The former want to make the best decision by researching and reading reviews, weighing the pros and cons of each option, and otherwise gathering intel to make an informed decision. 

The latter want to make decisions quickly, opting out of doing research or gathering data and instead going with their gut or the first option that’s “good enough.” 

I nearly always lean towards satisficing, which is why…

I cherish recommendations.

Hearing “I loved this—you should try it” or “I think you’d really like this” is such a gift! It makes my satisficer heart sing to get the scoop from someone I trust, saving me time deliberating and/or sheepishly putting off researching a decision I want to make.

Perhaps it’s why I love giving recommendations too—I know how great they make me feel, and I want to make people feel great as well. Which brings me to some of my absolute favorite resources over the past two years:

1. Relationships: Relating better to yourself + others
2. Networking: 5-mins per day for consistent referrals, reliable leads and meaningful connections
3. Taxes: headache-free, plus warm financial advice
4. Gifts: meaningful (and easy!) gift boxes from Black creators
5. News: the most objective news source I’ve ever met
6. Admin: customized virtual assistance

From courses to gifts to news (yes, I found a news source I truly admire), I am excited to share these six recommendations. Click to the one that strikes your fancy above, or keep scrolling for an overview of them all, including pricing. Enjoy! And I hope you find them as useful as I have.

A Satisficer and Thought Leader Advisor’s Recommendations:

1. Relating better to yourself and others: Yours Truly, $480

Become your most trustworthy self.

I enrolled in Yours Truly while expecting my first child because I wanted to hone my skills at relating to other people, but more importantly to myself in the presence of other people.

There were un-had conversations I’d been avoiding, and I would find myself getting defensive, feeling resentful, or otherwise not being my “best self” around others. I wanted to invest in my own courage and ability to stay with myself when uncomfortable topics came up. Having had the privilege of Jay Moon Fields as a client for several years (you can read about her experience working with me if you want), I knew she was the perfect person to learn from—she’s a somatic educator as well as highly-sensitive and introverted, like me.

During Yours Truly I had two of the conversations I’ve been hiding from: one with a friend of twenty years, another with my parents. They were hard, but not as hard as I’d been expecting and I felt relieved and proud of myself once I had them.

From Jay’s website: “Yours Truly is a comprehensive online program that will give you the tools and understanding necessary to not just know better, but to do better.

It’s designed to help you move from cerebral to embodied living, from conditioning to realness, from self-sufficiency to sufficient self, and from untrustworthy to yourself to trustworthy to yourself.

You’ll have everything you need to have a life where you have the conviction, courage, and competence to be true to yourself and your values in your relationships and in the world.“

For a taste of Jay’s work, you can start with her free Overthinking Archetype quiz (bonus: she uses the word “bejeebers” in the quiz, and if you scroll to the end I share my own Archetype!). I also highly recommend her email list—Jay is a terrific writer.

PSST! Use the code yt-friend and you’ll get 15% off Yours Truly!

2. Growing your network strategically and sustainably: Networking That Pays, $497

The always awkward-free, 5 minute a day path to consistent referrals, reliable leads and meaningful connections.

You could say this is an “underground” program. Founder Michelle Warner doesn’t run launches for it and created it almost as a favor to colleagues and clients who needed it. I learned of it via word-of-mouth (thanks, Carol Cox!) which is pretty much the only way to hear of it. And thank goodness I did—it’s extremely valuable and I highly recommend it.

Michelle teaches a methodical, flexible, intuitive system to intentionally and strategically grow your network. You know how relationships are everything, but it’s difficult to figure out who you need to meet at in-person networking events and you can only have so many “virtual coffees” ? Me too. Enter Networking That Pays.

I enrolled in 2024 when business was slow and I wanted a sustainable system to get things moving again. I love this program and how widely applicable the approach is. Plus, Michelle hosts monthly Q&A calls which are a great place to drop in and get focused feedback from her on any sticky networking points.

From the website: “Networking That Pays is the science-backed system that I created for myself 10 years ago, and it’s how I’ve created those relationships for myself (and why in 10 years I’ve never managed to get around to having to do all those other things everyone says you have to do).”

2. Headache free taxes and financial advice: Exceptional Tax Services, $2000+

Your Business Deserves A Strong Financial Foundation

Led by Nacondra Moran, Exceptional Tax Services provides tax and bookkeeping support to small business owners in the United States. I love working with Nacondra because her combination of warmth and deep knowledge makes me feel comfortable asking questions, but also ignoring the complex tax stuff I don’t understand because I know she understands it for me.

Beyond nuts-and-bolts support during tax season, Nacondra has advised and supported me on changing my business entity, moving states, buying a home, putting away money for my child, and more. I highly HIGHLY recommend Nacondra and her team for tax support. I remember the immediate relief and delight I felt when I started working with her. Stacey Gordon, thank you for the rec!

4. Meaningful gifts that amplify Black businesses: Bifties, ~$30+

Giving B(l)ack Made Easy

I LOVE sending gifts to clients (and, well, lots of people) and I also love buying from small, independent, historically underestimated business owners. Enter Bifties, which makes buying Black effortless, meaningful and gorgeous.

I’ve worked with owner Constance for years, reaching out when it’s time to create gift boxes for clients, and she’s helped me put together really special combinations: for example one year she helped me source gifts from women business owners in Arizona (where I lived at the time). Here’s feedback from a client for that gift box:

“I gotta say, you are knocking it out of the park in my book this week…

My brother and his wife and son are visiting us this week and we’re having a really good time. We were just saying yesterday that we should have mimosas because we had champagne, but that we were going to have to buy orange juice. And then yesterday morning I went to light my favorite orange blossom candle in the kitchen and it had finally died. We went for a hike and came back to find a package from you–with a WONDERFUL orange grove candle and fun mimosa cubes–just add champagne.

I mean, really. 

My brother and his wife were quite impressed by how spot on you were with exactly what we needed to round out our experience. And my sister in law is all about Bifties now!” 

And, a note from another client after she sent me a lovely gift: “You had such a good influence on me; I searched for a day or two to find women-led or minority-led small businesses to find this one”! Talk about the ripple effect!

I’ve also sent Bifties to loved ones, and they’re always surprised and delighted by its beautiful presentation, the information in the box, and the way Constance and her team create thematic gifts for special occasions. You’re welcome for literally never having to stress about what to give someone ever again.

5. News you can trust (because it doesn’t favor a political party): Tangle, $ free+

Every day, we tackle one big debate in American politics, then summarize the best arguments we can find from the right, left, and center on that debate.

Raise your hand if you find understanding politics and global events with a shred of clarity impossible.

Me too. Which is why I am so impressed with and ardently support Tangle (I recently became a paid subscriber). From their website: “Tangle is an independent, non-partisan, subscriber-supported newsletter, read by over 135,000 people in 55+ countries across the world. Our audience is made up of conservatives, liberals, independents, and those who don’t identify with any political tribe.”

Each email I get is a deep dive into a topic that I (usually) barely understand, going over how different politically-minded people view the topic. And then my favorite part: founder and journalist Isaac Saul gives “his take” as someone who describes himself thus here: “I generally distrust authority, government agencies, and politicians, but I do believe it’s wise to consult expert opinions and advice.”

His take is simply his take (and he frequently reminds readers of this face, by doing plenty of what he calls “throat clearing” and I call “caveating”) but I find it refreshing and helpful to read a perspective that isn’t mired in liberal or conservative worldviews.

6. Virtual administrative support: Team Delegate, $ varies

We’re the answer to your administrative overwhelm.

I met Tonya Thomas (CEO of Team Delegate) in a coaching program and I liked her right away. Her deliberate approach and experience (close to 20 years in business, I believe!?) make her easy to talk and listen to. I’ve not hired administrative support through Team Delegate myself, but I have referred her to clients and heard glowing reviews. When I’m ready for more admin help, Team Delegate is the first place I’ll go.

What do you recommend?

Whether you’re a maximizer or satisficer, recommendations feel good to give and receive, and I am so thankful for a) the many clients who have recommended Medusa over the years, and b) the many services that help Medusa (and me) run.

If you try one of these resources, or have one you’d like to share with a glowing recommendation, send me a note at evaj at medusamediagroup dot com!

Bonuses

• Do ‘maximisers’ or ‘satisficers’ make better decisions?
• More recommendations: 4 Things I Learned in the Past Year by Dolly Chugh. My own recommendations were partly inspired by this list from Dolly’s Dear Good People newsletter (sign up here—it’s once a month and it’s great), and not only because I was honored to be among Dolly’s recommendations!
• Eva’s Overthinking Archetype: I’m an Analyzer! What about you?

The post Six Recommendations for Networking, Taxes, Gifts & More (from a “satisficer”) appeared first on Medusa Media Group.

“Thanks for accepting, Eva! Do you think email lists are a good way to attract new clients?”

Not only did her response ignore my message, but I could SMELL the incoming pitch. It made me want to surround myself in a castle with a moat full of alligators. It made me think, we need better rules of engagement for managing connection requests and deepening relationships. So here we go:

Rules of Engagement for Responding to LinkedIn Connection Requests:

First, I’ll go over why it’s worth having an intentional strategy for responding to connection requests on LinkedIn. Then, I’ll offer three steps for doing it well. I’ll also share how NOT to respond to connection requests, plus some miscellany that might be helpful:

• Why how you respond to connection requests matters
• Creating connection filters
• Deepening relationships on LinkedIn
  • Alternative for “high-value” relationships
• Moving the relationship off LinkedIn
• How NOT to respond to LinkedIn connection requests
• Too long, didn’t read? Get a quick summary here

If you’re an expert or thought leader—entrepreneur, academic, speaker, author, etc—you can be certain the number of connection requests you receive will grow as your platform and authority do.

Some of these requests will come from people who are obviously important or valuable to your network. But most will not be obviously anything, which gets overwhelming very quickly.

(Then you may find yourself with 47 pending connection requests side-eyeing you every time you’re on LinkedIn. You probably feel guilty / resentful / hand-tied, so you slide your eyes over to the Notifications instead—there’s never a dearth of those—and resolve that Future You/Future You’s Assistant will deal with those requests.) 

Responding to connection requests isn’t urgent—most things in networking and marketing aren’t—but they do add up and it can feel bad. Fortunately, managing your connection requests systematically will grow and deepen your network, and make you feel capable and in control, and it’s not very hard. Everyone wins! 

Why Responding to LinkedIn Connection Requests Matters

You might be thinking, Who cares? Do connection requests really need this level of consideration?

And sure, some people are unbothered by increasing connection requests. They might say yes to anyone who asks (which I don’t recommend, for reasons I explain here), they might say no to everyone they’ve never met, no harm, no foul. 

But I suspect that you, like me and like our clients, are deliberate about your network and social media use. You want to be intentional and genuine about how you build relationships with people on LinkedIn (most of whom you’ll never know personally). So when it comes to their growing number of connection requests, our clients express concerns like, 

• Should I accept requests from people I don’t know to grow my audience?
• What’s the correct (polite, customary, effective) way to respond to a connection request? 
• I don’t want to get a ton of DMs from people I don’t know well. So should I say no to anyone I’ve never met?

These concerns make sense: you don’t want to offend anyone or hurt their feelings or commit a social media faux pas. You do want to use LinkedIn effectively and properly to grow your audience, opportunities and authority. Also, your privacy matters (as it should!) and you don’t want to overwhelm yourself.

As with most (all?) questions related to marketing, networking, audience growth etc., the answer to the questions above is “it depends.” It depends on your comfort level, your goals, how you want to use LinkedIn, your business/career model, and more. So let’s touch on that briefly, then get into the brass tacks, nuts and bolts:

Why do you use LinkedIn?

I’m not going to exhaust either one of us with a litany of reasons to you might use LinkedIn. Instead, I’m making an educated guess that you’re using LinkedIn as part of your thought leader ecosystem, to:

• Build a network of professionals for partnerships, referrals, opportunities, education, and to talk shop, and/or
• Grow an audience of highly engaged, eager-to-buy, and ready to refer people who never miss your emails, podcast episodes, webinars, and/or
• Share your articles, insights, posts, research to become a known authority in your field, and/or
• Make your book accessible during launch season

You want a healthy network and audience, authoritative presence, and to share your authorship if-and-when it’s book launch season. Great! If the main action is “Follow” on your LinkedIn profile already, anyone can easily click to follow you—perfect.

But as your platform grows more and more people will send you connection requests, and fewer and fewer of them will be people you know personally. Given the goals above, it makes sense to be strategic about accepting those requests: it’s not helpful for literally everyone to be your connection (there’s a limit!) nor does it help to reject every request from a semi-stranger—that would limit your growth.

So what do you need to simply and easily DECIDE if the juice is worth the squeeze, AKA which requests make sense to accept? A filter.

Step 1. Create a Connection Request Filter

A connection request filter is a set of clear criteria that’s simple to follow to decide whether it makes sense to accept or reject a request.

CAVEAT: it also has to be easy for someone who isn’t you to follow, so you can delegate this task. In other words, your criteria can’t rely on your intuition or mood, because you can’t delegate those (sigh).

As an example, here’s my filter. A request needs to met at least two of these criteria for a team member to know to accept their request:  

• Are they relevant to my work? (i.e. do they fit the profile of a likely future client or potential colleague in the same or a related field?
• Do we have connections in common?
• Have they sent a message explaining their request?
• (Other criteria might be: do we work at the same company? Are they affiliated with my university? Are we in the same field/role?)

A connection who meets none of the criteria is almost always a clear “NOPE” (see below for exceptions*). Same with connections who meet only one criteria—for example, they might send a message that is clearly generic, or we might have nothing but one connection in common.

As for those who DO meet two criteria, what’s next after you accept their connection request? Deepening the relationship.

Step 2. Deepen the relationship

The point of LinkedIn is to build your network, grow your audience, and share your authority—in other words, it’s about relationships, and an accepted connection request does not a relationship build.

Deepening the relationship with a new connection requires acting on it, which puts you in the driver’s seat of how that relationship might grow. I have a simple way I act on new connections (that I’m not already acquainted with), and it’s sending them this short DM:

“Hey NAME, it’s nice to be connected! [if applicable: I see we have some good people in common.] What prompted you to reach out?

I like this low-ball opening gambit because it’s easy for them to answer, and it gives me useful information:

• Did someone mention me to them?
• Did they find me by searching?
• Did they see a post of mine?

Their answer to this question helps me know how to deepen the relationship.

(I used to respond to qualified connections with a Roundtable invitation, which REALLY helped deepen the relationship. I’ve paused those for now [I write this in 2024, after a 7 month maternity leave and during a cross-country move]. I may do them again someday, but with a vetting process so I have more control over the people who join and the quality of conversations we can have.)

BONUS TIP: if you use a tool like Text Expander, deepening the relationship with a DM like mine is even easier for you or your assistant.

Optional Step 2.5 “High-value” relationships

Another powerful opening gambit comes from my friend, fractional CRO Talica Davies. It’s great to use if the connection request comes from someone who is likely of “high value” to your goals.

NOW LISTEN: this is not a judgment call on anyone’s personhood. Every individual is intrinsically “high value”. However, certain people are going to be strong candidates as prospective clients, referral partners, opportunity-sharers, etc. When that’s the case, it makes sense to put extra effort into your opening gambit: take a look at their profile and recent posts. If you see something you like, comment on it. Then send a message like this one:

“Hey NAME, I really liked [this article/post/thing on your profile], and I’m curious to learn more about you and your work. Where do you suggest I start?”

I’d be flattered to receive such a message—wouldn’t you? Who wouldn’t respond favorably to that!?

It’s straightforward and curious, and it lets you quickly get the right information to discover if you’re correct about how you might work with them.

(BTW, when Talica shared this with me, I realized I didn’t have an easy way to answer this question. Send them to my website? Too broad. To my email list? Too soon. Our Work with Medusa inquiry form? Too presumptuous. A virtual coffee link? No way rosé—I can barely stand receiving those, but that’s a rant for another time.) 

Fortunately I was already working on Medusa’s Capabilities Deck, which how I’ll answer this going forward.

Step 3. Move the relationship off LinkedIn

Remember that scene in Season 7, Episode 12 of Mad Men, when Joan picks up the photo of her son and her Rolodex, and walks out of McCann Erickson? Contact information is currency.

LinkedIn is an amazing tool for connecting and corresponding—people are right there and accessible! But we don’t have control of that access—Microsoft does. That’s why you’ll want to take the relationship off LinkedIn and into your metaphorical Rolodex as soon as possible: your contact list or email list.

There are myriad ways to do so, from inviting the connection to do something (attend an event or download a resource), to using tools like these to add their contact info to a spreadsheet.

Finally: How NOT to respond to LinkedIn connection requests:

You can do whatever you want, but if you’re in this to build your network, grow your audience, establish your authority and sell a book, I DO NOT recommend the following:

Don’t say “yes” to everyone

I had a client once who, in the early years of using LinkedIn and growing her platform, accepted every. single. connection. request. she. received. (This was before LinkedIn had the “Follow” feature.)

She learned the hard way that LinkedIn has a connection limit of 30 thousand. She’d long since hit that number (she’s a well-known figure) and had to have her assistant manually delete old connections to make room for new ones.

Another reason not to say “yes” to everyone, including those of us who don’t want anyone to feel rejected? Social media strategist Sharonda Jackson put it this way: “It’s okay to be picky about who’s in your community.”

Don’t immediately ask a leading question or send a pitch

Leading questions like the one I got (“Do you think email lists are a good way to attract new clients?”) and straight-up pitches do the opposite of build connection—they turn people off. Small talk and flirtation exist for a reason.

Don’t invite everyone to a virtual coffee

Potentially unpopular opinion alert: people I know and respect swear by the “let’s meet for a virtual coffee” or “let’s have a 5-minute phone call” technique for new connections, but I do not care for it.

Time is a precious asset, and the women I work with have to manage theirs very carefully. And while I appreciate the spirit with which it’s intended—it’s generous to offer to share your time—it’s a BIG ask, especially of someone who doesn’t know you yet and likely has many priorities competing for their attention.

TL;DR

1. If you use LinkedIn to build your audience, grow your network, establish your expertise or sell your book, then you’ll need a strategy to respond to a growing number of connection requests.
2. First, create a filter that you (or a team member) can easily use to determine if a connection request is a “yes” or a “no”. See examples here.
3. Send the connection requests you accept a DM to deepen the relationship. I like to say, “Hey NAME, it’s nice to be connected! [if applicable: I see we have some good people in common.] What prompted you to reach out?”
4. Finally, move the relationship off LinkedIn (where Microsoft owns the contact information) as soon as you can.
5. Oh, and here’s what not to do in response to connection requests!

Generate Leads with an Effective and Enticing LinkedIn Profile

Connection requests come through your LinkedIn profile, and speaking of which…

A few simple tweaks take your LinkedIn profile from eh to excellent—the kind of profile that pulls its own weight. In this short, free e-course I guide you to make simple updates to your profile so it effectively generates leads and opportunities and grows your network strategically.

Check it out here: Generate Leads with an Effective and Enticing LinkedIn Profile.

The post Respond to LinkedIn Connection Requests: a Guide for Experts and Thought Leaders appeared first on Medusa Media Group.

