Do not ever downplay the importance of being genuine. Detecting and projecting this quality has been a part of the Dog Star way (or the Tao of Dog Star as we sometimes call it around here) dating back to the days when we offered sales training as part of our standard offerings. We learned the importance of this quality from Steven Covey in 7 Habits of Highly Successful People.
I have learned to trust my feelings on whether someone is begin genuine with me or not. I am not always right but I know it when I feel it now. I use this all the time and it helps me make decisions about hiring people, buying from people and companies and whether or not I want to work with people. Do I feel like they are being genuine with me or are they simply being polite with the express purpose of getting something from me? I am aware of this very keenly when I am shopping for something or if someone is trying to sell me on a concept or purchase. It comes down to trust... a trust that I want to establish going both ways.
We operate Dog Star Media with a genuine concern for our clients. We are genuine in our efforts and I hope to get the same from our vendors, referrals and even clients.
If there was any quality that I recommend you begin to observe it is this one. Learn to fine-tune your detector on this one. If someone is not genuine with you... if they are simply being polite or tolerant of you, learn to tell the difference. Those who are not genuine are hiding their true feelings and, in time, when their guard is down, will act on it. That’s why I do my best to weed out those who are not genuine as early as possible.
