When you walk into a room or when you leave, what do people think of you? Have you ever truly thought about the mark you leave on people and how that influences how they perceive you? . . . not only now, but the next time they meet you?
Creating a personal brand is about letting people know who you truly are and what you are about. It is about what makes you special, what you are passionate about and where those passions are taking you.
Think about it! That brand that you are creating, or destroying, follows you throughout your life and the only thing you cannot change is a first impression.
What do you want that impression to be?
In today’s 24/7/365 world of digital omnipresence, that brand is ever more important as what you say and what you do online stays with you FOREVER! It is a permanent part of you, and you need to understand that no matter how good you think the privacy settings are, there is no such thing as truly private anymore.
That means, every image, every word, every action online is fair game for others to use to judge you . . . and they will. The first thing any good employer will do is Google you. Take the time to Google yourself and see what comes up. What you find is what they find and that is what they will use to base their opinion of you.
Right or wrong, what you do reflects on the brand of the company you work for and they need to protect their brand far more than they need to protect your privacy. Just ask the two gentlemen who worked for Hydro One that were fired the next day after they were seen on TV harassing a female reporter at a soccer game.
Take the time to look at your brand. Is it truly who you are? Are you proud to show it to anyone and does it make you feel proud of yourself? If not, NOW is the time to make a change.
Your success is based upon how you brand yourself!
