Shift Overthinking to Marketing Movement

In this introductory episode, I explain the audience for this audio series, my own story and how my chronic illness required me to build back my health and business brick by brick, what to expect from future episodes, and resources that will put audio episodes into action.Folks (like me, not meant to shame) who often experience overthinking:> Value-driven (anti-oppression, pro-equity)> People in the “messy middle” of business, around 1-6 years> Lower capacity individuals: neurodivergent, disabled, chronically ill, caregivers, parents> Consultant, coaches, service providers, therapists, speakers, authors: basically anyone with a story & expertise to share, because when your thoughts are the product it’s easy to doubt yourselfWho am I to talk about this?I’m Max Sheffield, Owner of Max Wilde Stories. Pronouns are they/he. I’m a marketing strategist that blends storytelling & capacity-building processes so the content you create makes clients feel seen, not sold to.I started my business in 2018 and wiped my slate clean in my business almost exactly two years ago because of the above. I was speaking & consulting multiple times a week and hit such a bad chronic health flare I was couch & bed bound for weeks. It made me question everything, which in some ways was good, because I walked away from what wasn’t serving me, but it also put me into a severe overthinking cycle that paralyzed me for over a year as I struggled to choose a new direction for myself and my business.Episodes are meant to be quick, bit-size, with an action step attached to keep momentum going. With that in mind, I created a roadmap template and I have a community on Discord for support, feedback, and gentle accountability (if you ask for it).For a more thorough breakdown and where to grab your companion resource, visit https://www.maxwildestories.com/overthinking-audio-series/Show notes and future episodes can be found at https://www.maxwildestories.com/overthinking-marketing/

Welcome back to Shifting Overthinking to Marketing Movement, a limited audio series for creative, equity-led solopreneurs with a story and expertise to share, this gets you out of your own head to find clarity & direction to find sustainable marketing processes that fit your body, brain, and capacity.Housekeeping on Sales —One thing I’m going to add is that this series will include mentions of my done-with-you offer Storyspark Connection when it’s relevant and a bigger mention of it at the very end. I want to be upfront, but let me assure you, anything I build is meant to be valuable enough that , and that’s not to mention the fact that my Discord community is currently free and active for those who aren’t ready to work fully together but needed continued support after they work through the series. But as we talk abut sales later in the series, my goal it to walk the talk but also show how it can be clear for folks without being overly pushy. Defining Overthinking for Our Purposes — I’m not going to be boring and pull out a dictionary, but because we all make think of overthinking differently, I did want us to all start from a shared definition that we operate from through the series. Especially as it relates to our businesses and marketing.Here’s my simple definition: Business overthinking is the fear and/or anxiety around either committing to strategy or making decisions subject to public perception or scrutiny. All of which results in inertia or stillness in marketing and sales. This is not to say that stillness is always bad. We’ll discuss the natural cycles of growth in a later episode. It’s more about holding yourself back from committing to a project, publishing, or putting yourself out here. I see overthinking from a content or writing perspective most often, given what it is that I do. It can either be a full on block where folks struggle with knowing what to say, or having marketing content or other projects that they can get partway done but never across the finish line or they sit on hard drives without being published.But there are also many different ways this shows up. Another common one that I’ve experienced off and on for years is this idea that I must have this signature, productized offer that will solve all of my capacity and cash flow issues. For you, it could be pitching for visibility, sitting on an idea for a podcast for years, stopping and starting writing a book for months, waiting to hire an assistant, not choosing a course or membership platform for a new offer, or thinking you need to wait until you have a new certification before raising your prices.ACTION STEP How does this show up for you? Feel free to pause this episode and free write on all of the ways fear or worry about how you’ll be perceived or rejected comes up in your business and when promoting it.Exploring the Psychology Behind Overthinking —So, if it’s not helpful, why do we do it? First let me put up a quick disclaimer that I’m not a therapist, and that this section is meant to be more of about general psychology and my observations with myself, colleagues, biz besties, clients, and in my community. It’s not meant to diagnose and some of this may be helpful to process with a trained professional.I want to address the systemic and cultural factors right out of the gate, because a lot of this can feel like blaming the individual for a toxic culture we have all internalized.  