The “Breaking Through the Glass Ceiling Conference” held on Villanova’s campus this past Wednesday, was a great success. As one of the Breakout Sessions, we had Cindy Ratzlaff, who spoke about creating your own personal brand (If you’d like to watch the presentation, you may do so on youtube here).
This subject for me has been something I’ve thought about for a long time, either in classes where I was told to create my own core competencies, through Keith Ferrazzi’s Never Eat Alone, or in just thinking about my future and what I have to offer employers. It’s a diffiuclt exercise to do, because it’s so personal, but luckily you can adjust your brand over time. According to Cindy, there are four parts of your cohesive brand: visual, voice, value and variation. Visual and voice are as you would expect- that you should always dress for the job you want, not the job you have and how your voice is the most influential gateway to your brand.
Now, with value & variation, the concepts get harder to explain about yourself. What do I personally offer to the company I’m working for? Keep in mind, the importance here is to define what you offer, not what you could offer in the position you are working for. Your unique value proposition follows you wherever you go, not just in the company or industry you work for.
To complete this exercise, I ended up doing as Cindy recommended, and created a Brand Deck, or personal presentation of what I am all about. In this BrandDeck, you expand on the visual, voice, value and variation that complete your unique value proposition. I’ve had a feeling for awhile that I kind of cross two different aspects of my life in being me: although I am a happy free spirit, I’m a get-things-done kind of girl, too. In this exercise, I attribute being a Sarah (Hebrew for princess!) to being this free spirit and lover of nature and the world, and being a Mitus to the serious, organized part. Following is an example, which I completed after throwing around a few buzzwords in powerpoint:
My Unique Value Proposition:
– I’m willing to change locations and try new things
– I enjoy and appreciate maintaining relationships
– I understand business principles and have a passion for creativity and innovation
Your first youtube link at the top has a double http in it so it doesn’t link directly to the video you intended it to go to. Just had to come back and tell you, now off to watch the video.
Thank you! Always appreciate people letting me know when things don’t work!
I love seeing this Sarah. The thought you’ve put into Brand Sarah will help you as you continue to create a powerful personal brand. I like the way you’ve looked at both your innate personality traits and your professional goals and combined them into your evolving Brand You. Bravo.
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