#99 - Launch - Sharing your work with connection, not pressure

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SUMMARY

In this episode, we dive into the final step of the Ja, Wol framework—Launch. Sharing your work with the world can feel scary, vulnerable, and overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be. Launching isn’t about hype or hustle; it’s about connection and care. I talk about why launching feels so hard (especially for neurodivergent brains), how to rethink launching as a slow rhythm instead of a one-time event, and ways to share your work more gently and joyfully. If you’ve been holding back on putting your work into the world, this episode is your invitation to rethink how launching can feel.

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BEST QUOTE FROM THE EPISODE “Launching is how we bridge the gap between our purpose and our people.”

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 You know me as a guide, mentor and teacher, but I've also set off on a new adventure, coaching. Coaching gets a bad rep sometimes, but when it's done right, it can be really transformational. As part of my coaching education, I'll soon need to do real coaching sessions. And it could be a really great opportunity for you to experience it at no or low cost. If you've ever been curious about working with me in this way, now's the time. Just send me an email: [e-mail]

This episode was sponsored by Ja, Wol. I promote my own services and products in my podcast rather than working with sponsors. I will share the odd-discount for things I fully support and use.

Support the show

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framework launch.
We've way found, we'veorganized and now it's time to
bring our work into the world.
And if that feels a littlescary, you're definitely not
alone.
Today we're talking about whatlaunching really means, why it

(00:20):
feels so hard sometimes and howyou can approach it with more
gentleness, creativity and ease.
Can approach it with moregentleness, creativity and ease.
Let's get into it.
Hey there, and welcome toPattern Shift, the podcast where
creative business owners likeyou learn to build a business
that's inspiring, fun andsustainable.
I'm Saskia de Feijter, abusiness strategist, guide maker

(00:43):
and all-round creativeentrepreneur.
I help business owners in theneedle and fiber craft world,
just like you, navigate allthose icky words, branding,
marketing and strategy in a waythat actually works for your
creative brain.
Here we talk about everythingfrom running a values-driven

(01:04):
business to simplifying yourmarketing without burning out.
Whether you're just startingout or looking to refine your
business, you're in the rightplace.
So settle in, grab a cup of tea, coffee or, you know, brugladig
.
You do you and let's getstarted.
So the courage to launch.

(01:26):
You've done the thinking, thedreaming, the making, the
planning, and now it's time toshare it.
Yikes, Launching can feelreally vulnerable.
It's that moment when an ideayou nurtured quietly becomes
visible, when you put your heartout there and hope it's
received with care.

(01:47):
But here's the thing Launchingdoesn't have to be overwhelming,
it doesn't have to feel ickyand it doesn't have to burn you
out.
In the Yavel framework, launchis about sharing your work with
the world in a way that'saligned with your values, your
systems and your life.
It's not a final exam.
It's an act of connection.

(02:09):
Now let's talk about whatlaunching actually means.
We're using the word launchingand you can look at that in
different ways.
It's just a general term totalk about sharing your offer,
your product, your service withthe world.
So it's not just a flashyproduct drop or a fancy sales

(02:32):
page.
It's sharing what you've made.
It's announcing a new workshop,sending an update to your
newsletter, posting about yourprocess or simply opening the
doors to something you're proudof, literally or figuratively.
It's about inviting connectionand not forcing a sale, because

(02:53):
we do not feel comfortableforcing people to buy our stuff,
do we?
Your work deserves to be seenand you deserve to share in a
way that feels good to you, andI think that's one of the most
important things we do at Yeovil, although I'm definitely the
kind of person that loves tojust give you all the things

(03:16):
like.
You should really try this.
You should really use this.
This is a great platform.
This is a great tool.
Go and use that.
Over time, of course, I knowthat us creatives we kind of
know what we want.
We just don't have the wordsfor it, the plan for it.
The organization isn't thereyet, but we can get there.

(03:41):
So launching is important thatyou do it in a way that really
matches who you are, and theonly one that knows what that's
like is you.
As I'm going further in mycoaching education, I'm learning

(04:02):
so much about myself and aboutother people in the creative
industry and how we like to dothings, and sometimes you really
need a teacher.
You really need to learn aboutthings specifically, but
sometimes you just really needto figure out what works for you

(04:23):
by either doing it or talkingit through.
So why does it feel so hard tobring something into the world,
to launch?
And that might especially befor creative makers and
neurodivergent brains?
Because launching invites awhole bundle of tricky feelings

(04:46):
the feel of failure, the fear ofjudgment, fear of nobody
showing up.
Perfectionism creeps in,imposter syndrome throws a party
.
Your brain tells you it's safernot to share at all.
And for many of us withneurodivergent brains as well,

(05:08):
there's also that dopamine cliff.
Finishing something feels greatuntil it doesn't, and suddenly,
after the high of creating,there's this crash and the
thought of sharing feelsoverwhelming and you kind of
want to move on with the nextthing because you're done,

(05:29):
you've made it, you've createdsomething and that was the high,
and so sometimes the launchingpart goes to the back and it's
overwhelming me.