I enjoyed the heck out of my maternity leave… and it feels great to be back at Medusa Media!

Our clients achieved some terrific personal and professional wins in 2023 and I’m thrilled to share them with you. Think:

• A Wall Street Journal bestselling book
• A submitted manuscript
• Over 500% growth in LinkedIn followers
  

I’m also excited to work with a new cohort of thought leaders in our signature program, Exponential Influence. If you’re ready to grow your audience, authority, revenues and impact, I’d love to work with you. Details on page 3.

A break is a wonderful thing for the mind and body. Several of our clients took sabbaticals this year. How I prepped for mine is on page 8.

To an energizing New Year . Yours,

– Eva and the Medusa team

PS For the PDF-version of this report, go here.

Exponential Influence

The struggle is real: lost opportunities for income and impact, overwhelm from all the marketing options, feeling stuck on where to focus your thought leadership.

The system is the solution.

That’s why clients come to us: to create a simple, repeatable system that leverages their network and content for growth, income, & authority.

Exponential Influence helps you develop that system—we call it your eco-system—by strengthening your core ideology and distribution process.

You’ll walk away with more authority in the marketplace, new opportunities to earn, accelerated audience growth, greater confidence and team capacity. Clients include keynote speakers, professors, founders, consultants, authors, and more.

We begin on February 29th, and I’d love to have you join us. Secure your seat, and I’ll see you on the inside.

Her Words

Professor and author Dolly Chugh:

“Thought leadership, especially social media, used to drain me completely. But since completing Exponential Influence, I see a different way forward. Eva showed me and my team a more intentional, steady approach that feels right for how I want to put myself out there—it’s sustainable and genuine.

Over the weeks we worked together the changes were subtle, but like a ton of feathers adding up, by the end my entire philosophy and approach had completely changed for the better. If you’re feeling overwhelmed like I was, working with Medusa is a must. Eva’s teaching is powerful.”

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

“Quick Confidence” was a WSJ bestseller!

Selena Rezvani did a beautiful job leveraging her network to boost bulk orders. We also collaborated on leveraging her 100k-strong LinkedIn newsletter audience and email audience. It worked!

Congratulations, Selena, on this dream come true. You did it!

In other book news, speaker, researcher and forthcoming author Kandi Wiens submitted the manuscript for “BURNOUT IMMUNITY: How Emotional Intelligence Can Help You Build Resilience and Heal Your Relationship with Work.” We’re thrilled to work with Kandi to launch her book, which comes out on April 23rd. It’s now available for pre-order!

Author and speaker Amy Gallo’s ideas were highlighted in a “Big Think” video:

Professor and author Dolly Chugh’s book “A More Just Future“ captivated audiences on big stages, including SXSW. Dolly was also featured on many podcasts, including Dr. Phil’s “Phil in the Blanks,” where Dr. Phil praised her work, stating, “This book should be required reading.”

Thought Leader Roundup

• Selena Rezvani was featured on the TODAY show and interviewed by Washington Post and Bloomberg about her creator journey.

• Author and speaker Charlene Li’s LinkedIn Learning course, Generative AI and Workplace Transformation, debuted.

• Somatic educator Jay Moon Fields’ signature program Yours Truly is now evergreen! Jay’s 4th LinkedIn Learning course, Learning to Prioritize and Express Your Needs at Work debuted.

• Leadership consultant Aiko Bethea and the RARE Coaching and Consulting team debuted their LinkedIn newsletter, Street Lights.
  
• Amy Gallo and Kandi Wiens will be speaking at SXSW 2024.

• Executive coach Muriel Wilkens hosted two seasons of her popular podcast, Coaching Real Leaders.

• Has Cynicism Infected Your Organization? and Stop Overworking After Vacation by Kandi Wiens were published by Harvard Business Review.

• I cared too much about my job and landed in the ER. Here’s how to spot the red flags of ‘overcaring’ by Executive Coach Teresa Vozza was published by Fast Company.

SUCCESSESS AND MILESTONES

Melina Cordero, DEI advisor and founder of P20, says:

“I had posts featured by the LinkedIn News team 3 times in 2023, each one generating a big spike in engagement and followers. I definitely attribute that to the strategies and consistency Medusa trained me on!

On another note, I had a random LinkedIn post go my-version of “viral” with 32k impressions. It was a post of a blog I wrote almost 2 years ago which I was recycling. I followed Medusa’s learnings and BOOM! How wild is that?”

Speaking of viral, Amy’s LinkedIn post “Women are held back at work due to 30 biases out of their control, says new study” earned over 100k impressions, 866 likes, 51 comments, and 123 shares.

On Sabbatical:

• Amy: “I had my biggest revenue year yet – while taking 4 months off!”

• Jay: “I took a sabbatical/family medical leave for the last four months of 2023. I’ve worked very hard over the years to build a business that can sustain me even if I need to take a break. I’ve built that business, and I need that break.”

• During her academic sabbatical, Dolly explored two new spaces— documentary filmmaking and improv theater—showcasing her “semi-bold” willingness to explore new avenues of non-fiction storytelling and science communication.

5 million and 10k:

• Dolly’s TED Talk How to Let Go of Being a ‘Good’ Person — and Become a Better Person crossed over 5 million views, further solidifying her impact globally.
• Through her popular email newsletter Dear Good People, Dolly connects with over 10,000 readers monthly, with zeitgeist-y, evidence- based and action oriented tips.

Elaine Lin Hering, speaker, facilitator, and author “Unlearning Silence” says,

“I continue to use the approaches you taught me about LinkedIn and am approaching 8k followers. I also found a rhythm with the newsletter that feels good and sustainable, and recently crossed a big subscriber milestone. It still boggles my mind that people beyond ’everyone I know’ want to hear what I have to say. Thank you for getting me started on both those ventures.”

Elaine’s book is available for pre-order!

Achievements and Awards:

• Dolly was promoted to Full Professor and remains Jacob B. Melnick Term Professor at NYU Stern.

• Amy was shortlisted for the Thinkers50 Talent Award.

• Selena was awarded Thinkers50 Radar, named a LinkedIn Top Voice, and earned the title of Premier Expert on Self-Advocacy at Work by Forbes.

IMPACTING OTHERS

• Dolly remains involved with the NYU Prison Education Program as well as the High Mountain Institute. And thanks to Exponential Influence with Eva and Medusa Media, Dolly’s thought leadership on LinkedIn continues to grow.

• Kandi delivered 6 keynotes and facilitated 27 workshops helping professionals lead with resilience and develop burnout immunity.

• Jay shared her talk “What Thought You Here Won’t Get You There: When Smart Isn’t Enough)” at the 15 Seconds Festival in Graz, Austria.

• Amy says, “One of my favorite audiences was a group of staff from the National Health Service in Belfast!”
  
• Bias disruptor and speaker Stacey Gordon’s company debuted Unconscious Inclusion: the Work Beyond the Workshop: “Unconscious Inclusion is an all-encompassing, neuroscience-backed program that delivers meaningful cultural trans-formation. It’s not just about awareness; it’s about action, evolution and sustainable change.” All participants receive a DEI Professional Certificate upon completion, and HR professionals receive 13 CEU’s.

HIGHLIGHTS

I share how I planned my sabbatical, including what I had to build, let go, and risks. My time off was for maternity leave, but how I planned it applies to anyone taking an extended leave from self-employment. Read about my sabbatical >>

Features

What is the curse of knowledge? [11:26] Why are “non-consensual coaching” (and unsolicited advice) my pet peeves? [18:37] These are some of my favorite topics which Jessica Fearnley and I cover in this episode! Listen to Seven Figure Consultant >>

If you read others’ content and think, “Yeah but…”, that’s the sign of a hot idea! In this episode, I explain how to develop your thought leader ecosystem. Diane Mayor and I also go over: What exactly thought leadership is, how it differs from content marketing, and more. Listen to Coffee and Converse >>

1% OF PROFITS

We donated 1% of our profits in Q2-4 to Black Feminist Fund—one of a kind funding focused on supporting Black feminist movements that are fighting against systems of oppression and building another world that is affirming of Black women and gender expansive people. Thanks to Ellen McGirt for sharing about this organization.

The post Client Impact Report: Q2-Q4 2023 appeared first on Medusa Media Group.

If you do, the soil gets depleted and the crops fail. Instead, you need to rotate your crops and occasionally let your fields lay fallow. This gives your land a chance to rest and replenish. 

Isn’t that lovely? Sensible? Doesn’t it feel… right?

Yet that’s not a rhythm that we’re encouraged to follow culturally. For myriad reasons (outside the scope of this writing), we’re instead encouraged to go go go go GO. Keep producing, building, advancing until you retire. 

Harder Better Faster Stronger by Daft Punk says nothing about resting or replenishing. After all, you can “sleep when you’re dead.” 

I object to that sentiment. I bet you do, too. I bet you know and can feel how important it is to rest and replenish, to take breaks, to follow a cyclical ebb and flow with your work and life, rather than pursue relentlessly-paced forward motion. With that in mind…

I’m taking a sabbatical for the rest of 2023. 

I’ll be off work until January 2024. While I’m away, I’ll be learning how to parent a brand-new baby, whom we’re expecting in mid-June. 

The timing of my sabbatical coincides with having my first baby, yes, but this break-from-work has been a long time coming. And whether you foresee a caregiving leave or would like to plan a sabbatical for any host of other excellent reasons, today I’m sharing how I planned this break, what I’ve had to let go, and what will (temporarily) change while I’m gone.

1. Create Redundancy

I’ve known for some time that I wanted to take an extended leave from work. I also knew that I didn’t want to halt my entire business (and income) to take leave. 

