One-Size-Fits-All Solutions Don’t Work (3 Questions to Decide What Works for You)

There’s a lot of one-size-fits-all solutions out there in the online business world. And I’ve got a problem with that.

So many “business gurus” teach and sell whatever it is that they’re offering as something that will work for everyone and anyone, exactly as is, cookie-cutter style.

But that’s just not true.

Like, come on, there's one right way to success for every person?

No way.

It’s not that everyone you think of as a “guru” is bad or wrong or misleading people. That’s not what I’m saying at all.

What I’m saying is that selling and teaching in this manner ends up being potentially harmful to the people who their solutions won’t work for.

And yet these are the waters we swim in.

We can do our best to not sell or teach in this cookie-cutter way, but we also need to make sure we don’t accidentally fall into this one-size-fits-all trap as people who could potentially buy into these solutions.

So how do you gauge what’s right for you? How do you find your path to success? 

Here are three questions you can ask to help you check in with yourself about a potential business solution that’s being sold to you as a “must-do” or “must-have”. As we explore these, we’ll also talk about why exactly this one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t actually work for everyone.

1. What is that you do best? Focus on that instead.

As somebody who focuses on sales and marketing, it makes sense to be known for something in particular. Whether you help people create courses, or create memberships, or you help people with Facebook groups.

In such a crowded space, it helps to boost your message more loudly, more clearly.

If you sell yourself as a Jill of all trades with your business, it can really muddy the message.

So I understand why it makes sense to be known for having a certain solution. And getting really good at talking about that one solution.

But I also understand why it may not be right for everyone when you try to force them into the mold of that one thing – that single, unchanging solution.

I think what ends up happening is that it's very easy for people to look at individuals who preach these one-size-fits-all solutions and – especially if they respect them and follow along with them – assume that whatever method that they're teaching is the best way.

And I'm here to say that there really is no one best way.

Because if there was, wouldn't everyone be doing that? 

If Facebook ads were the one best way, then wouldn't we all just figure out a way to do Facebook ads? And that's not a knock against Facebook ads. They have a place and they can be very helpful and extremely lucrative.

But the same thing goes for a membership, or having a free Facebook group, or building a course or VIP day. 

We're all individual humans with individual goals and lives and personalities and obligations and obstacles.

It just doesn't make sense that a one-size-fits-all thing would work for everyone. And especially not every season.

So instead of forcing yourself into someone else’s cookie cutter, focus on doing the thing that you do best, the thing that you already know works for you, and know that you’re helping the people who need your skills to succeed.

2. How do you want to be doing things? Your preferences matter.

In our current environment, when school and work look different, and COVID still abounds, there's a lot of pressure on families to juggle way more than they were a year or two ago.

I say this because it's important to recognize that this has impacted a lot of us and the way we work and the stress we may feel about certain things that we didn’t use to feel. 

And also the way our clients respond to offerings.

Maybe in the Before Times, you had an offer that used to be amazing and felt really good. But now it feels not great. It feels like way too much. And you are absolutely drowning in the day-to-day of your life and your business and all of that.

For instance, if Facebook is stressing you out big time – you have a free Facebook group that you have to nurture and be engaged with and push people to – then maybe that’s not going to be a great thing for you in this moment.

It's not that Facebook groups can't work or don't – they absolutely do. 

But if you hate being on Facebook, if you really don't want to manage a free Facebook group, if it doesn’t light you up or bring you joy, or if you feel like your ideal clients aren't even there – then Facebook doesn't matter for you.

Even if that guru is teaching you to have Facebook groups, it doesn't matter. 

You don’t need to follow anyone’s exact blueprint.

If you frickin hate Facebook, you're not going to want to show up. You're not going to bring good energy to that space. You're not going to want to encourage people to join and you're not going to want to do any of it.

So filter yourself. 

Streamline to the tools you want to use and the programs you want to run so you can do those well and show up for your clients.

The same goes with the people you’re following. If they’re saying you have to grow your email list or you have to do Instagram or do whatever the marketing flavor of the week is, it's important to know what works for you and have your own personal filter that you sift all of that information through.

Hey, even the stuff I teach, right? If there's something I teach, and you're like, “Yeah, that’s just not aligned with me.” That's cool. That's awesome. I would rather somebody be very clear on what is aligned with their way of working and what isn't.

