Online business opportunities are the silver lining to COVID-19 – but how do fears and impostor syndrome stop Baby Boomers in their tracks?
Impostor Syndrome and Other Challenges Baby Boomers Face
[0:00] – Introducing this episode: What is stopping you from building that online business?
- Online businesses are feeling far less impact from this pandemic than those with physical locations; many are actually seeing significant upticks. This is the perfect time for people who wish to pivot and reinvent themselves by getting started online—but some roadblocks are in the way.
[3:57] – The massive shift in the world and the marketplace.
- A shift changes our perspective, giving us new lanes that we can follow from a personal and a business standpoint. Case in point: our work habits have changed, particularly regarding distance work.
- Baby Boomers’ perspectives on available opportunities may have changed as well. Theoretically, that should make it easier for this generation to go through the process, shift some of that energy, and find its center and value in the new online world.
[9:23] – Many these days are stuck in the very early stages of uncertainty, of finding their “superpower” in order to deliver value in this new world.
- Start by finding out: What are you good at?
- As you evolve your online business and your personal relationship with your online business, you can determine how you can make money out of your skills by finding out what the marketplace needs, and what the world needs.
- Over time, you can ask yourself: What is my passion? What am I truly passionate about? What am I? How do I really want to make a difference?
[12:58] – The first major roadblock in the process is a perceived lack of ability, not in your core competence, but in the technical skills surrounding it.
- While being technologically adept requires an additional level of technical expertise that many of us haven't had time to hone, it's not really all that difficult to learn it for the future: All it takes is time.
- Some people don't necessarily have the energy or the will to learn the new skills that are required. However, there is no such thing as someone being “too stupid” to learn new skills.
- Technical limitations can slow you down, but should not be a real roadblock that stops you from moving ahead.
[15:56] – The next roadblock is a fear of failure.
- Culturally, Baby Boomers were raised believing that failure is so negative, and even being punished for it.
- Another psychological hallmark of the generation is impostor syndrome—a feeling of inadequacy that never quite goes away.
- Overcoming imposter syndrome requires a leap of faith, as well as taking a look at your content and what you share with fresh eyes—not as a creator, but as a consumer.
[22:40] – The last roadblock is timing.
- Waiting for the perfect time will most likely lead to you never finishing what you set out to do. It doesn't really matter if it's the best time or the worst time; it IS the time.
- If you're at the point where you’re looking for tips and inspiration to help you through that, it means you’ve reached the point when the time is right.
[27:14] – An interesting case study about a client in India.
- The client reports that their organization has been more efficient now during the pandemic, and meetings have become shorter because of better planning. They've also embraced Slack as a company-wide communication tool, as it makes talking to different teams quite efficient. The money saved from these shifts may just as well guarantee that things will remain this way for the company moving forward, even after the pandemic.
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