Personal branding. Sounds weird, right? But it might just be the thing to move your career to the next level.
Having a strong personal brand is a great way to protect and control your career progress, as well as your position in a cut-throat marketplace. If you don’t develop your own brand, it’s likely someone will do it for you.
So, here are our top tips to ensure you are making the most – of you!
What makes you unique?
Reflect on your skills, attributes, personality and professional achievements. What is the one thing that makes you stand out?
Do you have strong leadership skills? Are you good at developing talent and sharing your knowledge? Maybe you’re an engaging presenter who can easily captivate an audience? These are just a few ideas.
But if you’re completely stuck about what makes you special, ask your close colleagues or friends what they think, and the list will practically write itself.
Be a lifelong learner
Once you’ve identified your strengths, make sure you stay engaged. Challenge yourself to learn and stretch to become an expert in the field. True experts also share and teach those around them, so look for mentoring opportunities to increase your skill level.
Tell the world
Critically look at your LinkedIn profile and resume. Do they capture the essence of who you are? Have you established your ‘voice’? If so, make sure it’s consistent throughout.
Depending on your profession, this voice will extend across channels such as your website, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
Play to your strengths and don’t be shy about singing your own praises. If you find this uncomfortable, try thinking of yourself as a product you are trying to sell.
If you’re on the speaking circuit, or strive to be, make sure your speeches and presentations are consistent in tone and language. Your biography at conferences needs to convey your personal brand in a succinct way. Try drafting versions of varying lengths so they are ready for distribution.
Image is everything
The way you dress, your tone of voice, your mannerisms and your photographs all convey a message about who you are. Find a style that suits you and stick with it.
If you feel like you’re wearing someone else’s clothes, you will appear uncomfortable. If your photos don’t show the best version of you, you probably won’t like seeing them.
Think about some formal media training if you’re likely to be filmed at a conference or engage in media activities. These skills are invaluable to ensuring you can focus on the message or topic, rather than worrying about what you look like.
Don’t be afraid of feedback
Feedback is critical. People who are invested in your success will offer gems of advice with your best interests in mind. Listen, reflect and revise your channels to accommodate their recommendations.
Also, it’s ok to accept help when it’s offered! Sometimes it’s the outside voice that will make you see how special you are. But the most important tip of all — be authentic. People can spot a fake from a mile away.
If developing a personal brand is something you’d like to do but you want professional help, get in contact. We can work with you to develop your profile, biographies and social media channels.
We also offer in-house media training and can arrange professional photo shoots for that all-important profile shot.
