Freedom vs. Focus: Positioning Wisdom for The 'Jill of All Trades' Creatives

The problem with spending 15-20 years in marketing and communications from agencies to in-house, nonprofit to small business, is that I became the epitome of the generalist—someone who can think strategically and execute across channels.

When I first started freelancing, so many people recommended me to “just pick one thing”.

Cue the resistance. The grief. The quiet panic of feeling like I've being asked to abandon a career you worked hard to build.

Did you know that Nobel Prize winners are far more likely than other scientists to have serious creative hobbies in the arts?

Reminder: in complex, unpredictable fields, generalists consistently outperform specialists

Understanding Positioning

Positioning is how you shape the way people understand and remember what you do.

It’s the messaging to share

• What you offer

• Who it’s for

• What specific problem you solve

• Why you’re different or the best choice

It's all about removing confusion for your customer and improving understanding so they quickly recognize themselves in your work, understand your value, and decide faster.

Good positioning instantly answers: “Is this for me, and why should I care?”

Instead of "I’m a marketing consultant” ( vague, forgettable) say “I help wellness brands turn their message into consistent, high-converting content” (clear, specific, differentiated)

“Positioning is not what you do to a product. Positioning is what you do to the mind of the prospect.”

Al Ries

The Feminine Flow: Focus vs Freedom

Traditional (patriarchy-based) marketing advice recommends focusing on one thing for better engagement and sales, but most multipassionate creatives feel this can be restrictive or misaligned.

Being a generalist or multipassionate reflects feminine qualities like fluidity, dynamicism, integration, and responsiveness, rather than linear focus and narrow specialization.

A generalist naturally embodies this energy by:

• Moving between domains instead of staying in one lane

• Synthesizing insights across fields

• Letting curiosity and intuition guide direction

• Allowing identity and work to evolve over time

In contrast, specialization (often framed as more “masculine”) emphasizes:

• productivity

• efficiency

• depth in a single domain

• clear, fixed positioning

Neither is better. Both are necessary and in fact, they’re complementary and fuel eachother.

Being multipassionate without structure can lead to confusion or lack of traction.Being specialized without fluidity can lead to rigidity or burnout.

To achieve both authenticity and results, the sustainable sweet spot of expression is about practicing feminine energy in creation (expansive, exploratory) and masculine energy in communication (clear, focused)

The reality is that you don’t have to choose one singular topic. Instead you can to choose one central mission or anchor topic, and let multiple interests feed into that ecosystem

Master the basics (clarity, positioning, messaging), then layer in personality, creativity, and range.

You don't have to do this perfectly at first. If you create consistently, patterns reveal themselves over time.

The Bottom Line: Be yourself, but with systems and structure that demonstrate clarity and consistency. If your marketing feels forced or rigid, it won’t resonate. Enjoyment and alignment still matter. The most Sustainable strategy is to blend clarity + genuine expression

You don't need to niche down or narrow yourself. You're building depth and resiliency through range and versatility.

Some people are here to follow the rules. Others are here to rewrite them.

Positioning for Success

It’s not that generalists lack value. In fact, it’s the opposite. But in the market, generalists who are "good at everything, great at nothing" often get interpreted as scattered and unfocused. So even if you’re highly skilled, your audience feels unclear on where to plug in.

Clients don’t hire based on everything you can do.They hire based on whether they quickly understand:

• What problem you solve

• Whether you’re good at it

• Why they should trust you

• What category you fall in

• Why they should choose you

When you present a long list of offers (strategy, SEO, design, email, PR, social, branding)you may think it communicates versatility, when in fact it creates confusion. And confused people don’t hire.

Niching and clear positioning help make it easier to

• Communicate your value

• Attract the right audience

• Get referrals and conversions

In other words, it helps people understand and buy from you.

The multipassionate marketer doesn't need fixing. They simply needs frameworks.

A Market Niche turns you into a commodity to be replaced, where as a Mission niche makes you the irrefutable expert.

Market Yourself Without Losing Your Range

Niching is not about:

• Cutting off parts of yourself

• Choosing one skill forever

• Shrinking your identity

It’s about choosing what you want to be known for first, and creating a clear entry point that resonates. Think of it as an open front door, not a closed window.

1. Mission Niche: Sell by Problem/Outcome/Transformation

Build this first. Instead of: “I do SEO, branding, email…” say, “I help brands turn scattered marketing into a cohesive system that drives revenue.” That way, you’re still using all your skills—just organized around a specific result and outcome.

Ask yourself: What is my 'Roman Empire'? What do I stand on? What do believe about work, leadership, business, the world - even if no one else agrees?

Authenticity is consistency. Consistency between what you say, what you believe, and what you do.”

Dara Treseder 

2. Market Niche: Sell by Segment/Target Audience

Instead of narrowing WHAT you do, narrow WHO you do it for:

• Wellness founders

• Nonprofits

• Creative entrepreneurs

• Service-based businesses

This way, your full skillset stays intact, but under a clear umbrella.

You are a unicorn. Own it. Embrace it. Be it.

Affirm: I am multifaceted. multi passionate. multi talented. multi dimensional.

3. Niche By Offer

You don’t need to market everything at once. Choose one primary offer. Keep everything else available, but not on center stage. Let time and experience reveal what to expand and where to go next

This way you’re not losing your skills—you’re organizing them into something people can say yes to.

• Front-facing offer: One clear, in-demand service

• Back-end services: Everything else you offer existing clients.

For example, one common and effective model that positions you as high-level and gives clients what they actually need.

1. Start with strategy (project)

2. Offer execution and implementation (retainer or add-on)

Because many clients don’t actually want JUST a strategist, or just an executor. They want it all! Someone who can see the whole picture and actually make it happen.

“Authenticity naturally gets you away from competition.”

Naval Ravikant 

5. Try A 90-Day Experiment

If you’re stuck in indecision or the fear of commitment: Pick one direction that feels best (service, audience, or outcome), go all-in for 3 months. Measure and track results to see the reality of what resonates.

• Quantitative: Leads, Revenue

• Qualitative data: Ease of marketing, Overall energy and enjoyment

Reminder: You've always known your niche. You just were calling it "Past Experience" instead. Permission to lead with what you already know and who you already are instead of shapeshifting for new business.

We are moving into a world that increasingly values Generalists over Specialists because they are masters at pivoting to wherever needs support and "remixing" what already exists into something new.

The Reality

It’s not about right vs. wrong—it’s about speed and sustainability. YES, you can absolutely do everything. But just know there may be trade-offs:

If you market everything:

• Potentially slower growth

• Harder messaging

• More personal overwhelm

If you focus your positioning:

• Faster traction

• Clearer demand

• Easier sales

Affirm: My breadth of skill is not a weakness—it’s my edge. I embrace the rare, hidden advantages I have. I am a valuable, premium asset to those I serve.

Reframe: Instead of asking: “What do I have to give up?," ask “How do I make it easier for people to understand how I help them?”

Final Thought

You didn’t spend your entire career doing this work just to shrink yourself into a box. Don't you dare dull your light or suppress your multidimensionality!

The trick is to be yourself but still in a way that people understand what you do or how to hire you.

Bro marketing tells us that we must be single-focused, but this flattens and restricts women who contain multitudes.

The best advice is to balance the masculine and feminine approaches: start clear and focused and then expand to your fullest expression once you’ve built more recognition and traction.

In other words, it's about creating a magnet phrase or product that hooks your ideal client. And once you're in? That’s where your full range gets to shine.

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Erin Ratliff is a holistic marketing mentor specializing in organic growth + visibility for heart-led soul-preneurs who value personal and planetary healing.

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