Skip to main content

How To Create And Live A Powerful Personal Brand

In her new book, Selling Yourself, Dr. Cindy McGovern shows you how to step-by-step create a powerful personal brand. Using her five-step strategy, you’ll learn how to build an impressive, authentic brand, live your brand and sell your brand. 

“Whether your brand has created itself, you’ve outgrown your original brand, you’re ready for the next level, or you’ve changed your passion or purpose, this book is for you,” shares McGovern. 

You’ll learn how to showcase your brand to expand your opportunities, establish trust, build deeper connections, have more confidence to ask for what you want, leave lasting impressions, and finally to express gratitude. 

One of my favorite parts of the book is where McGovern includes this quote from Mahatma Gandhi

Your beliefs become your thoughts.

Your thoughts become your words.

Your words become your actions.

Your actions become your habits.

Your habits become your values.

Your values become your destiny.

 

Dr. Cindy McGovern 

Today, McGovern shares these additional insights with us. 

Question: Why did you decide to write Sell Yourself? 

McGovern: I wrote Sell Yourself because I wish I had had a book like this when I was first joining the workforce and in every career change, I have made along the way. 

Most people know that they have to sell themselves during a job interview or an annual performance evaluation at work. But few people actually know how to sell. 

I wrote Sell Yourself because no other book out there looks at personal branding as a sales tool. And no other book on personal branding teaches readers the sales skills that will help them sell that brand—sell themselves—like a pro. 

Sell Yourself not only guides readers through the process of creating an authentic personal brand that they can comfortably live day in and day out, but it teaches them the skills and strategies of the sales professional so they can use those tools to sell themselves and their brands. 

Question: How is the book more useful today than, say, it would have been pre-pandemic? 

McGovern: Selling ourselves—and personal branding—has become increasingly important as more and more employees join the Great Resignation. Millions left their jobs during the lockdown, and others are still leaving or considering it. Many who have left, though, have now become part of the Great Regret. So, it’s time for the Great Rebranding. 

Many of the people who left their jobs—and their careers—did it after they had time to think about whether they were happy and fulfilled with what they were doing all day pre-pandemic. They wanted to find work that was more meaningful or, in some cases, stop working so they could devote more time to family or personal development. 

At some point, though, most of those people will have to return to the world of work for, if nothing else, a paycheck. When they do, they might look for positions that they feel will suit them better. But will those in a position to hire them believe those applicants are suited for jobs that are completely different from what the candidates were doing before? 

In many, or even most, cases, the answer is “no.” That’s where rebranding comes in. 

Whenever we make a big life change, it’s time to rebrand. The personal brand that made us successful—or at least employable—before might not work as well as we try to move into unfamiliar territory or unrelated careers. 

Personal branding, whether it’s for the first time or it’s a rebranding, starts with examining our goals. Once we understand what we really want, we can figure out what we need to do to get it. Do we need training or more education? A new wardrobe? A more relevant network? Referrals and introductions from different people? 

Next, we look at people who have what we want. What qualities do they have that we also have? Those become the core of the new brand. Once we start living a brand that helps us present ourselves as if we have already achieved those goals, it will be easy to sell that brand to the people who can help us get there. 

Along the personal branding journey, where do you find people struggle the most—at the create, live or sell stage? 

I’d say living our personal brands is the greatest challenge. If we live our brands day in and day out, they’re easy to sell. But it’s hard to never go off brand. Yet when we behave in a way that’s contrary to the personal brand that we are trying to sell, we can destroy it our brands and our reputations in a hurry. Just look at all of the celebrities who have been canceled over a one-time slip—sometime from remarks they made decades earlier. 

A personal brand reflects who you are, plus 10%. Some days, we just don’t have that extra 10% to give. Sometimes, we just need a break, and we should take it. On those days, thought, it’s important to stay out of the public eye. We all need to let our guard down every now and then. But we should do it only with our most trusted friends and family and not at work or in public. 

For a brand to be a powerful sales tool, we need to live it consistently. 

Thank you to the book’s publisher for sending me an advance copy of the book. 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Great Business Quote

Here's a great quote from author and speaker Harvey Mackay : "When a person with money meets a person with experience, the person with the experience ends up with the money, and the person with the money ends up with the experience."

5 Tips For Generating Ideas From Employees

Your employees have lots of ideas.  So, be sure you provide the forums and mechanisms for your employees to share their ideas with you.  Hold at least a few brainstorming sessions each year, as well. And, when you are brainstorming with your employees, try these five tips: Encourage ALL ideas.  Don't evaluate or criticize ideas when they are first suggested. Ask for wild ideas.  Often, the craziest ideas end up being the most useful. Shoot for quantity not quality during brainstorming. Encourage everyone to offer new combinations and improvements of old ideas.

Effective Listening: Do's And Don'ts

Here are some great tips from Michelle Tillis Lederman's book, The 11 Laws of Likability .  They are all about: what to do and what not to do to be a leader who's an effective listener : Do : Maintain eye contact Limit your talking Focus on the speaker Ask questions Manage your emotions Listen with your eyes and ears Listen for ideas and opportunities Remain open to the conversation Confirm understanding, paraphrase Give nonverbal messages that you are listening (nod, smile) Ignore distractions Don't : Interrupt Show signs of impatience Judge or argue mentally Multitask during a conversation Project your ideas Think about what to say next Have expectations or preconceived ideas Become defensive or assume you are being attacked Use condescending, aggressive, or closed body language Listen with biases or closed to new ideas Jump to conclusions or finish someone's sentences

How To Lead A Family Business

Julie Charlestein  is the author of the book,  How To Lead Your Family Business: Excelling Through Unexpected Crises, Choices, and Challenges . Charlestein is also the fourth-generation leader of an incredibly successful family-owned enterprise, and she’s seen it all firsthand, including family drama in the workplace and the office politics that come with any corporation. Her book features her  unique set of strategies for navigating the distinctive challenges and choices facing family businesses. In her highly personal storytelling style, Charlestein shares her experience as an emerging leader and ultimately CEO, who has worked to earn her colleagues’ respect. She details her leadership adventure, offering actionable strategies for those leading and working within their own family businesses. The book is ideal for anyone leading a family business or starting a family business.  It’s also good for anyone taking over an existing (or new) business. More about Charleste...

