Photo: Christian Sinclair; Credit:  Paul Smith

In 2011 I started my business with a client base that was built predominately through referrals and word of mouth.

I built a fan base through attending conferences and booking speaking gigs— and I spent little to no time online or on social media.

It wasn’t until more recently that I actually stepped into the online scene.

At first I was excited by the prospect of turning my work into courses and digital products, but as soon as I stepped into the digital world I was flooded with an abundance of ideas, schemes, and rules on how to be successful online.

I began hearing terms like, list building and sales funnels; so naturally I became overwhelmed and confused. To get my bearings, I started buying courses. I purchased every course on webinars, Facebook ads, monetizing my blog, and everything in between. However, this only gave me a sense of more bewilderment as I pondered, “Where in the world do I start?”

Experts told me that with my level of expertise I should be charging three times the amount for my services. Others told me I could only work with one target market, rather than the vast array of clientele I had been working with, because “the online world is different and your target market is everything”.

'Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.' — Maya Angelou Click to Tweet

All of these voices began to wear me down. So much so, that one day, I found myself doing the type of work I despised and charging prices I felt were too high. I found myself becoming a cookie cutter business person that I didn’t identify with and getting roped into marketing tactics I desperately wanted to steer clear of!

Liking yourself and what you do

After months of stressing, I was driving through the country to my Colorado ranch and listening to my favorite band, Depeche Mode.

I thought about how much I loved their music and their lengthy successful career. And that’s when it hit me!

Depeche Mode doesn’t:

produce content every day and post it on every single social media site
do webinars or worry about the size of their list
do Facebook live so that they can build a know, like and trust factor with fans
talk about their six and seven figures or share income reports

They don’t do any of those things and yet, I am still a dedicated, loyal, and extremely diehard fan.   It takes years in between album releases, but do you think Depeche Mode worries about sales funnels to keep their fans attention? No. Because despite the lengthy breaks between albums I will still run out to buy their new record and be first in line to buy tickets to their concerts.

Depeche Mode has my heart and they did nothing to trick me into giving it to them.

They didn’t do sneaky marketing, or come up with fancy ways to get me onto their list. What Depeche Mode does do is create epic, soul touching, ridiculously amazing music (i.e., content) that makes me deeply love and admire them.

Completely stripped down, Depeche Mode makes art that feeds the soul.

They make music they are proud of, stand by, and that is a testimony to their lives and what they experience: spiritually, emotionally, mentally and physically.
They package their experiences into content that people authentically connect with.
They do what they love and the love of their fans follows them because of it.

Of course there are business strategies that work. Sure, there are business models, sales funnels, webinars, and list building tactics that may be profitable and tried and true methods to make millions, but for people like me … I don’t want to live or work like that.

That is not my end game.

Discovering your ‘why’ in business

I aspire for people to love my work the way I love Depeche Mode.

I want people to read my books and articles and know that I’m bearing my heart and soul, every dang time. I want my fans to patiently wait while I create new content like I patiently wait for Martin Gore and Dave Gahan to write new songs, because I know that creative genius takes time.

I want people to know it’s — first and foremost — about adding value to the world and giving all of myself in all that I do (in the same way Depeche Mode accomplishes this).

Depeche Mode’s music has been profoundly symbolic in my life.

They have given me some of the most memorable, incredible support in my life … and their music, vocals and lyrics have never let me down. They have given me so much and in some ways I feel indebted to them, like I can never repay them for all they have supplied to my existence. But despite buying their albums, posters, concert tickets and merchandise, I have never, not even once, felt like I was being sold to.

My mission is to refrain from letting my business simply become work. And the thing is, when you authentically do what you love, success happens naturally. It’s not a struggle, it’s not a scheme and it happens organically (and delivers longer, more meaningful results).

Since this revelation and deciding to restructure my business to line-up with my new found ‘why’, my business has been more successful and gratifying than ever. I am happier and more fulfilled. My work continuously becomes more valuable.

Amongst the many reasons why I love Depeche Mode, I can now say they’ve made me a better business woman. Depeche Mode is my business totem; they keep me centered in what truly matters. And anytime I begin to stray from that, they bring me back.

This article has been edited and condensed.

Christian Sinclair is spiritual teacher and writer who has worked with over 200+ clients, helping them to dynamize their lives, relationships, and careers. Christian’s passion for art and working with people lead her into an acting career in film and television which she thrived in for nearly twenty five years. She uses her career in the entertainment industry to bring a brazen, raw, and relatable spin to her work, while using her lifetime in spirituality, metaphysics, and psychology to assist people in accessing profound levels of healing in a modern, stylish, and even light hearted and humorous ways.   Christian is a contributor for The Huffington Post and has been featured in Revamped Magazine. Connect with @mschrissinclair on Twitter.

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