Lately I've been doing yoga at home via a lot of YouTube videos (thanks 2020). In my browsing, I've inevitably come across Yoga with Adrienne, a YouTube channel of yoga classes taught by a gal named Adrienne. I liked her immediately. She doesn't pretend to be anyone she's not. She makes puns and makes fun of herself. She reveals glimpses into her mind that make her inherently relatable.
That's authenticity in a nutshell: after watching her first video, I get exactly who she is. And after watching her 10th, she's still the same person.
In the era of influencers and Instagram, it's become counterintuitive to just "be yourself" online because "being yourself" is incongruous with being perfect. But being yourself—yes, the totally imperfect version—is exactly what makes you likeable and relatable. Being authentic is what draws your people to you.
That's why we talk about it all the damn time here at Moxie.
If you're struggling to be authentic in your communication, or if you're not sure if you're being authentic or not, try this test: Pretend you were talking to your best friend or sibling or partner about the subject matter. What tone would you take? Would you crack jokes? Which ones? What metaphors would you use? How quickly or slowly would you speak?
Your answers to those questions reveal how you authentically communicate.
And while our brand's voice is different from our personal voices, there should ideally be significant similarities.
For example, the voice of Moxie Writing Co. is human, optimistic, transparent, confident, direct, and succinct. Those are pretty damn close to the adjectives I'd use to describe my personal communication style. Moxie's voice is a more curated and intentional because it's being used for a specific purpose (business), while my personal voice is being used for a much wider variety of purposes (business plus talking to my mom on the phone, telling my dog I'm obsessed with him, and telling the guy in the Jamaican BBQ food truck how amazing his pulled pork was).
I encourage you to practice authenticity both in your business and in your everyday life. What would happen if you let your guard down a bit? Would you lose a client? Or would you make someone's day a little better by showing them they're not alone?
