What Is Personal Branding?

Even though the personal branding concept or idea has been around for several decades, there is still a lot of ignorance, false beliefs and misleading information on this topic – in our minds, in conversations and on the internet. I would like to get these aspects out of the way. 

Jeff Bezos, the founder and CEO of Amazon, defined a brand this way:

Your brand is what other people say about you when you're not in the room.

A great definition. But many people I know deduce from this that personal branding is another word for reputation. That's not true. Personal branding is so much more. Some people also call personal branding Impression Management, Self-Branding or brand me. Others describe it as life insurance. For me, personal branding is a communication and (self-)leadership tool.

We have known since Paul Watzlawick, an Austrian-American communication theorist and philosopher, that we "cannot not communicate." Any kind of behavior is a kind of communication. If we take that perspective, I would argue that you "cannot not have a personal brand." You have one, and it depends on you whether you build up an average or a great personal brand.

Because, once again, your personal brand is what other people say and think about you when you are not in the room. So instead of allowing other people to define you, your work, your skills, what makes you who you are, I strongly believe that you need to take the reins yourself, that you should wake up and make sure that the information and impressions about you – both online and in the "real" world – are in line with your goals. Create a personal brand that helps you to be a better person, to live your dream life, with a job that you enjoy and that moves our society forward.

Now some might think, "Totally delusional, Natalia!" My comment on this:

"Be the change you wish to see in the world." Mahatma Gandhi

Sustainable social change begins with the person you see in the mirror every day. And if this person – that is you – likes themselves and their life, you will talk, act and be very different. You become a positive role model for others. So, what are you waiting for? For permission? - Okay. Here you go: I hereby give you permission to be great, to work in your dream job and to make our world a little more sustainable, nicer and more human. "Yalla, go!" as they say here in Dubai.

If you'd like to know more about personal branding, especially personal branding with LinkedIn, have a look at my lastest book (it's available in English and German). You'll find it on Amazon.