An Organization Strategy to Re-Clarify Your Business Offering + Self & Business Care This Winter

Hi you! I'm so happy you're here!

We are OFFICIALLY all moved into our cute and cozy PA temporary home. The move actually went by SO steadfast that I can't believe we stepped through the door not even 2 weeks ago. It feels like we've been here longer than that, which is a good sign that we're already having fun and time is flying in relation :)

I've got the photography corner of my office all set up, and I'm super excited to get experimental with this space with product photography and maybe even some self shoots. Having your own office space is a GAME CHANGER I must say. I'm also a nerd when it comes to making use of space, and decorating it to feel like it's fulfilling the soul. That is my jam.

---

Today we've got two topics that I've more recently been focusing on in my day-to-day, and all has to do with a little bit of TLC to the daily schedule, tapping into the origins of my mission, and also directing some of this care into self for a cold winter ahead. Here in PA it seems a little colder than home, but we have been enjoying the clear skies and sunny mornings that seem to give a predominant feeling of vastness, and clarity. Let's get into the first topic: an organization strategy I've been working with myself to help re-clarify your business offering.

We all need a bit of a refresh every once in a while, and your business foundation itself is not exempt from this. If we ourselves could use some reconfiguration after say moving out of state, getting inspired by something totally new, or even in the midst of feeling like your experiencing a plateau, than our businesses could use that too. I tend to see my businesses as living, breathing entities that need the same kind of nourishment we do- except the 'needs' come more intuitive to us as the leaders, and I say to always follow this inuition. Knowing your business also means to know what it needs in times of change, and this is what we're touching on.

As some of you know, if not all by now, I not only have Essence Present Production as my business, but I established another business (technically before Essence), called Brilliant Pit Seasonal Wellness. There is a whole backstory to how they are related that I won't get into completely today, but to give you a short version, Brilliant Pit was my first ever attempt at a business. The mission being to provide guidance for living in harmony with the seasons we experience in the Northeast. One may observe that this is a broad mission, and I agree. At the time I was keeping it open as the idea of Brilliant Pit kept growing through many forms (and still is). All of this is to convey that there was not a solid offering in the beginning, it was more of a concept, but having this concept was enough for me to create and use my skills in the ways I knew how- which was media, production and photography. This, of course, is how Essence Presents Production was born.

Accessing the origins of our business sometimes means reciting the journey. When we do this, we are refreshing ourselves of what it was that initiated our soul to embark on this journey of the unknown. Having the experience of developing Brilliant Pit and growing with it allowed me to know this experience. The experience of a small, remote product & blog business has allowed me to know the problems that exist within this experience, what solutions I was looking for, and now I have the ability to provide the solutions I was once looking for in my work with Essence.

Now for the strategy! This will be part meditation, and part journal/drawing experience.

1. Get comfortable in a seated position. Close your eyes and start to recall the journey of your business. Can you identify the life experiences that directly led to initiating the idea for your business? Write down what those experiences were.

2. Below what you wrote as your experiences, answer the following question: What have you always considered to be the most exclusive offering in your business? This is the closest, most personal, but most valuable aspect of your business idea. Another way to answer this question is what is the highest form of value you have always wanted to provide in your business?

And now for the drawing experience. See below a visual representation of the next step in this practice.

In your journal, create a triangle as shown above and leave space around or in the triangle to write. What you see here is a representation of the journey your customer or client takes when engaging with your business. The top symbolizes the easiest, most accessible way people can find you- this is usually through social media platforms and for the purpose of ease- we will consider that this is the route you'd like your business to be found.

• Your social media should be a window into your business- nothing more. This means the content should convey bite-size snippets of your exclusive offering- and simply inform others about this value that exists. Most businesses succeed on social media because in addition to informing followers about the value they provide, they also provide a form of value on the platform itself. Series, graphic posts outlining top 3's, best practices, and how to's are all examples of this.

