Digital Communications Etiquette w/ Michelle A. Whyte

If you’ve ever wondered how you could be handling communication better—listen up! Michelle A. Whyte joins me for a deep dive into communication styles, how etiquette has evolved with technology, what capacity has to do with etiquette, & why you must take it professionally before taking it personally.

This episode is jam packed! We touch on everything from networking events to DMs to emails to autoresponders and so much more. Want a little sneaky peak? One of my favorite quotes:

“Being able to approach it from a place of discernment and responding versus reacting really gives you a lot of power and confidence in how you navigate all your communications.”

- Michelle A. Whyte

→ Get full show notes here!

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Transcript

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Foreign. Welcome back to the Basic Bee podcast. I am so happy you're joining me yet again for another great guest episode. Today I'm joined by Michelle A. White, and we are talking all things digital communications etiquette. So we're going to be talking email and DMS and all the things. I have no idea where this is going to go. Neither does Michelle. So buckle up. All right. Before we bring Michelle on, here's a bit about Michelle. Meet Michelle A. White, the empress of etiquette. She's a magician at making etiquette feel real and relatable. She is a former wedding planner turned business etiquette advisor and speaker. She helps ambitious service providers and organizations go beyond manners, building purposeful relationships and mastering the people parts of business. Through her gentle, humorous, I can attest to that guidance clients gain unshakable confidence and sharpen their reputation, communication, and relationship building skills so they can serve their clients better. Michelle, I'm so thrilled to have you here. Listen, I have been so looking forward to this, and I love that it's gonna go where it goes and so we're gonna flow with it. And that excites me. It's gonna be a nerdy, good conversation. Oh, it sure is. And especially how we even got here, which I know Koe James name came up. I think Jordan Hill's name came up. Like, we had a whole bunch of people who were like, you two need to meet. And we're like, okay, all right, fine. Hi. Absolutely. So before we get into the actual meat of the conversation, there's a asking all of my guests. And as a reminder, for everyone in the viewing audience, as well as you, Michelle, there are no wrong answers. You ready? Okay. This is good to know. Yes. Now I'm ready. I got my game show hat on. Like, I am ready, Bob. Let's do this. I'm so glad you picked that up. All right, which do you believe is the most important for sales? SEO, storytelling, or social proof? It's all. Okay, say more. I like this. And it's because those three things should always be working for you, even when you aren't. And so it's a lot like what I talk about with your reputations, your communication, and your relationships. Those are the ambassadors for your business. And so in a more linear context, SEO and storytelling and social proof are kind of the same thing for your sales. You have to tell the story to draw people in, but then you need the social proof for people to have that credibility and that trust. And then you need SEO, because that's who brings it in and continues it on repeat when you're asleep. Right. So it's like you need all three. Final answer. I love it. Secret. That's not so secret because I recorded a podcast a while ago about it. All three is my answer, too, so I love it. But, yeah, there's truly no wrong answer because you need all the parts, just like you were saying, for your line of work. Speaking of that, tell us a bit more about where we should be considering our etiquette for digital communications in all of the places. Like, what are the locations? Ooh, that is a really great question. I don't think anybody ever ask it to me in that way. Where should you be focused? It's everywhere. It's a lot like my answer in the beginning, and I'll explain why. I know that sounds big and broad, and sometimes that can feel really scary, but here's where we've evolved in terms of technology. Every keystroke counts. Every keystroke is permanent, and you can go from victim to villain and villain to victim in a keystroke. And so when it comes to that etiquette, it's no longer just email. Like, do you remember voicemails? Oh, my gosh. Like, getting on the phone isn't necessarily the first line of communications for a lot of businesses, and especially online business owners, but you still have to have that skill in your back pocket, right? You still have to be mindful of your tone. You still have to be mindful of your presence. Only now, the first entry point for a lot of our clients happens to be online. That's our new yellow pages. That's our new billboards. That's our new commercials and ads and magazines. We have to be mindful in the way that we're showing up. And we also have to be mindful with the words that we're using and the tone in which we're taking. Because message sent isn't always message received. So we've got to be mindful of everything at all times. Because the Internet never closes. That is so true. And that little nugget that you just shared, message sent is not always message received. Yeah, it gets a lot of people, like, because you