I recently noticed an interesting comment  on the Facebook Fanpage of a well known blogger; they had just posted a link to one of their new videos entitled “5 Biggest Social Media Mistakes.” Now, I wasn’t bothered by the title I was curious as always. However, one of their fans jumped down their virtual throat so to speak and announced in the online way of screaming, I AM SO TIRED OF YOU TELLING ME WHAT I AM DOING WRONG!!! Yikes, I felt for the author of that post. As he tried to explain to her..”No it’s not like that, did you even watch the video?” The screamer had not watched the video. She decided to jump to conclusions about the content.

I realized that we all feel that way sometimes. It is so easy to get down and maybe even hostile when you are fed a constant stream of don’t do that, don’t do this. Similar to my toddler that just growls at me when I tell him no (of course he proceeds to do it anyway).  Avoiding pitfalls is important to any business. I’ve written several posts about those same subjects; however, today I am going to tell you what you are doing right.

First of all, you are open to learning new things. You wouldn’t be subscribed to this blog if you were not.  It is vital to seek information on topics directly relevant to your business. You want to stay on top of your game right?  There are many blogs to choose from out there when it comes to help for Etsy, Artfire or your Indie Biz. I personally subscribe to a variety of blogs, but I do invest my time in those that I have direct access to the “real person” behind it. For example, you know that I am always available to answer your questions on Facebook or what a concept..I answer your direct emails. I am not one of those elusive “bloggers” that spit out info but never respond to your comments.  I could rant about that at another time.

Next up, you are not a wall flower. When I was a recruiter back in college for our “New Student Orientations” I was hand-selected out of a pool of 200 applicants to represent my University and guide all the little fresh faces and their parents through the orientation process.  Yes, this was a paid position but you can’t fake enthusiasm, especially at 5 am every morning. I absolutely LOVED finding the scared little guys that would sit in the bleachers during “group activity” night. I un-hooked their white knuckles from the bench and placed them front and center into the mix.  I would give them my little pep talk “Look, you are not who you were in high-school. No one knows you here..this is your chance to be who-ever you want to be. That cool kid? Well, no one cares about him anymore.” Amazingly enough most would take some of my advice to heart and by the end of day three of orientation, they would be leading their group in fight song cheers.  Man, I loved that job.

Same rules apply here. So you made some mistakes when you started your business. Maybe you are in the middle of one of those mistakes. Online retail is forgiving. You can be who-ever you want to be.  Stop hiding in the corner and jump back out there. Give yourself a virtual make over and dust off your social skills. Interact and network. Do something that scares you and takes you out of your comfort zone. Perhaps you need to look into a local networking group? Gasp. Face to face contact? Yes..I’m talking to you. Maybe you need to take a break from the virtual world and do a computer detox. Clear the clutter and re-work your shop or direction. Enroll in a free photography class to help you improve your product shots (check your local library or camera shops). Find some local artists and team up with monthly craft shows at a local tea shop or school.

You are doing a lot of things right. You are working your way through the social media chaos and trying out new things. I’m watching you..I see many of you asking for feedback on new logos or new products. You are getting yourself out there. Many of you are becoming quite the blog experts… I have found a covey of new blogs that have caught my attention.  You are getting yourself off of those bleachers and out into the game. No one else knows where you started or the mistakes you made.  Take ownership and pride in what you have achieved so far.

As a small business owner, no one is going to sing a fight song for you. You will have to learn the moves and the notes yourself. The good news is…you are not a wallflower, you are out there leading the chant.