We all need permission.
Permission to do.
Permission to be.
Permission to try.
Permission to have.
I talk a lot with my clients and associates about their brands providing permission. About them standing for something that’s real, putting forth messages that are meaningful, saying things — out loud — that other brands won’t have the courage to say.
I encourage business owners to make it easier for their clients and customers to own themselves and speak for themselves by aligning themselves with brands that feel the way they do about things that are important to them. To give their clients permission.
Last week, the world lost an amazing soul and an amazing brand: Prince Rogers Nelson.
And this morning, as I danced around the house nearly shouting the lyrics to “Cream” and “Gett Off” and “When Doves Cry,” I shocked myself a little when I cried. I was more than a little surprised at the size of the hole that had opened in my heart just days ago when I learned that an icon I longed for — straight from my soul, for so many years — had died alone, in his elevator.
And I realized something for the first time:
Prince gave me permission.