sent it and because you know what you meant and because you know what you intended, does it mean that it's received that way on the other side, if at all? Sometimes people didn't get your message, and so they're not ignoring you. You know, sometimes it literally means message not received, and other times it means the intention of the message isn't Received. Oh, that is so true. So I know for me, I'll just share a little bit and then we can kind of like pick it apart or like go deeper with it, but let's do it. I email my, my list quite regularly and if I ever get a response where someone says, oh, you know, could you clarify this? Or I loved how you shared that, that reminds me of this story. I often, or they will often will go to the DMs over on Instagram. And I love that just like you. And I love Voxer because you can do the voice notes and you can actually hear someone's voice, but we can't do that if we're just typing things out. And even actually this reminds me of a conversation I had yesterday with a potential client who's deaf. And so we were talking about, like, how can we actually go about navigating communication in a way that this person is able to hear me and respond to me and vice versa. So I don't know if there's a question in there, but is there anything you want to like, latch onto? It's that plus, right? Because a lot of times we don't necessarily think about the etiquette of accessibility. Until you're confronted with a thing, you don't always know that it's a thing that you need to work on or work through. Right. And so we also have to be mindful that people communicate differently. And so although we love our avatars, we love to call in exactly who we want and where they shop and how old they are. And the fact is, is we, we don't know that that exists. Because you shop at Target and because you're in that age range doesn't mean that we communicate the same ways. And so it's really important to not only just understand more about who you are. I'm big on self awareness and starting from that point of strengths, but it also makes it easier to identify and even pivot when you know someone speaks a different language, so to speak, or quite literally, uh, but you're able to then know who you're talking to to be able to position yourself to engage and not alienate that person. So when someone reaches out via DM1, you're building that trust and that credibility and they feel comfortable enough to reach out. But it's also recognizing and identifying like the way in which that person communicates. Your whole list isn't made up of that one type. So sometimes it's a pat on the back to let you know, hey, this is doing a great job. And I'll give you an example. I send out a message to like, people in my network once a month just to keep the engagement going. And I got a response the other day that was like, can you take me off your list? And it was just like, ooh, this isn't a list. It's really me reaching out to you. But I recognize and understand, I appreciate you sharing with me that it's not being received that way on your end. So it helps me be able to go back and look at the way the message is maybe even crafted or the verbiage that I'm using that maybe makes it sound a little more generic than that personal touch that I strive for. So we can look at it just as feedback, which helps us figure out what to double down on and what to ditch. That's good. And actually you're reminding me of. I was curious to ask you about like automations and autoresponders and that kind of thing because I was very resistant, as Colleen knows, to even have any automations because I too am very big on the personal touch and I didn't want to lose that. But we were able to find a way to weave it in. But I am curious, just like, what has your experience even been with autoresponders and automations, whether you're using them or you've worked with a client through navigating a sticky situation or something. Yeah, I think it has a place. And much like you, you have to find your ebb, your flow and your right fit. For me, I was very much Emmanuel Michelle for most of my business, which is knocking at 20 years at this point. But I did things manually and again, I had to kind of evolve and recognize that automations doesn't mean I had to lose that personal touch. And so for me, there's places for it where it really does help me and there are places where I'm still very resistant to. And so if I have to reach out to a client week after week, that should be a template. I shouldn't necessarily have to go in every week and craft this. I know where to plug the line in. Right. I leave the template open where I add that personal touch. But overall, the email itself should be pretty systematic. Here are the four things I need from you this week. Here are the four things to expect from me coming up. You know what I mean? Like, that doesn't require as much specialization in other aspects, I'm fairly resistant. I am a little different on that out of office email because sometimes when those who shouldn't be contacting you, get a response, then they take it as a response and an invitation to keep contacting you. So I think I am of the proactive standpoint of I let as many people know I'm going to be out of the office, so that it's not that automated generated response that also invites people in that I don't want in my circle. That's interesting. So it's tricky. It is tricky. Well, I haven't