So it was clear I needed to build internal capacity in the business if I wanted to take sabbatical. I needed to train other people to do all or most of my responsibilities, so I could take time off and the business would run without me. 

That process has been equal parts gratifying, humbling, frustrating, and ego-checking. 

It’s been gratifying to have other people take the reins on projects and responsibilities. When you work for yourself, you typically start by doing everything. It’s a mental and scheduling relief to share those responsibilities with other people. 

It’s been frustrating to discover that training others on my methods requires painstakingly clear communication, time, repetition, and patience. Anyone who’s trained anyone knows this already, but it was new to me!

I’d built many “processes” within Medusa that were held together with chewing gum and Scotch tape, plus my wits, memory, and ability to make fast decisions. This is a recipe for chaos when it’s time to train other people, so I’ve had to slow down, document my processes, and entrust them to people who aren’t me. 

Lastly, it’s been humbling and ego-checking to recognize that… I’m not that special. Other people are equally capable — if not more capable! — of doing everything at Medusa that I do.

This sent me into a brief and necessary identity crisis: If I’m not uniquely capable of doing XYZ for our clients/the business, then what am I good for? Why do I matter? The invitation amid this discomfort and growth is to discover what my ultimate zone of joy/genius is, and it’s a work-in-progress.

2. Determine what matters 

As I began preparing for my sabbatical, I created a HUGE list of projects I wanted to complete, both before my leave started and for my team to work on while I was away.

Did I mention it was a HUGE list? As my sabbatical start date drew closer, I realized that not only was my list enormous, but it was largely unnecessary. 

This sparked an important eureka moment about priority and focus. It made me realize I/we needed a filter to determine if projects and tasks are fundamental or nice-to-have. Our filter involves four simple questions:

• Is it related to client retention?
• Is it related to sales?
• Is it related to the foundation of the business?
• Is it related to our impact? 

If not, it’s almost guaranteed to be a nice-to-have. For example, I wanted Medusa’s team to review all our old thought leadership blog posts to update imagery, social media posts, and internal links but:

• Was it related to client retention? Nope
• Was it related to sales? Not directly
• Was it related to the foundation of the business? Sort of…
• Was it related to our impact? Sort of…

It would be nice to have our blog posts optimized, but a pass through this filter made me realize it’s not something that will make a substantial difference in our business. For the sake of focus and priority, not to mention simplicity, it makes sense to let this project go. Speaking of…

3. Let go

Woof, letting go. It feels good to have done, but it’s dang hard to do. 

Preparing for my sabbatical has involved multiple layers of letting go:

• Identity/ego (which I talked about above)
• Control 
• Momentum
• Opportunities 
• Growth

Control:

The Medusa team has made great strides in setting up systems and processes for our work. My least favorite part of this learning curve and experience is when we discover cracks and holes in our systems. I do what I can to work with myself and the team to patch those holes and cracks, but once my leave starts I have to let them go. I have to trust Medusa’s team to handle them.

Momentum:

I like to describe my sales strategy as “following up my face off.” I’m accustomed to a lot of forward momentum: pitching myself to podcasts, inviting clients into Medusa’s programs, following up, sending Roundtable invites, following up some more.

So far, the only person at Medusa who keeps the momentum going is me. This is one area where I have not yet created redundancy. (By the next time I take leave, I intend to have created internal capacity so others can keep up some forward momentum.) 

On the other hand, I started all this by talking about the importance of rest and fallow fields. So while it feels risky to let go of this momentum, I’m eager to see how temporarily letting it go will “prime the pump” for when I return full time to work. 

Opportunities:

Argh, opportunity cost! Fear Of Missing Out (FOMO)! I grapple with those regularly. There is an opportunity cost to taking a sabbatical. There are clients, speaking invitations, networking events and more that, by nature of not working, you’re letting go. I have faith in the open window — I know from experience and observation that new opportunities are always coming — but still! It feels counterintuitive to refuse opportunities!

Growth:

Thanks to Medusa’s team and clients, we will keep delivering superb thought leadership content on behalf of our private thought leader advisory clients while I’m away. This makes me so proud and grateful, both for Medusa’s team (and all they’ve learned), Medusa’s clients (and their trust in us), and in my past self (for building that internal capacity and forging those relationships!).

And, because I won’t be doing my job of forward momentum and sales while I’m off, the company won’t grow this year — at least not in the revenues department. In fact, I’ve chosen to take a pay cut during my sabbatical, to ensure we have plenty in our coffers. 

I’m fortunate to be able to take a pay cut. I’m married to someone with a salaried job and health insurance; I have savings that will support me; and I was able to build my savings thanks to not having debt. 

I’d prefer not to take a pay cut. I’d prefer to have a business model and internal capacity that would allow our revenue to stay steady, even while I’m off work. But, that’s not where we are right now — and it’s my job to make peace with that.

What will (temporarily) change during sabbatical

In the spirit of our filter and letting go, some of Medusa’s “regularly scheduled programming” will pause during my sabbatical. I won’t be sending weekly emails while I’m away. And I won’t be writing new blog articles, posting on LinkedIn, publishing Client Impact Reports, or working with new clients until 2024. Eek! 

Of all I’m letting go during sabbatical, no new clients and no weekly emails makes me the most nervous. They bring up fears like, am I letting you down? Will you be offended or forget about me? Be disappointed? When I start emailing again, how many of you will realize you didn’t miss me, and unsubscribe? When I start working with clients again, how many of you will have hired someone else in the meantime?

Taking a break like this flies in the face of many business and marketing best-practices (including some I agree with): consistency, proactive communication, staying “top-of-mind”. These are valid and effective. And…

I’m excited to see what opportunities and perspectives a long break reveals. After all, a fallow field gets the chance to replenish itself, soak in nutrients, and prepare for an abundant future harvest. 

(Caveat: I will send emails to my delightful email list if and when the spirit moves me! Other parents have told me they missed work while on parental leave, and I’m glad to have the option to work here and there as I desire. I also intend to send a picture of my baby to my list and you can join the list here.)

What will not change during sabbatical

We will continue serving our private thought leader clients, as mentioned above. My colleague Nicki will helm the Medusa ship while I’m away, managing client content and hosting advisory meetings. She’ll also provide details about our group programs Exponential Influence and Micro Marketing Method (Mx3), which I will be leading again in 2024. 

If you’re interested in either of those programs, check out the program pages linked above and make sure to submit your application. We’re super-early-bird enrolling qualified women in our thought leader program Exponential Influence this year, and there are some bonuses for early enrollment. Once you submit your application for either program, Nicki will reach out with details about next steps.

When I come back from sabbatical

When I return from leave in January 2024, I’m extremely excited to share original research on women and professional authority. I’m preparing this research project now, before I start sabbatical, and Medusa’s team will support it with follow up while I’m away.

I also look forward to emailing my list again, to enrolling women thought leaders in our programs, and to just… being back! I love my work and I derive so much pride and pleasure from my connections with fellow women thought leaders. I’m eager to see what new ideas and inspiration I bring to the table, after spending seven months focused on something very different from work!

I’ll conclude with the acknowledgement that I’m fortunate to be able to take a break. I’m grateful to my past self for providing me the means. Credit also goes to the many social privileges I have but didn’t earn — those too impact my ability to take leave.

I’m extremely excited and grateful, and hecking nervous. I’ve never taken a sabbatical before! I’ve never separated from my business for more than a few weeks of vacation. What will happen!? How will I feel? What new perspectives will come from this separation? What will I see when I look at my work with new eyes? 

I can’t wait to find out.

If you liked this article, share it LinkedIn! Copy/paste below:

Have you ever taken a sabbatical?

In this article, thought leader trainer and advisor @Eva Jannotta shares how she planned her sabbatical, including what she had to build, let go, and risks she had to grapple with. Eva’s sabbatical is timed for a maternity leave, but her thinking and experience applies to anyone planning an extended leave from self-employment: https://medusamediagroup.com/business/how-this-thought-leader-is-taking-sabbatical/

The post How this Thought Leader is Taking a Sabbatical appeared first on Medusa Media Group.

I write this Q1 Client Impact Report just weeks before my maternity leave (for my first child) begins. Whoa!

Of course I’m excited, and of course I’m a little nervous. To stay in touch with me and the Medusa team while I’m away, make sure you join our private email list.

Now! On to our clients:

One client’s book is out (!), another is giving a huge talk in Austria (!), still more have seen great leaps in their audience growth and incoming opportunities (!!!).

We also published an important resource about thought leadership accessibility, and are proud to donate 1% of our profits to a wonderful organization — scroll down to see both.

Wishing you good thoughts and feelings,

– Eva & the Medusa team

PS For the PDF-version of this report, go here.

Exponential Influence

I’m extremely lucky (by USA standards) to be able to take a 7 month caregiving leave after I have my first baby.

That means I’ll work with new clients again in January, 2024!

However, I am super-early-bird enrolling a handful of qualified women leaders in our signature thought leader program, Exponential Influence.

These are women who know what they want and value planning their learning and development.

Sound like you? Apply here.

In the program we work with authors, speakers, coaches, and consultants to build inner depth and outer resonance — the key components of a thriving and profitable thought leader ecosystem.

If you’re considering working with Medusa, now is a special time to begin. I’m offering unique bonuses (and the best investment price ever) to honor early enrollers. I hope you’re among them!

Recent Exponential Influence members include:

Dolly Chugh

• NYU Stern professor, author of two acclaimed books and creator of the popular “Dear Good People” newsletter. (Dolly’s assistant Anna McMullen is also pictured below!)

Maryam Kouchaki

• Kellogg School of Management professor and organizational psychologist

Simone Ahuja

• Keynote Speaker, bestselling author of two books, and global authority on innovation and intrapreneurship.

