Do you want to be a brand? Great, because you already are!
Like it or not, you are a brand. Just like your favorite brand of sneaker or car, you communicate your essence to others through your style, image, words, and actions. Does that make sense? Then congratulations! You are on your way to understanding more about personal branding and how it important it is to your career.
The more you recognize and actively manage your brand, the more you can leverage that brand to benefit your professional life.
The concept of personal branding has been around for almost 20 years. The term was first presented in a 1997 Fast Company magazine article written by Tom Peters, which was titled, “A Brand Called You.” Key elements of your brand include the presence and communication of elements such as your passions, values, attributes, abilities, and achievements. It is what makes you, well, you. All of those things create an image, or perception, of you. That is what people see. Does your image of yourself match how you are perceived by others? To market yourself effectively, and find job opportunities that match your passions and abilities, it should.
Social media is an absolute game-changer when it comes to personal branding. Google yourself, right now. What do you see? Are the first items that show up related to professional or academic accomplishments, or are they photos of you out on the town acting silly? Trust me, when you are a candidate for a job, one of the first things a recruiter may do is plug your name into Google to see what shows up. As you move away from college life and into the professional world, you need to manage your brand, in large part through social media, and then market yourself in such a way that connects you with desirable professional opportunities.
When you decide to build and manage your brand, you are not creating it from scratch. It already exists in the minds of people with whom you have interacted, the data/material surrounding you such as projects or your resume, and on social media. So, the first thing you need to do is see what’s out there, and manage your information as best you can, and then use it all to market yourself. If you take just one thing away from this blog post, this is it, trust me. To make the most of your personal brand, you need to show how your attributes, abilities, and passions differentiate you from others. That is so important! When you are interviewing for a job, you need to show why you are the best candidate for the job. What sets you apart? If you can identify and communicate that effectively to a potential employer, your value to an employer will shine through. How can you make that company better and more successful? Show that you have what it takes.
Remember, you are a brand. Build yourself. Invest in yourself. Manage yourself. Market yourself. If you can do that in an authentic manner that differentiates you from the competition and allows your unique value to shine through, you be on your way to great success as brand YOU!
