In my
experience, I have never known of a business or university that does not obsess
over its brand. The larger the organization, the more it spends on crafting,
maintaining, and protecting its brand and reputation. In my training and
coaching work, I certainly encourage an organization to pay attention to its
brand, but you may have never considered that such strategies apply to you
as an individual leader, contributor, or applicant. In other words, you already
have a brand, whether you realize or not. What I am asking you to think out
loud about is it the one you want?
In
Robert Quinn’s great book, Building the Bridge As You Walk On It, he both
reminds and challenges us that we are constantly communicating about ourselves.
Everything we do, say, post, wear, etc. communicates volumes about who we are,
what we can do, and what is important to us. Even if you do not fully realize
or even want to believe it, you are your brand 24/7, 365 days a year. So,
for (Your Name Here) Incorporated is the brand you projecting the one
you want? Is it accurately capturing what you want others to know about you?
Are you shaping and controlling your personal brand or are you leaving it to
chance, the opinion of others, or the whims of social media? I can guarantee you
a Fortune 500 company (or even a just fortunate to have the doors open business)
is not leaving such an important element to chance, so why are you?
It is
my belief that as leaders, solo/intra/entre/preneurs, or professionals ready
for that next level, we have to think of ourselves as a corporate entity, in
other words, (Your Name Here) Incorporated. And like any major corporation,
you must be intentional about crafting and building your personal brand in
three main arenas:
Brand
Aspiration – Brand aspiration is the brand you want but may not necessarily
have at the present time. Essentially, if you aspire to be something, it is
because you are attempting to influence something (i.e. team members, potential
clients, or prospective employers). To determine what you aspire to be or influence,
reflect on the following questions:
- How are you attempting to influence your market?
- How do you know when you are successful?
- How can you expand your influence?
Once
you know the answers to the above, you can start to expand your influence through
my adaptation of the typical sales funnel. I use an inverted Pyramid of Influence
to encourage you to start with networking and other efforts so that your
targets even have KNOWLEDGE of you – just basic name recognition. Once they
know of you, how can you demonstrate that you are RELEVANT to their
needs or problems? Are you experienced in what a potential new employer is
looking for? Do you offer a service or skill applicable to a particular
industry? Next, how can you prove there is a direct ADVANTAGE to working
with or hiring you? Do you post helpful information, are you recognized as an
expert through internal and professional association presentations? Do current
or former clients act as brand ambassadors for you by referring you to others?
Finally, if you pay close attention to all the above, you should then be making
critical CONNECTIONS that allow you to influence and impact others.
Brand
Status (Identity) – there is a great deal of content out there
related to strategies for discovering your Brand Identity. Brand Status or
Identity is essentially a real-time snapshot of:
- What you KNOW
- What you can DO
- Who you ARE
as a
leader, contributor, and/or potential applicant or provider. Time and space do
not permit a deep dive as to how to craft an elevator pith or brand statement,
but try this quick exercise to create your IMPACT STATEMENT. In other words,
what is your personal/professional life intention?
Provide
at least 3 responses to the questions below. Next, within those responses,
circle the BEST or MOST CONSISTENT answer.
- What do you VALUE?
- What do you do BEST?
- What do you want to be KNOWN FOR?
Using
your answers, craft a short IMPACT STATEMENT that will provide a FOCUS to your
powerful personal/professional intention. Just to provide an example, where I
land on this exercise is a focus on Learning, Problem Solving, and Helping
Others Be Successful; thus; my statement reads - “I learn and teach valuable
lessons that help solve worthy problems so that others can be successful.”
Brand
Affinity (Promise) – lastly, your Brand Affinity is your Brand Promise.
What you commit and promise to BE, KNOW, and DO every day and all the
time. This is a promise or collection of promises you keep for your team,
your clients, and your current or future employer. A word of caution, you need
to be confident and crystal clear on these promises because when you make
a promise, you create an expectation. When you keep a promise,
you solidify a powerful and influential brand for (Your Name Here) Incorporated!
To help you identify those key commitments that will capture your Brand
Affinity, wrap your thinking around the following and then consistently act upon
the answers.
What
do I have the “bandwidth” to do really well all the time?
What
do other people come to me for time and again because they know I will always
deliver?
What
do people seek my counsel on or for?
What am
I always asked about because I know a lot about it?
What
can I do that not many others can?
What
do you feel most responsible for?
What
would help other do even if you never got paid for it?
Your
personal brand shows up in a lot of places. It appears on your resume or CV,
your LinkedIn or other social media pages, in what others say about you, and
what you say about yourself. The way you control the message is based
largely on how you carry yourself, how your treat others, how you approach your
work, and how you invest in your continued personal and professional development.
I
understand that you may be uncomfortable promoting yourself, but this is not
about shameless self-promotion. It is about serving others well and the only
way they will know that you can, is to present a very accurate but visible
message. It is you we are looking, hoping, and waiting for. All I am asking
is that you make it easier for the rest of us to find you!
As always if I can help you and
the people you associate with Get Better, Be Ready and LEAD OUT LOUD, I invite
you to contact me.
Yours in leadership,
Bill Faulkner
Independent Coach, Speaker,
and Trainer with the John Maxwell Team TM
Email
= bill@outloudinc.com
For more information on the John
Maxwell Team, please visit
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