RUSHING YOUR CREATIVE BUSINESS WON'T GET RESULTS FASTER

If you’ve ever felt the pressure to make money yesterday, you’re not alone. This is the number one thing I hear from people that are considering using their designs, paintings, crafts, etc to start a small business or a side hustle. They're looking to add income on top of their 9-5 or secretly hoping to quit the 9-5 to be creative full time. But in either scenario, they need the income to come quickly or they'll have to pivot to something else. So they're in a rush. And unfortunately, rushing your creative business won't get results faster. It just causes more stress.

When I started, I didn't need to make extra money. But I needed to know my worth. yep, still hard to say out loud. I needed to prove to the people around me that I was the real deal, that this wasn't just a "little etsy shop," that what I was creating mattered. I know that that sentence isn't complete. Because I also needed to prove it to me. I know I've done really important things in my life, but when your kids grow up and start to need you less, you start to re-evaluate your identity and remind yourself of who you are. Sorry for the distracted tangent, back to the point...

The point is that when you look to the root issue, it's that we all feel rushed for proof of concept. Is this a viable business model that can create real reliable income? Even though I got some early sales that gave me courage and belief that I could make a real business out of this work, I still felt the same drive to just make good money already.

Since I've been doing this for a little bit, I've been able to track changes in this industry. One of the very first things I noticed is that most of your competition drops out of the race. They start heavy with tons of simple products priced super low and when they don't get immediate results, they quit. I find this very encouraging. The ones that have staying power are the ones that find success.

This made me investigate further. What qualities do the top businesses have that the others don't? You know I'm a researcher. Cause knowledge is power. And not only did it payoff but it also became part of the success pathway for my members. Let me tell you the top four things that the thriving passive product businesses do differently.

1. They create a better business plan.

   You should brainstorm potential income streams, choose a strong niche, complete market research, and make sure your business plan fits the life you want.

2. They establish their brand voice + visuals.

   Your brand voice should be determined before you determine your colors, fonts, logos, & images.

3. They develop a product strategy.

   You should start to work in collections, establish a repeatable design process, and learn how product mockups sell your vision, not just the product.

4. They have strong SEO & marketing strategies.

   If people don't see your products they can't sell. You need to understand purchase motivations, complete market research, list your products with the intent to be found, and grow your audience.

Rushing your business doesn’t make it grow faster. In fact, it often slows you down. By building your business on a strong foundation, every new thing you do is guided by a specific purpose that is contributing to the whole.

“It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer.” –Albert Einstein

Yes, I also spent way too much time launching products too fast, creating designs without a plan or research to know if there's a market for them, and tried marketing without any true clarity. While I was in that phase, I felt a hurried anxiety that constantly lived bubbling in my gut that left me feeling like I was always behind.

Building something real with a strong growth potential takes patience, not panic. Once I got past that angst-filled rush phase and instead started adding products with strategy, that's when I saw real momentum.

I started developing area after area slowly and methodically and I noticed which things built momentum and which things were a waste. And guess what, some of the things that were a waste in the beginning were very helpful in later stages.

I guess the lesson here is that when we rush, we end up creating more chaos than progress. We burn out before we see results, skip creating systems that would actually sustain us, & miss out on the joy & hope that got us started in the first place.

“Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.” –Lao Tzu

I also created a video that explains 4 Simple Steps that thriving passive product businesses do differently. You can watch it free here. It even comes with a workbook to help you think through each area in your business.

Slowing down doesn’t mean giving up urgency. It means directing your energy to the right places like the foundations that actually grow your business. If you’re feeling behind, take a deep breath. I promise you can still create your dream business that works when you're out living life.

I wonder, where are you rushing right now that might actually be holding you back? Try to take one step this week to slow down and build with intention, you’ll thank yourself later.

Warmest regards,

P.S. And as always, you can email me anytime if you're stuck, have a question, or just need encouragement. I answer every email personally. hello@rusticsimpledesign.com