personally run into that because I've only really, in the last year or so started using the like, hey, I'm out of the office for a bit and I'll get back to you as soon as possible. Which you actually saw because it was up when we were on the holiday break. So I've been playing around with it. I haven't received that. Where the conversations that are less invited in are happening, shall we say? And it's something I definitely notice around either the holiday times where everyone's selling everything and at the first of the year where it's just like throw spaghetti at the wall and see what sticks. And again, it's uninvited. They aren't the people you actually want to hear from. They aren't the people who are on your list who invited you into their inbox. It's those people who are just like, hey, do you want this to look better? Do you want more followers on ig? It's like your information's out there. And so sending an auto response is just like, you have to think about what that says and what it invites people to do and what it commits you to. And I am not willing to say I'm going to get back to you in 24 to 48 hours or on this date if I have no intention of responding because we don't know each other. You know what I mean? It's like, this isn't a real opportunity, this is spam. So I'm not acknowledging spam. And so that's where I've been kind of resistant. I don't have just that automatic. Every email in gets this responder type of thing. So I communicate as much as I can on the front end and anyone who's in my inbox or sort of gets in there, I check it, you know what I mean? So it's just like I get back with and I'm like, message received. I'll be back in touch here, you know what I mean? So that's my way of doing it to each everyone's own. But those are some of the things that I think about, and maybe it'll offer some insights to somebody else. Yeah, true. I mean, I'm sure there's going to be sparks flying all over the place for people with different ideas and pings and insights, and I can't wait for this. I do have a friend who uses that just, like, as an aside, where she has it, like, constant autoresponder. And it's just a lot. And because I know that that's coming, I may not pay as much attention to it. I'm guilty of the same thing. It's just like, oh, you're not there. Well, it's on my mind and I still need to tell you the thing before I forget. So I send it anyway. I'll follow up later, but I have to get it off my checklist. So it's an odd space to be in because we communicate so much now. Yeah, we do. So a lot of my conversations span several different platforms. It's a joke that my podcast producer and I are like, we're really, really good friends. And so we'll talk on Telegram and Instagram and Slack and email and, and, and, and. And so it's like, certain people, like, that's cool. And you can take a conversation all over the Internet and then other people, it's like, I need you to be here. And with some things, I very much am like, I need to be here. And even only here and only here. And Leah and I have done that where it's like, all right, Telegram is this space. Email is this space. Slack is this space. Yes. Giving purpose to it is huge because everyone doesn't have to be invited in for everything. Yeah. And so it's really important for you to be able to define that because otherwise other people will define it for you. So I think this is where my brain was thinking earlier of just, like, setting expectations. One thing you mentioned was with an email response and saying, Even saying, message received. I have been this person sometimes. I also have clients who are this way. I also have clients who deal with clients who are this way, where it's like, I just can't deal with that right now. And so they leave it as unread or they mark it in there, whatever. But we have no idea. And that has not been communicated to us. So one thing I realized is that if I want a response, I need to ask for a response. Ooh. But not everybody has had that. Right? Not everybody has had that epiphany. I love that. Speak to that for us. I love that. Because it's two Faced as. I mean, I hate to say almost everything is there's no set it and forget it way to do any of it. So on one side of things, it's like, I received that email, I don't have the capacity. I'll get to it. Your client or who's on the other end of that doesn't know. They just don't know. When you communicate and you receive, you're gauging your capacity. But the person on the other side of that email doesn't know that it was received. Right. It goes back to what we talked about when we started our conversation. Message sent doesn't necessarily mean message received. And so communicating. I'm big on acknowledging receipt of an email. Right. To say that I'm going to get to it. But I did get it so that people aren't left wondering. And I think that's a lot of times where we start miscommunication because then if someone follows up because they don't know that you got it, then you're annoyed because they're following back up. Right. When that's what they need to happen, you know. And so I love that you go a step beyond. It's just like, can you respond to either let me know that you got it or let me know the answer to whatever I'm asking. I do think we do a lot of implications because email is so easy now. We talk in pictures most of the time. Right. And so between DMs and emojis, there's so many different