But I get it. You can\u2019t say, \u201cI want to focus on my personal brand\u201d without feeling kind of cringe or icky about it. So let\u2019s not say that. Let\u2019s call it something else. Instead, let\u2019s try saying:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI want to create leverage for myself. I want to make it easier to network with other people. I want my ideas to serve as a magnet for the people and opportunities I want to attract. I want to stand out from others and not need to rely on a traditional job hunt anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s not as succinct as the phrase, \u201cpersonal brand,\u201d but I think it gets the job done a little better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Why do I even care? If you\u2019re reading this, it\u2019s probably because you want to get started but you have some hesitation. Or you\u2019ve already started down the path of building your personal brand and you\u2019re looking for an extra push. Either way, I was in your shoes once. And I was stuck in one place for a really, really long time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It was seven years ago that I started noticing colleagues and peers posting on LinkedIn, blogging, or starting newsletters. I was jealous. Jealous that they had the confidence and clarity to publicly share their ideas, and I couldn\u2019t imagine ever having a shred of that confidence. So I just\u2026 languished. On one hand, I\u2019m glad I waited until I was more senior to publish online and put myself out there. On the other hand, I wish I did this sooner. I\u2019d have created much more optionality for myself earlier in life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The tipping point? I was tired from having been laid off, having been furloughed, having too-long of a job hunt, and being unhappy in a given role. It was during the pandemic and something needed to change. And that only thing I could change was my actions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What I wish someone told me then was this\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n Especially if you work in a well-known or large company, you might feel like you aren\u2019t allowed to publish online. So here\u2019s my advice: don\u2019t ask for permission. You won\u2019t get it. Not because your employer will forbid you, but because it\u2019s not your employer\u2019s job to help you build a personal brand. If you do this, you’ll risk having to field more questions than you will receive answers or support \u2014 and you yourself might not know the answers to these questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A reticent employer might wonder: Are you trying to job hunt in plain sight? What\u2019s in it for me and the team? How many hours per week are you going to spend on this? Having to answer those questions might overwhelm you more than anything else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fortunately, there are a few proactive steps you can take that would quell initial reservations from your employer. These are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Be mindful of your role within your company. <\/strong>Focusing on your personal brand doesn\u2019t mean you\u2019re suddenly the company spokesperson. If you work at a traditional company, you may already know that that\u2019s the job for your media-trained senior leaders. If you want to, share the work that you or your team have done that you\u2019re proud of. After a press release goes live, share the announcement with your social network. Just be sure not to position yourself as potential interviewee for a reporter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Don\u2019t say or do anything you wouldn\u2019t do at work.<\/strong> No, it\u2019s not because \u201cbig brother\u201d is watching. It\u2019s because you\u2019re a professional person. If you view your personal brand as an extension of your professional self, this might come naturally to you. This guidance is not to stipulate that you only discuss work for your personal brand \u2014 it\u2019s to encourage you to think holistically about how you might position your expertise and personal interests in a professional setting. On any given day in the break room, you might talk about a sporting event you\u2019re excited about, a new restaurant you\u2019ve been dying to try, or your struggles with potty training your toddler. If these are your interests, they can (and perhaps should) inform your online personal brand. They make you, you!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Give yourself topic guardrails.<\/strong> The constraints might make you feel safer and more creative. Let\u2019s say you\u2019re a B2B performance marketer who wants to share their ad and lead generation expertise with the world. Great. Write primarily about that. Don\u2019t worry about the other aspects of marketing that you don\u2019t know as well. This specificity works in your favor because as you continue to publish and gain traction, you\u2019ll become increasingly top of mind for your skill among your B2B audience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When in doubt, stick with what you know. <\/strong>And what you know best is yourself. When you share your knowledge, write from firsthand experience. Write about things you\u2019ve tested, or events you know deeply well. Nobody expects you to be the perfect, all-knowing expert in your field \u2014 but you definitely are<\/em> the expert in yourself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Throughout the focus in my personal brand, I\u2019ve had a couple of changing goals. But the one that truly shifted my outlook was this: To never have to do a traditional job hunt ever again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With that goal in mind, I started small: I began treating my Twitter account like my resume. I\u2019d write about my hard-won lessons, sticking only to what I know well. I\u2019d occasionally write about my interests as well (hey, it\u2019s not uncommon for a hiring team to ask you about your hobbies in the job interview process!) which includes food and parenting. Fairly quickly, I began attracting the conversations that I ultimately wanted to have. I started meeting other creators, collaborators, hiring managers, and brands. I\u2019ve picked up consulting work here and there, and I\u2019ve gotten job opportunities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I was able to do this by having one overall goal, and creating the stepping stones (or tactics) to reach that goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n How might this apply to other goals?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Let\u2019s say you want to move up the corporate ladder and lead teams. Think about what would make you a great team leader \u2014 the skills you already have, and the skills you need to continue honing. Then make sure all of that shines through in your personal brand. Think big but act small. Be the people manager for your direct report that you<\/em> wanted for yourself. Now, think of how this informs what you say or do publicly online. Share your leadership advice, your career development tips, your strategies for getting promoted at work. These are all things that demonstrate your competency as a team leader, and by publishing online, you\u2019re creating a magnet that attracts hiring managers and recruiters. Over time, you might see that you\u2019ll create that upward mobility at your current employer or you\u2019ll find your way to a different employer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Maybe your goal is to keynote a conference one day. You\u2019d (likely) need to hone the skills of public speaking, charisma, and storytelling. Create opportunities for yourself to practice all these things. Consider launching a limited-series podcast or YouTube show. A limited series might give you the helpful constraint to focus on a single story arc and conclude it \u2014 helping you to stave off potential burnout by having the finite time frame.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Or maybe one day, you want to have 20,000 newsletter subscribers. Start with your newsletter launch. Pick the path that offers the least friction \u2014 be it Substack<\/a>, Beehiiv<\/a>, ConvertKit<\/a>, whatever \u2014 and just get started. Choose a publish day and stick with it. Ask your family, friends, peers and former colleagues to subscribe (then don\u2019t take it personally if anyone ignores your mass email). Find other creators in your niche with a similar audience size. Then offer to do guest post swaps and\/or promotional swaps. Always have a next milestone in mind, but don\u2019t overwhelm yourself. Keep going.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The point is, you can <\/em>dream big. You should. But you won\u2019t achieve them until you go after them. So start with a plan of small tactics that pave the path to get there.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" You don\u2019t need to announce your bid to join the creator economy. You don\u2019t need to sell templates or courses, or even start a podcast. And you certainly don\u2019t need to quit your job. Because here\u2019s the thing: focusing on your personal brand doesn\u2019t need to mean becoming a creator. Taking charge of your personal<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8208","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-marketing","category-personal"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/images.sparktoro.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/PersonalBrandRules-1024x576.png\")
Some personal brand rules for employees<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Think big but act small (at least at first)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n