Every now and then, it’s worth writing out all the many assumptions you’re making that influence the way you approach your work.

Chances are, the list of assumptions is far longer than the list of hard facts.

Then, when you have your list, flip them.

Work through your assumptions one by one and ask yourself, “What if the opposite were true?”

How would that change the way you’re currently approaching the problem?

If the flipped assumption is desirable, what would need to be in place in order to make it true?

What are the steps to making that change?

We base more of our decisions than we realize on assumptions that are often only partially true at best.

We follow marketing strategies based on what’s working for others.

We build our product or service based on a similar offer we’ve interacted with before

We create the content we assume is going to attract our target audience based on what similar content creators are offering.

We make all these assumptions and more, without ever stopping to ask ourselves, “What if everyone else is doing this the wrong way?” or “What if there are other ways to reach the same result?”

Our assumptions can lead us to create cookie-cutter work that fits in with (and gets lost in) the crowd, instead of the work that only we can possibly create. Work based on our unique skills, experience and perspective.

Our assumptions lead us to market our work in ways that are unsustainable. Maybe we’re just not excited about the latest marketing trend and are unable to maintain the required consistency. Or maybe the trend feels outright sleazy to our taste.

Our assumptions sell ourselves and our potential short. Leading us to contort ourselves into someone else’s box, convincing us that there’s no need for further innovation and experimentation, at least not by us. Best leave that to the maverick marketing geniuses.

Our assumptions lead us to believe that we can’t have it all. That we can’t create the work that would most light us up, and build an audience around it in a way that feels easy, effortless even.

So every now and then, stop and ask, what are the assumptions you, your industry, and your audience are making, and how can you flip them?

What if you could get payed handsomely to do the work that most excites you?

What if marketing that work was effortless?

What if you could charge 3x for the exact same work you’re doing now?

What if you could work 3-day weeks and still earn the same amount, leaving more time to spend with your family?

What if the only thing that’s been keeping you from aiming higher is the assumption that it isn’t possible?

What if you flipped all the assumptions that have kept you playing small and stepped into your potential?

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