Many often struggle with the exercise of finding their signature topic, while some stagnate at this point. However, it’s okay if you find it difficult. Remember that this is the cornerstone of your profile-building efforts, and it’s worth taking a little time to get the right focus. If you don’t nail it straight away, keep in mind that brands are a living thing, and are always evolving.
There will be many opportunities to test out different brand personas, while doing some tweaking along the way. The critical point is to ensure that you are always coming from a place of authenticity – rather than grasping at topics or themes that are outside your natural focus or expertise. How to project and maintain authenticity in the public eye, is something I discuss in the next chapter.
You can't fake authenticity
Be yourself, everyone else is already taken. Oscar Wilde
In March 2019, a young female politician, Jacinda Ardern, the Prime Minister of New Zealand, visited the scene of a gruesome, tragic mass shooting to comfort the survivors and their families. Dressed in a traditional Muslim head scarf, as the women from that community were, she spontaneously hugged one of the grieving women, while the moment was captured by a photographer and immortalised in media history. Her simple, compassionate gesture resonated across borders, cultures and religions, bringing comfort and wisdom to the many shocked, anxious onlookers worldwide. The image raced around the world, and caused such an outpouring of compassionate solidarity it inspired one Australian artist to paint a giant depiction of the scene on a prominent city building.
Political leaders are rarely acknowledged for their authenticity. Indeed, they are more likely to be heavily criticised for being disingenuous and deceptive, rather than genuine and humane.
How did Jacinda Ardern break the mould?
Prime Minister Ardern's response to the random act of hatred was consistent with the character she had displayed since taking office. She had set out to offer her people, and the world, a refreshing brand of compassionate, humanitarian leadership, evident in her actions, policy position, as well as in her local and world speeches both preceding and following that poignant moment.
If you think about the most engaging and life-changing speakers, writers, teachers, or everyday individuals you know, the common thread will always be their relatability. There will be something about them and their message that connects and resonates, that gets under your skin, and changes something.
That thing—or that essence—can only come from an authentic place. And persuading others to trust the feeling it evokes requires consistent acts and actions. Actions, rather than words, are what breed ultimate trust.
Get real – why aren’t old conversations working?
Sustainable brands are grounded in authenticity, and while you can't fake authenticity, social media has certainly had us try.
When I first hopped onto Facebook over a decade ago, and confronted the daily Facebook question: “What are you doing?” I went on a rollercoaster ride of self-doubt. What was I supposed to say? I immediately slipped into thinking that my status updates really were that—a status symbol designed to impress others. If I wasn’t doing anything incredibly interesting, or something that would make other people envious about my life, why share? Some days, I would consciously change my plans to make sure my life seemed more interesting. Occasionally, I just faked it.
With the social media, mega-trend closely following the reality TV’s anyone can be famous phenomenon, my once ordinary life suddenly seemed to be all about amassing as many fans, followers, and favorites as possible.
Sharing our private moments and opinions on a large scale, rather than one-to-one, has immersed us in a world where the average person is performing on a daily basis for an audience or fan base.
The entrance of a more visual platform such as Instagram has taken this fame-game and its associated insecurities to new heights.
Conversation style has changed radically thanks to texting, social media, and other online conversations, and online chat; we are simultaneously a whole lot more personal as well as more succinct. Instagram has given those who prefer visual expression to text some relief from words. Another is the use of far more emotive, visual content from emojis and gifs to live or pre-recorded mobile video.
After I got over that initial crisis of ego, I learned instead to share things that are genuinely close to my heart that I think others can relate to.
The other aspect that’s shifted due to social media is the willingness to get personal - genuinely personal! Despite all the heavily curated online personas and heavy-image editing most have developed a much better sixth sense for authenticity.
The global financial crisis also had a lot to do with the rise of the more authentic conversations, as well as have all the large-scale natural disasters, terrorist events, and wars in the recent past decades. It’s no longer just about the money or the fame that fuelled the reality TV generation. Communicating is now more closely linked to sense-making.
The world has also been through some very intense years economically over the past decade. Many are tired of feeling like a number or a machine; instead, they want to have real conversations about real issues with real people.
Being your authentic self in the public eye is also a skill. And it takes a bit of experience to get it right.
The best 'shortcut' to authenticity is to harness your conversation to something you are genuinely passionate about. That way, the passion takes over, drawing you into the moment, while propelling your natural personality to centre stage.
Jargon-busting
If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart. Nelson Mandela
Authenticity comes from within, but even the most genuine people can come across as insincere or lacking connection when they use the wrong words.
Nothing kills good communication faster than jargon—words or phrases that are well understood by industry insiders or small groups but make no sense to the outside world. Jargon and clichéd phrases that have become meaningless are common barriers to real impact across both written and spoken channels.
The opposite can be said about ordinary conversation: using everyday words and accessible language is key for impact. Less is certainly is more when it comes to communication, and sometimes using one word in the place of several can add great impact to a spoken or written sentence.
Here is a list of a few everyday examples of remote language (on the left) versus relatable language (on the right).
You can't sell a negative
Fresh out of journalism school, I was hired as a marketing assistant by a high-profile female entrepreneur. Virginia was a challenging and forthright woman in her fifties, one of our first showdowns happened in the first week when she rejected the brochure copy I had spent several days crafting.
Instead
