Developing a Business with Three Young Kids
My epiphany about writing on the Internet.
Warning: Stream of Consciousness to Follow.
Cram Lab started off in its first iteration as a hobby in 2011. My boyfriend (now husband), Chris, and I had finished our undergrad degrees and were spilling out everything we knew about studying on our learn-as-we-go Wordpress site under the name ‘The Study Gurus’.
I wrote a tonne of articles covering all of the different aspects of studying. In 2011 the Internet was completely different. Social media marketing wasn’t a thing (at least not for us), and after a couple of years of quite regular posting we ended up with a lot of organic website traffic. I feel sick thinking about how much traffic we had now…
Then we went to Law and Med School, respectively, and I’m sad to say that The Study Gurus just sorted of hovered out there on the Internet all on its own like a digital orphan. It carried on that way until I gave it some much-needed attention again in 2018 when I was on maternity leave with my first child.
But I was still treating it like a hobby. I did sell a few digital study products (sort of early iterations of what is now my Exam Study Survival Kit course), but I didn’t have a business plan, and didn’t really think about how I could make some money from all of those literally thousands of hours that I had already poured into it. I guess I just thought if you made something that people needed it would sell. Hah.
Well, now I’m three kids in, very disillusioned with the idea of working as a lawyer again (certainly full time), and more certain than ever that what I’m trying to do with Cram Lab is not just a bloody good idea, but something that a shit tonne of teens desperately need.
So after thinking, reading, and listening a lot about starting and growing a business, that’s what I’m trying to do with Cram Lab. I want to move beyond the hobby phase and actually grow this thing.
This has coincided with me wondering what the heck I should be writing about, if anything, on Substack.
I thought this would be a good place to share all of my study tips and create a li’l community of parents trying to get their teens through high school, but the issue with Cram Lab on Substack — and this is not something I’ve shared publicly before — is that my target audience and end user are not the same. It’s the teenagers who don’t know how to study that I am ultimatley trying to help; it’s the parents who I’m sharing study tips with. So there’s a disconnect.
The issue — no parent wants to read about how to study for Maths! And the teenagers that need help with Maths — I’m gonna go out on a limb and say — probs aren’t too keen on reading the tips they so desperately need.
Also, all of the articles I have written about how to study for the last 12+ years are mostly evergreen. Even with the explosion of devices and the Internet, the vast majority of the study tips and techniques that I used are still applicable, and can be adapted to a digital study space.
I don’t need or want to write about study tips anymore, at least not all the time. I’ve basically written the technical manual on studying already, and now it’s time to move on.
My point is — I have decided / realised, that Substack is not the place to keep spewing out study tips. They can stay over at cramlab.org as evergreen articles, and where people looking for study help will actually find them.
So I was probably quite close over the last couple of months to calling it a day on Substack, and just focusing on building Cram Lab up on social media and YouTube.
The Epiphany
But last week I was listening to a podcast I’m digging at the moment called Deep Dive with Ali Abdaal, and the guest, Nathan Barry, was talking about writing online. He hit on a few things that I now realise are absolutely what ‘successful’ online writers / community builders do:
They work in public. They write openly about what they’re working on; what’s going well; what’s challenging; what they’re learning etc.
They write for the people that are a couple of steps behind them. Everyone has imposter syndrome, and I certainly find myself thinking, is this valuable? Does anyone actually want to read about this? But the reality is, that whereever you are at with your hobby / business / skill, there are heaps of people two steps behind you, just as there are heaps of people two steps ahead of you. And the people two steps behind you will often find what the person two steps ahead of them is saying more valuable than what the person four steps ahead is saying because it’s more relevant to them.
They write about something that they enjoy writing about and can keep writing about for a really long time.
All of this is to say that, I realised there may be a place for me on Substack afterall.
I’m someone who has been dabbling with a hobby/small business for the last 10+ years. I’ve got three young kids. I’ve got community commitments too. I’m busy and up to my elbows in nappies, making food, school runs, and dealing with temper tantrums. But I really believe in what Cram Lab aspires to be and am determined to grow it into a sustainable business that helps students learn how to study and get the results they’re actually capable of all over the world.
I know that in order for Cram Lab to reach the next level I have to reach the next level, in terms of my understanding of how to grow and run a business, all while looking after three little lunatics. And that’s the journey that I want to document and share. Who knows, maybe there are other Mums out there two steps behind me who might enjoy following the journey.
Yeah nah?
If you’ve subscribed to my Substack for study tips only and this next phase of the journey doesn’t sound up your alley, can I recommend jumping on my Cram Lab email list at https://www.cramlab.org/start-here.
You’ll immediately receive an email with links to a Learning Styles Quiz to share with your teen, and my Study Starter Pack with 8 teen-friendly printouts covering the key aspects of effective studying.
You can also check out my Tutoring 1:1 options, follow me on Instagram and Facebook, and get in touch with my any time if you have any questions about your teen and their study. My email is clare@cramlab.org :)
Much love,
Clare x