Thought Leadership

Selena Rezvani launches a book and is named among LinkedIn’s Top Voices

Quick Confidence: Be Authentic, Boost Connections, and Make Bold Bets on Yourself by leadership and self-advocacy expert Selena Rezvani is out!

You can support Selena’s dream of making this book a bestseller by ordering your copy today!

Bestseller lists tend to be overwhelmingly male and white. Getting Quick Confidence on such a list would be an achievement for Selena, and a powerful symbol to anyone who’s felt like they don’t fit in due to their identities.

Selena Rezvani has also been named one of LinkedIn’s Top Voices! She shares her insights on agile growth here.

Top Voices is an invitation-only program featuring experts in a range of professional topics, to help users uncover valuable knowledge relevant to them. Congratulations on the recognition, Selena!

Jay and Amy’s highest-performing posts

Congrats to Amy Gallo for her highest-performing post since working with Medusa Media, earning over 1500 engagements: Stop Undervaluing Exceptional Women. Amy shared the article during Women’s History Month and it resonated strongly.

Somatic coach and educator Jay Fields had her highest-performing post since working with Medusa Media: Empathy is the Most Important Leadership Skill According to Research, earning 860 engagements.

Elaine Lin Hering made immediate impact

“A CEO is adding a feature to their product for reporting harassment and mis-conduct based on what I posted last night on LinkedIn.”

– Elaine Lin Hering, speaker, facilitator, and author of Unlearning Silence (2024)

Charlene Li featured on Idea of the Day

Charlene Li, a disruptive leadership expert and author, was featured by LinkedIn’s Idea of the Day for her valuable insights on how how to navigate change in uncertain times. Read her article: 2022 Reflections: Crisis, Change, and Continuous Opportunity

Congrats, Charlene!

Success & Milestones

We’re thrilled that not one but TWO of our clients made Thinkers50 Radar!

Congratulations Selena Rezvani and author and HBR editor Amy Gallo, for your dedication to delivering transformative knowledge to your communities.

Jay’s joining a big European Stage

Speaking of milestones, Jay Fields is proud to be filming her 4th course for LinkedIn Learning, and…

Prepping for her talk at Europe’s leading Future Conference, the Fifteen Seconds Festival (a prestigious event often compared to TEDx)!

Elaine and Melina’s successes on LinkedIn

I got my first client referral off LinkedIn. Here’s to thought leadership and social media monogamy in action! I’m starting to see the power of this network in action and am all for it.”

And:

“LinkedIn wins for the week so far: a leader DMed me to ask if I would be interested in being a guest on her podcast after seeing the comment I left in her thread.”

– Elaine Lin Hering

“Wow. I wanted to share that I’ve been seeing steady growth in my Linkedin follower numbers since starting your Micro Marketing Method program. Today I had a really big lead reach out ON LINKEDIN for an opportunity! Proof is in the pudding…”

And:

“Update: I’m up 50 followers… and they aren’t just ‘followers’, they’re the kind of people I want in my network and to partner with!”

– DEI advisor Melina Cordero

Stacey Gordon’s Impact Stories

Workplace culture consultant and global keynote speaker Stacey Gordon published the first edition of DEI Impact Stories.

It’s a valuable resource for starting genuine, transparent conversations about DEI, featuring five incredible organizational leaders whom Stacey has worked with through her firm, Rework Work.

JJ Jank accepted at a major speaking event

“I’m excited that my application to speak at a major California HR conference (CAHR 2023, put on by Professionals in Human Resources Association or PIHRA) was accepted!”

– Chief Brain Hacker Jennifer “JJ” Jank

Highlights from Medusa Media

Do you provide alt text on social media?

If you’re like a lot of people (including us, until recently) the answer is probably no.

That means you’re missing a critical step in making your work accessible. Not using alt text isn’t only ableist, it also limits your audience… by the millions!

In our resource learn what alt text is, why it matters, and how to include it in your thought leadership going forward:

1% of Profits

IllumiNative is a Native woman-led racial and social justice organization dedicated to increasing the visibility of—and challenging the narrative about—Native peoples. Thank you Amanda Hirsch for introducing us to this organization.

The post Client Impact Report: Q1 2023 appeared first on Medusa Media Group.

It was April 12th, 2011: Equal Pay Day in the United States. The Gender and Women’s Studies department at my university was hosting a “Pay Equity Bake Sale.” 

Here’s how it worked: Our cookies and brownies cost $1. But if you identified as a woman, you paid less. You paid the cents-to-the-dollar that women of your race/ethnic group earned in the year prior, compared to every dollar a white man earned. 

That is what “equity pricing” can look like. More than a decade later, Medusa Media Group uses an equity pricing model for the group programs that we offer to thought leaders. This article explains why. 

What Does “Equity Pricing” Mean?

We’re in a moment in history where the playing field for women is the most level it’s ever been. Women have the tools, access, and opportunities to become sought-after leaders for our work, to steer our destinies in ways most of our foremothers could scarcely imagine.

Yes, the playing field is more level. But it’s not LEVEL. 

Asian women do not have the same experience of bias and discrimination as Black women or white women. Lesbian women do not have the same experience of bias and discrimination as “straight” women. Transgender women do not have the same experience of bias and discrimination as cisgender women, and so forth.

Equity pricing materially and symbolically acknowledges that we play on an uneven field. With an equity pricing model, you pay less for a product or service if you’ve been historically marginalized because of your identities. The more historically marginalized identities you live with, the less you pay.

Where does Equity Pricing come from?

Equity pricing is based on intersectionality, a concept coined by Kimberlé Crenshaw in 1989. Intersectionality posits that our social identities impact our access to resources, life experiences, and ability to navigate the world. 

If you have multiple historically underestimated identities – say you’re Latina, female, and Jewish – intersectionality makes the case that those identites operate together, compounding the bias and discrimination you may experience from each one. (If you’re someone with multiple underestimated identities, reading this is probably a duh moment for you!) 

At the same time, some identities immunize you against bias and discrimination. White men don’t face bias or discrimination on the basis of their gender or racial identity. Women of color do. 

(This is not to say that white men or anyone with privilege don’t suffer hardship or face challenges. But people with underestimated identities often experience hardship because of their identities. John Amaechi has an excellent, two-minute explanation – watch it!)

Most of our identities are a mix of privileged and underestimated. For example, you might be heterosexual and able-bodied (privileged identities) and a woman of color and Jewish (marginalized identities) at the same time. 

It’s PAINFUL that human society is structured this way. It HURTS that we’re born into a world where some identities are considered “better” or “more valuable” than others. It sucks, but it’s true. So what can we do about it?

Equity Pricing: An Unusual (Bake sale) Experience

Let’s return to the Pay Equity Bake Sale. If you were holding a bake sale on Equal Pay Day 2022, your customers would pay for their brownies like this:

• White women would pay $0.83 
• Asian, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander women would pay $0.75
• Black women would pay $0.58
• Native American/Indigenous women would pay $0.50 
• Latina women would pay $.049
• Please see my NOTE* below

On campus, the purpose of our bake sale was to raise awareness about the gender wage gap. But, to me, another important purpose was to provide experiences where historically marginalized identities facilitate access instead of hinder it.

TO BE CLEAR: no woman of any stripe needs to buy a cookie to know that her identities are an asset. ALL identities are intrinsically worthy. Nobody needs my or anyone’s permission to know they are unique, valuable and essential. 

Yet, many women are exposed to discrimination and bias by the society and culture we live in because of their identities. It’s not right, but it’s true. 

What is less common is for these same women to experience easier access to resources and opportunities because of their historically underestimated identities. 

Now, back to the bake sale. 

A Black woman saw our sign. She walked up to our table of baked goods and asked, “what do you mean, ‘pay equity bake sale’? How does it work?”

I explained, “depending on how you identify, you’ll pay the amount members of your racial group earn, on average, for every dollar earned by a white man.”

“Huh, “ she said. “I’ve never seen that before. I’ll take a brownie.” 

Medusa Media Group Offers Equity Pricing Because:

1. I want to provide an experience where your historically marginalized identities make it easier for you to access Medusa’s group programs. 
2. I believe in reparations and that it is right and fair that groups who have experienced oppression receive material recompense.
3. It activates Medusa’s company values to materially and symbolically acknowledge the uneven playing field, and remind all clients that we’re dedicated to dismantling it.

Discover exactly how this works by watching our Equity Pricing video included in the application to join our Micro Marketing Method (Mx3) or Exponential Audience programs. 

You might be wondering, but seriously. Does offering equity pricing even make THAT big of a difference? 

It’s a good question. On the one hand, saving a few hundred bucks is saving a few hundred bucks! On the other hand, that savings is a miniscule drop in the bucket compared to the centuries of intergenerational oppression you’ve survived and inherited. 

I think equity pricing makes a small but mighty difference, and not just on your bank account but on your psyche. I like that it’s unusual and memorable, AND I like that it states, in no uncertain terms, that we take social justice and equity seriously in our work.

Because here’s what I know: 

When you enroll in one of our group programs, you’re entering a community that will never gaslight you or deny your experiences. That matters.

When you enter your credit card info to work with us, it’s more affordable because of your intersecting marginalized identities. That matters. 

When you enter my Zoom room, you can be confident that the myriad of identities you bring to the table are welcome and applauded and that you are safe and seen, exactly the way you are.

That. Fucking. Matters. 

Now. Wanna Work with Us? 

We help women entrepreneurs defy the status quo, amplify our influence and expand our wealth and power through #SlowMarketing strategy and thought leadership production. The best place to start is hopping on the waitlist for the Micro Marketing Method (Mx3). 

You can also join me (Eva, Medusa’s founder) at one of my popular Women Leaders’ Roundtables, where you can expand your network by connecting with me and three other inspiring women entrepreneurs. Please contact hellomedusamedia @ gmail . com to inquire. 

