I know 2020 has been weird and crazy and for some pretty awful. But could it also be the best thing that ever happened to your business?
That's one way to "reframe" 2020 -- one of the many helpful ideas from my latest favorite book, The Stoic Challenge, by William B. Irvine.
In the video above (and here), I shared a few ways of reframing the things that happen -- to me and others.
Many of the creatives I'm working with are doing just this -- seizing this pause to reframe -- sometimes transform -- their business.
Then yesterday, I realized that in order to reframe anything, you need time and distance to think.
This is sometimes called "sagacious delay" (not to be confused with procrastinating) and it is actually the tool that makes it possible to reframe things that happen in life.
This is a really old idea -- but new to me -- and has been helpful in answering this question I've been getting a lot lately:
"Should we be marketing ourselves when the world is on fire?"
Instead of advising yes or no, I advise "sagacious delay" (from "sage," meaning wise one), which I define like this:
Instead of jumping on a bandwagon, giving in to impulse or external pressure, you take the time and distance you need. You wait for the right moment or simply until something changes. You wait until you're ready, before taking action.
Sleeping on a big decision is a common form of "sagacious delay."
So here's my new formula for handling whatever life throws at you this year (which is only half over BTW):
Reframing + sagacious delay = something much better!
And since this is the season of big changes and some setbacks, here are a couple more examples of how other creative professionals handle them:
- Read this case study about how one designer rebooted her business
- Listen to the new podcast: Episode #394, where one designer shares how she kept her business going when a loved one became ill.
BTW: This is the Quick Tip from Marketing Mentor from 6-17-20 -- sign up to get them here.
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