It is judicious to gauge the strength of your brand and the impact that you have on people
What does it take to have people take you seriously, be receptive to your ideas, supportive of your strategy, and in general be positively disposed towards you? The answer lies in how strongly your personal brand stands out. Your brand is your identity or the reputation that you enjoy amongst your stakeholders. It is a montage comprising thousands of impressions that people have formed from their interactions with you. Are people?s perceptions important? Absolutely! In the marketplace, perception is reality. It would be judicious, therefore, to gauge the strength of your brand and the conscious or unconscious impact that you have on people, as your brand determines the extent of your influence, chances for a promotion, or?the prospects for that coveted role or the career enhancing assignment that you are seeking.
Consider great product brands such as Tata, Raymonds or Nescafe, or personal brands like Ratan Tata, Sachin Tendulkar or Barack Obama. Alternatively, consider people closer home, those whom you can relate to, people at the workplace, perhaps. Whom would you consider as great brands and why? Who are the people who stand out? And how would you position your brand relative to theirs? What constitutes a brand? Susan Hodgkinson, in her book The Leader?s Edge, has defined the architecture of a brand along five dimensions?Persona, Product, Packaging, Promotion and Permission.
Persona is your aura, or the emotive response that you invoke in people. It is represented by the way people react to you, or what crosses their minds when your name is mentioned. For instance, if your name flashes on a colleague?s phone screen, does he take the call enthusiastically, or retract his extended hand? Your persona is the manifestation of the way you relate to people, which is embodied your emotional intelligence. Daniel Goleman in his 1995 book Emotional Intelligence proved that cognitive skills like decision making, memory, problem solving and tenacity play a rather limited role in determining why some people are more successful than others. These are considered as entry-level skills for success. What really propels you forward in your career is the way you understand people, connect with them and take them along with you. Emotional intelligence is defined by two main elements. The first relates to the self, as understanding others really stems from understanding yourself?your strengths, weaknesses, priorities, goals and motivation; and the degree of your self control in channelising your disruptive moods and emotions. The second element relates to your ability to understand others?appreciating cultural and ethnic differences, gauging people?s emotions and understanding the underlying messages by reading their body language. This is contingent upon the extent of your interest in and appreciation of people, and how likeable you render yourself through your pleasant disposition.
Product refers to your substance or the value that you bring to the table. It is the sum of your qualification, experience, wins and losses, ideas and communication skills. It determines people?s confidence in your expertise and your ability to deliver results. Are you keeping your product current and fresh by learning constantly, adding to your skills and reinventing your expertise, or are you becoming stale by hanging on to the same set of skills?
Packaging refers to your outer shell, or the way you present yourself to the world. It transcends your appearance and communication style. For instance, a cluttered desk gives the impression of being disorganised, spelling discrepancies in communication point to your lack of attention to detail, not returning a call or acknowledging a mail point to lack of etiquette or sensitivity. Is it important? Absolutely! Research has proved that people form snap judgements about you based on your external image in the first 15 seconds whether at a meeting, interview or a party. These impressions are sticky, as it takes eight pieces of positive information to undo an initial negative impression. And this is the filter through which people view all your subsequent actions.
There is, therefore, great merit in taking care about the way you present yourself. Dress right and to the occasion. Good grooming, including accessories like bag, pen, shoes, socks, handkerchief and business card case, may not be important individually, but they all contribute to your brand. Remember that the marketplace may never discover the jewel inside unless they find the packaging attractive enough to explore further. Your strengths may never be appreciated, if they are hidden under a clumsy exterior, for this is the first step to reaching your substance.
Promotion is about communicating your substance and your achievements to the marketplace. How will people appreciate your good work if they don?t know about it? And who is responsible for promoting you? Your manager? Yes, but the ownership lies with you! Promotion is not about beating your trumpet, but informing people about your work and achievements through responsible communication. The trick lies in communicating to the right people at the right forums, without over-promotion or stealing someone?s thunder. And remember, your credibility is enhanced when you promote others and give credit where it is due.
Permission is about your self-confidence and self-belief. Do you believe in the value that you bring to the table? Do you hold yourself in high esteem and consider yourself a valuable team member? Do you believe that you have a voice at the table, or are you tentative, waiting to be invited and failing to seize the moment in the process? It is about conducting yourself with conviction and self-belief.
As with any product brand, you need to actively manage your brand, striking a harmony between what you seek to portray and the way people perceive you. Any discrepancy is bound to be a roadblock in your success. Susan Hodgkinson made a pertinent point in saying that ?I am who I am, take it or leave it attitude is an abdication of personal responsibility?. It is crucial, therefore, to evaluate this periodically through introspection and by seeking feedback from stakeholders who are likely to be honest and responsible in voicing their views. Rajeev Peshawaria, the author of Too Many Bosses, Too Few Leaders, says: ?It is impossible to wear a perfectly centred tie without standing in front of a mirror. We need to be mirrors for each other?. Remember, it is not what you say, but what they say, that counts!
The author is a trainer and learning & development consultant and can be reached at charu.sabnavis@gmail.com