Are you positioned as the guide?

Have you noticed in every incredible story, the hero always has a guide?

Luke Skywalker had Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Timo Cruz and the Richmond Oilers had Coach Carter.

Moana had Gramma Tala...and Maui had Moana.

LeBron had D-Wade and Pat Riley.

Why is this?

It’s because this is the way life is. We are not self-made people. We are created to need help, connection, and empowerment from outside ourselves.

We love heroes who need guides because this is the common human experience. We can relate to that hero. We all need the help of a guide who is empathetic to our struggles and who has the experience and credentials to help us overcome them.

As much as '80s babies like to think MJ won six rings by himself, we forget that he didn’t win in Chicago until he found the right guide: Coach Phil Jackson, who had won championships with the Knicks as a player decades earlier.

As your customers come to you with their problems, position yourself as the guide, and they will be more inclined to work with you. If you position yourself as the hero, you are competing with your customer for the spotlight. Not a good way to make a sale or to serve.

You can position yourself and your services as the guide in two important ways on your website and in all your messaging:

1) Express empathy

Show them briefly that you’ve been in their shoes. Explain how you’ve walked through the same obstacles.

2) Express authority

Show them that you have overcome (or even are overcoming) their obstacles and have training, experience and/or credentials to help them do the same.

They want to know you are with them in the scary cave and have the map and tools to get them out. Do this and your business will grow.

For the good of your work…