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When other people use these words to describe your talents, it's OK. Whenyou do it, you just sound like a pompous jerk. Picture this: You meet someone new. "What do you do?" he asks. "I'm an architect, " you say. "Oh, really?" he answers. "Have you designed any buildings I've seen?" "Maybe, " you reply. "We did the new library at the university..." "Oh wow, " he says. "I've seen it. That's a beautiful building..." And you're off. Maybe he's a potential client, maybe not... but either way you've made a great impression. You sound awesome. Now picture this: You meet someone new. "What do you do?" he asks. "I'm a passionate, innovative, dynamic provider of architectural services who uses a collaborative approach to create and deliver outstanding customer experiences." And he's off, never to be seen again... because you sound like a pompous ass. Do you--whether on your website, or more likely on social media accounts--describe yourself differently than you do in person? Do you write things about yourself you would never have the nerve to actually say? If so, it's time for a change. Here are some words that are great when used by other people to describe you, but you should never use to describe yourself: "Motivated." Check out Chris Rock's response (not safe for work or the politically correct) to people who say they take care of their kids. Then substitute the word "motivated." Never take credit for things you are supposed to do--or be. "Authority." If you have to say you're an authority, you aren't. Show your expertise instead. "Presenter at SXSW" or "Delivered TED Talk at Long Beach 2010" indicates a level of authority. Unless you can prove it, "social media marketing authority" just means you spend a ton of time on Twitter. "Global provider." The vast majority of businesses can sell goods or services worldwide; the ones that can't--like restaurants--are obvious. (See?) Only use "global provider" if that capability is not assumed or obvious; otherwise you just sound like a really small company trying to appear really big. "Innovative." Most companies claim to be innovative. Most people claim to be innovative. Most are not. (I'm not.) That's okay, because innovation isn't a requirement for success. If you are innovative, don't say it. Prove it. Describe the products you've developed. Describe the processes you've modified. Give us something real so your innovation is unspoken but evident... which is always the best kind of evident to be. "Creative." See particular words often enough and they no longer make an impact. "Creative" is one of them. (Go to LinkedIn and check out some profiles; "creative" will appear in the majority.) "Creative" is just one example. Others include extensive, effective, proven, dynamic, influential, team player, collaborative... some of those terms truly may describe you, but since they're also being used to describe everyone else they've lost their impact. "Curator." Museums have curators. Libraries have curators. Tweeting links to stuff you find interesting doesn't make you a curator... or an authority or a guru. "Passionate." Say you're incredibly passionate about incorporating an elegant design aesthetic in everyday objects and--to me at least--you sound a little scary. Same if you're passionate about developing long-term customer solutions. Try focus, concentration, or specialization instead. Save the passion for your loved one. "Unique." Fingerprints are unique. Snowflakes are unique. You are unique--but your business probably isn't. Don't pretend to be, because customers don't care about unique; they care about "better." Show how you're better than the competition and in the minds of customers you will be unique. "Guru." People who try to be clever for the sake of being clever are anything but. Don't be a self-proclaimed ninja, sage, connoisseur, guerilla, wonk, egghead... it's awesome when your customers affectionately describe you in that way, but when you do it it's apparent you're trying way too hard. "Incredibly..." Check out some random bios and you'll find plenty of further-modified descriptors: "Incredibly passionate, " "profoundly insightful, " "extremely captivating..." isn't it enough to be insightful or captivating? Do you have to be incredibly passionate? If you must use over-the-top adjectives to describe yourself, at least spare us the further modification. Trust us; we already get it.
