I’m about to do something very out of character: Be positive. On a Monday Morning. Is this a result of the great weather we’re having? Yeah, probably. But it’s also because I’m teaching a Social Media Pop-Up Workshop this weekend, and I’m actually really looking forward to it.
That doesn’t mean I’m not going to freak out and get nervous when I get closer to Saturday — I definitely will, because public speaking is scary. But I actually like teaching this class, partly because I usually enjoy my students (I already know and like a few students coming to Saturday’s class), but also because I think what I’m sharing is helpful. See, I view social media differently than most social media teachers. I break a lot of “rules” — I don’t post constantly, I’m not a slave to analytics, and I really dislike spreadsheets.
My approach works for my personal goals (which are to get people talking about the ideas I care about and get them spending money in places that matter … including at my businesses), and it works for a lot of my students, too, because most of them are busy as entrepreneurs and/or artists. They just don’t have a lot of time, intellectual energy or emotional energy to put toward building a social media following. Cookie cutter solutions don’t really work for social media, because your approach should differ based on different goals, business strategy, location and audience, and solving the problem of how to talk to your particular audience is a challenge that I love figuring out. It’s really fun to see people in class become empowered and realize they can be very good at something they used to find confusing and overwhelming.
My workshop, Social Media for Small Business and Personal Branding, is this coming Saturday (September 19), and I’d love to see you in class. It’s $100, and that includes lunch. We usually have time for me to give everyone who wants one a personalized assessment, and most of my students report great networking contacts with other people in their class, too. I’m also excited that this session will be at Innovation Depot, which means we’ll have a fancy classroom with desks and space for everybody. Click here to sign up for the workshop, or let me know if you have questions about the class.
Consider this pop-up an investment in better Monday mornings — because a week from today, you could be starting out with a clear idea of what you want from social media and have a plan to get you there. Plus, I get super excited about signups, so you’ll also be making today a little bit brighter for me. 🙂
Carrie Rollwagen is author of The Localist: Think Independent, Buy Local and Reclaim the American Dream, creator of 30 Days of Local Praise and co-founder of Church Street Coffee & Books. Find her on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter @crollwagen.