By DeVry University
April 29, 2020
7 min read
April 29, 2020
7 min read
Imagine you're at a networking event and you're finally getting the opportunity to speak with a representative from your dream company. Exciting, right? But then you hear them say, "Tell me about yourself." Your mind starts racing and you're thinking, "Where should I start? What do they want to know about me? What should I tell them?"
But then you remember, you've been working on building your personal brand, and you're prepared for this. You start the conversation with your elevator pitch and you're off to the races.
If you've ever felt unprepared in a similar situation and you've been wondering how to build a personal brand or even improve your existing one, we have you covered. In the following video you’ll learn the benefits of having a solid personal brand, how to create one and more.
Builds Credibility
When you go through the process of creating your brand, you gain confidence in who you are, and you lead with that confidence in all that you do. People who interact with you see this confidence, trust this confidence, they trust you. Your personal brand is what people experience of you. So, it's important to build a strong, positive personal brand, what you're known for so that people come back to experience you again and again.
Creates Connections
When others' experience of you adds value to their life, to their business or their client's business, others will speak volumes of your contributions and you'll be recognized for what you bring to the table. When networking, you'll use your personal brand to strengthen connections and set the stage for future personal business relationships that benefit both parties for your new connections, again, to remember you.
Opens Opportunities
When you know who you are, your skills, your areas of expertise, when you know those specialties, you can better articulate your value and create career opportunities and certainly other opportunities to get to know others.
Determine Your Strengths and What Makes You Unique
So again, who are you? What makes you unique? Your skills, your talents, your professional affiliations, perhaps philanthropic or volunteer activities are really big in your life. Maybe you're on a neighborhood beautification committee. It all matters.
Also, create a list of your strengths. Create a list of the projects and initiatives that you're most proud of, that you had an opportunity to contribute to. Then, how do you prove that? What's the evidence of your accomplishments, the impact that you've made?
Identify Your Goal
Next, what is the goal of personal branding? What are your short-term and long-term goals for your branding strategy? Again, is it to land a new job, a speaking engagement, or simply to keep your brand fresh? Once you identify your goal, then home in on who your audience will be. It'll be certainly easier for you to tell your story.
So, for example, if you're trying to attract talent acquisition professionals, then you may decide to start with your social media profile, your resume. If a contact reached out to you to ask you to showcase your background in a philanthropic newsletter, then you may want a dust off that biography. Begin to create one if you don't have one already.
Perhaps you'll be attending a networking event. In this case, you'll think through your elevator pitch and a few key points about yourself that you'd like to share. When you identify your goal and your audience, then it's easier to begin to create this story.
Talk to Your Contacts
And also, who can help you? Ask your trusted advisors, your mentors, your friends and family to share their impression of you, how they would describe you. Ask friends and family about times they've spent with you. What are their best memories? These personal stories will help you understand how you impact others.
It's important to note that your personal brand is in fact going to change over time. It's going to evolve just like you evolve as a person. It will change just like your career changes.
The next step should be to discuss your audience. Think about the audience that you're going after, so then you can build out that social profile, the bio page, portfolio, or prepare for networking events.
BASIC FORMULA:
I'm a (description of role) who brings (personal attribute), (personal attribute) and (personal attribute) to (benefit to Company).
Start building your personal brand today by exploring our online programs or request info to learn more.
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In New York, DeVry University operates as DeVry College of New York. DeVry University is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission (HLC), www.hlcommission.org. The University’s Keller Graduate School of Management is included in this accreditation. DeVry is certified to operate by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia. Arlington Campus: 1400 Crystal Dr., Ste. 120, Arlington, VA 22202. DeVry University is authorized for operation as a postsecondary educational institution by the Tennessee Higher Education Commission, www.tn.gov/thec. Naperville Campus: 1200 E. Diehl Rd., Naperville, IL 60563. Unresolved complaints may be reported to the Illinois Board of Higher Education through the online compliant system https://complaints.ibhe.org/. View DeVry University’s complaint process https://www.devry.edu/compliance/student-complaint-procedure.html Program availability varies by location. In site-based programs, students will be required to take a substantial amount of coursework online to complete their program.
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