Think about the great actors you've seen. Some of them are stars, but most "stars" wind up playing characters with the same personality time after time. Now think of the actors you've seen who can play a variety of characters, all very different and all completely believable. Why do you suppose there are so few truly great actors? I believe it's because real acting is extremely difficult. Real acting is the ability to "become" another person, so convincing that we accept that acting as a character's true behavior. I believe that great actors have the ability to create their characters by building on meaningful pieces of their own experience.

What does acting have to do with business? Some of the business owners I meet feel they need to play some imagined role - the boss, the salesman, the customer service professional - and they're bad actors. As a customer, I just want you to be competent and care about my needs, my concerns and my problems. I want you to honestly try to help me, or honestly say, for good reason, that you can't. When you can do that, it's not acting.

Any good actor can play his part when the curtain rises. You need to play your part whenever required, so play yourself using what you know. Like the greatest actors, it's all about tapping into your experience, what makes you unique, and using those experiences that fit your role and leaving any of the other "baggage" behind. By tapping into those experiences you can fulfill the role without acting. That's what I mean by being authentic. You too can be one of those great actors. Grab yourself an Oscar!

One of the things I constantly remind my clients to consider is who their target market really is.That's because everyone's target market changes over time as their business evolves and the world changes around them. Constantly review whether the networking you are doing right now is leading to sales. If it is, that's great. If not, why not? Time, not money, is your most limited resource. Invest it wisely.