636. Social Media Strategy Made Easy - with Jera Foster-Fell

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Because if people see you are so invested in your community and the people that you have, it's only going to make you that much more attractive to actually other people for them to hit the follow button and want to join in on whatever it is that you're putting out into the world.

Welcome to the earn your happy podcast. I'm Lori Harder, founder of The Bliss Project, 3 Time Fitness World champion, fitness expert and cover model turned self love junkie, lifestyle entrepreneur and author Each week I'll bring you a guest or a thought that will help you bust through your fears, connect to your soul and get focused and clear so you can elevate your life, business and relationships. We don't wait until we're ready for someone to tell us we're good enough. We take what we want and we anoint ourselves, get ready to earn, own and unapologetically rock your happiness every single day. Are you with me?

Here we go.

Welcome back to the show. I'm really excited about this conversation for anybody who is building a business on social media. I really loved my conversation with Jarrah Foster Fell. And in five years, Jarrah went from drowning in a soul sucking job with no defined purpose while suffering from social anxiety. I totally reson with that to owning a multiple six figure business and dominating the lifestyle sector of social media. She's built her community of more than 175k followers on Instagram and 500k followers on TikTok and has crowned herself the queen of pivoting from graphic design to SoulCycle instructor to content creator to Instagram strategist. With her immense experience and success, she has a current passion of teaching all that she's learned to others. With her signature course, the Social Media Saloon. And with her one on one clients, Jarrah coaches the ins and outs of creating your own personal brand online, the secrets to building a loyal and engaged community, and all the steps to take to use social media as a positive tool for your business. So let's get started.

Jera, I'm so excited to have you on the show. Thank you so much for coming on.

Oh heck yeah. Thanks for having me. This is gonna be a blast.

I'm not sure if I'm more excited to talk to you because I think you're hilarious or because I'm just, I'm really excited that you're wearing this hat right now.

Oh my God. I just feel, I don't know, there's something powerful about a hat. I'm like, I gotta get my thinking hat literally and figuratively on, so let's just do this.

It's so true. Like literally whenever I just did like some photos just for some branding stuff and I was like, I have to have like my photos in a hat because I feel like I'm at my best in a hat.

Heck yeah. I fully support that.

So I really love that you're wearing it like just with nobody around. Like I need to do more normally. A hat is for other people. For me, like, I'm like, this is like, for your enjoyment. But I really think I need to start doing it for my enjoyment as well.

I think you need to, I mean, try it out, Lori, and report back to me. Let me know how you feel. I think it's going to be, like, a really kind of confidence, mood booster for you. I think it's going to be great.

I do. I think that I will start just like you once I put that hat on. So with that said, you guys, I'm really, really excited to have Jer on, because I got to actually meet you in person after following you for a while at a Create and Cultivate dinner, which I honestly, you couldn't have been a better person for me to meet there, because I was, like, sweating, walking around alone.

Yes. Okay. Be cool.

You can totally be alone. Like, you're fine. You're walking into a room with, like, all of these really cool people, and you don't consider yourself that cool.

So isn't that how we all felt, though? Once we started talking to each other, we all realized we were showing up alone, and we were all kind of intimidated and scared. I almost didn't even want to come to the dinner because I struggle with some social anxiety stuff. But then we all realized we were feeling the same, and I'm so glad that we went and that I met you there. That was awesome.

Yeah, that. I was, like, so grateful. So, you guys, just to fill you in, like, we got invited to, like, this very special dinner before. We were speaking the next day at a Create and Cultivate event, and I didn't know. I was like, I don't think I'm going to know anyone there, and I'm freaked out. And you walk into this room and you really don't think you know anyone. And then I was like, oh, my God, there she is. I'm going to go talk to her. So then we got to chat at dinner, and it was just so much fun. And I'm, like, really excited to dive into talking about social media with you today, because not only do I feel like when people follow you, they really feel like they know you. And that's kind of the whole point, right? Like, that we want to know what you're up to. We enjoy, like, you know, seeing your face early in the morning. You know, that's a lot for even, like, our relatives. So, Jera, like, we want to know how you do that, like, how in the world, which we're going to dive into. But real quick answer, top of your head. Why do you think people like you on social Media.

I think it ultimately comes down to relatability. We want to follow other people that we connect to in some shape or form. I think when Instagram first started, kind of 2000. Well, not first started, but sort of naive days of Instagram back 2015, we followed people because it was aspirational, inspirational, like, oh, wow, cool trips, fancy food. And yes, I think we do that to a degree these days. But I think there's a much bigger longing and need for she or he is just like me. And, yeah, I kind of think they're cool or funny or whatever. But then I see them when they first wake up. I see them talking about potatoes and weird roots growing out of them, which I just posted today. Whatever it is, there's some connection that you can feel there even though it's virtual. And I think that I have figured that out and I figured out how to allow myself to simply show up as me. And I think people can feel that as they follow me on Instagram.

