4 Questions to Shape Your Professional Brand and Polish Your Personal Presence.
Your brand is your greatest asset because it speaks for you when you are not in the room.
As we start moving back to more face time in the office, the subjects of ownership, accountability and presence are becoming more prominent, and the gaps more noticeable.
If you have yet to give your personal brand much thought or put it on the back burner during Covid, it's time to start giving it some attention and focus. Here are some questions to ensure you are showing up as the best version of yourself:
What do you want to be known for?
If I asked you to describe your team members, you already have a vocabulary to describe each individual. The same is true of you. People have a specific choice of words they associate with you, and you want to know that these words genuinely describe who you are.
The starting point to creating your brand is defining what you want to be known for.
Write down four to five words that you want to come into people's minds when they think about you. Is it trustworthy, creative, dynamic, reliable, organised or intelligent? You can also think about the words you don't want to be associated with; perhaps it's inefficient, unreliable or inconsistent.
Once you know what's important to you and how you want to show up, you must explore question two…
What are you doing to demonstrate it?
What do you believe your first impression is when you walk into a room? Is there a gap between how you want to show up and what people perceive about you?
A disconnect happens when your behaviour doesn't match your intentions of how you want to show up.
Think about that person who is always twenty minutes late for you; how do you perceive them? Most likely, words like unreliable, they cannot plan and selfish. If you want to be known as reliable but constantly arrive ten minutes late to the team status meeting, you will not create your desired result.
Showing up late sends a message that you don't respect their time and perhaps cannot be trusted with more significant responsibilities. Although this is the antithesis of your intention, the damage is done.
Think about what you could do differently to mirror the impact you want to make.
If you want to be seen as dependable, are you regularly communicating with the team? Are you ensuring your work is delivered on time and to a high quality? Or does someone dread receiving your work because they know it will need to be checked for errors?
A habit like procrastination is destructive to your productivity and again signals to your team that you cannot be trusted to deliver the work on time or to a high standard.
You may be facing your own fears of perfectionism, failure or judgment but remember that done is always better than perfect. If you leave something to the last minute, it will never be your highest quality work.
If you bring conscious awareness to your behaviour, you can start making better decisions. To transition into a powerful brand, you need to remove the focus from yourself and onto other people. Consider:
· How do your actions impact the team?
· What are the consequences of deciding to act?
· What are the consequences if you don't deliver on time?
The more you focus on contribution rather than perfection, the more you will show up as a strong leader.
Are you dressing for the job you have or the job you want?
Covid has blurred the lines on what constitutes appropriate dress. We became complacent sitting behind our screens with the camera off and not having to interact with colleagues or clients in person.
Now that we're back in the office and client-facing again, it's time to address the tricky subject of dress code that many managers are grappling with.
"Dress is the impact you want to make on the room" - RuPaul
When it comes to your physical presence, it's not about wearing fancy or expensive brands but inspiring trust in your team, clients and those you interact with. Consider how a pilot dresses in their pristine uniforms because they have to command the trust of their passengers and team members.
How you show up is not about trying to impress other people but realising that when you make an effort for yourself, you feel good, and your confidence naturally increases.
In Sylvia Ann Hewlett's book Executive Presence, she suggests you start dressing for the job you want, not the job you have. Why? Because when you interact with your leaders, do they see you as the person who is capable of going to the next level? What is the impact you make on them today so they can begin to see you in future roles?
Remember, dress and deliverables go hand in hand. You can master the dress code, but if you do not deliver on time, communicate with the team or drop balls, you will sabotage your brand. Attitude, consistency and reliability are how you create a powerful brand.
I'm not saying you need to dress for an EXCO-level meeting every day but consider how credible you are advising people in your flip-flops and shorts. It's a package deal; you cannot rely on ability alone to send a powerful message about who you are.
Research shows that people make a first impression in 7 seconds. Experiments by Princeton researchers suggest that people can accurately judge others within 1/10 of a second.
These observations happen before you have even said good morning! This is the power of owning your physical presence.
Be appropriate to the environment and authentic to you.
If you need help with how to dress, look to your leadership for guidance. If you're in a professional environment like a law firm or financial institution, there is an expected image to portray credibility and professionalism.
If you're in a more creative industry like advertising, arriving in a full suit will not be appropriate for that environment. Please take a look at who your clients are and what matters to them. If you're selling them a high-ticket item, they need the assurance that they are dealing with the right person.
Again, it's not about exclusive clothing brands but creating gravitas. Showing up looking polished, groomed and well-put together demonstrates that you take the time to invest in yourself. In the same way, you demonstrate to your leaders and clients that they can trust you to invest in what matters to them.
Above all, be authentic to yourself. How can you bring your unique style and flare to the environment so you feel comfortable in your own skin? If you have to be professional, is there a signature item you can have fun with, like a scarf, shoes or glasses?
Ladies, this does not mean you must dress in 'male' power suits and wear black. Embrace the power of your feminity and show up in your unique style, whether that's dresses, colour or your version of an influential leader.
The truth is dress matters whether you're having coffee in your canteen or the coffee shop down the road because you represent yourself, your team, your division and the company.
Is this your job or your mission?
The difference between being in a job or having a mission is the energy you bring to it. The more enthusiasm you bring to your work, the more powerful your brand becomes. You don't find passion in a job; you generate energy towards it.
If you perceive your work as a job, you will do the bare minimum and not give a minute longer than required. When your work is your mission, you are contribution focused and will always go the extra mile because you know you are adding value.
I've noticed this distinction of mindset at one of the local gyms; I am an early riser and get to the gym just before 5 AM because the official opening time is 5 AM. There are two kinds of managers: one has a job, and one has a mission.
The manager in a job will only open up at precisely 5 AM even if many members are waiting outside because they refuse to start their day a minute earlier than they have to. When you are handed a towel, there is barely a greeting and a look that we have interfered with their day.
The manager who sees his work as a mission ensures he arrives earlier to allow people to start their session a few minutes earlier. If you're in the gym before 5 AM, you have your priorities straight and value your time—every minute matters. You are greeted with a warm smile when you walk in, and he genuinely wants you to have a great day.
What's the difference between them? One is focused on themselves, and the other is focused on the customer and how to create a fantastic customer experience. This person goes the extra mile; their service-orientated attitude is tangible.
The experience for the customer rests in the hands of the front-line person – they are the first contact with the company and leave a lasting impression. Even if your current role is not where you want to be, show up with energy and enthusiasm for what you do.
Nothing is wasted; everything you are doing now is being added to your career toolkit. If you show up with a service mindset and contribution focus, this is what becomes part of your brand.
The world is too small; you never know whose path you will cross again with an opportunity because of how you showed up in this role.
Don't wait for one day or your dream job to bring your best self to it; the best time to start is today.
Final thoughts.
Your brand is about creating the best version of yourself and showing up as the best version of yourself every day.
Every interaction you have will either enhance or detract from your brand. What are you doing to give people the most positive brand experience of you?
If you're new to personal branding or it went off your radar in Covid, here are some questions to help you shape your brand and bring this into team meetings to define the division brand:
· What do you want to be known for?
· What are you doing to demonstrate it?
· Are you dressing for the job you have or the job you want?
· Is this your job or your mission?
The beauty of being a brand is that you can continually reinvent yourself. This doesn't mean changing who you are, but you can choose what matters and live in alignment with that vision daily.
Here's to brand YOU.
Warm wishes,
Lori