On Becoming Your Own Adjective
May 23rd, 2008
What do Quentin Tarentino, Bob Dylan and Seth Godin have in common?
They’ve all become their own adjective.
Think about it:
These individuals have become their own adjective because, over a period of years, their uniqueness, artistry, school of thought, talents, style, visibility, expertise and consistency have become so recognizable, so memorable and so prevalent in their respective industries that people actually begin to use their NAMES as adjectives which describe other things IN that industry.
Committing an Act of Genercide
This is a fascinating personal branding phenomenon. The roots of the idea actually date back several decades ago when certain brands that were the first of their kind experienced something called genericide.
Genericide is defined by Word Spy as, “The process by which a brand name becomes a generic name for an entire product category.”
Take Trampoline, for example. Originally, it was the actual brand name for a fun, spring-like toy on which people could bounce up and down. But as its popularity grew, and as more and more companies created copycat products with different brand names; customers still referred to any other toy in the same category as a “trampoline.”
And ultimately, the success of the product was the difference between Trampoline, the proper noun that was the brand name; and trampoline, the adjective of a certain kind of toy.
One letter made all the difference. God I love the English language!
What is Adjectivity?
Now, the list of brands associated with this phenomenon goes on and on. And while the topic of genericide has been researched in detail through notable brands such as Kleenex, Scotch Tape and Rollerblade; the personal branding movement has slightly altered this concept.
Because now, since YOU are the brand, since YOU are the company - YOU need to become your own adjective.
Andrea O’Neill, Brand Strategist and Executive Marketing Coach, strongly believes in the power of becoming your own adjective. “It means you live your values, talents, tastes or style so passionately and openly that others know exactly what you stand for without needing to ask you,” says O’Neill, “…and if you express your passions honestly in your every day actions, those around you will know exactly where you stand.”
Adjectivity first exists in the minds of the people you know best. O’Neill uses the example of clothing. “Have you ever walked through a department store, saw an outfit on display and said, ‘Oh, that dress is SO Mary’?”
That’s because, in someone’s mind, “Mary” has become her own adjective.
But we’re not talking about clothes. This is about marketing. It’s about top of mind awareness. Therefore, adjectivity must next exist in the minds of your customers, prospects and fans. So, as it relates to the 6 tenants of professional approachability; that is, MAGNETIZING more business to YOU, think of adjectivity in this way:
Becoming your own adjective is like word ownership…raised to the 10th power.
You don’t just own the word, you ARE the word.
Becoming your own adjective is like being that guy…on marketing vitamins.
You aren’t just that guy, you’re the STRONGEST guy.
Becoming your own adjective is like telling your story…on the FRONT PAGE of the New York Times.
And everyone’s reading it.
Becoming your own adjective is like doing something cool…that instantly becomes the HOTTEST new trend.
But it doesn’t fade away.
Becoming your own adjective is like creating fans, not customers…who love your work SO much, they’d move heaven and earth to support you.
Then they’d tell all their friends how great you are.
But of course, this only happens when you market yourself daily. When you constantly put yourself, your ideas and your business out there for the world to see, all of which must be consistent with who you are, what you do and how you do it.
That’s how you become your own adjective.
In closing, I’d like to share a line from David McNally’s book, Be Your Own Brand:
“Don’t STAND out, SHINE out. Don’t MEET the standard, SET the standard.”
Yeah, I know. Closing an article with a quotation is such a “Tony Robbins” thing to do…(*wink*)
© 2006 All Rights Reserved.
Scott Ginsberg is a professional speaker, “The World’s Foremost Expert on Nametags” and the author of HELLO my name is Scott and The Power of Approachability. He helps people MAXIMIZE their personal and professional approachability - one conversation at a time. To book Scott for your next association meeting, conference or corporate event, contact Front Porch Productions at 314/878-5419 or http://www.hellomynameisscott.com
And The Money Will Follow
May 10th, 2008
Do what you love, and the money will follow. I have a quote with the same gist on Stesnet. My version comes from Oprah Winfrey. Her quote certainly makes you feel good, and gets you motivated. Plus Oprah is one of the richest women in America so maybe there’s something to it. Or maybe not.
There’s some logic to the proposition that if you do what you love, then you’ll
be persistent and get good at it. It also makes sense that people are willing to
pay for a service that’s well done. But it’s not always true that you’ll get good
at what you love to do. There are plenty of people who love to write, sing, and
play golf who have no chance of ever getting paid to do it. At least not enough
to make a living. This is particularly true in fields where the market is
oversaturated, like directing movies, where even being good at it won’t
necessarily sustain you.
Or maybe what you love to do has no market at all, no matter how brilliant you
are. You can build the best snow forts ever. But who’s buying?
Perversely, doing what you love and getting paid for it can quickly kill the love.
Do you think that you’ll still feel the same way about cooking after putting in
10 hours a day, 7 days a week at the restaurant you open?