ways to communicate that is no longer standard. We have to go above and beyond to make sure we are being clear, to make sure we are communicating to different archetypes and personalities. Right. And to make sure that we aren't stuck in our own pet peeves and recognize that our ways are the only ways of doing a thing. So we just have to be more mindful of all of our communication across all of our platforms. Yeah. And I will say that's a very new thing where if I want a response, I need to ask for their response. And one of the really big tipping points was I had a client and they were just so overwhelmed by the thing and they had had such a negative response reaction experience with something previously. And so it wasn't me, but it was all of that stuff that had salt poured in the wound just because I sent an email with the Deliverable and they didn't open it for like two or three months. I didn't know that. I followed up a couple times. It got to the point Where I just moved the project to complete because I was like, I guess we're good here. Yeah, I mean, I haven't heard anything, but you know, I was stuck in that weird spot of like, I want to make sure they're okay. I want to make sure that we're good and that they don't need any modifications. But I also want to be respectful of like, they very much seem done with. Right. And it is tricky. Again, there's no right way. It's just making sure we're being mindful of it is scheduling that follow up or putting it on your calendar to follow up. And it's setting your own expectation of communication delivered and also communication received. So in a situation like yours, we take for granted what's implied. It's like, oh, I sent the email, you should know, I want this, this, this and this. And I break down for my clients. I had a client who got an email and she wanted to know how to respond to it. And it was someone in her membership and the email implied that they no longer wanted to be a part of it. We went line by line. I was like, there's no ask in this email. So where we get very emotional and wanted to respond. And a lot of times we get caught up and wanted to respond fast and not accurately. You know, it's just like, let's take a step back. You want to make sure you're acknowledging it. It's like, just acknowledge receipt. Just acknowledge that you got it and we'll get back to it. Right? We'll go through the process. And from there it was like, there's no ask. So now the ball is back in your court. You can respond from a place of authority instead of reaction from an emotional place. And so it was just like, okay, because there's no ask, you can now decide if you are addressing the implication and providing the steps for unsubscribing. But you don't have to take that as she might just be venting. You can respond with, okay, I understand. What would you like to happen? What do you need from me? How can I support you? You know what I mean? Or you can say, I recognize that you felt anxious. I want to go ahead and provide you the steps to cancel in case this is what you're asking for. It is reading between every keystroke to try to figure out what's going on. But when you are quick witted, you've gotta be on top of your game. You have to be in a position to recognize that it's not always you, it's not you. It's not about you. And being able to approach it from a place of discernment and responding versus reacting really gives you a lot of power and confidence in how you navigate all your communications. It really does. And it took me years to understand that it's not always me. Yes, years. Some days it's still questionable, but like. Years, it's ongoing because we also don't necessarily know the tone or the intention of the other person. So you have to almost take it professionally before you take it personally. Oh, for sure. And for the sake of your brand, right, for the sake of your reputation and your relationships, you have to take it professionally and not so much personally. Even when it comes to reviews. Especially when it comes to reviews, Brittani. And that is difficult for people. Listen, I love to read reviews. Especially like I like to eat. So restaurants and that type of thing. I love to read them. It's the same as like binge watching a show on Netflix for me, because I'm yelling and I'm going, why would you write that? Because your response on a review isn't to the person who wrote the review. It's to the future client who might be reading the review. It's like you wanting to tell the person, well, you came late and you did the. That is unhelpful. I know you think you're laying out a foundation for why it happened. It's like, it's not. This is not the way to approach that. So again, I can read where the emotional knee jerk reaction is coming from versus somebody who just owns it. Because they recognize the responses for their future client. Because they're judging you and making decisions about how you might handle conflict in these reviews, they're pregaming for what might happen to them. Right. And they're reading someone else's experience and how you handle that says so much more than any words you could ever write. A hundred thousand million percent. Because I'm over here just like nodding vigorously. Another example is like Airbnb reviews. My boyfriend and I have been, you know, hopping around living in short term rentals for, I think we're going on like 4ish years, although we finally