Today we have the pleasure to have Ryan Rhoten as a guest blogger. Ryan is one of the most recognized specialists in personal branding. He is also the author of the book “CareerKred: 4 Simple Steps to Build Your Digital Brand and Boost Credibility in Your Career” and co-author of the book “LinkedIn Made Simple: Fat Strategies in a Thin Book”. He is also the creator of An Award-Winning podcast to build your brand “The Brand New You Show”. Thanks Ryan for your interesting contributions
We no longer need your services.
Six words that changed my career forever. In a matter of minutes, my income went to zero.
An hour later, I was at the kitchen table with my family telling my children what happened. Surprisingly, they took it in stride. My youngest looked at me and said, “Don’t worry, dad. It’ll be ok.” I had to fight back the tears.
Since then, I take every Aug 16th off – my let go day – to reflect on what I’ve accomplished, where I’m heading, and lessons learned along the way. Here are the top 5 lessons I’ve learned over the last four years as I went from employee to entrepreneur to digital nomad.
1. Pay
I hear so many people say they can’t pursue what they want to do because they have to make X. I used to think that way, too, until my pay went to zero. You can live on less, especially if you prepare.
2. Prepare
The day after I was let go, we dropped my son off at college. While this was a significant life event, it could have been a significant financial event as well. Fortunately, we’d prepared for this day so we could focus on the emotional aspect and not the financial impact.
3. Perseverance
I started my business two days after getting let go. I had no idea what I was doing, but I knew I had the skills needed to help service-based businesses, so I dove in headfirst. Many times during the first two years, I considered giving up and going back to corporate work. Fortunately, my desire to build my own thing drove me past the emotions and helped me build a business I can run from anywhere.
4. People
Success depends on people. Surround yourself with people who are where you want to be or who aspire to get where you want to go. They will help drive and push you forward. PAY FOR COACHES. Coaches help you get where you want to go faster by helping you avoid the mistakes they made. Going it alone will only delay your success. I could barely afford a coach when I hired my first one. Since 2017 I’ve spent $60,000 on coaching, and I budget for coaching every year. If you find yourself stuck, hire a coach.
5. Profit
Over the last two years, I’ve been fortunate to work with hundreds of entrepreneurs to package their services, so they can begin to charge what they’re worth. Unfortunately, most coaches, consultants, and service-based business owners undervalue their services. For your business to grow, you need to make sure you are charging what you are worth because revenue does not equal profit.
These five lessons have helped me grow my business and fulfill the dream of working from anywhere, and I know they will help others as well.
Ryan Rhoten
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanrhoten/
Website: https://ryanrhoten.com/
