127: Your Story Star

In today's episode, I want to share with you something that we've been using in my business around sharing on social media that has revolutionized how we are showing up. I think you're going to love it. I also have an amazing download for you that is free and it's going to help you process what we go through today as well.

I'm Bonnie Christine and this is where all things creativity, design, business and marketing

un I'm a mama living in a

tiny town tucked right inside the Smoky Mountains, running a multi seven figure business, doing the most creative and impactful work of my life.

But when I first set out to

become an entrepreneur, I was struggling to make ends meet and wrestling with how to accomplish my biggest dream of becoming a fabric designer. Fast forward to today. I'm not only licensing my artwork all over the world, but also teaching others how to design their creative life and experience the same success. I'm here to help you spend your life doing something that lights you up. I'll help you build a creative business that also creates an impact, changes people's lives, gives you all of the freedom you want, and is wildly profitable. Welcome to the Professional Creative Podcast.

First I want to set the stage. I want to talk about how important it is that we show up on social media. It's one way that we serve our audience from a heart centered place and that includes showing up consistently and authentically. So my question for you is, are you showing up on social media for your business, not just personally or not just for your friends and your family, but for your business audience? Because what I know is true is that when you show up and serve, you will see growth. You know, when it comes to sharing on social, there are so many reasons that we hold ourselves back. We might be afraid of rejection, right? We might be afraid of saying something that we shouldn't say, or doing something that we shouldn't do, or sharing work and getting negative feedback. This is a common fear that we really all face. We're afraid of upsetting someone so we would rather just not show up at all. Another reason is simply being self conscious. Maybe we are self conscious about how we look or how we take photographs or where we take photographs. You know, it's like when I have a studio or an office, then I'll start showing up. This is also related to imposter syndrome. You often see so many other people who are showing up in the way that you would like to show up and you see a gap right between how you would be able to show up today. And how the people that you admire show up. So you wait, you don't feel ready. Another reason is maybe feeling silly, right? Like maybe you currently have friends and family who follow you. And if all of a sudden you start talking to a different audience, a business audience, let's say, you're afraid of what the people who actually know you will think of you, oftentimes we don't know what to say. Right? And that's what I'm going to help you with today. How do we decide what to share, what not to share? Sometimes it feels vulnerable to share too much. Other times we feel like we don't have anything to share at all. And so I want to help you overcome these things. First of all, the only way that we get better is to simply show up. So it's okay to show up imperfectly. It's okay to show up when you look a certain way or when you don't have a studio ready. Don't let these things hold you back because you have to just kind of push through them and show up anyways. So today I want to share with you a framework that I've developed called the story star. Now, this is based off of something called a character diamond. Now, a character diamond is a storytelling tool that screenwriters will often use to help develop characters in movies. So this often is a way to show all the different angles of a character. Well, I call mine the story star because we have a few more angles to show as a creative entrepreneur. So we're going to walk through it. If you have a piece of paper, you're welcome to draw a star, a big star on the center of the paper. Otherwise, just follow along in your mind. And when you can, head on over to the show. Notes for today's episode@theprofessionalcreative.com and you can download a pre designed story star ready for you to fill in so that you can really work through this and keep it by your side. So the points, if you're labeling with me, will be the north star, your process point, the quirky corner, common ground, and your passion point. So let me walk you through all of these things. But before we get to the points, I want you to focus on the center of your star. Now, the center of your star is there for your why. Your why is so incredibly important. And if you're not crystal clear on your why, why are you doing what you're doing, then this could be why you are finding it difficult to show up. Oftentimes we let so many other things be Bigger than our why. Something that I learned from my friend Amy Porterfield is that our why has to always be bigger than our worries. Because when we're crystal clear on our why, it won't matter what our worries are. At least it won't matter enough to keep us showing up. Because our why is the most important thing. Now. I think your why is something that is grand. It gets you out of bed in the morning, and it also is bigger than all of those worries. But it's important to kind of revisit your why, maybe on an annual basis. Because for me, my why has changed over the years. My why at the very beginning was maybe something like to prove to myself that I could. Then it morphed into being able to contribute financially to my family. Then it was to hit maybe certain numbers in my business. Then it radically changed to help grow other creative entrepreneurs. And that's where I've been for several years now. So get crystal clear on your why. One exercise that can help you do this is to continue to ask yourself why six, seven times until you get to the root why. Oftentimes, when I ask people like, why are you doing something? They'll have this kind of reason that isn't the root why. It's somewhat of a superficial why, and it's important, but it doesn't get to the real root of why you're doing what you're doing. So you can practice this. Ask yourself why and write down the first answer that comes to mind. And then ask yourself, well, why that? And then why that and why that. And like I said, if you get to five, six, or seven levels, you'll be really uncovering the why beneath the why. That is what goes in the center of your story Star. Now let's move to the very top. And this is your North Star. Your North Star is what you want to be known for. It's likely the things that generate revenue or will generate revenue for you. So it's the products you sell, it's the offers that you have, it's the service that you provide. It could be courses or memberships or all of those things that you want to be known for. For me, this is developing creative entrepreneurs. It's Surface Design Immersion course. It's my membership, it's my coaching program, it's this podcast. It's the things that I know I want to be known for. So many times we kind of assume that people know what we do or we're just not being super clear about what solutions we offer for the problems that people have out in the world. And so in addition to this, your North Star should be very obvious when someone comes to visit your social media profile or visit your website or sign up for your email list. So I would call you also with this episode to take a pause and go look at your social media media profile for this. Probably talking about Instagram, but it could be any of them. Is it crystal clear what your North Stars are in your social media profile? Meaning if someone comes and discovers you for the first time, they should immediately be able to figure out who you are, what you do, and what problem you solve.

