Recently, I took some time to reflect back on the past year. I thought about many of the examples of lessons learned that have positively impacted me in my side hustle business. So, let’s jump right in and let the countdown begin!
Examples of Lessons Learned
#10: Done is better than perfect.
This was my mantra since August when I began working with Katie M. Dodd, MS, RDN, CSG, LD, FAND in the Blogging Accelerator Program. This has been some of the best advice given to me this year. It helped me to work on being perfectly imperfect when it comes to just getting things done.
Google cannot crawl a blank page, right?! So, I’ve taken this advice and I’m proud to say that I’m on track to publish 16 blog posts by the end of 2021. This advice is helping me get one step closer to applying for Mediavine by December 2022. Watch out… passive income, here I come… 🙂
Examples of Lessons Learned
#9 – Own your morning. Elevate your life.
This lesson was taken from the book The 5AM Club by Robin Sharma.
I’ve always been a morning person, but I realized that I haven’t been taking full advantage of these early morning hours to be as productive and intentional with my time as I should be. This book was a game-changer for me. I’d highly recommend it to others looking to take better control of your mornings and reap all the benefits that come along with it.
Examples of Lessons Learned
#8 – Surround yourself with people who lift you up.
Thanks to the amazing group of women and dietitians in the Blog Boss Mastermind who really drilled this lesson home for me.
This was an important lesson for me to really understand this year. Sometimes your family and friends want to help and encourage you in your blogging or side hustle journey, but they just don’t know what to say or what to ask.
Having a tight knit group of fellow dietitian bloggers and side hustlers who totally get it – the keyword research, the SEO, the H1s, H2s, and H3s, the backlinks, the HARO emails, and all that good stuff – is just an extra layer of support, encouragement, and motivation that helps me to keep doing the thing that fills my cup.
These 7 ladies have been instrumental in my progress towards my side hustle goals in 2021 (and beyond). A big thank you, to Katie M. Dodd, Julie Christensen, Jamie Adams, Kimberly Marsh, Noura Sheikhalzoor, Ashley Krautkramer, and Elizabeth Ray. You all inspire me everyday with your work ethic, drive, and passion for the work you do.
Examples of Lessons Learned
#7 – Practice self-care
In all honesty, I thought I had this one figured out, but the more I realized what self-care truly meant, the more I realized I was so far off from practicing it correctly.
Let me explain. So, I get the occasional manicure/pedicure, get my hair done, maybe a facial or massage a few times a year, etc. And don’t get me wrong, all these things are lovely and you better believe I’ll continue doing them. lol.
But where I was having a tough time figuring this “self-care” thing out was from more of a mental and emotional standpoint. This is all still a work in progress…but I am trying to practice self-care by doing things that light my fire, fill my cup, and make me want to wake up at 5 am and provide value for others through the services and products I have to offer them.
The Dietitian Editor brand has been that answer for me. It allows me to be creative, share my insights, and provide value to other dietitians. It’s a win-win all around. Doing this work makes me feel good which is a form of practicing self-care (IMO).
I’m looking forward to all the things that 2022 has in store for The Dietitian Editor brand!
Examples of Lessons Learned
#6 – Dream big and do the work.
Create big goals in your mind and then write them down. Create a vision board that shows you where you want to be in 1, 5, or 10 years. Then go out and crush those goals!
Sometimes we can have these goals in our head, but then life gets in the way and we get distracted or other things take priority over our dreams. BUT if our dreams are part of the priority to get us to live that better life for ourselves and our families, then you have to always go back to your WHY. Ask yourself, why are you writing these blog posts, social media posts, doing the keyword research, and more. It all comes back to your WHY and your vision board.
Another quote I love, that is a part of this lesson today, is “Nobody cares, work harder.” Don’t do the “thing” for anyone else, like other RDNs or other people in your life. Do it for yourself. Because it’s when no one is looking that you have to work the hardest. You have to work the hardest before all the success, before things start to take off. Do it for yourself.
Examples of Lessons Learned
#5 – Mindset is everything.
