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Really.
Go Digital, Mom! was born out of a single session I had with Ananth Raman here in Gainesville, Florida, and I couldn’t be happier.
Before we met, I had developed a series of courses to teach digital skills to over a dozen different audiences, including entrepreneurs, journalists, teachers, and, yes, moms. Marketing to so many groups was draining, and I wasn’t really even sure how to analyze which segment was the most potentially profitable for me. The question I went to the meeting with was a simple one: how do I analyze my market segments efficiently.
Mr. Raman listened to what I had to say and then, much to my surprise, changed the game completely. He was extremely frank about the futility of trying to offer digital training to groups that don’t have the money or time for such training. I am a former journalist and teacher, so I was spending most of my time and energy tapping into those markets. I’m a new entrepreneur and could see how important digital skills are for that group as well, so I added them onto my offerings. It was all just too much.
“Those roles are all your past,” he said, “but being a mom is your present and future. Focus on that and you will succeed!”
He even encouraged me to bring my infant daughter along to the meeting, and we talked while she rolled around on the floor with her toys. He reminded me that mompreneurs are an important part of the new face of digital entrepreneurism, and that having my daughter be the center of my world is a worthy choice. Wow.
(As a funny aside, he told me to look back at my work day every evening and remind myself of what I’d accomplished. You know, around 6 or 7 p.m. I didn’t have the heart to tell him that my work day STARTS at 8 p.m. after my daughter goes to bed!)
So I went from stuck and spinning my wheels for over a year, to working like there is a huge bonfire under me. And in a way there is. I have a vision of life with my daughter that includes working from anywhere in the world with an internet connection, and Go Digital, Mom! is my way of getting there.
So thank you, Mr. Raman! I got so much from our meeting that I want to shout it from my new digital rooftop, this blog!
FOLLOW UP: In a later email exchange Mr. Raman suggested I read The Power of Nice: How to Conquer the Business World With Kindness
