Kersty Bletso, from Harvey Nash’s CIO Practice recruitment practice, shares her views on what makes for effective personal branding.
Personal Branding still has a stigma attached to it that leads people to believe it is about self promotion and bragging. This is not the case. It is a concept that has increasing credibility and touches all levels of individuals within an organisation.
If we talk about branding as a concept everyone thinks of products and services. We think of Coca Cola and McDonalds, Microsoft and Apple. We know what those brands mean and what they stand for, the messages are universal. Yet when we talk of “personal branding” there is, for the most part at least, a raised eye brow; but why should this be the case? When we think about what personal branding is the general view is that it is people putting on a front, being something they are not, that somehow they are being inauthentic and fake. Post banking crisis this is something the world is looking for in its leaders, the people who are true to what they believe and are not afraid to say what they think.
Having recently run a workshop with Jennifer Holloway of Spark, she perhaps has the best definition: Personal branding is what people say about you when you are not in the room. It is not about what you project or what you think of yourself. It is the views and opinions other people have of you. These are formulated by the lasting impressions you make when you meet.
It is critical to understand that you personal brand is NOT about being something you are not but about ensuring you are aware of what you are. There a multiple levels to this, my top 5 are outlined below:
Understand your online brand presence
Just as when you go for a new role the first thing you do is look at the organisation and their profile on the internet, Linkedin is the first place any prospective employer and any head-hunter will look. You need to make sure that your profile is current, that there is a level of detail about your roles and responsibilities. Your profile should be written in the first person and define what drives you and what is important to you, your values, motivations and ambitions. This can be as succinct or as detailed as you choose and it depends on you and your personality. List the books you are reading and what interests you have as it creates a more rounded version of you. Make sure you have a photograph, not one of you on the beach but how people would see you in a work environment.
What are your personal values?
What is it that defines you – what are the immutable truths about you that you do not waver on? Is this integrity? Honesty? Ask yourself the question. When have you ever really sat down and thought about what you stand for? What are your core values? What you would and what would you not? If you are perceived as being genuine, if people know that you will be nothing other than yourself then whilst they may not agree with what you say they will at least respect you for saying it.
What is it about you that makes you stand out from other people?
Understand what experiences you have and what is it about you that makes you stand out from other people. What is it that makes you unique? If you are going for interview make sure you research the people you are going to see; where have they worked where there may be common ground, look at their hobbies and interests.
Authenticity is everything
Your personal brand is not about being something that you are not, it is about understanding who you are, what motivates you and being true to that. People can see through fronts and facades and won’t warm to someone who essentially lies. Temper the honesty and authenticity with a modicum of common sense, No one should turn up to an interview and be facetious or argumentative, to steal another companies brand “it’s you but on a good day”.
Accept that you are not to everybody’s taste…
There is no real reason some people like Coke over Pepsi and Burger King over McDonalds. It is just personal preference. If you are not a good “cultural fit” or the was no chemistry between you and the person you are meeting it does not mean you are a bad person or that you should be looking deep inside and be critical about yourself. As long as you are true to your values and confident in who you are you will find a role and organisation that is reflective of your values. Why would you want to work for an organisation that made you work in a way that you were not comfortable with, and whose values did not closely reflect your own?