Brand yourself to stand out and shine

Katrena Friel

March 2009

Passion

This session is about helping individual professionals to stand out and shine through developing and then promoting their own unique personal brand.

Promotion

without self-promotion or “tooting our own horn” What happens? Nothing!

Being CEO of Me.com

Regardless of age Regardless of position Regardless of the business we happen to be in All of us need to understand the importance of

brand . We are CEO ’s of Me.com To be in business today our most important job is

to be head marketer for the brand called YOU!

Take a step back

You may need to step back and take a fresh look at you.

Take a very close look at what inspires you and drives you to be engaged in your work each day.

You chose the job you’re in for a reason. You enjoy that industry and/or the people. Or you are on a stepping-stone to something bigger

and better. If you’re feeling dissatisfied or bored, you too need

to cast fresh eyes over your current position.

Discover… Brand You

1. Do a personal audit.

2. Look at your skills set.

3. Does your job align?

4. What sets you apart?

5. What do people say about you?

6. Personal manner.

Personal Audit

Determine your values and vision Your future goals What strengths do you have both for you and your company? Make sure you define who you are. Ensuring that it aligns with your deepest passions. A clue to discovering the feeling or emotion of who you are is

to identify where you are and what you are doing that makes you truly happy.

What inspires you? What incorporates all your passions and skills?

Skill Set

Are you doing what you’re good at? It’s great to stretch yourself outside your comfort zone and

learn new skills. To be truly in alignment with your self-brand you need to

project confidence and excitement in the work you do. You can learn those skills and gain confidence. If you’re passionate about what you’re doing and have the

right attitude that will shine through. Most employers believe that people can learn skills for the job

but having the right attitude and mind-set about your work is something that cannot be taught.

Job Alignment

Does your job align with your personality? Do you prefer to be mixing with lots of people each

day? Or would you be more suited to more solitary work

- enjoying your own company?

What sets you apart?

What sets you apart from the crowd? What is unique about you? What are your achievements and

accomplishments? What are your dreams or desires? What does these things reveal about your

emotional or inner side of you?

What do people say about you?

How do they perceive you? Pay attention to how others describe you when

they introduce you and how they treat you. Are you described as fun loving, compassionate,

professional or creative? Do these descriptions align with your values and

what you stand for? What other personality traits do you have?

Personal Manner

Personal manner plays a part in how others perceive you.

Be aware of plus and minus personality characteristics such as: self-confidence level your way of talking manners social skills

Network

Take a look at some of the outside factors that represent your personal brand, such as: The company you work for Who are your friends, alliances and partners? What networking groups do you belong to?

Homework

Your Skills+Your Passions+Your Personality+ People+Your Goals

= Your personal

branding statementSpend some time writing and rewriting this sentence until it is succinct and truly resonates with you and how you feel.

Reveal Your Brand

Ten seconds – Elevator Pitch Look at your image You are what you wear Personality profile Business image

PERSONALITY PROFILE

Another measure of your success in dealing with people is due to personality.

The dictionary defines personality as, “the quality, which distinguishes one human being from another, individuality, distinctive personal characteristics”.

Self Analysis

As corporate or individual professionals it’s important to discover your personality type.

Self-analysis Uncovering of plus and minus personality

characteristics is needed before an adequate self-satisfying self-image can be developed and revealed.

Aggravating speech habits, lack of good manners, sloppy dress and grooming can be your worst enemies.

Non Verbal

Your personal manner speaks loudly to other people.

Your voice, way of talking, eye contact, body language and the way you develop relationships at work all count towards giving you a ‘manner’.

We’ve all at times been horrified or surprised at hearing second or third hand what impression we’ve made on someone.

Be yourself

The best approach is to be yourself – Keep in mind an awareness of how you may strike

other people Recognise that you can’t just let your manner work

itself out It’s the little things that can make the crucial

difference.

What’s working? What’s not?

Punctuality Your tone of voice These are the things about you that speak out loud

and clear to others. Make sure that they’re working for you. You’ve invested a lot of time, effort and money into

learning or upgrading your skills for the job Why not invest some time and effort into yourself?

Identity

Companies spend millions of dollars on getting the corporate identity right –

It’s the people in the organisation that really reflect the company brand

Often times that person is YOU.

Checklist

Influencing elements: Dress & Style Appearance & Grooming Manner & Personality Self-Confidence & Charm Plus & Minus Personality Characteristics Work Space area Email Communication Telephone Technique Meeting Room Presence One on One Communication

Putting it all together

All elements of your personal brand and brand visibility must work together to ensure a coordinated approach to having your name, reputation or image shine.