3 Questions to Marie Kondo Your Business

Cheers to another week of building businesses, my merry dreamers!

Last week I accidentally sent this on a Monday night and more of you opened it. So guess when you’re getting emails from me henceforth? You got it. Mondays. Follow the metrics, baby.

A quick peek inside this issue, so you can see if you want to read the rest. (Psst. You totally do.)

• Before Marie Kondo said screw it to decluttering, she was queen of tidying up. I’ll share a quick way to Marie Kondo your business, one that is hopefully more sustainable and achievable for mere mortals.

• Still thinking there’s no need for your brand to be on Tiktok? Let me tell you a classic #TiktokMadeMeBuyIt tale about products that you’re likely to use, unlike that manifestation journal you never opened.

• Selling online or looking for funding? Check out the news tidbits at the bottom.

Spark Some Joy ✨

Think about why you started your business. Did you do it? Ok. Was there a little tiny spark of joy in there? I hope so.

For years, I’ve asked three questions of my direct reports to gain clarity on how they want to shape their roles and career paths. I’ve also Marie Kondo’d my own job to make career decisions. I think you can use them for your business, too. Let’s try a little game I call Give, Take, Keep.

1. What would you give away tomorrow if you could?

You know there’s something you would love to stop doing. What is it? Now, I know what you’re thinking. Yes, you are a scrappy starter, but no, that does not mean you have to do all the things. You have other options for your “give”:

• First, decide if this thing really needs to be done. Are you doing it because you’ve always done it? Or maybe there’s a way to do it faster, less often, more efficiently, etc.

• Can you outsource it? If you’re still emptying the trash and cleaning the toilets, maybe it’s time to hire a cleaning service. Hate posting on social? Find a social media manager on Upwork or another marketplace.

• Is your trash another person’s treasure? Believe it or not, some people like accounting. (I know, I don’t get it either.) Maybe someone on your team is dying to take on what you’re sick of. Don’t rob them of a growth opportunity.

2. What would you take on if you could?

There’s always a thing we have been waiting to do until we have time. We say, “I just have to find the time,” like it’s an effing Easter egg hunt and we’re going to stumble upon that stale nugget of time we hid last April.

Newsflash: time doesn’t work that way. You don’t find it, you make it. Consult your give list again. What from your take list could you finally “find” the time to do if you cleared away that other junk? It’s probably worth it.

3. What would you keep so hard that I’d have to pry it from your cold, dead hands? 🧟

Graphic description aside, refer to that “why” we discussed earlier. Did you start a restaurant because you love to cook? Find the time. Fall in love with your job because you love customers? See them more. Stop. Delegating. Your. Joy.

And if you’re not in a place to go full-in on your keep things, that’s fine. We all have to do stuff we don’t want to do. But make at least some time for it. Dedicate a half day a week to being customer-facing. Pick up a side project where you get to write. (Ahem, I am talking about me there, obvi.)

✔️ Bonus Tip: If you’re running a biz with employees, ask them these same questions! You’ll be surprised by what they’d like to take on, and it helps you grow a happy team.

💯 Bonus Points: Jk, not really. There aren’t points in a newsletter, you guys. But I would love to hear your lists, so please reply and share!

How Much Wood Could a Tiktok Sell…

Starting this post with a disclaimer: I do not believe Tiktok is right for every brand. But I do believe it’s right for a lot of brands, especially B2C. In case you didn’t hear, Tiktok announced plans this week to quadruple its ecommerce business.

Possible U.S. ban aside, this means more opportunities to connect directly with consumers where they already are. With 600 million active daily users and longer watch times than YouTube, small businesses can’t afford to say, “Well, Gen Z isn’t our target market, so…” 🙄 My grandma is on Tiktok, y’all.

Sider’s Woodcrafting clearly knows this. It’s just one story of a small business that went big on Tiktok. This small, home-based business makes super fancy cutting boards that will make your charcuterie the biggest hit at the party.

Bruce, the guy who makes the stuff, talks about the experience of going from hobby to full-time and the serendipitous viral video that made taking the leap (a little) more comfortable. I love his story because it’s so relatable and real.

Even if you’re not a maker business, there’s plenty of ways to make Tiktok content that works for your brand. Pack an order, tell your story, hop on a trend.

As a marketer, I’m required to remind you that going viral is not a strategy, but even if (when) that doesn’t happen for you, you’ll still be gaining access to a huge audience and setting yourself up for success prior to Tiktok’s coming ecommerce enhancements.

News You Can Use… to Build Your Dream

Go Live or Go Home: That’s overly aggressive. You don’t have to go live to go big, but livestream shopping is reportedly (finally) gaining traction in the U.S., according to a report from Coresight Research, CNBC says.

Bigs Helping Littles: It’s always nice to see major corporations lending a hand to small business. Check out a roundup of grant offerings from companies like DoorDash and UPS, courtesy of Small Business Trends.

ERC Claims, Anyone?: The IRS is warning small businesses to be leery of consulting firms offering to help them claim the Employee Retention Credit, a pandemic-era tax incentive. And if the IRS is calling something shady…

Quote Quiz

Your turn 🎙️

Who’s your favorite dreamer or builder? Forward this to them and encourage them to subscribe! Then reply with their business name so I can feature them in an upcoming issue, please.

_{*Richard Branson}