Tip #9: Push Your Inner Leader Up to the Podium
You must embrace your inner leader to succeed in the New Economy. More than just embracing your leadership skills, you have to push them up to the podium to speak on your behalf.
There are people out there (your potential customers) who want to be part of something. They want to share a connection and a passion with you and a community of other people. Your job as a freelancer or small business person is to lead those people and build that community.
As I mentioned before, the key to your success may be what Kevin Kelly calls 1,000 true fans. These are people who will buy whatever you create because you’ve led them somewhere and given your time and knowledge to them or otherwise inspired them.
Seth Godin says that the barriers to leadership have fallen because of the web. There are millions of “tribes” of people everywhere, searching for a leader and waiting to connect and create change. “All that’s missing is you, and your vision and your passion,” Godin urges.
How do you become a leader and connect with your potential fans? Gary Vaynerchuk likes to say that your entire marketing strategy could consist of the word “care.” You need to care about people to forge an authentic connection with them. Once you show people you care, they will trust you and be more likely to join the community you’ve created.
There are a lot of factors coming together. I think people are seeing through the BS, and can communicate when they have been burned, scammed or let down at light speed. People think about leadership as being a power thing but I like Seth Godin’s approach about Tribes, about it being more about community and showing people there is another way. Gather your tribe, everyone has one, give to them generously. Your rewards come if you focus on creating something worthwhile and special for your people.
Chris Garrett, chrisg.com *