FAQs

Coming soon!

*NOTE: these are flawed categories. Generalizing about any group is futile. For example, Business Insider shows a breakdown of the wage gap among different Asian women. You’ll also notice that white women don’t have their own Equal Pay Day. Rhonda Vonshay Sharpe has more on that. Finally, there’s no category for women of Middle Eastern descent. Many Muslim women have middle eastern ancestry, and those who wear hijab likely experience additional religious discrimination. And so on and so forth.

Image by Tim Mossholder and Beth Macdonald via Unsplash. I also acknowledge my colleague Chéla Breckon, who reignited my interest in equity pricing during a Roundtable conversation.

The post Why We Offer “Equity Pricing” in our Programs for Thought Leaders appeared first on Medusa Media Group.

If I never hear these three words of advice again, it’s too soon. 

“Pick your niche” or “choose a niche” is some of the worst advice to befall women thought leaders — especially when we’re beginning to invest in and develop our body of thought leadership.

But if “choose a niche” is bad advice, then why is it pervasive?

Why does every marketer extol the virtues of niching?

Why do free PDFs, courses and workshops promise that they’ll help you pick the niche you “need” to get started? 

The problem with niching advice is that it’s nearly always incomplete, misleading and inappropriate. It causes overwhelm, mental freeze and confusion, and holds us back from trusting ourselves and voicing the strong opinions that will amplify our influence, build our exponential audience, and attract qualified leads. 

Why “Choose a Niche” Misleads (and Hurts) Women Thought Leaders

Once upon a time a coach helped me “pick my niche.” She asked me questions about my interests and what I cared about, and the difference I want to make in the world. 

Then, she “presented me” with my niche: social media marketer for sustainable clothing brands. 

Exciting, right?!

The only problem was that this niche made me profoundly uncomfortable. 

I knew nothing about selling products. Nothing about the fashion industry. While I cared about and was interested in sustainable fashion, I had zero experience. That wouldn’t necessarily disqualify me if I were excited to do that work…. 

But I wasn’t. I felt trapped. And then I felt bad, because my coach was a professional, and I’d answered her questions honestly. Why didn’t I feel the relief or excitement or clarity I’d been expecting?

Years later, I had a wholly different and deep satisfying experience when my niche came to ME.

Your niche is an evolution — not a divine intervention

It’s October, 2020. I’ve just spent ten months investing in and developing my thought leadership and experiencing its profound impacts. 

At first, I wrote about digital marketing. But I was more drawn to the creative process of thought leadership, the mindset and emotions of declaring bold opinions, and the way they build an exponential audience.

I’d been positioning myself as a “marketing lady for women entrepreneurs” for years. But in truth, marketing never felt like the right fit.

But it worked, for a while, as my proto-niche. It was an adequate starting place until a more heartfelt niche revealed itself: thought leadership consultant for women entrepreneurs.

This niche came to me slowly, unfolding over months. It made me nervous! Could I really abandon marketing? Could I really declare myself into something so specific?

I started SAYING my niche — trying it on. First, I told my coach. Then I told some colleagues. Next, I rewrote my bio and LinkedIn profile. And it felt really good, like a jacket that fits just right.  

Over the course of the following eighteen months (I want to underscore that “niching” is a long process, not something you check off your to-do list) I invested in a rebrand and in having my website completely rebuilt — which launched in February 2022. By that time, I’d refined my niche even further, to thought leadership trainer and advisor to women leaders.

(You can read more about this process in Case Study: Finding Your Niche with Eva Jannotta via my coach Eleanor Beaton of SAFI Media.)

The niche that was manufactured for me felt forced and wrong.

The niche that evolved organically over time felt exactly right. 

You Have What You Need to Create Thought Leadership – No Niche Required

It’s not that niching is bad. In fact, it’s a powerful communication tool to be explicit about what you do, and for whom. It’s not niching that’s bad, it’s niching advice — especially the three poison words, choose a niche. 

A niche is rarely something you whip out of a hat, or check off your to-do list, or that falls in your lap from divine inspiration. 

But the way niching advice is positioned, as though you can “pick” one like a flavor of ice cream, sets up a false and damaging expectation for women thought leaders: 

• It holds us back from getting started: I can’t create thought leadership until I pick my niche.
• It makes us feel broken: I can’t figure out what my niche is! What’s wrong with me?
• It keeps our thought leadership narrow and stifling: I can’t write about what piques my interest because it’s “outside my niche”

You do NOT need to “choose your niche” to create thought leadership.

Thought leadership is not the product of you having it all figured out. It’s the process by which you figure out what you believe and crucially, why. 

You already have what you need to be a thought leader, right now:

1. You already have a “proto-niche”

If you’re honest, you probably already have an idea of who you want to work with — even if it seems too broad to be a “real niche”: Women leaders. Solopreneurs. Introverts. Middle managers. Etc. 

It’s likely that you have something — or a lot of things — in common with this “proto-niche.” As the saying goes, “we teach what we need to learn,” and you want to work with people you can relate to because you’ve shared their experience. 

There’s nothing you need to “pick.” Rather, accept that what and who you’re drawn to is enough, and you don’t have to force yourself to be more specific. Then:

2. You can practice, starting now

With time and attention a refined, focused niche will emerge organically and make itself known to you — but not if you spend your time lollygagging. 

Thought leadership is a practice of discovering what you believe and communicating it. That means consistently identifying your opinions and sharing them with your audience. 

And you can’t do that while The Bachelorette is on. It takes focused action because it’s a commitment to yourself to trust and develop your thinking.

As you practice, notice the way it makes you feel: the parts that excite and entertain you; the feedback from your audience; the people who are attracted to your work and engage with it. 

THAT is the intelligence that gives rise to your unique niche.

3. Your niche will find you — again and again.

When you listen and pay attention — when you’re an avid student of yourself and your audience — your niche will make itself known. Like Ollivander says in Harry Potter, “the wand chooses the wizard” — or the niche chooses the woman thought leader and entrepreneur. 

Identifying your niche is not a one-and-done process. Your niche will evolve as you, your services, and the market change over time. That’s why “picking a niche” is forced and artificial. Niching is not an act of choosing but a revelation that will evolve as you do.

Your Niche WILL Come to You

When you commit with consistency to developing your magnetic thought leadership, a refined and focused niche will find you.

What you need to know today is this: You have everything you need to create magnetic thought leadership right now. You don’t have to wait for a niche.

You are enough. You’re qualified enough. Smart enough. Wise enough. Experienced enough. 

All you need is you: your trust and committed action and curiosity + a little time and patience = an unequivocally niched magnetic thought leader. 

Thought leadership Builds Your Exponential Audience 

Businesses thrive on relationships. And the most effective way to build highly engaged, eager-to-buy, and ready-to-refer relationships is through magnetic thought leadership.

In Exponential Audience, you’ll join an intimate group of women thought leaders (of all levels) to create thought leadership — that kind that attracts leads, clients and opportunities like a magnet. 

You’ll master the mental, emotional and practical skills you need to produce unignorable thought leadership for your business that makes you a woman of authority and influence.

No niche required. Just you and your formidable, creative, ready mind.

Join the priority notification list for Exponential Audience.

The post “Choose a Niche” is Terrible Advice for Women Thought Leaders appeared first on Medusa Media Group.

The rich, calming quiet of the forest surrounds you. It’s not silence but a deep, settled stillness. You feel the moist air on your skin. You smell the leaves and the soil and decay. You feel a grounded sense of peace and rightness for being where you are.

And then you come across a divine presence. (It’s not a burning bush.)

It’s the figure of a woman. And as she draws near you, you notice something unusual about her face: it keeps changing.

One moment it’s youthful, smooth and unlined. The next it’s older, more full. Then it’s old, wizened, twinkling, with salt-and-pepper hair.

The figure before you is the Triple Goddess.

The Triple Goddess Paradigm

The Triple Goddess archetype is (as my mom would say) “as old as the hills” and it perfectly describes the stages of creating magnetic thought leadership.

The metaphor symbolizes the three stages of a woman’s life as we age and time passes:

1. maiden,
2. mother,
3. crone.

But the metaphor is most powerful when you view it symbolically. Rather than linear, the phases are like points on a circle that you move between whether you’re sixteen or sixty-seven.

Each phase is critical in developing your magnetic thought leadership. Each phase also has an extreme side: a place we can go mentally and energetically that tips the scales into not helpful. These extremes are normal, but a sign that fear and anxiety and running the show.

So. How do thought leaders embody the Triple Goddess paradigm when we create and produce our body of work? Let’s get into it.

The Maiden Thought Leader: Creation

The maiden is Big Yes energy. She is coming of age and brimming with ideas, enthusiasm and ambition.

She is learning to be autonomous, sovereign unto herself. When I connect with this energy I feel my posture straighten, my feet widen, my shoulders tilt back, and I want to throw my arms open like I’m going to embrace the whole world.

This is the ALL THE IDEAS phase of thought leadership. Your mind moves quickly, making connections, having epiphanies, invigorated by possibilities. Your mental vision is strong: you can clearly see the impact your work will have.

Extreme Maiden

The extreme side of maiden energy is overwhelm. It’s when ALL THE IDEAS make your head spin or paralyze you with indecision — what I call Hydra Condition. 

It’s needing external validation for your thought leadership, needing approval. It’s when you try to make your thought leadership into what they (your ideal client, your heroes, your coach) want to hear instead of what you need to say. This can lead to self-censorship of your ideas.

It’s shiny object syndrome, getting distracted by something new.

Thought Leader Actions in Maiden

Maiden energy is the creation phase of drafting (which may include your MUSE draft — more on that another time), note-taking, frantic scribbles on scrap paper, rich conversations, and research.