For sure. I definitely felt that right away, just like, oh, this is. I feel like this is how you are when your best friend is around. Or if I was gonna just be like, hey, let's go to coffee, or whatever that looks like. I just feel like I'm getting who you are through what you're showing up as, which is just like super you and authentic and whatever's coming to your mind in that moment. Even though I know there's somewhat of a plan there as well, it doesn't feel that way. Right. So we're gonna talk a little bit, but I know that you have quite a story on pivoting your career as well. And I think that this. We'll do high level of this because I know that we're really going to dive into what it means to nurture your current community, no matter what your numbers are. But what I would love because of the times and of pivoting and what's possible, I'd love for you to give kind of a high level of your story from kind of being. I know you chatted about being a bit unhappy into trying all these different careers into what you're doing now.

Yeah, let's do it. Okay, so I'm going to rewind us back a little bit. VHS style and 2015, I was a graphic designer. I'd been doing that for a couple of years. That's what I went to school for. I studied fine art with an emphasis in graphic design, and I did a little bit of freelance work. I worked at some startups. There Was one particular startup that just really did not treat me very well at all. Was making. I honestly, I was making no money. It was insane. And I was working seven days a week. If you really add it up, I was probably making like a dollar or something an hour. If you. It was rough.

I feel like I've worked one of those jobs before.

Yes, I think we all have. And I was losing hair on my head due to stress. I was pushed to extreme exhaustion. And so looking back on it now, I see this soil essentially ready for something good to happen, for something to bloom. Not to be super cheesy, but that's truly how I look back on it now. And I had been following a woman on Instagram, Kayla, at cenas, big in the workout world. She has these guides or back then had these guides, downloaded these guides after a year following her and started working out. And it was just this positivity that I needed in my life when I had this awful job, was struggling from social anxiety and had no friends. And so through working out, I felt really good, of course, because endorphins and that just puts you in a good mental state. I was making friends on Instagram and that was a really powerful thing to have, that female connection. I was really lacking that in my real life. And I started my Instagram account to hold myself accountable. So this is April 2015. And that's really what ignited my passion for social media and Instagram and fitness. Because I fell into that world, also ignited my passion for my next step, which is becoming a soul cycle instructor. Which was a long, complicated journey in and of itself. But I started teaching it towards the end of 2016, all the while building my Instagram career, really kind of stepping into the role of influencer content creator. And then it was mid 2018 that I left SoulCycle, went full time content creator and very much was successful. Still am still very much doing that these days. But it took about a year, maybe a little bit less than that, where I was like, geez Louise, okay, this is great. I love what I'm doing, but what more can I do? Am I going to be an influencer in 10 years? Like maybe, maybe in a different kind of way? I don't know. But I think for my own personal, personal fulfillment and from a strategic business sense, like being smart about my future, I needed to figure something else out. And so it was towards the end of 2019 that even though I had the thought of hiring a business coach in my mind for a long time and I finally, it just sort of fell into my lap in this weird university type of way. And I started working with a business coach who really helped me see holy smokes. I know a lot about social media. I could really help people and teach people and really bring so much value. I have all this inherent knowledge that sometimes we assume we have this inherent knowledge and that other people have it, but I'm like, oh wow, people need to know this stuff too and they don't know it. And so that's how I developed my social media coaching business, my course that I have, which kind of brings us up to current day. So I'm very much in the content creation space and also living, breathing the whole social media coaching as well.

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Yeah, I love, love, love just seeing how it can be like you can be in something left, like something.

You'Re.

About to move into. And I think that's so important for people to hear right now that if there's something there that you don't necessarily realize you are even good at, you might want to get like an outsider perspective to be like, let's actually talk about some of the things you're interested in, what you're good at, right? Because sometimes like you didn't realize, wow, I'm actually quite good at this. I thought this is what everybody was doing or what everybody knew. And I think that's extremely helpful. So if anybody's listening to this who's like, I don't know what's next? Sometimes we're not meant to figure it out alone. Like, sometimes you really are. You could even pay for one session or if you can't afford a session, maybe ask some of your friends to sit down and say, when am I at my best? You know, ask those type of questions. So I love, love, love that you shared that. Okay, so I want to touch on just really quickly before we get into nurturing your community. You've exploded on TikTok. Really, like, and like blown up and you know, in a time when we're not really seeing on Instagram, you're probably like, holy hell, I'm growing on TikTok. Tell me a little bit about that, the timeframe and what you think that is.

