Is Your Personal Brand LINtastic?

February 22, 2012 By 2 Comments

My trip last weekend to keynote at Ball State University took me in to the heart of basketball country. Everywhere you looked there was connection to the game.

Coupled with this has been the meteoric rise of Jeremy Lin over the past two weeks. A social media personal branding sensation.

It was a case of basketball, basketball, basketball! It truly has been LINsanity (he has just applied to trademark that phrase!).

There are a number of lessons from Jeremy’s LINtastic recent success that you can take and apply to your own personal brand;

1. Continue to play to your strengths.
Even though he was not picked up originally by an NBA team, dropped and relegated to minor leagues he still continued to play to his own set of strengths.

Personal Brand Lesson
It is important to understand your weaknesses and how they might impact on your brand. But if you spend all your time on them you draw attention to them and you will never get a weakness to a point of strength. Take the extra time and effort to leverage your strengths.

2. Be ready for the opportunity.
A number of injuries and poor results gave him another chance, just when the team were considering releasing him. His persistence paid off and now he has helped the team to win 8 of the last 10 games.

Personal Brand Lesson
In the new reality that is work today the next opportunity might come when you least expect it. You have to be ready. Once you have been given the chance make the most of it and be sure to give 110%. People will remember you for your hard work and results.

3. Be authentic, remember where you came from.
There have been his detractors, but Lin has remained humble and appreciative of the chance to play. Even crass (or just thoughtless) sports reporting he recognised as a mistake and accepted apologies.

Personal Brand Lesson
Your personal brand is who you are. It should not be some false image or manufactured personna. The temptation once you have found more success might be to conveniently forget the past. Remain true to who you are and recognise what got you where you are now.

What other lessons can you see and apply to your career and personal brand from the recent LINsanity?

Paul Copcutt first aligned with personal branding after reading Tom Peters ‘Brand You 50’ in 1997. Now a sought after speaker and media resource he has been featured by Forbes, Reuters, the Wall Street Journal and Elle. He helps employees in leading Fortune 500 corporations realise they can be more successful and productive at work by NOT checking their personalities at the door.

Filed Under: Everything is a Brand, Personal Branding Quick Tips, Personal Branding Trends, Sports Tagged With: , , ,

Don’t Quit on Your Brand!

February 20, 2012 By 2 Comments

In the world of bicycle racing there are three letters on race results that racers dread - DNF - “Did not finish.” A DNF could be the result of a mechanical problem, an injury, or worse yet that evil voice inside your head telling you to just quit! Your legs are cramping, your head is pounding, and your lungs are burning. Pain has settled in and taken over. Before you know it, you pull of the course and give up.

The video above reminds us that “Pain is temporary, but quitting lasts forever.” Lance’s battle with cancer more so than his 7 Tour de France victories epitomizes this philosophy. Here was a cyclist in the prime of his career taken out by a fatal disease, and yet he had an unyielding focus to not quit. He simply refused to get that DNF in his race against cancer and he won.

4 Actions to Avoid Quitting on Your Brand

Personal branding is not a race and there is no finish line. However, in the face of pain it is possible to quit believing in our brands. Here are 4 actions you can take to quiet that evil voice telling you to quit.

1. Stay focused on your ‘Why’

Your vision, purpose, values, and passions energize you.  They are the bedrock of your brand and  remembering why you do what you do will always reinforce a strong belief in your unique promise of value.  Guy Kawasaki reminds us that purpose and passion ‘enchants’ others.  Your ‘Why’ is your brand differentiator and pulls people in. ‘What’ you do and ‘how’ you do it is likely the same or similar to many others. Simon Sinek refers to this as the ‘Golden Circle’ in his TED Talk and tells us that “People do not buy what you do, they buy why you do it.”  Keep your sights on the ‘Why’ and you will have that strength to power through the pain and pedal onward.

2. Be selectively famous

Personal branding guru William Arruda says that “personal branding is not about being famous, but rather about being selectively famous.” Focus on just the target audience who need to know you and avoid trying to be all things to everyone. This may seem counter-intuitive as you do not want to turn away possible business, but the more selective and targeted you are, the more focused you become and the more successful you will be. Spreading yourself too thin will begin to dilute your brand and your ‘Why’ will no longer be clear to those who are making decisions about you. Your passionate ’Why’ will transform into a painful ‘Why am I doing this?’ and the desire to quit will prevail.

