Become a Creator today!Start creating today - Share your story with the world!
Start for free
00:00:00
00:00:01
Episode 252 - How to Craft Your Unique Teaching Style
327 Plays1 month ago
In today's episode, I'm chatting with my friend Laylee, about becoming an educator, and how to actually build authority as an educator. Laylee shares her thoughts on the importance of what you choose to share with your audience, and how to ensure that your message actually resonates with them.
As always, links and resources can be found in the show notes. Check 'em out over at https://daveyandkrista.com/craft-unique-teaching-style-btb-252/. And if you enjoyed this episode, please consider leaving a review over at Apple Podcasts.
Recommended
Transcript
Establishing Your Expertise
00:00:00
Speaker
The first thing I would say to somebody who's wanting to kind of establish themselves is think about where do you want to establish yourself? like What do you want to be known for? What do you want people to come to you with questions about?
00:00:12
Speaker
And then start talking about those things in like the arena of an expert. You're listening to the Brands That Book Show, a podcast for creative entrepreneurs who want practical tips and strategies to build engaging brands and craft high converting websites.
00:00:28
Speaker
We're your hosts, Davey and Krista, co-founders of a brand and website design agency specializing in visual brand design and show it websites.
Introducing Lely and Her Transition
00:00:36
Speaker
You're listening to the Brands That Book Show.
00:00:40
Speaker
In today's episode, I'm chatting with my friend Lely about becoming an educator and how to actually build authority as an educator. Lely shares her thoughts on the importance of what you choose to share with your audience and how to ensure that your message actually resonates with them.
00:00:53
Speaker
She also dives into some of her top strategies for creating connections that are more profound than your average email or DM and how those relationships can elevate your business and personal growth. I also really enjoy the part of our conversation about finding your niche as an educator.
00:01:06
Speaker
Lili is one of my favorite people in the creative world, and it was a joy to sit down and chat with her. hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did. Today's episode is sponsored by Badao, formerly Sumo, the very best intelligent form and pop-up tool for your website.
00:01:22
Speaker
Deliver the right message to the right visitor using our advanced targeting rules. Whether you want to display a pop-up to only new visitors or generate a unique discount code for those who subscribe to your list, you can get the job done using Badao.
Sponsorship by Badao
00:01:38
Speaker
One of my personal favorite features is the show a tab function. Basically how this works is when visitors close the pop-up, it minimizes to the bottom of the page so that visitors can open it back up if they'd like, but it also remains out of their way while they browse.
00:01:53
Speaker
You can check out how that feature works over at the Devi and Krista website. Also use the code Devi and Krista to save 20% on your subscription.
Lely's Role as a Coach and Speaker
00:02:03
Speaker
Create an experience on your website using Badao.
00:02:07
Speaker
Laili, welcome back. You've been on the podcast at least once before, but it's always such a joy to talk to you. And I'm just so excited to catch up with you and everybody else gets to listen to us and benefit from it.
00:02:18
Speaker
Oh, thank you so much for having me. I always love getting to chat with you for sure. Yeah. So it's been a while since you've been on the podcast. So could you give us like a quick reminder of who you are, especially somebody's new and they haven't heard the other episode, we'll include a show link too.
00:02:33
Speaker
And then maybe a little update about what you've been working on lately. Yeah. So I am a coach and speaker in Dallas, Texas. I am a conference host.
00:02:43
Speaker
I have the Creative Educator Conference. That's kind of been my baby for the past three or four years. And I also have a membership called the Educators Lounge. So basically what I do these days is I help actually creative entrepreneurs become better educators, step into education, step into leadership within their industries, and and do it in a really impactful and ethical way.
00:03:05
Speaker
I was a high school teacher for a long time. Davy and I have that in common. And we talked about that in the last episode a lot and how that's kind of guided me as an entrepreneur. And so that's really where like the passion started for me. But that's all
Motivations for Becoming an Educator
00:03:17
Speaker
I do now. I think last time I was on the show, I was still doing photography here and there. That's where i got my start in entrepreneurship.
