Danielle Wallace is the founder of The Virtuous Creative. She's also the CEO, copywriter and video marketer of Chayil Media Publishing where she helps powerhouse service-pros and product businesses flip facts into sales-driven narratives.
As you work on building in daily habits that will make you more successful, one of the skills you need to practice and habituate is saying no more. For the next month or so, start saying no to something at least once a week. The way to choose what to say no to is to check your goals, look at your schedule, and ask yourself what you really want.
If something leads you to reach your goals and fits your schedule, saying yes is fine, but if it does not provide any value to you or does not fit into your schedule right now, say no.
Danielle Delaney
If an action leads you to reach your goals and fits your schedule, saying yes is fine, but if it does not provide any value to you or does not fit into your schedule right now, say no.
Here are some reasons and ways that you can say no more often.
If You Already Know Say So
Sometimes you simply know that you don’t want to do something no matter what. Instead of putting people off or saying yes just to avoid the issue, start saying no right away.
Think About It
You don’t have to give people answers right away about anything. This can help you reduce the pressure on yourself to say yes to anything. Start making it a habit always to thinking about something before you give a definite response. For instance, don’t be afraid to be honest and say “Let me check my schedule. I’ll get back to you by 3 pm on Friday with my answer.” This way, they can wait patiently, and you can ensure that you want to say yes or no.
Always Check Your Schedule
Even if your first thought is that it’s something you want to do, you must always check your schedule before saying yes. You may be over booked already, and even if you’re going to say yes, you need to say no. Doing this will ward off burnout. Stretching yourself too thin is bad for you and everyone else that depends on you too.
Curious about what I’m learning every week on my creative journey as it relates to faith, self-care, and entrepreneurship?
Understanding marketing is essential to your success as a new entrepreneur. Marketing is how your target audience finds you. The first thing I ever marketed was my self-published poetry book in 2011. I learned a lot about marketing on social media and through the book’s website – and Amazon. I used that experience – along with my journalism skills to also market my Christian women’s digital magazine “Virtue and Memoirs.”
And these days, I’m still a content creator at heart – marketing Chayil Media Publishing – my copywriting and brand storytelling business, my digital magazine, and my personal brand. Why? Well simply put, without marketing, you won’t gain the exposure to grow a sustainable brand or business.
Marketing is how you gain the trust of your target audience by showing, telling, and proving that your products, services, or business are there to support them.
Danielle Delaney
The following are six marketing tips every new entrepreneur needs to get started right.
Focus On Building Relationships with Your Target Audience First
Before you sell to your audience right away, learn to build a strong relationship first. In other words, the freer value you provide in the long run, the stronger the relationship becomes — making it easier to market your products at a later time. By the way, if you want to learn more about what your audience needs from you, don’t be afraid to survey them on social media by asking questions or doing polls.
Share Engaging and Valuable Content
No business today, online or off, can survive without content marketing. Without content, your audience will not understand the type of value you provide. This can be done through blog posts, videos, photos or even sharing user-generated content. And if you’re not familiar with user-generated content – It’s content that’s shared on social media by one of your customers or clients promoting your brand. You can easily reshare this content with your followers.
Don’t Skip Email Marketing
Emails offer the highest return on investment compared to all other online marketing strategies. There is a myth that email marketing is dead, but this is far from the truth, with nearly three hundred billion emails being sent around the world today. Email marketing is powerful because you don’t have to battle with the algorithms of the world.
Set Up a Business Blog
A blog on your website is a great way to have sole ownership of what you share and sell to your community. If a specific social media platform disappears, you won’t reach them. However, you know this won’t happen since you control your blog. Making it easy to share information with your customers or target audience whenever you can.
Use Social Media
You can’t avoid social media. Even just one social media account can skyrocket your reach and exposure as a brand. Did you know that nearly four billion people worldwide use some form of social media? This means your potential to reach your target audience is almost limitless. Find out which platforms your audience hangs out on and jump in with a strategy. However, be careful not to overwhelm yourself. I recommend sticking to 2-3 platforms.
Get Help
Marketing helps you reach certain revenue goals and reach your target audience effectively. Without marketing, it is unlikely your customers will find you very easily. If you need help, try to hire someone who can help you. A few roles that come to mind are social media managers, copywriters, website designers, and brand photographers
Marketing doesn’t need to be complicated. As long as you create content that your target audience needs or wants, you will likely be successful. And of course, don’t forget nailing down a strategy first.
