This week, John sits down with Amanda Goetz. Amanda is a 2x founder, 3x CMO, and now a full-time brand builder and creator on personal and professional growth inspiring 150k people each week through social and her weekly newsletter, Life’s a Game.

Amanda shares insights and experiences on:

• Her experience transitioning to full-time content creation (and she’s worked through the anxiety that induces).
• How/why finding validation and proof points, such as audience growth, engagement, and revenue, are important in building a successful content creation business (and how she founder hers).
• How she’s balancing content creation with consulting to provide financial stability while pursuing creative endeavors.
• The operational side of going independent, i.e., purchasing health insurance, setting up your LLC, etc.

Timestamps

• (00:00) - Introduction
• (02:11) - Leaving Corporate America
• (05:06) - Dealing with Doubts and Anxiety
• (06:02) - Navigating Fear and Self-Doubt
• (07:00) - Identifying Inner Voices and Overcoming Anxiety
• (08:00) - The Reality of Content Creation
• (08:59) - Motivation and Inspiration for Starting a Newsletter
• (09:56) - Passion for Writing and Personal Growth
• (10:54) - Setting Goals and Writing a Book
• (12:23) - Motivation and Drive as a Parent
• (13:18) - The Business Side of Going Solo
• (14:14) - Navigating Health Insurance and Financial Stability
• (15:13) - Overcoming Challenges and Learning New Skills
• (16:39) - Building in Public and Overcoming Blockers
• (18:56) - Building a Side Hustle and Going Full-Time
• (21:17) - Proof Points and Taking the Leap
• (22:16) - Building a Newsletter and Monetizing
• (24:11) - The Dangers of Comparison and Unrealistic Expectations
• (26:03) - Building in Public and Sharing Vulnerability
• (27:31) - The Reality of Content Creators and Financial Success
• (28:30) - The Importance of Authenticity and Alignment in Sponsorships
• (30:24) - Choosing the Angle of the Newsletter
• (32:20) - Finding Newsletter Topics and Brainstorming
• (34:40) - The Iterative Process of Writing a Book
• (37:32) - The Importance of Messiness in the Creative Process
• (43:13) - Betting on Yourself and Going All-In
• (46:11) - The Book's Tone and Direction
• (47:07) - Exploring Different Directions for the Book
• (47:33) - Closing Remarks

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Thanks to my friends at hatch.fm for producing this episode, the promotional clips, and handling the overall production of Louder Than Words.

Riverside is offering a 15% discount to Louder Than Words listeners. Just visit riverside.fm and use the code LOUDER during checkout to lock in your discount.