The popular book Build your brand from 0 to 1 describes the complete process of achieving that, from developing your personal brand to promoting your brand. If you want to build your personal brand and attract followers, this book is for you, or you can just read on!
A personal brand is an overall image consisting of a person’s inner values, appearances, and characteristics
A personal brand is an overall image that one leaves on others. It consists of their inner values, external appearances, and personal characteristics. What does he/she do? What kind of person are they? What kind of image does he/she project? What personality does he/she have?
Consider Steve Jobs. He is Apple’s co-founder; he led significant technological breakthroughs with devices such as the iMac and iPhone; he was a minimalist who wore a black shirt and jeans; he was serious, hard-working, and creative. Therefore, his personal brand consisted of all these elements.
Personal branding via the Internet is becoming increasingly important, especially for people eager to profile themselves
When we look at people making a positive change in their lives by choosing a fresh career path, we can look at Ailing, an example raised by Wang Yi Jiu, author of Build your brand from 0 to 1. Ailing was a full-time computer programmer who dreamed of becoming a self-employed piano teacher. She had been practising the piano as a hobby for several years, and she accomplished her dream thanks to the Internet. She began releasing videos of herself playing the piano, discussing her grasp of the compositions, and communicating with pupils via social media. Over time, she grew a fanbase who recognised her expertise in piano playing and appreciated her teaching method in the videos. Eventually, Ailing began her journey as a successful piano teacher.
Personal branding via the Internet is a new avenue for entrepreneurship. It is especially beneficial in a knowledge-based industry where people want to share a particular skill they have with others. To hire someone as a teacher, you must first have faith in this person’s skill and character. You must also connect with their personality.
Ailing’s personal branding allowed her to showcase her skills to the public and allowed her prospective students to get to know her as a person before committing to learning from her.
Once you establish a solid brand for yourself, you will have access to many opportunities. You can then provide courses and consultations, speak at events and even publish books.
Even if you’re not interested in building your own company, you should consider your personal brand. According to research, 70% of companies look at potential candidates’ social media profiles on LinkedIn platforms before hiring. If your online branding matches your career aspirations, it may land you your dream job.
Self-discovery is essential before building your brand, so it is important to ask yourself some fundamental questions
Personal branding fails when you lack introspective clarity or commitment. Before you start, you need to be clear about who you are and why you are doing this. Spend some time with yourself and write down your purpose, core values, and personal stories. The questions you should ask yourself include the following:
- What kind of person am I?
- What unique values do I bring to this world?
- What are the skills I have and would love to share?
- Why is it important to me to share this?
- What message do I want to bring to the world?
Make sure you stay true to yourself. If you do not even believe in your brand, how will you be convincing in front of your audience?
This first stage of self-discovery is essential before building your personal brand. A successful brand must also be consistent and aligned.
Showcasing your personal brand requires a focus on your value and showing that to others
The hardest step is going from 0 to 1. You are now ready to showcase your brand to the public and demonstrate its worth. You will need to introduce yourself. It could be on your social network profile page, the first message when you join a chat group or the first thing you talk about when you meet people.
An excellent introduction includes three elements:
- An interesting personality
- An intelligent train-of-thought
- An appropriate communicative behaviour
Essentially, it is about how you think, how you behave, and who you really are. People will begin to pay attention to you once you captivate them with your value.
Successful personal branding requires a constant improvement of your skill, a keen understanding of how to handle emotions and effective personal grooming
Your self-branding journey has three important elements: work, social presence, and physical appearance.
In the context of work, it refers to the ongoing improvement of your skills and quality of work as you delve deeper into your area of competence. Being competent alone is not enough. Your competence should exceed your audience’s expectations. Their desire to spread positive word-of-mouth about you will drive your brand’s success.
Developing a social presence necessitates a keen understanding of emotional intelligence. It is critical to treat everyone with respect and dignity since no one wants to connect with someone who belittle others. As such, be modest, be nice to people, and endeavour to add value to every interaction.
Learning to deal with criticism is also vital. Don’t let remarks spoken in the heat of the moment sully your image or reputation. No one can please everyone all the time, and the goal is not to be always right.
Given that humans are visual creatures, it is critical to appear well-groomed, professional and appropriately dressed for each occasion. Your physical appearance should reflect your ideal, most confident self.
Building a personal brand is not about putting up a fictitious front which you want others to see. It is about accentuating your strengths and setting a personal standard. It is about projecting a positive image and adopting appropriate behaviours. A personal brand will eventually form over time.
This article is co-created by NexPage, a translated book summary app, and CareersCompass by MyCareersFuture.
