The Business Side of Creativity

By Carol Woolum Roberts

As Paul and I jumped into this business venture, we were pretty clueless about how to go about starting a business.

I got some help going through the process to create an LLC.

We purchased a subscription to a platform called Kajabi, where we host our website, podcast, send out emails and have a membership community.

Kajabi had a lot of good resources to help set up different aspects of an online business.  We also had a one-on-one session with one of the Kajabi coaches.

I took a course on growing an email list through an online writing community I subscribe to called Hope*Writers. 

I set up the website, scheduled email sequences, and created a membership community.

Paul created a format for our Dreams and Bones podcast.

We have tried things, then taken them away.  Then we try something new. We follow the analytics to see how they are doing.

Yes, we have made mistakes, but we have also done things right, because we are getting feedback from people, sharing with us how they are learning and their creativity is growing.

This week I listened to more experts on creating the right kind of emails, and how to write good copy for your website.

This morning I participated in a webinar about Accelerating Your Online Business through the North Idaho Small Business Development Center. 

Through this webinar I found out we can participate in a free coaching session to receive guidance about our business.

And now that we have worked at this for about six months, we now have a better idea of what we are doing and where we are going, so we have more information to come up with a business plan.  I think if we had tried to come up with a plan last fall, we would have had no idea where to even begin.

There are so many online resources to find information about running a business, but sometimes you need to know what questions to ask, or what information you are needing to find.

As we reach our six month mark, we have learned things.  We have made mistakes.  But we have also solidified more what we want this business to be.

In June we hope to share what comes next for Grow Me A Story.  There are some changes coming, and after we take some time talking to people smarter than us, we will share with you how we hope to execute our next phase. Some changes will happen online.  Some changes will happen in our community.

And through it all, the heart of Grow Me A Story is the same. 

Our Mission is to create a community for those seeking to deepen the joy and meaning that come from practicing the art of creative living.

But that community may expand to not only online, but more in person as well.

So read our Monday newsletter each week as we slowly start rolling out what is coming next for Grow Me A Story. If you haven’t signed up to receive our emails, you can do so on this page.

Thanks to those of you who have stuck with us, encouraged us, and gave us a reason to keep going.  You have no idea how much your kind words mean to us. 

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To help us in our next phase, we would like you to answer the following question in the comments below:

For those of you wanting to have more creativity in your life, what is one of your biggest obstacles to making that happen?

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