We know each other by our lines.
That seemingly “throwaway line” spoken by one character near the end of a novel I absolutely loved (scroll down for link), has continued to stick with me for weeks. Maybe because that line helped another character resolve the main mystery of the book.
We know each other by our lines.
Monday an industry magazine writer interviewed me about my thoughts on branding. What is a brand? How do you brand? Why is a brand important? Why is branding important?
(Spoiler alert: a brand is defined by lines.)
Tuesday night — after the hurricane, which traveled a line directly over my house — after Facebook posts “We are ok. Katie has no cell service,” because my main line of communication vaporized, blown away by 85 mph winds — after power lines were restored — after I spent the day offline and not working — the phrase came back and ricocheted inside my head. (Scroll down for my current album on repeat.)
We know each other by our lines.
I sat down at my desk and started writing down all of the words that I say all of the time.
Holler. Catawampous. Hi there. Lucy quit it. Jack Jack. Love love. WTF. ClusterF. Mom, MOM, MAMA? Josephus. Basically. The thing is. Here’s the thing. Thank. Cuckoo bananas. Whatnot. I’m all done with this. Whatnot. Hiiiiiiiiiiiii. Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
Some are mine and some I’ve picked up from others over the years.
The book characters were talking about their art. As I’ve started painting and drawing almost every day, I’ve seen that I have a definite style. (It’s a baby style, but it’s a natural, definite, style.)
I was driving and I immediately pulled over and voice memo-ed this quote. It’s why I keep writing my emails. (And if they’re not your cup of tea, please do unsubscribe. It won’t hurt my feelings! Can’t figure out how to unsubscribe? Just hit reply and ask me to take you off my list.)
My style looks a lot like the way I talk. “Holler at me if you want to discuss this catawampous painting. I did it during a cuckoo bananas 25 minutes waiting to zoom with my mom. Mom. MAMA CAN YOU HEAR ME?”
Our hands have fingerprints, lines, but our lives basically have fingerprints. (Basically. Holler.)
Our lines are our brand.
Your brand tells people what to expect from you. Your lines define your brand.
- When you speak – Are you formal or informal?
- Your boundaries – Are you always available or do you have defined work hours?
- When you reach out – Is it over email, text, Instagram message?
- When you write – Do you use capitalization? (Honest to Pete, I know someone who does not. I’m not passing judgement, just bringing it up.)
- When you answer the phone (or when your staff answers the phone) – Are you upbeat? Are you neutral? Do you say good morning? What do you say? (I say “This is Katie.” That’s kinda terse. Maybe I’ll add my new “Happy good morning/afternoon/evening phrase, which, by the way, I got from Steph.)
- When people visit your website – Is it organized? Do you direct them where to go next, and then after that?
My friend Carol once told me that my brand was something along the lines of flowers, books, Harry Styles, business advice, and light angst.
That seems pretty accurate.
I’m good with it.
(I’d now add “art” to that. If you scroll back through years of my Instagram feed, that line is there. It was just pretty light. But it was always there. Now it’s firmly inked in.)
We know each other by our lines.
If our lines define our brands and our brands tell people what to expect from us, are we good with our lines?
Do we like the picture they paint?
Does the picture look the same in person as it does from afar? (When someone visits your store, do they get the experience you promised? When someone works with you, do they get the experience your brand promises?)
We can re-draw our lines. Or ink a line that we want to prominently show.
We all have personalities. Those are, in my experience, pretty ingrained. My interests and hobbies might have changed from obsessed with surfing to obsessed with cycling to obsessed with paddleboarding to obsessed with One Direction (Harry Styles) to obsessed with art, but the through line is: completely voracious focus. (Which is a through-line in my personality whether talking about work, leisure, relationships. I consider it a gift and a challenge.)
So we can’t usually completely change our natural nuances or our dominant tendencies. We can add shading and darken or lighten our lines. We can influence their direction and how loudly one line communicates over another. We can draw new lines to channel our energy.
This week, take a look at your lines — especially in your business. Look at those bullet point above and honestly write down the answers.
Then see where you want to add on, lighten up, darken, or turn.
Like it or not, people know us by our lines.
(At one point I could name every paddler in Wrightsville Beach by their paddling silhouette – even if they were 100 yards away from me.)
Make sure your lines say what you want them to say.
Useful Links
This other book that I’m loving right now
Overcoming the hump of resistance
Make web links open where you want them to open
Ted Radio Hour August 1, 2020 (Processing the pandemic)
I hope you have electricity right now. If you don’t, you’re in my thoughts. Heck, if you’re on this list you’re in my thoughts.
Holler if I can help.
(I mean that.)
