The three things you should ask yourself every time you create content on LinkedIn...

The day was February 8, 2020. I sat in the Barclays Center in Brooklyn alongside two dear friends and thousands of others at Oprah’s “2020 Vision” tour. I don’t remember many specifics from the presentation aside from Michelle Obama’s electric blue pantsuit (the stuff of dreams, really) and the following words from Lady O herself:

“Everyone in this world is motivated by the following three questions:

Do you hear me?

Do you see me?

Did what I say mean anything to you?”

I had been taking notes furiously all day, but put my pen down as I heard this. I let the words wash over me and into me, settling in my bones and the very fibers of my being. These words were so simple yet so profound, and from that moment forward, they sat in the background of every conversation I’ve had in life and in business, and they illuminated every piece of content I create.

Today, I hope to show you how you can use these questions to serve as guideposts for building an impactful, lasting personal brand.

The trap we fall into when personal branding, and the subtle shift that will make a powerful difference…

If you’re struggling to build a personal brand, it’s probably because you’re subconsciously (or consciously) asking these questions when you create content:

Do you see me?

Do you hear me?

Does what I say mean anything to you?

Ready for the shift? Instead of focusing on yourself, switch your focus to your readers, listeners, and watchers. Alter the questions to:

Do I see you?

Do I hear you?

Does what you say mean anything to the people you care about?

When you do this, you shift your personal brand focus from being all about you to its rightful spot -- the people you are trying to help.

To brand is to serve…

There is a famous quote from French novelist André Malraux, “To lead is to serve, nothing more nothing less.” Whenever I close out a talk about personal branding, I always remind the audience:

“To brand is to serve, nothing more, nothing less.”

So how do you start to shift from self-serving to selfless? Here are three ways to get you started...

One - Pinpoint who your audience is.

You can’t help people if you don’t know who your people are. “Who am I trying to help with my content?”

This is the million-dollar question that needs to be answered. If you can't answer it, you won't make an impact with your material.?

?? A tip? Go narrow to go fast when identifying your audience.?

For instance, “HR managers,” may seem specific, but it's not quite specific enough. Try "HR managers at a small to medium-sized business who've been in the role for five years and have to answer to their leadership team who doesn't give them a budget, while hearing all the complaints of their team who wants more and more." (I think you get the idea.)

Be CRYSTAL. FREAKING. CLEAR. on who your audience is.

Remember, if you're talking to everybody, you're talking to nobody.?

Two - Determine what's keeping your audience up at night.

Question what your audience's challenges are. If that's a struggle, try this hypothetical exercise: Name your client and then write a diary entry from their perspective.?

It challenges you to get outside your own head as a writer and into theirs as a reader.?

What are Carmen's roadblocks as an HR leader when trying to get approval to integrate diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in her global organization?

How about Francesca's challenge of promoting her newly published book on venture capitalists?

Oftentimes, we face writer's block and get stuck in creating content because we're too focused on ourselves. Doing this exercise allows you to get out of your own head and into the mind of your prospect. The words usually start flowing when you stand in this place.?

Three: Remember, even with personal shares, make it about THEM, not you!?

"But, Kait," you may interject, "Personal shares on LinkedIn are critical to establishing trust! Stories from your life resonate well with your audience. You should celebrate your successes."??

Yes and no.?

Your content can (and should) be about you from time to time. However, your anecdotes need to provide some lessons to the reader. If not, you might as well be reading your content to a mirror.?

Yes, personal stories are the staple of an excellent speech or a series of posts on LinkedIn, but it should always focus back on "What am I trying to teach or how am I giving value to my audience through the story I'm sharing?"

Every piece of writing should be a teachable or inspirational moment to your audience and should call them to action in some form.?

Bonus content: The Brandwise Copywriting Clean Up

Still worried you’re “me, me, me-ing all the way home?” Here's a trick we use at Brandwise Media:?

Go through your copy and count how many times you are saying the words "I" or "me" versus how much you’re saying the word "you."

(And yes, I did that to this very article.)

In content and in life, your level of impact will be reliant upon that "I/Me versus You Equation" - the ratio of "I/Me" should be smaller than the number of "Yous."

If you're in this to help people, that equation will really grow your awareness and audience.?

Your content will be on the right track. And you're going to be teaching versus preaching, which will help you grow a personal brand.

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Kait LeDonne is the founder of Brandwise Media, a personal branding firm that helps business authors and executives build social media followings to launch their books, workshops, and other corporate initiatives. She is also the instructor of The Influence Academy, the 6-week training program to become a go-to expert in your industry using LinkedIn.

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