TikTok, I freaking love this platform. Let me just say, it's such a breath of fresh air in the social media space. One reason being what you said, Lori, that it's really hard to grow on social platforms these days. And so to bring you back to the beginning of the year, I started my account in December 2019, but really started to take TikTok seriously in about February 2020. And when I first started my account, I was just kind of posting silly videos. I'm a goofy person. So I was just posting whatever and then I thought to myself, I had this light bulb. I'm like, wow, let me go really niche on TikTok, because on Instagram, I do straddle two sides of the coin a bit. I'm Jara as the influencer and I'm Jara as a social media coach. And I'm still. It is a little bit of a balancing act to be both of those. On TikTok, though I had no followers, I didn't have an identity there. I said, let me just kind of go full social media strategy, which at the time and current day still means content tips, tutorials, how to edit photos, how to pose in front of a camera, how to do TikTok trends, et cetera. And as soon as I went super, super niche, I exploded. So in one month, I believe, if I'm remembering correctly, I hit 10,000 followers. And then in like the next month, I got to maybe close to 100. It's just. It's been absolutely cuckoo bananas. And so current day, I'm around the 750,000 mark. And it's not just, you know, it's fun. The followers are fun, I'm not going to lie. Especially feeling a bit stagnant. I think all of us can relate to that on Instagram these days. But what I love about TikTok, besides just the growth, is that it's a really new way to be creative. And it doesn't necessarily mean being the funniest, the best dancer, making people laugh or having the craziest ideas. It's just really a new way to attend, express yourself in this video format that is a lot less polished than Instagram. So Instagram, we're really worried about the highlight reel and getting these perfect photos and sort of showing ourselves in a certain way. And on TikTok, I feel like all of those rules have been just thrown out the window. And so that's why I say it's really a breath of fresh air and just really exciting to experience social media in a little bit of a different way.

Yeah. So, so cool and so much fun. It's so much fun to watch. And I do love that you just mentioned it doesn't have to be polish, and you can kind of just find what works and roll with it. So did you have that moment when you were like, huh, this is working. Was it just from followers going up or was it. What was that for you?

So I think it was as soon as I started putting up a couple of tutorials on TikTok. There are these things called trends if someone's not familiar who's listening. And a trend can be a bunch of different things. It could be a dance, it could be a song that everyone is doing a certain type of ed to. It can just be the words that you're saying and kind of molding it to your niche and what you talk about. There's a million ways for a trend to happen on TikTok, but sometimes trends happen and it's a little bit challenging to figure out how to actually execute them. And so I remember once just being like, hey, guys, this is trending. Here's a tutorial on how to do it. And it just blew up, like millions of views, which. How crazy is that? Millions of views. I thought of getting a million views on Instagram. I don't think that will ever happen for me with one post. I mean, who knows? So it just was like, that was my light bulb moment when I realized, wow, people don't know. Once again, kind of going back to me realizing I could be a social media coach. Like, oh, I think I know these things and other people know them too, so what's the point? But then when you see, oh, my goodness, I have this knowledge or I have this ability to figure out this knowledge that other people are hungry for, that's such a light bulb moment. Whether we're talking, like, social media strategy or something kind of fun and goofy, like a TikTok trend.

Yeah, I love that. Especially for people. Like, it's a great spot to explore niching down, like, whatever that looks like. Like, it could be. I was just thinking, because we've been in the RV a lot, I was like, oh, you could do like little hacks for camping. You like. It's a great niche spot, you know?

Yes. I love that you brought that up because there's. There's every single niche on TikTok. I have seen people who do van life and they have these, like, cute boho vans. I see people who teach babies how to swim. I see early childhood education teachers. I see makeup artists. And every. Every big niche that you already know and every small, really random niche that you probably haven't thought of. It's TikTok.

Yeah. Like, what a cool thing. What a cool place for so many of those things. And, you know, another cool thing with cooking or working out or just you can do what you can do, whatever and be very specific on that channel. Where I do feel like Instagram, it's more like people kind of do like to see who you are as well there. Where TikTok, I feel like you can just go straight, like, this is what we're doing here. This is the only thing we're doing here. So I can. Because I don't know about you, but sometimes it's, like, easy to get very, like, what do I post today on Instagram? Monday or Tuesday or Wednesday? Like, you have different strategy for that, where it sounds like you're just really niching down in there. Okay, so we've touched on that a bit. For anyone who's, like, wanting to know about TikTok, you can go follow Jara on TikTok. Jera, like, what's your TikTok handle?

