Stop Letting Others Define You: It's Time to Sculpt Your Brand

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Your personal brand is your unique stamp – how people perceive you and what they say about you when you're out of the room. Let's explore a simple exercise to start shaping it today.

It takes some thought and quiet time to develop your own personal statement. I did this as part of a women's leadership program at Verizon and it was so valuable. I use this every day to ground myself to ensure I am working on those things that only I can uniquely do. This process of introspection and aligning with your core values is similar to the moments of reflection I find so crucial for gaining clarity and realignment, as I discussed in a recent post Clarity & Realignment .

How do you start?

Let me share how I got there! Write 1-2 sentences that answer the following questions:

1. What are you best at (value)?

2. Who do you serve (audience)?

3. How do you do this uniquely (USP)?

You'll probably refine this many times to get it crisp and concise. When you feel like you're ready, then it's time to prepare your "elevator pitch," the narrative you can remember and share with anyone anytime anywhere!

Components of your elevator pitch should include your name, your title, your current situation, your USP, and where you are heading. It should be 30-60 seconds, using action works, tells a story and has a "hook" (something that makes people want to know more)!

Here's an example (it's actually my personal branding statement) + a quote that describes how I approach my work and life.

✺ I am a "people & process connector". The value and service I bring is in my ability to provide an open and collaborative space where people feel safe to offer ideas to solve business challenges.

✺ What makes me unique is that I can easily take on large and complex initiatives with a lot of ambiguity, evaluate all its pieces and put together a plan in a way that communicates a clear vision and outcome, all while tapping into individual "superpowers" that makes contributors feel valued and important. I love my teams and we have fun delivering together!

✺ "Clarity & simplicity are the antidotes to complexity & uncertainty." - General George Casey

I hope you take the time to build your personal branding statement out too! It's incredibly rewarding (and challenging) and is great to keep you aligned on work and people you accept into your life! Developing a strong personal brand as a leader directly supports the habits of great leadership.

By Angie Janko, COO of GSD Coach & Recruiting, helping SaaS founders build the top 5% of talent, FAST!