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Micro-Flexes - I wanna hear about them
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I considered applying for a job Reader It’s very rare that I see a job that is even a tiny but appealing to me, but for about 3 seconds this weekend, an assistant manager role at our local nature reserve did look quite attractive. The salary was similar to what I pay myself now, and the hours were a little more than I currently work. Then I remembered that on Monday I was taking Flossie (the world’s fluffiest tabby cat) to the vet for her annual check-up and vaccinations. And then my brain snowballed….recollecting all the little tiny moments of flexibility I enjoy from being self-employed, and how they’d be gone if I had a job. Appointments for the dentists, doctors, hairdressers can be had for me and The Sons at pretty much any time of day, any day of the week. I can match my activity to my mood, energy or well-being. Need fresh air? I open the door and walk out of it. Feeling focussed at 8pm on a Saturday - I can grab my laptop, get productive, and know I’ve freed up hours of my time for the next week. I can take a nap whenever I need to (which apparently is quite often in the Winter). I get to stroke my cats whenever I want….OK I’ve got to stop listing these things now, it’s making me emotional. Oh wait…. I should probably mention something about how I love being around for The Sons….. I probably shouldn’t have listed them after my cats…. don’t tell them. It’s very hard to put a financial value on these micro-flexes, so they often get overlooked. And when we tally up what we’ve achieved so far in our business, or we visualize the goals we want to achieve, these little freedoms don’t make it onto the list. But if we set goals, and measure achievements, only in terms of numbers - hours worked, and money earned - we’re missing out on a huge amount of value our business already gives us, and could be giving more of. Sure count the money - we need that. But count the micro-flexes too. What micro-flexes does your business offer you already? What would you like it to deliver more of in 2025? And have you designed your business, your offers, your marketing to make that possible? |
The Comfy Business Newsletter | Laura
Join thousands of readers building a business that works around Life Stuff (like chronic physical or mental health conditions, recovery from big life events, caring responsibilities). I send two-ish emails each week, to help you enjoy a more comfy business and life.
Sometimes my job involves pissing my clients off, Reader The conversation (via Zoom, Voxer, or text) goes like this.... Client: I need to build my email list, but I don't want to run Facebook Ads Or Client: I want to get more people into my membership, but my last doors open/closed launch cycle flopped, and I don't want to do it again Or Client: I know I need to be marketing my business, but I hate creating content for social media. Or some other variation of: I need this outcome, but I...
This just came up with a Marketing Action Plan client and it'd be great for an Ask Laura episode...but also it would be a really short episode, and it probably is easier to process and understand if you see it written down Reader. You know those 'This is for you if' and 'This is not for you if' lists that appear on sales pages sometimes.... They can help the reader understand if they're a good fit for the offer, and they can help turn away people who aren't a good fit. But sometimes they can...
Even an experienced copywriter (me) knocks out a sub-par sales page sometimes, Reader Last week I launched a new 1-1 service - The 90-day Marketing Action Plan. During our 1-1 session, my first client mentioned they were worried we wouldn’t make progress because they were presenting me with a tangled lump of Head Spaghetti (they used the phrase Head Spaghetti and I loved it so much I’ve borrowed it for this email). I reassured them that Head Spaghetti was one of my most favorite materials to...