When you’re true to yourself, your communication will always be authentic and unique. This is the advice of Erin Fraser, founder of Blankspace Co, a boutique marketing consultancy focussing on events, brands and lifestyle. After establishing a solid career with big brands such as Estee Lauder, Avon and Tom Ford, Erin took what she’d learned within the professional community she’d built and started something for herself. In today’s episode, Erin talks passion, reveals how to handle negativity and gives us her top tips for communicating…
Value Community.
This is what Erin is all about. She believes that it’s communities that allow individuals to make a difference; there’s a team behind every success. She describes herself as having three communities; personal, professional and philanthropic. Once distinct, every connection, conversation and contact she’s made over the course of her life has led her to now, where the lines are blurred, forming a single community united by passion.
This passion creates a ripple effect of sharing from person to person, community to community. By supporting others and allowing them to share and embrace that passion, it spreads. Her philosphy very closely aligns with that of Be The Drop, which builds on the quote a waterfall begins with one drop.
Erin’s community is very creative, generous and warm. One example of this is the Create project, of which she is the curator. Combining ballet with fashion, this community turns ballet shoes into pieces of art, which are auctioned at charity fundraisers to raise money for the National Ballet Company. It’s a beautiful opportunity for fashion designers to leave their signature mark and give back to a beautiful art form at the same time.
Handle Negativity With Grace.
Like all of us, Erin’s been faced with negativity at times. How does she deal with it? By learning that negativity projected onto you is not about you. It’s about them. So, stay true to yourself. Take a breath. Step away. Come back to it later. Act with grace. Talk yourself through it as though talking to a friend. By getting that distance from the situation, you allow yourself to see it from another perspective.
Make Communication Human.
“I look at communication the way I look at life; it needs to be balanced and integrated,” says Erin.
Tailoring your communication method to each scenario and using the senses to guide you results in a human approach. Online and social communication is incredibly valuable but it needs to be balanced with real human contact. The best things in life are experiences. Ask yourself when moulding your communications:
- How will it make people feel?
- What does it look like?
- What does it sound like?
- How will you touch people?
Be Yourself.
As individuals and brands it is important to represent a real sense of who we are. People want more than just what you are, they want to know your story, the why.
For Erin, it is about combining personal passion with business experience in order to live her best life. For her it is important not to define success within the parameters of someone else’s business. Erin’s goal is to be successful at life and not just at “what I do.”
Listen to Erin’s Be The Drop podcast episode here:
Thank you again for tuning in and listening to the BTD podcast, I can’t wait for this next installment to bring you more inspiring people talking about their strategies for connecting with and building a positive community.
Amelia xx
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