Does your personal brand define you or do you define your personal brand?
By: Ashfaque Ahmed Malik
Tags: Personal Branding, Reputation Management, Success, Career Development

Does your personal brand define you or do you define your personal brand? I’ve always found the ‘personal branding’ theory and practices a little difficult to accept.

I think it’s the connotations more than anything else. If we look at any formal definitions, branding is an integral part of Marketing. Marketing is traditionally about facilitating selling [of products, services] to buyers/consumers, and here lies my challenge. Selling for many reasons is now all about the seller, the product, and how it’s packaged up – not about the buyer themselves. Many of us have these images of or even direct experiences of ‘overselling’, and ‘personal branding’ could imply an overselling of yourself.

A large majority of people will disagree with me, and state that personal branding is managing a very important of your career and how you’re perceived – and I agree! That being said, I prefer the more traditional concept of ‘reputation’. This is also how you are perceived and represents what people think of you. The big difference is that your reputation is fundamentally based on your character, who you are, and what you do. It speaks for itself. ‘Personal branding’ on the other hand can introduce a certain pressure to differentiate yourself quickly from others through promoting yourself. It’s exactly this excessive focus on promoting yourself that can lead to trying to be someone you’re not. Shouldn’t we all just be authentic and dedicate ourselves to becoming they very best of who we are? Surely if we just do that, our reputation and brand will automatically improve?

Of course, I could be accused of being old fashioned. After all I did say ‘traditional’ a little while earlier. I’m also told that nothing happens automatically and that you have to work hard at personal branding, especially if you want to ‘get ahead in the game’ and attract the best possible opportunities. Is that all that life and professional development have become? Getting ahead no matter what, and at the expense of others? I certainly don’t believe in that, but I can understand the frenzied focus on personal branding for those that do. By the way, I don’t think that I’m that old-fashioned, although I do believe that some values and beliefs have withstood the test of time. I trust in the power of social media (especially for introverts – maybe a topic for another day). But don’t you think that sometimes it just feels a little bit too much? A little too much posturing? Grandiosity? It’s almost that you have to become a celebrity to be successful and personally satisfied. No thank you!

Anyway here are 5 tips on managing your personal brand ethically:

Be bold and be yourself. Speak up, say what you think needs to be said, and do what needs to be done regardless of who gets the credit.

Be humble and appreciate that you have to improve every day. It starts with knowing yourself. Get feedback from those you trust and self-reflect as often as you can.

Be human and put others first. Help others become successful, be compassionate and empathetic. Share knowledge and give good positive advice.

Be passionate, and take pride in your work. Go the extra mile and do a brilliant job.

Be a good listener to understand others perspectives and any sub-conscious biases you or others may have, so that your contribution is even higher.

All of these will help you develop your personal brand and reputation. Most importantly, you’ll be continuously ensuring that any gap between your reputation [how you’re perceived] and your character [who you are] is minimised. Isn’t this what it all boils down to?