3. Keep Your Goals to Yourself

To realize your ‘Why’, you need goals. So set your goals, make them SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and time-bound), write them down, post them in a place where you can see them every day, and internalize them. Then keep them to yourself and don’t tell anyone! Psychology tests have proven that the simple act of telling someone your goal makes it less likely to happen. Announcing your goal to others and receiving praise for it satisfies you just enough so that you are less motivated to do the hard work needed to complete your goal. Your goal now has a DNF!  Once you have actually achieved your goals then tell the world.

4. Thank Your Champions

A champion believe in you and your ‘Why.’  Of course fans, followers, and subscribers are important members of your brand community, but your leap of faith is not theirs as well. Your champion’s support runs deep. When that inevitable nagging voice inside your head is telling you to quit, your champion will remind you that your pain is temporary and you are riding on the right road to success. Whether your champion is your husband, wife, business partner, life partner, parent, teacher, or friend, make sure to thank them every day for believing in you and giving you the strength to continue riding down that road to follow your dream. The simple act of thanking them is a powerful force.

How have quieted that voice inside your head telling you to quit?  Share your comments below.

Filed Under: Personal Branding Quick Tips, Sports, Strong Personal Brands Tagged With: , , , ,

Do You Love Your Personal Brand?

February 14, 2012 By 2 Comments

Happy Valentines Day!

Do you love YOU enough?

How often do you take time to reflect on your strengths?

I would quite confidently suggest very little. In my work with leaders and employees in Fortune 500 Companies the most under leveraged part of their personal brands are their core strengths.

Your core strengths are the things that you do so naturally and so well that you perform them almost sub-consciously. When I point out to someone that others have identified a particular strength in them they say

“Oh really, but I do that all the time!” – EXACTLY!

Many people are very poor at spending enough time on their own personal development. It might only be in their annual reviews that they do this. Those experiences are not always very positive ones. 5 minutes spent reviewing what you did well. Then 55 minutes spent on strategies to bring weaknesses up to, at best, an average level of performance.

Some may view this as either a little simplistic or harsh. Truth is that only 42% of North Americans believe that working mostly on their strengths will mean they are more successful. That drops to an alarming 24% of Japanese and Chinese.

Very often it is difficult for you to articulate your top strengths and how they might be reflected in your career to date. If you can identify those strengths, you are ahead of the game. And you will love yourself more!

You can also take this information and create your examples, or stories, around how you have used that strength in business situations. People love stories. They will be more likely to want to work with you and for you based on these emotional connections.

There are many other assessments and tests that can be taken to understand more about yourself. It is probably best to find one or two that resonate and make sense to you.

Another good personal brand exercise is to conduct a SWOT analysis – Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities & Threats. In each area ask yourself these questions:

Strengths – what are my strengths, what do I have that is positive, that can help me achieve my goals?

Weaknesses – what are my weaknesses, where am I challenged the most?

Opportunities – if I was able to overcome those weaknesses and utlilise my strengths what will result for me? What is the upside?

Threats – what is the down side if I do not address those challenges?

It’s not just enough to be aware of your strengths. Take the time to discover if you have other hidden talents either through your own analysis or from the feedback of others – ideally both. The foundation of ALL strong brands are built in part on maximising strengths.

Paul Copcutt first aligned with personal branding after reading Tom Peters ‘Brand You 50’ in 1997. Now a sought after speaker and media resource he has been featured by Forbes, Reuters, the Wall Street Journal and Elle. He helps employees in leading Fortune 500 corporations realise they can be more successful and productive at work by NOT checking their personalities at the door.

Filed Under: Discovering Your Brand, Personal Branding Quick Tips Tagged With: ,

Your Brand Continues to Have Me After “Goodbye”

February 14, 2012 By 2 Comments

This is the second part of a 2-post series on tips for how to use your personal brand to make an awesome first impression and leave a memorable one.