(05:51):
This is why I love softstructures and gentle
self-support tools.
We have to design launches thatsupport us and not exhaust us.
Don't look at and it's kind oftricky to say this because I'm
in that I'm in the seat of like,the marketing person, the
communications person that issharing things with you, but at
the same time I feel like don'talways listen to those marketing

(06:15):
pros online.
You know the, the flashy typeswith um, I don't know.
You know the type, the flashyones with the big words and the,
and I don't feel.
I feel that sometimes it'sreally counterproductive to try
to match that kind of a thing.
It's so much more important forus to figure out how we feel

(06:39):
comfortable while still doingthe thing.
Like I'm not saying reframefrom launching, absolutely not.
The point is that you get yourstuff out there but do it in a
way that matches you as a personand your life, and there's ways
to do that Absolutely.
So I love rethinking launchingas a cycle, like not a moment.

(07:06):
It sometimes feels very big,like you've designed a pattern
and it took a while.
You've created a new collectionof hand-dyed yarns, you're just
starting to teach a newworkshop.
These can sometimes feel likepeak moments, but if you're

(07:27):
looking at cycles, that bringson a different kind of feeling.
When we treat launches likeone-shot events, like build
panic, vanish.
Launching can be a rhythm, notjust flashy fireworks Instead of
one big splash.

(07:47):
Think of it as a layeredprocess over time, like sneak
peeks behind the scenes, shares,storytelling about the process,
invitations to connect.
You don't have to do it all atonce.
You don't have to be everywhereat once.
Slow, spacious launches arestill launches.

(08:11):
I'm aware that the word launchcomes up a lot because this
episode is about launching and,of course, it fits the Yavol
framework of wayfinding,organizing and launching.
It's just the word I chose forgetting your product, your offer
out there.

(08:32):
So don't put too much weight tothe word itself.
Put too much weight to the worditself.
How do you sell?
How do you get your stuff outthere?
So let's get back to gentle.
Launch ideas that feel good, youcan share in stages, as I said
before sneak peeks, or littleglimpses before you actually

(08:56):
open the doors to your workshop.
Online sneak peeks of yourdesigning process, your swatches
or the color inspiration thatyou had for your yarns.
Tell stories.
What inspired you, why did youmake it, what does it mean to

(09:17):
you and how does it fit yourvalues as a person, as a
business, because that reallyconnects to your audience.
So you can use your existingplatforms, your newsletter, your
community.
If you have a vlog, a blog, apodcast, you can use all of that
to do these small drops ofinformation that tell a story.

(09:42):
And I also want to say don'tget overwhelmed.
I know of people that have alot of these platforms going and
there's a little overwhelmcreeping in, where they are
almost more of a content creatorthan they are a textile artist,
just using a general word.

(10:04):
Be aware what is your goal, whatare you doing and how much time
do you actually want to spendlaunching and how much time do
you actually want to do what youlove?
Just putting it out there?
Create from connection and notjust conversion.
Of course, the goal is to sell.

(10:25):
That's why you're in thisbusiness, otherwise it would be
a hobby.
You have to sell.
The goal is selling, butselling often feels so icky to
us that we have to look at itdifferently, and not just
looking at it differently, feeldifferent about it.

(10:45):
And you don't have to lie toyourself, because when you think
about connection with youraudience, offering them
something they need, somethingthey love, that is offering they
can choose whether or not theywant it.
You're not pushing, you're justoffering them an option of

(11:09):
making their life better in oneway or another.
So be kind to yourself in theway you talk about these things.
It can be human and heartfeltand real.
Just keep it close to yourself,to your values, to who you are
as a person.
Make it natural.
Like that is a make it natural.

