Building an authentic personal brand is increasingly becoming one of the most crucial aspects of personal development and leadership. I was honoured to be asked to speak on this topic by one of our big City law firms Blake Morgan LLP.
As the topic falls neatly under the personal growth banner, it was an offer I could not refuse. I was also well-chuffed that the event I was invited to keynote falls under the Blake Morgan Next Generation Network. A programme aimed at providing a platform for younger generation leaders and professionals across different industries to network for business/personal growth.
3 Tips to Build an Authentic Personal Brand
So, what are the 3 tips to build an authentic personal brand? In this 3-part blog series, I’ll provide you with a snap shot of the keynote I delivered at the event. Each part of the series will address one of these 3 tips:
– Having a sense of purpose
– Looking and sounding your brand
– Owning up to your brand
Before we get there, I hear you ask, what is a personal brand any way? Personal brands are simply ‘people marketing themselves and their careers as brands’.
Ever wondered why personal branding is so important? Well, 87% of business executives interviewed rank reputation as their no. 1 risk concern; ahead of any strategic issue, according to ceohangout.com.
Building both your offline and online (social media) brand is important. Have a clear message, theme, strategy and exception plan for doing this effectively. Being able to align your personal and business brand is a great idea.
Here comes your first tip!
TIP 1 – Have a sense of purpose (your why)
Our personal authentic brand, when developed well, impacts us positively in all aspects of our lives; home, work, business, relationships, financially etc.
Knowing who we are, why we do the things we do and choosing to embrace activities that take us into our ‘flow’ (our most productive and happiest states), go a long way to help us present our authentic brands more powerfully. This opens us up to more of the opportunities we truly want. 
Alignment is key here. Whenever we say or do something that does not feel or seem right to us, we are possibly not in alignment with our authentic self or brand.
We are probably copying someone or something; in the hope that it will bring us the results we want.
The highest potential results will come more ready to us when we show up as our true selves.
Yes, it may be different, quirky or we may even have a fear of showing up fully with it. Guess what, the more we develop the courage to show up as us, the greater our chances of greater success eventually! Check out Simon Sinek’s ‘Start with Why’ for more insights.
Connecting Authentic Personal and Corporate Brands
Once you’ve looked at our sense of purpose, it will be evident to you that authentic brands do evolve over time. Companies are increasing evolving and upgrading into authentic versions of their brands too.
You may want to check out a key blueprint for building powerfully authentic personal and corporate brands that yields success on all levels from Hubert K Rampersad’s book.
How is your authentic personal/business brand evolving?
Could you do with an initial consultation or analysis on this? If you like this article, do like and share!
Stay tuned for Part 2 of ‘3 tips to Build an Authentic Brand’ where we discuss ‘Looking and sounding your brand’
Maggie Sarfo is a passionate author, speaker, advisor and mentor for inspirational business leaders and entrepreneurs looking to explode growth revenue or access their highest potential. Her blog is her playground, where she explores the topics of business growth, personal growth and peak performance. Learn more about her programmes.
