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Don’t put me in that hole with that pigeon.

265492615_619bcca234_nI have a confession to make:

I’ve got this book about money coming out and I’m scared of being “the money girl” for the rest of my life.

My book is called Money: A Love Story, Untangle Your Financial Woes and Create the Life You 

Really Want. As my publication date gets closer (September 10, 2013), I find myself getting my panties in a wrinkle worrying about what this book is going to mean to my life twenty years fromnow.

I have at least one other book about money in me. But I also have ideas flowing about spirituality, health, parenting (someday), and relationships.

I’ve paused many times along this book launch process wondering if I’m going to have to move into talking 401K’s and IRA’s in order to stay on point with my brand. (If I did I would feel terminally bored. I’ll leave the nuts and bolts and abbreviations to financial planners and such.)

MoneyALoveStoryCover

Ever hesitate to start something because you don’t want to be “branded” by that thing for the rest of your life?

When I get über stuck in my head about it, I think about other people I admire who’ve changed direction with agility and style.

Marie Forleo’s first book was called Make Every Man Want You. Now she teaches women how to rock businesses online.

Chris Guillebeau started out in service work on the Mercy Ships. Now he teaches how to live an unconventional life.

Ronald Reagan was an actor who went on to become President.

Gretchen Rubin was a lawyer who now writes about happiness.

Joy Behar was a high school English teacher before she started doing stand-up in her forties.

Louise Hay was a model and didn’t start Hay House Publishing until she was in her sixties.

My dad was an orthopedic surgeon who’s now a full-time, stay-at-home dad to my eleven-year-old sister.

All of these folks gave themselves permission to morph into the next great version of themselves. There was probably some angst and a bit of an identity crisis or two along the way. But they’re shining examples of the truth that it’s okay to change careers, change topics, and even to change your mind.

A reminder to myself and anyone else who needs it:

If you own and accept who you are, even if it’s a different version than yesterday, other people will accept you too.

We never really know where we’re going. Life is deliciously surprising. Chances are pretty good that all of us will change direction in a major way at some point in our lives.

So, instead of worrying about being “the money girl” forever and cringing every time someone tells me that I’m going to be “the next Suze Orman,” I’ve decided to just do the work.

Right now I’ve got something to tell people about money. Right now I’ve got some insight to share in this particular playground.

At some point in the future I may have something to share in some other playground.

But for now I’m choosing to let go of the fear of future limitation in honor of playing full out right now . . .

Don’t let the fear of being pigeon-holed in the future prevent you from sharing in the moment. (Tweet it!)

Have you ever not started a project because you were afraid of being limited by it later on in life? Do you ever find yourself getting nervous about being pigeon-holed by your brand? Have you made a major change in your career? How did it feel? How did you navigate it? Leave a comment — I’d love to hear your wisdom on this one!

Photo: Henning Mühlinghaus

 

25 comments

  • This article really spoke to me, Kate. I was just listening to a business recording on how it takes a lot of courage to truly own one thing, and was thinking to myself, “Do I have the courage to truly say I’m the self-love girl?” Like you, I know a lot about nutrition and wellness and spirituality. I think this is all part of it, but I know that right now I have to keep my message concise to really rock it.

    Also, I love that you said if you accept that you’re a different version than yesterday, people will accept it too. Sometimes I feel a bit like “who am I to claim that this is what I do?” When just a few years ago I worked in finance and then went to Harvard for my M.A. in Environmental Management. But yet I have a calling that this is who I am today, and people will soon accept it :)

    Alexis

  • Kate-
    You hit the nail on the head. Our society, including the internet, promotes being an ‘expert’ in one area. It took me years to accept myself – that I was a hybrid – and had passion and expertise in more than one arena. When I wrote my book: ‘Digging Deep: Unearthing Your Creative Roots Through Gardening’ it was considered ground breaking because no one has ever combined self help/creativity/gardening. I was pushing the limits ~ it was a good decision. :)

    Bravo to you on your new book. Will look forward to reading it.
    Fran

  • Kate, thank you for sharing this! I’ve definitely felt this way before. It’s so important to realize that people change over time. What they care about change and how they think change. I sometimes get worried that I will change my mind later about something I say today, and will end up contradicting myself. Then I realize that people change their minds as they grow, and my business and brand will grow organically as my direction defines itself. If I end up contradicting myself in the future, then so be it, because if I only posted things I didn’t change my mind about I wouldn’t have a website, and I wouldn’t be helping anyone.

  • Hell to the yes Kate! LOVE this. It’s such a great point.
    As someone who is ‘best known’ as the bassist for the all-femme rock band Vixen from the 80’s… I’ve definitely felt the effects (both positive and sometimes just odd) of ‘being branded’ as ‘that chick’.

    But I had major transformations around being the ‘thing I do’ vs being who I am … and once I realized I could DO anything… that’s when the really good stuff happened.

    LOVE this. Love you. Love your blog. Can’t wait for your book. Love your vids. You’re just a downright awesome chick.

  • I LOVE that your Dad is a stay at home Dad for your 11 year old sister!

  • I love that you are young, hip, smart (gorgeous) and teach about money! And because you are young, hip & smart, I wouldn’t not expect you to stay in the same (money) niche but instead to break any rules you wanna break and do whatever truly inspires you.

    My point is that I’m not “pigeonholing” you so most likely your supporters and cheering squad are not either. (Just a guess.)

