“A good leader inspires people to have confidence in the leader, a great leader inspires people to have confidence in themselves.” Eleanor Roosevelt

My recent post on “Were You Born to Lead” created some interesting comments. After reading them I realized why we people have problems when they hear some people are more naturally suited to become leaders.

It’s the definition of the word. I found on Dictionary.com this definition of leader:

1. a person or thing that leads.

2. a guiding or directing head, as of an army, movement, or political group.

It’s the first definition that is ambiguous. We all lead in someone or another. In sibling birth orders, in our occupations, in our families, and our businesses. One way or another we fall into roles that create opportunities for using leadership skills.

As a Niche Clarity Coach I want to make clear that when I talk about leaders I’m referring to the second definition of leadership as an occupation, not as a role. Example occupations would be: CEO/Presidents, Board of Directors, Political Leaders, Superintendents, etc.

So, I’m sticking with my assertion that we aren’t all meant to be nor desire to be a leader in that sense.

I’ve learned the saying that we can be or do anything we want in life is a half-truth. The problem with being or doing what we want doesn’t always match who we are in life. You will find that if you fight against your very nature and the skills, talents, and gifts you uniquely have, you will have an uphill battle ahead of you.

I never want to tell people what they can’t be. I only want to help them find what makes them shine. It’s much easier to follow the river of success flowing with the current, not against it.

Developing talents and gifts that come to you naturally and delegating what doesn’t is flowing with the current.

Sherrie Koretke, Niche Clarity Coach. Certified Professional Career Coach, Law of Attraction Specialist, Small Business Coach and Consultant. Visit her at sherriekoretke.com

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Why do we even bother comparing ourselves to others? It usually starts out when we were kids. Who has the bigger bike? Who has the better school lunch. Now that we’re big people it’s about who has the bigger house, who has the better car and if you have an online business, who has the better website. It’s a useless habit. No matter what we acquire, no matter how skinny we get and how much success we achieve there is someone out there “better” with more stuff.

Here’s the thing. We were all born to do something different and when we step into our greatness it will look different than someone else’s greatness. It has to because  we are all different. It goes for every role we play. We will be a different parent, a different boss, a different leader and a different business owner from someone else. That’s why I preach about finding your own niche in life. Once you know your place in the world you’ll realize your unique niche cannot be taken by anyone else.

Step into the truth of who you are and you will feel the beauty of that knowledge.

Sherrie Koretke, The Niche Clarity Coach

This is the second part of the post that continues from Why Your Brand is Confused

So you want to be a superstar in your field. Or maybe you just want a business that consistently brings in money each month.  Knowing who you are and where you are going is vital. In my last post I promised a list of what you need to know about yourself before you start building a brand. Let’s start from the very beginning, a step frequently missed or overlooked because it requires  . . . internal work.

Here’s some things you need to know about yourself to develop a personal brand, or what I like to call Your Signature Niche.

1. Are you introverted or extroverted?
2. Are you bold and decisive or contemplative?
3. Do you want to build a big business or lifestyle business?
4. Are you a big picture type of person or do you love the details?
5. Do you know if you are meant to teach, heal, motivate or build something?
6. What is your life path and what are you meant to do in this lifetime?
7. Why do you want to be in business?
8. What do you value in business and life in general?
9. Who would you most like to help?
10. What past pains contribute to your career path and which are distracting you from your career path?
11. How big of a playing field do you want? Local, state, country, the world?
12. Where do you work best? In an office? On stage? Outdoors?

OK I’ll stop for now. When I started writing this list I think I could go on and on. I hope you get the general direction I am going in. Here’s an idea. Do you journal? Set aside some time and journal about you. Not your problems and wishes but what you want in life. Get a clear picture of who you are and write it down. Pay attention to your personal style and relate that to the business you want to grow.

All this month I will be posting about the different aspects of your signature niche so keep coming back! If you don’t want to miss anything subscribe to this blog by filling out the form to the right.

Sherrie Koretke, The Niche Clarity Coach

It is surprising how difficult it can be to define your business niche. I struggled with this myself because the hardest person for you to understand, it seems, is you.

It should be so simple, right? You create a business based on your skills, talents, and experiences and you are in business. But, then you start to market your business and you realize it’s a lot harder to get attention than you thought. Marketing experts say we need to have our own niche, one we can dominate, in order to succeed. So why do we get stuck finding our own niche?

Here are five reasons why it may be causing such a hard time:

1. You are constantly attracted to what makes other’s successful in their field and try to duplicate what they do.
   
2. You haven’t fully accepted what makes you special.
   
3. You’re focusing mostly on what you do and not what clients may need.
   
4. You’re afraid to lose out on potential sales because you don’t want to narrow your business down to a particular niche.
5. You don’t know your true life purpose and how you are meant to serve. Example: Are you meant to be a teacher, healer, advisor, motivator, or support person?

In order to dominate in your field you need a clear focus on who you are and what you do best. Once you gain clarity you can create a solid plan based on your target market which will help accelerate business growth.

How about you? Do you have a solid business and marketing niche? If not, what’s stopping you from declaring one?

Sherrie Koretke, Niche Clarity Coach. Certified Professional Career Coach, Law of Attraction Specialist, Small Business Coach and Consultant. Visit her at sherriekoretke.com

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