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In a world where trends come and go at lightning speed, it can be tempting for business owners to jump on every new bandwagon. However, constantly chasing trends without considering our own values and goals can lead to burnout and lack of direction. In this episode of “Social Media Sanity” titled “Leave Those Trends Alone”, host Tamay Shannon explores the importance of stairstepping into trends and finding a mindful and purposeful approach to our online presence.
Quote from the episode:
Action Items:
1. Question Your Alignment:
Take the time to evaluate whether your avoidance of a trend is due to misalignment or simply fear of taking action. Ask yourself if the trend aligns with your values, goals, and business stage. Trust your intuition and be honest about what truly fits into your vision.
2. Embrace Stairstepping:
Instead of fully diving into a trend headfirst, consider taking smaller steps towards it. Stairstepping allows you to work within your abilities and comfort zones while still leveraging the benefits of the trend. Start by experimenting with elements of the trend that you feel comfortable with and gradually expand your involvement as you gain confidence.
3. Build a Supportive Community:
Surround yourself with a trusted community of like-minded individuals who can provide guidance and support. Engaging with others who are on a similar path can offer valuable insights and help you navigate the ever-changing world of social media. Seek out forums, networking groups, or industry-specific communities where you can connect with others who share your vision.
Full Transcript:
Tamay Shannon [00:00:00]:
Today, I wanted to talk about trends. In fact, I am going to call this episode leave those trends alone.
Tamay Shannon [00:00:42]:
Because, y’all, it’s choking your business. Trends are choking your business. And I mean trending music, trending dances, trending platforms, trending marketing tactics. All the trends, all the trends. Everything trending choking your business. And look, you built a business for you. So why are you working? It like the job you hate. Always, it is important to expand, to pivot, to do new things, but not to the detriment of your well thought out plan.
Tamay Shannon [00:01:23]:
So let me ask you this question, all right? How many times do you ignore Google Maps and take a random left on a road trip? Really? How many times are you just going along and you’re like, you know what? That looks like a pretty street sign. Let me take a left down that road. OOH, I like that bush. Let me go ahead and take a right. Did you see that bird? Oh, my goodness. Not unless you need food or a bathroom, right? So why are you doing that? In your business, you have a solid plan and then you just see this cool thing and you just like, bust a random left. Tell me, tell me, how does that work? It doesn’t. And that’s why you’re overwhelmed.
Tamay Shannon [00:02:08]:
Look, if you need a strategy, hit me up in the show notes. But that’s why you’re overwhelmed. That’s why you’re tired. That’s why you’re burned out. Every time you hop on a new trend, thinking that it’s going to get you to your destination, even though you’ve already plotted out the way to get there, it just takes you longer to get there. These random left, these random rights. When you don’t integrate it to your full strategy, you’re just out here going around in circles, wondering why it’s taking you all this time to get to where you want to get to. Now, here are three ways to think about interacting with trends in your business in a way that supports you without taking up that brain space that you need as a CEO.
Tamay Shannon [00:02:52]:
And the first place is right place, right time. And you know those moments where you just teed yourself up and you didn’t even know it was going to happen, right? Like, everything just falls into place. And it’s not that you have to do extra work. It just slots right in. And so there’s not much to say about that. If it’s the right place and it’s the right time, take advantage of the trend. Double down. Do it once, do it again.
Tamay Shannon [00:03:15]:
Keep riding that donkey until you can’t ride it no more. The second way is not right now. This just might not be the right trend for you right now in your business. And it really takes you looking at what you’re committed to in your life, what you’re committed to in your business and where you’re at. And really being honest. It takes deep, deep honesty. And it’s not that it’s never right for you. It just might not be the right space for your business stage growth.
Tamay Shannon [00:03:43]:
It might not be the right size for you because of what’s going on in your personal life. But there are trends that come along that even though they are perfect for you, they’re not perfect for you right now. And that’s okay. Because let’s be honest, if one thing I know about trends is that they’re going to come and they’re going to go and they’re going to come again. So just because you, quote unquote, miss this trend doesn’t mean it’s the end of the world. Doesn’t mean you won’t have another fantastic opportunity. But make sure that as you build your business, you look at the decisions that support you as a person as well as you as a CEO. And finally, the third way is stairstep.
Tamay Shannon [00:04:24]:
So you might look at a trend, for example, videos. People love to do videos, but you are like, I don’t want to be in front of this camera, not one iota. And every time you try, it’s really difficult. It takes you 3 hours. It takes you a lot of takes. And by the end of it, you’re emotionally exhausted. So why don’t you use your voice and have some images on the screen? That’s a video. So you can stairstep your way into trends in a way that works.
Tamay Shannon [00:04:57]:
Or for example, let’s say you hate writing. It just is not the way your brain works. You can’t get yourself to do it well, why don’t you transcribe a webinar, give it a little bit of razzle dazzle and boom, you’ve got a blog post. So there are a lot of ways you can stairstep your way into trends that works for you, not against you. And what I really love about stairstepping your way into trends is it allows you to meet you where you are, right? So you are not forcing yourself to do something. You’re not forcing yourself to be a certain kind of way. You’re acknowledging what your limitations are and you’re meeting yourself there. And what’s going to happen is once you meet yourself there, you’ll be like, oh, okay, I’m really comfortable with this.
Tamay Shannon [00:05:46]:
Let me expand. And you’ll just naturally do it. So that’s why I really like stairstepping into trends, because we can’t all just whole hog jump into the pool. Sometimes that’s just not us. Sometimes we got to get a foot comfortable and then we got to get a leg comfortable, and then finally we’re all in the pool, right? So if that’s how you operate, do that, that’s okay. So all of this might be having you question, all right, am I avoiding something because it’s not aligned? Or am I scared of taking an action? And good news, bad news. That’s the million dollar question. That’s why being an entrepreneur, being a CEO is more than just doing the thing.
Tamay Shannon [00:06:31]:
It’s also a deep dive into self discovery. This is why it’s so important to have a community. Because you might not know. You might not know if you’re being scared. But if you have a community, if you have people you trust, they can hold up a mirror and say, no, you’re being scared. You got this. Or they can say, hey, I think you wanted me to remind you. You said you weren’t going to deviate anymore, that you’re just going to execute.
Tamay Shannon [00:06:56]:
So that’s why having a community is so important. A community that you trust is so important. Remember leverage trends to grow your business, not be overwhelmed in your business. The reason why you built all of this is that you wanted something where you could take into account your life, right? So if you wanted to start late, you could. If you wanted to remote work, you could. If you wanted to go pick your kids up, you could. If you wanted to take a nap in the middle of the day, you could. So remember that is the goal in your business, is that it actually reflects a life you want to live, not a life you live by default.
Conclusion:
In the fast-paced world of social media, it’s crucial to find a balance between staying current and maintaining a mindful approach to trends. By resisting the urge to blindly follow every trend and instead stairstepping into them, we can better align our online presence with our personal and business goals. Remember, a successful business is one that allows flexibility and freedom, reflecting the life you truly want to live.
If you need social media support, schedule your call at bit.ly/TalkWithTamay to get started on your journey towards a more mindful and purposeful online presence.