Episode 18 - How to Find Your Unique VIBE as a Toy Industry Professional
What if your biggest leverage point isn't your product, your pitch, or your pricing, but your VIBE?
Not your vibe as in mood, but your Visible Impact and Bold Energy – that signature you bring into every trade show, buyer meeting, product launch, or brand moment. Because when the right person enters the room with the right vibe, everything shifts. Clarity sharpens. Momentum builds. Ideas stop being hypothetical.
In today's noisy toy industry, where it seems everyone has more followers, bigger budgets, or better connections, how to find your unique VIBE might be the most important business strategy you're not using.
The Power of V.I.B.E. in Business
Recently, I spoke to seven young women in an entrepreneurship program. They'd visited innovation labs, heard from top branding professionals, learned about PR from industry giants. When it was my turn, I could have talked about my varied startup experience – creating new departments, launching new products, building things from scratch in every role since college.
Instead, I told them something more important: They already had everything they needed to succeed. They had their V.I.B.E.
One young woman shared how intimidated she felt at an innovation lab. "Everyone there graduated from Duke, had fellowships at prestigious institutions..." she said, her voice trailing off.
"That's their vibe," I told her. "But you bring YOUR vibe. Don't let their credentials diminish what you bring to the table."
What V.I.B.E. Really Means for Toy Professionals
Whether you're 17 or 70, whether you're launching your first toy or your fiftieth, understanding how to find your unique VIBE starts with recognizing what it actually stands for:
V - Values: What You Believe In
Your values are your north star. Maybe it's:
Creating toys that promote independent play
Building a sustainable, eco-friendly brand
Making STEM accessible to all children
Preserving traditional play patterns
Supporting neurodivergent kids
Your values differentiate you in a crowded market. When two toy brands seem similar, customers choose the one whose values align with theirs.
I - Impact: Your Mission in the World
Why do you feel called to the toy industry? What legacy do you want to leave?
Helping parents reduce screen time?
Making educational play more engaging?
Creating moments of family connection?
Building confidence in young builders?
This isn't just feel-good fluff. Your impact becomes your brand story, your marketing message, your reason for existing beyond profit.
B - Brilliance: What You Bring to the Table
Stop comparing your chapter 3 to someone else's chapter 30. What are YOU amazing at?
Spotting play patterns others miss?
Explaining complex concepts simply?
Building authentic relationships with retailers?
Creating viral social media content?
Understanding child development deeply?
Your brilliance might feel ordinary to you because it comes naturally. But it's extraordinary to those who need exactly what you offer.
E - Expression: What Makes You Uniquely You
How do you show up in the world? This could be:
Always wearing bright colors to toy fairs
Your signature way of demonstrating products
How you package orders with personal touches
Your distinctive communication style
The unique energy you bring to meetings
Expression is what makes you memorable in a sea of exhibitors at Toy Fair.
When Others Try to Steal Your VIBE
Let's be real. Over the past five years, I've felt people trying to diminish my vibe. Maybe you've felt it too:
Bigger brands with deeper pockets
Competitors with more followers
Industry veterans who "know better"
People who make you question if you belong
But here's the truth: People can try to suppress your vibe, but they can't steal it. Your values, your mission, your brilliance, your expression – these are YOURS. They're not dependent on follower count or funding rounds.
How to Apply VIBE in Your Toy Business
In Product Development
Let your VIBE guide decisions. If your value is sustainability and your impact is reducing waste, that influences everything from material choices to packaging design.
In Marketing
Stop trying to sound like everyone else. Your unique expression should shine through every caption, email, and product description. Your brilliance should inform your content strategy.
In Partnerships
Seek collaborators whose VIBE complements yours. An influencer with millions of followers but conflicting values won't serve your brand as well as a micro-influencer whose VIBE aligns perfectly.
In Tough Moments
When self-doubt creeps in – "Why am I at this table? Do I deserve to be here? Am I good enough?" – return to your VIBE. Ask yourself:
How can I bring my values to this situation?
What impact can I make here?
What brilliance do I offer that no one else can?
How can I authentically express myself?
Your VIBE Is Your Competitive Advantage
In an industry where products can be copied and prices can be matched, how to find your unique VIBE becomes your uncopyable advantage.
Yes, there are bigger players with more money, more followers, more influence. But they don't have YOUR specific combination of values, impact, brilliance, and expression. They don't have your story, your perspective, your way of seeing play possibilities.
A Challenge for You
This week, take 15 minutes to write down your VIBE:
Values: List 3-5 core beliefs that drive your decisions
Impact: Write one sentence about the change you want to create
Brilliance: Identify 3 things you're genuinely great at (ask others if needed)
Expression: Note 3 ways you uniquely show up in the world
Then, look at your current business challenges through this VIBE lens. How can your unique combination solve problems differently than anyone else would?
The Bottom Line
One of the reasons you are where you are right now – running a toy business, creating products, making an impact – is because you have this really cool VIBE. So keep showing up with it.
Remember, you bring amazing value to this industry. You have a mission that matters. Your brilliance is needed. And your authentic expression makes the toy world more interesting.
Stop letting comparison steal your confidence. Stop dimming your light to fit in. Stop questioning whether you belong at the table.
You don't just belong at the table. You bring something to that table that no one else can.
And that's your VIBE.
Want to share your VIBE? I'd love to hear it. Send me a message and tell me what makes you uniquely you in this industry. Because your VIBE isn't just your advantage – it's your gift to the toy world.