Jarrah Bean. Jarrah Bean. It's the same on Instagram, same handle. Cool.

We're going to learn everything from her over on TikTok.

Yes.

Literally gonna just go over there and check it out. So moving on to Instagram, Facebook, but essentially Instagram. I really want to talk about nurturing your community because right now, a lot of us, our numbers are not growing. It is extremely challenging to grow right now. Not that you can't. It's just more challenging than it was. So with that said, really focusing on nurturing our current communities. I just want to talk on why that's important right now.

Yes. I love that you brought that up, because it's something that I've been talking a lot about recently just on Instagram with my students, my clients, because so many of us are fixated on growing. We want more, more, more, more and more. And I get it. Like, if someone said, hey, you could have 10,000 more followers today and have more engagement, I would say, sure, I'll take it. Why not? Like, we all want it, and it makes sense why we want it. However, like you said, it's really challenging to grow on social media these days, especially Instagram. So if we're constantly fixated on growing, growing, growing, we're not really putting our effort into something that is going to be really beneficial for us. And it's ultimately going to lead to disappointment as well. Because if we're only focusing on more, at what point are we actually satisfied? Like, if you've got 100 more followers or 500 followers, it's probably like this little hit for the moment where you feel good, but probably the day later, a week later, you're going to be wanting more. So how can we reshift our perspective here to make it work for us? And what I like to talk about and focus on is how can we take the effort and focus that we're putting on growing and actually turn that more towards the people who are currently in front of us, the people who have already hit the follow button. Because there are people, whether it's 10, whether it's 100, whether it's 10,000, there are people who have pressed the follow button who want to follow you. So if we shift our attention towards those people in our community already serving those people, providing valuable content, educating, motivating, inspiring, entertaining, whatever our mode of operation is, that's going to nurture the people that you have in your community already. And I think that's really going to make you much more of a flower, like a bee coming to a flower to then actually grow. Because if people see you are so invested in your community and the people that you have, it's only going to make you that much more attractive to actually other people for them to hit the follow button and want to join in on whatever it is that you're putting out into the world.

Agreed. Oh, my gosh. I always think of that when I'm, like, really starting to focus on, oh, I want to grow, I want more people. I'm like, what am I doing to, you know, really show up for the people that I already have? Sometimes that's a tough answer to look at that you're like, holy shit. Like, I think I'm gonna get all these new people, but I'm not ner. What, I'm not nurturing them either. So, you know, people who are already there, they'll end up staying. And eventually, you know, people share good stuff like they just do, whether they. Whether your number stays the same or not. More engagement and more engaged following is so much more important anyway. And it feels really good for you as somebody feeling connected to your audience and knowing what's going on by nurturing them.

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All right, let's talk about some tangible things that we can do to nurture our communities. I know you talked about like defining your niche, your content pillars. Let's move into some of those things.