I’m not trying to shame you because that doesn’t actually fix anything or help us feel empowered to move forward.Culturally and in the online entrepreneur space, there are so many factors that add to a cycle of overthinking. One of the people in my community, Bre Hamilton, is a religious trauma recovery coach and has stated that there is a dread in those of us who have had religion in our childhoods that our decisions would have eternal consequences and even when you deconstruct, some of those lingering issues can be there.Even without the religious undertones, you see it culturally as well. As a millennial I was told the only way I can be happy as an adult is follow a specific set of instructions: go to college, get married, have children, make enough money to go on vacation, etc.Culturally, we’re told that it’s all or nothing— you’re either successful right away, or any sign of failure shows you’re not cut out for this and it’s YOU who needs to change to fit the mold.Online entrepreneurs also face a similar type of capitalist programming: coaches and marketers are telling you you MUST do reels to get clients, or build a YouTube channel, or use AI to clone you, or steal my system, or the exact steps to a six-figure launch. What this implies to our subconscious is there’s a one right way to being successful and that it is up to US to discern it. Which means, when capacity is at a minimum and we still have to pay our bills, most of our creative & mental energy goes to making the exact right decision and have it all figured out.Given these circumstances, it really is no wonder that we OVERthink and UNDER implement.On a more personal note, there’s imposter syndrome, self-doubt, and a fear of rejection. There’s a question of “Who am *I* to say this?” or “What if I spent all of this time and no one even looks at it?” With an offer we’ve built that may take us hours of recording or designing, this is a serious blow for us low-capacity folks who could have used that time and energy differently.When I post on social media, I can’t really win: I feel dejected when no one views a reel I spent a lot of time on, but also, then when something blows up I hate being perceived or worry that my content will be taken differently than I meant it.A good resource for any person who creates is the book “The War of Art” by Stephen Pressfield which expands on the concept of Resistance, which is interconnected with overthinking and holding ourselves back from what we want to accomplish.To reiterate, there’s nothing wrong with you if you’re in this cycle or struggle with overthinking and not taking concrete actions.I’m recording this in April 2026, and I’ve recently did my quarterly planning. Maybe later I’ll break down the process, but when I transition from reviewing the previous quarter and I plan the new, I decide on a theme.It’s a statement meant to help focus my energy and attention, so even when I get ill or have a flare and inevitably I have to change my plans. I have a theme that brings me back and gives me that balance of structure and flexibility we’ve talked about last episode. It’s usually a short statement. Fittingly for this, my current one means “Momentum means imperfect action.”ACTION STEPSo my action step here is, no matter where in the quarter or year you are when you listen to this, that you choose a theme for this series or for your current stage of your creative business. You can pick one similar to mine, or remind yourself how what you to share is fortifying and inspiring to the people you’re meant to serve. A current subtheme of mine is “Finish what you started.” You can make it longer like an affirmation if you like, but I find it’s best have it displayed in places you know you’ll see it — my calendar, project management system, above my computer monitor, stuff like that.SHARED ACCOUNTABILITYFeel free to share your theme in the dedicated channel in the Storyspark Lounge Discord communityLinks Mentioned ::Storyspark Connection - https://www.maxwildestories.com/storyspark-connection/ Bre Hamilton Soulful You — https://www.soulfulyou.space/The War of Art - https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-war-of-art-break-through-the-blocks-and-win-your-inner-creative-battles-steven-pressfield/0a9974970e9bb833?ean=9781936891023&next=tJoin the Storyspark Lounge discord community — https://www.maxwildestories.com/community

What stops people from committing to messaging (or branding)?Messaging is lowkey a vortex. We’re now told that we need to nail it, but often the particulars feel so subjective that it’s easy to get lost in a vortex.It’s deceptively easy to tell yourself, “If I can get the exact elevator pitch or positioning statement or tagline” that explains what I do that this will be the key that brings in leads and clients.I’ve fallen into this trap for myself and let me tell you: the inevitable result is that your message will never feel ready and you won’t actually commit to any specific marketing direction without this in place.In short, I was afraid to show up.And it’s not just me, I see it in my community, on social, and with my clients. When we decide to show up, we’re committing to a way to represent ourselves and our business. And this rightfully feels scary.What if we change our minds? What if people don’t understand how we can help them? What if I sound the same as other people in my industry?The truth is that some of these things will inevitably happen, AND that’s okay. Preferred even. Because how else will you know that? When you work on messaging in a vacuum without outside input, the