    You are free to be whoever you are wanting to be :)

    On another note, this is the solution to panties that wrinkle (LMAO we don’t have that expression in French but I’ll be sure to translate and use profusely form now on!)
    http://www.mielsisters.com/
    You are sure to have “le plus beau cul” if you wear Miel and it comes wrinkle free :)

    Namaste + Bisoux,

    Caroline

  • Kate, I have encountered this same agenda over and over and over again. I wrote my first book about how to use Feng Shui to have a luckier life and then pitched the second one about using the power of different (and magical!) foods to transform life. EVERY SINGLE EDITOR including some that you count among your personal friends, took a pass on the book because I am not “known for food” and, then, this – – “if she writes a big book about luck we’d be very interested.” So now I simply focus on building my brand and my audience as well. They get who I am – the girl who uses ancient wisdom to effectively and positively address modern day dilemmas – whether that means using food or ritual or storytelling or…or…or…..

    Good LUCK with your launch, and, well, I guess I should know from luck! Ellen Whitehurst

  • Sooooo true! I think it stems a bit from our parent’s generation (and prior generations) where one picked a career and society supported that life-long single-minded professional (and personal) vision. We live in a self-empowered time where we get to choose, multiple times throughout our lives!
    I am a design coach – I inspire others to shape their homes, businesses and lives that truly express their deepest dreams. That’s after a degree in marine biology, an MBA, a fabulous run in the business of healthcare, another visit back to school to study interior design and now on-going study of all the fantastic coaching models out there!
    It is only through these “pigeon holes” that we uncover our next gift to share with the universe. Kate, I look forward to every pigeon hole you visit along the way!!!

  • Kate– love the post. I got connected to you via Haye house summit and really appreciate your honesty and insights on money. (My husband and i have started financial freedom fridays! )if it helps– i already see your money work as connected to more expansive life themes (dealing with inner critic, fear, finding freedom etc). Money is a great conduit to talk about these deeper issues– especially around control and spirituality. So it wouldn’t feel strange to me if you started teaching and writing about other topics. I’m a b schooler (long live Marie forlio!!) and a holistic coach and enneagram teacher. As a mama of three little ones (who make frequent appearances in my blog)i worry sometimes that ill be branded as a coach only for conscious parents. I love working with parents with young kiddos (I think often people go through a spiritual quickening in the transition to parenthood) but I also love the opportunity to work with clients of other ages and stages. For me it is about being ready to do inner work and move from being external/success oriented to soul centered. And that’s something that we can tune into at any stage and actually is a life long journey. Thanks for the encouragement to stay true to who I am and how I can best serve now… Even as I am a work in progress. Warmly, Courtney

  • Jamie Leff

    Oh my lord woman, it’s like you are reading my mind!! I am going through something similar! For some reason I feel like I need to have it all figured out at the ripe old age of 32!!! I am thinking about starting a family next year and have been putting all of this pressure on myself to have everything in place before the little ones come. Then I realized that I have only lived about a third of my life!!! Who knows what I am going to want to be doing in 5 years!! Great reminder that we grow and morph and that’s ok!!!

    Thank yoU!!
    xoxo

  • Love this, Kate! I am a consummate dabbler and I love EVERYTHING. It’s so important to know that we can change our minds and our lives any old time we want. Thanks for the reminder!

  • I love this! Every word is so on time. Thank you for sharing :)

  • Really enjoyed this message Kate. Thanks for sharing, really resonates! Bernadette :)

  • CathyBrooks

    I have been an Educational Assistant for 25 years and have worked with kids who have developmental, emotional and physical challenges all my adult life. Now I am looking forward to being an entrepreneur. I have a health and wellness company and a greeting card and wedding invitation company. I have always been a health advocate and making beautiful cards was a hobby I always loved.

  • Hi Kate, I’ve often thought about this too – as there’s so much more to me than just ‘parenting’! I think it’s normal to feel that way. Having chatted to you a while ago about little girls and self live I could see you bringing work into the world on all those topics you’re passionate about… I see you as much more than ‘the money girl’ and I think that’s what makes you special x best of luck with the book launch

  • Kate, thanks for sharing this insight! To me, this is a reminder of patience. I know I find myself eager to quickly move on to the next task all the time, even when I’m procrastinating (how does that work?), and forget that what is important is really the process. The end result will come and new journeys will begin, but if we ignore the process we might miss out on greatness. Also, if we find ourselves “labeled,” so what? It is how we label ourselves that matters. So may call you the “Money Girl” but instead maybe you can think of yourself as “They Spectacularly Awesome & Brave Woman Who Knows Some Stuff About Money and Much More!”

  • Hi Kate,
    great post! It really helped me as I’m currently dealing with the same dilemma. I create websites for artists and am currently trying to decide if I want to narrow it down even more or if I should broaden my target market and services because there is so much more I can do. Not an easy decision to make but I think niching down is really the answer for now if we want to crush it. It makes running a business much easier. And like you said, if we feel like doing something else next year, we’ll just organically transform everything until it makes sense again.

  • Fantastic post Kate…thank you for sharing! You’ve been able to articulate this so beautifully and I think it’s going to help a lot of folks “morph into the next great version of themselves”. As a stay-at-home momma for over ten years, it took a whole lot of courage to step out of that comfort zone and into the world in a larger way. I had pigeon-holed myself into one role, and it took being willing to be uncomfortable and messy along the way to move into something new for myself (I now own and operate a pretty rockin’ yoga studio). The biz is going well, and I also see that something else is wanting to be created in my life beyond being a yoga studio owner/teacher. I have my moments when I brush up against the fear of what others will think if I expand in a new direction, but I know that that’s where the magic is. It’s like you say, there’s real beauty in being able to share in the moment and live from love rather than our fears. Thank you!

  • Kate I love this! Thank you for writing it. The other day I was trying to come up with a nutrition topic to write about and I kept getting this strong intuition (while I was on the table at Vikaz!) that said “go home and write about love.” So I gotta listen. :) I love hearing all of your different pieces of wisdom- money, life, and otherwise. Keep it coming!

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