It’s funny how most of us
are programmed to believe that we must blend in. Remember in high school how it
wasn’t cool to be different? Whether you wore all black or hung out with the
athletes, you were a member of some sort of clique. You were expected to dress
a certain way; listen to a certain type of music; and speak a certain way. Yet,
as we get older and enter the real world, we realize that what makes us
different is usually what makes us successful. And blending in just a recipe for mediocrity.
Just look at the success
of Apple. The company has made billions of dollars just because it is different
from every computer out there. There was a time when owning a Mac was
considered avant-garde. Not so much anymore, considering how many people and
companies use them these. But let’s be honest, it still provides a certain cool
factor. The point is Apple has always remained true to itself by hiring
people who think outside the box and creating products that start trends rather
than follow them.
Another great example is
Market America. And I’m not saying that simply because of the senior vice president!
MA has never tried to pretend it’s something it’s not. And it doesn’t bother
following the “competition.” Because a strong brand never feels like it’s
competing. Instead, it paves its own path. Of course, the media and business
world will associate you with other brands, but the key is to make it really
hard for that to happen.
When you’re an
entrepreneur, you are the brand. You don’t get to hide behind a large
company—even if you built one. Your clients will decide to hire you or buy your
product based off your look, business sense, and even your lifestyle. So that
means from the way you dress to the way you write your emails becomes extremely
important to your success. People don’t want to buy clothes from someone that
dresses like them, or buy a book from someone that offers the same advice they
do. People want to buy clothes from someone whose style they admire. And they
want to buy a book filled with advice from someone they aspire to be.
And when I say your
lifestyle or clothes have to stand out, I don’t necessarily mean they have to
be extravagant—they just need to be different. Remember the one-hit-wonder Lisa
Loeb and her funky eyeglasses at the time? They weren’t crazy; they were just
something no one was wearing at the time. Well, she recently launched a line of
eyewear. Her glasses made her unique, and now she’s making money off her look!
Think about what makes you
special. Maybe in your business, you never send emails and only make phone
calls? Or maybe it’s the way you wear your hair? And it might even be something
you’re not comfortable with because you’ve been programmed to think that being
different is bad. Well, I’m telling you it is not. If you ask any successful
person, I bet they’d tell you they’ve been called crazy more often than not. But
doesn’t crazy seem more marketable than generic?
Send me a tweet and let me
know what makes you different @LorenRidinger.
~Love Loren