当别人用这些词来描述你的才能时，那没有问题。然而，当你这样做时，你听起来就像个华而不实的混蛋。 设想下这个： 你初次遇见某个人。 “你做什么的？”他问。 “我是个建筑师，”你答道。 “哦，真的吗？”他说。“你有没有设计我见过的建筑物？” “也许，“你回答说。”我们在大学里建造了新的图书馆……“ ”哇，“他说。”我看过了。那是漂亮的建筑……“ 然后，你离开。也许他是一个潜在客户，也许也不是……但是，不管如何，你已经给了个很好的印象。 你听起来很不错。 现在设想下这个： 你初次遇见某个人。 “你做什么的？”他问。 "我是一名充满激情的、有创新力的、有活力的建筑服务提供者，使用一种协作方式创造并提供完美的客户体验。" 随后，他离开了，再没有看到……因为你听起来像个华而不实的混球。 你是否在你的网站上或类似的社交媒体上把自己描述成与现实中的你不同呢？ 你是否使用陈词滥调、夸大的言词和令人窒息的形容词呢？ 你是否用些你永远没有勇气去说的话语去描述你自己呢？ 如果是这样的，该是做些改变的时候了。 这里有些别人用来描述你时的很好的词，但是你绝不能用来描述自己的词： 第一点：”积极上进“ 看下克里斯·洛克对那些说能够照顾好他们孩子的人的反应（对工作不安全或政治上正确）。然后，替换掉”积极上进“这个词。永远不要因为自己应该做事情或应该成为的人而去得到好评。 第二点：”权威性“ 如果你不得不说你是权威，而你却又不是时，展示你的专业技能。”影视音乐互动大会（SXSW）上的发言者“或者”2012长滩TED会议发言“表明一定权威水平。除非你能证明，”社交媒体营销权威“仅意味着你在Twitter上面发了很多时间。 第三点：”全球供应商“ 绝大数的企业能够在全球出售产品或服务：这些（像酒店）显然不能做到。（明白？）如果能力不够或明显，就用”全球供应商“；否则，你只会听起来真像个试图显得很大而实际却很小的公司。 第四点：”创新性“ 大部分公司声称要创新，大部分人也声称要创新，但是大部分没有。（我也没有。）那没事！因为创新不是成功的必要条件。 如果你有创新力，不要说出来，去证明它。描述你获得的成果。描述你所修正的流程。给我们一些实际的东西，因而，你的创新就不言而喻了……这经常是最好的证明。 第五点：”创造力“ 看吧，特殊词语总是有很多，它们也不再产生影响。”创造力“就是其中之一。（访问Linkedln，查看一些形象；大多数会出现”创造力“。） “创造力”仅仅是一个例子。其它的包括广泛的、有效的、已证实的、有活力的、有影响力的、团队合作性、协同性……那些术语中的一些可能的确能描述你，但是自从它们也用来描述他人，它们就失去了它们应有的影响力。 第六点：“管理者” 博物馆有馆长。图书馆也有馆长。微博链接你找到的有意思的东西并没有让你成为一名管理者……或者权威抑或专家。 第七点：“富有激情” 说你非常热衷于将精雅的设计应用在日常物品上——至少对于我来说——你听起来有些胆怯。同样，如果你热衷于发展长期客户解决方案。试着用专注、集中精力或专业化替代。把你的热情留给你喜欢做的事情吧。 第八点：“独一无二” 指纹是独一无二的。雪花是独一无二的。你也是独一无二的，但是你的事业可能就不是了。不要假装成独一无二，因为顾客不在乎这个；他们关心是的“更好”。展现你比竞争对手好的地方，那么在顾客的脑海里，你就是独一无二的。 第九点：“专家” 为了变得聪明而尝试变得聪明的人绝对不聪明。不要成为自称的忍者、圣人、内行、游击队员、书呆子、理论家……当你的顾客亲切地以那种方式描述你时，那就很棒了，但是如果你那样去描述自己，很显然，你太辛苦了。 第十点：“非常……” 查看下一些随机性小传，你会发现许多进一步修饰的词语：“非常有激情”、”深刻地洞察力“、“非常迷人……”难道“具有洞察力的”和“迷人的”还不够？你是不是不得不 非常 有激情？ 如果你必须使用言过其实的形容词来描述自己，那么至少给我们进一步修改的空间。相信我们：我们已经知道了。 |
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