00:03:23
Speaker
And yeah, now I just focus on helping other creatives be like the best educator possible. Which is amazing because I feel like there are a lot of kind of watered down courses out there. There are a lot of people who want to step into this, but they don't know what to do or how to do all the systems. And especially I've heard in some courses, if people don't have that education background, the teaching can be lacking. So I think it's like such a gift that you have those skills and that you get to help other other people now.
00:03:47
Speaker
Yeah, it's so fun. It's honestly so rewarding because you really see like the ripple effect that everybody wants. right like You want to be good for your community and you want to be good for your clients. So to be able to help get other leaders in place in the best way and then they can help their communities, it's been really cool to see.
00:04:04
Speaker
Yeah, that's so cool. Okay. So if somebody has been on the fence about should they become an educator, should they not become an educator, how would you pitch them on like going forward? Or maybe if that's not a good fit, what would you say? Yeah. I mean, I think number one thing is what I always say is have a reality check with yourself and really like lean into self-awareness of, well, what is drawing you toward this question in the first place? Even if you're not sure you're being pulled toward being an educator or a leader or whatever, i would ask, you know like what put that question in your mind? Is it that you've seen a lot of other people do it?
00:04:39
Speaker
If so, it might not be the best fit for you. If that's like the main attention grabber is if it's just because it's what you've seen and you think that's what you should be doing next...
00:04:51
Speaker
and I would probably take a step back. Even though my livelihood depends on creating amazing educators, I never want somebody who probably shouldn't be taking on that role to take it on. So I'd say definitely like self-awareness.
00:05:02
Speaker
Why do you want to do it? Why are you even thinking about it? If it's because you're like, I'm really good at something and I really see other people and need that help and like need to know how to do this thing and I wish that I could help them do it, then yes, absolutely.
00:05:16
Speaker
Think about the lives that you can change and your own life will change as well. It's very much like a win-win-win kind of scenario when the right educator steps into that role. Right. That's so true.
Sharing Knowledge and Building Authority
00:05:26
Speaker
Yeah. I think that I've seen other people in the past try to take this step forward to education because they think it's just like the next logical step in their success path, especially for photographers. I feel like this was very true for a while in the photography world.
00:05:38
Speaker
But I think you really have to have that heart for serving and for teaching because if your students aren't having success and you're not getting them those outcomes, then you're not going to keep selling the courses or be able to educate.
00:05:49
Speaker
Yeah, exactly. 100%. Yeah. Cool. So what advice would you have for somebody who's just getting started and they want to start establishing themselves as an educator in their industry? Yeah. I mean, there's so many things that I think you can do. And nowadays, it's... Nowadays, makes me sound like I'm 85, but I really kind of feel that age sometimes.
00:06:07
Speaker
i do feel like in our world, in our society right now, we are really lucky because we have at our fingertips social media and... so many different ways to reach so many different people.
00:06:19
Speaker
Because of that, I think there is a lot of noise out there. And so I would just... The first thing I would say to somebody who's wanting to kind of establish themselves is think about where do you want to establish yourself? like What do you want to be known for What do you want people to come to you with questions about?
00:06:36
Speaker
And then start talking about those things in like the arena of an expert. So Can you share a few things about what you do that works for you or about what you've helped somebody else do that has then worked for them?
00:06:48
Speaker
Can you share that with the people in your sphere, in your world? And I know that that can be kind of intimidating sometimes because there is a lot of noise out there and you're like, well... i don't really maybe I don't have a paid resource on this yet. Or maybe I haven't created a coaching program or a mentoring program or a course or whatever. And so like who am I to start sharing it? But this is the perfect time to start. right It's like when you don't have anything to sell, you're not out there kind of like peddling anything. You're not out there trying to make sales. You're just out there trying to establish that you know something that somebody else could benefit from.
00:07:20
Speaker
So sharing information freely with your audience and in doing so, you'll likely attract more people who want to learn that thing from you before you have anything that you need to even like take a risk on selling.
