message: an underlying theme or idea
The other night my husband was watching something on the history channel about Morse code and how important a role it had in WW II for carrying messages between the war ships and the Naval ports, for use in the field, and in long range ship communications.
Morse code is a method of communication using off tones, clicks, or lights that can be understood by a skilled listener or observer with
out the use of any special equipment.
Do you understand Morse code? I sure don’t and quite frankly, trying to communicate that way would test my patience meter severely 😉
The obvious key here is that you have to understand Morse code in order to understand the message.
Too often I find a soloprofessional communicating her message in Morse code. The message itself is vitally important, but not everyone is getting it. Rather than using smaller, lighter, more agile themes and concepts, solopreneurs get bogged down by the thought of a large and cumbersome message.
And when your people don’t get your message they don’t get the value you provide or that they even are, in fact, a part of your community.
So how do you DEcode your message so everyone gets it?
1. Know your values. What are the 3-5 values that are ‘live or die’ beliefs for you.
2. Know what your Right People feel and think about. (*hint: you should have felt and thought about too so you can have true empathy)
3. What is your mission? When you consider your impact…what do you most want to share with others?
4. Lean into your archetypal language so your message is aligned and congruent
5. Firmly place your stake in the sand. Dare to show what makes you different and celebrate that.
6. You and your brand must be willing to grow, evolve, and be adaptable to ever more rapidly changing times.
Now take these ideas/concepts/themes listed above and distill them down to a credo. Simple, clear, direct, and my favorite…brief! A simple concise statement that represents your brand.
As an example, I have distilled mine down to 3 most important things I believe about the power behind branding: imprint, influence, and impact.
Now it’s your turn!
If you need some help retooling your message or your branding, I’d like to invite you to join me in The 45 Day Reinvention Lab and I guarantee we’ll get it worked out.
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