Updated April 26, 2023
Introduction to Personal Brand Strategy
Most professionals think creating a personal brand strategy is beyond their reach. Building a personal brand strategy is a daily choice in your professional life. The way you talk, the way you walk, and the way you carry yourself to say a lot about yourself. But the thing is, most people don’t want to change their daily habits because they are comfortable now.
Do you think anything can be done without using it first? If you want to build your brand strategy, you only need to care about how you behave in your workplace. In this article, we will see different ways to build your personal brand strategy; they are not new, but they work. But there is only one condition. The only condition is you need to work on them.
First things first-Personal Brand Strategy:
Before we get to the point, let’s talk about branding. Branding is a symbol, sign, or name that depicts a person, thing, or group in simple terms. You don’t need to use many phrases and pictures or anything. A simple sign or symbol will do.
People use branding to improve their marketing because it can trigger emotions, values, and principles in people when they look at or hear about the brand.
For example, if you consider yourself a personal brand strategy, anything you do or don’t would spur emotions and reactions in other people. It’s like creating a lasting impression on people through your demeanor.
3 Types of Effective Personal Brand Strategy
Now there are three types of personal brand strategy. It’s not given by any guru or any significant other. Moreover, we have analyzed the strategies of numerous professionals and companies and identified that their branding falls into three primary categories. Furthermore, it’s worth noting that these categories serve as a framework for understanding the different branding approaches used.
1. Positive personal brand strategy
This is the most attractive personal brand strategy. People create this brand by giving a message or series of messages to people who listen. And they also promote their virtues and good values through positive branding. But creating a positive personal brand strategy takes time. If you think you would make a positive personal brand strategy in a day, you are not getting the meaning of the personal brand strategy. Remember, people don’t get attracted by one positive action, but a series of relentless actions attract them toward you.
2. Negative personal brand strategy
Now no personal brand wants this. People hate this type of person or personal brand. If you observe closely, you will see that there are few people who no one likes; rather, they’re hated by most people. Have you ever wondered why so? It’s because they keep repeating actions that are not congruent with the company’s culture, and thus they’re not accepted by others as a valuable personal brand.
3. Neutral personal brand strategy
These people are neutral. If you ask about them their colleagues, they would say they know these neutral people. But there’s nothing significant about them. This is the worst of all three. Being there and not making any impact is not good for your professional life.
Now that we have understood the bits and pieces of personal branding let’s look at why you should create a personal brand that helps you stand out.
The Why Scenario
If you want us to depict personal brand in one word, we would say – association. No matter what the personal brand is all about if it has created a negative association in your mind, you will think negatively about the brand and vice versa.
So if you want to grow in your career, you need to understand the value of your personal brand. And once you understand the value, you can mold it and make it as you want it to be.
In business, they call it environment scanning before going for any venture. Here before applying the tips we are here to give you, you need to do some scanning about your already established personal brand. Yes, you may say that you don’t have a personal brand. But you have if you pay to heed.
Get feedback from trusted colleagues by asking them to imagine you and share the words, phrases, or pictures that come to mind. Use their honest feedback to understand your personal brand and how others perceive you.
After this experiment, don’t just think badly about yourself (if they are negative); rather, observe yourself professionally. What do you say? How do you act? How do you behave? And also, notice the behavior of the people around you. How do they respond to your actions, words, and demeanor? Soon you will get where you stand, and from that point, begin to apply the following tips we’re offering you.
How-to Guide to Building Your Personal Brand Strategy?
You would agree that there’s no all-size-fit formula for creating a personal brand. But we will give you some tricks you can customize and make your own according to your choice and preference.
1. Be your authentic self
This is old and sage advice. Suppose you’re like most people; you will ignore it like them. But you shouldn’t if you’re sincere about building your personal brand. Oscar Wild said – “Be you. Everyone else is already taken.” Find your true self. Ask yourself what turns you on. What turns you off? What do you like to do? What do you like to have? If you could have a magic wand at your disposal, what would you ask by waving it? What would you do if you had just 3 months to live on Earth? Who will be your priorities? What work do you want to finish before you die?
Now, these questions are hypothetical and may not mean much to you. Knowing yourself fully is not always possible. But you can get to know yourself partially by asking yourself these questions. The first thing is not to act as if you’re a different person. You should be true to yourself and act from the truth every time, all the time.
