If You Want Sustainable Success, This ONE THING Is Non-Negotiable.

Hey Friend!

Have you ever stopped to ask yourself, “What do I really want? What would success truly mean for me six months, a year, five, or ten years down the road? Why am I doing all the things that I’m doing? And what am I trying to create? What is the result that I want? What is non-negotiable?”

So often we run, chase, and do, without knowing what the heck we’re running towards. We don’t know what the objective is that we are so desperately trying to achieve. Right now, I want you to pause for a moment and think about what type of success you want. What does your life need to look like for you to know that you’ve reached success?

For Me, It’s Sustainability

As I sat and thought about this, one of the biggest words that kept coming up for me was sustainability. I want to know if I take a vacation, my business won’t implode. I want to create something that I can trust. And trust God blesses the company I built.

I want it to be something I can do in less time, something that’s fulfilling and that brings peace and purpose into my heart. Something where I’m able to spend time with my kids, where I’m able to get sick and be out for three or four days, and know nothing is going to crumble. I want sustainability.

If that’s on your list of the top three things you think success means to you, then this blog post is for you. I’m going to share with you the ONE thing that has helped me so much (and it’s not actually podcasting). You guys know I’m super here for that conversation. But it’s something else. It’s ONE thing I believe is non-negotiable in your race for sustainable success. Let’s go!

What’s the ONE Non-Negotiable Thing to Achieve Success?

I know you’re wondering, what’s the ONE non-negotiable thing, Stef, that’s going to help me achieve sustainable success? Sure, it’s the tactical outcomes like having a podcast or some type of long-form content. It’s having systems and having a team, and taking action. It’s all of that.

But as I sat and thought about it, the core route of actually finding a breakthrough, of making a massive jump from, “I did it” to “Oh I’m doing it, I’m pushing through, I’m showing up, I’m optimizing now,” to “Now I’m actually growing and scaling. I’ve hit a place of sustainable success.” What is it? What’s the secret sauce?

And it’s (drumroll please): Consistency! Write it on your paper. Highlight it. Circle it. Double-underline it, baby. C-O-N-S-I-S-T-E-N-C-Y! Dictionary.com says consistency means a degree of density, firmness, or steadfast adherence to a principle, as well as harmony or compatibility among the parts of a complex thing.

Wow, doesn’t that explain your business and brand? There’s a complex thing we’re dealing with, but inside this complex thing, we have agreement, harmony, compatibility, and uniformity. And then we have steadfast adherence to that thing. That is so it!

Keep reading, friend, because I’m going to share six tips to help you stay consistent. But first, let’s dig deeper into what consistency is, and you’ll see why consistency is non-negotiable.

Consistency is Found in Scripture

Galatians 6:9 says, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.“

We have a worldly definition of consistency that’s spot on, and we have a biblical definition that’s also spot on. It’s going to take time not to become weary of doing the thing. Then, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

Let’s talk about why consistency matters. I’m going to share some tips with you because I know it can be hard. It’s easier said than done. It’s easy to say, I’m in. I’m going to be consistent, and then reality hits.

Life hits, a kid gets sick, you go on vacation, and consistency goes out the window. You find yourself frustrated and giving up, and inevitably trying to start over. Right? We can’t allow that to happen.

Consistency is the Non-Negotiable Foundation

Consistency is key when it comes to sustainability. So why does it matter? If you’re going to make progress in your business, you have to keep working towards that outcome. Consistency is the thing. We don’t get to stop. I mean, you’ll rest, but stopping won’t happen. That is not an option. This is non-negotiable until we get to the outcome.

Because when we reach the outcome, God will have something new for us every single time. He doesn’t just let us grow into a comfort zone to stay there. He helps us get to a comfort zone so He can take us to the next level of discomfort. So we can grow, expand, and thrive in the purpose we each have in our lives.

