Calling All Faith-Based Female Entrepreneurs. Are You Ready to Stand Out in Your Industry, Serve More People, Make a Bigger Impact, and Ultimately a Greater Income?
“You will never influence the world by trying to be like it” — Sean McCabe
Let’s face it- in today’s world of do it all and be it all, we’ve reached a point where blending in and burnout are more common than not. Where we look at the successful girl next to us and think, “Whatever she’s doing is working, so I must need to be doing that, too!”. But in order to stand out in your industry, you have to utilize what makes you different and hone in on what only you can offer the world. By finding the intersection between passion and profit, you’ll be able to serve more people, make a greater income, and ultimately have a bigger impact on the world.
As a faith-based female entrepreneur, it’s becoming more and more difficult to stand out in your industry. In my opinion, I think this is due, in part, to culture telling us that everything has already been done before. Therefore, what we mean by inspiration leans over the line into imitation.
As a result, our brand ends up blending in and getting lost in the crowd, which leads to discouragement, burnout, and us questioning whether we should keep trying to pursue the call to live in our purpose or give in to the world and settle for less.
When I started my business, I frequently found myself obsessing over the work of other successful female entrepreneurs. I would try my best to do exactly what they were doing. Because If it’s working for her, it must work for me…right?! I created solid processes and designs but was completely overlooked by the people I wanted to work with most because no one could see why they should pick me over anyone else.
I realized, that if I wanted to stand out in my industry, live in my purpose, and make an impact and an income doing what I loved, I had to learn how to stand out. When I stopped focusing on everyone else and started focusing on what I could bring to the table that wasn’t like everyone else, my mindset and my business shifted for the better.
How can you use your uniqueness to stand out in your industry?
If you don’t differentiate yourself and stand out in your industry, you won’t be able to live in your purpose, make an impact, and make an income since you’re losing the people you’re meant to reach to your competition.
When you try to copy the successful girl next to you instead of using your uniqueness to stand out in your industry, you risk not being noticed, heard, or hired. Your brand will never have a chance to make an impact and an income because no one will know why they should choose you over anyone else.
When you stop copying the girl next to you and start using your uniqueness to stand out in your industry, you’ll be able to effortlessly reach the right people who can’t wait to do business with you, which means your business will grow and succeed since you’re no longer having to fight for customers.
Well, read on, because here’s how you can.
There are three phases to this process: Find where your expertise, passions, compassion, and ideal client’s needs intersect. Get clear on your differentiating factor, and Determine if your brand identity and messaging align with your answers.
Here is a list of the steps you can take to learn how to stand out in your industry so you can make a bigger impact and income
STEP ONE: Own your expertise
As an entrepreneur, one of the most important things we can do is own our expertise. Too often, we doubt our skills and knowledge, easily falling into the comparison trap. We think that what we’re good at and what we know more about than the average Joe isn’t unique, has already been done, or, my personal favorite, that someone is already doing it and doing it better than we think that we can!
But the truth is, you can bring your expertise to the table unlike anyone else can. There have been challenges you’ve faced and overcome, successes you’ve had, and skills you’ve acquired over the course of your life that have shaped who you are and the way you do things. What are you really good at? Are there any results you’ve achieved? What are people always asking for your advice, input, or opinion on? It’s never too late to own your expertise. By staying true to yourself and highlighting your unique strengths, you’ll be able to stand out from the crowd. So go ahead and own it!
STEP TWO: Find where your passion and compassion intersect
Your passion is something that excites you, interests you, and lights you up. Your passion has meaning to you and is something that you love, feel connected to, and deeply enjoy doing. It’s the hobbies, topics, or activities that you have a natural interest in. persuaded by your experiences, expertise, and purpose. Your passion is what gets you up in the morning and keeps you up at night. It’s what drives you to be better and to do more.
Your compassion, on the other hand, is something personal to you that you’ve experienced and influences your passion. It’s the thing that helps you empathize with others who have shared the same experience as you. It points you in the direction of the people you can understand best and serve deepest. Compassion is what motivates you to continue to show up and serve, even if there’s nothing in it for you.
When you find where your passion and compassion intersect, that’s where your unique purpose lies. That’s where you find the meaning behind your passion and the drive behind why you do what you do. When you find where these two things meet, you find the mission and meaning behind what you were made to do. This, in turn, will be one of the main things that will help you stand out, show up, and serve well.
STEP THREE: Determine who you love to work with
These are the people you understand and empathize with the most. You “get” each other and you enjoy talking to them about things you’re passionate about. They’re the ones that are always coming to you for inspiration, motivation, advice, help, or input. If you could serve, impact, or work with anyone in the entire world, this is them. These are your people. They are your gang, crew, or tribe. Whatever you wanna call them, these are the people who need what only you can give them!
STEP FOUR: Uncover what they need that only you can help them overcome
I know, I know, it sounds a little redundant, but this is where the magic happens, babe. What’s the specific problem your people are facing that only you can solve using your expertise, passion, and compassion? Maybe you have a different approach or way of doing something that no one else has really thought of. Or maybe, your expertise and experiences have caused you to become really good at planning or budgeting or making people feel seen, heard, and known. What are the things that have allowed you to get a step ahead of everyone else? What’s caused your journey to stand out?
STEP FIVE: Now put it all together
Oh, girl, THIS is your differentiating factor. This is what’s going to help you stand out in your industry, become a deeply impacting world-changer, and help you make an income and live in your purpose while you’re at it. Here’s a little formula to help:
Answer from step 1 (who you are and what you do) + Answer from step 3 (who you help/love to work with most) + Answer from step four (What your people need from you + how you help them get it) + Answer from step 2 (why you do what you do).
Example: I am a (step 1 answer) and I help (step 3 answer) do/get/become (step 4 answer) so that they can (step 2 answer).
STEP SIX: Determine if your brand identity and messaging align with your answer
Sis, this just might be the most vital part of having a successful business. This is what will help you reach your people, stand out in your industry, and make an impact. You could have the coolest, most unique thing that will make your brand shine brighter than any of your competition. But if the way your brand looks and carries itself doesn’t match up with what you do, why you do it, who you do it for, and what makes you different from everyone else, then this is what’s causing your brand to blend into the crowd.
If any of these things are out of alignment with the other, then your message becomes muddied, your dream clients become confused, and your brand ultimately becomes background noise. A simple way to determine if your brand identity and messaging align with your answer in step 5 is to ask yourself: Does the way my brand looks and feel- from my colors and fonts all the way down to the words I use- clearly yet uniquely communicate what I do, who I do it for, my reason for doing it, and what makes me different? Even if you answered no to just one of those, that may be the reason behind all your business blues.
Too many female entrepreneurs throw in the towel on their business because they think their industry is simply too crowded. But not you, sis. After reading this post, I hope deep down in your soul you know that isn’t the case at all. By taking the necessary actions to ensure that YOUR brand is the one that your people choose over anyone else, you’ll be able to embrace your unique place in an industry that feels like it has no space.
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