In the summer of 2023…
I came off of a month long fast and felt this increasing burden to drawn women together and use my gifts and sheer love of book reading and writing to create a book club. I recently discovered the book The Cost of Control by Sharon Hodde Miller and it was an eye opener on how much anxiety the need for control gives us.
My fear was that an online book club experience would rob us of the ‘homey’ and cozy feeling meeting together brings but it didn’t. Here are some of the reviews and lessons I learned.
Reviews:
“It was a safe place to be vulnerable and transparent.”
“There is healing and power in community and doing things with people who are going through what you are going through and I truly felt that in this book club.”
“It wasn’t like most book clubs. There was a level of comfort and intimacy that I enjoyed the most.”
“This book club helped me to find a community of like minded women. It was refreshing to discuss the topics and to know that I wasn’t alone in my struggles. Alexis did an excellent job of guiding us and creating a safe space for us to share our story. I am glad that I was able to be apart of this wonderful Book Club. I can’t wait for the next one!”
“It helped me to address things in my life that needed to be addressed. It also allowed me to talk things out with the group and come to a resolution.”
1. Create authentic experiences. For so long I’ve admired & even worked for Christian entrepreneurs who seem to effortlessly sell their faith-based digital products and experiences. I thought their success was in mastering tools when really they mastered THEM. Success starts with self. Create online experiences that flow naturally from who you are and what you’re already doing.
2. Everyone who signed up won’t show up. Celebrate who shows up. And know that life happens to all of us so don’t trip over the people who aren’t there. Use text messages combined with emails to keep meetings at the top of their mind.
3. Don’t talk too much. I was so excited about the material that as a host I had a tendency to find myself not leaving enough room for everyone to chime in. Facilitation is the art of hosting others, not self. Always be sure to pull in your introverts by directly asking their opinion.
4. Try not to create too many steps to sign up. If you can make an experience as seamless as possible, do it. This is where having the right tools matter. I used my website for the landing page, ConvertKit for email, Zoom for the meetings, and SendOwl to sell the digital product. Next time I will simplify signing up.
5. Keep posting on social media through the experience to keep it top of mind. Share private moments on public spaces “recaps” on Instagram/Facebook, especially on stories.
6. The meetings are the moment, so treat it as such. I for sure could’ve utilized my assistant more for the administrative parts to free up my time.
7. Vulnerability is a super power. The discussions will go even deeper. Once people feel/know they can be vulnerable without being judged, The Holy Spirit truly begins to flow.
8. Do it messy – As a recovering perfectionist with a marketing background, I was shocked at how I threw away the need for things to be so ‘on brand’ and just… DID IT. When God says go, go. Improve as you move.
9. The small things matter. Get to your Zoom meeting 10 minutes in advance. Send out messages early in the morning, 1 hr before and at start time. Be sure to record your sessions and upload them.
10. Have F U N!! Return to child like faith and simply have fun as you lead. Don’t take yourself too seriously which leaves room for The Holy Spirit.