Tara here, and I want to talk about love. Specifically the word “love,” and if it has a place in your business or your brand. We all hear and see it all the time: “Do what you love!”
Everyone says “do what you love!” But does love have a place in your business?
We say it too. It’s inspiring, and it’s a reminder to make our own rules and define our own success. But I also know a lot of us pepper the word “love” into our business all the time—especially when we’re talking to a new client or a new collaborator and we want to express how we can help them.
How often do you say the word “love” in your emails or posts to your clients, prospects, or peers?
So social media posts aside, let’s talk about when you’re having that new potential client conversation. They are usually over email, the prospect is inquiring about working together, and you’re giving them a glimpse into what you do.
So here’s how—in the course of an email—I might drop in the L word without even realizing it:
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“I love the vision your are sharing with us.”
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“We love working with creative entrepreneurs like you.”
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“I’d love to share some examples of the kind of work we do.”
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“If I can walk you through the process, you’ll love what it can do for your vision, your positioning, and your brand.”
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I’m being genuine, but I’m also taking a shortcut using “love” to infuse the enthusiasm and warmth I actually feel, and also not freaking people out with all-the-words or sounding like a consultant who is all business, no personality.
This is completely socially acceptable. Depending on my client, it’s business-acceptable too. But add in exclamation points to the end (do it, go back and read this with exclamation points) and it can start to sound a little too perky (and desperate to over-promise and over-please).
If I were to be more accurate with my words, cool it on the eagerness, and not just type “love” willy-nilly, what I really mean to say taps into more of my “expert and guide” voice:
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“I appreciate you sharing your vision with us. That was thoughtful of you, and I’m glad you reached out.”
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“We specialize in working with creative entrepreneurs like you.”
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“If I can share some examples of the kind of work we do, you can start to see the deliverables we can create for you.”
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“If I can walk you through the process of what it’s like to work with us, and what you can expect along the way, you can start to imagine what our method can do for your vision, positioning, and brand and see if it’s a fit for you.”
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You’re expecting me to say, “cut out the love-talk and use more of your expert-guide voice.” But I’m not. it’s just how we are as creative entrepreneurs—it’s a mix of both. Some days I go with the love. Some days I go with the guidance. Usually it’s a mix of both. There’s no formula to it other than the voice in my head that says, “check yourself here, are you being real?”
We love the idea of loving our work and our clients. But really, we just want to exchange our talents, our time, and our guidance for compensation and appreciation for a job well done.
Maybe that is the definition of loving the work we do after all.