Unfortunately, many entrepreneurs make mistakes that can hinder their success by ignoring customers’ needs or not taking the time to share your value.
Curious about what I’m learning every week on my creative journey as it relates to faith, self-care, and entrepreneurship?
Sometimes, life is just too busy. Maybe you find yourself frustrated when it comes to wondering how you can possibly get all the important stuff done. Sometimes I feel this way too, so you’re not alone. I get it! And your answer is pretty simple: Declutter your mind. In this blog post, I’m sharing some of my favorite ways to declutter my mind. I’m confident that these tips will help you clear out the clutter and make room for more productive thoughts as well.
Have some quiet time alone
You can reduce stress and anxiety by taking time to unwind.
Pray – Prayer allows you to get closer to God and tap into clarity and discernment.
Take a walk – Get outside, breathe in the fresh air, and enjoy nature.
Get enough sleep – It’s hard for you to think clearly when you’re tired or stressed, so make sure you get enough rest before tackling any big projects or stressful tasks.
Manage your time better
One of the biggest mistakes people make when trying to declutter their minds is not managing their time properly.
When you’re feeling overwhelmed and overwhelmed, it’s easy to forget about your schedule or simply not have one at all—which means that a lot of the work you do will go unfinished.
If you want to organize your thoughts and clear out some brain space, make sure that you plan out what needs to be done each day as well as how much time each task should take.
Delegate and ask for help
Delegation is an important part of your decluttering process, but it can be difficult to know where to start.
The first step is asking for help from people who are good at what you need done. And by the way, don’t be afraid of being assertive when delegating tasks. Be sure to also follow up with those subordinates after completing those assignments so that everything goes smoothly!
It’s crucial that everyone involved has clear expectations about what needs to get done.
Set short-term goals
Setting goals can be a powerful way to get your mind working toward a clearer, more productive and happier state.
Setting goals helps you focus on what really matters in life, prioritize what’s most important to you and achieve more by having a clear outline of where you want to be. Short term goals are an excellent way of keeping your mind clutter free because they give you something that feels achievable in an otherwise overwhelming world.
Short term goals can be as simple as:
Reading 1 chapter per day from a book on decluttering your mind
Going for a walk every day (even if it’s only 15 minutes)
Progressing in a new skill once a week
Be kind to yourself
It is so easy to get caught up in the daily grind and forget to give yourself a break.
You can start by being kinder to yourself, whether it’s for a mistake you made or for something that didn’t go as planned. Giving yourself some time out of your day to do something you enjoy will help make everything else seem less overwhelming.
Be kind to others too! It can be easy to feel overwhelmed when it comes down to how much we have on our plates at any given time, but don’t compare yourself with other people and don’t get down on them when they’re struggling with their own problems or just having a rough day – we all need each other!
A decluttered mind is a productive mind
When your mind is decluttered:
You’ll be able to focus on what’s important, rather than worrying about things that don’t matter.
You will make better decisions, because your mind won’t be cluttered with unnecessary information that could cloud your judgment.
You will concentrate on tasks at hand instead of getting distracted by other things like social media.
The key to decluttering your mind is being aware that you can do it.
Danielle Delaney
You might feel like you’re drowning in a sea of thoughts and emotions, but the truth is that we all have the ability to clear out our minds if we try hard enough.
The first step in this process is recognizing that there is room for improvement, which can be done by creating space for yourself by setting aside time each day just for yourself or taking regular breaks throughout the day, so you don’t get overwhelmed.
Once you know there is something wrong with how cluttered your brain feels at times when trying to complete tasks, start working on ways to clear out all those thoughts as quickly as possible so they don’t interfere with what needs doing right now.
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Prayer is the best way to stay connected with God Almighty in all areas of your life, including your business.
I personally, don’t know how you can operate a business without God Almighty. Proverbs 3:6 tells us, “In all your ways acknowledge Him, and he shall direct your paths.”
Now, as for praying for your business, here are 4 ways that will guide you through the process.
Pray for God’s Will in starting and operating your business
When it comes to starting and operating your business, you should pray for God’s will. Ask Him to show you the right way to start and operate your business.
