Yollana - I definitely put myself in the go-getter, do it myself category of woman! I am learning to share my vulnerability with clients and friends and, as humbling as it can be, it connects me to people in surprising ways. I am learning that the ability to help someone you love and respect in a way that they need is a gift - I appreciate the opportunity to help when people ask and that is something I also point out to my clients (and it reminds me, too).
Mmmm! I really love this article. I think the big lesson of the month for me is to be vulnerable and brave enough to acknowledge that I need support and to ask it of others. This includes everything from being brave enough to ask folks about their greatest challenges, hopes, fears, and their honest opinion about ideas for starting over in my business to what you have described above with Tamsyn (which I have not done yet!). I do believe that in this long transition in my business (and life–our family has lived in three different states in the past two years, and will be moving again next year, hopefully for the last time) has made me so deeply grateful for each and every CD sale, healing session, or offering of harp, song & story that I think I’m offering my gifts from a more mature, more humble, more connective to what my clients truly want and need, and more grounded-in-who-I-honestly-am place, if that makes sense.
At this point, bringing myself to say: “Any clients you can refer my way right now, I’d be so grateful” or: “If you like my music, would you be willing to share it with others?” would force me to ‘grow up’ and embrace this very simple idea (kind of necessary to have in a business!) : that what I have to offer actually can touch and nourish the hearts of others in a way that truly makes a difference. Hm, radical thought :-).
My point though is that in being vulnerable you are also actually stepping into a space of deeper maturity with what you offer, and a place of trust in who you are.
this was really good for me to read……. a do-it-myselfer from way back, it has taken me a couple days to reflect on your article and come up with 3 names of people to make myself vulnerable to…. but i did it!
i love your 3 steps to making yourself vulnerable! worth posting on a sticky somewhere…….. and your site/presence in general….. so soothing, like water on river rocks….. cool and flowing.
Wow Krista, I’m very impressed that you took a few days to come up with people to ask for help…. that the article could spark such a deep process for you. Well done! (And I’d love to hear how you go with it, if you’d like to come back here and share - or send me an email).
And I really appreciate your comments about my site. Thank you!
Nona, Susan, Jane… Thank you so much for your comments! I thought I had replied and - yikes - I don’t know where my comment went.
Anyway, I so appreciate you guys showing up at my blog.
Jane, I love this point - I so get it. It’s amazing how we can take our greatest gifts for granted… OR we can get behind our business and shout it from the rooftops - “I have something to offer… it could make a difference in your life! I am so blessed and so proud to have this gift to share with the world!”
I think that for some, that holding back can come from not wanting to appear “selfish”, big-headed, tall poppy… But truly, if you have a gift - and you do - then why not own it! Share it! Be self-full, and then offer your full self, and let the world benefit from that offering.
Great article. I particularly valued the three steps you shared - making it so much easier to actually DO something about it rather than just saying “Oh that sounds good - I should do that.” Having this sort of blueprint also makes it feel safer to make that leap.
And you’re so right- there is this convention of being totally upbeat and “Oh yes - I’m doing well!” even, or perhaps especially, when we’re not. But for anyone who values authenticity, that just feels so icky.
I work with women who want a juicier life and I’m often talking about identifying your own needs and asking for help. Perhaps, if I want to be the best resource for my clients, showing MY vulnerability - letting them know when I need help - could be an amazingly powerful way of modelling just that. So thank-you for describing a path way for doing that with such clarity.
Yollana, I have to admit, I’ve never done this before. I’m too proud to do so. However, I agree with you. We need to know when and how to ask for help when we need it. Thanks for the reminder.
well….. interestingly, since i am just starting my business in its current incarnation, i offered the three people i thought of three free sessions with me and then i sent each of them an email after their first session asking a few questions and permission to use answers as testimonials! doing these free sessions has done big things for my business. first of all i offered them to past clients as a way of saying thank-you which really landed well on both ends…… i got to say thank you and they got to receive my gratitude…. anyway, the sessions have been sooooo amazing and i have more confidence than ever and having testimonials are a huge step in my business! after the sessions are over i intend to ask each one about making referals based on their experience with our work together.
Followed you here from Mark S. Site. I realize this was written in November but it’s April. Perhaps you will still stop by?
Fantastic article! Really. Vulnerability is key. Never heard anyone say it quite like you have. You wrote a vulnerable article about vulnerability. Good to sort of meet you!
Oh my goodness, all you beautiful people wandered over to this post from The Business Oasis and I never saw your posts! (My blog has not been emailing me about comment updates. Hmmm… Must have a talk to it about that!)
