i live and work in the washington dc market, where folks are somewhat afraid to be his or herself — to show a colorful personality. for those leading or directing business, keeping things vanilla or reserved is a recipe for lost sales. it’s one thing to “keep things professional” but another to withdraw to the point where nobody remembers you. intense competition. careful evaluation. final selection. you’ve got to stand up, stand out and show some dynamics. be memorable. i’m not saying you need to stage a laser light extravaganza, but you can’t trust that all people will appreciate the subtleties either. let them earn that.
consider the case of magazine sales. in the recording industry, lady gaga destroys taylor swift when it comes to moving units off the rack. she knows how to create a buzz. she has opinions and lots of energy. she always has something she’s leveraging for entertainment value. contrast this against taylor swift. she sells a ton of records and is also a hot commodity. however, people don’t line up to hear what she has to say. her style is virtually non-existent. her persona is flat. she mostly plays it safe.
you want to make hearts race at least a little. you want that lean forward with attention towards what you’re offering — and not the casual lean back and continue about business. you can’t be afraid to make a splash. to say, do and represent things that command attention. to take some risks and make a statement. attention spans are that much harder to focus. people are bored and want to be excited. show them your world. don’t let them fall asleep in the way things were before you arrived.
