THE COURAGE TO PUT YOURSELF OUT THERE

Hello there,

Are you into business or do you sell products and services? This blog post is for you. Get a cup of coffee and relax while I entice you to put yourself out there.

A few days ago, I took an Uber. As usual, I sat in the back seat. I was about to get some work done when the driver said ‘I didn’t realise there was a hotel here. I would love to recommend it to my passengers’ And so we started having a conversation. Apparently, he thought I owned it when I walked out of the reception (it’s likely a sign that I’ll own a hotel soon). I told him to totally check the place out and speak to the owner about bringing them customers. I mean for a hotel that used to be buzzing some months ago, coronavirus had really done them in. You never know, they may be willing to share profits in exchange for customers.

In the past, I have encountered many uber drivers who are either full time employees for others or own other businesses. And so I asked him what else he did for a living apart from uber which led to more discussions about business. He was such a great conversationalist; he shared what he had tried already and what he wanted to.

20 minutes into the trip, he hesitated a bit. Then he said ‘did you notice the bag I put in the booth? I also sell blouses. Ladies tops’. In my head I was like, wow! My admiration for him shot up instantly. When I asked why it took him so long to tell me about it, he just mumbled something. Well, he hesitated because he was not sure of how I would respond.

Long story short, I bought all but 4 of the blouses for myself, my daughter, my mother and my cousin. Why? Because I actually needed blouses, was familiar with the brand he was selling and his pricing was perfect for me! I was literally his ideal customer! Now imagine if he had not put himself out there. He would have kept his beautiful blouses and I would still be in need of blouses. Do you get what I mean? Anytime we chicken out when we attempt to sell, we ALSO deny our potential customer of something they need.

This little episode also led to a conversation about the courage to put ourselves out there as salespersons. Look, we gotta do what we gotta do OK? All these excuses about:

  • Oh I don’t know how she will respond
  • What if he gets upset?
  • What if she laughs at me, says it’s too cheap, too expensive?
  • What if he says no… And blah blah blah are just plain blah blah blah.

You will never know until you gather courage to tell the potential customer what you’ve got in your bag. No one can ever tell how a prospect will react to a sales attempt until the die is cast. This is why we must simply give it a shot when we smell an opportunity.

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Seriously, has anyone ever been given a dirty slap because they attempted to sell? The worst ‘slap’ you can receive is a ‘No’. Yes, I know a ‘NO’ hurts like ouch but have you died though? Now this reminds me of a recent conversation during a Facebook live video. I asked my audience for their experience if they had ever done a Facebook live video. A few said they had because I encouraged them to. Fantastic! One lady said, it was scary and my response was ‘have you died?’ Haha Ohhhh the fear and self-doubt will be there alright, BUT we gotta do what we gotta do. You feel me?

One of my coaching clients recently said ‘anytime I put myself out there, I get clients’. When I heard those words, I wanted to engrave them on a plaque. How right she was! So many of us have wonderful products and services that ‘people’ need. However, ‘people’ have a problem; they cannot find our products and services because we are obscure. This is why we need to put ourselves out there, so that we can find the ‘people’ who need us.

One main benefit of consistently putting yourself out there, is that you get brand awareness. For many of us starters, we do not have thousands of $$$ to create sophisticated ads. Well, what else do we have? Blogs, vlog, live videos, Instagram reels, fliers, etc. (I actually created a free pdf to get you started with where and how to advertise for free online.) But you still have to do the work yourself.

Dear Reader, tell me in the comment please; are you putting yourself out there?

Ama xx

Photo Credit: Vera Obeng Photography

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53 thoughts on “THE COURAGE TO PUT YOURSELF OUT THERE”

  1. Dear Ama, l just love this story. You’re such a great storyteller. You’re so right! Until our products go public, who will know about them? Jostled me up!

  2. Ama thanks for sharing as usual it is to empower us. I like the consistency of your messages. I have not been too well and catching up. I was so on point during the lockdown talks etc. I have not done any videos yet but will do it sooner. I have already put myself out there on Radio and tv but yet to do a live. On the way oo. Thanks for always encouraging us all. I am proud to be a fabulous woman. A lot more on the way for me. Utterly grateful for the support. May the Lord continue to guide your steps and enlarge your coast.

    Ama please I have noticed your neck pieces and ear rings, very nice. Can I suggest that you mention the name of the company where you buy them each time you wear them? I KNOW HOW YOU LOVE TO SUPPORT US. Thanks Ama.

  3. Charlotte Odamtten

    This is a wake up call and an encouragement to me to step out in grand style. Ghana & beyond , here I come .

  4. Wow. Thanks for sharing.
    At first I used to do something similar.
    Whenever I pick a taxi and Uber I interact with them,share my flyer so they can show it to customers.
    Then I take their numbers.
    I realized it was not yielding any results. So I stopped. I have totalled forgotten about such mpo.
    I guess I have to develop a new strategy and get a different audience.
    Thanks Ama.

  5. Great write up.
    The courage to put oneself out there is key. Without it, we miss opportunities, we feel stagnated and eventually, can make you feel unhappy because you keep replaying the “had I known tape-loop” of I should have been bolder to share this my idea, product etc.

    I think learning to communicate; especially on ‘talking to strangers’ is something everyone needs to learn. There are several books that can help us, one is by Mikael Krogerus and Roman Tschappeler on “Communication”.

  6. Very encouraging right up. I don’t have any problem talking to people to encourage and inspire hope but I freeze when it comes to putting out my products and services.
    I really need to work hard on overcoming this mental barrier and hesitance to selling my products.
    Thanks for sharing. We sure need the courage to put ourselves out there.

  7. Wow, you are really an inspiration to me and I appreciate. You gave me a lot of ideas within that short trip and i say you are my biggest fun. I will do so well to get better, May God bless you and make you greater.

  8. Wow, just chanced on this and I am so inspired by it. Thank you so much Ama for sharing. Now is the time to face it and put myself out there.

  9. Thanks for sharing. Just what I needed. I’m certainly empowered. “It’s a Yes or No”, and not a death warrant. Am keeping this statement forever.

  10. This is a great write up and thanks for sharing however, I look at the current generation today and I see a future Of enormous courage unlike our generation where your suggestions can accord you slap on your lips even before you think of saying something. That syndrome alone created fear and I believe had done more harm to our generation than good. But thank God people like you are helping us to change that narrative and this is honestly helping faster than the books we read.

  11. Wamol Nanyang Job.

    Hi Ama! I actually did put myself out a few days ago. And I was so amazed how people were in need of my product that I never had any idea about. My name is Job. I use to fear rejection but until I gathered enough courage to confront anyone with my product, then I saw the importance of not giving up. Because I showed this products to a lot of people but I didn’t get any of them to buy just one. So I almost gave up. But just three days ago, I decided to quit the fear of rejection and started advertising these products to my watsap contacts and lo and behold, I suddenly found that most of them were actually searching for these products and I made a few sales. And it taught me a lesson that I should never give up.

  12. Hello Ama. I decided to buy a low budget ad space in Instagram for wifey’s cakes and products. It attracted hundreds of likes 👍 but only a handful of follows with no DM for orders yet. Is there something I’m doing wrong? Or the ad option made it so. Thanks

    1. Ishak hi, it could be a number of things actually. E.g. When it comes to selling online, it’s important for your audience to be warm or hot – as in they knowing about your brand already. If the ad targeted a cold audience – as in people who do not know you already, the results can be tricky. People like to buy from others they know, like and trust. So please focus on engaging your audience and nurturing your relationship with them. If you would like a coaching session to help you with social media marketing strategy, please reach out: hello@amaduncan.com

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