found like a more stable spot. Thank you. Wow. It's been a lot. But as part of our criteria, and I recently was sharing this with a friend who's about to do the same thing and just like go and do short term rentals while they're figuring out where they want to live. One of the steps in our process was to go and look at the reviews for these places because it's two year point. It's like, if and when a problem arises, how are they going to handle it? Because we're reasonable people and we think we're reasonable people and I think we all think we're reasonable people, but we. Do until we aren't. Yes, right, Exactly. But yeah, I mean, that is such a good point that you're writing the response for your future potential clients and customers. Yes, Airbnb's are. I mean, it's a goldmine of just get your popcorn, add a little extra butter and read away. But I do. And I'm always surprised at how more people don't see it this way. I guess it really can be your own superpower. When something seems so easy to you, that's really hard for others. It's just like, yeah, this is how I make my determination. I'm reading the reviews first because I also look at when people have five star reviews. I know this is just me getting nerdy and off topic, but when people have those five star reviews, I look even deeper because I need to know if Those are from 2001 or last week or a friend makes a difference. Right. Because there were a few people that we stayed at their Airbnbs and we were like, there's no way in h e double hockey sticks that this is a legit person stranger who was just like, I'm going to choose to stay here and I'm going to rent this. Well, like, no. Yes. Now I'm the one getting off topic, but for real. But it all adds up into communication and even reputation because believe it or not, like these things that seem so frivolous, right? And even entertaining really matter to all of us as small business owners and entrepreneurs because they're so intertwined and you need to know what depths your client are willing to go before working with you. It's no longer a build it and they will come. No, build it and they will look. They will decide if they're coming later. You know what I mean? And they take lots of steps before recognizing and they look to see if someone is that 1%. These things go wrong, you know, 1% of the time, no one wants to be that for your fee. I don't care what your fee is. No one wants to be that 1%. And so they want to know how you're going to handle the off chance of something going wrong. Which is why reviews tend to be so valuable and so important. But they are a source of feedback as all communication can be your DMs. It's a feedback either as to how you can pat yourself on the back or tighten up your back end. Either way is true. Oh, this is so good. I have one more question that just popped in my head or kind of like statement thing that we can explore. And then I would love to hear, just to get you like, noodling on this, some of the principles or strategies that you might be able to share with us. Go for it. So my one little one off thing, I'm realizing as you're sharing these different examples and moments and we're talking about it, that I tend to be more on the proactive side of communicating. For example, I have someone who's in one of my programs and I haven't heard from her. And I had already checked in with her once and she did respond and she was like, you know, life is lifing. And it's been another, like, few weeks. And I'm like, all right, life is probably still life. And so I checked in with her and I'm like, hey, are you good? Nope. No, I'm not. I'm in here. I feel like I haven't been able to do anything. And I'm like, what can I do? What can I offer? Here's this or this. And she's like, could we do the second option? Because I really want to make sure that I get your eyes. And, you know, I feel like I'm able to do something with this since I've paid money for it. And I'm like, cool, let's do that. But I know that a lot of other people are more reactive and sometimes situations just happen and that you are reactive to it. It's putting you in a spot where, like, you were talking about with your client, where someone wrote in about the membership and how it sounds like they maybe weren't super happy with it. For someone like me, where that is just so innate. Do you feel like that's a good thing? Do you feel like it's better to be more on the, like, let them send you the message or like, any thoughts there? It can be a great thing if you are proactive and that is your style and that is your brand reputation. It's almost what's expected. Like, it's an unexpected perk. Like, people look to know that they are being seen in your membership. So that probably goes as a pat on the back for you. It's like, oh, she recognizes I haven't been showing up. I haven't been as active. But you are also Leading with empathy to go, hey, how's it going? We have to have different touch points in our system. It's not necessarily got an email, send an email. I think critically about these things you're thinking as an entrepreneur and as a CEO, how you're problem solving scenarios that haven't happened yet. So it's just like, if this happens, how would I respond to this? Or what would I do about this or what my stance is on this? It's just like, how do you feel about people who don't use their membership? Is it right or is it wrong? No, you know what I mean? It's