3 Ways To Be Authentic Like Oprah In Your Business

3 Ways To Be Authentic Like Oprah In Your Business

small business entrepreneur in vancouver canada

Did you know we all have inbuilt BS detectors?

We have mirror neurons in our brains that make us mimic other peoples’ body language. So if they don’t believe what they are saying – neither will you.

For example – think of a time where you truly believed what a person was saying. It’s very likely the person’s words matched his/her body language and you subconsciously picked up on this. (For instance, think about Martin Luther King’s ‘I have a dream’ speech and how it made you feel. It’s likely you felt the speech was genuine.)

Now think of a time where a person wasn’t being truthful. (For instance, think of statements Donald Trump has made that were factually incorrect and how they made you feel. It’s likely you felt the statements were inauthentic.)

Although these are drastic examples, the point is: we can sense authenticity.

This is why it’s so important to be yourself in business – because people are more likely to trust and work with authentic people.

Here’s 3 ways you can be more authentic in your business today:

1. Show all parts of yourself – the bad and the good.

Authentic people are pretty open about their struggles.

For instance, when Oprah was asked in a recent interview what her biggest struggle was in her career, she talked about how she didn’t fit in and her producers wanted her to look more like her Caucasian coworkers.

So she tried to chemically straighten her hair and ended up burning her scalp. It was such a painful experience that she decided to never try and be anyone else again.

When we hear other peoples’ stories that strike a chord with us – we are more likely to trust and feel connected to them.

Whether you are speaking at an event, marketing a product or talking one on one with a potential client – speak authentically about yourself and your business.

You will find you will make deeper and more trusting connections with clients and business contacts which in turn will increase the likelihood of success for your business.

2. Own up to mistakes

If you run a small business, it’s inevitable at some point you will make a mistake. The cool thing is, if you admit to the mistake and make up for it, customers will respect you even more.

That’s what Domino’s Pizza CEO, Patrick Doyle, did in TV ads a few years ago.

In the ads, the company flashed quotes from real customers like: “Domino’s pizza crust is like cardboard” and “Microwave pizza is far superior.” Doyle was showing his customers that he knew they’ve been making mistakes.

Domino’s then reconfigured its core product, testing combinations of dozens of cheeses, 15 sauces, and nearly 50 crust seasonings to find one that satisfied customers and asked people in ads to try the new pizzas.

The result: people tried the new pizza and found they liked it. The result: store sales rose and quarterly profits doubled.

Like Domino’s, if you make a mistake – own up to it, and try and fix it in a spectacular way.

3. Don’t do work you hate

It’s important to know what values drive you in life to see if they align with your business. For example, if the most important thing in the world to you is creativity, it doesn’t make sense for you to start an accounting firm.

To find your core values, think of one of the happiest times in your life, and choose 5 words to describe what this moment gave you. For example if your happiest time was ATVing with your partner in Greece, this may have given you adventure, connection to nature, independence, love, and spontaneity etc.

If you currently own a business, try and incorporate more of your core values into the daily running of your business or into the service or product if that’s possible.

If you are about to start a business, check whether the business idea aligns with your values.

Either way, the more values that are incorporated into your business, the more passion and energy you will have to fuel you through times of difficulties or boredom and the more you will be able to enjoy the work you are doing.

So there you have it. Those are 3 ways to be more like Oprah, AND we may have encouraged you to want to retry Domino’s Pizza.

If you want to feel more authentic in what you do, and accounting doesn’t align with your top values – let us have it!

Schedule a free call with us today, and we’ll let you know how we can help you.

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