Showing Your Personal Side

How much of your personal side do you reveal to your clients?

It's a tough question. Several years ago, with some trepidation, we put a page on our web site to give a whimsical view of the personalities of our firm's partners. We worried about whether doing so would seem too informal or frivolous but decided that it would be fun to have a page that is a tad unconventional. We expected that the page would become sort of an inside joke with our current clients.

What surprised us was how often clients and prospects commented favorably on the chance to get a humorous peek beyond the standard pinstriped biographies. It should be acknowledged that we did not get into any territory that might be knocking on the door of controversy - although car preferences and sports teams may do so in some quarters - but showing that we don't take ourselves too seriously could explain the appeal.

Have you noticed anything of a similar nature in your career? So much career and business advice goes in the opposite direction, there may be an advantage in showing the person behind the job title.