What’s Your Brand’s Lasting Impression?

Just as we need to be aware of the first impression our personal brand makes when we walk into a room, we also need to think about the lasting impression we leave behind after we say “goodbye.” People will always make decisions about you after you leave the ‘real’ and ‘virtual’ rooms. Their decision to connect with you will be based on their emotional reaction from that very first meeting, but they will always later rationalize their decision based on the lasting impression you leave behind after you have left the room.

This reminds me of the famous ‘Elaine Dance’ from Seinfeld.

I am sure Elaine had hoped to leave a better impression then she did! Here are three tips for your personal brand to leave an awesome lasting impression and prevent the fallout from the Elaine Dance!

3 Tips to Leave Your Mark in the ‘Real’ and ‘Virtual’ World

1. Respond and give thanks sooner than later

A good rule to follow here is what I call the “24-hour rule.” Send an email within a day after leaving a ’real-world’ event to all the people you engaged with. Thank them for their time and even mention something that they shared with you. This shows you were listening and valued their contribution.

In your ‘virtual-world’ always thank someone for following you, mentioning a post you wrote/shared, retweeting your tweets, liking your Facebook page, or commenting on your blog. When others feel you have something valuable to share with members of their own community, show your appreciation and say thank you right away. Don’t put off sending your thanks until tomorrow when you can do it today!

 2. Give credit where credit is due

To this day I remember the President of a university I worked for telling me “Go ahead and copy my idea. Just give me credit for it!”

Nowadays, blogs, eBooks, and online portals have enabled any one of us to be ‘published’. For 2012 William Arruda sees personal publishing as an important trend for demonstrating thought leadership and extending your personal brand. It is now more important than ever to share the resources where you have gained your insight, tools, and knowledge. For example, “I picked up some great tips from Reach’s ‘The Personal Branding Blog’ so check it out this link.” or “My personal branding approach uses Reach’s proven 1-2-3 Success methodology.” In your social media channels always refer to the source of the tweet, post, or video you are sharing.

3. Ask yourself if you are ‘on-brand’ or ‘off-brand’

Is what you are about to say or do going to support your brand or potentially damage it? Elaine’s memorable dance on that Seinfeld episode is a perfect example of why you need to be aware of your actions!  You might be a thought leader in your field, but a insulting comment or ‘Elaine dance’ at a networking event could leave a mark that you do not want to be remembered for.

In the virtual world you leave digital footprints behind you. Mind what you say in your blog posts, tweets, Facebook updates, and comments on sites. Personal publishing may be an effective way to leave a lasting impression, but it is also important to realize that once you do publish something online, it is available for the world to see.  You cannot take it back. Even if you remove it or sweep it under the digital carpet, it is likely that someone has already seen it and shared it.

You may have worked very hard on building a lasting impression online, but all it takes is one bad comment or photo tagged of you to show up on the first page of your search results to change everyone’s opinion of you. Use the “grandmother test” – if you wouldn’t want your grandmother to see or hear it, then don’t share it!.  Instead share the things that support your brand and would make your grandmother proud.

Do you have any other tips to leave a lasting impression?  Share your ideas below.

Peter Sterlacci, Founder of BeYB – Believe. Become. Be Your Brand, combines personal branding strategy with cycling imagery to empower on-the-move careerists in global companies in Japan to shift gears, get out of the saddle, and sprint to career success

 

Filed Under: Everything is a Brand, Expressing Your Brand, Personal Branding Quick Tips, Strong Personal Brands Tagged With: , ,

Personal Branding is Like Taking the Stairs – There Are Always Easier Options

February 9, 2012 By Leave a Comment

When you walk in to the lobby of a tall office building, often you will see the sign for the stairs. But does that sign say enough to make you ignore the elevators and walk the stairs?

Chance are no. Unless you are still sticking to a new years resolution!

But if you saw the sign above, chances are by over 35%, that you would. Even 9 months after the sign was first posted. This is what researchers in New York found after placing a few of these around the city.

So if something that simple can cause that type of re-action and continued action, what can you be saying about yourself that might get the same result?

One immediately obvious place would be your business card.

