Sometimes a setback paves the way to something more amazing. Do you agree? Following 2 intense years, I’m SO happy to have finished the content for my video-based online courses, with a view to launching them soon! It’s taken months longer than anticipated but has been worth every minute to ensure top quality and value for prospective students.
This is thanks in part to a gutting ‘failure’ on the way. You see I first planned to write a non-fiction book, rather than create a course. We began by shooting 8 hours of video interviews with me, which were transcribed to form the first draft of my manuscript. With the help of various writing courses, I created a comprehensive book proposal and submitted it to some publishers.
The business books editor at Penguin SA saw enough potential in my proposal to request the full manuscript, commission a reader review and pitch it to their concept committee, who turned it down. They apparently felt that ‘as my emphasis is on visual representation, the internet is where I need to be and that a book about what I do would not necessarily find a market’.
She kindly acknowledged that they ‘could be completely wrong, of course, as publishing is not an exact science’ and encouraged me not to give up! Failing to find a traditional publishing offer for my book, I turned my full attention to creating my online courses that indeed deliver much more value (at a much higher price) than my book, which I intend to self-publish soon.
Although based on the same content, the visual and experiential nature of my online courses amplifies their transformational impact dramatically. My course videos themselves demonstrate what I teach and include loads of cutaways to images and clips that illustrate stories and share insight and inspiration about how to optimize and leverage personal branding shoots.
Despite having been gutted by Penguin’s rejection, my online school called Naomi Estment International may well not exist yet if I’d remained focused on my book – and I couldn’t be happier that it’s going to launch soon!
I’m now finalizing sales pages, implementing tech requirements and testing processes. Then you’ll be first in line for my special launch offers as well as my FREE Intro course (that shares a juicy taste of my full course) and my bonus Rock That Camera Visualization, to help you shine in your next shoot! The top pic is a frame grab from that video, as a sneak peek.
If you have any questions about your personal branding photo and video shoots, please leave a comment below. It’s not too late to have them answered in my bonus course content!
