Isn’t “Just be yourself” the last thing you want to hear?
Hi! My name is Christina…
and, yes, I’m being myself… sorta.
If you’re in business you’ve heard it more times than you’ve written an invoice. So much business advice and training, the social media gurus, the coaches, the consultants… they’ll all tell you that to “stand out” in your industry and to connect with your idea clients, You Just Have to Be Yourself.
Omg, that drove me nuts for possibly 20 years. I started by business 22 years ago, so that’s about right. I’d forgotten that I’ve figured out how “be myself” until I got a call last week from a new business owner needing headshots. She said that the course she was taking told her to be herself, and I could tell that she kinda stopped breathing. I said “whatever that means.” She laughed, and started breathing again… as she said “yeah, I don’t know… ”
Here’s what I finally figured out after 20 years of being told to be myself… When you’re new in your business, your self has never been in business… so you don’t know how yourself would be in this situation. If I were suddenly on a hockey ring in ice skates, or in a new country, I’d be looking around at the other people to figure out what I should be doing. I would NOT be being myself. How could I possibly?
So, forget it. Being yourself sounds like a limitation, when you could be anyone, anywhere, anytime… real or imaginary. Instead of being yourself, choose your favorite character to be. Look around, find your instant favorite example whether by outfit or hair style or shoes or smile, and pretend you’re going to be them. They don’t even have to be in your industry. Take your inspiration wherever you find it. Ask yourself “What would {insert name} do / say / write?”
As a photographer, I’ve pretended to be Annie Leibovitz, Sue Bryce, Sarah Edmunds, Jai Mayhew, Megan DiPiero, George Hurrell, Peggy Carter, Meredith Gray, Carrie Bradshaw, Jem, or some National Geographic photographer. At different times, with different clients, in different roles, who knows who I might be channeling. These are people whose work, or personality or business acumen I love… So I point my arrow towards them, and then who knows what I’ll actually do.
It’s a start, and it gets you going and gets you not worried about it. Then when you get distracted or try something different, guess who you’ve tricked yourself into being. Instead of being yourself, you can become who ever you’ve always wanted to be.