• Moving down the triangle, the next step of a customer engaging with your business is through what your business actually does- which brings us to income. Businesses wouldn't be businesses if they didn't have income, so this is the most important piece of the puzzle. The middle of the triangle is where we convert our audience from customer to community member (AKA a high retention client, or consistent customer). Assuming that your business's goal is to have repeat business, or at least retain some sort of relationship with your customer, this is where we drive the value we will provide with our exclusive offering (under 'Community'). This is our service, offering, product- the driver that communicates our value.

• And finally, the way in which we keep our client or customer coming back is through an engaging offer that provides even more value than our product, service or offering- and this is our exclusive offering. This is the closest thing to the root of our business, and the reason it's called 'community' is because the people who will pay for this exclusive offering resonate most with your mission. It's the offering that drove us in the first place. What was the ideal vision? If you're a product based business, was your ideal vision to have a subscription service? Or if your a consultant, was your ideal vision to educate people? This is where we begin.

3. Fill in the bottom of the triangle first- the Community section. When you start by defining the top level, ultimate value your business will provide, it is much easier to define the more outwardly accessible pieces of your business. Keep moving up the triangle and integrate the section below so that you end up with a cohesive root-to-flower concept. Root being the most valuable (high in nutrients), the stem making the connection that drives/motivates, and the flower being the presentation, the beautiful showcase that draws people in.

I hope this practice helps you reclarify your offering, get clear on your goals, reestablish your ideal vision, and ultimately gives you a rebeautified direction as you move forward!

---

Let's get into part 2 of the blog now: self care & business care for winter!

I'm sure you've probably NEVER heard of the term 'business care' but I say it's time to normalize this idea. Our businesses, just like ourselves, can certainly fall into phases naturally. And this is okay. We put too much pressure on ourselves living through the idea that our businesses need to be in tip-top shape and running like a well-oiled machine 24/7. This is not realistic, nor should it be expected. So here are some of my best tips for self care and business care for the winter season.

• Make time for extra rest. We all know that winter = hibernation for wildlife, but what does it mean for us? Here in the northern hemisphere, we experience smaller amounts of daylight which brings ease into sleeping longer, and recieving more quality sleep with more darkness in our days supporting restfulness. Take advantage of sleeping more personally this winter, and when it comes to business ventures, this is a great opportunity to reshape your schedule to also work shorter days or shift work earlier so that you can have free time earlier in the day while theres still light. Give your body and your mind the experience that the environment is giving to us so readily. Gift yourself a spa day to encourage restfulness, and do this for your business by infusing strength through writing, visualization/meditation.

• Nourish close relationships. As much as the holidays invite in social experiences, we're entering a time of year that allows for time with self and those close to us. As the colder temperatures become a part of our daily experience, take advantage of staying inside and spending time with loved ones. This season promotes inward experience, engaging in more intimate ways, and preparing our bodies for the expansion that comes naturally with warmer months. This is a great time to reflect and re-establish what you're looking for in relationships too. Gain the clarity now to have an aligned experience and expression in business activities moving forward- this could look like submitting surveys to your most valued clients, implementing remote workshops offered exclusively to your core community, or simply thanking your community for their support throughout the year through gift giving, or alternative form of giving thanks.

• Learn & experiment for future expansion. Ideas are bubbling, our imagination is active, and we're expanding inward- it must be winter. Do you notice that this time of year, you always feel like learning something new, engaging in an old hobby, or start watching new movies or TV shows similar to others you adore? We have these experiences because our mind is in a mode of expansion now. We often find ourselves thinking of the future, and the past, and in the summer we find it easier to live completely in the present. How can we promote attentiveness to our current experience? Through engaging in these urges to expand our mind! For self- this means picking up the guitar again, reading the book you genuinely want to read but never found the time for before, or buying a course from a creator on a subject your interested in. For business- this could look like sharpening your skills on SEO, or any aspect of business that needs more attention, investing in a mentor to learn a specific skill, or workshop an idea you have in your business now with trusted community members to see if it resonates.

I hope these tips give you some encouragement this winter to really engage, sit with and feel into what winter really means for us. It can be a beautful experience if you allow it to be :)

Thanks for reading, talk to you on the 1st!