I recently went back into an old favourite breakfast spot I hadn’t been in for years. I wouldn’t have chosen to go back if it wasn’t for someone else choosing the place.
On my way there, I was ‘feeling not the slightest bit’ excited! I was excited to meet the person, but the cafe… bahhhh!!
My memory of the place was substandard service and food. The kind that the owners think is ‘good enough’. The kind that feels like, despite having all the ingredients, something feels off!
I arrived, walked in and immediately felt different. The decor had completely changed. The place felt so much more spacious. I felt good being in there. The old feeling of cumbersomeness was gone.
A very different vibe to what I was expecting. I had to find out what had changed.
New owners…. of course!
The new owners brought a new level of enthusiasm, excitement and energy. It makes sense. They come with fresh ideas, no baggage and lots of stars in their eyes.
I was left thinking, do you need a ‘take over’ to get the good vibes flowing again? How do the ‘stars in your eyes’ stay bright and shiny?
How can enthusiasm be sustained, without someone else taking over? Some thoughts on this:
1. Be honest with yourself. Call the vibe. Take a look around. Once you check in with how you’re feeling, get a read on how people ‘feel you’, your brand, your business.
Everything we do in our business is marketing… right down to how we open the door and greet someone. I will even go as far as saying.. How we breathe. The breath is a good indicator of someone’s energy. It’s an indication of expansiveness, abundance or constraint, tightness, inflexibility. Whatever is going on in us can be felt by others, whether they are conscious of it or not.
The feeling you leave someone with, is the reason why they spend money, come back or you never see them again. I felt so good in the cafe that I ordered breakie. That’s $30 I wasn’t intending to spend prior to walking in, and I returned a week later.
2. The quickest way to change up the vibe is to surround yourself with the people who have the vibe you are seeking. By default their presence will bring these traits out in you. Why slog it out, hoping that things will change? Get straight on it. Tap into people/services that best suit your situation. The difference, if you don’t put it off, could be minor work versus a complete restoration!
3. Take a holiday, i.e. get some distance. Distance helps us see – the what and the why. You might realise it’s part of a natural cycle and the space provides awareness, or perhaps, the ‘time apart’ tells you something needs to be done/addressed. If you want to get clear – press the stop button.
4. Raise your vibes and watch things around you change for the better. How to go about this?
- Make sure the basics are taken care of: Sleep, diet and exercise. Don’t put this off. If you need support – get it. It’s an investment that you are never sorry for making and a very good energy shifter/shaker.
- Do what you love or find the love in what you do. Enthusiasm has a high vibration. It feels good to be around people that are genuinely enthusiastic. The best way to sustain this within yourself, I believe, is ‘in the moment’. My superpower is conceptual thinking. It is also my weakness, which means staying in the moment has and always is my biggest challenge and opportunity! I used to be so in my mind that I would not think about someone coming in the door after me! From loads of practice (and still practicing) I have come to realise that the best way forward is to participate fully in THIS moment.
- Inspiration – “The word “inspire” comes from the Latin word “inspirare,” which is a combination of “in” (into) and “spirare” (to breathe). In its early use, “inspire” referred to a divine or supernatural influence. This influence was described metaphorically as a form of “breathing in” or receiving a breath of creative or intellectual inspiration.” (source: chatgpt).
For me this is a big one. If I am not feeling inspired, I’m out! You cannot put a price on inspiration – it’s beyond monetary value. It’s one of the reasons why people become ‘brand cultish’!
If inspiration means to breath into something, and breath is essential to life, to yours and the life of your business – how are you breathing life into your business?
It may be through improving your product, supporting a community, learning and developing, unlearning, team building days, choosing your partners and connections more intentionally, bringing the fun and laughter, adding challenge, personal development, job swapping, attending a conference, collaborating, rolling the sleeves up, building intergenerational and diverse teams, looking to other companies and industries, etc.
What’s this got to do with marketing and business? Everything!
What I am seeing at the moment is this strong desire for people to connect, but not in a token gesture, swap your business cards way, but with a deeper level of intimacy. I imagine that this will only increase as AI is trying so very hard to pull the pendulum the other way.
Connection is not just from person to person, but also from person to business, person to brand, person to experience – all the touch points. We (humans) want to feel connected every step of the way. This is the role of marketing!
