A personal brand is about what you say, how you say it, what you do, how you do it, and how you look while doing it. But, Personal Branding is not about showing off to others. Here are some good examples of personal brands.
Tiger forests. What a magnificent personal brand. Even the name grabs you. (What if her nickname had been “Poodle?”) Tiger! Relentless, ruthless. Tiger! You can hear the roar of a tiger. The fist pump at the end of a good shot. Aggressive. Your brand is so strong that you earn much more for being your personal brand than for playing the game. And he is better playing golf. Is there a lesson in this? Yes. Personal marketing of your personal brand can play as important a role in your success as your actual performance.
Arnold schwarzenegger. Schwarzenegger, in the 1984 film The Terminator, said three words that allowed him to win the election as governor of California 20 years later. Those three words were: “I’ll be back.” Those three words drove and defined the Schwarzenegger brand. Those three words stuck with him for two decades and stuck in the minds of enough voters. “I’ll be back,” he suggested that he would be powerful in times of crisis, resolved when things were tough, focused and determined. Without those three words, there is no Schwarzenegger in political office. What is the lesson here? Words have power. What you say and how you say it can make or break you.
Austin, Texas has a strong brand. When I travel across the country, people always ask me, “Where are you from?” When I say Austin, Texas, they say, “It’s a really nice place. What a great place to live!” In most cases, these people have never been to Austin. But they know the brand. They talk about the music … the barbecue … the rolling countryside. And Austin has drawn large numbers of people from some of the other most sought-after cities. These people, who could live anywhere, choose Austin over New York, San Francisco, San Diego, Chicago … Brand Austin attracts a lot of the right people. What is the learning here? If your personal brand is right, you will attract the right kind of people to your side.
I’ve been wearing bow ties since I was 4 years old. I like them and have collected hundreds over the years. The look has become such an important part of my personal brand during formal events that I dare not appear without my bow tie. There have even been times when I dressed casually while traveling on vacation and people came up to me and said, “Where’s your bow tie?” What is the lesson here? Your audience has expectations of you and is disappointed if you don’t meet those expectations. This applies to your job performance, your appearance, and your style. Everything. What is your brand? You project it in each contact with others.