When you’re walking in the woods it is nice to have a compass, right? I mean, it can save you time, it can keep you from getting lost – it helps make sure you’re actually getting to where you want to go.
In business we need a compass too, we need to know our own personal true North so we can make decisions and navigate obstacles and be confident that we’re always going to get back on track.
Do you want to spend more of your time working in your sweet spot – enjoying the clients who “get” you and doing the work that you were born to do?
Are you a business owner, artist, coach, consultant, or creative who feels driven by a sense of purpose? Do you feel that you are too often misunderstood? Do you keep attracting the wrong types of clients? Do you keep saying yes to projects that don’t excite you, that don’t tap into your true talents or align with your values? If you are nodding your head yes, then please read on.
Brand therapy is a process to help you find and understand your compass, your values, the patterns and priorities that are core to how you approach business. The purpose is to get you spending more time doing what you’re great at, work that gives you satisfaction and aligns with your values, and to be doing that work with and for people who in turn value you and what you do.
Not everyone needs this help. Some people frankly don’t care – they focus only on the numbers and not the heart of the business. Others have already figured these things out and are therefore more focused on executing – walking the path. However, if you’re one of the many business owners who feels awkward when asked, “what do you do?” who is hesitant because you feel that the story you’ve been telling isn’t getting you to where you want to go, then it’s time for some brand therapy. To build the brand you want you first have to understand the relationship between you and the brand you currently have.
So how does this work?
It’s a structured process
Typically, for most businesses led by a single owner I recommend starting with three sessions. Each session is between two and two and half hours – my clients tell me that gives them a nice balance of in depth exploration without getting burnt-out. We begin with a questionnaire that I call the Whole Brand Thinking™ framework – which sounds a little fancy-shmancy, but hey, I worked hard on it! Seriously, the idea is to give structure to the discussion and the framework makes sure we explore your personal positioning from 10 distinct perspectives:
- Origins
- Creed
- Iconography
- Rituals
- Lingo
- Antis
- Leaders
- Context
- Expectations
- Community
The questions are open-ended by design (sorry, no multiple choice here), but also don’t get stressed if you don’t have an answer for every section – it is quite normal to have gaps in some of these areas, but identifying those gaps ahead of time helps focus the process.
It’s a dialog
Once you’ve submitted your responses, I’ll review them and we’ll schedule the first session – this way we can hit the ground running and not waste session time. We’ll use your responses in these ten areas to guide the discussion throughout all three sessions, however as we explore together in this way it is inevitable that we will unearth some areas for deeper digging…
Time for homework
It’s really not that bad, because all of the homework centers on you and the things you are passionate about in your business. Usually an assignment is prompted because you’ve touched on an area of particular expertise or domain knowledge that I’ll need you to clarify, or you will have responded to a question in a way that hints at a subtext or a particular point of view that needs to be brought more fully into the light. Often these little assignments that are born out of the session are great raw material for future blog posts and in developing some of the language around your positioning. So you see, you’re really being very efficient – so instead of thinking of it as homework, just call it preemptive productivity.
Scheduling
Since it takes time to do homework and to review it, it is typical to schedule sessions one week apart, however, we can adapt that to suit your needs.
The wrap-up
At the end of the third session we’ll have a discussion to recap the primary ideas unearthed by the process. It is not unusual to find 3 to 5 major concepts that drive and motivate your approach to business. Understanding those makes it possible to help clarify your direction and gives you that compass to chart a course out of the woods and onto the path toward success as measured by your own yardstick – not anybody else’s. After the session I will send you a follow-up email with some notes and a summary of the key concepts we’ve found.
Break it Down
So, to recap: We begin with the Whole Brand Thinking™ questionnaire, which you will complete and I will review before the first session. We then do three sessions of discussion and Q&A (each session about 2 to 2.5 hours long), with some homework assignments between sessions and an email summary of findings sent after the last session. You also get a recording of our sessions in mp3 format so you can review them as often as you like. In the end you’ll have a much better understanding of yourself, your vision for your business and the patterns that drive your choices.
This isn’t about the bottom line
To be clear, we delve here into “soft” values, but it is exactly this type of information that will save you from wasting time and resources spent marketing without a message. Together we’re laying a foundation in place on which you can build the business you want; instead of trying to make stop-gap solutions in an effort to keep the marketing walls propped up when there is really nothing firm on which they can stand.
Three sessions with questionnaire and homework review: $1500, fee schedule $500 per session.
How do I get started?
If you’re ready to schedule your first Brand Therapy session then I want you to get immersed in the process right away: Please begin by answering the Whole Brand Thinking questionnaire – be sure to use the Event Code “WEBSTART” in the appropriate field and enter your phone number so I can call to discuss details and schedule your first session. If you’d prefer to chat a little bit about the approach first then please email me at brandtherapyseries@equationarts.com and we’ll set up a time to talk.
