Tuesday 14 July 2015

#TellingYourStory: The Resume Is Dead, The Bio Is King



If you’re a designer, entrepreneur, or creative – you probably haven’t been asked for your resume in a long time. Instead, people Google you – and quickly assess your talents based on your website, portfolio, and social media profiles. Do they resonate with what you’re sharing? Do they identify with your story? Are you even giving them a story to wrap their head around?
G
one are the days of “Just the facts, M’am.” Instead we’re all trying to suss each other out in the relationship economy. Do I share something in common with you? How do we relate to each other? Are you relevant to my work?That’s why the resume is on the out, and the bio is on the rise. People work with people they can relate to and identify with. Trust comes from personal disclosure. And that kind of sharing is hard to convey in a resume. Your bio needs to tell the bigger story. Especially, when you’re in business for yourself, or in the business of relationships. It’s your bio that’s read first.

To help you with this, your bio should address the following 5 questions:

  1. Who am I?
  2. How can I help you?
  3. How did I get here (i.e. know what I know)?
  4. Why can you trust me?
  5. What do we share in common?
Your bio is the lynchpin for expanding your thought leadership and recognition, especially online. It frames the conversation and sets the tone. It’s your job to reveal a bit about yourself and how you see the world. Do this well, and people will eagerly want to engage with you further.

Here’s the challenge: who taught you how to write your bio?

Admittedly, most of us never got a lesson in this essential task. You’re not alone. Even the most skilled communicators get tongue-tied and twisted when trying to represent themselves in writing. We fear the two extremes: obnoxious self-importance or boring earnestness. It gets further complicated when you’re in the midst of a career or business reinvention. You have to reconcile the different twists and turns of your past into a coherent professional storyline.
The personal branding industry has only muddied the waters. It’s easy to feel turned off by the heavy-handed acts of self-promotion that the various gurus out there say you’re supposed to do. We’ve been told to carefully construct a persona that will differentiate and trademark our skills into a unique value proposition. That’s mostly a bunch of buzzword bingo bullshit.
Instead, share more of what you really care about. And then write your bio in service to your reader, not just ego validation. Imagine that: A compelling reason to tell your story beyond bragging to the world that you’re “kind of a big deal.” Embrace the holy-grail of storytelling: tell a story that people can identify with as their own – and the need to persuade, convince, or sell them on anything disappears.

With all this in mind, here’s a few key pointers for reinventing your bio as a story:

1. Share a Point of View.

You’re a creative. Having something to say is the ultimate proof. What’s missing from the larger conversation? Speak to that. Don’t be afraid to tell the bigger story. We want to know how you see the world. Show us that you have a unique perspective or fresh vantage point on the things that matter most.

2. Create a Backstory.

Explain the origin for how you came to see the world in this way. Maybe it was something that happened to you as a kid or early in your career.  Consider your superhero origins. How did you come into these powers? What set you off on this quest or journey? What’s the riddle or mystery you are still trying to solve? When you tell the story of who you were meant to be, it becomes an undeniable story.  Natural authority is speaking from the place of what you know and have lived.

3. Incorporate External Validators.

Think frugally here. To paraphrase the artist De La Vega, we spend too much time trying to convince others, instead of believing in ourselves. Nonetheless, if you’re doing something new, different, or innovative – you have to anchor it into the familiar. Help people see that your novel ideas are connected to things they recognize and trust. That might be your notable clients, press, publications, or things you’ve created. Just enough to show people your story is for real.

4. Invite people into a relationship.

Now that you’ve established you’ve got something to share, remind people you’re not so different from them. Vulnerability is the new black. Share some guilty pleasures. Describe what you like to geek out on. Reveal a couple things you obsess about as hobbies or interests. This will make you more approachable and relatable. You’re human, too. Help people find the invisible lines of connection.
To revamp your bio, start with these simple storytelling principles and questions above. In the process, you’ll discover a greater potential to shift how you see yourself and how the world sees you. Your story sets the boundaries for everything else that follows.
If you’re having trouble being heard, recognized, or understood, it’s probably an issue related to your story and identity. The good news? It’s never to late to reinvent your story.
What’s Your Take?

Have you updated your bio recently? What do you struggle with?

#AmazingSTORY: MacHenry Churchill

Meet Nigeria’s Now Highly Sought-After Motivational Speaker & Performance Coach



“Better the most sought after than the first”.

MacHenry Churchill is Nigeria’s fastest rising Motivational Speaker, Performance Coach and Talent Promoter. A specialist in Personal Branding & Communication, Sales Performance Improvement and Marketing, he helps people tell their stories to the world by connecting them with their inner genius, raising their self-awareness level and supporting them to launch out and break limits. Having mastered the gift of the gab and the business of talents, MacHenry Churchill equips people with the skills needed to effectively communicate their brands, ideas and offerings.