Rather than say Accountant. What re-action might you get if it were to say – Honest assessment. Accurate results – Accountant?

Or better still, include one of your emotional attributes.

Honest assessment. Accurate results. Fun approach. – Accountant.

When communicating your personal brand it’s important to reflect the real you, after all it’s going to be the reason why people want to hire you, work with you and for you. The fact you can perform great tax returns is a given. If you have a little fun too – that’s the difference.

Paul Copcutt first aligned with personal branding after reading Tom Peters ‘Brand You 50’ in 1997. Now a sought after speaker and media resource he has been featured by Forbes, Reuters, the Wall Street Journal and Elle. He helps employees in leading Fortune 500 corporations realise they can be more successful and productive at work by NOT checking their personalities at the door.

Filed Under: Personal Branding Quick Tips Tagged With: ,

Your Brand Had Me at “Hello”

February 8, 2012 By 2 Comments

This is the first part of a 2-post series on tips for how to use your personal brand to make an awesome first impression and leave a memorable one.

What’s Your Brand’s First Impression?

Does your personal brand capture others at “Hello” when you enter a room? We all probably remember that infamous scene in the movie Jerry Maguire when Dorthy interrupts Jerry as he is professing his love to her and says, “Shut up. Just shut up. You had me at hello. You had me at hello.”

I often recall this scene when I remind my clients that their personal brands help to capture people’s attention and send off a powerful first impression. Whether you are interviewing for a job, meeting potential clients and partners at a networking event, or even commenting on someone’s blog, how you use your brand to say “hello” and engage others will provide the differentiation you need to stand out.  The first impression you make goes a long way towards defining how others perceive you, and remember, we don’t get a second chance to make a first impression!

3 Tips to Make Your Mark Offline and Online

1. Maintain eye contact

In the real world we need to look people in the eye at first meeting and maintain good eye contact throughout the discussion. Especially at a networking event, once you are engaged in a chat don’t let your eyes wander towards the person at the other end of the room you really want to be talking with. Keep your focus on the person in front of you until you find a polite way to move on.

We maintain eye contact in the virtual world with our professional head shot – one that has a full view of your face, eyes, and smile!  Use Gravatar to link your head shot to the avatar that shows up when you comment on other’s blog. And don’t be an “egg head” on Twitter! Nobody wants to engage with an egg or a silhouette image.

2. Seek first to understand…

…rather than to be undersood! Too often we get caught up with proving our brand to others by boasting about our credentials, experience, ability, and skills. Our personal brands speak for themselves, so let your brand do the talking!  When meeting people, be the first to ask questions and find a common ground. Listen actively to what others have to say by acknowledging their input and responding sincerely.

Even in the virtual world we need to be listeners. Social media channels are a wealth of insight, ideas, and thought leadership.  Use an 80/20 rule – maximize 80% of your time as a listener and 20% as a talker. By following this rule, the contribution you eventually make will give off an impression of value to your target audience.

3.  Use people’s names and personalize your connections

What’s in a name? EVERYTHING!  People like to hear their own names so make an extra effort to use someone’s names in every interaction. After leaving a chat, thank the other person for their time -  “It’s been great talking with you Peter.”  When commenting on a blog use the person’s name and recognize their contribution before giving your comment – “Thank you Peter for this great post.  I really agree with what you said about…  I often feel that…,”.  A great way to personalize your request is to avoid the standard canned request when connecting with others on LinkedIn. By making your request personal it will demonstrate your sincere interest in connecting with that specific person rather than simply increasing the number of connections you have.

Stay tuned for my next post where I will share 3 tips to leave a lasting impression!

 

Peter Sterlacci, Founder of BeYB – Believe. Become. Be Your Brand, combines personal branding strategy with cycling imagery to empower on-the-move careerists in global companies in Japan to shift gears, get out of the saddle, and sprint to career success.

Filed Under: Exuding Your Brand, Personal Branding Quick Tips, Strong Personal Brands Tagged With: , , , ,

Is Your Personal Brand Stepping Out of it’s Comfort Zone?

