When you think of the word “brand,” your mind may go to product brands or company brands like Coca-Cola, Lego, Starbucks, Nike, Disney, Kleenex, Q-tip, Ford Mustang, etc. You might gain knowledge about these brands from their online presence (websites, social media), your experience with these brands, or hearing/reading about the experiences others have with these brands. This knowledge may influence if you choose to buy products or services from the brands – all based on their reputation. And over time, this reputation may have changed.
A personal brand is a snapshot in time of you, what you represent, and what can be expected of you. It's important because:
Whether you realize it or not, intend to have a brand or not, you have one.
How you are perceived impacts how you are considered for opportunities.
What you are known for can help others advocate on your behalf: in college, the military, for internships, career.
Self-reflection and self-awareness are essential for figuring out who you are, where you are/where you’ve been, and allowing this to help you where you want to go. At this point, you've completed some work in the realm of identity and self-discovery. (Activity 1) The self-concept can be a valuable aspect of unlocking human potential.
After doing some self-reflection, you've asked for feedback from others. (Activity 2) This feedback may have been positive or negative, it may have been known to you or unknown to you. Feedback can help us see our blind spots, but we also must evaluate that feedback against what we know and if the provider of the feedback has our best intentions in mind.
You've also looked at a list of values to pinpoint what is important to you at this moment in time. (Activity 3) Kouzes and Posner (2008) express the importance of clarifying values by finding your voice and affirming shared values. By knowing who you are, what you care about, what makes you tick, and what you want for your life, you will begin to find your voice.
Alignment
Now, it's time to align How you communicate and what you communicate will be essential to others being able to recognize your brand, and your communication must align with your brand. Remember, communication is strategic.
Recall that we can use communication instrumentally by crafting messages that help us accomplish tasks that help shape our brand. This can be done with very direct communication such as: “I want to work in a team environment.” or indirect communication, such as “I think creative work would suit me.” This works in the case of defining what you want and communicating that. We can use communication relationally to promote or impede goals based on relationships. How we interact interpersonally can make all the difference when building our brand. Do you communicate positively or negatively? Are you polite or blunt in your communications?
And we can use communication to influence how others view us, effectively supporting the type of colleague we want to be viewed as (identity management). Thus, a large part of strategic communication is identity management. To an extent, we can control the messages that we send. We may do this nonverbally with our expressions, by what we wear, or even how we groom ourselves. We may do this through interactions (elevator pitches, networking conversations, interviews) or in written form (resumes, cover letters, professional social media sites). We may also show alignment through our actions or inactions, showing up to walk the walk of the person we claim to be. It comes down to: what do you value, how do you want to represent your values, and how do you communicate that supports this?
It is time for more self-reflection. Answer the following questions to see how you can align who you are and what is important to you, with how you show up.
Do your words and actions represent you to your fullest?
Are you living out your values consistently?
How do you make choices to represent your values and confirm your identity?
How might you make adjustments to better represent your identity, values, and goals?
Communicating your brand often requires words to tell your story. Using your reflections to this point, how can you tell your story? In discussing the "Janus Effect," Kouzes and Posner (2008) share that “looking backward can actually enable you to see farther than if you only stare straight ahead” (p. 107). After thinking about this, to make sense of how we can progress, we must understand how we got to where we are. Consider this as you reflect on the aspects of your brand identity and seek to set goals for the future.
Incorporate what you learned about your brand into a brief paragraph by identifying the strengths, motivated skills, passions, purpose, and values that are most important to you. Think about things that make you relevant, different, and compelling. Use examples to back up what you say makes you exceptional. Consider sharing your goals as well. Remember, you’re telling your story!
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References:
Adler, R. B., Rodman, G. R., & Dupré A. (2021). Essential communication. Oxford University Press.
Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. (2008). The leadership challenge (4th ed.). Jossey-Bass.