CHAPTER 3
Create Your Defining Statement
Seven Rules, Four Tips, and Three Tests
Creating a great defining statement can be challenging. If you take some time to review the rules, tips, and tests, the process will be made easier. For many the difficulty comes in wanting a final statement that says everything and will attract anyone anytime anywhere.
A little-known trap we can fall into is the perfection trap. You might want to dot every i and cross every t before you venture out into the marketplace. I hear it all the time, and I understand what you might be feeling. You want the perfect website, the perfect brochure, the perfect set of collateral materials, or the perfect way to introduce yourself.
If you fall into one of these traps, remember what I call a chiropractic adjustment for your head or heart: Done is better than perfect.
This isn’t letting you off the hook in terms of doing your work. It should guide you in getting yourself out there or tying a ribbon around a tool before it is built to perfection. In fact, it may never be perfect, and that is okay.
Caution: You do not have to meet all seven rules, four tips and three tests. I like to live in a world of two or more right answers. Let’s get you to a good-to-very-good defining statement. Then test and tinker with it. In time and with usage, you will come to own it.
Done is better than perfect.
The Seven Rules
1. Use eighth-grade language.
2. Use conversational language.
3. Use attraction-based language.
4. Use language that is dream-focused versus pain-driven.
5. Use language that contains what you do and who you do it for.
6. Use a dual-focus or two-part defining statement.
7. Use language that can be repeated.
Eighth-Grade Language
When you use language to impress another person, it will usually backfire and not make a good impression. If a prospect does not understand a word you are using, he or she may not have the interest or take the time to ask you to explain. Major newspapers are typically written at a sixth-grade reading level. When in doubt, a dictionary or a thesaurus can help you with alternate words to use and ways to simplify phrases.
Many computer systems have a built-in readability tool, similar to spell check or word count. The Gunning Fog index or Flesch-Kincaid readability tool will give you an accurate readability score. You can use this tool to score your defining statement, paragraph, and story. You can also use it when you write a blog post, newsletter issue, or article.
The Gunning Fog Index and Flesch-Kincaid tool are defined as readability tests designed to show how easy or difficult a text is to read. Both give the number of years of education that your reader hypothetically needs to understand the paragraph or text. The formulas
