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So last week, I attended my very first mixology class. It’s basically a class that teaches you how to make cocktails and if you know anything about me, you know I take my alcoholic beverages very seriously (especially if said beverage is a margarita!).
I went with my BFF Patricia and of course we had a blast. We learned how to make three drinks:
- Moscow Mule (which is vodka, ginger beer, and lemon thyme)
- Mojito (think rum, mint leaves and limes topped off with club soda)
- Sazerac (whisky + cocktail bitters + brown sugar syrup – identified as a “guy’s drink”)
I was super proud of myself for making these drinks and they were pretty tasty too!
The morning after, I started thinking about how making drinks has a LOT in common with building a business. Because it’s this idea of starting out with a basic list of ingredients and then adjusting based on your tastes. For example, since I love sweeter drinks, I tended to add a little more syrup to my drinks than Patricia.
When you’re building a business, you have experts and gurus and even your next door neighbor telling you what you need to have in place: social media and email lists and websites oh my. That’s all well and good. But as you start building your business (or mixing your drink as it were), you might decide that you get the most engagement from your email list so you will choose to focus most of your efforts there. It all depends on what works best for you (and what tastes best for you).
Our mixology instructor had a very set recipe of teaching us how to make the three drinks on the menu. But throughout the class he was suggesting tweaks: try this whiskey instead for a smoother taste, you can substitute lemon juice if you don’t like the taste of lemon thyme and things like that.
Sometimes you’ll find that one technique will not work for you. That’s OK. This is your business (or your drink) so you can make it however you want. If you decide that all you want to do is talk to people on the phone, you can totally do that. If you decide that you want to do low key launches for your offerings (like me), you can totally do that. The idea is that you experiment with some suggested tools first and then figure out what works best for you and put together your own toolkit. If you need help figuring out where to start, with this process, grab a free Side Hustle Pow Wow.
So the next time you order your favorite cocktail, think about what went into making it – most likely a set recipe combined with that bartender’s personal style and flair. And then think of ways to start “mixing” your business.
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