What are your personal brand attributes? - Find out!
In today's fast-paced and highly competitive business world, 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 is how you want to be perceived and how others actually perceive you. Building a strong personal brand isn't just about creating an eye-catching 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 will discuss the importance of authenticity and aligning your brand identity with your brand image. But before we can do that, let's take a look at your current brand image and see how others are currently viewing you. By the end of this post, you'll discover your brand attributes that will enable you to effectively create your own personal brand.
Let's go! 🚀
Brand identity vs. brand image ⚡️
First, let's define two concepts:
- Brand identity: Your brand identity is how you want to be perceived by others.
- Brand image: How others 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 is only one way to achieve this - Authenticity.
If the brand identity that you create for yourself truly reflects who you are, you will consistently implement that brand and others will notice that.
“Having a strong personal brand doesn't mean having a profile photo in a $1,000 suit on LinkedIn. It doesn't mean calling yourself a thought leader. Leave that to others. Let your work speak for itself. And always be yourself. Because all others have already been taken.”
- Lorin Drake
So before we can decide what your brand attributes will be, we need to do a little reality check with your current brand image.
🤔 How do people currently perceive you?
We've developed an exercise to help you find your brand image and extract your brand attributes.
🎯 Goal: You'll ask 4 people to define yourself and extract your 3 to 5 key brand attributes
This will give you a clear understanding of how others currently perceive you. This exercise is not only fun and insightful, but also crucial for understanding your current brand image and discovering your brand attributes that will help you shape your personal brand. Let's go!
⚙️ Instructions
- Ask 4 different people (if possible, two from your professional environment and two from your personal environment) 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?
- We recommend that you ask them in writing and not over the phone (email, WhatsApp, message) so that they have time to think and provide honest answers.
- From the answers, you create a list of all adjectives that the 4 people have given you and look for similarities.
- From this list of adjectives, you'll find the 4 or 5 most common ones that you think match your brand image. These are your brand attributes!Finally, by aligning your brand identity with your brand image, you'll be able to communicate your unique value proposition through your personal brand and set yourself apart in the market.
Remember, authenticity is key. We hope this exercise has helped you better understand your brand attributes.
Thanks for reading! 🚀
This item belongs to The ultimate guide to securing your dream job in 2023! Join us as we embark on a journey of exploration and discovery, dive into the secrets of building and promoting an outstanding professional identity, master the art of creating a winning resume, LinkedIn profile, and networking strategy, and learn the best strategies for finding opportunities, passing interviews, and making the right career decisions. Watch the full series here!
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