You know what's fun? Reading back through blog posts from the very beginning of my entrepreneurial journey and seeing how I have evolved. You can see all the zigs and zags, the trial and error. And you can see where I stopped trying to be like everybody else and decided to just be me.
That was, of course, when everything started to fall into place for me. The day I decided what I really wanted, what I needed, and what I had to have in order to achieve my goals - that was the day that my life started to change. I had spent a lot of time trying to look and sound like other marketers I knew. And I couldn't. And that kept me from doing what I needed to do.
Write a blog post every day! That was the success formula for one of my mentors. Well you know what? I couldn't! And so since I couldn't do one every day, I sometimes wouldn't do them for weeks. I mean, if you can't do it right, why bother to do it at all.
Always sound like the expert. More advice. Well I'm not. Yes, I have a wonderful vocabulary. I can throw out multi-syllabic words with the best of them. And I even know what most of them mean! But I don't talk like that. Most people don't. And I don't write like that most of the time. I write just like I talk. Simple. Easy to understand. Blunt and in-your-face when needed. Casual. But that would mean that people wouldn't take me seriously, right? So better not to publish anything. Don't want to look silly!
Dress for success! Now I don't mind getting dressed up when I have a reason. But when I'm home, I'm in T-shirt and sweat pants in the summer, and sweatshirt and sweat pants in the winter. Sometimes, if I have to go into town for something, I'll put on a pair of jeans. And there are many days when I never get out of my jammies. That's one of the bennies of working from home! But no videos, selfies, or Facebook Lives because people would see how I really was and that couldn't happen.
The list of things I was told I should do goes on and on. And I discovered I couldn't do most of these things,
But I have a book that's a number one best-seller! And a blog that has lots of loyal readers. And I have had more positive comments on the spur-of-the-moment videos I've done while still in my jammies then my more scripted formal presentations. And my Lives? They are downright entertaining at times!
How is all of this possible? I'm not doing any of the things my early mentors told me I should.
On the day that changed everything for me, I got one piece of advice - the most important advice I have ever received. Be yourself! Stop trying to be what you think you are supposed to be and start being yourself. If something doesn't feel right or natural, don't do it! Because then you just look phony. And people dislike phony - a lot!
Looking back at my early mentors, I see now that this is what they were doing. Each of them followed their own path. They led the way in their areas of comfort whether it was blogging, or video marketing, or public speaking. And they weren't trying to create a "mini-me." They were just sharing what worked for them. My problem was that instead of taking what they shared and giving it my own personal touch, I tried to look and act just like them.
So now I march to the beat of my own drum! Which includes videos and FB lives in jammies, sweatshirts, T-shirts, and some even in my Sunday-go-to-meeting attire. My book is a bestseller because it speaks to people like a friend or trusted teacher, not some stuffy know-it-all. Look through my FB feed and you'll find selfies of me with some internet marketing bigwigs and I am looking good in some of them. But you'll also find some of me soaking wet from the rain or the dogs, in costume at Sci-Fi conventions, sweaty from a workout, and yes - in my jammies. But when I speak or write, it comes from my heart. It is filled with something I need to say to help others who are still struggling. And because of that, people listen. They aren't fixated on what I look like or sound like. And those that are? Well - they probably aren't anyone I would want to work with anyway!
That's the message I have for you today. Be yourself. Create a plan that's right for YOU. Do the things that feel comfortable and natural for YOU. And as you become for successful and more experienced, stretch that comfort zone a little. Try something new. If it works, yay! If it doesn't or it just doesn't feel right, forget it and move on.
Just remember - you are not alone! There are a lot of us out here that are marching along to the beat of our own drums. Care to join us? Here is where we hang out!
