🪩 September is like January (All systems go)

Why September is a great month to get traction on your goals—while savouring the simple things

Happy Wednesday, I hope you’re having a wonder-full week.

Here are three gems I want to share with you today:

🪩 Starting September like it’s January (New Year’s energy on point)

🦥 Savouring moments (by slowing the hell down)

🧩 Today’s teaching tip (to amplify class discussions)

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Why my year starts in September

Tomorrow’s my “champagne birthday” for my first overseas move.

Eight years ago—on September 8th, 2014—I boarded a one-way flight to London. I had no job lined up, nowhere to live, and no friends there to jumpstart my social life. But I’d dreamt of living in London since I was a kid, and twenty-four-year-old me was hell-bent on making it happen.

My one-way ticket to London (which included two layovers to stretch my savings)

I moved in September for a reason. Because forget January—my year starts in September.

As a scholar, I’m sure yours did too. But even as an adult, I’ve found the tranquility of summer breathes new life into me—whether it’s rejuvenating by the lake in the Laurentian mountains (where I grew up) or soaking up some vitamin sea in Maine. So September is my “all systems go” month.

It’s when I moved to Sydney, Australia and later on to Paris, France. And most recently, it’s when I quit my job last year—on September 17th, 2021 to be exact—to chase a dream I’ve had since I first started working: self-employment.

Welcoming “cold clients”

In the spirit of September, I’ve decided to open up my consulting services to new clients. Until now, I’ve strictly worked through word-of-mouth referrals. And while that’s been great, it also comes with a sense of security.

The idea of taking on “cold clients” has been more intimidating. Especially when I hear from freelancers I follow about “nightmare clients” who can’t be satisfied or pull a vanishing act when it’s time to pay their invoice. But those are rare cases.

So I asked myself, how can I prevent these two big fears I have about taking on “cold clients” from transpiring?

Here’s what I came up with:

1. My fear: Clients not paying their invoices

   My solution: I connected my Calendly booking system to Stripe (an online payment platform) so clients can’t book without paying upfront. This also makes accounting easy because every transaction is recorded in one place. (Though fees are hefty, ex. I got nailed with a $220 CAD transaction fee for a payment of $10K USD. So I’m looking into switching to Wise—an international transfer service I’ve been using for personal banking since I moved to London.)

2. My fear: Clients not being satisfied

   My solution: I reminded myself I’m great at what I do and I have testimonials to back it up. On top of that, if someone needs more time, I will offer it. And if that still doesn’t cut it for them, I can refund them in one click of a button on Stripe. After which, I can evaluate potential clarifications I need to make in my value proposition to ensure accurate client expectations going forward.

Running through these scenarios gave me a lens to bring the root of my fears into focus. So if you’re struggling to combat fears of your own, try doing the same.

Also, if you—or someone you know—is looking for 1:1 guidance or feedback to:

• Create a new course

• Improve an existing course

• Create or improve educational resources (ex. guides, workbooks, slides, etc.)

💥 Click here to book a consult (or to creep how I’ve set this up). And if you have any questions or feedback, hit reply and let me know.

Savouring slowness

I was out walking the other day when I saw a man yanking a leash. His dog was savouring some greenery—unbothered by the man’s impatience.

It made me realize how common this scenario is. More often than not, people are rushing their dogs along their walks not wanting them to stop and immerse themselves in the nature that beckons from the edge of the sidewalk.

Lately, my intuition has been guiding me to savour slowness. So I feel for the dogs who probably yearn to tell their owners to slow the hell down.

Some of my highlights from the past week include my friend bringing me tomatoes from her garden, holding my two-month-old nephew, and reading to my two-year-old niece. And as I approach my one-year anniversary of self-employment, I find resonance in Billy Joel’s words. I guarantee you will to.

Give the song below a listen, and let your mind wander to things you might want to slow down in your life.

Salman 🦊 @daretorant

🎶 slow down, you’re doin fine you can’t be everythin you wanna be before your time 🎶 these lyrics really speak to me, and wow what a beautiful rendition ♥️ vm.tiktok.com/ZTd5xFp4f/ (artist is Getta Ray, it’s a cover of Vienna by Billy Joel)

💥 Question: What did you come up with to slow down and savour?

Today’s teaching tip

Anyone who’s run courses before knows group discussions can quickly face plant—if they get off the ground in the first place. Here’s how to combat that:

💥 Challenge: Next time you run a session, add an ice-breaker activity (ex. have everyone share their name, location, and something they’re excited about).

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That’s it for today. Thanks for being one of 240 course creators, writers and solopreneurs sharing your journey with me. Hit reply anytime, I would love to hear from you.

And a MASSIVE welcome to the 20 of you who joined in the last week—thrilled to have you here. You can check out past editions here if you’re interested.

Have a wonder-full week,

Alexandra

P.S. My move to London eight years ago opened up my world. I met people from all over and visited historical landmarks like Stonehenge and Pompei. Most importantly, I learned that I can do anything from the ground up as long as I work hard, trust my intuition, and ask others for guidance along the way. 

So if you’re struggling with solopreneurship—or anything else—don’t discount other life experiences that have prepared you for your current undertaking. You’ve got this.

Me in London in May 2015—eight months into my “new life” and loving it