Starting an Email List and Lead Generation
00:07:32
Speaker
Yeah, that's so true. And I think that it also gives you a chance to figure out what do people want to learn from you specifically, whereas like somebody might like you were one of like a million photographers, but you probably are one of a tiny handful of people who have that education background that can teach other people how to do online courses. And so I think that in doing that, you figure out what is your special thing that you can teach that nobody else can teach.
00:07:56
Speaker
Yes. Yeah, exactly. And you can test stuff out too. like I think if a lot of people think, well, okay, even the advice I just gave, they might think to themselves, well, she just said, what do I want to be known for? I share about that. But if you don't even know, and you're like, I know a lot of stuff, start sharing and see what gets most response, what gets people excited, what gets people intrigued. And so playing around with it and not having to worry about being perfect, I think is the best way to start.
00:08:21
Speaker
Yeah. And do you think that like this early in the process, people should be trying to get people on their mailing list as they are sharing those educational tips? Or do you think it's enough to like just share on a social channel?
00:08:32
Speaker
The short answer is yes. But the longer answer is, always say, do what you have the bandwidth to do. So like if you are intimidated by that, or you think it's going to stop you, then don't worry about it right now.
00:08:44
Speaker
Just start sharing. Just start talking. like Do the bare minimum. Do the thing that you can bring yourself to do. If you're a little bit more of a go-getter, not that you're not a go-getter if you're afraid, but you know if you're a little bit more like, I'm going to go from zero to 100 and I need to start building, it like I want to start building my list, then absolutely do it. like Do what feels comfortable to you.
00:09:03
Speaker
In a perfect world, absolutely. You would do as much lead generation as possible. you would have like a little segmented list. Maybe you don't have to have a lot of content that goes out, but you can say, you know I'm working on sharing more advice.
00:09:15
Speaker
Join my email list here if you want to be the person that gets those emails. Right. But i I always like to say, i feel like that barrier to entry can be so intimidating to people that I like to say, you know like just do what you can
Finding Teaching Strengths
00:09:28
Speaker
when you can. Right.
00:09:29
Speaker
Yeah. And do you think that in sharing what you can, when you can, that's the best way to figure out like what you're an expert in if you don't really know? or do you think there are like other ways? like Have you seen... i don't know. like Do you have a strategy for somebody trying to figure out how to figure out what they should teach?
00:09:45
Speaker
Oh my gosh. Yes. i talk about i could I could probably talk about this forever, but I feel like there's no perfect formula. But what I teach... And I used to have... Way back when I started doing education for ah creative educators, I had something called the Creative Educator Academy, which...
00:09:59
Speaker
is since semi-asleep. It's like, grab it right now. But we used to talk about foundations of education and trying to figure out like that sweet spot. And I feel like I came up with as close to a formula as possible. And without going too deep, I would just say, you want to look at what are you best at? What are you most confident in? What have you seen success in that's maybe a little bit unique to you, or if not unique to you, your main strength?
00:10:26
Speaker
And then I would say, try to recreate that success for somebody else in some way, shape or form. Like I'm not saying take a paying client. I'm saying take an industry peer and be like, Hey, try this thing I just did. See if it works for you. And if they find success in it and you're able to kind of replicate that, then I would also look at what scale do you want to kind of reach people at?
00:10:49
Speaker
Because i think that is really an important part of the equation as well. It's like, you don't have to be a course creator to be an educator. You don't have to be a speaker to be an educator. You can be a one-on-one coach. You might just want to help 10 people a year, in which case it might be a broader topic. You know what I mean? But if you have a course, maybe it's a more niche topic. So kind of like the sweet spot of those three. If you can like envision like a Venn diagram, like the sweet spot of like those three things.
00:11:12
Speaker
What works for you and works for others? And then how do you want to deliver that information? Will hopefully guide you into finding what is that thing that I want to be known for that I feel like is my strength.
