If you were only known for one thing..

Today I'm sharing a lesson I wish I would've learned years ago.  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ [Creative Companion]( Presented by [the Creative Companion Club]() Hello my friend! Over the last couple of years, I've done quite a bit of podcast guesting. And on a lot of those shows, the hosts very graciously did their best to introduce me to their audience. That meant they did some independent research and pulled together an introduction. Most of the time, it sounded a bit like this: "Jay is the host of Creative Elements, a podcast interviewing the world's top creators...he's also the writer of the Creative Companion newsletter, the creator of Freelancing School, the creator of #Tweet100, an instructor for LinkedIn Learning, an investor in Maven and Gumroad..." It kind of went on and on. Because all of those things ARE current and ARE true! But when you think about the experience for any of those listeners...if someone where to ask them, "Who is Jay Clouse?" there's basically no chance they'll be able to answer that question well. It's too much to remember. It's too many things. And even if they do remember ONE of those things, which one? And is that the one I would WANT them to remember? No. The answer is no. And so, to some degree, all of the great podcast guest opportunities I had went to waste. Because every time you are put in front of a new audience, that is both an audition and an excellent opportunity to grow your own audience. But if you start that audition with a super long, messy, confusing introduction to who you are...it's unlikely that new audience will stick. They don't truly know who you are or what you stand for – you just sound like someone who does a lot of stuff. In a world of infinite choice, we are increasingly obsessed with making the RIGHT choice. We want to make the BEST choice. Both of those terms are pretty subjective. But, generally, the right choice we seek out is a specialist who can do one thing really well. We want to have a trusted source for every part of our lives, and we are more likely to trust specialists. 👉 What are you the trusted source for? What is someone looking for when you are the best choice? The more you lean into that one thing, the better off you'll be. The more you lean into that one thing, the more referable you become. The more that one thing will do work on your behalf without you needing to put effort in. We learn through repetition. We remember through repetition. The more your name and platform is associated to ONE thing, the more repetitions people will hear your name associated to that thing, and the more it'll become learned. The more it's learned, the more it's shared. The more it's shared, the more your audience grows. The more your audience grows, the more people you have sharing your name with that one idea. ...and so the cycle continues and continues and continues. 👉 What is the one idea YOU want to be associated with? I've seen this play out with members of the [Creative Companion Club](). Recently, [Justin]() got laser-focused on sponsorships for creators. And [Dylan](=) doubled down on helping newsletter creators. Both have seen substantial growth since making those decisions. I want to be associated with creators. I want to be known as someone who really breaks down how today's top creators are so successful. So I checked in with my audience... [Jay Clouse on Twitter]()​ ​ I got a lot of responses. Responses like "warm, generous, genuine, freelancing, community..." Great words! But few people used the word "creator." So the insight was that I needed to address that misalignment. I needed to change the way that *I* talk about myself and my work to start, but I also needed to change the work itself to focus even MORE on creators. From my bio to adding "Creator Coach" to my name on social media, the shift is beginning to happen. But shifts require time. They require repetition. And they require consistency. So if YOU need to make a shift, there's no time like the present to get started. People are often going to put you into a box, whether you like it or not. So the opportunity you have is to define your own box and give it to people. So I'll ask you again... 👉 What is the ONE idea you most want to be associated with? What kind of information or experience can you be the trusted source for? Cheers, Jay ​ Share This Essay: [Share via facebook]( [Share via twitter]() [Share via whatsapp]( Your personal share link: [ ​ ​ ​ [Sponsor Image]() PRESENTED BY THE CREATIVE COMPANION CLUB Join our community of creators The [Creative Companion Club]() is our private membership community for up-and-coming professional creators. Inside the Creative Companion Club, I'm sharing the behind-the-scenes of my business including my own monthly Profit & Loss statements, lessons learned, goals, and more. You get full access to all of my paid workshops, biweekly Office Hours, 1:1 member Hot Seats, and other private events. And every month, I host a Shared Focus Sprint – a month-long, lightweight cohort-based course around a specific outcome. Past sprints are available on-demand and include building high-converting landing pages and signature lead magnets. Our Sprint later this month will help you build an entry offer that you can soft pitch to every new email subscriber. Join now to be a part of it! [Learn more]() ​ ​ LAST WORD 👋 Thanks for reading! I know this essay may not sit well with folks – and maybe that's you! I've been a lifelong generalist, so I understand the tension. But after studying creators for the last several years, there is simply no denying that those who combine a stated focus with the discipline to consistently communicate that focus find success much more quickly. This isn't to say you can't spend time doing other things. Or take on projects that come your way. It's about choosing what and how you communicate. I truly believe most people are only capable (willing) to connect you with ONE idea in their mind...and so it's up to you to choose what that is. It may take a while to truly get it dialed in – but it's better to choose SOMETHING specific even if you iterate away from it than choose NOTHING specific at all. I'm in your corner and rooting for you! Cheers, Jay PS: I couldn't be more excited about our upcoming Shared Focus Sprint inside the [Creative Companion Club](). My goal is for this sprint alone to help members earn more than the cost of their membership! --------------------------------------------------------------- [Photo of Jay Clouse]( Jay Clouse [Say hi 👋 on Twitter]() or [Instagram]( ☎️ [Book a 1:1 call with me]( Thanks for subscribing! 📬 Reply to this email or [contact me]( anytime. [Edit your profile]( or [unsubscribe here](. This email was sent with [ConvertKit]() and designed using [Palladio](=). Want to say thank you? ❤️ ☕️ [Buy Me A Coffee]() or send a note to P.O. BOX 797, Worthington, OH 43085. [Sponsor this newsletter]( to get your message in front of 12K+ creators.