Worry Less About Being Unique, Just Focus on Being Good (By Just Doing Good)

“Don't try to be different. Just be good. To be good is different enough.” – Arthur Freed, Born Sept. 9, 1894.

I don't know that I agree exactly with this. Being different can definitely be valuable. But I don't think you have to worry about being unique or special in that way when you're starting out.

I think you just need to focus on being fundamentally valuable to your audience. And that's not very hard at all.

Be useful. Teach them a new idea, or a new trick. Show them how to do a thing specifically – it doesn't have to be a difficult thing, either. Be responsive. Be generous with detail. Give away “secrets” and be an explainer.

That WILL make you stand apart in your field no matter what it is. Certainly you'll come across better over time than people who focus first on image and attitude before there's anything of substance for anyone in the audience to give a shit about.

It's not about you. It's about them. And when you make them better – make their lives easier and more rewarding – THEN they care about you.

So you can figure out how you're “different” farther down the line. Hell, the audience will TELL you what makes you different. They'll help you define your style and your uniqueness.

And it's always better when stuff like that happens as a conversation anyway, because then the audience has a deeper connection with it. They are part owner. They are invested.

And so I ask you: so many people come to our group, wanting to get a pickle tickle as reward for how clever they are. They want to know what we think of this angle or this hook or that logo or brand name or tagline. Forget that.

Tell me what it is you are actually GOOD at, and how are you going to start building around that? How are you going to SERVE your audience with simple direct value, starting now?

If you were BANNED from branding yourself, and could only deliver your work anonymously, how would you make it so tangibly VALUABLE, that the audience will DEMAND to know the source?