(11:30):
That sentence feels weird,because how can you make it
natural?
Make it be natural.
This is sometimes wherelanguage is complicated Just be
yourself.
I can remember like, as ateenager, people saying just be
yourself, it'll all be fine,just be yourself and you're like

(11:52):
I don't even know who I am.
Yeah, so as yourself aspossible, wherever that is in
your journey of finding yourself, try to be as authentic as you
can be, because that comesacross.
Also, you know what's reallycool If you are just really

(12:16):
honest and open.
That is a really magical way ofconnecting with people, because
people can tell, and honesty,openness, showing that you are
not perfect, is going to connectyou to people.
So if you're in this process ofoffering a new product or

(12:39):
service and you're not reallysure, let them know, ask them
what they think of it, ask themwhat they actually like, what
they want, get a conversationgoing.
So over time, my launches haveshifted.
I never really did the big hugelaunching that sometimes people

(13:04):
do on the internet.
I integrated them into myrhythm from the beginning, but I
have also changed some things.
So what I do now is I shareprocess updates in the Yavel
community, things that I'mthinking about, things I'm

(13:27):
working on.
Right now I basically have aYouTube channel in my community
because I'm thinking abouthaving a YouTube channel and I'm
not sure if I'm comfortableenough doing that.
I don't really want to get alldressed up every single time
because it's going to be abarrier for me and I know that
if there's barriers I won't doit.

(13:49):
It has to be easy.
So what I'm doing now is I'mhaving week openings in the
Yavol community and it's just megoing live and sharing what's
been going on in my life interms of craft and business and
also some things from my life alittle bit more private, because

(14:10):
my community is really kind andit's really a nice place and I
feel very safe sharing thingsthat some people might not share
in their community, that somepeople might not share in their
community.
And what I also do is I announcethings on the podcast.
I do them quietly and sometimesa little louder.
Like, I've started to talkabout my coaching education.

(14:33):
I don't really want it to be afull-blown.
I'm a coach now because I'mstill learning.
So I'm really looking forpeople that I can practice
coaching with.
But I don't want to talk aboutit too much because I'm still a
little bit uncertain.
But at the same time, I'vealready coached a bunch of

(14:54):
people and they were happy.
So that's good.
So if you want to do that,shoot me an email.
But enough about that.
It's a soft launch.
And then what I also do is myemails are.
When I sell.
In my emails I try to stay awayfrom overselling.

(15:19):
But I also am very much awarethat people don't always see
what you post, whether that's ina newsletter, whether that's on
social media.
People are busy, they get lotsof stuff and so you do have to
repeat yourself and to yourselfyou sound like a broken record,

(15:39):
but in real life people mighthave missed all of it.
So you repeat yourself and youdo it gently and not too loudly.
So that's my email.
And every now and then when Ido a big thing like a new life
cohort, then I send out a bunchof emails over a short period of

(16:04):
time and I use the samesequence of emails every time
because I've got it and I don'twant to stress myself out over
it and it works, and so I keepit simple.
And then another way how Iintegrate launches into my
rhythm is I'm trusting thatconsistency and care create

(16:28):
momentum over time.
I am full aware that theservices that I offer are kind
of new to a lot of people inthis industry.
I don't think a lot of peoplehire consultants or coaches or
specific teachers for specificthings, except for when it's a

(16:51):
craft, like a technique, and Ithink that, in order for us to
be more professional, we shouldreally lean into that kind of
stuff.
Of course, I'm saying thatbecause I'm the one that offers
that, but I really believe thatI was looking for it when I
still had a job oh my gosh.

(17:13):
I was looking for it when Istill had my shop and I didn't
want to talk to a guy in a suit.
I wanted to talk to somebodylike me who knew the industry,
who knew more about what I coulddo to get my business to the
next level.
But there wasn't much out thereand the money, oh, it was so

(17:37):
expensive, like business coaches, business coaches.
So then I started building thisthing myself, and now I call
myself a supporting professional, because I can support in many
ways and just tell me what youneed.
I know that I have to bepatient.
This podcast serves the purposeof letting people know that I

(18:03):
can help them to do certainthings and that they can
actually pay somebody to comeand help them out, or they can
pay somebody to join theircommunity.
So, for a lower amount of money, they can connect with other
people and they don't have toreinvent the wheel.
It takes time, but I'll beconsistent, and consistency is

(18:27):
also something I like to takelightly and be gentle around.
Forcing yourself to do somethingat the same moment every single
week, every single month, canreally burn you out, but it can
also be very helpful.
That just depends on you.
For me, if it's too much, Iwill kind of counter it, I'll