We get so used to looking outside ourselves for all the answers or what the next marketing gimmick or trend is, we kind of get obsessed with that.

What that boils down to is FOMO. 

We're afraid that if we don't do what’s popular or what we’re told to do, we're going to miss out on revenue, opportunities, and growth.

But at the end of the day, any marketing channel that you use optimally and consistently will get you results.

So it’s best to figure out what works for you in your marketing, your offers, and your business structure.

Allowing yourself to focus on what you want to do and where you want to be showing up is going to make a big difference in being able to show up and do your best work.

3. Does this solution have room for nuance? Because nuance beats numbers.

Where it becomes really hard to turn away from the one-size-fits-all approach is that it's easier to sell this type of solution.

It's easier to have a huge group of thousands of people that you're talking to and to just sell them one way to make a course.

Not that there's anything wrong with that.

But what ends up happening is there's not enough nuance. 

There's not enough nuance in the messaging or offer to say, “Oh, but you know what, you might not actually need a course,” or, “Hey, you might not actually be ready to make a course,” or, “Wait, what are you doing to build your audience so that there are people there to launch this course to?”

It misses out on all of those pieces.

People see these gurus, and they think that if all these other people are following them, and they seem so nice and successful, and they have all these testimonials, then we should just buy into their methodology.

Because if we don't, what are we missing out on?

And then what happens?

You go through the motions, create a course, launch it – and then it's crickets.

People don’t often step back and say, “Oh, damn. Actually, this was a super helpful program. And I actually do really like this course. I'm really proud of it and I'm glad I made it. But you know what, I wasn't taking the time to build my audience. It's not that the launch failed, it's that my 1-3% conversion was only from a list of 100 people.”

People don’t analyze beyond a “failed launch” to say there weren’t enough people in their audience or to determine if they need to keep nurturing people who bought into the course. Or that they really need to work on a marketing strategy to build up their audience so they can launch to more people.

We don't usually say, “God, this Facebook group isn't converting and I just have a bunch of freebie seekers and it's so annoying. Maybe the methodology that they taught me was flawed.”

No. What do we do?

We look at what we’ve done and we say, “I suck. What did I do wrong? I did what they said and I failed. This is why I'm never going to have that ultimate success.”

Right?

We make it a thing about how we’re flawed, when really it's just that we needed more nuance than the one-size-fits-all approach that will work for thousands of people.

But again, it's harder to say to a client, “You can grow. But it depends on how you're going to do that.”

It’s not as sexy to go beyond the big, promising messaging of, say, a membership program with a pre-packaged blueprint that’s sure to gain you thousands of raving fans. It’s not as sexy to get your hands dirty and figure out how you’re going to do that membership or course or intensive.

There’s not a lot of pizzazz there.

But the truth is, it’s different for everyone. 

You can scale your business and you can grow it in a lot of different ways.

But it usually takes a little more nuance than that one magic solution that you’re being sold.

The Takeaway? The Right Way Is Your Way.

My overall lesson is that there is no one, right, perfect way.

There's only the right way for you.

And this is probably going to change for your business over time.

In one season of your life, maybe doing everything one-on-one makes the most sense. And in another season, a membership might make the most sense. And maybe in another season, it’s a high-end mastermind. 

The right way will change and transform with your business.

And you know what? It's okay to be inspired by these gurus and their stories and their success. You can certainly learn from them. 

But remember that you also have permission to pick and choose. 

You should always filter their message through your own lens and ask, “Does this feel true for me? Does this feel right for me? Does this make sense for me? Is this aligned with my values and with how I want to have an impact?”

You determine how you want to show up and how you want to work with people in a way that fits your personality and the season of your life.

Don’t assume that if you don't do something that somebody is preaching to the letter that you are doomed to failure.

And also, if you do follow things to the letter and you don’t have that big, flashy success that they advertise, that also doesn't necessarily mean it’s a personal failing of yours. And it doesn't necessarily mean that these gurus are trying to deceive you or pull the wool over your eyes. It could be a failing of the program, it could be that something really crucial was actually omitted, or that it’s just not the right thing for you.

And as I sit here with my printer going off loudly in the background while my child prints things for school, I’m feeling this COVID reality extra hard.

This is the season that we're in.

So I understand if you are struggling, especially in our new reality. And if you want to create a new offer, but you don't know what to do or where to spend your efforts and time and investment, I can help.

Let’s find what works best for you so you can shine.