Natural Progression in Teaching Careers
00:11:24
Speaker
Yeah. Do you feel like you stumbled upon yours pretty quickly or do you feel like it took a while? Because I feel like for me, it took me a little bit to figure out like exactly what I wanted to teach and be known for. Yeah. Oh my gosh. Well, I would love to hear about your experience in that too.
00:11:37
Speaker
For me, it was kind of... Honestly, I always say, I think there's always exceptions to rules. And I think in this one question, I may have been an exception because it was very much like a very natural progression for me.
00:11:50
Speaker
My entire entrepreneurial and journey has been a natural progression of like, I was a teacher, then I was a photographer, then I taught photography, then those photographers wanted help teaching. like It just was like...
00:12:01
Speaker
you know, very much like ask and receive. Now don't get it twisted. Like it was hard. It's not been easy. It's not been an easy road, but it has been a natural road. Yeah. So that was my own experience, but I'd love to hear yours.
00:12:13
Speaker
Yeah. I mean, for our first course that we launched was for SEO because back way back in the day when you and I used to speak at Creative at Heart Conference together, was always the one that got to talk about the really boring technical topic of SEO.
00:12:26
Speaker
The latest courses that we've launched have been designer-specific courses, which is like definitely my wheelhouse. I'd always kind of shied away from that because I thought that it would be hard to teach. and that i It took me four years to study design in school. And I always thought, how can I break down everything that I've learned?
00:12:42
Speaker
into a course and will anybody want to learn from me? Thankfully they did. So my first course is about teaching people to create show at templates. And then the second one was about teaching people to get paid to customize them. So like if you buy a template from like me or another designer or your client does, like how do you customize that for your client?
00:13:00
Speaker
Because they're two like very different processes. So yeah. Yeah, for sure. It's so funny because I can totally see that for you. Even just like you said, we used to speak alongside each other and we've known each other for a while. But just from like an observational standpoint, it's like, I think what's what makes you so unique is the fact that you had those four years of learning these things, but you also have such such great taste and style that I feel like it makes so much sense. I love that you're
Overcoming Doubts and Building Confidence
00:13:24
Speaker
doing what you're doing now.
00:13:25
Speaker
Well, thank you. It's been a lot of fun. Did you have any doubts before you started to teach others? And can you share that wisdom with other people so maybe they don't doubt themselves? Because I know I definitely had a lot of doubts about my ability to teach, especially like with the free webinar, free masterclass. That gave me so much anxiety.
00:13:43
Speaker
Oh my gosh. Absolutely. like When do I not have to? I have doubts today. It's funny. I saw on Instagram or something, there was an Olympian that was like, oh, I don't have imposter syndrome. like That doesn't exist for me. And I was like good for you, girlfriend. But I literally don't know anybody in my real life who doesn't doubt themselves at a certain point. And even like you said, like we went to school for what we're teaching now, essentially, for that skill set. And it's I still constantly was like, who am I? Like those little nagging questions.
00:14:13
Speaker
And I will say, you know, this is not to go like therapy session, but truly i have always struggled with my confidence as a child, as an adolescent, I was extremely shy.
00:14:25
Speaker
People don't really know that about me. I'm definitely an extroverted introvert. I can put on the show. ah grew up dancing, so I can perform. But my inner dialogue has always been like, who am I to do this? There are so many better qualified people. There are people that are more established. Or in my situation, in our industry, I was like, well, I'm i'm already too old to do this. like you know like These people are like young and fresh and like so cool. And they look great. And they have it all together. and i mean But the fact of the matter is...
00:14:54
Speaker
I do think now my my old age has become a benefit where I'm like, okay, well, nobody has it all together because if I don't have it all together at this age, like nobody does.
00:15:04
Speaker
And so just I think relying on the evidence and the facts has really helped me. So like the fact is, if you have doubt about what it is that you're wanting to teach... But the fact is that you have seen success doing it or it has gone well for you. You can't dispute that, right? like If you've grown your business or you're doing something in your skillset that is successful, that is a fact.
00:15:29
Speaker
But like your feeling is your feeling. And so I think being able to like work towards separating those two things would be the thing I i wish I could tell myself in the beginning and that I would tell anybody else who's just starting. Yeah.