January 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment

While waiting for his owner to return from some local shopping, Bernard here knows where his boundaries are and he is not going to stray at all, he has become too comfortable in his surroundings. Of course perhaps he knows (or has experienced) that if he were to jump out of the back of the truck he might be placing himself in danger.

Unfortunately, at work, this is something we are all a little guilty of. Perhaps on occasion, it’s not going to be life threatening, we need to take a risk or two and leap out of our comfort zone – or maybe just a gentle step will do.

Three simple things to consider as a way to step out of your personal brand comfort zone at work;

1. Bring a little more of your personality to work. Choose something from home that you are passionate about or that means a lot to you and add it to your desk, cubicle or office space. Perhaps a favourite picture, photo or desk ornament.

2. Consider adding a piece of jewellery or favourite coloured accessory and making it a regular part of your wardrobe. It does not all have to be navy and black.

3. Identify a skill or strength that you are well known for, that you have a reputation for delivering on consistently and mention it in your outgoing voicemail message. If you pride yourself on returning calls promptly, say so in your voicemail. BUT if you are not good at getting back to people do not date your voicemail either!

What can you be doing with your personal brand to step out of your comfort zone?

Paul Copcutt first aligned with personal branding after reading Tom Peters ‘Brand You 50’ in 1997. Now a sought after speaker and media resource he has been featured by Forbes, Reuters, the Wall Street Journal and Elle. He helps employees in leading Fortune 500 corporations realise they can be more successful and productive at work by NOT checking their personalities at the door.

Filed Under: Employee Brand Activation, Expressing Your Brand, Personal Branding for Careers, Personal Branding Quick Tips Tagged With: , , ,

Is Your Brand LinkedIn?

January 29, 2012 By 3 Comments

LinkedIn operates the world’s largest professional network on the Internet with a current membership of over 135 million.  Close to 60% of these members are located outside the US. The latest data shows that professionals are signing up to join at a rate that is faster than two members per second! Clearly LinkedIn has become an essential tool for professionals all over the world to network, share business expertise, find jobs, advance professional knowledge, and build personal brands.

5 Quick Tips to Brand Yourself on LinkedIn

Here are 5 tips to effectively use LinkedIn to build and promote your brand.

1) Have a headline that sells an experience

When people visit your profile the first thing they will see is your name and headline at the top of your “profile box”.  This is the most visible part of your page and you want people to continue exploring your profile.  People often fall into the trap of identifying themselves in their headline by a job title (“Accountant”) or label (“Business Major”). While this is a valid representation of what we do, it actually groups us into the same category as everyone else doing the same type of job or studying the same subject matter.

You have 120 characters to describe who you are.  This is the first place to stand out. Consider your target audience and sell an experience not a title or label.  Instead of saying you are a “psychiatrist” tell others you are “The Shrink for Entrepreneurs who want freedom, wealth, and sanity.”

2) Get a Professional Headshot

Absolutely do not leave out a photo and make sure that the photo you use is professionally done. Take the time to invest in high quality headshots as you will use them everywhere. Remember, LinkedIn is a professional business network. Your credibility is at stake so avoid photos of you at college parties or with groups of people where it is not clear which person is you!

3) Edit your LinkedIn URL to include your name

For example, www.linkedin.com/in/yourname

Do not overlook this critical branding point.  Beyond the power of simply having a profile on LinkedIn is the fact it is highly optimized on Google.  Once you adjust the URL to include your full name, your profile will always show up at the top or near the top of the first page of your Google results.   This presence on the first page of search results will reinforce your online brand identity so that opportunities do not pass you by.

4) Write your ‘Summary’ in the first person and tell a story

By using ”I am….” or “My name is…” you are speaking directly to those looking for you on LinkedIn.  While the summary is not immediately visible unless someone views your full profile, it is probably the most important area on your profile.  Treat this summary box as if it were your ‘elevator pitch’.  Convince the readers of your LinkedIn profile that you have something unique to offer. Differentiate yourself from everyone else who seemingly offers the same service or who have similar skills, experience, and background.  Michael Margolis, founder of Get Storied, tells us that “character trumps credentials”. There is plenty of space to show your credentials in the ‘Experience’ section of your profile.  Use the Summary section to tell your story and show your character!