With more than 10 years work experience in daring and uncommon capacities, MacHenry Motiv8 Churchill has grown thick muscles as a Motivator, Life Coach, Business Development Strategist, Nation-Builder and Social/Impact Entrepreneur. His writings have been featured in The Guardian and The SUN Newspapers and on websites like Talentsandskills.com and Talkaboutladies.com. He is in the top 2% of academics and publishers on Academia.eduHis remarkable story has been featured in Socialmediaweek.org2tyte.com and Chukzbook.com. He has been a guest lecturer at WOLEX Polytechnic and various departments at the University of Lagos.

MacHenry Churchill is a frequently requested Speaker and Facilitator in workshops, seminars and training programs all across Nigeria. He works with several consulting and training companies as guest facilitator and associate consultant, leading learning and development interventions and corporate turnaround initiatives for organizations.  

As CEO of The MacChurchill Group, a growing conglomerate that is positioned to help individuals, organizations, communities and governments deal with developmental challenges and build relevant capacity that guarantees multi-generational wealth creation, social change and sustainable development, MacHenry Churchill has led key initiatives that have transformed people and the organizations they work for.

As Project Manager for VolunteerCorps Education Program, he managed and oversaw 7 Tutoring Centres with well over 1,500 students from various public secondary schools across Lagos State. The Tutoring Centres has since increased to 10, with 3 new centres in Ogun State.

As Project Partner with Zplus Community Movers, he facilitated entrepreneurship seminars and helped train over 2,500 youths in Apapa and Mushin Local Governments in Lagos State on how to start and manage their own businesses. The project now also runs in Akwa Ibom State and is proposed for Abia State in 2016.

In partnership with schools in Lagos State, he is engaging teachers in a FREE Teacher Training Program that equips them with the skills they require to be more effective in tutoring young people. This program teaches methods for more engaging class sessions that make students eager to learn. The program is planned to be duplicated in other states later this year.

He has also facilitated entrepreneurship development seminars for organizations like HIP Generation, Youths For A Better Nigeria, Destined Ones International, Lead Minds International, Gifted Hands Nigeria, plus numerous churches, schools and groups.

He has volunteered on projects with organizations like British CouncilFate FoundationLEAP Africa,UPS FoundationEnterpriseCreativeSuccess Attitude Development Centre and Enterprise Development Centre of the Pan Atlantic University. He is a team member in high profile events like theGlobal Entrepreneurship Week and Social Media Week.

MacHenry Churchill has authored 3 books, all in electronic format and publishes online via his 30 blogs. He is a popular radio host and On-Air-Personality who is using “the power of talk” to impact his environment and generation. He hosts a weekly LIVE radio program on UNILAG103.1 fm.

MacHenry Churchill also works with and mentors disadvantaged youths from low income communities through YOUTH WEALTH INITIATIVE, a non-profit organization he founded six years ago to support at-risk youths in overcoming the limitations of illiteracy, unemployment and poverty.

MacHenry Churchill is a polymath. Gifted in many different directions, he is a Creative Artiste – a writer, poet, lyricist, talker, singer, songwriter, guitarist and music producer. He writes copy, designs development courses & curriculum, paints portraits, evolves product/service ideas and develops content for all types of media. He is also a voice-over artiste, compere, actor, model and photographer. He is skilled in strategic thinking, imaginative marketing, persuasive selling and negotiating.

MacHenry Churchill loves people. He likes knowing and working with diverse peoples, building relationships irrespective of class, race, ethnicity and all kinds of stereotypes. He works to develop platforms that give people a chance to engage themselves profitably and exhaust the limits of their potentials. His personal vision is to help everyone he comes across become a better, more productive person. His burden lies in improving lives and impacting the world with the gift of his existence.


MacHenry Churchill holds a B.Sc in Political Science from the University of Calabar, a Certificate in Entrepreneurship from Covenant Capital, a Financial Literacy Instructor Certificate from Financial Literacy For All and a Professional Certificate in Training & Mentoring from Workforce Management Centre

Thursday 2 October 2014

YOU are AMAZING Just The Way YOU Are. Don't Let NO ONE Tell YOU Otherwise


Just a little reminder to tell you how amazing you are! Often times in life we move forward not acknowledging what makes us shine and what makes us glitter! So if you haven’t already, please take this time now to tell yourself now. “I AM AMAZING”
It becomes easy to focus  and get caught up on what doesn’t exist in our life and the potential we aren’t living up to as we go about our day. While that might be normal, it sure doesn’t make it right.
It’s important that we take time out daily to love and nurture the good, the great and the beautiful that lies within us all. When we do so, we bring value and strength into who we are as a person and the choices we make, we rarely regret.

Doing small things that have impeccable value will help remind you of what makes you and this life amazing. Here are a few ideas, but I’m sure you can add to the list and create something that works for you!
- Reflect on the good that exist in your life.
- Make mental notes of what you are grateful for.
- Share your light with others. When was the last time you told someone else how amazing they have been in your life and you just wanted to say thank you.
- Write down a list of affirmations that point to why you are amazing and tape it to your mirror.
However you choose to do, just make sure you do it. Purpose driven action is what motivates the brilliance in us all!

#StayAMAZING
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