00:15:40
Speaker
Yeah. I think that I had to overcome the same thing of like being fearful that nobody would want to learn from me, that I'd put all this work in and then it would just flop and then I'd be a laughingstock. yeah And I'm very fortunate that that has not happened, but I think that we all have those fears.
00:15:55
Speaker
And I think that anytime any of us create something new or put ourselves out there, I've heard Davey say, he just read a book about regrets. And it's actually like, you're more human if you have regrets and if you have those fears. So- Yeah. So if you were listening and that is how you feel, you were not alone. Laylee and I have both have felt that way and we still feel that way. So yeah, 100%. And it's so funny because like i again, from like an observational standpoint, most people who follow along with what you're doing or following with what I'm doing, they won't see that on a daily basis. So I do think it's so nice that you asked that and that you shared it and that hopefully people who are listening can understand that you're absolutely not alone in that. And that's why I think it's so important to have community and everything that you do because...
00:16:36
Speaker
we are humans at the end of the day, like small business owners. Like I'm alone in my house right now with my cats. Like, this you know, like, of course I'm going to like stew in those feelings, but you got this. Like, you know, just, I think also the more you put it out there and you see that like, you're not going to be a laughingstock because I always feel like, oh my gosh, people are going to make so much fun of me. like It's going to be so bad.
00:16:56
Speaker
And it's like, that's so rare. And if there are people out there who are talking about you, they're going to talk about you no matter what
The Importance of Community
00:17:02
Speaker
you're doing. So just forget them and work on the impact. What drives you? For me, it's helping other people. If I can help people, that's all that matters even if I have to like suffer through a little bit.
00:17:12
Speaker
Yeah. I feel like like seeing the customer success stories where it's like, they took this course, they had all of the success and it actually worked for them. That's like what keeps you going. it's like oh yeah like It took me 10 years of failings and struggles to learn this. And like I can teach this somebody else and they don't have to go through that pain.
00:17:28
Speaker
Yeah. so Yes, exactly. Yeah. Where have you found like that community that you kind of talked about? Because I think that that is also pretty crucial too. I know that you've built a conference. Have you found community elsewhere or was that the driving force of starting your conference?
00:17:43
Speaker
Actually, a little bit of both, honestly. i think I was really fortunate in that the second year I was in business, my unofficial mentor, who was another high school teacher, who actually... She had like retired from teaching at the same school i was at.
00:17:59
Speaker
And she became a full-time photographer. And she told me about ShowIt United at the time, which no longer exists, but it was a photography conference. So I roll up, like full-time high school teacher, took PTO, was just just so overwhelmed. And honestly, that first year, I made like a friend. But I mean, I did not leave with that amazing community for... I mean, it was probably my own fault.
00:18:20
Speaker
I'm putting that out there. like Yeah. Like I said, introverted. I wanted to stay in my hotel room at night. And then and the second I was like, I'm going back a second year and I'm going to try harder. like I put that on myself. Because again, i mean self-awareness is so key, right? Even in community building, even in relationship building.
00:18:36
Speaker
Ask yourself, was it me or was it them? Was it me or was it show it? It wasn't show it. They did the best they They're like, let's go community. so I was like, I'll give them a second chance. I'll try harder.
00:18:48
Speaker
made so many good friends who are still my friends to this day. like They are my go-to resources. And i so I started going to more events. I went to like several conferences or workshops a year. And I would put myself out there, which was the biggest challenge for me.
00:19:01
Speaker
So through those, I built my own little community. But I realized that I didn't really have a community of people doing what I was doing in the way that I was doing it. So like even though I had friends and community in the creative industry, i didn't have other educators around me and they didn't have each other because they were leading their own communities. And so that's kind of where the Creative Educator Conference was born was I was like, well, conferences and workshops and in-person events changed my life. They changed my career.
