Sticking out like a sore thumb
Your personal branding begins with a scrutiny of your personal goals and values, and how to best communicate them to others through your actions and deportment while maintaining personal integrity and enriching other people’s lives. In the end, we will be remembered—and talked about—for how we made others feel.
IFIND comfort in wearing uniforms. One of the things I love about wearing a uniform is not having to think about what to wear because if I were left to my own devices, I would wear whatever was comfortable. For a decade, I was used to wearing a set of uniforms. It became a burden when I took on a job which allowed me to wear smart casual clothes, and I had to experiment for a while to know which ones I liked and felt comfortable in. Until now, I still have a tendency to be in uniform by wearing a certain color palette or going to a specific brand for clothes. And that is me. I like the predictability of it all. And people who know me would know which type of clothes I would go for and associate me with a particular look.
Your clothes are just one aspect of your personal branding—what sets you apart from everybody else. Your personal branding plays a big role in how people perceive you, even before you talk. It is the impression you leave to people and how they talk about you when you are not around. While you may not be aware of it, you are constantly being evaluated by everybody you come in contact with, and your personal branding is how people remember you. That is why you need to take pains to ensure people see you in the best possible light so you can have a leg up in gaining favor from colleagues and supervisors.
It became a struggle for me when I no longer had to wear a uniform because I then needed to choose carefully what kind of image I wanted to project. It became more important when I became a people manager because I had to change not only how I dressed up, but also how I interacted with my former colleagues whom I would now manage. It also became critical when I had to deal with other managers from other departments, and how I projected myself was a reflection of how my team would be perceived—my personal branding extends not only to myself, but to how others see my group.
It became apparent that my personal brand goes beyond how I looked. Developing my personal brand means being mindful of my deliverables, and setting commitments and always delivering as promised. These go a long way in positioning yourself in terms of not just your professional development and enriching your career, but also building trust and authority in your expertise. Your personal brand, whether you like it or not, either sets you up for success or prevents you from achieving your career goals, which is why you need to work on it deliberately and purposively.
Of course, your personal brand is who you are. In an era where personalization permeates every facet of our life, I would think it is easier to define what we actually want. But it is not. With all the choices available, it has become more difficult for some people to make up their minds about what to do with the plethora of choices and they end up choosing whichever is more convenient at the moment, rather than looking at how their choices affect their lifelong goals. This is why it is important to set personal and professional goals for yourself because they will help you filter which choices will support them. And it all begins with a clear understanding of who you are and what you want to achieve.
After arriving at such an understanding, be consistent with your choices and goals. Some of my friends have made it their personal brand to be respected and feared by putting on a professional and business countenance whenever they are in the office, but are convivial and engaging when they are with friends. Clearly, they have made it their decision to separate their professional life from their personal. Some friends, on the other hand, have made is a point to be both formal in the company of coworkers or friends. Either way, it has to be clear to you and to the people you interact with how you deal with them. Consistency is the key in establishing a smooth working relationship with your coworkers and friends.
Another big aspect of your personal branding is how you project yourself on social media. People have a tendency to post off-the-cuff-comments without really thinking about how the general public, or even their friends and relatives, will take their comments. Try googling yourself and survey the results because you just might be surprised what you see there. Your digital footprint will tell others your inclinations and thoughts on different issues which your supervisor, or even recruiters and hiring managers, will find insightful. Review your social-media entries or blog posts and see if they align with how you want to be perceived. If not, meticulously scrub out those posts which do not contribute to your personal brand.
And in everything you do, always leave a positive impression on others. You cannot control what other people will say about you, nor can you make everyone like you, but you can always try to end a conversation or a meeting pleasantly. There are cases when you have to burn bridges, and when you do, it does not have to be in a fit of rage. If you cannot be positive, try to be as neutral as possible so no one can take it against you. You never know when you will encounter the person again, so it will serve you well to part amicably.
A strong personal brand will sell you by word of mouth. One of the biggest compliments I have ever received was when I was mistaken for a manager when I was not yet one. That, in itself, was validation of my effort to assist the manager apprentices, as well as how I carry myself when I talk to their managers. When I told the incident to my department manager, she said it was not only a validation for me, but also a validation of my section manager’s efforts in mentoring me, and the manner with which I dealt with the other departments and executives. It pays to understand that when you know your worth and you add value to others, they, in turn, add value to you.
Your personal branding begins with a scrutiny of your personal goals and values, and how to best communicate them to others through your actions and deportment while maintaining personal integrity and enriching other people’s lives. In the end, we will be remembered—and talked about—for how we made others feel. ■