Life is all about choices, right from what you decide to eat for breakfast to which job offer you decide to accept. Some are inevitably bigger than others, and some will make or break you as a person. But the biggest decision you have to make in life is this: what kind of person do you want to be?
Ever since I can remember, my parents have taught me right from wrong and instilled the importance of being a good person. I have always been taught to be polite, have good manners and respect those around me. When I first decided to branch out as a freelance writer and build up my own business, my parents had some more advice: “Be careful who you associate with, as who you associate with is who others believe you to be like.” In other words, you are judged by the company you keep.
As with all businesses and success, reputation is everything, whether it be online or offline, and when you build up your own business, your personal morals will really affect your venture. But how do you stay safe? Here is my list of top tips for your makeup business success.
Be careful of the company you keep
If you constantly find yourself hanging out with the type of people who always seem to be getting into some sort of conflict or unsavoury behaviour, now is the time to back away! As soon as people recognise you as being part of that crowd, alarm bells wills automatically start to sound. Keep good company with people who respect themselves and others around them. Standards – they matter.
Analyse the reputation and success level of any new potential business associate that comes your way to make an offer
Had the call from a company or individual wanting to collaborate with you on future projects? Do a little digging first. Take a look at their website, Facebook and Twitter pages: are they full of good self promotion and updates about their industry or are they full of vulgarities and immature sentiments? What does the company THEY keep say about THEM? If it’s unfavourable, do yourself a huge favour and politely decline.
Don’t spread yourself too widely
Being selective is key. Nobody wants to work with somebody who goes rushing off to every Tom, Dick and Harry to collaborate. By creating a selective list of associates, you automatically make your business more exclusive, therefore you are deemed more valuable than somebody who would agree to projects at the drop of a hat.
Keep abreast of developments in your industry and use social media to your advantage
Okay, so you write about fashion and beauty yet your twitter feed is all about what you ate for lunch or how drunk you got at the weekend. Yes, it’s okay to have a life and talk about this over social media, but do you really want your reputation to be based solely on drunken antics and stuffing your face? Once again, be selective about the information you choose to share. If you have a genuine passion for the job you do, it won’t seem any different to you to tweet or update your friends or followers on your chosen industry – it’ll come as second nature. Try signing up to an alerts programme which will notify you on developments for your specific requirements – it’s a brilliant way to find out hot news fast and engage with your followers daily.
Analyse your success – ask for feedback and learn from it
So, you’ve done your best but still don’t feel quite satisfied with your success in the industry. Maybe somebody hasn’t been happy with the work you produced, or maybe you don’t have quite as many followers/fans as you’d hoped for. The best thing you can do is ask for feedback. Critiquing may sound scary, but how can you expect to move on and deliver a great service/run a great business without knowing what is expected from you? Ask for constructive criticism, work on your flaws and come back stronger.
As Colin Powell said: “The less you associate with some people, the more your life will improve. Any time you tolerate mediocrity in others, it increases your mediocrity. An important attribute in successful people is their impatience with negative thinking and negative acting people. As you grow, your associates will change. Some of your friends will not want you to go on. They will want you to stay where they are. Friends that don’t help you climb will want you to crawl. Your friends will stretch your vision or choke your dream. Those that don’t increase you will eventually decrease you.”
I hope you enjoyed this article!
© This post is copyright of Rachael Divers 2013.