(18:53):
become.
There's a term for it.
I can't think of it right now.
I just basically turn into ateenager.
I feel like I don't want to dothis.
I'm not doing it.
You can't tell me what to do,although I'm the one telling
myself to do it.
Even then, I just don't do it.
I need to hold things like abird in my hand, hold it lightly

(19:15):
so it won't fly away, but Iwon't crush it.
And that's, over time, how I'velearned to do things and give
myself some space to do thethings in the way they work for
me, and that means that thepodcast is my priority and I'm

(19:35):
able to bring out an episodeevery other week.
I take breaks in summer andover Christmas and I can do that
, and with my email lists I hada harder time being super
consistent, but I am so aware ofhow important an email list is

(19:57):
that I just redesigned it to aonce a month email list and a
reminder that the podcast is outevery other week and that works
for me.
So, figuring out how thingsconnect to you, it's okay, it's
really okay.
Consistency has differentmeanings, but try to stay

(20:23):
visible for your audience,because I'm also signed up for
some newsletters and they justcome every four months and then
three times and then.
But sometimes you forget aboutthese people because they're not
in your line of vision.
You want to be there so thatevery time somebody needs a

(20:45):
product or a service like theone you're offering, their mind
directly goes to you.
That's if you can keep that inyour mind, and sometimes you
only have to show up once everymonth, and sometimes, if you
offer something that a lot ofother people are offering a
similar thing, there's twothings you should do is to find

(21:08):
how you are different as aperson, but also with your
products, and build a brandaround that and this is another
episode entirely, but now I'mtalking about it.
So and show up regularly sothey don't forget you.
Okay, basically, what I'msaying is I've let go of urgency

(21:32):
, I've let go of the perfectfunnels, I've let go of the
pressure to scale faster orshout louder, and I feel so much
better.
I can show up so much betterfor my clients as well, if I'm
not stressed out about all thesethings.
It's about choosing yourpriorities and, honestly,

(21:56):
there's only one priority.
It's hidden in the word.
Priority means one thing, theone thing that's most important
and one thing that I want toshare with you, and I'm sure I
said it so many times, but ifyou learn one thing from me,
decide every day what is the onething that'll bring you forward

(22:17):
as a person, as a business.
For me, it is the intentionthat I set daily with my bullet
journal practice, and it keepsme going in the right direction.
So, talking about journaling,here's a prompt for you.
If you want to dig into thisfor yourself.
Here's something to journalabout.

(22:39):
What's one thing I want toshare but have been holding back
, and what would a gentler, morejoyful way to launch look like?
Take your time with it, no rush, but do let me know.
Do let me know if it helps.
These prompts are helpful, ifsomething is helpful about these

(23:02):
episodes I need to know.
So send me an email, leave me avoice message on my website,
because it's sometimes reallyhard to be here and to share all
of this with you and there'snothing coming back.
And there's lots of greatthings about podcasting.

(23:25):
There's also not much negative,negative talking, and that's
what I fear for.
When I with YouTube, I feellike, oh no, I don't want to go
there, but I need to know.
I at least want to have threemessages after this episode.

(23:47):
All you have to do is pick upyour phone, go to the show notes
and leave me a message or infoat ya-volcom and leave me an
email.
It would mean a lot to me.
That's saying I'm not workingwith sponsors.
I use my own podcast to promoteand launch my products and

(24:12):
that's how I do it.
I still have to pay for all ofthe costs that come with making
a podcast, so it would be theworld to me.
If you want to support me andthere's multiple ways that you
can do that Just give mefeedback.
That's supportive.
Talk to somebody else and saythere's this podcast I think you

(24:34):
will like.
You can join our community andyou support the podcast and you
get real connection with otherbusiness owners like you.
You don't have to share any ofyour secrets, but I promise you
you will get a lot back.
So my closing thoughts for thisepisode.
This is actually the final partof the WOL series, vol

(25:01):
Wayfinding, organizing andLaunching.
But it's also a beginning,because launching is how we
bring our internal clarity intothe world.
It's the bridge between ourpurpose and our people.
So next time we're hitting ahuge milestone.
Episode 100.
Yeah, I should be throwing alittle party.

(25:24):
I mean, that's reason enough tosend me an email right.
100 episodes who knew I wouldmake it until here.
I'm pretty proud of myself,actually.
Thank you for being here, foryour work, your creativity and
your heart, and if you want asoft, supportive space to launch
and grow alongside others, as Isaid, come join us in the Yawel

(25:47):
community.
Talk to you soon, keep sharingyour magic, keep eating and
knitting your fibers.
Bye for now, bye.