…I never imagined that talking about being authentic was going to be such an expansive subject for a blog.

There is only one of you on this planet & by using your skills & talents, you can benefit from your inherent authenticity. It is likely that you built your business around your skills, interests & hopes, so by its very nature it is authentic. Operating in ways that are true to you lays the foundation for building an authentic brand. When you are ‘the real you’, you are more positive, resilient, creative, focused, & of course, more vulnerable. While there is freedom associated with being yourself, it also means acknowledging your improvement areas. However, this doesn’t have to be a negative thing, especially when you approach it as an opportunity to seek new ways of finding what works best for you. 

Have you ever tried to make a short video to show case yourself, your business, product or service? Daunting, right? Making a video & feeling nervous about it is not a bad thing. When checking out videos on YouTube, Vimeo or via social media, there are lots of slick professional ones to view. There is a price tag associated with using a videographer to create this kind of video. It depends on both the audience & the type of business owner as to whether this is the real person. The message might be authentic, but is the delivery?

We nearly all have smartphones, so it is straightforward to make our own video. However, we face an inevitable conundrum as most of us hate having our photo taken or hearing a play back of our voice. We so easily find fault in ourselves that others don’t see. You just have to get stuck in & make a start. A short one-minute video about something close to your heart, done off the hoof is really engaging. It will be authentic & genuine. This will draw your tribe towards you. 

Let me suggest a few pointers to help take away some of the stress of making your own video:

• You can plunge straight in & do it live, stream to your favourite social media platform. Good luck! This would not be my preferred option. I stumble over my words & get tongue-tied. But, I know May King Tsang from FOMO Creator who has turned this in to a highly successful business. May King, has been honing her skills for a number of years & if you talk to her the video-streaming that she did on day one is very different to what she creates now.

• Whether you are live streaming or sitting down to record a video, it is all about practice, & practice makes perfect. Find somewhere comfortable to make your recording. I tend to use the garden & I set my phone up so I don’t have to hold it, but maybe for you it is more natural to be walking & recording. Whatever you do, make sure the camera is level with your eyes, so that your viewers are not looking up your nose. Also, I like the natural light from being outside, but whatever your light source is, make sure you are facing into it. I don’t script my videos, but I will practice what I am planning to say. I admit that I tend to have a whiteboard behind the camera with a key bullet point list. This helps me stay on track & prevents me from waffling.

• Keep to one subject at a time. A short video about an area of your business or a specific subject will be easy to manage, easy to deliver & will bring your audience along with you. If there are multiple things to say about a particular subject break it down into manageable bitesize chunks.

• It doesn’t matter whether you have to record your message once or forty times until you are happy. I suspect if you are like me then you will never be happy with the outcome, but as long as you have got your message across that is what is important. 

These slightly rough & ready self-made videos show the real you & if you are talking about a subject close to your heart, they will do nothing but enhance your presence in both the real & virtual world. They will give you credibility & you can share then when networking. It is an achievement to record a video & you should be proud of them. 

However, expect to be knocked. Someone I knew really well offered to record a video business card for me. We did a couple of sessions at home & whilst I was running a networking event, & actually, when I look past the things I hate about seeing myself on film, it wasn’t half bad:  However before releasing it to the world, I shared it with a few trusted business contacts as my nerves got the better of me

One of my contacts, who happened to be a marketing professional came back with a list of faults. Not about the message, but about the way the video had been constructed. I have to admit I was disappointed & slightly hurt. I have no doubt that this person was being authentic & there is some merit in the comments except everything in the video was in context. The video was done & dusted & ready for publishing. Her input was unable to influence the final product. 

Sadly, she hadn’t seen the video for the joy that it was, but had fixated on the things she would have done differently. She missed that some of the recording was done ‘on the go’, & that what really mattered was the story that the video shared. She had a particular issue with the networking element, which was recorded in a pub & this was because she felt it would alienate my Muslim viewers. That particular networking event is held in a pub & the videographer was himself a Muslim. The lesson here is that I cannot please all the people all the time. If you watch my video business card you’ll notice that I am being true to myself, both in terms of my networking, & why I network with Business Buzz.

Occasionally I revisit & re-post my video business card on social media. The people close to me, always have something amazing to say, that humbles me. I was candid & showed my vulnerability in the video. It was definitely me being authentic. 

As I share this snippet of my experience, I hope it encourages you to tackle a task you’ve been putting off by seeking a way to approach it that works for you. I also hope my honest, open account helps you to learn about me, & for you to realise that it is important to surround yourself with business people who you feel comfortable with, where you can share your challenges, find ways of achieving them & will be lifted-up in making them happen by your tribe. 

Mission Possible

Regulars to my blog will know that I’m an advocate for goals, so naturally, having a business mission is a no brainer for me. When I started my business back in 2017, my mission was to keep busy & mentally well. My ‘whys’ were so fundamentally true to me, which allowed me to operate as the ‘real’ me that I mentioned earlier. I chose to get out from behind my desk & to go networking. There were some great experiences, but also some bad ones. I knew that I needed to surround myself with like-minded people, who were more of the ‘giving’ nature than the ‘taking’ one. So, my love for Business Buzz was born out of finding the right tribes for my networking. 

In this space I worked within comfortable & honest parameters & came to realise my networking, my desire to support other business owners & super connecting skills were outstanding. Over time, I acknowledged how much I loved putting these skills into practice, & after two & a half years of being in business I rebranded to put these skills at the front & centre of my work. Buddha Connect was born & the Business Buzz Warwickshire region launched. As my business evolved & changed, so did my mission & my plan. It is healthy to reposition your vision, revisit & update your business plan, so that your evolution can continue. 

Running a business requires an enormous input, emotionally, physically & financially, & having a clear idea of what we’d like to get in return allows us to justify & understand the need for our input. It also helps us to keep the balance & to not put in more than we can afford, both mentally & practically. When we are clear on our mission, we can plan what resources we need to invest, & what we hope to achieve in return. As we balance our input & output, we reach an equilibrium. Seeking this harmony is what guides us down the right path of personal & professional balance, & what keeps us going when we take a wrong turn, or end up going the long way around. Developing a balanced approach means you can stay true in your actions, your directions & to yourself. 

When you are true to yourself (& believe in your business) you will attract people on the same wavelength as you, who will share in your journey. You will leave some people behind as you explore new option. Although it is sad, it is perfectly OK to move past & beyond a particular business friendship. Your honesty & authenticity will mean that you are respected, where you leave a positive indelible mark on that other person’s life. This is something to be celebrated!