Friday Focus #86

Hey Reader,

The Friday Focus took a break this summer, so thanks for sticking around.

Here's why – My wife gave birth to our 6th child, Elias Theodore Ragon, last week! Everyone is healthy, full of joy, and much without sleep, haha. Things have been a little busy and I don't regret pausing the newsletter (my typos would have greatly increased!).

So, thanks for sticking with me!

Adding more kids to our tribe has forced me to re-think and re-focus on what really matters in a lot of areas. The joys of fatherhood are never an excuse to be lazy. But, they are a reason to hyper-focus on things that drive the needle forward — and leave the fluff behind.

Choose Your Focus Wisely (With Conviction)

James Clear, author of Atomic Habits, says that everything we do is a vote toward the future person/business we are building.

If you run 2 miles today, that makes you a runner. If you reach out to 3 clients today, with a friendly check-in and hello, you're the type of business clients can trust.

Think about it. What you do matters.

Your marketing habits say more about your business than lofty goals on a list. Any entrepreneur can set a goal. Any business owner can pick a mission statement and make a poster.

But where are their results?

Perfection is not the goal, focused progress is. Burnout is right around the corner if you can't give yourself a break sometimes. We're all imperfect humans, and none of us run perfect businesses.

I'm a work in progress. You're a work in progress.

​Ragon Creative is a work in progress.

This Friday Focus newsletter is a work in progress. Thankfully, we can create systems and habits to help us stay focused. 👇

In the article below, solopreneur Jordan O'Connor shows how conviction is the one thing that will drive everything about your results. True convictions don't fade when the going gets tough.

Conviction gives us clarity, focus, and determination.

Here are a few convictions I hold (about marketing):

1. Give more than you take. Serve first, with higher quality and energy than everyone else, and you'll win every time.
2. Quality is judged by your audience. So, learn what makes them tick. Listen to their greatest fears and learn about their wildest dreams.
3. There is no silver bullet or easy button for any business. Great marketing is a marriage of several key things.
4. Don't wait around for the perfect moment. Start now and iterate every time. Doing is the best way to learn.
5. Doing anything significant takes a long time (sometimes a lifetime), so don't quit on your convictions too early.

I'm still forever learning how to practically apply these convictions in my work with Ragon Creative (and my 9-5 at Snowbird). But, I'm confident that I will stand on these truths forever.

Today, I'm offering a free website tear-down to anyone on this newsletter. Then, I'll share the video in next Friday's email. We'll see real-life examples of how to start using your website to attract new leads via SEO.

What are 5 convictions driving your business?

Hit reply and let me know!

5 Things to Help You Focus 🎯

How to set up your Google Business Profile and get found by local customers in Google Maps.

Here’s a fantastic reminder about things more important than marketing, that will impact everything about your business. Conviction: The unreasonable benefits of taking action on what you believe.

​Learn LinkedIn from the #1 ranked LinkedIn creator in the world. Justin Welsh is the most organized, systematic content creator I've ever come across. So, I bought his course to learn how to use LinkedIn better—it's fantastic, simple, and effective. Let's connect on LinkedIn if you're there.​

Starting to think about year-end taxes? Here’s a free self-employed tax calculator that’s easy to use.

​How long does SEO take? (20 factors to consider). The age of your website doesn't matter as much as you think it does. I’ll write an article on this topic one day, but it will be difficult to give a more helpful answer than this one.

Get Free Advice for Your Website 🛠

(Thanks for joining me on this weekly Friday Focus journey.)

1. Reply to this email with a link to your website.
2. I'll check it out to see if it's a good fit for a Website Teardown.
3. If it is, I'll record a complimentary teardown of your best opportunities for improvement and SEO growth, and share the video in this weekly email.

You'll get free tips on how to use your website to attract more leads from ideal customers. By letting me share insights with others in this Friday Focus email, we can all learn more about the impact of SEO together.

More interested in getting a private SEO Strategy Roadmap, tailored to your goals and business situation?

Seriously. Thanks for reading this week! I'm grateful you're here, and I'm excited you're committed to growing your business in healthy ways. 👍

Stay focused. See you next Friday at 9am,

John