not right and it's not wrong because we all have different styles, but we also all have areas of improvement. So for someone who is a little more reactionary, it doesn't mean that it's wrong. It just may be an area of improvement for you. If you're a responder, until that client comes in, you won't know that you need to change that expectation or you're becoming proactive about your self awareness and your communication styles. And now you're like, I know this is a place where I could beef up my leadership in terms of my communities and my clients and you're going to go ahead and start looking for resources and options to improve it. So I think it all just becomes areas of improvement in which we could look into. I love that so much. And I was hoping and thinking that your response would be somewhere along those lines, but because I don't ever want it to be like, I'm doing it this way and it's the right way. It's just like, no, like, let me share this because maybe someone listening hasn't thought about doing something like that. Or maybe they had, you know, a scenario recently where it's like, oh, yeah, I did do that. Oh, cool. Like pat themselves on the back too. Communication is all about perspective. And yours isn't the only one. So I love to share with my clients. It's two plus two equals four. So does five minus one. So your way isn't the only way. Right. And so your perspective on things isn't the only way. And that's the way I really approach. And it's probably how I make things so relatable because I recognize that my perspective and my life experiences are one. Sometimes they offer insights and help you get to a next level or an understanding in a different way. But it isn't a right or wrong that you should adopt. My job is to help you find your special sauce, your signature approach because you have different life experiences that have shaped who you are at this moment in time. How you want to move forward is based on a perspective of either how your clients see you or how you want to be seen. That's the real trick. You can say all the nice things about yourself that you want, and I do want you to believe that. I want you to have that confidence. But your reputation is what they say about you, is their experience of you. That really is what matters and drives those referrals and drives those repeat customers. I love how we're weaving in the social proof, especially with something like SEO, because my process starts with social proof. And what are your people saying and how are they describing it and what's the tone, what's the emotion that you're able to notice? So do you have some strategies or principles of etiquette that we could take and apply to DMs, to emails, to, you know, networking events, whatever it may be? Absolutely. I'm a big proponent of self awareness. So if you haven't done something that puts you in line with who you are, I say knowing your pet peeves, your preferences first helps you then be able to interact and navigate others. So I'm always big on that. You have to know what your triggers are, what your life experiences are that brought you to the type of CEO and entrepreneur that you are currently operating as. From there, you have to recognize that your clients are different people. Sometimes, no matter who you're trying to call in, you're not calling in you, you're calling in those like you, and they have had different life experiences that get there. So I think it's kind of a combination of the way that I start and the way that you start. Right. I think it's clear that you have to start with knowing who you are. If you don't have that confidence, someone and a negative review will break you down. So you have to know where you're strong and where you need areas of improvement. From there, you really have to be clear on what your brand values are. That way you know how you are leading. So for me, I say personally and professionally, it's sort of its own personalized PR plan that you're creating. Right. It's not just sales, it's not just marketing. How is your brand being received? So that speaks to, to what you do in the SEO and that social proof, what do you know about yourself? What do you want communicated about yourself and then what are others saying about you? Those are those three key areas. And so when it comes to basic. And I'm talking basic, basic etiquette that you can literally apply to all aspects of your life. It comes down to what I call your ABCs, your attitude, your behavior, and your communication. So are we in line with those three things? Are we projecting these brand values and our attitude and the way that we communicate? Are we behaving in these same ways? Are we responding or reacting in these same ways? So you're always looking to build the relationship, even if it isn't what's best for you. And that's a really hard thing for people to apply. Not understand, but to apply, right? So one of those first questions I ask is, is this a relationship that I want to keep? Because that really determines your way forward. Are we scorching the earth and we don't care? Or are we responding in a way that creates some sort of amicable solution? So I think it's really important to lead from those aspects because when problems arise, then you are going to know how to take that step back more quickly. Right? It won't take days. You'll just be able to sort of hit pause and decide what the best step is moving