By Emily Kucukalic
We all want people to recognise our strengths. To value their time with us. To see who we really are and what we are capable of.
Your personal brand is about telling that story to others, rather than hoping that they discover what you are worth. It is about telling your own story. It is about being authentically you, deliberately. When you do this, you stand out from all the rest. You show your unique strengths and become distinctive.
Deliberate. Distinctive. Authentic.
Brands, like Nike or Coca-Cola, have two components: Functional and Emotional. So does your personal brand.
Functional is what the brand does. Nike makes sportswear apparel; Coca-Cola produces soft drink beverages. This is what they do.
So, why will we pay more for a pair of Nike shoes than a pair of running shoes from Kmart?
It is because of the emotional component of the brand; how having that brand makes you feel. Try explaining to a teenager that they do not need Nikes, that Kmart sneakers are just as good!
It is exactly the same with your personal brand. You have a function – the things that you can do, your job, your achievements. And then there is the emotional component – how you make people feel. This is where all the hidden value of a brand lies. Loyalty comes from the emotional component.
At some point in a job interview process, you will be functionally equal to another person – you will both be able to do the same tasks; you will have the same skills. The decision to select you over another person will come down to the emotional component of your brand. That’s when you hear comments like “she will fit in with our team culture” and “he has a great energy.” It’s relational – the emotional function of your brand creates a desired feeling to entice others to buy into you, to want to hire you or simply to like you.
The importance of your personal brand becomes even greater when you begin to think about how people work with each other. People buy from people; they don’t buy from organisations. People work for people; they don’t work for organisations.
Of all the known species on Earth, people are the only ones that want to be liked. No other species cares. More importantly, and rather obviously, we like people who like us, and don’t like people who do not like us. This is fact, and it is one that no psychologist has cracked.
So, how do you get someone to like you? By getting them to buy into your brand!
In meetings, interviews, negotiations and more, it is important that your brand delivers its content in a manner that is deliberate, distinctive and authentic. If you want to win over colleagues, investors or even your partner and kids, join personal branding specialist Brand New You and Women of Influence for our seminar and half day workshop to unlock how to create your own personal brand.
