Busting The Myths About You

Let’s face it: you’re branded the minute you walk in the door. It’s a cold hard truth that conclusions are instantly drawn about you and myths are formed based on assumptions, preconceived notions and first impressions. Any of those myths could be negative. In defense, many of us respond by pointing fingers and carrying a chip on our shoulder, which encourages exclusion. That’s one way to go. Another is to give the world a fearless representation of who you are.

Andy Warhol was one of the first major American artists to be open about his homosexuality; and he was criticized for it. He wrote in his book Popism, ‘‘I decided I just wasn’t going to care, because those were all the things that I didn’t want to change anyway, that I didn’t think I ‘should’ change… Other people could change their attitudes, but not me.” And lo and behold—people did change their attitudes.

I had a similar experience while attending the University of Alabama. I found myself confronted by a lot of students who didn’t know any one Jewish, or who had a negative impression of Jews because of prejudice they’d learned at home. In my four years at Bama, I worked to dispel those myths by becoming president of the Jewish sorority and developing its presence on campus in a way that had never been done before.
Maybe everyone sees you a certain way and you want to go in a different direction. Maybe you’re the youngest person on your team or the oldest, and you feel invisible. Maybe you’re a different color or you come from a different culture. You’re a woman in a man’s world or a man in a woman’s world. Bottom line: you often feel like a fish out of water.

If you are viewed negatively, accept yourself and others will follow. Feeling sorry about your differences will only make people doubt your value. When you’re different from the norm, you already attract attention; but the good news is that attracting attention may be the best thing that ever happened to you. Being unique puts you in the spotlight where it’s your choice and privilege to shine.

To start busting the myths about you, get out a piece a paper and jot down answers to the following questions:

1) What unique qualities do you have that are advantageous to your company, clients or and/or industry?
2) How are you being pigeonholed because of your differences?
3) How can you turn any negative perceptions about you into positive attributes?

The key to developing self-acceptance (even when you’re the only one like you) is to turn your focus toward what you have instead of harboring a sense of scarcity and always looking at what seems to be missing. Comparing yourself to others is the #1 way to sabotage your career. Creating genuine connections and having gratitude for what makes you uniquely you goes a long way to turning your differences into your advantage.

Robin Fisher Roffer is a leading brand strategist and reinvention specialist. Founder and CEO of Big Fish Marketing, she is the author of Make A Name For Yourself: 8 Steps Every Woman Needs To Create A Personal Brand Strategy For Success, The Fearless Fish Out Of Water: How To Succeed When You’re The Only One Like You, and Reinventing Yourself: 10 Steps To Shifting Your Career Into High Gear. Learn more about Robin at: http://bigfishmarketing.com