Do you know what your personal brand is? Does it matter?
Last year, an anthropologist named Ilana Gershon published the findings of her study on what job hunters experience. What she learned seems to suggest that personal brand does not make a difference.
In an interiew, Gershon said: "And (job hunters are) told: ‘Everything’s about personal branding.’ But they’ve been in hiring situations where personal branding never came up."
So is all this focus on personal brand a big waste of time and effort?
I don't think so.
Actually, I think we may be getting it all wrong. Here's how I see it:
Personal brand and networking go hand in hand.
Let me explain. In networking, you are connecting with other people for conversations that matter to you. This applies to anyone, not just to job hunters.
In the case of a job hunter, the conversation is about their career objective.
What do we mean by a career objective?
Almost every day, in my work as a career transition consultant, I engage with my clients around what they want to do next in their careers. What will bring them a sense of fulfillment, as well as a paycheck?
A fundamental starting point for making this decision is the Client. The client must look within and ask questions such as Who am I as a professional? Where do I want to go in my career? What is calling me?
For me, this is the personal branding space.
This is where the Client figures out who they are, what they want, and what they have to offer.
I recently came across a model from the Gallup organizations that asks five questions as a simple guide through this discernment process:
1 Yearning: When it comes to work, what "pulls" or attracts you?
2 Satisfaction: What sort of work do you do that, once completed, you say to yourself, "I can't wait to do that again?"
3 Rapid & Natural: What sorts of activities do you pick up quickly and do smoothly without much training or instruction?
4 Perceived Excellence: What have others told you that you are very good at doing?
5 Flow: What sort of work are you doing when time seems to to fly by?
Using a method such as this, you will find your way to your personal brand, that is, the core of who you are as a professional in your chosen work.
When we find our way to work that is close to this core process within us, we are very likely to find career happiness.
You have become Authentically You.
Terrence Seamon helps his clients to reach their goals. Follow him on twitter @tseamon
