Long ago in a small village, in a land that was far, far away, there was a place known as the House of 1,000 Mirrors. It was a beautiful and magical place with dozens upon dozens of reflective glasses of all shapes, sizes and varieties.
One day, a happy little dog learned of this wonderful place. Completely intrigued, he decided he would venture out to visit. When he arrived, he bounced happily up the stairs to the doorway of the house. He eagerly looked through the doorway with his ears lifted high and his tail wagging as fast as it could.
Happy dogs create happy dogs
To his great surprise, the happy dog found himself staring at 1,000 other happy little dogs with their tails wagging just as fast as his. He smiled a great smile, and was answered with 1,000 great smiles just as warm and friendly. As he left the house, he thought to himself, “This is a wonderful place. I will come back and visit it often.”
In this same village, there was another little dog. This little dog, however, was far from happy. Rather, he led a somber life, ever serious and suspicious. Still, when he learned of the House of 1,000 Mirrors, he wanted to see its beauty. When he arrived, he slowly climbed the stairs one by one, and walked towards the door with his head hanging low and his tail between his legs.
Somber dogs create somber dogs
To his shock, when the somber dog peered around the corner into the magical house he saw 1,000 unfriendly dogs staring back at him. Hoping to change his situation, the somber dog growled. To his horror, all 1,000 little dogs growled back. Completely panicked, the somber dog scampered out the door, tripping over his own four feet down the stairs. As he ran away, he thought, “That is a horrible place. I will never go back again.”
Whether you know it or not, you visit the House of 1,000 Mirrors every day. You see, all the faces in the world are essentially mirrors. What they reflect back to you is exactly what you project to them.
This then, begs the question: What kind of reflections do you want to see on the faces of the people you meet? Whatever your answer, know that when it comes to your personal brand you control what you want and you are responsible for what you get.
Author:
Frank Agin is the founder and president of AmSpirit Business Connections. In addition, Frank is the author of Foundational Networking: Building Know, Like and Trust To Create A Lifetime of Extraordinary Success and the co-author of LinkedWorking: Generating Success on the World’s Largest Professional Networking Website and The Champion: Finding the Most Valuable Person in Your Network.
