What are they all saying about you that you don’t know? Career success depends a lot on what your colleagues think of you. Managing this perception is the work of personal branding – something we should all give some thought to as we plod through the days at work.
That’s the topic on Harvard Business Schools “Working Knowledge� in an interview with Laura Morgan Roberts. She notes that the brand you want them to talk about when you are not in the room is your desired professional image. The flip to that is the undesired professional image – what we do not want them to say about us.
Professor Roberts then gives five approaches to developing yourself as a strong brand: Identify your ideal state … assess your current image, culture and audience … conduct a cost-benefit analysis for image change … use strategic self-presentations to manage impressions and change your image … manage the process.
To me, what I would call “personal branding� is your core competencies and character traits that provide unique value to those around you, to the company and to your company’s various stakeholders. This is not unlike the process we all complete when developing message strategies. List out all the potential positions, narrow to a few, build around one. Stay consistent. Become that brand by delivering the value.
The time to begin this process of personal branding? Right now. While you’re still in school. What is it you will bring to future employers? What is it you will offer to your colleagues? How best can you present this brand as something highly valued and unlike any other?
5 comments
6/27/2005 at 3:49 pm
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6/27/2005 at 2:54 pm
Megan
This topic is something I have been thinking about a lot lately. I am currently interning, and therefore am in an office setting quit a lot throughout my summer days. I have realized many aspects of my personality that I do not feel are professional. (This is a minor one — but I have discovered I am a true pen thief!)
Not one month after graduation I will be entering another office environment…only this time for good.
The environment I am learning in now is similar to the environment I will continue to learn in, but work in as well in September. I am hoping to polish up persona and take a good “personal brand” into my new position.
7/7/2005 at 12:02 am
Makenzi
In today’s competitive market, its either eat or be eaten. A brand must have an edge I order for competitors to be profitable. I agree that this theory holds true in the job market as well.
What do I have that sets me apart from the thousands of other bright-eyed and bushy-tailed college grads? It all comes down to how you package yourself to future employers. Building a brand for yourself that employers view as a lucrative investment, will, no doubt, make you more appealing and hopefully score you a job.
Thanks Dale for the insight! I’m going to start building my brand!
8/24/2005 at 7:17 pm
Jessica
I think this post is beyond relevant for college students entering the professional field. In an exercise for my nonverbal communication class, the professor gave each student a number. The other classmates were to then decide, without talking to anyone, which student/number fit best into “most likely to” categories (much like the ones from your high school yearbook). Before the exercise, I hadn’t really thought about how other people perceive me at first glance, at least not since high school.
I know that many of my friends, mostly architecture and graphic design majors, spend a lot of time developing their personal images. They know that how they dress, their language and the music that they listen to define how they are perceived by the rest of the world. Their majors seem to facilitate style-awareness for some reason. Maybe I should jump on this band-wagon.
In my class exercise I was voted most likely to be an artist. I understand why people see me this way: unique hair color (black with a white streak in the front, which is natural), funky jewelry and big messenger bag. Ironically, I spent most of my high school years in the art studio. But is this the right brand for future PR employers? I hope that I can find a corporate brand that is complementary to my personal brand. I like being different, and I want to work for someone who understands that. The post and exercise combined also make me wonder if I have been turned down for even part-time jobs because of my appearance.
This self-branding concept is definitely something to think about.
9/7/2005 at 2:21 pm
Mallory
This is an extremely important concept to think about. Especially in the stage of life I’m entering now, I need to create and perfect my own personal image. Like some of the other students have commented, I haven’t given personal image much thought until recently.
I have just begun the stage of my life where I am completing my education and searching for an internship and job. I have made the difficult decision of what I want to do with the rest of my life, now I need to make another difficult decision of how I want to market myself.
I have decided I want to be an event and wedding planner. Personal image in this field is extremely important. I have to establish my own personal image in order to define who my employer and clients will be. It is a very creative field with appearance being its most important component.
I believe having a clear picture of what I want to do and accomplish with my life will help me develop my personal image. I know what I want to portray to employers and clients so I can fit my image around that. This is a very exciting time in my life. Developing a favorable personal image will help me greatly when I’m searching for internships and jobs as well as when I’m an established event and wedding planner.