risk is actually a bit higher that you’re missing the mark when you launch it.Reframing your messaging workThat’s why I wanted to start talking about messaging in the context of reframing both the point of messaging work and the process itself. Next episode, I’ll get more systemized with it, because I absolutely believe that this is lacking online. Two things I want to point out before we get there:You are not married to your current messaging ANDAdjusting based on feedback is an integral part of the process.I call it a foundation, but not like one that builds a house. Housing foundations are put in and you can’t change them. They’re rebar and concrete, unyielding. Messaging is the soil of the tree that is your marketing. I have a graphic that explains my content ecosystem concept I’ll discuss in a later episode, but I find this a better way to look at it.I’m recording this in spring and it’s the first time I’ve tried to grow anything. My partner is far better at that sort of thing. But one thing I know is that the plant tells you what it needs by how the leaves look, if they’re discolored, if there are holes, if it’s wilting, and all of these other clues.If your content ecosystem is a plant or tree that you’re tending, then the response to your marketing and sales process is what tells you where to adjust.Some plants need acidic soil, you can add coffee grounds. Some need vermiculite or coconut husks to soak up excess moisture. If messaging is your soil, and it turns out that folks are misunderstanding a part of it, or your are values evolve, that’s fine! We can just tweak elements in the soil and the plants & your customers will respond better.Btw do not listen to me for gardening advice of any kind, I’m just using it as an example to illustrate.ACTION STEPSo if you’re overthinking messaging right now, get out of your own head. Find a few trusted business besties (and if none come to mind, that’s what the Storyspark Lounge is for) and share your elevator pitch of 1-3 sentences about what you do. Specifically, get feedback on what piqued their interest and what confused them. Start tweaking the language based on feedback, but in general I’d wait until you have 3-5 pieces of feedback and see where folks agree.Don’t worry — in the next episode, we’re going to go more in depth with working on messaging and honing in on the language that reaches potential clients and stands out.Before we get into the nitty gritty, here’s the link to grab the companion resource: https://www.maxwildestories.com/overthinking-marketing/

One of the things that frustrates me about this aspect of marketing is that we often see messaging as this disembodied concept from the rest of your marketing.  So let me say here and now: messaging is one way we talk about it, but the concept in the marketing world is really POSITIONING. In the old days, it was how to position yourself AGAINST your competitors. Now I see it more about how to position yourself in the MIND of your ideal clients, especially in a world that’s so saturated with advertising and content that’s competing for our attention.People will market helping you construct a tagline or polish your pitch, but not explain the process for when it’s time to revamp or tweak. Which as we said in the last episode is not only inevitable, but encouraged.This may be due to a lot of folks who have not gone to marketing school and so don’t have the comprehensive view of how it all fits together. This is why I look at the big-picture goals and strategy with my clients in the initial session of Storyspark Connection. Uncovering Your Unique Value —One of the hardest aspects of messaging is recognizing in yourself the things that make you unique to clients. It’s often not even a confidence issue (though it can be). I think it’s more because it’s YOUR life, YOUR strengths, YOUR education, it feels normal. Mundane even. Like why would anyone care?What seems boring to you can be THE THING that captures the attention of your ideal clients. Being able to look at them individually and write about them separately helps you to be more objective about the different factors that go into why someone would want to work with you.ACTION STEPThis is an exercise that I found from Austin L. Church of Freelance Cake that I use a lot now. I hope you like free writing because I want you to set a timer for 15 minutes and write out all of your possible differentiators. Use the above to help you if you get stuck, but think through all of the projects, trainings, certifications, industries, personality types, your previous corporate career, and anything else that makes you the service provider you are. We’ll come back to that in the next section.Clarifying Your Core Message —In the beginning of this episode, I mentioned positioning and how this isn’t just a deliverable. What we’re doing is clarifying how we explain our business as a whole and creating a system of repeatable language that strengthens the associations we want folks to have around our business.Messaging consistency will trump content frequency every time. It may seem redundant, but the reality is that people are seeing at least 10 thousand marketing advertisements every day. No one is thinking as hard about you as you think. Using the same phrases is going to make it far more likely that you will be remembered. Think of it like a refrain in a poem. It’s repeated intentionally as a literary device.Looking at all we’ve written for the first exercise, this is where overthinking