I think the whole ideal client thing is bullshit. Seriously… I do.
We’re chasing an ideal that doesn’t exist.
Sure, there is value in knowing who you love to work with. It’s great to understand who lights you up, who leaves you feeling energized, who you get and understand and therefore can best serve. It’s helpful, for your sake and your client’s sake, to know who are speaking to and for who your services and programs are made.
But, at this point, the ideal client pendulum is swinging way past the point of value. These ideal client exercises are becoming excuses. They’re reasons to stay stuck, to not move, to not take action. They’re becoming another justification for why we’re not ready to sell, to speak up, or to share our thoughts… because we feel like we need “MORE”… more research, more info, more clarity, etc.
And that’s the opposite of what ideal client work is supposed to do. Ideal client work that is helpful will PROPEL you forward, knowing exactly when to speak and what to say. Not the other way around.
At the beginning of my business, I turned down people that I felt didn’t “fit” my profile or perfect view of an ideal client.
I’ve had clients do the same before we started our work together.
But, after figuring out what it takes to run a multi six-figure business, I realized this isn’t the way to go.
Understanding your audience is important when it comes to marketing. In fact, sometimes this market research is crucial. But turning down clients who aren’t “perfect” enough, who don’t fit our “ideal client archetypes”, limits our businesses. It stunts our growth. It keeps us stuck.
It messes with our mindset and has us chasing perfection…again…and don’t we all do that enough already?
Too many of us are living this story that if we don’t have things perfectly aligned, if we don’t understand every nook and cranny of our ideal clients, then we can’t take action.
We can’t get visible, create content, share that content, and sell our programs and services. We wait and wait for clarity, and won’t move forward until we have it 100% (which is super hard to do without any action).
The crucial mindset shift for me, and my clients, was the shift from looking for an IDEAL client to understanding who would be an AMAZING client by looking at their goals and values instead of arbitrary metrics that don’t matter all all…WHILE staying open to every possibility of what that might look like.
Instead of asking about things that may very well be different for every single one of your amazing clients, you’re asking about the things that they have in common. You’re asking about the similarities. About the characteristics unique to YOUR services. You’re asking about what matters to your clients. And how you can serve them well. This my friends, is called VALUES, and this is where you’ll find your amazing clients.
I currently have several clients making over six-figures and some that are just getting their first client. I have clients that like to do ALL different things on Saturday nights, and that, on the surface, have very little in common.
But what they want to create (more income and impact in their business) and how they want to do it (through relationships, connection, integrity, and value) is all quite similar.
But had I not had that mindset shift… I would probably still be limiting myself, my potential clients, and my business potential overall.