Yeah. So the first place that I really like to begin, and I think that it's a step that is glossed over by a lot of people, and rightly so, it's not the most intuitive necessarily is to first focus on yourself, focus on who you are understand what sets you apart. Because at the end of the day, you as a personal brand, or whether we're talking a brand, a business, a business or content creator, however you want to slice and dice it, you are the secret sauce. So I would recommend taking pen to paper, getting a Google Doc open, whatever works for you, and spending perhaps 30 minutes. If you have more time, go for it, really writing out your story. And you could start as simple as like, I was born in New York City on June 12, 1989, whatever it is. And write out things that happened in your childhood, write out your accomplishments, what happened at college, if you went what are some of your greatest challenges and not necessarily all the biggest things, maybe you're talking about some of the small things as well. Memories that stick out in your head. And once you kind of take this journal prompt, then it's about distilling, okay, what are the three to five key defining moments of my life? And once again, it doesn't necessarily have to be the biggest thing. There might be something really small that happened to you that was significant. And so if you can figure out what these elements of your story are, this is what sets you apart and makes you unique. So that's number one. The next thing that I would recommend doing is figuring out what your niche is. And there's so much talk these days about niche and niching down and niches in the riches. And it's a lot of talk. And I think a lot of people get very overwhelmed with what that is. And so the way I like to distill it down is asking yourself, what do you do? Who do you help and how do you help them? So it's almost like a fill in the blank. I am a blank. And I help or teach, whatever the word is that you want to do, blank. And then the problem that you solve or the solution that you offer. So I might say I am a social media coach and I help business owners master social media. You really have to zone in and figure out what is the problem that you solve. And this can be for a content creator as well. If you're a fashion blogger, perhaps you are all about finding these high style, high fashion looks and figuring out how to recreate them on a budget. Or maybe you do a lot of stuff at thrift stores or just finding sales, that kind of thing, and that is solving a problem. Because there's lots of people out there who want to look stylish but don't have a ton of money to spend. So even if you're not selling something, you can still figure out the problem that you solve. Zeroing in a little bit more on your ideal client or your ideal follower if you're a content creator so that you know who you are creating content for. Because even though we do figure out what our story is, we also have to zero in on the people that we're trying to serve and help. Because at the end of the day, once you get through all these steps, it's not totally about you. It's about the people that you want to provide value to and the impacts that you want to have. So who is this person? Male, female, age? Where do they live? What are their likes, dislikes, pain points, their goals, the real nitty gritty, and even give them a name. And then from there the next really tangible step that you're going to take. And a lot of people don't do this as well. I've mentioned content pillars a lot and people are like, wow, I've never heard of this. This sounds great. So this is really going to help in actually your content creation strategy, what you're getting out into Instagram. So you have to look at your brand, whether it's your brand brand or your personal brand, and think, okay, what are the 3, 5, 6, however many it is. Main themes of my brand. What are the main topics that I talk about that I believe in? A personal trainer might be something like fitness, nutrition, mindset. If they sell something, they might want to have their programs and services in one content pillar. And then I always, always, always, regardless of what you do, I always recommend having a personal story pillar, which really comes back to that first point that I talk about. So having your story, knowing what sets you apart, knowing what your niche is, knowing who your ideal client or ideal follower is, and really distilling down your pillars of the main buckets. The main themes of your brand is going to lay down this foundation for content creation and we can dive deeper into like captions and all that stuff as well. But that's kind of. That sets the scene for you.

Oh, I love that. Okay. It's funny what I don't want to do with this podcast. I do. I. I literally take it as personal coaching. So I'm writing some of my stuff down right now.

Good. Heck yes. I love that.

Literally have light pink in the middle. And then I'm like always sharing the personal story of it. Then our other things are like how, you know, celebrating other women each week connect, like, how are we connecting with the community and showing them how to connect? And then collaboration with their business. That's one. And then I'll think of other ones as well. So thanks for that.

Look at you go. That's perfect.

How it's super tangible, like to sit down and then. And then put it into something. So now I want to know, okay, I have this stuff in front of me. How am I going to start putting this into captions? Like, what, what makes a good caption?

So there's a lot we can say about a caption, and it's going to be so different for each person. So there isn't necessarily a specific nitty gritty formula for everyone. But I do like to offer up this initial kind of skeleton, if you will, of what a caption can be. And I like to call the Instagram caption sandwich, because I think it's nice to have a little metaphor reference here. And so if we can break it down into three pieces. So the top bun is your hook. Now on Instagram, as a lot of us, I'm sure, are familiar, we get cut off about 150 characters before the more link shows. So you have approximately 150 characters to stop the scroll and grab someone's attention. Now, hopefully your photo, your graphic, whatever it is that you're putting out visually will do that as well. But oftentimes we kind of scroll and look to see what the initial words are. And so I don't want to say clickbaity because I'm not trying to manipulate anyone with my words, but we have to draw and entice and pique people's interest. So if I was a content creator and I was doing a roundup of the vacation, I was just on a really not so great hook. Hook would be something like, hey, guys, just got back from vacation. And I'm like, if I saw that, I'd be like, okay, keep scrolling. I'm not going to read the rest of that caption, but some ideas for how it would be a great hook would be, I just got back from vacation. You will never believe what happened on the final day, for example, it could also be something like the top three places that you have to go when you're in Italy. Next time, just giving either information to give a preview into what's coming next or get people excited about how to click. And there's a million ways to do this, but those are just two examples. Now, the next thing that we get into, really, one of the most important pieces is content with value, and that's the meat of our sandwich or the tofu of our sandwich. If you're vegan and this is where you are delivering your message. It can be a story where you're taking someone from point A to point B and there's maybe a lesson or something tangible for them to walk away with. If it's a story about yourself or, or an experience, it could be an educational piece where you're giving tips in a bullet list form. There's something happening there in that middle content with value chunk where someone is walking away feeling motivated and inspired. They're walking away learning something new, or perhaps they're just being entertained. We don't necessarily have to teach, teach, teach, inspire, inspire, inspire. Sometimes it's about telling an embarrassing story and connecting with your community that way. Now, something really important that I to want to point out about this content with value that I think a lot of people, I don't want to say they go wrong, but they're not quite flipping their caption in the right way to serve their audience. Now, if we're talking about 2015 Instagram days, Instagram was really about ourselves. Look at this trip that I went on. Look at this tasty breakfast that I had. Look at this cool shirt that I just got. And these days on Instagram, that doesn't quite fly as much. And a really great way to kind of flip that perspective is, is this piece of content a look at me piece of content or is it a learn from me piece of content? And I say those both very broadly. So look at me is kind of just more about you. And I'm not saying that you can't do look at me content. You certainly can. It just needs to be a little bit more balanced. But learn from me. They're taking something away from that. So an example of that would be look at me as hey guys, I just went to New York for the weekend and cute coffee shop. Like, look at me like witty little caption versus hey guys, I just went to New York City for the weekend. Here are the three coffee shops that I went to. You gotta go to the next time they're tagged. Here are these locations. Look at me versus learn from me. The very last thing, the bottom bun. This is our cta, also known as a call to action. You have to ask your audience to do something to get them to engage. Your raving fans are gonna take action regardless, but you have to ask for the engagement or the action that you hope to get back. You can't just assume people are going to do things if you don't ask for it or talk about it. So a CTA can come in the form of a question, asking something so that people respond to it in the comments. You can ask people to save it, share it, double tap to dm. You click the link in your bio, whatever it is, to check out your stories. If you're kind of cross pollinating the two, but some sort of action for them to take. So hook content with value cta. That is our Instagram sandwich.

