In today's fast-paced and highly competitive business world, having a strong personal brand is essential for success. But what exactly is a personal brand, and why is it so important?
A personal brand is the perception that others have of you, based on your skills, values, and reputation. It's how you want to be perceived, and how others actually perceive you. Building a strong personal brand is not just about creating a flashy image or describing yourself as a thought leader. It's about being true to yourself and letting your work speak for itself.
In this blog post, we'll look at the importance of authenticity and how to align your brand identity with your brand image. But before we can do that, we'll take a look at your current brand image and see how others currently perceive you. By the end of this post, you will discover your brand attributes that will allow you to your own personal brand effectively.
Let’s start! 🚀
Brand identity vs. brand image ⚡️
First, let’s define two concepts:
- Brand identity: Your brand identity is the way you want people to perceive you.
- Brand image: How other people actually perceive you (what they say when you’re not in the room).
Strong brands have one thing in common - their brand identity matches their brand image.
And there’s only one way to achieve this - authenticity.
If the brand identity you craft for yourself really reflects who you are, you will consistently deliver on this brand and other people will perceive this as well.
“Having a strong personal brand is not having a profile photo wearing a $1,000 suit on LinkedIn. It’s not describing yourself as a thought leader. Leave that to others. Let your work speak for itself. And be yourself. Always. Because everyone else is taken.”
- Lorin Drake
So before we can decide on what your brand attributes will be, we have to do a small reality check with your current brand image.
🤔 How do people currently perceive you?
We have designed an exercise to help you find your brand image and extract your brand attributes.
🎯 Objective: You will ask 4 people to define you and extract your top 3 to 5 top brand attributes
Hereby you will have a clear understanding of how others currently perceive you. This exercise is not only fun and eye-opening, but it is also crucial in understanding your current brand image and discovering your brand attributes, which will help you craft your personal brand. Let’s go for it!
⚙️ Instructions
- Ask 4 different people (if possible, two from your professional environment and two from the personal one) these two questions:
- How would you describe me in three words?
- If you had to introduce me to a new professional contact or colleague, what would you say about me?
- From the replies, create a list with all the adjectives that your 4 people provided you and find commonalities.
- From the replies, create a list with all the adjectives that your 4 people provided you and find commonalities.
- From that list of adjectives, find the 4 or 5 that are most recurring and that you believe align with your brand image. These are your brand attributes!
In conclusion, by aligning your brand identity with your brand image, you will be able to communicate your unique value proposition through your personal brand and stand out in the marketplace.
Remember, authenticity is key. We hope that this exercise helped you to understand your brand attributes better.
Thanks for reading!🚀
This article belongs to the ultimate guide to securing your dream job in 2023! Join us as we embark on a journey of exploration and discovery, diving into the secrets of building and promoting a standout professional identity, mastering the art of crafting a winning CV, LinkedIn profile, and networking strategy, and learning the best strategies for finding opportunities, acing interviews, and making the right career choices. Check the complete series here out!
Join us in our next chapter, where we'll help you define your career goals with SMART targets and identify your ideal target audience.