00:19:30
Speaker
They changed everything about like my day-to-day. So if can do this for my community, even though it was such... I mean, I'm not lie. That first year was like... I was like, I could be out tens of thousands of dollars. And like, I don't know. This is such a huge risk. But I was like, if I can do it for my community, I
Community Building through Conferences
00:19:47
Speaker
will. And luckily, it turned out great. And it was amazing. And we're still doing it. Yeah. So I do have my own small, like close-knit group of friends.
00:19:55
Speaker
But honestly, like the community that I've built is, like you said, the driving force was, what do I wish I would have had? those first few years? And how can I also have it now for myself and give it to other people too?
00:20:08
Speaker
Well, it looks like such a fun event. It's coming up in a few weeks. Is that right? Yeah. Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh. I'm like panic. It's five weeks from today, which is the time of the recording. So and when this goes live, I don't know. It's it's on April 1st and 2nd of 2025. Okay.
00:20:24
Speaker
I am deep in the throes of yeah details and orders and numbers and spreadsheets. And I'm just like holding on to this lifeboat thinking like I'm going to see these people and it's going to be worth it.
00:20:37
Speaker
It will. Yeah. Oh my gosh. Do you like cry at the end of it from happy tears from actually coming together? I feel like I would. Yeah. Oh yeah. I cry. i usually cry when it starts. Yeah.
00:20:47
Speaker
The second people come in, I get teary-eyed. I do my welcome and then I go sit at the back. Then I start crying. And then I cry at the end. I cry the whole time. I'm not going to lie. I'm like walking tear duct.
00:20:58
Speaker
I'm sure. It's just so beautiful to see this thing you've worked so hard and envisioned to come to life. Yeah. It's honestly been wild. And every year I'm like, I hope the same type of people come that are so great and so willing to show up for each other. And ive I think I've realized after this many years of like, I mean, it hasn't even been around for that long, but just like year after year, I've seen that I think people are the same. Like I always think like, I hope I attract the right kind of people that'll be so welcoming to each other. And it's just such a good vibe. Like this group is like never going to be replicated and they won't, but they also will because people are ready to help each other.
Perfecting Speaking Opportunities
00:21:30
Speaker
I get so I'm like super cheesy about it. My smile is like giant right now. That's okay. Okay. So you talked a lot about about conferences. If somebody is interested in in learning how to be an educator and they want to get some sort of secret in road with conference organizers, do you have any tips for that?
00:21:46
Speaker
Yes. Oh my gosh. So you mean like if they want to like speak at conferences or if they want to start their own? Okay. So if you want to like speak at conferences, number one, attend the place you want to speak at. Hands down. And i'm I'm really like, it sounds funny because I would have said that before I started my own conference.
00:22:02
Speaker
Now that I say it, I'm like caveat, like I'm not just saying that because I need more attendees. Like I really truly think... If somebody can meet you in real life, I mean, there's very little that can make up for that virtually.
00:22:14
Speaker
Now, if you can't, its like if there's a reason you can't attend, because you can't be everywhere all the time, I would say, let's say you have a podcast. I would invite them to be on your podcast. If you can make a connection with them that's deeper than an email, deeper than a dm Any kind of way that you can get into their vision, if you can get into their line of sight and they can see you and understand who you are as a person, what you have to offer, that's my number one tip is just building relationships organically.
00:22:44
Speaker
And that can be really hard with conferences in particular because not every conference is hosted by like one person like mine is. Some of them are... If they're hosted by a company, there's usually like a conference organizer. But that doesn't mean you can't build a relationship with the people who are involved in it. Because at the end of the day, referrals for conference hosts are so important.
00:23:06
Speaker
Being able to, like I said, have the person in your line of sight and be able to see how they teach, how they talk, the heart behind what it is that they teach. That to me means so much more than an application. And then the second answer to that would be really perfecting your pitch. Because at the end of the day, like I said, you can't be everywhere all the time and you have to be able to pitch yourself as often as possible.
