 Hi, so today I'm talking to you about standing out. I'm talking to you about standing out And I'm also talking to you about fitting in and not standing out I've meant and I'm talking about this because I've mentioned both in the past. I've mentioned I've mentioned how you should stand out how when someone's looking for a potential freelancer or potential freelance translator they are going through potentially dozens or even hundreds of different profiles and names and You know, they're they're going to be going through basically scrolling down and going through them very quickly And so you kind of want to stand out you want them to be able to pick you out of a lineup So to say and be able to say oh, okay That's someone that I should take note of and they'll stop at your profile and they'll try to learn more about you So you do want to stand out on the other hand You don't want to stand out right because if someone has 10 or 20 different profiles and all of them Look kind of similar and one looks different. They'll they'll think okay Should I go with the ones that seem to all have the right the same format or one who's really different? It might be safer to go with all these people, you know, 19 out of 20 people can't be wrong especially if they're experienced freelancers and this one might be experienced too, but it's You know, it's a bit of a risk to go with someone who's completely different from what's the norm so what should you do so are you supposed to stand out or not stand out and How do you reconcile these two different facts? Well, I I have a solution you can feel free to disagree but I think I'm right and My my solution to this is to basically lean into whoever you are be be yourself so to speak and What I mean by this is if you're a type of person Let's say you're quite a loud person if you're a loud person and it comes across usually when you write when you show Yourself when you know and in and who you are then be loud be that type of person if you're a very serious person And you just like to concentrate on what you do and do it well methodically and logically then be serious Be that type of person if you're funny then be funny What happens that way is that your profile will stand out For the right reasons. It'll stand out for whatever makes you you So let's say you're a funny person and you like to come across that way You're very relaxed you're outgoing, you know, you like talking to people stuff like that Then make a profile like that have your picture show you like that because that's who you are Have your profile be like that when you email perspective clients sound like that and because this will It will show who you are and so it will help you stand out in a way um On the other hand, it won't be something where you're trying too hard or you know You come across as fake or false or you know contrived because you're trying to stand out even though and it's completely unnatural also And and so yeah, so you will stand out but in a more natural way and the thing is, you know, a lot of people might think well You know, I'm usually too playful and I'm very loud and outgoing But most of these people say they want a more serious type of person I don't want to miss out on the type of clients who are looking for someone serious who you know, just gets down to work And uh, and I don't want to be too loud and miss out on that business Which is true on the other hand You could miss out on the other side as well, right? You could write up something that's very serious and just business-like and post that While you have a perspective client going through and they like the idea of someone loud And there's another profile of someone who looks loud and outgoing and fun And they'll be like, oh, I'd rather click on that person and deal with them So you couldn't miss out either way and at least if you're leading into who you are if you're Being more natural to yourself Then you will attract the type of clients that suit you So if you are outgoing and you like to joke around and that's type of your that's your personality You're more jovial. You're more like that then You will attract the type of clients who likes to work with someone like that And so you will attract a better type of client in the long term. Let's face it There is no profile that can guarantee you will attract a hundred percent of all the clients in fact As I've mentioned before a lot of it is just a numbers game because clients are just Scrolling up and down and so many times. It's just random or it's someone who Went to the same school that they did or you know Something catches their eye or something doesn't catch their eye and they they decide to go purely based They really is Kind of a crapshoot. Okay, you know, they're going to go by price on the other hand And I've talked about this at length before you don't want to just put lower prices Because I can create a huge downward spiral that you don't want that you want to create You want quality clients as well. And so What are you going to do? How are you going to differentiate yourself but not stick out too much? But make sure they can notice you etc. And I do think this is a good solution to lean into who you are You know who you are more or less I imagine and if not you can ask your friends because they're going to know what type of person you are And you'll be able to see and so if you are the type of serious person Who really doesn't