Recently, I conducted training at a homeless shelter on personal branding. You might ask, how can a personal branding course help the homeless secure employment?  Their goal should be simply to find a job. For that reason alone, I believe that a personal branding course can be useful to someone who is homeless.  Why? Because  they really need to sell their value to their interviewers.  And  whether you know it or not; personal branding —the perceived value that we bring to others— is important for you too. So have you thought about your personal brand? 

First,  you need to figure out what you would do even if you were not getting paid to do it. In other words, discover your passion.  A couple of my passions are writing and encouraging others. As a result, I seek opportunities that allow me to write or help others in some way—whether it is writing an article or inspirational reading, volunteering at a homeless session, designing and providing leadership and team effectiveness training, or conducting one-on-one coaching sessions to name just a few. These are activities that I enjoy.  What makes you excited?   Write  it down.

Second, identify and embrace your strengths. I’m a firm believer that all of us are unique. There is no one like you!  We are special.  And we all have skills & talents that come easy for us. We are good at doing certain things that did not require a certain level of education or training—we just have ‘it’. I’m an introvert and introverts get their energy from being alone but I love supporting and encouraging others.  I can walk into a room and immediately establish a connection with many. People will generally share information with me that they may not share with others.  That’s  one of my gifts—I do it well and I use it to hopefully inspire and motivate others.  What are some of the things that you do really well? Embrace them because they will ultimately contribute to your success.  Write them down. 

Next, explore the perceptions of others.  People often say “don’t worry about what others think or say about you”.  In some situations that may be true but if you want to build your brand —you have to consider what others think of you and the value you bring.  Your personal brand is what people say about you when you are not in the room.  It is your value–the words that they use to describe you to their families, friends, and colleagues. And it is how they genuinely feel about you. I’m a subcontractor for a government customer and I want to know that my customer values the work that I do. I want to know that even though I may have similar skills as others that they recognize the value that I bring.  This happened this past year when my contract was coming to an end; the customer extended my contract because they recognized my value and felt that they needed my support to help them move forward. Ask others how they perceive your value and use it to adjust as necessary.   

Fourth, write everything down on paper and develop what is called a Personal Branding Statement. If you were on an elevator with someone who had the power to give you the career you want—whether is singing, speaking engagements, training, analytics,  whatever it is—it’s a career that that is ‘spot on’ and in alignment with your strengths and passions. Write it down (and practice saying it)—because that’s your personal branding statement—it’s your value so take some time to get it right. 

This is just the beginning. Remember there is no one like you!  Following these steps is a great start to building the brand call ‘you’!

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