The human impact on branding has rubbed off on the people who build the brand from the inside out. Therefore building a personal brand for the individual is just as valuable for the organisation as it is for the person.

The individual by defining and developing their personal brand gains a greater understanding of their values, vision, their core skill set and strengths that they can bring to their role, organisation and ultimately allow them to proactively manage their career results and outcomes.

Where there is an opportunity to align or compliment the goals, values and objectives of the individual with the organisation you create the situation for a highly engaged, focused individual adding significant value to the company brand, business performance, and the customer experience.

For the organisation you have the opportunity of maximising your greatest asset – your people. When they have the freedom to leverage their personal brand you create the environment for brand champions and advocates of your organisation driving further weight to your corporate brand.

Brands are built and destroyed by the action and delivery of your service or product experience. Supporting your brand credibility and equity is the influence of the performance of your people. Regardless of what industry or service you are in the impact to the success of your business of your peoples actions can not be ignored.

STAYING OUT IN FRONT

As one American Senior Executive from PricewaterhouseCoopers quoted “In the professional services industry, where our people are our product, conscious personal branding is particularly relevant and important. Every interaction a client has with one of our professionals says something about that individual’s personal brand and therefore about the brand of the firm”.

Committed employees stay at companies longer, deliver better results, and deliver your real brand experience each and every day.  Branding in the world of Web 2.0 world is truely about making the most of your people and at the same time making the most of the people who surround your corporate brand.

The companies that engage their employees to define, develop and understand their personal brand and how it supports the corporate brand will surely be out front in this competitive landscape.

LEVERAGING YOUR INVESTMENT

Personal branding may be a new approach to organisational development in New Zealand but it will prove to be a critical component for creating not only an environment for highly engaged and results focused individuals but an important component to the organisation’s marketing strategy.

Understand the direction you want to go, the position you are aiming for, and know the steps you need to take and the people you need to know to help you get there. Whilst you are building the montage of your career ensure that at every step you leverage every opportunity to expand your skills, broaden your experience and grow your networks – you never know what or who can be of assistance in the future.

In terms of people, confidence is about understanding who you are, what you can do, and the value you can bring to others.  Being confident means you have faith in your skills, abilities and knowing that what you have to offer is of benefit to others.

However don’t confuse confidence with ego or aggressive self promotion. Confidence doesn’t necessarily mean shouting loudly from the rooftops about how great you are.  But it is about you knowing yourself, understanding your strengths, and acknowledging the value you have as a person and professional.

Have you ever looked around the office and wondered why some people seem to just attract success, the promotion, and the higher paid roles while others don’t?  Sometimes it is that they are better qualified and more experienced but sometimes it is because they are just more confident.

When you are confident, people feel they can trust you, that you are capable, that you will take charge and deliver.  Ultimately they feel they are putting that job, company, service or business in safe hands. Every achiever I have ever met says “My life turned around when I began to believe in me”  – Robert Schuller

Consider for a moment – Do you have confidence in yourself, your work, or your business?  What are you communicating to people in the words that you use, the energy you give out, and the body language you communicate to others.

As a personal branding specialist I often observe the difference in confidence in people and the results they then experience either in the career or business when they define and manage their personal brand and begin to take pride in their unique combination of skills, attributes, capabilities, and value what they have to offer.

Tips to Boost Your Confidence

•    Know yourself – understand your strengths, skills, and value you bring.
•    Be able to communicate to others your key selling points.  This will build your confidence when you know what you need to say and promote.
•    Have a plan to work toward – keep focused on the long term “game” – then when you get those small knocks along the way you will know that they are just part of the process to get to where you need to go.
•    Whether you are trying to be more confident in your business or yourself – Set goals, reach out where you need to, and be realistic.  Nothing undermines your confidence more than when you are aiming for goals that sometimes that are just too high (for now).
•    Use every opportunity to learn, grow and expand your knowledge, skills or experience.
•    Take time to review where you are at, and acknowledge the progress and successes you have had along the way.
•    Celebrate the small wins – these are confidence boosters.  Don’t just hang out for the big wins.
•    Be kind to yourself and to your situation.
•    Remember sometimes it is just business – it is not personal.

Remember as soon as you use the word – can’t.  You won’t!  We all agree it is challenging economic times but if you feel more confident about the business you are in, the job that you do, or that job interview you are going for.  Not only will others benefit but ultimately so will you.

If you want to develop greater confidence, Brand YOU has a range of confidence programmes available – explore the “Build Confidence – Build Success” e-programme for a brighter future for you and your business or career.

Article written for Gloss.co.nz May 2009

I spend a lot of time coaching business owners to ensure that they have strong sustainable practices in place to allow them to have the time and ability to focus on their business and its future.

As a sole trader or a business owner with a small team you are often heavily involved with the operational running of the business and not to diminish the importance of this as you are often the reason why your business is successful. But, if you spend all the time working in the business and not on your business you are not putting measures and checks in place to ensure the long term success or future of your business.

Regardless of the business or industry you are in, the marketplace is always evolving and to stay ahead of the game your business must also ensure it is adapting to stay relevant, competitive and attractive to your customers.

My philosophy as a business coach is to create a “bite sized chunk” or a “little and often” approach for business owners to stay focused on their business whilst they are working in their business.

Even simple reflective questions as:

• How are we performing?
• Where is our business now coming from?
• How has it changed over the last 12 months?
• What is my customer want from us, the product or service – how are their needs changing?
• What are my competitors doing?
• What is happening out in the marketplace that may affect my business
• What other opportunities exist for the business?

Will ensure you are keeping focused on the bigger picture and the future of your business.

If you want to know more about how Fiona and her team at Brand YOU can coach you and your business for greater results please email us on info@brand-you.co.nz for more information.