EMPLOYEE MAGAZINE
Article by Boitumelo Keoagile Personal Branding is how people perceive or define you or your business based on your image , behaviour and actions . Personal branding is what people say about you when you are not there . The principles , ethics , and values that you set for yourself in the workplace . It is through the unique combination of skills , experience , and personality that you want the world to see you . It is about telling your story through these combinations . Professionally , your personal brand is the image that people see of you . It can be a combination of how they look at you in real life , how the media portrays you , and the impression that people gain from the information about you available online . Image consultancy caters for people who wants new persona ; from lawyers , corporate executives , business owners , singles and any person who needs a fresh start and wants to be taken seriously on the roles they play or want to practise for the role they envision themselves doing in future . Roles needs to be taken seriously and be dressed up for ; your etiquette , how you carry yourself personally ( both online and physically ); Well-coordinated Dress code , and your online engagement . One needs to be remembered , what people will remember you for when you are not there ( Legacy )? Personal branding is related to how we position our brands and being intentional and consistent about it . “ Define what your brand stands for , its core values , and tone of voice , and then communicate consistently in those terms .” - Simon Mainwaring The secret of successful personal branding is an underlying consistency . You are trying to establish an external depiction of “ you .” This means that you
need to act consistently with that depiction . Show up , go all out when you go to places where no one knows you , it ’ s good to leave a memorable picture of how amazing you looked , the audience jaws dropping when you enter the room , that moment is priceless and radiates a good vibe and positive vibes in you . Your fist impression should be carried to all powerful and important first time meetings . Dressing well act as a catalyst for your overall mood on a particular day , it gives one a voice without having to speak when they attend meetings or events . It also helps to communicate and position ones ’ character without having to utter any word . Albert Mehrabian American social psychologist emphasized in his study that the impression you make on others comprised of : 55 % what is seen 38 % of what is Heard and 7 % of what is said .
Your Appearance + Your Actions + Your Attitude = Your Image Personal branding gives one an opportunity to highlight their strengths and their passion . It helps your followers or audience believe they know you better , and people have much higher trust in those they feel they know ; even public people they have never met personally . As a professional brand , one needs to motivate , inspire , build and transform their followers that looks up to them . You may never know who looks up to you for inspiration and motivation . Your personal brand helps you stand out from everybody else . It is unique and can be imitated but not match how you as the initiator or creator would unpack or position it . One can use their personal brand to demonstrate their knowledge and skills about their areas of expertise , that ’ s when one have to discover their niche by using it to separate themselves from the rest . This is also the reason why the public can react very differently to news of two people doing the
Employee magazine SEPT - OCT 2021 20