What’s your brand?

“The tiny, spontaneous, human act has enormous power.” Tom Peters

About ten years ago, Tom Peters lit a fire in the business world around a concept called personal branding. As commonplace as the idea seems today, how do we best prepare our students to be “branded” as they enter the workforce?

Guide your students through an exercise in identifying their brand and then creating an action plan to “be the brand.” To start the conversation, ask them what they know about company brands (Apple, Nike, Toyota, Target, etc.). What does a brand do for a company? Why does a company want to have a great brand? Share the point that, similar to a large company working to make a strong identity in the marketplace, each of us needs to establish a personal brand to help us stand out and get ahead in the workplace. Personal brands don’t involve logos and traditional advertising. Personal brands are all about how you’re perceived – what value do you bring to an employer (or the school, your group of close friends, the activities you’re involved in)?

To help students begin the process of identifying their brand, have them read the following except from Tom Peter’s Fast Company article from the late 1990’s:

“The…important thing to remember about your personal visibility campaign is: it all matters. When you're promoting brand You, everything you do -- and everything you choose not to do -- communicates the value and character of the brand. Everything from the way you handle phone conversations to the email messages you send to the way you conduct business...is part of the larger message you're sending about your brand.”

After they’ve read it and you’ve had a chance to discuss their take on its meaning, have them spend some time answering questions that lead them further down the road to identifying what they want to be known for.
*In terms of my work and ethic, what do I want to be famous for?
*What value to I bring to the groups I’m a part of? Do I follow through on my promises? Do I solve problems as situations arise? Can people count on me to help them? Do I spend money wisely and within my means?
*What have I accomplished that I am very proud of?
*Who do I admire most? What can I learn from that person’s work ethic that I can learn to do in my own life?

Have students condense their thoughts into once or two sentences. What do I want to be known for? This may be a struggle. A few prompts that may help make the process easier:
*I am all about…
*When people work with me, they will be struck by my ability to consistently…
*If someone were to describe my brand, they would say I am…

Finally, have them create an action plan. This can be as formal or informal as you’d like it to be. The whole point is that students are identifying ways they can build their personal brand as they prepare to enter the workforce. Here are a few questions that may help guide the action plan creation process: Out of the ideas you’ve listed, what do you most want to focus on developing? What do you need to be more purposeful about sharing with others? If you are able to be the brand they’ve described, what positive effects will it have on their workplace? On you personally?

Leadership Development Tip for October 20, 2008