It’s a tricky concept but essential, so I’ll keep harping on it.

So many aspects of your business are actually not about you.

• Your elevator pitch is not about you.
• The homepage of your web site is not about you.
• Your positioning statement is not about you….and on and on and on.

If you think about it, you’ll realize that it’s all about them — your clients and prospects. Master that and you will know exactly what to do and what to say, even in the stickiest of situations.

I make this point most clearly in my recent CreativeLive course, where I had the opportunity to drill into it and show lots of examples. So if you haven’t seen that yet, watch the preview video here.

It’s when we start focusing too much on ourselves that we can veer off track. If you want to be successful, stay focused on them — the ones you want to work with. Sure, you can talk about you, but only in a way that matters to them and their needs. Get it?

You may wonder, for example, how even your pricing and proposals can not be about you. How can that be?

I explain it here:

• Your pricing is not about you. (Watch this video clip from CreatliveLive)
• Your proposals are not about you. (Listen to the podcast or read the transcript)

So remember, if you’re ever confused about something, or unclear on your direction, there’s one consistently effective way to figure it out. Think about them. What do they need? What value does it provide them? What can they afford? See the trend?

Got it? Good.

*Mirror dog, courtesy, Shutterstock.