It’s that thought that makes you strop in your tracks, whip out your phone, and open your notes app.

I often feel maiden energy early in the morning when I sit quietly by myself in A Room of My Own (metaphorically and literally). I also feel it when I’m doing something physical that lets my mind wander: walking, doing dishes, showering. The key is letting myself hear my thoughts and my mind do its magic.

From Maiden energy we often transition into Mother: cultivation.

The Mother Thought Leader: Cultivation

The phase of mother isn’t literal parenthood, but the energetic phase of cultivating and nurturing something new. You sun and water and fertilize your ideas and let them flourish.

There’s contemplation, love, compassion, even a little exasperation as your ideas morph and grow and take on a life of their own. There might be fierce protectiveness, which may cause you to keep your ideas private until they are ready for the world.

Where the maiden is becoming autonomous, mother energy is in relationship with her thought leadership, committed to seeing her creation come to fruition. When I connect with this energy I feel gentle and curious. I want to wrap my arms up and embrace myself.

Extreme Mother

The extreme side of mother energy is betrayal, because you gave so much to this damn thought leadership and it ONLY GOT TWELVE LIKES!?!?!?

It’s anger at and impatience with your work when it doesn’t have the outcome you hoped for right away. Or it can be neglect and punishment: refusing to tend to and repurpose your thought leadership over time, leading to it wither on the vine instead of bearing new fruit again and again.

It’s perfectionism, or what I call qualification-itis, making you second-guess yourself or tweak and fiddle with your thought leadership instead of letting it out into the world.

It’s urgency, trying to force your next big idea to just be done already, instead of giving it the time it needs to grow.

Thought Leader Actions in Mother

Mother energy is the phase of editing and reworking, and that includes contemplation: letting your ideas marinate and grow and develop. It’s a phase of deep listening, of taking your time, and trusting the process.

It can also be the energy of repurposing, of breathing life into an old piece of thought leadership.

From Mother energy we often transition into Crone: concede.

The Crone Thought Leader: Commitment

The crone is wise, still, steadfast energy or staying aligned with her purpose. She is committed to her service. There’s deep love and protectiveness in crone, too — but not attachment. This is a phase of unwavering trust.

You commit to your self, your service, your craft by letting your thought leadership go. You let it out into the world as well as out of your control. You let your ideas go, the ones that aren’t ripe yet or aren’t right for you anymore — you don’t overcommit. You let others build upon your thought leadership — you know it’s ultimately for them anyway.

I feel most connected to this phase in meditation. When I sit with my eyes closed and feel myself breathe, I get glimpses of that absolute trust and groundedness.

Extreme Crone

The extreme side of crone energy is resentment. Feeling forgotten, invisible, ignored for your service. It’s needing credit and recognition and accolades. Don’t they know you invented that idea? Don’t they know she stole that concept from you?

It can make us falter, feel uncertain and second-guess or even give up: what’s the point? No one pays attention to me anyway. This thought often leads to inconsistency, where thought leadership goes to die.

And then there’s self-disgust, scolding yourself for not doing better in the past, for not trying harder to have more, for not being consistent.

Thought Leader Actions in Crone

Crone energy is publishing your thought leadership with trust that it’s enough, you’re enough, and everything happens exactly on time. It’s peaceful promotion: letting your thought leadership stand on its own, helping others to access it and be changed by it.

Grief is welcome in the crone phase. Loss is inevitable, and in crone you can feel the bittersweetness of letting go the topics, niches, clients, and ideas of your past self.

There’s no force, no rush, no competition. You are in service to whatever is ready to happen. And when it does… the Maiden energy of creation will play her part.

How Thought Leaders Embody the Triple Goddess

You don’t necessarily start your thought leadership in maiden, move seamlessly to mother, and finish up in crone.

You might move through each phase multiple times. In fact, just as you experience each phase when you create an article or video or keynote, every moment and every sentence contains these phases in miniature!

That’s something else I love about this metaphor: it’s like a fractal. No matter how far you zoom in or out, you experience these phases at that scale:

• You create a sentence, cultivate it, and concede it. Perhaps you go back later and cultivate it some more. Or maybe you scrap it entirely and recreate it.

See what I mean about the fractal?

The Triple Goddess paradigm is a poignant metaphor for what thought leaders like you and me experience as we ideate, create, and publish our work.

You can invite this paradigm into your thought leadership practice further by:

1. Declaring an intention for your thought leadership time. As you sit down to work on your keynote, lead magnet, or article, make an intention to yourself about the Triple Goddess phase you’re identifying with. Is it ideation time? Writing and editing time? Or time to let go?
2. Adjusting your linear expectations. It’s tempting to self-flagellate when we don’t progress in a linear fashion. How many times have you berated yourself for not following steps from beginning to end? With the Triple Goddess paradigm, you’re always moving between phases and that’s normal. You can’t do the phases wrong. You can’t miss a step. Let your mind and ideas go where they need to go — you can trust them.
3. Noticing the extremes. When you’re paralyzed with indecision, disappointed in performance, or impatient for fame and fortune, pay attention. Identify the phase you’re in, and see if you can breathe through the extremity and bring yourself back to the supportive and creative energy of that phase.

Now take a deep breath. How does the Triple Goddess paradigm make you feel?

As you embark on creating your next piece of magnetic thought leadership, be it a podcast episode, email to your list, or Instagram post, notice these flavors of energy. Notice how your maiden, mother, and crone energies rise to support you.

Here’s what I can tell you: the Triple Goddess paradigm will give you ease and reverence for any and every stage where you find yourself. This is a process of creation. What could be more holy than that?

Come on in, Goddess

If reading this made you feel the feels, I’d love to do that on a weekly basis via email.

My email community is where I unleash my freshest thought leadership, my boldest opinions, and actionable tips to help you build an exponential audience with your thought leadership. Join the community here. You’ll quickly discover why my open rate is so dang high!

The post Triple Goddess: the Energetic Cycle of Women Thought Leaders appeared first on Medusa Media Group.

That’s what happened when the “zone of genius” became the trendiest tool in every entrepreneur’s toolbox. Lauded across articles, listicles, podcast episodes, and keynotes, you can practically see the emoji-heart-eyes when coaches and mentors rave about it.

But then.

“Zone of genius” mutated from a useful mindset shift and practice to a you-are-or-you-aren’t binary. Not working in your zone of genius? You poor lamb. Working in your zone of genius? You clever entrepreneur. You’ve got it all figured out!

3 Problems with Zone of Genius Thinking

Our obsession with the zone of genius can cause three problems for women thought leaders. It:

1. holds back our growth and progress
2. sets up unattainable expectations
3. makes us second-guess our brilliance

To be clear, there’s a lot to love about Gay Hendricks’ work and the zone of genius concept: focus on working in your superpower — the unique skills that come naturally to you — instead of what you’re merely competent or even excellent at doing.

But adulation comes with a cost. Let’s get into the cost of unmitigated zone of genius obsession to women thought leaders:

1. Growth and Progress aka “I’m too precious to do this”

It’s sneakily easy for your zone of genius to become an excuse to avoid important work. Writing thought leadership / using Kajabi / proofreading / social media isn’t in my zone of genius, you think. I’ll delegate it.

But sometimes, “isn’t in my zone of genius” is just a hashtag-able veneer over:

• Arrogance: I’m too important to do this, or
• Fear: I’m scared of being bad at this.

So you put off necessary tasks because they’re “not in your zone of genius.”

The consequences? Your audience doesn’t grow because you refuse to write about what you think. You avoid emailing your list because Kajabi is haaaard. Your engagement dwindles.

You may be performing your face off in your zone of genius, but running a thought leader business demands more of your precious self. You are the person steering this ship and steering yourself through what to do. And how. And why. It’s your responsibility to share your unique, inspired perspective. It’s your job to know what you DON’T want.

Of course you can’t do everything — you only have 168 hours per week. Some things must be delegated. You can’t delegate until you know what you want, and you can’t know that until you TRY.

You can’t be too precious to lead.

Working in your superpower is ideal, yes. But not at the expense of remembering that it’s your role — honor, even — to lead in all aspects of your business.

2. Unattainable Expectations aka “there’s no free lunch”

Apparently, your zone of genius is doing what’s most effortless for you — what comes naturally and puts you in a flow state. Something you could do forever.

The problem is: nothing is effortless.

And the idea that your zone of genius ought to be “effortless” sets up unattainable expectations — namely, that working in your genius is free lunch.

In fact you may be expending more energy when you’re in your flow state. You might lose time and be flying through the work, only to “come to” and find you’re shaking with hunger, thirsty, exhausted, and you really have to pee.

Take yours truly. The following put me in a flow state:

• Writing
• Public speaking
• Connecting 1:1 or in microcommunities

But to say “public speaking is my zone of genius” makes it sound like public speaking is always effortless, always gives me more energy, and I can do it at any time.

FALSE! Public speaking exhilarates me and drains my energy. It makes me feel vibrant and connected and makes me nervous. My words and energy flow easily and all I want to do afterwards is lay on the couch with a pillow over my eyes.

My ability to do these zone of genius activities “effortlessly” varies wildly depending on time of day, what I’ve already done, where I am in my cycle, when I last ate, etc.

Working in your zone of genius takes tremendous energy. It can fill you up and wipe you out at the same time. It’s not a free lunch.

3. Second-guessing Your Brilliance aka the word “genius”

As a kid, I remember reading about a young man who was considered a “genius.” He started at Harvard as an early teenager, and had numerous hard-to-believe capabilities. One I still recall (maybe incorrectly, as it seems impossible) was that he could look at a pile of stones and know exactly how many there were.

