebook, come to my websites, fill out the contact form, come to LinkedIn, whatever, and send me a message and say, like, I don't really understand the chart, can you show me a picture? And I'm happy to. So that is strategy number one. The reason that this works is because what you do is then articulate exactly why people come to you, like think a person at a time, like why did they what how did I help them? What did we actually do together? What did it help them to solve for? And how did we do this work, it helps you like get all the ideas out, to articulate you know, that you do know what you're doing. And then it gives you stuff to talk about. And that's not murky at all your storytelling at that point. So the second strategy that I think is really effective, I know, at least for me, is to find a partner in crime that you can just talk through it with, you know, part of what I do in coaching is this, like, I'm a paid partner in crime. But I think that it is useful to talk through what you think your current messaging is. And then to put it on paper, I use otter, oh, it's otter, like the animal.ai. As like, I can just talk into it and have it to transcribe things. I sometimes when things aren't feeling clear to me, when I feel like the message is getting murky, and I don't know what to do with it. I like tuck it into otter, and then I read it like literally, like take myself out of myself and pretend it's someone else's business and read it back and ask myself, if this makes sense. It's, it takes a little bit of time to do this to like, do the transcripting to like talk it out, to write it down to schedule time to share it with someone else. And then to be able to be like, Okay, does this actually make sense? Is it clear? If I was someone else reading this? What I understand what's on offer? Would I understand what the problem and the solution are? Would I understand, you know, how to get in touch and if it fits me, so to really come back at it, as if it's not yours and apply your critical eye, the same critical eye that you would apply for anyone else, bring that critical eye to your own writing to your own messaging, and see how you would do like think about like mud? Is this really what I mean? Is this clear? Is it easy to understand? Does it resonate? Do I feel it sometimes I read back my own stuff, and I'm like, what does this even mean? The other thing you can do is if you are posting on LinkedIn, or Facebook or something else, you can go back, you know, like six months, or even back to the last time you felt like your messaging was really on, go back to your posts, and what you were writing at that time and read them, you know, like there's nothing a wrong with reusing things or be wrong with going back and going like, Okay, what was I doing differently here, that felt clear, different than what it feels like now, like what's changed. And so like, use your own critical eye, go into research mode a little bit on yourself, and use what you've already done. If you don't think you've ever had a time where you felt super clear about your marketing messaging, you might go to posts that really resonated with people and start to go like, okay, so like, what about this connected, right? Sometimes it connects most when you're most real to you, and it's like, oh, maybe things would feel clearer if I wasn't hiding behind myself. Okay. The third strategy, I think, is sort of a piggyback on the second it is to get really specific, like, really specific, you know, for example, it's the difference between I help people simplify their business, and I help people I'm trying to my brain just is kind of blank If I had an example written down, but it's not very good. That's what happened when you take your notes in advance. Oh, I got it. It's the difference between like, I help people uncomplicate their businesses, and I help people who are sitting with their fingers over the keyboards trying to figure out what to say. And feeling lost and pulled in a million directions between all these ideas. Right, like, I help people with the To Do Lists longer than Santos scroll is different than I help people simplify, right? So can you come up with an analogy, a mental picture, a story? Something that you can tell people about what you actually do? And why it matters? That would feel clear. Like can you be very specific? Like I always imagined it like I am. This is creepy, but it's the truth. It I always imagined it like I am outside of my favorite clients house. And I am watching them struggle from outside the window. Like when I am standing outside the window of their house and watching what do I actually see? What are they doing at their desk? What are they doing at their kitchen counter? You know, what's their body language look like? What kinds of things are they doing on their computer? What kinds of things are they doing with other people? You know, what are they doing? Are they like fidgeting and stewing and tearing up paper and just staring out the window? Because they're so frustrated? Are they making? Are they do they have a million post it notes all for their desks? Because they just have too many things going on. And they can't keep track, right? I can paint that picture, which is very specific, versus I hope you uncomplicate things, right? So it's just like, can you get very specific about what you want to say and how you help people. And listen, this is hard practice. If you if this is something you want to practice, like come into my Facebook group, people practice this kind of stuff in there. Or send me a message and say like, do you mean like this? And we can talk about it? That's totally fine. I'm here to answer the questions. This is what I do. So that's strategy number three. And strategy number four is one you're gonna roll your eyes at. But it is kind of I mean, actually, this, for me has been the most work changing strategy, it has had the biggest impact, I can do all the marketing activities, I can make the charts, I can do the writing exercises, I can do all the things. But this last one was like mind boggling to me and has made such a difference. And it requires no activity on your part, besides a decision. It's actually both the least time consuming and the hardest of this set of strategies. And the strategy is this, just decide that you are being clear. I know. I know. I know. So I had somebody tell me to do this once and they were like, well, but you're walking around thinking it's murky. And what if you just decided it was clear, it was clear to the people that need to hear your message. And I was like, well, that's the biggest load of crap out there. And, and, you know, like, after some convincing, I was like, okay, okay, okay. And so I started practicing in my head and in my journal, and in my work thinking like, this is the best way I can say it right? This moment, this is as clear as it's gonna get, like, I don't know if it's totally clear, but I'm going to decide that it is clear to the right person today. Like the person who needs it, is gonna see it, and it's gonna make sense. It's gonna connect. And when I made that decision, when I started thinking that, you know, it's not murky, it's clear, actually, it's just clear to the right people, to the people I'm trying to attach to it to attract. It was like, this whole thing shifted. I felt better. People responded more to my content. People were more able to connect, and I wasn't doing anything different. Physically. I had just decided that what I was saying made sense to them. I had decided, and suddenly it did, like it was so bananas to me. But it is still true. I see clients do this. And I'll say to them, You know what, let's just pretend it is clear. Let's just work on that assumption for the next week or two. And let's see what happens and every time they're like, You know what, it feels a lot better. does. So it's amazing. It can actually be that simple. Sometimes, our marketing and our messaging isn't actually murky. It just feels like there needs to be a problem. Our brain is creating a problem. And what we can do to counter that is just decided Clear. So if you haven't tried that one out yet, I suggest you start there. Because if you're walking around telling yourself it's broken, deciding it's not broken really changes things. And really, that's four strategies for when your messaging is murky. So if you have an extra moment, please please please, for me. Take a minute to drop a review of this podcast in Apple podcasts or wherever you listen, feel free to rate us I would love your support. It helps other people find this podcast. And then you know if you have questions, if you try something and you have questions, if you try something and it works great if you try something and it falls flat, send me an email. It's sara@torpeycoaching.com or send me a message on LinkedIn or Facebook and come join the Facebook group please. You are welcome. It is called Teachers in Business but it is for teachers it is for helpers it is for givers just for all the people it is for you. So please come be a part of it. We are here for you. And with that, I will see you in two weeks because next week I'm on vacation. Have a great two weeks and I'll see you in August.