Tag Archives: Brand You

You’re an Original…

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… a unique, one-of-a-kind!

an occasional post in the “Brand You” series…

All of us start out as one-of-a-kind originals, but too many of us end up as carbon copies of someone else.  -Mark Batterson, “Soulprint”

You are unique – Ephesians 2:10 says that “We are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”

Uniqueness is God’s gift to you, and uniqueness is your gift to God.  You owe it to yourself to be yourself. But more importantly, you owe it to the one who designed you and destined you.

So what is your “Brand You?” How do you find out?

Who Am I & How Did I Get Here?

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You are today what you experienced yesterday. You are a function, today, of all of the life experiences you have had to date. These include, but are not limited to, your major accomplishments and significant setbacks.

Jerry Wilson and Ira Blumenthal, authors of “Managing Brand You,” have contributed a very helpful body of work to anyone wanting to explore the Brand You concept more thoroughly. Subtitle “Seven Steps to Creating Your Most Successful Self,” it draws on corporate and product branding techniques and applies them to becoming the person you want to be, with the life you want.

Step One of their process is to conduct a Brand You audit. In order to conduct an effective audit, the authors suggest that you take a methodical approach to understanding more about yourself – by looking into your past memories, feelings, and experiences in various stages of your life. Specifically, they suggest you imagine your life as a series of five distinct phases. Each phase is rich with experience and learning that influence your life.

Phase One comprises your childhood from birth to 12 years of age. The key word here is “memories” – your earliest memories and experiences shape your development in profound ways.

Phase Two covers your teen years from age 13 through age 17, and can best be characterized as years of “change.” The high school years are when you faced enormous challenges of acceptance and rejection, and more than likely include periods of confusion. Though only four short years, this time has played a big role in shaping who you today.

Phase Three encompasses your young adult years – from ages 18 through 22. It is in this time period that you first experienced “independence.” During these years, it is what you learn and reapply that will really matter to understanding a new you. What you learn from your experiences is  what you do to continue moving forward, to continue growing.

Phase Four is the period from ages 23 to 30, when you have reached adulthood. This is the “proving ground,” the period of establishing yourself as a real adult. It is a critical time for you: to be viewed, treated, and respected as an adult. The name you make for yourself will be a strong part of who you are becoming.

Phase Five is the longest phase, encompassing age 31 through your present age. This entire phase is about “adaptation.” By now, you are a fully functioning, full-fledged adult with all the responsibilities that go with adulthood. This longest phase represents the highest potential for growth and fulfillment. Looking at this phase with a opportunisitic and positive mindset will ensure that you continue to develop your Brand You.

Now it is time for you to dive into your own Brand You audit. Using the five phases of your life described above, the authors developed a worksheet designed to guide you through the process of a comprehensive survey of your life experiences, without regard to importance or relevance. Then, you identify the core themes from each life phase. Finally, you develop thee core themes into life-learning.

Want to know more? Check out page 49 for a blank audit form, with the following pages giving a real-life example.

If you are going to create the best Brand You possible, you’ve got to start with the experiences that made you, well, you!

When Was The Last Time You Asked: What Do I Want To Be?

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You know why parents keep asking their kids “What do you want to be when you grow up?”

The parents are looking for ideas.

Seriously.

Tom Peters, one of the most well-known and respected business thinkers since the early 80s, was probably the first to coin the phrase “Brand You.” In a ground-breaking article in Fast Company magazine, and then in several books since then, Peters drives home to point that a revolution is underway, and those who survive will have to adapt and reinvent themselves – quickly and often more than once.

In today’s wild wired (and increasingly wireless) world, you’re distinct – or you’re extinct.

Peter’s solution? Survive, thrive, and triumph by becoming Brand You!

Brand You is a pragmatic, commercial idea. It’s about how to survive when the stuff hits the fan (especially the white-collar fan). But it’s also about opportunity. And liberation. and self-definition.

What do I want to be?

What do I want to stand for?

Does my work matter?

Am I making a difference?

Feel free to ask yourself these questions regularly!

Over the next few weeks (or more!) I want to drop in a couple of times a week and take a closer look at Brand You concepts. I hope you will join me!

Everything Communicates

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In a previous post here I wrote about the “Brand You” topic. Since it’s high school graduation season, and having survived our fourth and youngest son’s graduation last Saturday, I thought it appropriate to explore the theme a little more this week. Consider it an extended graduation speech, if you will.

“Everything Communicates” is the fundamental message of Tom Peters’ Fast Company magazine classic, “The Brand Called You.” Companies, products, and services aren’t the only things that get branded: we are all brands. In an economy of knowledge workers and free agents, project-based employment and team-based activities, we have to decide what our brand stands for.

Each of us is a brand, and every choice we make communicates what our brand stands for. Alan Webber, co-founder of Fast Company magazine and author of the great book “Rules of Thumb” lists some of the ways we communicate – even when we don’t realize it:

  • Your business card communicates – from the shape and size to the choice of title and font, you’re sending a message that often speaks louder than the card.
  • Your personal practices communicate – do you have a personal practice that sets you apart?
  • Your web site, blog, Twitter, Linkedin, etc. communicate – because design is so immediate, your digital communication often speaks louder and more frequent that what you intended it to say.
  • Your office communicates – from the front door to the furniture, the spaces we design and occupy tell a lot about us.
  • How you communicate communicates – your brand is a lot more valuable if you can talk business using real English, not the latest buzzwords or insider jargon.

First, figure out your personal brand. Then remember that everything you do – and don’t do – communicates it.

Brand You

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All leaders are in sales.

You may not be selling a widget or a gizmo, but you are “selling” vision and ideas and momentum, and dozens of other powerful intangibles that are very real.

One of the keys to being successful in sales is being memorable. One important way to be memorable is to have a personal brand. Valerie Sokolosky, an executive coach, recommends that professionals build personal brand equity in the following 5 ways:

  • Brand yourself through your professional presence. First impressions count! What messages are your clothes, grooming, and posture presenting? Your outside appearance speaks volumes before you even open your mouth.
  • Brand yourself as a valued partner. What do you know about the group you are leading or the project you are trying to tackle? Take time to do research on the people, places, and process involved, and when you lead, you will be doing it from a solid knowledge base.
  • Brand yourself with strong communication skills. Learn how to quickly gauge the people and environment you are in. Is it appropriate for small talk first or is it time to get right to business?
  • Brand yourself by staying one step ahead. Anticipate what the group wants or needs. Anticipate what may be going on in the team. Be fully prepared for questions, and always be truthful when you’re asked something you don’t know. “I don’t know but I’ll find out” is always an acceptable answer.
  • Brand yourself as being socially savvy. In today’s world that means both interpersonal and digital skills. Be a good conversationalist, mixing and mingling as appropriate. Ask open-ended questions, and really listen.

How are you going to develop Brand You today?