It only takes about 30 seconds of scrolling through social media to be told about ANOTHER challenge.
It’s bursting with creative challenges in an attempt to keep everyone entertained during quarantine.
The most popular are centered around dancing (like the #SavageChallenge), while others involve dressing up (like the #DontRushChallenge) or re-creating great works of art (like the #GettyMuseChallenge).
With so many challenges on the Internet, there are inevitably some that are either too hard or just not fun enough to get their fifteen seconds of fame.
The truth is challenges have been around for a long time, but it wasn’t until the famous ALS Ice Bucket Challenge that they took on new meaning.
This is when people got excited because it had a specific, clear message and call to action.
I got started with challenges in my business after failing at the webinar model. I was brainstorming this with a friend and he mentioned that I might be more suited to a live model where it would be through Facebook and extremely interactive.
We gave it a chance and, like magic, I discovered that it was perfect for my personality. Challenges allow coaches to be more authentic and engaging with their audience. The energy was more interesting and FUN for the audience.
I believe, now, more than ever people need certainty and a specific block of time to achieve something gives them hope and helps them see themselves through to a result when they have likely been struggling with reduced enthusiasm and accountability.
The pandemic has helped my students achieve consistency with their goals, mission, self care and most importantly, community. The community aspect helps them know that they have a safe environment where they can see folks going through the same process. They reach out and encourage and support each other during our challenges.
For me, a challenge with my community and audience includes an invitation, another video invitation, and a private group where there is a call to communicate and engage with homework assignments after each teaching. The idea is to help participants get results in the alloted time and set them up with tools to succeed once the quiz has ended.
The results can be impressive! A few of my students have already increased their business significantly. One has gotten a new job that she never thought possible. A few others have found completely new businesses through the processes my team and I take them through. A few artists have been selling their work more easily because of the content they’ve learned.
I just heard from a student that because of one the challenges, she and her family mended a long standing argument. And a bonus, she’s lost weight!
As a coach and business owner, I love challenges, because they work! As a company, we’ve discovered that the consistency of delivering challenges have almost been inadvertently sequential for the benefit of more effective and long standing results.