If that’s genius, then I’m definitely chopped liver. I once joke-complained to my sister that everything I’m really good at sounds like something you’d brag about in third grade: I’m good at making friends and reading!

She laughed, I laughed, and while I realize how valuable these skills are, they’re not genius. I’m great at them, I enjoy them, but let’s not lose our heads.

That’s why I prefer zone of joy.

Genius implies something you ARE or ARE NOT.

Joy has a spectrum. We feel joy in different ways and at different times. Joy encompasses that energizing, aligned, vibrancy feeling without putting your skills on a genius-sized pedestal. You can feel joy in your zone one day and exhaustion in it the next.

With joy there’s a choice. (And I don’t mean choice in the sense that if you’re not joyful 100% of the time then you’re failing at life and all uncomfortable feelings are your fault.)

Joy can come and go regardless of circumstances — which is exactly how the things I’m brilliant at feel. Sometimes they feel amazing, sometimes they take more or less energy, and sometimes I just don’t wanna do them.

So if zone of genius has struck you as overwhelming or high-handed, try on zone of joy. Ask yourself, am I enjoying this? Could I make this more enjoyable? Your zone of joy may be a flow-state pinnacle, but you can find joy in ordinary moments, too.

I got this Note from the Universe the day I was drafting this article:

“If your breathing itself was not proof enough that you are loved beyond comprehension, then how about your freedom to feel unlimited joy, in spite of circumstances that surround you?”

You are Not a Prisoner of Your Zone of Anything

If “zone of genius” makes you question what you’re doing, why it matters, who even cares or the meaning of life, remember:

1. You have the courage, aptitude and resilience to do new things that are hard or annoying
2. Everything you do uses energy, including the things you love.
3. You are a creature of joy. Joy is always available to you, and when you don’t feel it? That’s normal, too.

The things you do — the skills you have — are valuable and worthy.

Sometimes they are difficult and tedious, other times they are wondrous and energizing.

But NOTHING you do is wrong or bad, even if it’s in your zone of absolute abhorrence.

You are precious, but not too precious. You put forth the effort when you need to. And your zone of joy is always available to you.

Magnetic Thought Leadership

The zone of genius raised my hackles long before I wrote this article. And when something raises your hackles? That’s data.

Because if it raises your hackles, you can be certain it raises other people’s.

Turning your raised hackles into BIG opinions, provocative insights, and bold thought leadership is what I teach in the Magnetic Thought Leadership Method program.

Find out if this program is right for you here.

Now go out there and lead.

The post The “Zone of Genius” Causes 3 Problems for Women Thought Leaders appeared first on Medusa Media Group.

At least, it can feel dangerous. Publishing bold, provocative thought leadership invites the whole Internet to disagree with you. Dislike you. Disapprove of you! And this pushback triggers your stress response.

Coping with stress is a CRUCIAL skill for women thought leaders. And there is an undersung and hugely important coping mechanism available to women that we don’t use often enough: intentional microcommunities.

What’s an Intentional Microcommunity?

An microcommunity is an intimate group of peers with whom you can be safely open; who understand and relate to what you are going through; and who validate your experience.

What makes a microcommunity intentional is when it’s created and facilitated with the purpose of being open, supportive, and nurturing.

These communities are a powerful and underused coping mechanism for stress. They help us feel grounded, nourished and protected as we build our authority, push our comfort zones, and create our legacy.

I see an ENORMOUS lack of microcommunities available to women entrepreneurs and thought leaders. The Women Leaders’ Roundtable series I host is my solution to this dearth of microcommunities. I help women thought leaders connect in a special, intentional way.

What Research Says About Microcommunities for Women

Why are these communities so important for women thought leaders? Research shows that community is critical to regulating our stress response — particularly for how women cope with stress.

You’ve probably familiar with the three stress-response F-words — fight, flight, and freeze. You can Google your face off for how to manage the three F’s. Go ahead and do that! It will help you with your whole life.

But that’s not the whole story when it comes to how women cope with stress. Research by Shelley E. Taylor and colleagues shows that women have additional behavioral responses to stress, dubbed tend and befriend: engaging in protective, nurturing activities and relying on social networks that help to nurture and protect.

Tend and Befriend Communities are Hard to Find

Unfortunately, these nurturing and protective networks can be hard to find. Many adult women have a hard time making meaningful connections without the structure of school or hobbies. Furthermore, women entrepreneurs (and many people, post-global-pandemic) have the added challenge of working from home without coworkers.

It can be isolating. Lonely.

Sadly, many of the “solutions” available completely miss the mark of nourishing and protecting. They don’t offer the tend and befriend dynamic women most women desire. Networking events are often loud, crowded, or rushed. Zoom presentations with dozens of participants and a dizzying chat roll do not foster close connection. Some people have great experiences in online communities, but many (like me!) find Facebook/Slack/Mighty Networks groups busy, distracting, and challenging to navigate.

You’d think the Internet and social networks would make this easier, giving us geography-independent access to like-minded people. But the Internet can breed as much isolation, comparison-itis and separation as it can community.

Roundtables: a Microcommunity for Women Thought Leaders

To tend and befriend we must be able to talk safely and comfortably with others. Not shout, not recite our elevator pitch, not type, but talk.

When I think about networking, building community, and making new friends, I want quality, not quantity. I want intimacy and ease, not crowds, rushed agendas, or a pressure to impress.

I had never experienced this kind of microcommunity until I attended a Roundtable hosted by my colleague, Isha. The invitation was to a 90 minute video conversation with a few other entrepreneurs, to share our successes, struggles, and connect with one another.

Ninety minutes? I thought. That’s a lot of time to spend time with people I might not like. But I trust Isha so I took a chance.

It was one of the most intimate, grounding, validating experiences I’ve had professionally.

Our conversation was open and meaningful. I felt deeply connected to the women on the call. The conversation reassured and inspired me, with enough structure that it never felt aimless or long-winded. The questions we took turns answering invited open sharing and intimacy.

I enjoyed it so much I started hosting my own roundtables. After a year of doing them, they are among the most rewarding experiences of my life, personally and professionally.

Something important happens in microcommunities. There is a chemistry that comes alive in a small group that is impossible to facilitate in a larger one.

Why? I’ve discovered three elements that make microcommunities nourishing and protective for women thought leaders. This is what’s missing from 99% of online communities for women and makes microcommunities so powerful:

3 Unique Characteristics of Intentional Microcommunities

1. Gentle Structure

There’s predictability and guidance with structure that makes you comfortable. The facilitator invites you to take turns answering questions, which relieves you of deciding what to say and when to say it.

Whether you’re introverted or extroverted, shy or outgoing, a talker or a listener, the structure ensures that everyone has equal time to speak and be heard. This makes the conversation equitable and relaxing.

It also leaves room for spontaneity! What I love in every Roundtable are the interesting tangents, skill sharing, and brainstorming that arises. Inevitably, every Roundtable conversation takes an unexpected and delightful turn.

2. Intimacy

I’ve never hosted a Roundtable with more than 5 participants (including yours truly). Ninety minutes shared among five people means that no one is rushed. There’s time for everyone to speak and for spontaneous conversations to take off.

The small group format and open-ended questions make the conversation intimate, even though most women have never met before. The questions start broad and become more personal to help everyone feel comfortable.

It doesn’t take more than openness and the right container to facilitate intimacy. We want to connect with each other. As Brené Brown put it, “Connection is why we’re here. It’s what gives purpose and meaning to our lives. This is what it’s all about.”

3. Safety

Gentle structure and intimacy create safety. For tend-and-befriend to work, we must feel safe in each other’s presence to share what we’re going through and rely on each other for support and feedback. The glowing reviews from participants speak to how nourishing and enriching the microcommunity experience is:

• Thank you SO MUCH, Eva! I loved it so much. It was like a balm to my heart. – Angélique
• I’m the first to admit – especially as an INFJ – I don’t *love* any sort of networking. But you created such a safe space where we could all be open, and it led to amazing conversations and insights. – Tracie
• Thank you for creating such an authentic space for women. – Jasmine
• I want to appreciate this space and structure. I feel like I’ve received so much from listening and observing everyone, and observing the way you created this container. – Michelle
• I’ve never had this level of an intimate conversation about my business! I feel positive, energized, very grateful that I met the three of you today. – Suman
• OMGoodness Eva, it was amazing! I really enjoyed your process, your questions, the people you chose. I love making real connections with people and you’ve hit on something wonderful with this format! Thanks so much for including me. – Lena
• That…was…indescribable. THANK YOU! – Jaclyn

Microcommunities are a Powerful Resource for Women Thought Leaders (and they’re more accessible than you think)

Who would have thought that a microcommunity among strangers could have such a powerful effect? It turns out that to get the nourishing and protective benefits of tend-and-befriend, you don’t have to have a tight-knit group of best-girlfriend-fellow-thought-leaders at your fingertips.

While such a microcommunity is indeed meaningful, we can experience deep benefits from one-time conversations with new connections.

How incredible is that!?

By making such experiences part of our routine, we enrich our lives with reassurance and inspiration from our peers. We can regularly manage the stress of being a woman thought leader by making these conversations a priority.

And of course, measurable business impacts come out of growing our networks in an intentional, intimate way: speaking opportunities, email subscribers, client referrals, podcast speaking gigs, and more.

I urge you to seek out and commit to joining intentional microcommunities — or hosting your own. You can start by emailing me to join one of my Roundtables at hello @ medusamediagroup . com. It’s my favorite way to connect with other women thought leaders like you!

Special thanks to Amy Wright for edits. To learn more about my colleague Isha Cogborn’s work, visit her website. Image created by LinkedIn Sales Solutions via Unsplash.

The post THIS is What’s Missing from 99% of Online Communities for Women appeared first on Medusa Media Group.