We can all get in our heads sometimes… aka imposter syndrome. Those negative thoughts about 1) who do I think I am, 2) I’m not the expert, why should they listen to me, 3) I’m not ready yet, 4) there is still so much left to learn before I start, and the list goes on and on – am I right?
These thoughts can cripple us if we let them. It’s our job to build up our mindset so we remain positive, strong, and confident to do what we’ve set out to do.
Working on your mindset is like exercise. It’s something you have to practice daily. If you don’t use it, you lose it.
Practice mindset by journaling, revisiting your goals often, and talking to others who lift you up.
Believe in yourself and exude that confidence that’s within you, so you can be of value to others who need your services/products to solve a problem they have and to help improve their lives.
Examples of Lessons Learned
#4 – Passive income blows my mind.
So this year I learned about this term “passive income.” And this entire concept blows my mind. Do the work up front, reap the rewords for days, weeks, months, and years to come. Sounds nice, right?
Well, there is a lot to learn up front in order to do this properly, but I’m taking my time to learn things now, so I can implement this in my business structure for years to come.
-With active income, you are trading time for money.
-With passive income, you’re not.
Make sense?
In 2022, I’m working on creating evergreen handouts, ebooks, webinars, courses, and more, that provide value and offer solutions to people’s problems when it comes to writing, editing, proofreading, book formatting, and other editorial services they may need.
Learning about copywriting, email marketing, and email sales funnels are all techniques to generate passive income sales and find your ideal client.
Generating passive income through a high-tier ad management company on my website is another goal of mine. By December 2022 (one year from now), I hope to apply to Mediavine and get accepted!
I have a lot to learn, but I’m confident that I have the right people and tools surrounding me to make it happen in 2022!
Examples of Lessons Learned
#3 – Keyword Research is my jam.
Keyword research is just one strategy for improving your search engine optimization (SEO) for your website.
It’s arguably the foundation of SEO. If no one is searching for the keywords you are writing about, then you won’t get traffic from Google – and no one will see your content.
Once you start using keyword research, it can be so addicting! I began learning about it a few months ago and never looked back. I prefer to use Keysearch as my keyword research tool. It’s user-friendly and reasonably priced. My keyword spreadsheet is a fluid document that continues to grow and be refined for future writing topics.
If you can write for what people are searching about (high volume/low difficulty), then your content is more likely to be seen, resulting in more traffic, pageviews, and sessions to your website.
For me, the ultimate goal for using this strategy is to start ranking on the 1st page of Google with some of my blog articles, apply for Mediavine at the end of 2022, and start making some consistent passive income every month.
Examples of Lessons Learned
#2 – To provide value, we must create solutions to people’s problems.
It’s not enough to just go out there and say, ok, I’m going to make a handout, webinar, course, or any other type of digital product to sell online because that’s what I think people need and then you just cross your fingers that people will naturally buy in.
You should not just create something without knowing who you are selling to or what problem it will solve for them.
Market research is so important and it’s a step many people forgo because of the time it takes to talk with others, gather the insights, and then develop the product or service people actually need or want.
Imagine if you listened first and THEN you created the product or service. The end result will surely be a success.
Before you hit publish on your next social media post, blog post, or paid digital product, ask yourself if you are solving someone’s problem? making someone’s life easier? or creating a solution for them?
Examples of Lessons Learned
#1 – Patience + Progress + Consistency = Success
Thanks, Katie Dodd, for not only teaching but reinforcing this lesson over and over again this year. So often, we want to see results immediately, but the time and effort you put in over a predetermined amount of time is what will truly lead to your success in all things, both personally and professionally. 💯
With any goal you set for yourself, you must:
-Be Patient
-Show Progress
-Be Consistent
And success is sure to follow! Yes, it’s a simple formula, but only a small percentage of people do ALL three things.
Strive to be a part of that small percentage.
Be sure to check out my blog for useful tips and tricks when it comes to reading, writing, editing, proofreading, and content inspiration!
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