Pray that He would help you make the right decisions in starting and operating your business. Pray that He would help you see His hand at work in your business.
Ask the Lord to bring the right people into your business
Asking God to bring the right people into your business is a great way to pray for your business.
The right people are those who will help you succeed, whether they’re clients, customers, employees, mentors, mentees, or business friends. They have a similar vision, mindset, and values as you do – and they bring something unique (or at least different) to the table that makes them uniquely suited for what you’re trying to accomplish.
Ask God to protect you and your team
As you pray over your business, ask God to protect you and your team.
Also, pray for your clients, customers, and the community that is served by your business. Ask God to bless every aspect of it: sales, production, management, and your team’s creativity.
Finally, pray that He will help you make wise decisions regarding finances and growth so that the company remains financially stable (and profitable).
Thank God for what He has provided you with
Thank God for the resources He has provided you with.
Thank God for the people He has placed in your life.
Thank God for the opportunity to serve others.
Thank God for the ability to do what you love.
Entrepreneurship is in many ways a matter of faith. Having a sense of purpose and direction, acknowledging your dependence on God, and committing to making the most of every opportunity that comes your way are all essential elements to success. These steps will help you grow your business, but ultimately it all starts with your relationship with Jesus Christ, the one true entrepreneur.
Want more insights from Danielle about how to show up boldly in business and everyday life as a Christian woman creative?
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You still love to cozy up with a GOOD book, journal, and pen. These have always been your go-to’s for either learning something new or dumping your thoughts out onto paper.
These days, you’ve added coffee or tea into the mix.
But you know what’s really changed?
Your faith in the Lord. While it’s always been strong, it’s stronger than you’d ever imagined. I recently picked up a journal that you kept while you were in the 10th grade – and OMG! You were so bold and brave in your faith.
During that same year, your dad left this earth. That was the first time you met grief. It was such a tough time. It left you incredibly sad for most of your junior and senior years.
But you made it through – with the help of God’s unchanging hand and your mom.
Speaking of your mom, while year 35 is exciting to embark on, she’s missing on this earth too now, right along with your dad.
But I’m so proud of you because you’re harvesting the seeds they planted inside of you. I believe they’re sincerely proud of the 30’s version of their daughter.
You’re continuously bold in your faith, keen on boundaries, and taking care of yourself every day – so that you can show up to operate in your God-given purpose.
Speaking of purpose, you probably thought you’d be a TV reporter forever, right?
Nope. Do you remember those days – in between cheerleading practice, where you spent dreaming of being a writer too…
Well, guess what?
You have an entire copywriting and storytelling business. You’ve literally taken your passion for writing and skills from TV news – and packaged it up to serve other people who want to stand out in business.
You’re amazing!
Not only that, but you’re also generously serving other Christian women through your digital magazine, blog, and podcast. You’re making an impact and serving in a way that brings you so much joy. You also wrote about this in your journal back in the day.
Since those teenage years – you’ve had a continuous growth mindset and heart of gratitude.
Danielle, you’re so brave! And you may be small, but you’re so mighty!
Again, you’re amazing!
May you have a blessed and beautiful 35th birthday!
Want more insights from Danielle about how to show up boldly in business and everyday life as a Christian woman creative?
Subscribe to her official email list where you’ll receive weekly letters in your inbox.
Have you been ignoring video, hoping it will just go away? Or worse, thinking you can accomplish the same goals without it?
I’m here to tell you, video is going nowhere. YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world, and thousands of hours of video are uploaded each and every day. Video clips on social platforms on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn enjoy far more engagement than do plain text or even image-based updates.
When it comes to training programs, most people prefer video to text—or at least a combination of the two.
And now with streaming video, this rapidly growing marketing channel has become even more crucial to your marketing strategy.
Live video lets viewers get to know you better and trust you.
Your personality and brand shine through in ways written words or pre-recorded video simply cannot manage
A built-in sense of urgency makes it easy to connect with your action takers
Repurposing video for other channels is easy and super productive
Instagram and other social networks appear to give more weight to video, showing it in more newsfeeds than other post formats
In addition to all of that, video is easy to produce—contrary to what some people may think.
Simply prop up your smartphone, log into your preferred app, and viola! You’re live. And because it’s a live, streaming video, your viewers likely have less expectation of perfection.
