Meaningful Business

3 ways to build your expertise without relying on only credentials

With Lydia Lee

Today, I want to talk about a topic that I know trumps a lot of people when they are first time business owners – How to build your expertise and credibility when you’re first starting out.

You are likely having these questions as a new business owner:

  • How do I prove my credibility when I haven’t started working with customers yet?
  • How do I eliminate doubt and overcome the ‘imposter syndrome’?
  • How can I showcase my abilities if my new business may not be work I’ve been paid to do in the past?

These are very natural fears that come up for ALL new business owners.  However, there are ways to build trust, authority, and credibility with your expertise, even if you’re just starting out.

Don’t fall into the trap of WAITING to showcase your gifts.  Don’t wait until you get your first customer to finally help people.

Watch this week’s video below to learn the 3 ways to build your expertise without relying only on your credentials on your resume.

The three ways of how you can build credibility and expertise when you first start your new business:

1. How have you created value in the past?

What are the common themes of how people say when you’re most helpful?  How have people articulated the way you bring value to their lives?  How can you bring those qualities into your new role as a business owner?

What you’ve learned to do in your accumulated experience in your professional resume is important to highlight again in the new work that you’re choosing to do. There are strengths and skills that you can repurpose into this new role that adds to your expertise.

Which transferable skills or strengths can you bring forward to do better work in your business?  Talk about these often to remind yourself of what you bring to the table differently, and how it can help you create better value for your customers.

2. Give, give, give

The concept of this is being able to be of service to help even before they sign up to be your client.

To build credibility and position your expertise, you need to show your work.

This means showing what you’re capable of and showing the style of how you help.  Give away your advice.  Teach something for free.  Take on beta customers to build your confidence on your processes.

Be in the vicinity of helping to really experience what it’s like to help.

You can show your work and share your advice in platforms like Facebook groups.

Which Facebook groups hold an audience that you may want to target?   Get into these groups and be in front of that audience and start sharing information. If you want to teach people how to knit, join a knitting group of motivated knitters wanting to learn.  Share your wisdom.  Teach them something that helps them to say, “Wow!  That was really helpful – how can I learn more?”

3. Your story is the proof in the pudding

A lot of you might be starting a business that comes from a personal struggle and a personal pain that you’ve gone through as a human.  And now you feel a call to help someone else going through that problem.

A really great way to tell people that you are the person capable to help them with is to share your story.

Storytelling and being open about your own journey of how you went through the very hurdles they are going through helps you to build your connection with your customers.  People trust people that they can relate to.

Share what you’ve gone through, all the bravery that you may have discovered in within yourself when you went through some pain, and your insights discovered through your journey.

All of those stories are key in allowing people to resonate with you and know that you understand the state and confusion that they’re in. The fact that you’ve gone through it personally, whether you’ve been paid to do it or not in the past, can give you credibility to do the work you want to do.

Your mission for the day

Take a 20-minute pause, take out a pad of paper or download the worksheet in order to prompt you to remember all the strengths and skill sets and experience that you do bring to the table even as a new business owner.

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