A product has a brand. A business has a brand. An employer has a brand. And a professional like you -has a personal brand as well.
For many years, it was always believed that ‘Performance’ was the only determinant of Career success. However, today more evidence points to the fact that Performance is one piece of the puzzle. The way you are perceived and the visibility you enjoy is far more critical than Performance alone.
A Personal Brand is a way others perceive us. Everyone has a personal brand, whether we like it or not. However, personal branding is being intentional about how we market ourselves to others and, in turn, get perceived by them (Especially those who hold the reins to our future). Essentially, your brand is the story that’s told about you when you’re not in the room.
Here are a few steps to getting started with your personal brand:
- How are you currently perceived?
Before you design a brand, it’s important to understand how you are perceived. The people who work with you can often hold the mirror to your strengths and blind spots. Be a keen listener and stay curious and open-minded to feedback.
Questions to ask:
- What are you currently most known for?
- What do people typically reach out to you for? What are the problems you solve?
- What are your definite strengths and competitive advantage in the workplace?
- What does Google say about you? (Digital brand)
2. Crafting your brand
Once you know how you are currently perceived, you can start to design a Personal Brand that is congruent with your career goals and desired identity.
I recommend that every personal brand should follow the ABC Rule i.e. A-Authentic, B- Bold, C- Compelling
Be Authentic– Originality is the essence of a good brand. Your brand should accurately reflect your passions, skills, values, and beliefs. What makes you unique is often what makes you successful.
Question to ask:
- What makes you stand out in a crowded marketplace?
- How does your work align with your core values and beliefs?
- What is your unique skill blend?
- What are your transferable skills? (in case you are looking for a switch in careers)
Be Bold
“Too many people overvalue what they are not and undervalue what they are”-Malcolm Forbes
While authenticity is at the core of a personal brand, don’t shy away from articulating your strengths and competencies, the unique blend of experience, proven track record and significant feats you have achieved. Undermining your skills, downplaying your experience or being over-modest about significant achievements is not recommended.
Questions to ask:
- What were your biggest career wins?
- What are you most proud about in your career?
- What major experiences have you collected?
- What are the biggest and most complex projects you have spearheaded?
Be compelling– Your brand needs to speak to the needs of a specific audience who holds opportunities for you. You are not here to influence or create an impression on everyone, and that’s ok! At the same time, you also want to prioritise the skills and experiences you would like to showcase and those which align with the career aspiration you hold.
Questions to ask:
- Who are your internal/ external stakeholders who hold a future career opportunity?
- What are the specific pain points or burning problems for these stakeholders?
- How do your skills/ expertise align most with the challenges they face?
- What is the most critical reason these people should hire you?
3. Leverage communication channels and other platforms to communicate
Understanding your target stakeholders and devising a suitable platform to connect is the crux of an effective personal branding strategy.
For instance, suppose you are looking for an internal opportunity in your current organisation. In that case, you can explore ways to showcase your skills by publishing articles in the company newsletter, volunteering to work on a cross-functional project, anchoring a mega event or seeking a bubble assignment where you can demonstrate your new brand in action. While looking for external openings, Linkedin is currently one of the superhighways to engaging with a broader audience.
4. Keep reviewing your personal brand
Quite obviously, a personal brand evolves over time. It is imperative to be consistent while also ensuring you tweak parts of it to ensure it is relevant to the career goals you have set for yourself. Also, re-examine whether your current activities and ongoing projects are either strengthening your desired brand or drawing you further away from it.
In case you are aspiring for a promotion to a Team Lead, then it makes a lot of sense to lead an organisational-wide improvement project which gives you the necessary exposure and visibility to critical stakeholders. However, working on repetitive tasks as an Individual Contributor may not build your brand as a prospective Team Lead
At the end of the day, taking small, consistent steps towards enhancing your personal brand with every interaction and opportunity is far more valuable than spending hours devising a provoking personal mission statement.
I want to end by saying that you can either wait for life to open up all doors, or you can become the MASTER KEY. Let your ‘Authentic, Bold and Compelling’ personal brand be that MASTER KEY for your Career success.
Creating your personal brand requires deep introspection. If you need personalised support for creating a winning personal brand for yourself in the competitive work of job-seekers, you can reach out to me.
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