can creep in. Because we can’t just wordvomit all over our ideal clients. We have to distill it down into what is relevant. But how do we know what to include? The action step later will help with this, but if you’re like me and everything feels very precious, this is how I justify what to leave out.What factors are similar enough they can be combined? What aspects can make for good content but not necessarily make it into the core themes?Is this just interesting lore about me or does it offer context into the way I approach my work, the people I work with, and/or the results they can expect?ACTION STEPRemember last episode, how we got feedback on our elevator pitch from business owner friends and community members? We’re coming back to that. Pull up your reviews or testimonials. If you don’t have these all in one place, do yourself a favor and create a Google Drive folder and keep these in one easy-to-access place.As you read through them, start highlighting the common themes that come up: what they struggled with, why they chose you, and how they talk about their results. Start to look for patterns. Compare this to the free writing exercise from earlier and look to see where these patterns came from: is it related to your previous career as a nurse or tech consultant, like for me? Can you point to how you leverage your Clifton Strengths? Does being neurodivergent change how you approach the work? Tie their outcomes to your differentiators.ConclusionIn my done-with-you offer Storyspark Connection, we discuss the unique differentiators from this episode and how to weave them throughout your message, content ecosystem, and sales process. Each month we co-create a system that feels enjoyable and works with your capacity instead of trying to stretch it. 

Hopefully, you’re feeling more confident in your message from the last episodes. If not, that’s okay. The confidence can build from repeating it. Once I’m comfortable with how it sounds when I say it to others, I then start to use it more concrete places like my website and my social media bios.Which brings up to the topic of this episode. Why pressing publish can feel so hard.Why We Hesitate to PublishDo you have entire offers, lead magnets, articles, video scripts sitting on your hard drive? Everyone I’ve ever worked with, even those who were just starting off, had SOMETHING that they’d been sitting on but hadn’t yet released.Let’s talk about why BEFORE we start designing our content ecosystem so when we have the structure around creation, we feel confident sharing our unique perspective.An easy answer to WHY is perfectionism, but I think, while that may be part of it, there’s something deeper to consider.The internet can (not always) be the opposite of a welcoming place. And frankly, it tests our own worth in ways that therapy wishes.In many parts of the internet, folks are committed to misunderstanding either by taking work out of context, or by insisting you include a very specific situation, or by claiming someone else said it first/better, or just being a general troll.While this is very unlikely to happen to you, we’ve all observed it if we’ve spent any amount of time online. And I find in some ways, it creates hesitation in us. Maybe not all of the time, but in sharing the type of content people need to see.Not just generic educational stuff, but sharing content that showcases your voice and experiences. The content that lets folks see the sides of us that help them to vibe check and make a decision on whether to work with us.When we overthink our content, what we’re really doing is questioning our worth. Whether to lend our voices to the conversation.Our creativity and our businesses are a part of us. Fear of rejection makes sense. And sure, other people will say similar things to you. But as we discussed in the earlier episodes on messaging, no one shares the exact set of qualities that you do or able to explain it in the same way.The Other Issue with Content: Effort vs. ResultsWhen working with folks, one of my least favorite parts is discussing how realistic it is to see immediate results.The answer? Not very. Especially if you’re value-driven and don’t want to push people who aren’t ready.Going back to the gardening analogy from last episode, long-form content, solace your YouTube channel, podcast, or blog is like planting a tree. There are plants that have a much quicker return: herbs, flowers, and annuals. We’ll discuss that more in the next episode.But overthinking pressing publish and sharing your work with the world doesn’t make the results come faster. Waiting to plant your seeds just pushes out the timeline when your ecosystem comes together.It’s a cliche but it’s true: the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.And in honesty, it’s the reps that help you to find your voice and improve every time you record or write.ACTION STEPThis episode’s action step is going to be pretty simple. Check your notes app, your hard drive, your Canva, and find one post or article that may be finished, but no less than 90% there. Format and schedule it. Get it out there. Start exercising your publishing muscle.I’m going to do the same, which is part of why I didn’t drop all of these episodes all at once. I did a couple at a time because I didn’t want to give myself the opportunity to overthink and tweak.Next time, we’ll get more into how to intentionally build not a customer journey, but a content ecosystem that gives folks options in how they engage in our work.