Personal Branding: What Do I Want To Be Known For?

I remember watching a careers training video by the brilliant Aimee Bateman in which she was working with a group of young professionals starting out in their careers. Aimee was giving feedback to each of the young professionals about their online profiles. It was all pretty straight forward until she had to ask one candidate how they thought their employability was affected by having naked pictures of themselves on their social media!

You should know the answer to the question ‘What Am I Most Known For?’

What we are known for or our reputation is at the heart of what determines our personal branding. Personal branding is strengthened as we become more socially aware and conscious about the perceptions that other people have about us.

In search of your personal branding and answering the question ‘What Am I Known For?’ there are three questions that I suggest you ask:

• What do people say about me when I am not in the room? What’s the gossip on me? If you don’t know ask a trusted friend what it is that others say, both positive and negative.

• What do Internet Search Engines say about you when your name is searched online? What impression do your social media platforms give about who you are? Have a look yourself or ask someone you know to have a look and tell you what they think.

• What feedback do you receive? What do the people who don’t like you say about you? It’s easy to push it away and say that it’s because they don’t like you but before you do that it’s worth a second look to check there’s not something that you could learn for your advantage.

So for one moment stop believing your own advertising. Suspend the stuff that you choose to project about yourself. Turn off your personal broadcast mode. Consider the warts and all view of what you are known for because that reflects your current personal branding.

Personal Branding Question: What Am I Most Known For?

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