So, belatedly:
@Helen, I am so glad this worked for you with the practical steps.
@Lexi, you know, pride is okay too. I actually believe there is a ‘right’ amount of exposure for each individual and each context, and that is very personal and, well, contextual. I’m glad if this article inspires people to consciously explore what that place is for them.
@Krista, wow! Thankyou so much for sharing how you put this into practice. What you shared feels really beautiful. How did asking for referrals go? How are you going with it all now? I must let Tamsyn know about the ripples that her little journey have created
@Greg, yes. Me too!
@Giuletta, yes! I’m here! Sorry I didn’t get here sooner. THis whole website has been in a kind of hiatus on account of new baby, Christmas, packing house, moving house, settling in, etc. I’m about to start things up again - slowly - both here and over at Heart of Business, so I look forward to connecting with you in both places.
Yollana, I too have come from Heart of Business. This is a GREAT article. And some great comments too. And I was very touched by Jane’s comment:
that what I have to offer actually can touch and nourish the hearts of others in a way that truly makes a difference. Hm, radical thought :-).
This is a big one for me. I really have to let in that the work I do does affect people’s lives. I’ve just come off a call where the client has been incredibly appreciative, turning her business around in 6 months, and going from taking a salary of nothing to $2000 in that time is pretty good! Then she told me about the amazing results her Dad is getting with his health, from things that I had talked to her about in a business context! But the real question here is, how willing am I to let this in? to say, Yes, I do work that impacts hugely on others’ hearts and souls.
So thank you Jane, and Yollana, I am off to the beach to do some letting in…
I’m celebrating all your wins with you… And that you have a beach to help you let it in. That’s really cool
Reminds me of a song that Deva Premal and Miten sing… “There is so much magnificence near the ocean. Waves are coming in, waves are coming in. Love is coming in. Hallellujah!”
Hello. I’m Yollana Shore, founder of Soul Business. Combining many years experience and training in both business and personal development, I help business owners who want to make the world a better place, to grow a successful, soul-centred business doing what they love. I look forward to connecting with you and your business.
14 Comments
Yollana - I definitely put myself in the go-getter, do it myself category of woman! I am learning to share my vulnerability with clients and friends and, as humbling as it can be, it connects me to people in surprising ways. I am learning that the ability to help someone you love and respect in a way that they need is a gift - I appreciate the opportunity to help when people ask and that is something I also point out to my clients (and it reminds me, too).
Thank you for sharing your wisdom -
Great article Yollana! So very true.
Susan
Mmmm! I really love this article. I think the big lesson of the month for me is to be vulnerable and brave enough to acknowledge that I need support and to ask it of others. This includes everything from being brave enough to ask folks about their greatest challenges, hopes, fears, and their honest opinion about ideas for starting over in my business to what you have described above with Tamsyn (which I have not done yet!). I do believe that in this long transition in my business (and life–our family has lived in three different states in the past two years, and will be moving again next year, hopefully for the last time) has made me so deeply grateful for each and every CD sale, healing session, or offering of harp, song & story that I think I’m offering my gifts from a more mature, more humble, more connective to what my clients truly want and need, and more grounded-in-who-I-honestly-am place, if that makes sense.
At this point, bringing myself to say: “Any clients you can refer my way right now, I’d be so grateful” or: “If you like my music, would you be willing to share it with others?” would force me to ‘grow up’ and embrace this very simple idea (kind of necessary to have in a business!) : that what I have to offer actually can touch and nourish the hearts of others in a way that truly makes a difference. Hm, radical thought :-).
My point though is that in being vulnerable you are also actually stepping into a space of deeper maturity with what you offer, and a place of trust in who you are.
this was really good for me to read……. a do-it-myselfer from way back, it has taken me a couple days to reflect on your article and come up with 3 names of people to make myself vulnerable to…. but i did it!
i love your 3 steps to making yourself vulnerable! worth posting on a sticky somewhere…….. and your site/presence in general….. so soothing, like water on river rocks….. cool and flowing.
thanks for your spirit
Wow Krista, I’m very impressed that you took a few days to come up with people to ask for help…. that the article could spark such a deep process for you. Well done! (And I’d love to hear how you go with it, if you’d like to come back here and share - or send me an email).
And I really appreciate your comments about my site. Thank you!
Nona, Susan, Jane… Thank you so much for your comments! I thought I had replied and - yikes - I don’t know where my comment went.
