The Sling And The Five Smooth Stones
- Writer for DDI on Medium
- 3 days ago
- 3 min read
Updated: 9 hours ago
When you begin working for yourself, it’s easy to lose yourself in the image of larger, more established businesses, chasing nice optics, expensive technology, and team building, to look and feel like a "real" business.
The fight might look different for everyone, but for a split second, I almost lost my way in the rabbit hole of ways to measure up, wrestling with working from home, and the inability to play the purchasing images for my blog's game. Until I remembered that, despite looking the part, my industry doesn’t know how to build a brand from scratch, and that I was born with a gift to draw.
Fast forward 8 years, and 2 successful brands built from scratch within the first 3 years of working for myself. I fully embrace the perception people have of my little visual design agency.
Many local 1-3 man shows don’t fit the outward appearance of someone who knows what they’re doing.
Like David, to onlookers, you’re just a little boy.
No experience or reputation outside your day job. How many of you have an occupation that’s different from what your 1-3 man show does?
Before defeating Goliath, David spent his days as a shepherd, not a soldier. But he had a gift he mastered, and 5 smooth stones that together was the strategy against Goliath.
“AM I A DOG THAT YOU SHOULD COME AT ME WITH STAVES?!”
Consider Goliath's use of the word staves.
By reducing David’s weapon to nothing, he also implies his fate being sealed.
As Christians, we understand the game of being mocked for who we are. The pattern is the same in the case of big companies that can’t do the things we ‘lil guys’ do.
They use what empowers us to shame and intimidate us unto their territory.
Don’t take the bait. We're not the same. You only need to read or listen to see that…
How they operate their business isn’t the best use of our time and money
They believe ideal clients are mythical creatures, and we don't
Expertise isn’t about throwing a prompt into ChatGPT, but the application of what we know through what we've been paid to do
Our value isn’t pitched upon “AI is the best employee,” but our IP
We’re not spraying-and-praying to stay top of mind; we've got a voice!
And that’s the unexpected value of what’s in our sling!
Goliath was a Philistine; he wasn’t from Israel. David knew Goliath’s error was in underestimating that.
But do you know that about your unique circumstances?
Do you feel conviction when the Goliaths of the business world speak your language with the audacity to use it against you?
It’s not enough to feel like David, you’ve got to think and act like him, too.
Goliaths have a way of building their relevance on the backs of Davids. They use our contribution for vanity accolades, merge all the positions they wish to fill but can't afford to, under bogus job titles, and reward our desperation with poor wages or the chains of unemployment. Then they try to steal our courage, and hope to make a way for ourselves (by God's grace) by parroting our words because the future ARE THE DAVIDS, not technology!
But Davids are secret strategists. They wait for Goliaths to trap themselves with their own cockiness before delivering the fatal blow with the very thing they mocked.
You have to appreciate the irony.
DON’T DESPISE THE DAY OF LITTLE THINGS...
For there's NOTHING to look upon what is considered a "real" business to aspire to be.
David's story teaches us that true strength doesn't come from what we have but who anoints us to use it.
Seek HIM on what's special about you if you want to start working for yourself but not sure where to start looking for clues.
Then, after you've lived a little, reach out to TheBrandTUB to polish it up for you.
You got this!
I am the Founder and Visual Brand Strategist at The BrandTUB **Schedule a call with me if you need help with your visual branding. Let's see if you're a good fit! **Figure out what you're trying to say with The One-Page Workbook™ **Sign up to receive these weekly articles in your inbox if you’re not quite ready to work with me yet.