“I know lots of people who would rather have an emergency root canal than talk about their personal brand. David’s genius is helping people realize that they already have a brand and encouraging them to learn how to consciously embrace it and use it as a vital tool for marketing their services. His Whole Brand Thinking technique is wonderfully thorough and fun to explore. He first caught my attention as a speaker where I couldn’t take notes fast enough during his presentation. I highly recommend David for one-on-one consulting and as a compelling speaker who knows how to connect with a group.”
~Laurie Foley, Online Business & Marketing Coach, Laurie Foley, Inc.
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brand therapy
When you’re walking in the woods it is nice to have a compass, right? I mean, it can save you time, it can keep you from getting lost – it helps make sure you’re actually getting to where you want to go.
In business we need a compass too, we need to know our own personal true North so we can make decisions and navigate obstacles and be confident that we’re always going to get back on track.
Do you want to spend more of your time working in your sweet spot – enjoying the clients who “get” you and doing the work that you were born to do?
Brand therapy is a process to help you find and understand your compass, your values, the patterns and priorities that are core to how you approach business. The purpose is to get you spending more time doing what you’re great at, work that gives you satisfaction and aligns with your values, and to be doing that work with and for people who in turn value you and what you do.
Not everyone needs this help. Some people frankly don’t care – they focus only on the numbers and not the heart of the business. Others have already figured these things out and are therefore more focused on executing – walking the path. However, if you’re one of the many business owners who feels awkward when asked, “what do you do?” who is hesitant because you feel that the story you’ve been telling isn’t getting you to where you want to go, then it’s time for some brand therapy. To build the brand you want you first have to understand the relationship between you and the brand you currently have.
So how does this work?
Typically, for most businesses led by a single owner I recommend starting with three sessions. Each session is between two and two and half hours – my clients tell me that gives them a nice balance of in depth exploration without getting burnt-out. We begin with a questionnaire that I call the Whole Brand Thinking™ framework – which sounds a little fancy-shmancy, but hey, I worked hard on it! Seriously, the idea is to give structure to the discussion and the framework makes sure we explore your personal positioning from 10 distinct perspectives:
The questions are open-ended by design (sorry, no multiple choice here), but also don’t get stressed if you don’t have an answer for every section – it is quite normal to have gaps in some of these areas, but identifying those gaps ahead of time helps focus the process.
It’s a dialog
Once you’ve submitted your responses, I’ll review them and we’ll schedule the first session – this way we can hit the ground running and not waste session time. We’ll use your responses in these ten areas to guide the discussion throughout all three sessions, however as we explore together in this way it is inevitable that we will unearth some areas for deeper digging…
Time for homework
It’s really not that bad, because all of the homework centers on you and the things you are passionate about in your business. Usually an assignment is prompted because you’ve touched on an area of particular expertise or domain knowledge that I’ll need you to clarify, or you will have responded to a question in a way that hints at a subtext or a particular point of view that needs to be brought more fully into the light. Often these little assignments that are born out of the session are great raw material for future blog posts and in developing some of the language around your positioning. So you see, you’re really being very efficient – so instead of thinking of it as homework, just call it preemptive productivity.
Scheduling
Since it takes time to do homework and to review it, it is typical to schedule sessions one week apart, however, we can adapt that to suit your needs.
The wrap-up
At the end of the third session we’ll have a discussion to recap the primary ideas unearthed by the process. It is not unusual to find 3 to 5 major concepts that drive and motivate your approach to business. Understanding those makes it possible to help clarify your direction and gives you that compass to chart a course out of the woods and onto the path toward success as measured by your own yardstick – not anybody else’s. After the session I will send you a follow-up email with some notes and a summary of the key concepts we’ve found.
Break it Down
So, to recap: We begin with the Whole Brand Thinking™ questionnaire, which you will complete and I will review before the first session. We then do three sessions of discussion and Q&A (each session about 2 to 2.5 hours long), with some homework assignments between sessions and an email summary of findings sent after the last session. You also get a recording of our sessions in mp3 format so you can review them as often as you like. In the end you’ll have a much better understanding of yourself, your vision for your business and the patterns that drive your choices.
This isn’t about the bottom line
To be clear, we delve here into “soft” values, but it is exactly this type of information that will save you from wasting time and resources spent marketing without a message. Together we’re laying a foundation in place on which you can build the business you want; instead of trying to make stop-gap solutions in an effort to keep the marketing walls propped up when there is really nothing firm on which they can stand.
Three sessions with questionnaire and homework review: $1500, fee schedule $500 per session.
How do I get started?
If you’re ready to schedule your first Brand Therapy session then I want you to get immersed in the process right away: Please begin by answering the Whole Brand Thinking questionnaire – be sure to use the Event Code “WEBSTART” in the appropriate field and enter your phone number so I can call to discuss details and schedule your first session. If you’d prefer to chat a little bit about the approach first then please email me at brandtherapyseries@equationarts.com and we’ll set up a time to talk.
~Laurie Foley, Online Business & Marketing Coach, Laurie Foley, Inc.