Recently, I was on the phone with a photographer, talking about what’s getting in the way of growing her business and I heard it again:
“The stupid algorithm keeps changing and I’m not getting the likes I used to. One day its 100 likes but the next day it’s 3. This is crazy.”
I heard the frustration in her voice. The feeling invisible. The shouting in a noisy room. The feeling unnoticed. But I knew the solution she needed. And she wasn’t up for it yet.
I talk with a lot of photographers every day and week. I’ve made it a part of my business to get to know people I’ve never met before, ask them if the way I serve might connect with them, and listen to what they say.
Even if that particular person wasn’t ready for the solution, I think you are. You truly want to own success. To feel seen and heard. You want people respecting your art and paying you well to work in your zone of genius. But…you’re stuck. Not sure how.
Let’s break down this complaint about the instagram algorithm holding you back. So many people believe this to be true…but you’ll be the change-maker, standing and making a difference when everyone else is busy playing the victim.
Are you ready?
The algorithm changed and my engagement is way down
I hear this one the most-both on calls with people and circulating in facebook groups nonstop. I was even in a instagram pod (remember those?) of some of the most successful photographers in the industry. Even though they had such obvious success, they were still freaked about algorithms, shadow bans, and engagement.
When people complain about the instagram algorithm, there’s a much bigger problem than the time things were posted and not getting comments.
It wasn’t that you had the wrong caption
It wasn’t that the question you asked in that caption wasn’t good enough
It wasn’t the wrong time of day to post
It wasn’t a shadow ban
The problem is bigger than an algorithm
When people believe these things, the bigger problem they’re experiencing is not that they are just not getting the results they want on instagram.
It’s that their art isn’t connecting.
Often this happens because people are focused on
Getting attention instead of creating value.
Getting comments instead of educating their market
Getting likes and follows instead of causing people to stop and think.
And I get it-why create value for the return of getting people to stop and think when you could expect something tangible like likes and comments, right?
Here’s what you’re missing
There’s no more limited shelf space. You don’t just have to be the biggest and the best now, paying to be at eye level so they see that you dominate the shelves of your industry.
We’re in an era of unlimited choices. Choices are no longer the limited quantity to leverage.
Now, that limited quantity is your buyers attention.
And, if you’re not actively creating value, having and speaking your point of view, and capturing people’s attention, even if they don’t like what you’ve said, you’re missing your biggest opportunity to make an impact and income.
But let’s get to the heart of the problem with the pain point of the Instagram algorithm
This complaint indicates a much deeper issue-one of powerlessness and ownership.
Ultimately, you can have success, or you can have excuses, but you don’t get to have both.
For a lot of people, they may not have success but at least they have excuses (reasons) why they aren’t successful.
It isn’t their fault
They would do (X) but they can’t. It’s out of their control
They can’t speak up-they would lose followers
They must mimic the majority because then they’ll be in it
Things out of their control are changing and it’s all working against them
Do any of those sound familiar? I’m pretty sure I’ve said or believed all of them. And my business journey included the painful realization that my thoughts create my results.
Did I like my results?
Heckno, but it was always someone else’s fault.
Until I realized it wasn’t.
It was no other fault than powerless, messy thinking that created results I didn’t want. Results that reminded me that I wasn’t successful. It hurt to realize the source. But…it created freedom.
Freedom to not just sit by the water, but to jump in and create a ripple effect.
Some people don’t want success and that’s okay. We don’t all have to want success. But blameshifting and making excuses doesn’t make that reality go away.
I work with those unicorns who DO want to own their power. They DO want to take ownership of their reality. They’re ready to change their thinking and ultimately, they know that changing their thinking will lead them to the results they want: success
And those people will always rise about a platform, algorithm, and engagement.
You may be thinking “okay, I want to change my thinking, tell me how to do this so I can get better results in my life and business.”
Here’s the weird part-our thoughts are blind spots. While we can uncover them to a certain extent, we as humans are wired for connection. And connection helps us see what we’re blind to on our own.
The best and most consistent way to get rid of excuses and create the thinking that leads you to the results you want-success, income, impact, working less and making more, enjoying weekends, etc. is finding community dedicated to that work.
This is exactly the work we do in the breakthrough mastermind-this is one of the foundational issues we work through together and is a part of my business building course included with the mastermind program.
I’ll walk you through my unique 4 step breakthrough method to help you start unlocking your true potential and success, getting rid of excuse-riddled, powerless and messy thinking, and creating a mind that brings you success effortlessly and easily.
Are you interested in learning how to change your results-lay aside worries about the algorithm and start thinking like a successful business…and acting like a successful business…and ultimately getting the results of the success that you want? Check out how the Breakthrough Mastermind can help you get there:
