Take a less personal view of personal brand

The old chestnut of personal brand is as topical as ever, so I’m reaching into my archives and here from March 2011 is a bit of list of some things about personal brand you might want to think about (or any brand for that matter).

Ever thrown a pebble in the water and watched the ripples go all the way from the point of impact out to the edge? One of things that people forget when talking about personal brand is that it is almost never just about you. There are always ripples, so it’s worth taking a broader, and you could say, less personal view.

Here are some personal brand ripples to ponder:

1. Your personal brand doesn’t stop with you.
2. When your personal brand is the face of a business that brand can and will impact those you are in business with and do business with, for better and at times for worse.
3. Perception about your personal brand doesn’t happen in a vacuum – it starts with something YOU do (or say).
4. No matter what your intentions are, your actions will tell the story.
5. If your personal brand is a masquerade, eventually the mask will slip and the “real you” will show.
6. Your personal brand is not a marketing tool to be trotted out when you need to increase your profile or do damage control (and when you treat it that way, see #8).
7. Your personal brand needs to be based on more than aspiration and hype – values, purpose and your story are the foundations of an authentic and resilient personal brand.
8. Personal brands are built, one action, one decision and one comment at a time. They are destroyed the same way.

When the brand rubber meets the road, a personal brand isn’t all that different to a business brand. It is still the result of the promises you keep, so make sure the promises you make are promises you can keep … and then keep them.

For more tips on how to build an authentic personal brand, read more here and here.

See you next week.

Michel is an independent brand analyst dedicated to helping organisations make promises they can keep and keep the promises they make – with a strong, resilient organisation as the result. She also publishes a blog at michelhogan.com. Follow her on Twitter.