What does your personal brand represent?

Do you have a personal brand??

People know us by our reputation, by what we talk about, by the things that matter to us, by how we dress, by how we speak, by the people we hang out with, the topics that matter to us.?

We, as leaders, have brands.

In some of the workshops I ran recently, we were getting people to think about their personal brand, what they are known for, and particularly what three words people would use to describe them if they were talking about them.?

A lot of people know me for my akubra, and sometimes when I'm not wearing a hat, people go, “You look different!” because I don't have my hat on.?

What about you??

I know a businessman who was known because he always wore a bow tie.

Someone else was known because they were really into AI, and all futuristic things.

Maybe you're known for being a really caring, considerate manager.

Maybe as a person you're known because of your creativity.

Maybe it's because of your hobbies outside of work.

A lot of people think it doesn’t matter enough to shape their personal brand, but it really does.?

What do you think of when you see a logo or brand?

In life we see lots of brands, lots of logos or symbols representing products, companies, services, and whether we really notice or not, we're always getting an impression from them.

What's the impression you leave?

Are there symbols you can use repeatedly that will show up as your brand?

You often see politicians wear no tie in certain situations when they go out and meet with people, because they want their brand to look like an everyday man, approachable and appealing.?

Some people always talk about certain topics, smoke the same cigarettes, Chew the same gum. If I say Sherlock Holmes, what image conjures up in your mind??

You can shape your brand anyway you want.?

That's the good thing.?

You get to choose how you want to be seen.

But if you don't think about it, and you don't construct it yourself, as in really think about, “What do I want to be known for, what are the things that are most important to me and can I start living and breathing my values more, so I really represent that?”, other people will make up your brand for you.?

If you're not sure what that is, then ask the important people in your life what 3 words they would use to describe you. Pretty soon you'll work it out, and if not, time to get cracking on designing your own brand!

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