Hello to you listening in Charlottesville, Virginia!
Coming to you from Whidbey Island, Washington this is Stories From Women Who Walk with 60 Seconds for Motivate Your Monday and your host, Diane Wyzga.
Here’s the thing: I’ve hit The Dip. That place in most creative endeavors where you look around and wonder: Does anybody care? Does my work matter? What am I doing and for whom?
Believe it or not, The Dip is a precious time. Now you get to dig deep and consider what’s it for, who’s it for, where is it needed? Not everyone wants or needs what you have to offer; but someone does! Lots of someones.
Some years ago I was working as a shepherd at a fiber farm on the outskirts of Charlottesville, Virginia. Our neighbor raised organic goats for meat. Joe sold the meat to customers from the D.C Beltway area who knew a good thing and were happy to pay for it.
But Joe wanted more. He was ready to venture out and teach people about the value of eating what he raised: organic food, sustainable, humanely harvested, no junk, and lots of pasture to graze. But where to go?
He fixes up an old school bus as a traveling kitchen and visits each and every state and local fair in Virginia. Why? People go to fairs to eat food!
But not his food. Fairs offer a lot of cheap fried food: onion blossoms, corn dogs, curly cut fries. Joe is offering 3 items: organic goat kabobs, organic goat curry and an organic goat skillet burger with all the fixins. While his prices are in keeping with what he’s trying to sell, they are several times more than the competition at the fair. The food is foreign. No one will eat it except on a dare.
Now what? Instead of lowering his prices or changing venues Joe decides to dig in and work on changing attitudes and appetites. At each fairgrounds he stands outside the mobile kitchen and shares his story: why goats, where they are pastured, who takes care of them, how they live, what makes this meat special, and why it’s worth it. He prints up a flyer with his story and hands that out, too. Person by person the story draws them in, the goat meat dinners keep them there.
It took time but he believed in what he was doing and for whom he was doing it. If this is you here’s a tip from Joe: “Some will. Some won’t. Who’s next?”
As I repeat Joe’s words I’m working my way out of The Dip. “Come for the stories; stay for the magic!”
CTA: If you want the story that will change minds, attitudes, behaviors, let’s work together.
You’re always welcome: “Come for the stories – Stay for the magic!” Speaking of magic, I hope you’ll subscribe, share a 5-star rating and nice review on your social media or podcast channel of choice, bring your friends and rellies, and join us! You will have wonderful company as we continue to walk our lives together.
AND! Stop by my Quarter Moon Story Arts website during reconstruction, email me to arrange a no-obligation Discovery Call, and stay current with me as Quarter Moon Story Arts on Substack.
Stories From Women Who Walk Production Team
Podcaster: Diane F Wyzga & Quarter Moon Story Arts
Music: Mer’s Waltz from Crossing the Waters by Steve Schuch & Night Heron Music
ALL content and image © 2019 to Present Quarter Moon Story Arts. All rights reserved. If you found this podcast episode helpful, please consider sharing and attributing it to Diane Wyzga of Stories From Women Who Walk podcast with a link back to the original source.