Whether you’re starting your podcast right now, or you’re coming up with what your brand is going to be, or you’re focused on growing your audience, consistency is the non-negotiable foundation upon which every single thing is built. Without consistency, your message gets diluted.

Consistency Creates Super Fans

If your marketing efforts are sporadic, people won’t trust you. Your audience won’t know what to expect from you, and consequently, they won’t buy from you. Your business will be inconsistent, which means it will not have any momentum. There will be a lack of trust between you and your listener.

You won’t have loyal customers because they are unsure if they should buy from you or someone who has massive consistency. Consistent individuals have established themselves as reliable, trustworthy, and dependable. When you create superfans, people are here for you.

How often have you guys known for sure if I click on Stefanie’s podcast, there will be something new to listen to right now? I’ve heard time and again how you all binge-listen to my podcast. I am consistent! In four and a half years, I’ve only missed one episode, and that was a decision I made over a holiday.

Non-Negotiable Consistency Matters in Every Area of Your Life

Consistency is bigger than your business, too. It matters in every area of your life. It’s non-negotiable. If you want to hit a new level in your health, how long do you have to work out, drink water, go to bed on time, and eat healthy foods? It takes a long time to start seeing notable results.

Consistency is what moves the needle. It’s not getting started. It’s not the newest diet fad, and it’s not that you amp up your workouts for 30 days and then take a month off. Your success is in your consistency, even in your health goals. Consistency is non-negotiable.

What about consistency in your marriage? You can’t go. Oh, let’s go on a marriage retreat once, and then focus on yourself now and put your spouse last. You have to be consistent in the connection in your marriage. Consistency is the secret to success in every area.

Are you in the Word once and call it done? Or maybe you’re in the Word once a month and call it done? That’s not good enough. We have to be consistent in the things that matter most to the person we want to become, so that we can be the very best version of ourselves.

Non-Negotiable Consistency Creates a Better Version of You

I am not going to shy away from the fact that I think there’s a better version of every one of us. There should never be a moment in time when I say, “Well, I’m done growing now. My marriage is pretty good. I’m kind of nice to my kids 90% of the time. My friendships are all right. I have one friend I called two months ago. My business is okay. I’m making $1,000 a month, even though I originally wanted to make $10,000 a month. It’s fine. Yeah, I go to church.”

That is not the best version of you. Even if you think you’re operating at the very best version of yourself in every single area of your life, there is another level. Pray, ask God:

• Where could I be even better?
• Where can I learn more about it?
• Who is this beautiful version of me that you’ve created me to be? How do I get there?
• What do I do differently?
• What’s the call of my life?
• What’s the thing I should give?
• What am I supposed to be doing?
• Who am I supposed to be helping right now?

I promise you there’s another level, and consistency will matter. If you ever want to reach those levels of performance, excellence, trajectory, and sustainability, friend, you’ve got to be consistent.

Non-Negotiable Consistency is Mindset, Discipline, and Motivation

First, how do we do it? I’m sorry to tell you, but creating consistency is not as easy as snapping your fingers. It’s a whole thing. Consistency starts with your mind and your prayer life and your belief that you are worthy of walking this out with God, that He has this beautiful anointing over you, and that all you have to do is show up for it. There’s the whole mindset piece.

Second, consistency is the actual discipline of showing up and keeping up, even when it doesn’t feel shiny, sparkly, or new. It’s a discipline that’s non-negotiable.

And then third, there’s the intrinsic, internal motivation factor of why you’ll keep showing up when the discipline and the newness of your routine have worn off. Your heart has to keep pulling you forward until.

Tip #1: Have a Business Meeting With God

The first tip is to sit down and have a business meeting with God. This is something that I teach inside Podcast to Profit, my six-month mastermind program for podcasters. Because if we are not running a God-centered business, not only does it have less meaning and fulfillment, but we, in our humanness, are going to fail.

We’re going to get distracted, or we’re going to give up. We could fall prey to impostor syndrome or to the excuses and limitations we face. We have to have a God-centered business and a God-centered mindset.

So sit down with God and have a business meeting. Talk to Him about the goal you’ve written down and the outcome you want. Pray and ask Him to pour into your heart the belief that you can and to allow the Holy Spirit to lead you forward in your steps.

After you’ve had this business meeting, you’ll need to continue cultivating it. The consistency in your relationship with God has to be on point if you want any of the other tips to play out in your life.

Tip #2: Develop a Non-Negotiable Routine

For my second tip, I want you to develop a routine. You can have discipline, but if you don’t have a routine, you don’t know what to be disciplined about. Not only a daily routine, but also a weekly and a monthly routine, where you see what you’re doing daily to get to that goal.

I think where we fail at consistency is that we don’t know what to do. What I teach my students is elementary. One, select your long-form content. Pour in one to two episodes a week every week.

Secondly, you’re going to nurture. We do an email Love Note once a week. It’s straightforward. We post in a Facebook group a couple of times a week. And then lastly, work on conversion. That’s it. That’s all we need to do to grow a beautiful, sustainable online business.

There are a lot of strategies and how-tos inside of what those simple things are. You can learn more about those if you decide to join us in Podcast to Profit. I think we struggle with consistency because we’ve put so many things on our plate that are entirely irrelevant and unnecessary to the outcome and goal we have set for ourselves.

Do you know exactly what it will take to hit your goal? If you don’t, this is the first problem you need to tackle because you can. Then once you’re clear on what you need to do, you can build a routine around it.

Tip #3: Have Non-Negotiable, Super Clear Goals

Tip number three is that you need to have non-negotiable, super clear goals. What are you trying to get done? And then reverse engineer them so that you know what the clear and objective plan is each month, until I get this thing done?

How do you break this big goal into smaller tasks and then create a plan to accomplish it? I’ve heard people take both sides on this. For instance, I hate goal setting because I often fail, and it makes me feel bad about myself. Remember, goals are simply the result we’re trying to achieve. Breaking this goal down into smaller, attainable stepping stones creates data.

For example, did I hit this goal or not? If I did, cool. How do I pour fuel on the fire that’s working? If I didn’t hit this goal, how do I adjust? How do I pivot? If you have no goals, you have no idea if something’s working. I think it’s smart to set tactical goals that are realistic, but push you a bit. Goals that are attainable and that are measurable.

How Do You Know?

How do you know if you’ve hit this goal that’s going to give you the data you need to see if you’re on the right track? If you say you want to earn $10,000 per month and that’s one of the sustainable success objectives you’ve set for yourself, you need to reverse engineer it.

Ask these questions:

• Where am I right now today?
• What’s my SuperFan number?
• How many sales am I making right now?
• What is the conversion rate like?
• How many should I make based on the number of super fans?
• How am I going to get there?
• What does this look like?
• How can I grow the podcast?
• How am I going to grow my audience so that I can get more leads at this conversion rate?

Then, how do you increase your conversion rate?

• Maybe you’re going to work on optimizing your email list.
• Perhaps you’re going to work on your messaging and marketing.
• Maybe you’re going to invest in yourself and join a program to teach you how to do all these things.

You’ve got to figure that out, friend. If you don‘t know what the clear goals are for where you’re trying to go, you’re going to get nowhere fast.

Tip #4: Plan Out Your Content in Advance

Tip number four is to create a content calendar and plan your content. We do this for my podcast. All fingers and all angles point back to the podcast. This will help you stay consistent because you’ll have to show up and plan. You’re going to have to show up and record your content in batches. You’re going to need to show up and make sure that all the pieces are working together.

If consistency is a major player in your strategy, the worst thing you can do is fly by the seat of your pants. That’s why I said you need goals and you need routines. Listen to the things I’m telling you right now. You need a content plan. It’s non-negotiable.