Picture this, your creative business thriving beyond your wildest dreams.

More than just a business, a entire legacy. It's not just possible, but I want

you to feel how close it is to within your reach. I want to unfold the map of

success together with you.

In fact, I want to invite you to join me on a journey unlike any other with my brand new professional creative business coaching program. If you're currently making in between 50 and $200,000 a year in your business,

it's time to think bigger.

Imagine expanding your team, honing your leadership, and overcoming the challenges most businesses face. You know, what got you to where you are today isn't going to be the same thing that gets you to where you're going. If you're nodding along, I made this program for you. We'll have weekly live coaching calls, accountability pods to keep you on track, and a vault of resources and bonuses along with a community of fellow creative big thinkers. Because growing together is where all the magic happens. We've got the time management lab, my 5 million launch debrief, and a creative profits training which you'll have as a launch pad for all your revenue streams. But if you're unsure if this is your next step, I would love to chat with you. So in order to do that, I need you to send me a DM on Instagram or fill out our short interest form over@bonniecristine.com coach so that I can personally follow up with with you and just ask you a few questions

because I want to make sure that

this is the perfect fit for you and your journey right now. You have my word. If I don't think I can truly move the needle for you, I'll tell you. So if you're ready to elevate your creative business and step into your power and into a room of some really big thinkers, join me by filling out the interest form@bonniecristine.com coach or just DM me over on Instagram, the word coach. And I'll respond with my first few questions for you. Together, let's make your passion your legacy.

