When we talk about disrupting yourself, I typically advise that you look before you leap. Make a planned exit, cushion the landing, prepare for the change. But that is not the route Ali Brown took.
After two years at a small marketing firm, she knew she was undervalued. She had so much more to give! Opportunities to move up were limited, and to top it all off, there wasn’t even a women’s bathroom! When a freelance marketer casually mentioned to her that he thought she had the skills to be a freelance copywriter, Ali started asking questions. What’s a freelancer? And, more importantly, can I take you out for coffee to learn more?
“I don’t recommend this to people. But I got so excited that I literally could not stay in the building, like I quit within a few weeks. I was so excited about having that control over my life, over my business and I knew I was really good at something.”
“Good” is an understatement. Ali has been dubbed the “entrepreneurial Guru for Women” and created a global enterprise devoted to empowering women entrepreneurs. She provides leadership and business coaching to over 250,000 followers and produces the weekly Glambition® Radio podcast. None of this would have been possible if she had been unwilling taken a risk on herself and let go of what was holding her back.
“[M]ore of my success has been from letting go than taking on. And, and I think that if you’re in a position right now that something’s not working or you’re thinking of taking a leap, you know, look at what you’re resisting…if you can’t tell where you need to go yet, maybe you can look at what you need to let go of and that’s the best place I think to start.”
Ali has worked with women from all different kinds of backgrounds, sand says that she now recognizes that many make their bet decisions when their backs are to the wall. When we’re provoked, she says, that’s when we go for the bigger idea.
“I think there’s more value in doing the opposite of what you see everyone doing than following the pack.”
Join us as we discuss how Ali went from a simple email list to business consultant, how you can find your lane in life, and the types of risk worth taking . Listen on the player above, or download the episode on iTunes. And please, let me know what you think of this episode. Can you relate to Ali? Have you found your lane?
Takeaways from this episode:
- Ali didn’t know what she wanted to be when she grew up, and envied the kids that did know. However, she also sees value in her time “trying things on,” It helped her learn that she wants variety in her life. Working for herself was the best way to maintain this variety.
- Many of Ali’s decisions come from a shift in awareness. She looked for ways to get new ideas, expanding her circle of friends and her network to learn how others thought. Once she became aware that freelancing was a career option she took that knowledge and made a change.
- Look for things that people are not doing. There is great opportunity in moving away from the pack. There is a lot of noise online today, and you need to do things to separate you from everyone else and dramatically change the results you’re getting.
- If you’re an entrepreneur, you’re allowed to make up your own rules; you don’t have to do things step by step (as we’ve been taught in school). You can take a leap and skip to “zed.”
- Ali has come to realize that stepping up into leadership and empowering other women leaders is her form of activism. “I think we feel this pressure when we do have a platform that we need to be using it for possible, you know, political things and saving the world and you gotta find your own lane and do the best you can in that lane. And we can’t be all things to all people.”
- When asked about leaders she looks up to, Ali immediately mentions Beyoncé and Madonna. She admires not only their creativity and artistry, but their business savvy. “There’s a lot of women business leaders I respect, but the ones who really thrive on creativity really juice me up.”
Links Mentioned in this Episode:
- Ali Brown – Website | Twitter | LinkedIn
- Disrupt Yourself Podcast Episode 46: Benjamin Hardy
- Willpower Doesn’t Work: Discover the Hidden Keys to Success by Benjamin Hardy
- Disrupt Yourself Podcast Episode 111: Brené Brown
- Glambition Radio with Ali Brown
- Raegan Moya-Jones, Founder of Aden+Anais and Author of ‘What It Takes’ — Glambition Radio Episode 166 with Ali Brown
- Ellen Latham, Creator of Orangetheory Fitness — Glambition Radio Episode 161 with Ali Brown
- Claudia Chan, Founder of SHE Globl Media — Glambition Radio Episode 126 with Ali Brown
- Free Email Audio Course on Change
- Build an A-Team: Play to Their Strengths and Lead Them Up the Learning Curve by Whitney Johnson
- Download a free chapter from Build an A-Team