Anyway, I so appreciate you guys showing up at my blog.
Jane, I love this point - I so get it. It’s amazing how we can take our greatest gifts for granted… OR we can get behind our business and shout it from the rooftops - “I have something to offer… it could make a difference in your life! I am so blessed and so proud to have this gift to share with the world!”
I think that for some, that holding back can come from not wanting to appear “selfish”, big-headed, tall poppy… But truly, if you have a gift - and you do - then why not own it! Share it! Be self-full, and then offer your full self, and let the world benefit from that offering.
Great article. I particularly valued the three steps you shared - making it so much easier to actually DO something about it rather than just saying “Oh that sounds good - I should do that.” Having this sort of blueprint also makes it feel safer to make that leap.
And you’re so right- there is this convention of being totally upbeat and “Oh yes - I’m doing well!” even, or perhaps especially, when we’re not. But for anyone who values authenticity, that just feels so icky.
I work with women who want a juicier life and I’m often talking about identifying your own needs and asking for help. Perhaps, if I want to be the best resource for my clients, showing MY vulnerability - letting them know when I need help - could be an amazingly powerful way of modelling just that. So thank-you for describing a path way for doing that with such clarity.
Yollana, I have to admit, I’ve never done this before. I’m too proud to do so. However, I agree with you. We need to know when and how to ask for help when we need it. Thanks for the reminder.
well….. interestingly, since i am just starting my business in its current incarnation, i offered the three people i thought of three free sessions with me and then i sent each of them an email after their first session asking a few questions and permission to use answers as testimonials! doing these free sessions has done big things for my business. first of all i offered them to past clients as a way of saying thank-you which really landed well on both ends…… i got to say thank you and they got to receive my gratitude…. anyway, the sessions have been sooooo amazing and i have more confidence than ever and having testimonials are a huge step in my business! after the sessions are over i intend to ask each one about making referals based on their experience with our work together.
so thanks yollana…… k
Thank you for this article. It really touches on so much being in business and in the healing world.
I see where sometimes my heart is sealed up tight and I come from a place of intense neediness.
Thanks!
xo
Greg
Hey Yollana,
Followed you here from Mark S. Site. I realize this was written in November but it’s April. Perhaps you will still stop by?
Fantastic article! Really. Vulnerability is key. Never heard anyone say it quite like you have. You wrote a vulnerable article about vulnerability. Good to sort of meet you!
Giulietta, Inspirational Rebel.
Oh my goodness, all you beautiful people wandered over to this post from The Business Oasis and I never saw your posts! (My blog has not been emailing me about comment updates. Hmmm… Must have a talk to it about that!)
So, belatedly:
@Helen, I am so glad this worked for you with the practical steps.
@Lexi, you know, pride is okay too. I actually believe there is a ‘right’ amount of exposure for each individual and each context, and that is very personal and, well, contextual. I’m glad if this article inspires people to consciously explore what that place is for them.
@Krista, wow! Thankyou so much for sharing how you put this into practice. What you shared feels really beautiful. How did asking for referrals go? How are you going with it all now? I must let Tamsyn know about the ripples that her little journey have created
@Greg, yes. Me too!
@Giuletta, yes! I’m here! Sorry I didn’t get here sooner. THis whole website has been in a kind of hiatus on account of new baby, Christmas, packing house, moving house, settling in, etc. I’m about to start things up again - slowly - both here and over at Heart of Business, so I look forward to connecting with you in both places.
Love you guys! Yollana
Yollana, I too have come from Heart of Business. This is a GREAT article. And some great comments too. And I was very touched by Jane’s comment:
that what I have to offer actually can touch and nourish the hearts of others in a way that truly makes a difference. Hm, radical thought :-).
This is a big one for me. I really have to let in that the work I do does affect people’s lives. I’ve just come off a call where the client has been incredibly appreciative, turning her business around in 6 months, and going from taking a salary of nothing to $2000 in that time is pretty good! Then she told me about the amazing results her Dad is getting with his health, from things that I had talked to her about in a business context! But the real question here is, how willing am I to let this in? to say, Yes, I do work that impacts hugely on others’ hearts and souls.
So thank you Jane, and Yollana, I am off to the beach to do some letting in…
Yeehah! Let it in, Jane!
I’m celebrating all your wins with you… And that you have a beach to help you let it in. That’s really cool
Reminds me of a song that Deva Premal and Miten sing… “There is so much magnificence near the ocean. Waves are coming in, waves are coming in. Love is coming in. Hallellujah!”