2. Don’t do anything to get the approval of people
Are you a people-pleaser? Do you do things to get the approval of others? If you’re one of those, you should forget about making your personal brand. Why? If you’re already selling yourself short and going according to the whims of others, why should people pay heed to you? Here’s what you should do to create a positive personal brand.
Stop pleasing people and start pleasing yourself. You’re not born or not hired to accept sub-employment under people. You’re in your career to do your job, add value, make your mark, and make a difference. Be firm even if people demand or command you to do something. Set rules for yourself which you will never break. For example, you can set a rule of never coming to the office late and never staying there more than the stipulated time. People may expect you to stay and work. But if you think that this rule serves you better and you are able to complete all your work during office hours, don’t stay back to do the work of others.
3. Maintain a great work ethic
You could create a great personal brand if you do just this. Maintain a great work ethic. It means coming to work on time, submitting projects before the deadline, following direct communication with clients and colleagues, maintaining the transparency of what you do with your boss, and, most importantly, never compromising on the quality of your work.
You don’t need to do much if you can practice this for a long time. If you don’t have a great work ethic now, pick one most critical habits and practice them with all your heart. Once satisfied and confident that the critical habit has become your second nature, pick the next one and do the same. This will help you to create an impression on people who are responsible for either promoting you or demoting you.
4. Keep your promises
No, all promises can’t be kept. Thus keep your promise list small. So small that you never forget to keep your promise. The best way to do that is to keep your mouth shut most of the time. Don’t commit or promise until you can do it with certainty. Jim Rohn said it best – “Don’t allow your tongue to increase the burden of your shoulder.” If you keep your list of promises small, you will always be able to keep your promises, and that will make a huge difference.
5. Don’t talk badly behind anyone’s back
If you are sincere about building your personal brand strategy, then gulp your words into your throat. You can’t afford to speak badly about others when you want to build a personal brand strategy. But if you’re habituated, it would be difficult to pare it down. What to do? Replace with another habit. Instead of talking bad about anyone, talk good about people behind their backs. You don’t need to tell a lie. Just think carefully about the one thing you like about that person and talk about it behind their back. It will help you build your brand.
6. Don’t be casual in your dress and personal appearance
Therefore, taking care of yourself and your appearance is crucial when building a positive personal brand plan. You cannot afford to look gloomy and unkempt, as it can impact how others perceive you. However, you can spend a little money on clothes to look good. A few well-ironed formal shirts and trousers can significantly affect how others perceive you.
7. Work on your virtues
Everything affects everything. If you work on your character instead of trying to be charismatic, it will help you more. Personal branding strategy is never about only charisma; rather, it’s about character. People don’t look up to you just for charisma; they do because you have character. How you respond to a crisis situation is the best way to judge your character. Notice your behaviors, your responses, and how you handle other people. And then, work on your behaviors and find out why you behave in such a way. What scares you? What is missing out?
8. Help everyone around
You cannot possibly help everyone. Furthermore, it’s important to develop the habit of helping others as it can improve your brand and make you a better professional. To do so, consider carrying a notebook to jot down any issues your colleagues may face in the office. In your spare time, work on the issue. If you get a solution, offer help. You will see that in this way, you will become an indispensable professional along the way. And your personal brand plan will become an example for everyone to follow.
9. Write your mission statement and act accordingly
This is the best thing you can do to build your personal brand plan. Write down 2-5 keywords that describe you best and act accordingly. Guy Kawasaki offered this and said that a big mission statement often hinders our ability to act on the things that matter most. Clear the fog. Write down 2-5 keywords that describe you best, then make an action plan to help you build your personal brand plan.
Building your personal brand plan is a long-term process. However, quick fixes won’t cut when building a strong personal brand. Every day you choose to build your positive personal brand plan or destroy it with silly mistakes. Now mistakes are natural as human beings. Therefore, learning, applying, and making mistakes is important as you build your brand. When mistakes happen, course correct and try again. This iterative process is essential for creating an effective personal brand plan.
Recommended Articles
This is a guide to the Personal Brand Strategy. Here we discuss the introduction and 3 types of effective personal brand strategy. You may look at the following articles to learn more –