For example, with a scripted webinar, they expect a certain polish. But with streaming video, you can get away with a much more lighthearted, go-with-the-flow style. It’s perfect for Q&A sessions, special announcements, group coaching, or anything else where you simply want to connect with your audience, and there’s no agenda.
If you’re recording videos for Instagram Reels, Stories, Facebook, or LinkedIn you can simply grab your phone to prop it up on something as well – and also invest in a microphone. There are a variety of microphones on Amazon. And lastly, when it comes to presentation, make sure your lighting is on point. You can film near a window or invest in a ring light. I also have a couple of these that I got from Amazon.
Don’t Abandon Your Other Marketing Methods.
We see this happen a lot—a popular trend or strategy comes along, and all of a sudden everyone is on board.
However, you must not forget to incorporate other methods like photos, carousel posts, or email marketing into your marketing strategy. Recorded video and live video can complement these methods.
So while Instagram Reels and Live video in general definitely matters when it comes to your overall marketing efforts, it’s not the end-all, be-all tool that will outshine everything else in your marketing strategy.
Want more insights from Danielle about how to show up boldly in business and everyday life as a Christian woman creative? Subscribe to her official email list where you’ll receive weekly letters in your inbox.
Clothes? We make sure they are protected. We make sure they are free of wrinkles.
Hair? We make sure each strand stays in its rightful place. Makeup? For many of you, it’s essential to have a flawless face no matter how much it costs you. Your self-worth? That’s where many of you stop and neglect the most important thing.
There are so many that aspire to be the Proverbs 31 woman but lack the true meaning of this woman.
She’s undoubtedly strong but today we see a generation of women that hide behind so many things, constantly comparing themselves to the next woman instead of growing in God’s word, gaining wisdom and knowledge.
It’s either a game of comparison among other women or trying to prove to a man that you are worth his time.
Whether you are in college or a woman well into her 30s you know what I’m referring to. Whether you are a married woman with children or a single woman with children, you are aware of the uncertainties and the constant need to be better than the next woman.
Why?
You are God’s daughter and there should be no comparison and no searching for worth in another human. When we truly sit at the feet of the Lord we realize this and are humbled to become the daughter God has made us to be.
Here are a few truths for you to remember:
“For she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold. She is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her. Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor.” – Proverbs 3:14 – 16
“But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” – 1 Samuel 16:7
“For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well” – Psalm 139:13-14
REFLECT
What are you masking right now? Is it self-doubt or past pains? Give those worries and thoughts to the Lord and focus on the important things. Are you settling for less in a relationship? Dig deep in God’s word to realize your worth. You are a queen and a daughter of the most high!
So often in life, we get too caught up in the “what ifs.”
OR…
We make stuff too complicated.
I’m sure you can relate.
And while I’ve always been a person who is never afraid to take action, I was stuck overthinking whether or not I should actually publish a podcast in my copywriting and brand storytelling business.
I knew I needed to…
But some sort of weird doubt started creeping in.
Whew!
Fortunately, I got real with myself and gained tons of clarity through prayer and reflection on one of my walks.
And now, it’s here – after sitting on my laptop for over a year.
The Storytelling Meets Branding Podcast is the hub for powerhouse coaches who want to boldly amplify their brand using the power of storytelling.
Last year, my heart was filled with joy when one of my clients mailed me a gift of appreciation.
It included a refreshing face mask and an incredible book to read.
The book was “Dare to Bloom: Trusting God Through Painful Endings and New Beginnings”by Zim Flores.
It’s such a page-turner. More importantly, it’s a book about literally trusting God through everything.
Throughout the book, Zim recounts her experiences of REALLY stepping outside of her comfort zone and trusting God along the way.
I love Zim’s wisdom about navigating new beginnings.
I’m sure you can relate. Sometimes, fear can get the best of us in different seasons. This book is also a perfect read to reflect on reclaiming your true identity in Christ.
While nearly every page I read, has tons of yellow highlights, this is one of my favorite quotes inside of the book:
“Purpose doesn’t end once we find it; rather, purpose is something that continues to unfold and evolve throughout our lives.” – Zim Flores
At the end of each chapter, you’ll find questions for reflection.
By the way, the photos inside the book are beautiful!
I hope you’ll check it out. If you do, pop in the comments here and let me know.