Now let's go to the right hand side of your story star. This is called the process point. You know, we all have a gift in our business. As creative entrepreneurs, we have a process in what we do. And this is likely something really beautiful that's also really interesting. So whether that's art or some other kind of handmade aspect to your business or just a process for how you do what you do, this is the perfect thing to show on social media. Part of this comes from one of my favorite books called show youw Work by Austin Kleon. This is such a great book. If you've not picked it up, it's an easy read but super impactful and Austin will encourage you to share your process. So it's not necessarily a completed work, more of a behind the scenes, pull back the curtain, show us what's behind the beautiful work. It could be your studio, it could be your art supplies, it could be the mess on the floor. It could be any part of your process. So maybe it's gathering inspiration or sketching or painting or something like that that you can pull back the curtain and show your audience, invite them in to your process. Now we'll go to the bottom right hand corner of your star. Now this one is called your quirky corner. We all have quirks about us and I think that this is something that really helps people connect with us. Something that we know is true is that people will always admire us for our accomplishments. That might be your North Star, but they will connect with you in your weaknesses. That's where the bottom two points come. And your story star. So your common ground and your quirky corner are where people will really connect with you. They'll relate to you. You'll have things in common with people. So what do you find a little bit quirky about yourself? For me, things that come to mind are that I live in a tiny town and I mean it like a tiny, small town. This is something that is just unique to me and it's a great connection point with other people who also live in a tiny town. I also eat a plant based diet. This is something that I've been doing for over a decade, I think 13 or 14 years and I forget about it sometimes. But it's a great point of connection to just talk about health and nutrition. Even though it really has nothing to do with my North Star. It's a great connection point. So you'll list your quirks down here. Now, on the left hand side is your common ground. So these are things that you can often find in common with many people. You can think about your common ground as if you are sitting next to someone that you just met and you're speaking for the very first time. Maybe you meet and you sit next to each other on a bus or at a wedding, you can find that need in conversation to find common ground. And so they're fairly general, but still connection points. So for me, this would be family, being a mom to two small kids. This is drinking great coffee and specifically an oat milk latte. This is about, for me, loving books and reading all the time. This is chocolate for me. This is all of those things that we love that we have in common with many people. And it can be great to just showcase these in little bits and pieces so that you have a connection point now down here in common ground. And your quirky corner could also be some things that are more difficult. So if you think about weaknesses, right, like maybe this is where you also get just a little bit vulnerable. Maybe you talk about the pain of learning on your own or how difficult it was to overcome something in your life or in your business. Now you need to put this through a filter of what you're willing to share, what you're not willing to share. You do not have to share every corner of your life on the Internet. You do not have to do that. And so I think one of the gifts of a story star is that it really allows you to author, it really allows you to decide what parts of you are you willing to share, what parts of you are you not willing to share. And then have a guide to go back to a foundation that you've already thought through so that you're not caught in the moment of deciding what you're willing and not willing to share. So sometimes things that are really painful you might not want to share, especially in the moment, you might want to wait until they're not as painful anymore, or you might not want to share them at all. But if you can show just some of your humanity here in the common ground and the quirky corner, it will help people connect with you and see you for who you truly are. It helps us just find the humanity in each other. Now we'll head over to the left point, which is your passion point. These are things that you are passionate about. For me, it would be gardening. I love to garden. I can't wait to start my seeds soon. I Love to cook. I cook every single night. I often love to cook from my garden if it's growing season. I also love CrossFit. Now, this is just a great connection point. I won't have that connection with everyone, but for the people that I do, it's like we really know each other. So these are just some passions that you have that you can easily interweave into your sharing as well. Now, when you look at your story star, you'll get to decide which things get to shine the brightest. And so if you're thinking about Instagram, some of these things may make it onto your grid. You know, you may be postings definitely about your North Star and your process point. You may be posting some about your passions as well. And when I look at mine, I like to also pull things out that just kind of round out the edges of knowing me. And I'll use them as talking points in, let's say, my stories. So maybe, you know, the fact that I love chocolate doesn't make it to my final grid, but maybe I show sneaking into the cupboard at night and stealing a little piece after dinner, Right? And so that could be something in my story that just is a real in the moment connection point with people. So once you have your story star filled out, you can come back to it over and over and over again. And what you can really do is decide how you want to rotate through these points of your star, with your why always at the center of everything that you do, so that when you sit down to create content, you've got a guide and a foundation to follow. Now, if today's episode has you inspired to show up on social with authenticity and consistency, well, you won't want to miss our next episode. I'm going to be shifting from the why to some points on the how. I'll share three components of making your online presence felt celebrated and impactful every single day. You'll leave with actionable steps to not only show up, but also shine online. My friends, I hope this was helpful. Again, head on over to theprofessionalcreative.com to download your very own copy of our story star that's ready for you to fill in. And I can't wait to see how this revolutionizes how you show up and rotate through the different sides and angles and points that you have. As a creative entrepreneur, my friends, create the beauty that you want to see come alive in the world. And remember, there's room for you. Bye for now.