like the frills and thrills and you just like to get your work done and that's it fine Don't walk away from that. Don't try to be more outgoing or look more flashy than you are Just put what you are how you are and trust me It'll work out better also because that's that is who you are and if you have to fake it You can only fake it for so long. So that's my advice now. I do want to Give a certain caveats to this because a lot of people they'll hear me say this and they'll they'll hear Oh, I should just Be who I am. I should be natural, which means I should never do anything I don't feel like doing because I should just be natural and that's it. That's not what I'm saying at all You this is not an excuse to not ever leave your comfort zone You need to leave your comfort zone. Sometimes you're going to have to do things that are hard that are different that feel You know that that are that are difficult to do that feel Forced in a way because you have to push yourself to do it um I'm not saying you shouldn't do these things You have to but there is a way to do them and still be natural Let me give you an example because it's easier than trying to explain it this way for me Meeting people face to face going to these networking events, especially is always an endeavor. It's always hard I never feel like going at all and you know, I'll just be there I'll even plan to go and I have everything ready and then to the last minute I'll be finding all types of excuses not to go And I I'll try to think oh I could actually keep getting work done or maybe this And then I won't have to go and I really have to force myself to go because I know it's good to go I know face to face meeting people face to face getting known around there creating a network all that stuff it's good to do and No matter how many excuses I try to find not to go. I know I need to go so What should I do? Should I mean I should Be fake so to speak and just go there and uh be the networking type of person Well, no, I feel like I can go there and still be myself So I know I need to network face to face But when I go to these events, I usually I don't try to act like the guy who feels comfortable talking to everyone and always Wants people to talk to and hang out with them likes a crowd and it's very Outgoing and extroverted and stuff. No, I don't pretend to be there I go there and I'll you know grab a beer and I'll choose a person or maybe two people to talk to and I'm open about it. You know, I say I say usually, you know, I I'm not used to going to these networking events. I have to push myself to do it Usually once I get there, they're fine. I'll find a couple of people to talk to I have a beer and I'm happy And so I say, you know, usually once I get here I you know, it's not bad at all and I kind of like it but you know, I really have to push myself to go to these things and seriously Almost all the time the person I'm talking to can relate And you know, either they'll say they'll say, yeah the exact same thing for me You know, I had to push myself and in which case right away, you have a camaraderie, you know You have a you have a partner in crime if you will and but even if not even if they feel very outgoing, you know They'll they'll tell you in fact, I've had a couple times where I've had someone who is obviously very outgoing. They feel very comfortable and they'll tell me they'll say look I used to be that way and but this is what I did in order to change or I had another guy who he actually mentors Other people and helping them be more outgoing and so I kind of brought that up and he's like, oh Good, you know, because I need I've been meaning to practice some of my mentorship skills and all that and and so we started talking about that Basically what I'm saying is if you're honest about who you are It really helps in the long term because you never know what'll click and it'll be great if you go out there pretending to be extroverted and outgoing and Yeah, you know might click but you're going to have to keep doing that which it will be very tiring and so Yeah, what I'm saying is lean into who you are be who be who you are and uh and Just go with that because chances are You'll find someone who will appreciate it and it'll be a lot more natural for you You'll feel a lot more comfortable doing it, which is good. This is not an excuse to not Ever step out of your comfort zone realize that you have to and you will have to do certain things to grow your Business and to build it but you can still do so while being comfortable in your shoes if you will and Being natural as a person I hope this made sense and I hope you're able to use this and in your endeavors and And yeah, I hope you're able to use it in your marketing where there's face to face They're also online with your profile in case you're wondering if you should stick out more or less or something along those lines because I know this can be you know an issue if You're trying to fit in but you're trying to stick out and you're not sure exactly how to go about this Because your online persona is a pretty big part of who you are when you're working as a freelancer and everyone's finding you online So I do hope you find this useful if you did, please don't forget to click like And don't forget to subscribe if you haven't yet and you will have more videos about freelancing about freelance translation And I'll see you in the next one. Thanks. Bye