Okay, I love this. This is so helpful. Just took a ton of notes. So something that I want to know. What are you working on within this? Do you feel like you're constantly working on this yourself or and tweaking it or what are you like, what are you focusing on right now for Instagram?

With Instagram right now, as I mentioned a little bit earlier, I am straddling this line between content creator and social media coach. So I would say from 2015 to 2000, kind of mid-2019, it was just kind of Jarrah as my life. So I had a very heavy fitness phase. I had my soul cycle journey. And it was just kind of, I would say, I don't want to say it was totally look at me content because I do think I've always tried to get tips and advice and inspiration. So I do think I've had a little bit of a lean to the learn from me, but it's been more just about Jarrah. And so in 2020, where we are right now, I've had to figure out how to fulfill Jarrah as a social media coach in the content creation space. So what's interesting for me is that I've found a little bit of a blend between the two because I'm not always saying here are the hashtags you need to use, here's how to use Instagram reels, here's how to content plan. I have a little bit of that stuff, but I feel like by infusing more of the mindset aspect around social media, I can kind of blend the two together. So things around getting confidence in front of the camera or if you are feeling burnt out by social media in general, I found a little bit of a balance to make both of my audiences happy, both Jarrah as content creator and Jara as social media coach. But it's still very much a work in progress and I'm figuring that out as I go. And I really recommend that to anyone who is pivoting starting a new Instagram account. Whatever it is, you don't have to know all the answers. I've been doing this for over five years. And I'm still figuring things out. It's taking that messy action. Not necessarily being sure, but still choosing to show up despite not being totally confident that you've had it all figured out.

Yeah. Oh my God. So powerful. Because none of it can be taken serious too seriously. And it's also, it's one big experiment. The second you have that experiment down, it changes. So go back to experimenting. So here's what I think a lot of our audience is made up of is that person who is really struggling between trying to figure out what their strategy plan is of posting, like, because they have this business. And then they're also told like, like, you're the brand and we want to see you. And it's kind of like, shit.

Right?

When I'm focused on this one thing, I'm like, I'm also supposed to be all personal and share, you know, all these other things. I know we kind of talked about this with the pillars, but how do you put that into like a day to day. Here's what I'm doing. Do you get really granular with your strategy plan and like stick to it? Does that help?

It's really about figuring out what works for you. So I teach it in a granular way so that people know what that granular method is. And then if they realize, oh, maybe I don't need to be this granular, then it's kind of like learning the rules so that you know what you're doing when you learn to break them. So I have a student who plans for content up to six months in advance, which for me, oh my God, if I was it, there's no way. So if you can do that, by all means. I think that we put a lot of pressure like, oh, we have to plan out a month. Month, perfect honesty. I'm usually planning about a week out in advance. It's just what works for me. And it's a nice balance because a lot of pushback that I hear from people when it comes to content planning is, oh, I don't want to plan my content out because I really like to just post how I feel in the moment, which I totally respect. We want to be authentic and have our finger on the pulse of how we want to show up today. But the issue with that is if you are only posting if you're posting about what you feel like today, well, how nice if you feel inspired and motivated to post today, well, what happens tomorrow or the next day or when you get super busy? So planning allows us to show up consistently. Planning A week allows us to still very much be in the moment. And here's the really cool thing. If I plan out, let's say Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and on Wednesday I have a post about how to pose for photographs, for example. But in my mind I'm like, oh my God, no. I'm feeling so inspired about talking in public. Imposter syndrome today. I can then take that original idea and just shift it to the next week and then I have a little bit less work to do next week. So it still allows that flexibility.