How To Coach Rather Than Supervise Employees

Bill Berman  and  George Bradt , authors of the book,  Influence and Impact , explain the importance of helping your employees to understand what their jobs entails, and what the culture expects, so they can do the work you need from them the most.  More importantly, they say that it is better for you as a leader to  coach employees rather than supervise  them. And, as you coach, they recommend you:  Ensure the employee fully understands their job responsibilities. Pave the way for the employee to be successful. Given them the time, resources and encouragement they will need. Help them know themselves better. Consider a personality assessment by a trained evaluator so they understand their styles and preferences. Help them know the business. Ensure they know the organization’s mission, vision and purpose, business strategies and cultural norms. Help them know you. Help them to really understand what you really need from them to make you and the organiz...

When Women Lead

Prepare to be inspired by and to learn from the stories of more than 60 highly-successful female CEOs and leaders who are featured in   Julia Boorstin ’s book,   When Women Lead: What They Achieve, Why They Succeed, How We Can Learn From Them .  Boorstin shares that whether you’re a woman looking to rise in your organization or taking on a new leadership position, or a male leader looking to empower women in your organization this book is for you.   The book is divided into  three sections:   The  first section  includes: A focus on how and why women tend to build strong companies, staring with the structural challenges they must overcome to raise venture capital and scale their businesses. An Impetus for women to structure their businesses in a more purpose-drive way. How women build smart teams by embracing a growth mindset and welcoming varied perspectives.   The  second section  primarily includes: How women tackle complex probl...

How To Build Lasting Customer Relationships Using The Triple Fit Strategy

“It’s time for companies to rethink their growth logic and strategy,” according to Christoph Senn and Mehak Gandhi , authors of the new book, Triple Fit Strategy: How To Build Lasting Customer Relationships And Boost Growth .   The authors affirm that there would be much more value if companies no longer operated in a transactional buyer-seller relationship, but instead as a singular team. A team where buyer and seller can collaborate on decisions around planning, execution, and resources like they were one company.   “Today’s business customers don’t just buy products and services; they buy expectations,” explain Senn and Gandhi. “What the customers want is the commitment of and access to the supplier’s total operation. They want problem-solving and creative thinking to keep their business ahead of competition. They want partners.”   In the book, Senn and Gandhi forge an entirely new path for business that embraces a 360-degree customer-centric approach, and they ...

How To Harness Your Experiential Intelligence

“Experiential Intelligence provides a new lens from which to view what makes you, you—and what makes your team and organization unique,” says  Soren Kaplan , author of the book,  Experiential Intelligence . Kaplan explains that over 100 years ago, we established IQ (Intelligence Quotient) to predict success. Then we explored Emotional Intelligence (EQ), the theory of multiple intelligences, and mindsets that broaden the definition of smarts.   “Today,  Experiential Intelligence  ( XQ ) expands our understanding of what's needed to thrive in a disruptive world. While you can't change the past, your unique experiences and stories contain hidden strengths and untapped potential for the future,” explains Kaplan.   Experiential Intelligence is the combination of mindsets, abilities, and know-how  gained from your unique life experiences that empowers you to achieve your goals. It allows you to get in touch with the accumulated wisdom and talents you have ga...

How To Write An Employee Satisfaction And Engagement Survey

According to Polaris , a company that specializes in employee research, “a company’s employees are often the face and frontline of an organization and their opinion of that organization affects their attitude, thus affecting customers’ attitudes, behavior and ultimately, the bottom line.” That is why Polaris recommends that business leaders conduct employee research that allows leaders to better understand what motivates employees, drives loyalty, and makes and keeps employees happy. “An added benefit of conducting employee satisfaction research is that, in doing so, a company lets their employees know they are important, their opinions and suggestions matter, and there is a sincere desire to make the company an enjoyable place to work,” reports Polaris. Here are 10 questions Polaris recommends you ask employees as part of a wide-ranging employee satisfaction and engagement survey : For each of the following statements, indicate if you: • Strongly disagree • Disagree • Somew...

How To Be A Learn-It-All Leader

“Great leaders are great students, and the world is their classroom,” says   Damon Lembi , author of the new book   The Learn-It-all Leader .  “Learn-It-All leaders are constantly creating and re-creating themselves, their companies, and their leadership. They are information extractors. They pull what they learn about everything—be it product innovation or how to inspire a team—from their lived experience,” adds Lembi.  These types of leaders also model and directly encourage a culture of learning inside their organizations. This attracts higher-quality workers, improves their performance over time and holds onto them longer.  The book is divided into two parts: Part 1:  Being  –  explores how Learn-It-All leaders think . Part 2:  Doing  –  examines what Learn-It-All leaders do differently .  Damon Lembi Some of my favorite takeaways (including some quotes) from the book include:  Quote : “Live as if you were to die tomor...