In our professional lives, we often feel that we need to play a role... to be the professional we claim to be. And that is true to a degree. However, it can be taken too far. When we conform to the professional image too much, potential clients cannot tell us apart. Whether it is the way you do business, or even your hobbies, sharing your passions with current and potential clients makes you more human to them. And as humans, we prefer to do business with people we know, like and trust. Here is one example about sharing a hobby: An insurance broker I know shares his passion for surfing with his clients and is active in the surfing community. Consequently, a number of people he has surfed with have become clients. Why? When they needed an insurance broker, they shared surfing as a common bond and he stood out from all of their other options. One way to be clearer about how you are different, and why, is to clearly articulate your origin story. How did you come to be in the business you are, and why are you passionate about it? What aspect of it do you differently? That is a great way to differentiate yourself. Next month, I will talk more about origin stories and share my own. Until then, have a very happy holiday and celebrate your differences! It’s a lot more fun to be you than be someone else. Or, as Zig Ziglar said: “You will make a lousy anybody else, but you will be the best 'you' in existence.”