Stop Lurking, Start Sharing. Plus A 5 Step Challenge To Get You Comfortable Uploading Your Creative!
Stop waiting to create content and share your knowledge. I sat back and lurked for far too long before actually joining conversations online and sharing what I knew.
I put too much weight on my job title when deciding if sharing what I learned professionally was valuable. I remember thinking things like, "I don't have 'VP' in my title; no one will take me seriously." Or "When I get that next promotion or have that big brand attached to my job title, THEN I'll start sharing because it will validate me more."
But guess what? NO ONE CARED. I built more of an authentic following by sharing things I learned when I had NO JOB. I actually felt free. I had no company to chain my identity to.
That's when I realized we base so much stock on job titles that we tend to immediately diminish ourselves because we assume someone knows more than us.
Oh, how wrong that is.
Years ago, I was in a board room of a previous company. We had a day-long meeting with Directors and VPs, and I quickly realized I was teaching them more than they were teaching me. I was blown away by their lack of understanding regarding the importance of digital and social media marketing.
I assumed that because they were in the positions they were in at a global brand, they knew more, and what I had to say was already vastly understood, so why share it?
Then I realized they didn't know what I knew. They were brilliant in their positions, but they were old school. And when you're trying to change the direction of the brand, what WAS working no longer matters.
New ideas, innovation, and iteration are what matters.
And spoiler alert, your job title isn't a magic wand that gives you instant authority. It's your knowledge, passion, and confidence to share what you know continuously.
This applies both personally and professionally. No two life experiences are the same.
Creating an online presence with the goal of monetizing it into a business requires A LOT of sharing.
Sometimes, it's sharing the same thing over again in different ways to see what resonates with your audience best.
Long-form writing?
Short-form video?
280 character micro-thoughts?
There is no wrong way to share your content. There's only the way that is most comfortable for you to show up consistently and give your audience what they want to know.
So, I have a challenge for you:
Over the next week, I want you to commit to posting three times in 3 different ways. Here's what I mean:
Choose one platform. (We'll use Instagram as an example.)
Choose your topic. Ex: How To Show Up Consistently Online
Create three different posts around that topic. Maybe one is a static photo with a long-form caption below it. Followed by a reel to a funny, trending sound with text overlay on top. And finally, the third could be sharing a post from another account to your stories and adding your thoughts before you click post.
Tag me, DM your content to me, email it to me – whatever it is, I want to see it engage with it, and celebrate you.
Celebrate yourself! You just created three pieces of content around one topic, and suddenly uploading your creative doesn't seem so scary, right?!
I can't wait to see your brilliant minds in action. Stop lurking and start sharing. What you have to say matters.
Happy Creating,
Mindy
