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In the last couple of days, I have been struggling. I struggled not only because I was sick and quite exhausted but also because my entire first digital product didn't sell as I had imagined and calculated.
Only this afternoon, on my first day of feeling better and being back in front of my computer, did I realize that I had made a painful mistake when creating this whole thing…
To give you a bit more context about why I learned a pretty painful lesson today, we need to go back a bit.
In January, I decided to step back from my agency to focus on building an online business as a creator and selling digital products. At that time, I had no idea what to do or how to get started, and I was caught in analysis paralysis and a vicious cycle of overthinking.
Why I refused to niche down (again)
I’ve always hated the concept of niching down and promised myself that I wouldn’t do it again. Years ago, it nearly destroyed my business (I elaborate on that in my blog article that went viral on Medium a couple of years ago – 1,2k+ claps and published in one of the biggest publications on the platform), and I’ve spent a ridiculous amount of money on premium coaches, and their entire 10k+ program was basically this:
“YoU HaVE tO NicHE DowN AnD Do CoLd OuTREacH!!1!1!”
Yeah, fuck those stupid idiots…
Fuck niching down.
I wanted to build a business around whatever interests me. I aimed to help people like me: introverted individuals with diverse interests, true experts in their fields, who are tired of all these social media clowns being more successful.
The lead magnet experiment
I started with a lead magnet: The Introverted Entrepreneur's Guide to Thrive. Since 99% of you are already familiar with it, I won't go into further detail.
Why was a lead magnet the first thing? As a serial entrepreneur, I knew I needed to measure signals and feedback from my audience before I created a “real” product and started monetizing.
I mean, don’t get me wrong, it’s fucking great to build a business around something you love, but please ensure it’s something people genuinely need and want, too. If you don’t do that, you will never be successful in business and will merely be running a fulfilling hobby.
Per se, there’s nothing wrong with that, but let’s be honest:
We’re all in this to make a profit, aren’t we?
So, I wrote this guide and spent about 20 hours on it to make it really unique and stand out. I wanted it to NOT be another stupid-ass generic lead magnet you see all over the internet. Nobody needs shit like that.
By now, we’re in early February. Lead magnet? Done.
Ready to get started, right?
Nope. Not me.
This guy decided to have yet another idea, and the paradox of choice, accompanied by analysis paralysis and overthinking, hit again.
Not familiar with the paradox of choice? This neat little graphic pretty much sums it up:
