Building a Personal Brand – the Path From Self-Analysis to Success
The world has never been as diverse, competitive, and developed as it is now. Technological advances have changed the requirements and standards of the industries. To achieve the desired goals, we need more thinking, hard work, and action. Each of us needs to engage in a more in-depth and strategic self-analysis process, not get lost in the age of information growing at lightning speed, not lose our ideas, and effectively navigate the path to success.
One of the main links in this chain is “Personal Branding.”
“Personal branding” is a marketing practice that ensures the identification and implementation of processes necessary for individuals and their career aspirations.
It is an ongoing, long-term process of developing and maintaining an individual, group, or organization reputation and value code.
How to start thinking about “personal branding”? What is the first step?
The first step is to understand and analyze yourself and your goals and find answers to such self-reflective questions: Who am I? What do I want to achieve? What are my special traits or skills that set me apart from everyone else? What is my identity? What is my mission in this life?
Understanding these aspects starts with getting involved in professional and personal development processes. It is necessary to understand what our strengths are. This will help us analyze the individual excerpts and autobiographical moments that have led to fundamental transformations in us – the moments that shaped us as individuals.
Analyzing these issues will help us in strategic planning and figuring out how to reach those around us not to lose authenticity. “Personal branding” is freedom because we allow ourselves to be who we are and find the best forms of self-expression.
Self-identification took place. What is the next step?
There are many tools – one is the positioning platform through which the next steps in development are planned. For example, how do I want to be perceived in society? What do I want my brand to be like tomorrow? Do I want to bring benefits to the community, a specific group of people, and myself? This stage involves identifying plans and goals. Accordingly, we are planning a positioning platform, and after responding to these components, a kind of guidance document is formed. Thus we continue to position ourselves in the community.
Integrate results into everyday life
In the third stage of creating a personal brand, a plan is developed to integrate the identified components into daily life: What actions should we take to revitalize the personal platform? Do we have to use channels to communicate? What do we do to properly deliver the authentic version of ourselves to the target segments? Which target segments are important to us? The answers to these questions are used to develop specific actions and tactical plans.
How does my personal brand affect my business?
We have to understand the basic idea, values , and purposes of a business (or other activity). This is where an important bridge is built.
There are times when a company has another basic promise and another idea, and they don’t oppose our personal ideas. If both ideas go for the same goal, then collaboration is working.
There are cases when it is clear that the company and the personal idea/promise coincide.
There are times when personal ideas and corporate visions do not match. In such cases, it is better to end the collaboration since the individual, and the brand can not cooperate for a long time.
If the issue concerns personal business, here it is easier said than done. However, it is important not to make mistakes and not just put our personal values into the business because a particular brand has its own unique semantics. They must not conflict with each other.
Working on “personal branding,” self-analysis, and the results obtained from these processes will extend not only to the individual’s professional achievements but also to all other aspects of life.
“Personal branding” does not mean only career advancement because career advancement is not the only determinant of happiness. Happiness is in harmonizing with oneself and achieving a balance of life, which implies that a person should not be developed in only one direction. “Personal branding” is one way to succeed in this balance, as it encourages multi-layered human development.
Author: Irina Dumbadze, Founder of “Personist”