When you’ve been doing this blogging thing for as long as I have, it’s inevitable that people in your “real life” will become aware of it. In my case, I’ve been lucky that my social media presence has never posed any issues at work, but it does feel awkward (to me) at times when co-workers refer to it in a way that makes it seem like I’m some kind of actual influencer. For example: a bunch of them recently suggested that I might be a good person to give a presentation on building a personal brand. My first reaction was “umm, thanks guys, but I am NOT qualified in ANY WAY WHATSOEVER insert Homer-Simpson-disappearing-into-bushes-gif” That being said, their suggestion did get thinking about, well, how does one build a personal brand in the course of a professional (non influencer) career? With the proviso that I am writing here as a non-expert average Jane, here are my thoughts.
Authenticity
Obviously, the first step of building a brand is deciding on what that brand will be. I have pivoted in my career several times (at least twice in a major way), but in my mind, the core of my “brand” has remained the same throughout: integrity, efficiency, dependability, pragmatic & critical thinking. This might sound really generic, but it highlights what I perceive to be my strengths – things I know I can deliver no matter the situation. We all might be afflicted with impostor syndrome at times when faced with challenging circumstances or roles, but you shouldn’t feel that you have to “fake it till you make it” when it comes to your brand – people can generally sense when someone isn’t who they’re purporting to be, and nothing will undermine their trust faster.
By way of example, “rainmaker” was never a brand that felt authentic for me, and I didn’t try to pursue it even though, during my years of private practice, it was highly sought-after (and remunerated) by firms. Which is not to say that I didn’t do my share of business development activities, or devote considerable attention to nurturing client relationships, because I did and I built up valuable skills doing so; it just wasn’t my brand. Your brand isn’t your job description or your resume, it’s a kind of calling card. Put it this way: in the pantheon of fictional detectives, Sherlock Holmes’ brand isn’t a list of his cases or the title of consulting detective; rather, it might be something like “brilliant deductive skills”.
Trust
Trust goes hand in hand with authenticity. If people don’t trust your brand, it doesn’t matter how good it (or your talents) are. I was at a seminar earlier this year where the presenter talked about how trust is built. The basic formula is:
Credibility (words) + reliability (actions) + intimacy (emotions) / Self-orientation (motives/intentions)
Your words, actions and emotions (the way you make other people feel) contribute to trust, and perceived self-interest undermines it. In this context, I can’t emphasize how important consistency is. It’s not just doing what you said you would do, but doing what people expect as being in line with your brand. For me, this is a “gut check”. It’s not a question of living up to people’s expectations of you, willy nilly – it’s living up to expectations that are reasonable given your brand.
The only other thing I can’t emphasize enough is that trust takes time to build, and can be seriously undermined or lost in a split second. Sometimes, it’s tempting to do something that’s easy versus something that’s more difficult or takes more time, or pursue “easy money”, or whatever; ask yourself if cutting the corner, or getting the extra bucks is worth the hit to your reputation and brand. Don’t underestimate the value of those things in that equation.
Goodwill
I think of goodwill as a kind of personal currency. You can build up a lot of goodwill through your personal brand, and it’s a buffer when things go sideways. Nobody is perfect, and if you have a decent amount of goodwill built up, a misstep doesn’t have to become a “crash and burn” situation. Goodwill gives you a second chance, or a third, or fourth. It’s an exhaustible resource, though, so you do need to be mindful of keeping that tank full.
Goodwill has other perks too. It gives you leeway to dispense with certain conventions or expectations (provided they are not fundamental to your brand). For example, my boss trusts me to work from home occasionally because (a) face-to-face interaction is not always essential for my role, and just as importantly (b) she knows that she can trust me to be efficient, dependable and reliable no matter where I work. You might wonder at times how some people “get away” with not following certain rules; consider that they might have “earned” that privilege through the goodwill built over time in conjunction with their personal brand.
There are exceptions; people who, for a short period of time, can sustain a certain image or brand and accumulate goodwill that’s not backed up by actual work or tangible results. Personally, I don’t believe that this type of front can be sustained for extended periods of time; people catch on pretty quickly.
OK, your turn: I would love to hear your thoughts on personal branding (in real life or social media!) so drop me a line in the comment section and check out what others have to say.