Okay, and is there certain, like apps and different things that you use for strategy and planning that makes your life easier?

I keep it really simple. I plan out the aesthetics a little bit. I try not to go too crazy. People think these days that they have to have these perfect looking feeds and I just think we're so far past that on Instagram. So I don't want to say this. And someone goes, okay, I'm going to download it and then plan out a month and everything has to be perfect. I really only do it to maintain a certain type of feed balance. But the app that I use right now is Planoly and I'm only doing that just to see what my next photo will look like. I'm not doing it to schedule my post. I'm not doing it to whatever to plan out a million things. I keep it super simple with that.

Okay, cool. What do you think is important for us to know right now? Like someone who's trying to just get themselves out and get their, you know, whether it's growth or whether it's connecting to their audience more, just trying to put effort towards this. What are some important things to remember and to know when we're putting effort towards all of this?

Well, I was about to say a couple things, but a lot of things. So I'll just say what comes to my mind first. The first thing is that we as humans, but especially when it comes to social media, oh my goodness, we just over think things so much, every part of the process, like what post should I put up? What should my caption be? And then you get into this cycle of overthinking that you end up not taking any action. And so if we. It's so much easier said than done. But your one post is not the be all, end all. Someone recently asked me, oh my goodness, I'm going to put my first post up for my new account. What should I do? I need this to be perfect. And I'm like, sweet little darlin, I Don't care about that first post. I care that you, you have planned out your post for a week so that as you are this new account showing up, you're showing up consistently. So, like, yeah, I want you to put effort into that first post, but I care much more about the portfolio of posts going out. So overthinking is one I think. Also we just get so stuck into the comparison trap and over saturation and someone else is doing this, so I can't do it. There's always space for you because coming back to your story, you have your own stories, experiences, your own secret sauce that you're bringing to the table. So even if you're following 50 fitness instructors putting out virtual zoom classes, someone is still going to want to follow you and take your zoom classes because you make them feel a certain way. And that's why we have to bring our story and sort of vulnerability and relatability into social media. It's not just about this end product, but it's about letting people into our lives, into our stories, so that they connect to us and want to be part of our communities. Or if you're selling something, buy whatever it is that you're selling. So yeah, overthinking and sort of comparison and getting stuck in that over saturation mode, those are the initial things that come to mind.

Okay, so good. And I know that a lot of people, I can throw myself in this bucket in the past as well, are afraid of like, what can come on social media, especially nowadays. Like just a lot of, of, you know, whether it's rude comments or trolls or bullying or attacks or whatever that looks like. And sometimes it can get bad. Like, and it can't happen. Like I tell people, yes, it can absolutely happen. And when it does, it's not near as bad. Well, it's bad on the day and maybe it's bad. I will say it feels awful. I hate, Like, I want people to know. Nobody doesn't feel this. Like, everybody feels this, this. But it's the risk that you take in order to, you know, connect and grow and get your dream out into the world. And I don't think it's any. It's just coming in a different form than it has in the past. But it does go away. You do get through it. But I want to know, like, how do we. Because some people are listening right now and they're like, yeah, still don't care. Still the scariest thing ever. I don't want that to happen. So I'm not going to show up Because I'm afraid of what people will say, do.

Bullied.

That's their worst, worst, worst fear. Right? Like, I hear this all the time from entrepreneurs. Worst fear is that their worst fear can come true. What do we say when it does? Like, how do we help them understand that? Yes, it very well could. But what?

