Taking a leap with imperfect action
Putting myself (and my offers) out there in public
I DID IT! I finally launched my business online.
(It’s Zestful Zen Wellbeing + Coaching if you’d like to check it out).
More of a soft launch than a big bang, as I’m still learning how to market and don’t have a budget yet for advertising.
Unsurprisingly, I’ve not been overwhelmed by new clients so far. 😆
Hi, I’m Holly - coach, mindfulness facilitator and author of Zestful Zen. I write about self-care, change, personal growth, mindfulness, and purpose. If you like life to be full of zest and energy, complemented by a zen, calm mind, Zestful Zen is the community for you! 💖✨
Published is better than perfect
But I’ve taken the first public steps forward:
I pressed publish on my website
I set up a LinkedIn profile
I started an Instagram account
I didn’t feel ready, and yet I did feel ready, if that makes sense.
I still need to add a couple more pages to my website, on mindfulness classes and my offers for corporate clients. But I need some space to brainstorm compelling copy, and I didn’t want to delay launching while I do that.
My LinkedIn needs work – I’ve never used LinkedIn before, so it’ll take me a while to get the hang of it.
I’ve been too busy at my 9-5 to have time to create the 30 days of Instagram content I’d hoped to have ready by launch day. Instead, I’m posting ad hoc, and not every day, some of it extracted from my Substack posts.
Baby business steps are better than none
In an ideal world, I’d have had things much more polished, much more perfect.
But it was time. Time to put myself and my offers out there.
I didn’t want to let perfection be the enemy of progress.
On and off for a year now, since I decided to shift careers, I’ve been listening to Steph Taylor’s podcast, Imperfect Action (it’s on a break right now as Steph is taking a sabbatical).
It’s quite focused on marketing and launching courses, and I’ve not been in that space yet (hence the delay in adding the pages to my website). But I kept listening.
Because more than anything, Steph preaches taking imperfect action – moving forward, one step at a time, even if you haven’t got everything quite right yet. Learning from your mistakes and adjusting as you go along.
Shifting to a solopreneur mindset
As someone who’s always been employed, I knew a shift to entrepreneurship would come with loads of mistakes and lots of learning. And I’d have to be willing to accept that and keep trying anyway.
I’ve applied that approach to my Substack – I wasn’t “a writer” and didn’t really have a plan. But I started writing anyway, and iterated my newsletter as I went, finding my way to what resonated with me (and hopefully my readers).
But I’d maybe let imperfect action slip a bit on the business side – I spent many hours building my website, choosing brand colours and fonts, but not pressing publish as there was always one more thing that I needed to finish first.
Setting up my Instagram account and my LinkedIn profile. Getting my insurance (I maybe didn’t need to read every word of the hundreds of pages of policy documents and to spend so long choosing between different cyber insurance policies).
I was even going to get Pinterest set up and adapt all my Substack newsletters into mini blog posts for my website. Spoiler alert – I didn’t manage these two steps (yet).
Somewhere in my head, it felt like I had to have all the interlinked pieces of the pie ready at the same time, the perfect package for launching.
Re-embracing imperfect action
Luckily, last week I read ’s great guest post on Humans Leading, How taking imperfect action reduces your overwhelm. I was reminded of why I’d taken imperfect action on Substack and I realised I’d somehow lost my way on building my business and been drawn back into perfectionism.
So, I gave myself a pep talk and put myself out there, as imperfect as everything was.
I’m back to diving in and iterating as I learn.
I’ve already amended one of my website pages following a friend’s feedback.
And my LinkedIn profile got an overhaul within a day, following ’s great advice on not wasting the “real estate” of your cover photo as an opportunity to promote your business.
(Check out Lucy’s great webinar on How to build a personal brand, which is available free as her Substack birthday present to us all.)
I’m especially applying imperfect action today, as I write this post just before publication time - I’m going to miss my usual 11:00 CET slot.
Normally, I write my posts in advance, but I’ve not had the headspace with a hectic workweek, building my LinkedIn and Instagram, and being a bit under the weather.
But I’m showing up anyway and writing from the heart with no plan in mind. Take that perfectionism!
P.S. In the spirit of asking for support when you need it, feedback and suggestions on my website, LinkedIn profile and Instagram account would be really helpful.
And of course, connections and followers would be very welcome as well, at the moment I only have two!
Questions for self-reflection or journalling
When do you find yourself slipping into perfectionism?
Where could you bring some imperfect action into your life?
Can you take the leap into something you’re not quite ready for?
How would taking imperfect action help you to grow?
Let’s share! ✨
I’d love to hear your thoughts about imperfect action. Is perfectionism holding you back from taking the leap you need to make? How has imperfect action helped you move forward?
Let’s have a conversation in the comments or subscriber chat. Or feel free to drop me a DM. 💬
Have a sublime Saturday, friends! 🌞
If you enjoyed this post, it would mean the world to me if you’d comment, hit the heart button, share with others, or subscribe to Zestful Zen! Thank you lovely people ✨
Hi Holly, I’m several steps behind you and love the way you share what you’ve learned so far in this article 🩷 especially the link about building a brand as I know this is an area I’ll probably procrastinate the most.
It’s so great that you’ve taken the action to bring your vision to life ✨ good luck 😉
I love that you were inspired by Jenna’s post! It’s a testament to the power of getting out of our own way. Followed you on IG. I’m @lifeandpicu there. Looking forward to seeing what you do next!