Let’s talk about how fascinating you are.

First, let’s break down what exactly “fascinating” means. It goes back to Roman times, when that word meant things like "captivation" and "spellbinding." It was almost perceived as an evil curse back then.

Today, fascination is more about how the world sees you. In other words, it’s about knowing yourself. More importantly, it’s about knowing what others know about you and how you can stand out in a crowded market place, which couldn’t be more important today. We have to focus on what makes us different. As our guest Sally Hogshead would say, "different" is better than "better."

Sally is a world-class branding expert who has discovered a new way to measure how people perceive you, and in this episode, she’s going to share how you can start leveraging your "Fascination Advantage" and stand out from the competition.

In this conversation, we cover:

• Why we’re all fascinating.
• The definition of fascination.
• How marketing replaced our instinctive force of attraction.
• Knowing more about yourself and what other people know about you.
• Why measuring what makes us different is more important now than ever.
• Valuing time over money.
• What you can learn from "The Fascination Advantage" assessment.

Listen to our conversation here.

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What makes us fascinating? Sally gave the closing keynote at the CCH User Conference in Miami Beach, where she had the unenviable task of trying to convince a room full of accounting and finance professionals how they can become fascinating.

Now that’s a steep hill to climb – but climb it she did!

Sally has developed an algorithm of sorts that will tell each of us where we are at our most fascinating -- in other words, where we stand out most from the rest of the folks who operate in our spaces. This is where our competitive sweet spot is.

She calls it “The Fascination Advantage,” and it’s a matrix that lays seven characteristics against each other on X and Y axis. Those seven characteristics are:

• Innovation: You change the game with creativity.
• Passion: You connect with emotion.
• Power: You lead with command.
• Prestige: You earn respect with higher standards.
• Trust: You build loyalty with consistency.
• Mystique: You communicate with substance.
• Alert: You present problems with care.

At the intersection of those seven characteristics is where that sweet spot is for you. That’s what sets you apart from the crowd, and that’s where you should be demonstrating what makes you unique to those you do business with.

This isn’t just theory or flavor-of-the-month type of stuff, either. This is data that’s been culled from more than a million professionals worldwide, and it goes beyond an individual perspective. There’s a team-building perspective built in here. This is an assessment that will help you better understand the communication styles of everyone on your team so you can see the value that everyone brings to the team.

This isn’t touchy-feely stuff. This is a powerful, differentiating competitive advantage, and now we have a tool to help us identify it. Look below to see how you can give it a try for free.

How do people perceive you? What differentiates you from everyone else in the market?

If you want to find out, you can use the code “FutureProof” to take Sally’s assessment for free at HowToFascinate.com/You.

It’s a great first step toward figuring out what sets you apart from your competition – and what your clients and customers find valuable about y0u.

Resources:

• Learn more at HowToFascinate.com.
• Take Sally’s assessment for free: Use the code “FutureProof” at HowToFascinate.com/You
• Follow Sally on Facebook.
• Follow Sally on LinkedIn.
• Follow Sally on Twitter.