Building Your Personal Brand (And Why it Matters)

Over the past 7 years, I’ve seen a very small handful of individuals in my network learn, grow, and advance in their careers at an order of magnitude faster than their peers.

I’ve also seen many very talented peers of mine stagnate, burn out, and eventually search for new jobs, only to repeat that same process again at a new company.

One of the major differences I’ve seen between these two groups is the value they placed on investing in their personal brand.

The first group recognized the incredibly powerful impact of building and maintaining a strong personal brand, both inside and outside of their company. The second group thought that their personal brand didn’t deserve much effort or that it would take care of itself without deliberate, focused effort.

As I’ll show you in this post, that laissez-faire assumption couldn’t be further from the truth.

Hold on, let’s slow down, what is a personal brand?

There are many definitions for a brand, but this is one of my favorites:

“Your brand is what people say about you when you are not in the room”

- Jeff Bezos (Amazon)

Bezos absolutely nails it here. Whether we’re talking about a company’s brand or a personal brand, this quote applies equally well.

Now, take a minute to reflect on these three brand-related questions:

1. What do people say about you when you’re out of the room?

2. What do you want them to say?

3. How can you get from what they actually say to what you would like them to say?

Why Is Your Brand Important?

Your brand is your reputation.