Also, your name is a key word and by using it in your summary you are improving the appearance of your name and profile when other search for you online.

5) Ask for recommendations (and recommend others!)

Build your credibility and validation for your brand and experience by having people who know you well write recommendations on LinkedIn. Once you start adding people to your network, LinkedIn makes it easy for them to write you a recommendation.  You also have the power to review the recommendation someone writes and decide whether to add it or ask for edits or a different spin on what they wrote.  Even as a student you can request recommendations from professors, classmates, internships or virtually anyone with whom you have shared an academic experience.  Make sure to return the favor and write a recommendation for those who have taken the time to write one for you.

 Do you have any quick tips to brand yourself on LinkedIn?  Please share below.
Peter Sterlacci, Founder of BeYB – Believe. Become. Be Your Brand, combines personal branding strategy with cycling imagery to empower on-the-move careerists in global companies in Japan to shift gears, get out of the saddle, and sprint to career success.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Expressing Your Brand, Personal Branding for Careers, Personal Branding Quick Tips Tagged With: , , ,

Is your career facing a Kodak moment?

January 20, 2012 By 1 Comment

No doubt the business school case studies in years to come about the sad demise of Kodak and it’s brand will raise many questions about the effectiveness of it’s leaders. The filing of Chapter 11 bankruptcy by Kodak this week has many lessons for all businesses, but what can you learn from this and be sure that you are not facing the same in your career?

1. Don’t underestimate the impact your ideas have.
It was the mid-70′s when Kodak actually developed for the first digital camera. Can you imagine how far ahead they may have been in the market place and for how long had they moved on this revolutionary idea.

Personal Brand Lesson - just because your industry or vocation has done it the same way for a long time and everyone is comfortable with that way does not mean an idea out of left field is not a better one. Be willing to challenge the status quo.

2. Don’t be complacent or greedy.
Kodak leaders decided to shelve the digital camera because they felt it was going to do too much damage to their highly lucrative and profitable film business.

Personal Brand Lesson – it makes sense to maximise your value with the core strengths you have. But know that you need to continually develop yourself and add new skills. Demands and markets change, so your brand has to evolve over time. Anticipate demands and start adding to your skill set now.

3. Be Prepared to Re-brand
The plan for Kodak is to sell it’s $2 billion worth of patents and emerge as a more agile company in the printer business. They see revenue and profit in ink (HP generates $9 billion a year in ink cartridges). But does the tagline of the “Kodak Moment” still apply? Likely not, as they become less and less synonymous with photos a re-brand of the company would almost seem inevitable.

Personal Brand Lesson - the experts tell us that the workforce of the future might well be in many different vocation, not just jobs, in their lifetime. The foundation and core of your brand might remain the same, but sometimes the message and your target audience will change and a re-branding is necessary.

How do you see business the lessons from the likes of RIM and Kodak apply to your career and personal brand?

Paul Copcutt first aligned with personal branding after reading Tom Peters ‘Brand You 50’ in 1997. Now a sought after speaker and media resource he has been featured by Forbes, Reuters, the Wall Street Journal and Elle. He helps employees in leading Fortune 500 corporations realise they can be more successful and productive at work by NOT checking their personalities at the door.

Filed Under: Current Affairs, Everything is a Brand, Personal Branding for Careers, Personal Branding Quick Tips, Recession-Proof Your Career Tagged With: , , , ,

Be a Personal Brand Mechanic and ‘Tune-Up’ Your Brand!

January 17, 2012 By 6 Comments

On cold winter mornings it can be a challenge to crawl out of bed, jump on the bicycle and go for a ride. Granted the first few pedal strokes are hard as your body adjusts, but once you get moving the joy of the ride takes over and you soon forget about the cold. Some cyclists ‘retire’ for the winter months and put their bicycle into storage waiting for the warm spring weather to dust off the frame, oil the chain, and adjust the gears. Without a spring ‘tune-up’ the bicycle will squeak, creak, and chatter.

Just as a bicycle needs a tune-up, so does your brand. You do not want to ignore your brand and put it into storage. An effective personal branding strategy really requires consistent and constant brand maintenance throughout the year. However, in reality the end of the year is often filled with finishing last minute projects, preparing for the holidays, and spending time in hibernation!

