How to Overcome Your Inner Critic in Order to Create an Unbelievable Customer Experience

I’ve been working on putting together a program around my most favorite topic in the world, personal responsibility. I’ve spent every moment of free time over the past few weeks totally immersed in the many exciting ideas and possibilities and it’s been an absolute blast.

Monday was an especially exciting day… you know those days when you’re thinking about all the possibilities and you start to have some really fun and unique-to-you ideas? You know, those little things you’d LOVE to do that not only fit within the scope of your project or business, but are totally one-of-a-kind concepts blending some of your favorite things?

Let me tell you, I was BURSTING at the seams with some exciting ideas… one of which involves upcycled notebooks (love upcycling… and notebooks!), mixed media art covers (mixed media is so MY style) and some fun little ways to create a unique and interactive experience for the members of this program. I was SO excited by the idea that I immediately went on hunt for where I could find some lightly used notebooks… and then it happened.

Self doubt and the inner critic.

No one but me would like these silly notebooks.

It’s going to be extra work and no one will even use them.

This is a dumb idea.

People will think I’m a five year old with my silly crafts.

You get the idea.

Self-doubt is that nagging little inner critic’s voice that tells you anything unique or different is wrong or dumb. In one of my favorite books, The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron, this voice is referred to as your Censor. According to Julia, the Censor is “part of our leftover survival brain. It was the part in charge of deciding whether it was safe for us to leave the forest and go out into the meadow.”

Basically, if it hasn’t been done before (and these unique-to-you ideas usually haven’t), your inner critic goes on the attack. This paragraph from The Artist’s Way sums it up best:

The only sentences / paintings / sculptures / photographs it likes are the
ones that it has seen many times before. Safe senteces. Safe paintings.
Not exploratory blurts, squiggles, or jottings. Listen to your Censor and
it will tell you that everything original is wrong / dangerous / rotten.

But here’s the truth…

Your unique ideas are what set you apart and
create an outstanding customer experience.

In a world of mass-production, non-existent customer service and unimaginative concepts, it’s the little things that make all the difference. When you pour love, passion, inspiration and original thinking into your business, product or service, you’re creating something truly unique. It immediately shows your potential buyer who you are and that you really LOVE what you do. Better yet, it makes a clear statement that you’re passionate about providing an extraordinary and unparalleled customer experience.

I want to share a couple great examples that come to mind for me…

• Marie Forleo and the Rich, Happy Hot Programs

  Marie is my mentor and I’ve been fortunate to attend her Rich, Happy, Hot LIVE event as well as participate in her Adventure Mastermind program. Marie is a shining example of someone who has taken her passions and blended them into her business in ways that are fun, educational and totally HER. With a love for marketing, business, music and dance, she’s created promotional music videos, incorporated dance (and even a dance WHEEL – think wheel of fortune but with music genres for an instant dance party!) into her live events and has brought her love of fun adventures into her mastermind program. Things like travel adventures, boudoir sessions, pole dancing and of course, regular ol’ dance parties. By doing so, she’s attracted an abundance of adoring fans and customers that share her love of marketing and good times!

• Hands in Helping Out Volunteer Group
  
  I love to volunteer and have been to several different types of volunteer events. Some of them are programs where you agree to volunteer for certain amounts of time… some of them are one-off events. Some have training. Some just welcome you and provide some snacks and information. The awesome folks of HIHO (a volunteer organization based on Oahu) do things differently. They’ve taken their love of volunteering and community and created something along the lines of a membership program, complete with fun rewards! As a member, you share your interests at your orientation and get invited to volunteer at events that fit your preferences. Additionally, you get invited to fun events like ice cream socials! Instead of creating another volunteer group, they’ve created something around their love for community and conversation, successfully crafting an experience that’s impossible not to love or want to be a part of.

Blending your passions for massive success.

Now that you’ve read a couple examples and had a little insight into my own personal experience, what are some ways you can create a unique experience for your customers while doing fun things that you absolutely LOVE? Here are some tips to remember as you brainstorm ideas:

1. Don’t listen to your inner critic.

   This can be easier said then done, I know. But next time your inner critic pops in to say how silly an idea is or tell you that you’ll never make any money doing whatever it is that you want to do, I want you to say, “Thanks for sharing.” And CARRY ON. If it lit you up from the get-go, before self-doubt had a chance to rear it’s ugly head, it’s going to be a hit because you’re going to pour everything into it and your excitement will be contagious.

   Take yourself out of your head and get back to work!

2. Take action. Take action. Take action.

   Whether or not you create success in your business comes down to whether or not you’re taking action. The longer you sit with an idea, the more self-doubt you’re going to experience and the more opportunities you’ll have to talk yourself out of your best ones. When you get an idea that lights you up, run with it. The best way to find out if it’s a good idea is to get it out there and see how it lands with your audience. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

3. Stay true to who YOU are.

   Just because some people are successful creating membership programs and music videos, doesn’t mean you’ll be. You need to focus on the things that you love and not the things you think people will love because someone else did it. If you’re doing it because you think you should and not because you’re so excited that you couldn’t possibly be doing anything else, then you need to stop and re-evalute what you’re really passionate about creating.

So I want to know, what’s your craziest business idea?