What’s Your Brand?

Have you taken the time to shape your image – how you wish to be known – your personal brand?

Crafting your personal brand statement will help shape your personal marketing message, which is helpful for your career or to personally update your image and goals. I’m sharing a free e-Workbook to get you started. In this Personal Branding Workbook you will be guided through the process of creating a sketch of your self-portrait – your brand. The good news is the topic is you and you are the expert on YOU so you won’t need any other reference materials.

I help aspiring professionals reach their career and lifestyle goals. Together we clarify and package their gifts, talents and passions, because many people have a hard time describing their own attributes, skills and goals. I also help clients create personal action plans for lifestyle changes.

The world is moving faster than ever and people have shorter and shorter attention spans. If you tweet, you know you only get 140 characters to get your idea across and even cell phone messages are written in a cryptic style with abbreviations. Everyone’s mantra is “tell me quick, make me care.” Companies and people spend a lot of money to get their brand information into your head—think Nike, Google, Coca-Cola, Mercedes Benz, Facebook, Apple, and others—they all work hard so you instantly know whom they are and what they are about. You’ve got to do the same thing for yourself; create and articulate your brand, your value.

Often people put you in a “box” in their minds and never update their opinion or image of you, especially family and colleagues. Some are still locked onto how you were at age 18 or 32. I’ve reinvented myself several times in my life and have had to explain myself many times. As a former business owner, employee, employer, and entrepreneur I had to explain myself with each change.

You will find a theme running through your life. Mine is that I enjoy shaping marketing messages for people and businesses, have a knack for encouraging the best potential in others, can listen objectively; am able to “walk in others’ shoes,” and enjoy the process of learning and planning. My brand is that of a helpful, resourceful resume writer and coach.

A personal brand statement is somewhat similar to a short introduction, but can be more extensive to describe your personal mission, philosophy, skills, niche, services, values, and your unique promise of value. The benefit of investing the time to craft your statement is it keeps you focused and guides you in your activities, and decisions. It motivates you to live up to your promise or change it. As I said before, the world is moving ever so quickly; most people don’t have time for 20 questions to figure out who you are and what you offer. The benefits are you will better understand your inner guiding principles and will be better able to confidently establish and control your presence and destiny.

Please download my free e-Personal Branding Workbook. Let me know if you have questions or need additional help. Here is the short version of the questions:

MY PERSONAL BRAND PROFILE

Please sign up for my mailing list to get the announcement of my upcoming “Now Presenting YOU” – a personal branding webinar. In the webinar you will write your life story, build your brand, package your gifts, and create actions plans.

I hope I have piqued your interest and spurred you to tweak your statement or begin one. It’s an eye-opening experience if you have not done it before and confirming if you have. These questions help to keep you focused on who you are, how you wish to be known and where you are going.

Do you have a personal brand statement?