This is part two in a series on changing your online image. Read the first post here (you’ll need it for your homework). Also, everyone who joins in on the discussion will get added to our marvelous Twitter list so we can keep up with each other. Onward!
On Tuesday, I asked you guys to come armed with paper and pencil in hand. Today, we’re going to take that first what-people-think-about-you list and squeeze it until it bleeds. (Uggh. I think I like my food analogies better.) Seriously though, you’ll need a helmet for this. If you didn’t make a list, hurry up and make one now. We’ll wait.
The easy part
You should have in-hand a list of five to ten qualities/attributes/things that you think people think about you. They can be good, bad, or ferocious. Now, for each of those ten things, I want you to answer one question — why do you think that people have that opinion of you?
Let’s start with me.
- I’m giddy all the time. People think this because I have the name “Joy” in my company name. I posted a slightly ranty Twitter post one time and completely blew someone’s mind. In a bad way. They were expecting joy and got my sarcasmic wit instead. Maybe I should re-name it to S.Sarcasm Studios?
- I just make websites. I don’t think my branding and consulting stuff is prominent enough. When people finally find it, it’s like a candy surprise.
- I’m inconsistently present. Maybe people don’t notice this, but I go for entire weeks of being internet-absent (besides the blog and my email box). I’m so focused on actually producing stuff that I don’t spend enough time connecting. And then I feel left out and cry in my soup.
- I’m not a mom. Countless people have told me how surprised they were when they found out that I have two kids, ages 3 and 4. I have a hard time blogging and tweeting about everyday personal stuff. I think it’s because I limit my use of technology to when I’m working.
- I’m nice. This is probably because I actually am nice. Not always a good thing. Like when your dentist pulls the wrong wisdom tooth and you try to make him feel better about it. While you’re crying because he forgot the pain medication. And then you try to make him feel better about that.
- I specialize in blog design. This is probably because I run a blog-driven site, and the LiteSites are blog-driven. But I actually specialize in content-driven websites. Sites that publish new content on a regular basis. Sites that tell stories and attract droves of adoring fans.
You might want to get your helmet on now
The best way to find out what people really think about you is to ask them. Which kind of sucks, because you’ve got to get all vulnerable. If you’re lucky, you know two to three good people who will give it to you straight. And maybe you can give it to them straight in return.
Your mission: Email these two or three people and ask them to come up with ten words that describe you and your business. Give them one rule: Be kind and be straight. (The straightness is what the helmet is for.)
See you Tuesday!
6 Comments
Niceness for sure can be overdone, and I’m laughing because I relate oh so well to being, for instance, burned on my forehead with a flat iron, but downplaying the pain (OUCH!) and wanting to make the stylist who accidentally did it feel better. (I didn’t feel too nice once the red whelp formed, just in time for a big client meeting {which was ironically the point of professional hairstyle help}.)
I really want to do this, going to try to find some interested friends to work together.
Jeanette LeBlanc´s last blog ..To Haiti With Love
Drat! I knew you were going to say that- go ask people what they really think of you! Hmmmm…can we all agree that asking our mothers to do this is probably not a good idea?
You’re such a badass. I love this concept. Only thing is, you’re one of my go-to gals for anything like this so expect an email soon from me asking you to describe me in 10 words. *straps on sparkly pink helmet w/ cupcake stickers*
Liz´s last blog ..Doppelgänger
I was afraid this would happen. I will comply but i will be dragging my feet all the way there. =[ (dislikes feeling vulnerable)
Wendy´s last blog ..Design Anatomy 101: Enter The Finicky Designer
Emily-Sarah, that sounds like *exactly* the thing that would happen to me! (Do you have a picture??? Sorry, it’s raining outside today. Entertainment is hard to come by. lol)
Jeanette, you do it, girl! If you can’t find someone, hit me up.
Tammy, AGREED. No moms allowed. They’re good for other stuff. Like cookies and telling you that the weight you’ve gained is all in your head.
Do it, Liz! Now I’m going to be on the lookout for sparkly pink helmets on eBay. And cupcake stickers.
That intuition serves you well, Wendy. Except for in this case…it’s really not all that bad! I don’t want to do it either. My biz is my baby, and even though I know it’s not perfect, it’s perfect to me! But then again, we don’t want businesses that only a mother could love. So the uncomfortableness that we feel right now is worth it. (I’ll keep saying that to myself, too.)