Tip #5: Batch Your Content

Tip number five, batch your content. On Wednesdays, I sit down and record the next three episodes for the following week. Every single Wednesday, I’m recording your next three episodes. I’ve established a routine in my life that’s super consistent. I know what my goal is for the podcast this year, and therefore, I know exactly what I need to achieve each month.

Sometimes I hit it, and sometimes I don’t. Remember, it’s data. I do this not to make me feel bad. I do this to get clear, grow, and optimize, so I can get into your hearts and heads and create the content you need.

Tip #6: Stay Focused

Last but not least, tip number six is to stay focused. If you want true consistency, I’m talking about four and a half years later, after starting your show, you’ll have 400 to 600 podcast episodes.

You’ve gone from a couple of thousand people in your community to hundreds of thousands. You’re making consistent sales from your show. You are on other people’s podcasts. This is what’s happened to me through the power of consistency.

Sure, I’ve added in all the other pieces that I teach you in Podcast to Profit, like taking action and knowing the steps. I get it. But if you don’t have consistency, that’s the non-negotiable, foundational thing that breaks everything else apart, because it doesn’t matter if you have all the strategy in the world.

You Have to do the Work

You have to do the work over and over and over again:

• When it no longer feels exciting.
• If you don’t know if anybody cares or if anybody’s listening, you have to do the work.
• When your podcast goes stagnant for twelve months, you have to do the work.

That happened to me. By the way, before my latest breakout and hitting these big, audacious numbers, I had a considerable period where my podcast wasn’t moving.

But I said I will until. I will keep opening my mouth, and He shall fill it until the Lord says stop! Why are you stopping? Stopping is not part of the secret to success. Stopping is inconsistent. And we are unavailable for that. It’s non-negotiable!

Does this mean you can’t take a break? No, batch record and take a vacation. I take a lot of vacations, but you guys don’t know because I’ve batched my content. I’ve been consistent.

Not only is my content consistent, but my messaging is consistent. I know who I’m talking to. I’m not confused with who I serve and how I help you, and what my offers are, and what I expect you to do. I’m not confused. I am very clear now.

Non-Negotiable Consistency Plays Into Your Actions

Non-negotiable consistency plays into your actions. It aligns with your messaging and marketing. And your consistency matters a lot when it comes to your focus. We need to avoid distractions. This means getting serious about eliminating distractions from your life.

What does this mean for you? Does it mean you will delete the social media apps from your phone? I hope so. Why are those still there? Does it mean you’re going to turn off notifications on your phone? I hope so. Why are those still on?

Does it mean when you decide to sit down to a work block that you’re going to choose to remove yourself from the hubbub and the noise of your home and sit down and be serious about the work that you’re doing? I know that this isn’t always possible, but it is sometimes.

Sometimes we choose to stay in a noisy, crowded space when we have the opportunity to escape to a bedroom or even better, leave the house so we can actually focus. I have students who work from their cars. Get focused!

I Struggle With This Too

Okay, I struggle with this too.

But really, the message I’m here to bring to you is that consistency is key. If you don’t have the consistency right now, it’s okay. It’s OK to be where you are, but it’s not OK to stay there.

If you know there’s a bigger, better version of you that’s calling, that’s screaming, get consistent. If there’s a desire in your heart and you hear yourself saying, I want this to work, I want this to matter, I wish I had more peace or presence, I wish I had more time, then get consistent.

What is the thing that you need to commit to right now and be so consistent with it? Plug it into your planner and build the plan. Set goals and create routines. Create consistent content around it. Get super focused.

Bonus Tip: You Must Have Non-Negotiable Accountability

And here’s your bonus tip. You must have non-negotiable accountability. Go and tell three people who matter to you, who are going to care about these goals that you have set for yourself. Tell them. Tell them when you’re going to do it.

You have to have accountability inside of consistency. And then you get it done. Put your head down and get to work. Stop looking up, stop looking to the side, and stop looking at your phone. Just do the job. It’s non-negotiable! Trust me, the consistent work is going to get you where you’re called to go.

I pray this blesses you!

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