00:23:27
Speaker
And if you have a lackluster pitch, it's really hard to get past that first round. Yeah, that's true. I noticed because I've also hosted several events, especially when we had the Rising Tide Society and I had all sorts of speaker applications. And I feel like being able to see somebody speak like in some sort of video, even if it's not on a full stage, but just hearing the way that they present themselves and just thinking about, like are they a good fit for my audience?
00:23:50
Speaker
Can they talk articulately? And also, are they interesting? Because... Even if you have like the best tips in the world, if you get on stage and you deliver it like in a horrible, monotone way, it's not going to be great. And then the conference won't be graded well.
00:24:03
Speaker
So I've noticed that those matter. And then also being willing to serve and to promote the event. I think that it was really frustrating for me when you take that chance and you put somebody on your speaker lineup and then they don't share about it at all.
00:24:16
Speaker
And it's like, okay, is
Encouragement for New Educators
00:24:18
Speaker
this just about you? Or do you actually care about like this whole event? and helping people. So yeah, it's like, oh, wow, you were really excited to apply, but that's where it's going. Yeah.
00:24:29
Speaker
So I think that those are, those are all good tips. Okay. If somebody is going to start heading towards the end of this interview, just because I know that you're busy and I don't want to wait to be too long. I feel like I could talk to you about this all day.
00:24:40
Speaker
If somebody is hesitant to start teaching others, what is like your biggest advice for them? Honestly, this sounds kind of cheesy, but it's like, just start. You just have to say, if you're hesitant, if you start, you will find clarity. You know what i mean? Action creates clarity. There's a reason that that's a very, very overused phrase. it's It's just, it's so true. I think if you're hesitant, get started and you'll either find that it fills you up or that it drains you and it's not for you. So if you have a hesitation,
00:25:12
Speaker
my number one piece of advice is be like Nike, like just do it. because It's going to tell you one way or the other if it's meant for you or not. Yeah. Okay. I'm going to have a caveat because I feel like a decade ago, if you asked me that, i would have said, I never want to teach. I don't want to ever do courses on my own. Like this was horrible and I hate it.
00:25:29
Speaker
And now I really enjoy it. So even if you feel like it's a no for you right now, like it could change in the future. yeah. Yeah. I love that you said that. And the way the platform in which you teach could change too, because I remember there was a time, probably like those first few times I spoke at like industry events, I was like, I never, ever, ever want to apply for a keynote. I never want to be asked to keynote. I want breakout sessions because they feel like a classroom.
00:25:55
Speaker
And I was a classroom teacher and that's my comfort zone. yeah And now I really enjoy both. I mean, I really, truly enjoy both of those things. But if you had asked me back then, I would be like, absolutely not. Thank you.
Trends in Teaching and Building Reputations
00:26:06
Speaker
no Oh, you're so good though. I'm sure it's like so much fun to you.
00:26:11
Speaker
so okay. Last question. What trends do you see shaping the future of teaching in business? And how do you think that business leaders, especially if they want to be business educator, can prepare for that? I know there's a lot of worry about the market being oversaturated. There's a lot of worry about AI just creating all this content and like flooding it and nobody wants to learn...
00:26:33
Speaker
from people anymore. i can see that you have a lot of thoughts about that. Yeah. Yeah. Because honestly, i would be lying if I didn't say there were times where I've actually been like, oh my gosh, like this this between AI, like Chachi PT, the insane amount of like educators, quote unquote leaders, course creators, I get it.
00:26:54
Speaker
It can be loud and noisy and it can feel like you are just a drop in the ocean. But at the end of the day, I think the biggest thing that I'm seeing start to trend is that people are being woken to the facts that you cannot just give a lackluster, almost like, i hate to say, I'm just going to say it.
00:27:15
Speaker
Honestly, sometimes some educators, it feels like a pyramid scheme. Like there's no result at end. There's no transformation at the end. And I think people are starting to really like, they're having their eyes opened to the fact that numbers, followership, those types of people who don't actually teach any transformation, we're weeding them out.
00:27:36
Speaker
I truly think the biggest thing that I'm seeing trend is that people are asking each other. And because of things like AI, you're able to find very easily what is worth investing in and what is not. And so I think the number one thing is really being confident in the fact that the education that you're putting out there is quality It's providing a real transformation for the students and the clients that you're taking on.