Your Brand is not Broken.  It Needs a Tune-up!

If you have put your brand into storage, don’t worry. Your brand is not broken! It simply needs a tune-up and will be ready to ride again. Start off 2012 right by dusting off your brand and applying these three tune-ups demonstrated by three people I am officially dubbing ‘Personal Branding Mechanics.’

 1. The ‘Alignment Tune-up’ from Mechanic #1:  Jonathan Fields

After a season of riding and racing, your bicycle’s derailleurs, gears, and chain are often out of alignment. The joyful experience of a ride can be ruined by your chain skipping between gears. Taking the time to align these parts will ensure that your shifting is crisp and your chain spins smoothly.

Jonathan Fields 2011 annual report on his blog immediately caught my eye as a perfect way to tune-up your brand. In this report, he says the core driver for success is alignment between these 4 elements:

  • What makes you come alive
  • Your preferred mode of service
  • What you either are good at, or are interested in becoming good at, and
  • What people will line up to pay you enough to live well in the world for.

After reading this it made perfect sense to me why we run the risk of hanging up our brand and putting it into storage! Without this high level of alignment between who we are and what we do, we will walk away from our brand out of frustration, desperation, or suffocation. Jonathan advises to seek alignment by reviewing what we are passionate about and asking others for feedback. He calls it his “Killer App Exercise” and by doing this for himself he was able to get the alignment he needed to tune-up his brand for some exciting changes.

Download Jonathan’s annual report to learn more about alignment, and see how his brand is being realigned for 2012.

2. The ‘Reposition Tune-up’ from Mechanic #2:  John Falchetto

Having the right position on your bicycle is key to top performance. For example, a saddle or seat post in the wrong position will still allow you to ride your bicycle, but will also lead to inefficient pedaling. By slightly repositioning your saddle forward or backward, or changing the height of your seat post you will drastically improve your ride.

John Falchetto is a great example of how to reposition a personal brand. You might know John as the ‘Expat Life Coach.’ As an expat myself, I started following John on Twitter some months ago as I was interested in what he had to say. John has recently repositioned his brand from the ‘Expat Life Coach – Abroad but not Alone,’ to ‘Life Coaching with John Falchetto – Making Everyday an Adventure.’

He has not put his life coaching into storage, but has rather adjusted his brand’s position beyond the expat label to allow for a more efficient use of his brand from 2012. Truth be told, while I was initially interested in John’s expat message, it has been his Adventure Mindset brand and approach on life coaching that has intrigued me more.

Check out how John is “going to roll” this year in this great video and contact him for help in your own brand, business, and life reposition!

3. The ‘Upgrade Tune-up’ from Mechanic #3: Kimberly Bordonaro

Each year I like to make some upgrades to my bicycles by replacing parts that still function well with new parts that function even better. Technology in cycling changes frequently so upgrading to a lighter, stronger, or cooler part is always worth the investment.

Kimberly Bordonaro has done an amazing job upgrading what is already an awesome brand with cooler parts! This month she tuned-up her Brandspiration brand by launching ‘Club Brandspiration.’ This upgrade provides personal branding workshops that are 100% content, without the pitches to buy products or services. This shiny new part on her website gives you training of tried and true strategies to help you upgrade yourself and your business.  What I love about this upgrade is that each class comes with a worksheet to help you plan your next steps.

Check out Kimberly’s Club Brandspiration upgrade and join the Club to upgrade your own brand!

By following the tune-ups from these three mechanics you can remove the dust and rust from your brand because underneath is a personal brand ready shine and ready to ride. Are you a Personal Branding Mechanic with other tune-up tips?  Please share below.


Peter Sterlacci, Founder of BeYB – Believe. Become. Be Your Brand, combines personal branding strategy with cycling imagery to empower on-the-move careerists in global companies in Japan to shift gears, get out of the saddle, and sprint to career success.

Filed Under: Exuding Your Brand, Personal Branding Quick Tips, Strong Personal Brands Tagged With: , , , , ,
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