Branding is for Cattle, and Titles are for Books

I was listening intently, lest I miss a golden nugget. When this one came through, I was not sure whether to note it down or not. I let it go, thinking that my thoughts were more important than this one.

My thoughts dwelled on the wave of "title inflation" and 'personal branding' sweeping the corporate world. Not a day goes by when someone is not trying to sell you a course on personal branding. Social media is full of new age celebrities who have made personal branding their sole occupation. Many of them are making a lot of money - sometimes just be teaching others how to brand themselves. If that is not a ponzi scheme, then I do not know what is. Yet, it continues unabated.

On the other hand, I am still convinced that in this new world we must all be clear about our unique gift to the world. When I meet someone new (and like everyone else, I meet a lot of new people every year), I try and find their unique capabilities so that I can file them in memory appropriately. I suspect most everyone does the same thing to some extent.

To me that is the clear rationale behind personal branding. And, it is a good rationale. How else would anyone be able to keep track of all the people they meet - online, and offline.

So why was this person going on with his tirade against personal branding.

To some extent, I could understand their stance on the titles. Even when I had not heard of the book THE LEADER WHO HAD NO TITLE, I had been in enough difficult situations to know that in the end human ingenuity and initiative are the only things that can save any situation. While I can understand people's quest for better titles, I have also seen many ordinary folks acting way above their official titles (and vice versa). Many things can get you the title - but the respect obviously comes for integrity and capability.

Yet, I still see some need for personal branding. Sure, it trivialises (objectifies) an entire person into 3 sentences, and turns a lifetime of track record into an elevator pitch - yet it focuses attention of both - and that is not necessarily a bad thing, especially in this age of endless distractions.