The simple (and surprising) strategy that’s helped me grow a multi-six-figure 1:1 coaching practice that’s been booked out for 4.5 years...
is the same strategy that helped me graduate both high school and college a year early at the top of my class, pick up and move to LA - a city I had never even been to before - and start my acting career…
is the same strategy that allowed me to “start over” in NYC, break into the advertising industry, and go on to start my business.
I wrote “placeholder” essays that still landed me a magna cum laude grade point average.
I picked a “placeholder” apartment and waitressing job to make it easy to touchdown in a new city and build momentum faster.
I started with “placeholder” headshots, and “placeholder” agent, and a *very* “placeholder” resume.
And, leveraging the strategy of “placeholder” work started my business and allowed me to scale to making a million revenue in just under four years.
Placeholder isn’t about not caring or churning out crap - my first placeholder studio apartment here in the West Village was my dream spot at the time, and I’ve always strived to do and put out the best I’m capable with what I know and am able at any given time.
“Placeholder” material is putting work out in the world that’s good enough to be a placeholder VS fully formed, finished, figured out, articulated, or fully tested.
(I *think* I first heard this concept called “placeholder” from Denise Duffeald-Thomas to give credit where credit is due.)
Because the pressure to have it all figured out, polished, and perfect is what stops you before you even start and prevents you from running at and creating the results you want.
But placeholder work also leads to “failing” faster, which is what allows you to get data and learn about your business so you can refine and uplevel.
Because the truth-truth is there’s a LOT in your business that will always need refining, and this will often give you diminishing returns in terms of the time & effort it takes to perfect - or NONE at all.
And, waiting for the ultimate, polished version of anything - in or out of business - is a good way to stay stuck.
What I’ve found to be true after seven years in business supporting clients to $10k, $20k+ cash months, and million-dollar years, is placeholder material is not only enough to get started, but is often also more than enough to allow you to grow and scale.
My whole business has been built on placeholder material: placeholder content, landing pages, funnels, even messaging, and this is something I support clients to take as an approach so they can get out of inertia and run at the results they want.
Case and point: my team and I just got around to updating some placeholder opt-ins and funnels this year…that had been working for five years.
So, if you’re looking to make your first or next six or seven figures, I invite you to play with this strategy and think of this the way Brooke Castillo describes, “B+ work will make you millions while A+ work will make you broke.”
See where you can create some B+ work and placeholders and allow them to make you millions. Then, you can always go back and refine, update, and uplevel where it strategically serves your business: you just might find that’s fewer places than you think.
Wishing you your version of success.
P.S. Know you tend to get stuck overthinking, overplanning, and over perfecting, well, just about everything in your business and suspect it might be slowing you and your results down?
Ready for the kind of support that won’t push you, but does know how to help you feel safe running with placeholder materials so you can build momentum, book more clients, and celebrate your own big results?
I’m currently meeting with potential clients to discuss fit and how I can best support you in upcoming 1:1 opportunities opening up.
If you’re all-in and committed to your business success, are here to play the long game, and most importantly, you’re coachable, you’re my people and who I do the best work with! I’d love to connect with you!
Sound like you, and interested in learning more about what it would look like to partner together to help you get booked out, fill waitlists, sell out programs, and set yourself up with sustainable and recurring revenue?