Now let’s look at the flip side. Will doing something you don’t care for
particularly prevent you from making money at it? The answer is no. The
money may follow even if you’re doing something that you don’t love. My city
is full of Korean nail salons. I can’t believe that Koreans love doing people’s
nails that much. Or that orthodox Jews love selling photographic equipment.
These businesses are built on providing a product or service with no regard to
personal fulfillment.
In fact, doing something that you love can get in the way of a business. Your
love of what you do can blind you to ways of getting it done faster, or less
expensively. Or you may not notice when that thing that you do is on the
decline. Take the Hit Factory, a recording studio here in New York as an
example. Bruce Springsteen recorded “Born in the USA” there, and Stevie
Wonder recorded “Songs in the Key of Life”. They made platinum albums for
the biggest stars in music and loved doing it. I say made because the place
closed recently, the victim of the changing economics of music recording.
They did what they love and the money went elsewhere.
So is there a lesson to be learned here? Well, to quote a well-known sneaker
company, just do it. Do what you love. Do what you don’t love but think you
can make money at. No matter what you do, there is no guarantee that the
money will follow. But if you don’t do anything, then there’s nothing for the
money to follow and you won’t get anywhere. And you can quote me on that.
Fred Stesney is the Host of Stesnet, the only online community created
exclusively for business owners. If you own your business, you can join the
Stesnet community at http://www.stesnet.com
Finding Yourself
April 22nd, 2008
I remember when I was little, I overheard my father pass a disparaging remark about some unknown person who was trying to find himself.
“What rubbish!” my father said. “How are you going to find yourself? Are you lost?”
Those words have stayed with me on and off for years while I have done my soul-
searching, looking for the lost “I”.
I have found many different versions of “I”. All labels and identities.
Baby of the family. Liar. Thief. Good student. Bad student. Drinker. ACOA. The first
to get divorced in the family. An out of the box thinker. Stubborn. Too sensitive.
Field hockey player. A lover of world cup football. Mummy. Daughter. Wife. Lover.
Friend. Sister. Aunty. Jamaican. Avatar Master. Spiritual seeker. Nicola…
All labels and identities. Some no longer serve us, yet we still wear them like a
badge that we are afraid to take off.
Avatar has shown me how to look behind the mock-up costumes and scripts from
the past. Be here now. Who am I? Who do I want to be? I decide.
I didn’t go anywhere and I am not lost. Playing this strange earth game of duality,
can sure feel like it sometimes. Forty five years of piling layers upon layers of stuff
on top of our pure essence as source beings and it can be easy to forget.
Avatar helps bring me back to the place where I am back in control and I take full
responsibility for my life. Source…
The pull of indoctrinated thinking pulls at me sometimes. Who should I be? Tell me!
What should I do? Tell me! I look outwards addictively for direction. Addiction to
looking outside of myself for the answer.
With Avatar, I change old patterns and create new paths. This is my story after all!
What do I want to create on the next page?
What do you want to create on the next page of your life’s story?
Nicola Karesh is an Avatar Master, licensed and
trained to deliver the Avatar Course worldwide.
She has a Master’s in Counselor Education and
her certification as a substance abuse professional
counselor since 1985.
Originally from Jamaica, Nicola lives in the mountains
of North Carolina, where she home-schools her 2
children - a task which provides her with great
opportunities to grow and to practise what she preaches!
For more information, visit her online at:
Herbal Skin Care Products - Do They Work?
April 18th, 2008
The cosmetics counter at your local department store probably stores several different types of herbal skin care products. These herbal products promise to do wonders for your body, depending on what you use, how you use it, as well as your body’s current condition. What should you look for in the herbal products that you purchase? Here are a couple of products that are highly recommended even by some dermatologists.
Cetaphil Cleanser: This is a product made up of natural oils that will help to clean your skin without the harmful reactions and conditions from chemical soaps. The ingredients are pure and your body’s natural oils will not be removed. So, your skin will not get dried out.
Face Toner: This product is designed to hydrate the skin. It has the Sea Buckthorn compound in it which helps to rejuvenate the skin cells. Also, there is Dead Sea Salt in the compound as well. This gives it an extra feature. It can not only wipe away the dull look of a winter face but it works as an anti aging product as well.
Zia Natural Skincare, Gel: This product gets good reviews from users. But, it is recommended for those with an oily skin. It is a lightweight substance that has minimal oil in it. It will hold moisture in your skin without adding to the oils that you are already battling. It contains gotu kola, horsetail extract as well as algae. Its ability to balance the skin and to soothe it from blemishes is excellent.
In order for any herbal skin care product to work, it needs to contain 100% natural products. Natural products work well in your body simply because your body is a lot more accepting of these rather than chemical products. But, with all of the many benefits available to you in herbal skin care products, your search for quality skin care is over.
Mike Singh is the publisher of http://www.stopping-acne-now.com/ On his website he provides articles about types of acne and get rid of acne scars.