Oh, it's. Laurie, it's such a good question. And I feel like we're very similar in that we're affected by negativity or trolls or whatever it is in the same way. Because I have. I wish I had this thick skin and was like this badass. You, like, just let stuff fall off me. But it's like whenever I get something, even, even if it's small, it's a physical sensation in my body. So if anyone is listening, who feels the same way or hasn't had this happen yet, and they're scared that it's going to happen, I get it. I have been there and it freaking sucks. And I say this thinking, oh, my goodness, I'm this public person. I know that sometime within the next month, two months, it's going to happen again. Just because it happens once doesn't mean it's not going to happen. But ultimately, when we have fears that hold us back and then we don't act, we're living in our comfort zone. We're living in the confines of our comfort zone because we say, oh, this is safe. This is not scary. Nothing's gonna hurt me here. It's easy. And it's so much easier not to do anything and feel this sense of comfort and security rather than put yourself out there. And so we have to just come to terms with when we put ourselves out there, we're leaving the comfort zone. We're no longer protected. However, the pros and the cons is. Okay, just to give it a specific example, if I put this post out here today, I feel a little bit vulnerable about it. Perhaps what I'm saying is slightly polarizing. Who knows if it benefits 50 people who read it, who help them feel less alone, who help them feel more connected to you. Maybe you offered something about yourself that they never knew anyone else dealt with. And so they read it and they go, oh, my God, I feel so much better knowing that I'm not alone in whatever it is that I'm going through. And then one person out of the let's say it's 51 total, says, I hate this post, you're stupid, or whatever rude, terrible words they have to say. If you can think about it in that Black and white situation, I would say, wow, I really much rather that situation than staying in my comfort zone and not helping those 50 people with the posts that I'm putting out that I'm putting up today. So if you can start to kind of put it in that frame that by putting yourself out there, something's going to happen. But the pros really will outweigh the cons with the people that you are impacting with. Whatever it is that you're putting out, whatever it is that you're selling, however it is that you are aiming to help people. People.

So good. What do you wish more people knew about you or asked you? Let's say both. What do you wish more people knew about you and what do you wish more people asked you?

Wow, those are great questions. You know, I think people think that I am like super extroverted and super confident and just all these types of things and I'm really quite introverted. Like I love being at home. I don't like see my friends that often. I'm also just working. She has done so that's a niche as well. So being this, I have learned confidence over the years, especially through my soul cycle journey. It's been a learned experience. This is not something that I was born with and it doesn't always come naturally to me. And I think that kind of ties in nicely to what we see on social media. We see people with a certain type of life or a certain type of confidence and we just assume, oh wow, this is so easy for them. I could never be that way. And so I hope if anyone ever thinks that about me, I hope they know that it's been quite a journey to learn confidence and there's still days that I absolutely battle that, whether it's with my introvertedness or confidence or self doubt or imposter syndrome, et cetera.

Yeah. So good. You just pinged a question in my own head for everybody and myself and for just consideration is like, if confidence is learned, what are you doing to learn it every day? So many people are like, oh, I wish I could be there. I'm like, no, no. I'm putting myself through, through confidence school today by doing something that doesn't, that I don't feel confident in. Right. It's like just like how you are willing to show up and experiment. That's you showing up and willing to grow like your muscle of confidence and TikTok in. Does this post work?

Does that work?

Like there's no way to get to those places without flexing your Muscles like maybe don't yet exist. So.

Heck yeah.

Yeah, absolutely. God, this was so good. I know that you also have a program that people can go through if people are looking for more. So tell me about that.

Heck yeah. It is called the Social Media Saloon. It has nothing western inspired in it. It's just something. But it cracks me up. I don't know how I came up with that name, but it is a three month program for both content creators and business owners to really learn how to master Instagram, grow your online presence, foster your community and turn followers into clients.

Foster your community. I like what you did there. So with that said, it's say the name again. So direct everyone again so that they can hear it.

It's called the social media saloon, thesocialmediasaloon.com I also have a little Instagram handle for it. It's also hesocialmedia Saloon, so you can find me there.

Okay.

Amazing. I'm so grateful for you. I'm grateful for you, for how you show up in the world and just how you keep showing up in the world because you're so approachable. It makes it fun to learn from you. So I just want to say thank you for who you are and for coming on the show today. And you guys, you know that the biggest thing that you can do for our guests that come on, especially if she just rocked your social media world, which I know she did. If you can share a story of the podcast and tag Jara Jara, what's your Instagram handle?

It's Jarrah Bean, but there's a period.

In there, so it's Jara Bean era Bean. And let her know what your biggest takeaway was from the show. Like, what are you going to do? What are you going to use? What was your favorite tip? Definitely let us know. You guys know that I always try to reshare your stories and then Jerry can also see who she got to talk to today and who was affected and impacted today. And I think that's the coolest thing is actually podcasting and then knowing who you're talking to. So you guys, until next time, earn your happy. Bye, everyone.

Thank you guys so much for spending this time with me on the earn your happy podcast. I am so glad that you stopped by. If you could take one second to share, share this episode with someone you think would love it, that would be absolutely amazing and we would be forever grateful. Also, please leave us a review if you feel so moved by going to itunes and leaving us an honest thought, an honest comment, Tell us what you think. Tell us what you want to hear. More of it would really help us out on our journey to helping thousands and thousands of people. Until then, don't forget to earn your happy. Thanks again guys.

Bye bye.