forward. So every DM isn't a negative one. It also isn't always a positive one. But nonetheless, you've got to decide if you want to be seen as a person who's consistent. Then you acknowledge receipt. Same with your emails, same on LinkedIn. And it's hard keeping up with multiple platforms, which is why most of the experts tell you to choose one or two. And don't get me wrong, I'm guilty of the same things. I don't always respond to all the requests on LinkedIn the same way as I do on Instagram. You know what I mean? So you have to decide where you need to tighten up and where you're already strong. But it really comes down to that attitude, that behavior, and those communications that we send out in every interaction, in every engagement. That is how we build those strong reputations that we really want. That is so interesting. And especially as you're talking about the values, I have mine on my about page because I wanted them front and center. Not just for everyone else who's coming to the page, but for me, too. And it's an easy spot that I can go and be like, all right, am I actually. Am I doing the thing? Because we use words a lot, we love to say them, we write them, we put them everywhere. Right? It's copy and we need it, but are we embodying it right? And I Think that's the real trick? It's just like, ooh, when something isn't going your way or when you don't get that perfect client. How are we embodying these brand values? And so that is the essential core of etiquette, is how we're interacting with one another. And that's always going to go beyond words on paper. It's going to be what we practice. That is so good. Okay, as we wrap up, I know you have a quiz for different types of entrepreneurs. Can you tell us more about this? I do, I do, I do. It's the client connection quiz. Because we all want to know how to serve our clients better, right? And so I've created a quiz that identifies four different archetypes, which are pretty much the four common people you're going to run into. And I say at a bare minimum, you're going to take the quiz because you need to know who's who in any room. From there, you're going to be able to identify where some of these gaps and area improvement may be. You're going to understand how others can perceive you in terms of the way in which you're communicating. If you're an analytic, you might be really about data and information and solutions. Right. And if you're a diplomat like me, I'm very relationship centered. And so I want to know about you more than I want to know about the job that you do. We'll get there, but I really want to know more about you and how you chose it and why. Analytic doesn't care. And so the quiz helps me be able to adjust and pivot more quickly when I am able to identify who I am likely talking to. I can always position myself to connect and interact with anyone in any room. And I think that is the skill that we need. You don't have to change who you are, but you do have to identify with how others perceive you or can perceive you and know how to adjust accordingly. So I love it, but I'm nerdy about it. I have a feeling I'm also a diplomat because I have a feeling I understand how you made the quiz. Fun fact. The very first copywriting projects I ever did were quizzes. And they are a beast. They're interesting, right? But it's so fun. It is. And I think there's so much value in it, but you've got to know how to apply it. So my thing is, as always, and let me give this disclaimer, this isn't a label for you to hide behind. Oh, I'M just this way. This isn't about that. If you are in this space, right, you want to be an entrepreneur of integrity and value and also success. This is going to help you do that because you're going to know the skills you already possess, but you're also going to be able to position those around how other people have success in their lanes. Right. And know how to kind of put your indicator on and change lanes and change back. Right. It's just like we're driving. That's why I say navigating the people parts of business, because it's what's unpredictable. And this gives us our best chance of assigning a little more predictability to the unpredictable. This is such a good conversation. I can't wait to go back and listen to it again and take notes and also take your quiz. I know there are going to be people who are like, Michelle, I need to know you. Where do you hang out? Where can people find you? Website, social, all the things. Yes. Well, like I said, I'm a diplomat, so I'm very much relationship based. You can catch me on Instagram, send me a voice note, send me a DM. I am getting better in 2025 about my LinkedIn. So just know if that's your platform of choice, that's an area of improvement. And I come over there a couple times a week to establish my consistency and you can hold me accountable there as well. Oh, that is so great. This has been really just such a fun conversation and a very insightful one. So just thank you so much for joining me. I love this, Brittany and I don't know, I feel like we haven't even scratched the surface. Oh, because we haven't. Oh, my gosh. But I hope this gives people a starting point and a footing to really kind of change their trajectory with the way that they're communicating and the etiquette behind it. Oh, for sure. Like you said, it touches everything. It goes everywhere with us. So thank you so much and I will catch you next time.