Last updated on September 27th, 2017 at 12:28 pm
Recently featured in Forbes, Tsufit is the author of award-winning book Step Into the Spotlight!: A Guide to Getting Noticed.
Tsufit is a former lawyer who has been described by the Toronto Star as “a starburst of energy― bright bubbly and upbeat” and by Publisher’s Weekly as a “coaching dynamo”. Her book has been endorsed by many New York Times best selling authors and experts.
Tsufit coaches professionals, entrepreneurs, business owners, authors, speakers, coaches, consultants and CEOs, to catapult their personal brands and get noticed.
Her unique story has been the subject of dozens of feature newspaper articles, and she was the subject of a national television documentary aired on several networks across Canada.
Tsufit is an in-demand keynote speaker, radio and TV show guest, and seminar leader.
In a nutshell, what is your book all about?
Tsufit: Step Into The Spotlight! : A Guide to Getting Noticed is about just that, how to get noticed in a noisy marketplace, how to stand out, how to attract, how to have clients lining up for you, instead of you having to chase them. The book is about how to use show business principles to attract business.
Tell me about your coaching, and what are some of the key tips you impart?
Tsufit: Here’s one.
An expert isn’t someone who knows what she knows.
An expert is someone who is known for knowing what she knows.
It’s not enough to be amazing at what you do.
You have to get seen, get heard, get noticed and get known.
That’s what I teach entrepreneurs and experts how to do.
And you know what? What I said about being known for knowing what you know, that’s what people think attracts them. But the truth is it’s not even that.
People want to feel that you get them.
Robert Collier, self-help author, once said: “Enter the conversation going on in the prospect’s mind.” Yup.
And unless you’re a heart surgeon, they really don’t give two hoots about your credentials, so you can stop amassing 67 letters after your name.
They’re more attracted by your story. Why else would Cindy Crawford have to drag in Dr. Sebagh and his melon extract to huck her face goop? Being a model isn’t enough. No, we want to know about the special mystical melon found only in France.
Why do strippers have themes like Tiffany the Traffic Cop, Fifi the French Maid? Taking your clothes off isn’t enough. Turns out people are paying for the story. So find yours and learn to tell it well—in 30 seconds.
There’s something a little different about you from other coaches? What is that “something”?
Tsufit: In a TV documentary years ago, one of my clients was asked a similar question. She said something like, “Tsufit is a delicious mixture of right brain and left brain, all in one person.”
Dean’s List litigation lawyer turns singer/songwriter/actress/comedienne/author. Maybe she’s right. Thought I’d take a test to find out, so did a very scientific Internet test to determine, once and for all, whether I was more creative or analytic. Result? It was as close to 50/50 as you can get. Maybe that’s why I’ve made it my mission in life to bring colour to business, humour, flavour. Enough with the “Blah, Blah, Blah”. In business all we’re really selling is the story.
You’ve got a great LinkedIn group. What is that about, and what kinds of discussion does it generate?
Tsufit: I launched our Step Into The Spotlight! community on LinkedIn as a Green Room or Backstage area for experts and entrepreneurs to hang out, and share their secrets and their vulnerabilities. We ask each other for advice, spill the beans on how we “got the gig”, stuff you don’t see in most groups.
What we don’t do is let experts post articles showing how smart they are.
No speech, teach or preach.
Why? ‘Cause we know you’re smart. Big deal. We’re there to ask each other behind the scenes stuff, questions about pricing, how you got a national radio show or a Ted talk, what you do with a pain in the butt client, stuff like that.
And because our rule is “post only short interactive questions about marketing” (publicity, branding, speaking, publishing) etc., there’s a ton of interaction. And people get media from it. They get clients. They collaborate on stuff.
Members tell me that ours is one of the only groups they hang out in daily. So, I’m there too. I get to know my members. I’ve even made a point of going out for coffee with members from the UK or Chicago or wherever when they pop by Toronto. I’m in a unique position to refer them to organizers of telesummits who need speakers, to journalists looking for sources.
What’s some advice to an entrepreneur that only you could give?
Tsufit: Stop being so damn boring! Stop trying to sound so professional. That’s not what sells, despite what you’ve been told.
Stop trying to tell everyone that you’re better than everyone else. You’re not. And even if you were, no one believes you. But that’s ok. ‘Cause it’s not “better” that sells. “Different” sells.
In fact, Different is better than better. More? Try to figure out what you’re really selling. Hint: it’s never what you think it is.
Also, stay in touch with your fans. Send them cool stuff – with their permission. Something like my free Spotlight Secrets series. Take a peek.
You input your name, and we slowly become BFF’s over time. When you need something, you hit Reply and ask me if I can help you. If I like you, I respond. A little chutzpah doesn’t hurt.
Add something like this into your business.