00:28:00
Speaker
And being able to put your head in your pillow at night and say, i did my all and it was the best I could do versus I asked ChatGPT to make me a course outline and then I made a course. like You're skipping so many steps when you're doing things like that. And I think I'm seeing people be a lot more strategic about what they invest in and a lot more particular about what they invest in. And then on the flip side too, I'm seeing people really lean into building strong reputations and seeing that that strong reputation is going to outlast the
00:28:33
Speaker
the 50 course creators that have ah tear like a less than stellar slash less than desirable course that hasn't provided any transformation. So they're going to get they're going to weed themselves out. And if you can put your best foot forward and really put the work in and not want to have a quote unquote overnight success that really doesn't exist for anybody, you're going to stand the test of time versus somebody who's going to be around for maybe a few months and then kind of like fizzle out.
00:28:57
Speaker
Yeah. I've also noticed that community seems far... i mean, community has always been important, but I think that having a group of people to go alongside and learn together with and having access to the course leader makes a huge difference too.
00:29:10
Speaker
i think that I've just heard rumblings that like when you never get to talk to the instructor, it just it's not the same in fact. Oh, absolutely. I mean, there is still... I think back, I've made like such big ticket investments and some of them you get FaceTime with the instructor and some of them you're promised that, but you don't get it. And then if you reach out and you only you never get to talk to them and you're like, cool, that's it. like They dug their own grave to me. It's over. like That's so dramatic, like dead to me. But honestly, i'm like I look at those educators now years later and I'm like, absolutely not will I ever... Will I ever want to cross paths with them? you know And I think that that's really important to remember as an educator is like, you only get one reputation. And this shouldn't be said to scare you. It should be said to encourage you.
00:29:50
Speaker
Take your time, do it right. And you will see that it will go well. like there's no There's no question.
Enhancing Learning through Community Access
00:29:56
Speaker
If you keep doing the right thing, I think in the ethical right way, and you're making things happen for your people, it's going to go well for you.
00:30:04
Speaker
Yeah, that's so true. I agree. 100%.
00:30:07
Speaker
Okay, Lili, if somebody is interested in learning more about you or the conference that you host, I know it might be a little late to grab tickets for this year. By the time this comes out, it's like go to it's probably going to come out two weeks before the conference happens. But if somebody is interested in learning more about you or thinking about next year coming to your conference, tell us all the details.
00:30:26
Speaker
Yeah. So I hang out mostly on Instagram, like the elder millennial that I am. but so you can find me there at Lely underscore Imadi, or you can go my website, LelyImadi.com and find all the information there. You can join the waitlist for the next conference. We're definitely doing one in 2026. I'd say definitely like 90%.
00:30:43
Speaker
This thing's been booked, but probably. and books but probably Are they always in Texas where you are? Yes. They're always in Dallas because your girl cannot take this on the road. it is such an undertaking. it is It has to be home for me. I can't i can't do it.
00:30:59
Speaker
But I also have a membership for anybody who just wants to join the community. And it is... i mean, it's kind of like a stupid low price point. It's really just because I wanted to have a place for all the conference people to get together. And that's kind of been and incredible, incredible community that I've seen grow. It's called the Educators Lounge. So you can find all of that on my website too.
00:31:18
Speaker
That's awesome. Well, thank you so much for being here and sharing your wisdom. Thank you. This was so fun. And I loved hearing about like your journey too.
Conclusion and Call to Action
00:31:24
Speaker
I think it's really cool to hear two different industries and the similarities and taking leadership on in them. That's, it's been really cool.
00:31:31
Speaker
Yeah. Well, thanks, Lily. Thanks for tuning in to the Brands of Book Show. If you enjoyed this episode, please consider subscribing, leaving a review on Apple Podcasts, and sharing this episode with others.
00:31:43
Speaker
For show notes and other resources, head on over to daviancrista.com.