Building your personal brand can help you become more visible at work. If you’re feeling stalled in your career, your brand may need a little more pizzazz. Just remember that successful personal branding is rooted in authenticity; take the time to unearth your true traits instead of imitating the pizzazz you see in others.
Being known as “the creative one,” “the data guru,” or “the steady Eddy” is a strong starting point, but if you’re ready to manage a team, you need to think beyond that basic brand moniker and focus on showcasing your leadership skills—specifically the leadership skills that set you apart from everyone else who is vying for promotion.
Compare the process to marketing Dove chocolate candy. It’s good on its own, but when you add some special elements like caramel or almonds or cranberries, you’ll grab more attention. A superstar employee knows that plain vanilla is less likely to get noticed.
Don’t Wait For The “Perfect” Senior Role
A strong leadership brand will help you excel in your collaborative work and naturally move up the corporate ranks. It reveals the process and style with which you get things done. And here’s some great news: You have the power to define your authentic leadership brand regardless of your current organizational role.
That’s why Stacey Cohen, CEO of Co-Communications, recommends that every employee—not just C-suite executives—focus attention on developing a leadership brand on top of their personal brand. “A company’s rank-and-file employees should capitalize, too,” she advises. “It allows professionals to differentiate themselves, and also angle for the promotion that best suits them.”
Wondering if you’re too shy to benefit from a leadership brand? Leadership branding also applies to introverts and ambiverts, not just extroverts. Introverts might habitually, inaccurately predict that they’re not going to enjoy leadership experiences. As a published experiment recently showed, introversion can lead people to undermine themselves by setting up a self-fulfilling prophecy. The secret to overcoming a hesitancy to speak up is to push against comfort zones (desensitization) by talking at meetings, accepting limited leadership roles, and learning to effectively network with peers.
Not sure how to shift your leadership brand so it showcases your strengths and tells people you can run the show? Begin by adopting strategies that amplify your existing personal brand.
1. Explore your voice.
Good leaders are reliable and expressive communicators, whether in one-to-one situations or while giving speeches to hundreds. Start by tuning in with your ears. Listen to what others say to determine how best to engage with them. After you become accustomed to opening yourself to incoming messages, you can respond with pertinent, thoughtful answers and advice. Remember, you don’t have to say tons to speak volumes.
As you’re discovering how to express yourself with confidence and clarity, infuse your communication with the topics you feel truly passionate about, drawing on information and experiences that prove you’re a thought leader in that area.
2. Upskill yourself—and your tribe.
Ninety percent of employees believe in the power of annual skill set building, according to Deloitte. Unfortunately, only about a third of professionals get the organizational support to make it happen. Take training into your own hands: You’ll improve your brain while differentiating yourself from the crowd.
Online products like strategy simulations can rapidly and efficiently develop emerging leaders, and they tend to be easily accessible. “Data-driven learning journeys allow professionals to continuously update their skills: overcoming weaknesses, building on strengths, and constantly adapting to new developments,” says David Ackley, head of digital services at global professional services firm BTS. Of course, you’ll want to share the your love of learning to emphasize your desire to bring others up along with you. Recommend learning tools and platforms to your colleagues so you can all become better problem solvers in low-risk web environments.
3. Spotlight your expertise.
Can you name the last time you gave a presentation or spoke at a conference? Getting up in front of a crowd puts you smack dab in the middle of Expert Land. Individuals who are willing to talk about their expertise get immediate street cred for themselves and their organizations at large, which goes a long way toward cultivating a personal leadership brand.
Not sure you’re ready for a taped TEDx Talk? You don’t have to start your speech-making on the big stage. Offering to make a presentation on behalf of your team to a roomful of stakeholders can be a defining moment. Let’s face it: Most people don’t jump at the chance to speak in public. When you volunteer for the tasks that others fear, you get a reputation for leading and become invaluable to your company. And thanks to the power of digital branding, you can post your slides or even a video clip of your presentation in your professional social channels to expand the audience. That’s a great strategy if you’re trying to get comfortable with speaking before larger audiences. Start with a small face-to-face audience and let digital branding take it to the next level in the virtual world.
4. Request feedback.
You’ve developed your leadership brand and are working hard to make it a reality. Is it really hitting the mark, though? The only way to find out is to ask people around you to tell you how you’re doing. Emphasize that you want to hear the whole truth to help you get better.
As indicated by data from leadership development consultancy Zenger/Folkman, the best and brightest leaders rely on 360-degree feedback to give them an outside perspective. Yes, it can be tough to hear that you’re not creating the buzz you thought you were. Still, knowing what you’re missing means you can fix the situation. Accept what you hear from co-workers and friends with an air of gratitude and without a whiff of ego. And the process is not all about determining weaknesses. In fact, the best goal of 360-degree feedback is to uncover and validate your strengths.
Developing a leadership brand is not about chest-pounding or being the loudest voice in the room. It’s about turning up the volume on the value you deliver and inspiring others to follow you. Adopt these four strategies to make yourself shine in the eyes of decision makers.
William Arruda is the cofounder of CareerBlast and creator of the complete LinkedIn quiz that helps you evaluate your LinkedIn profile and networking strategy.
