its higher price tag. So, what does this demonstrate?
People will pay more for a superior experience.
Applying this truth to your own brand as a leader means that if you want to earn more money, advance in your career, and rise to positions of greater responsibility, you must think about the experience you offer on the job. Think about it … would you want to work with you? What would it be like to be your colleague, your peer, your boss, or your direct report? What would that experience be like? Again, it’s all about the way key people perceive, think, and feel about YOU™.
Taking Control of YOU™
As I said earlier, you already have a leadership personal brand, even if you didn’t think you needed or wanted one. Your brand may be out there doing its thing, creating perceptions about YOU™ without you even being aware of it. People may be thinking and feeling about you in ways that aren’t at all how you want to be perceived, just like Alfred Nobel. Most people I’ve met find this idea intriguing … and a little bit scary. They don’t like the idea that their personal brands may be running amuck without knowing what to do about it.
The leadership personal branding system in this book will help you uncover and eliminate any disconnect between how others see your brand and how you want to be seen. Some of the questions you will answer as you move through the steps of the system are:
•How do you take control of your leadership brand if it exists in the minds of others?
•What can you do to make sure your brand as a leader is what you want it to be?
•How do you want others to perceive, think, and feel about you?
•How can you make your leadership personal brand something that is definable and that you own?
•How do you communicate your brand effectively?
Your Leadership Personal Brand Triangle™
Take a look at the Leadership Personal Brand Triangle™ in the graphic below. This is a concept I developed to help you understand how well your current brand is aligned with your desired brand.
For your brand to be strong, all of the descriptions at the three points of your triangle should be the same. How do you get a crystal clear and consistent grip on what those three points stand for right now? Do what I call “The Five Words Exercise”:
Step 1. Sit down and ask yourself: “What five adjectives would I use to describe myself as a leader at work?” Don’t overthink it, but do think in both positive and negative terms. An example might be: Strategic, hardworking, intelligent, team player, impatient. Write down your five words right now.
Step 2. Ask: “What five adjectives would I like others to use to describe me as a leader at work?” This is the foundation of your desired leadership personal brand. Write down those five words as well. How similar or different are they from the first set of words?
Step 3. Next, recruit someone you trust to be your “brand ambassador.” Give that person the names of five to ten individuals to interview (people you work with). Have your ambassador ask those people individually to share the first five adjectives that come to mind when they hear your name. The ambassador should ask your feedback providers to keep their answers to specific words and not phrases; this helps ensure that the exercise outcomes are simple and easily analyzed. By the way, make sure the ambassador does not write down anyone’s name or note who said what; anonymity is key to this exercise! For this approach to work, all information must be kept confidential.
Step 4. Once you receive the compiled list of words from all five to ten people, spend some time reviewing the list. What similarities or trends do you see? What adjectives are similar or different? When you see words repeated, you will know that they are part of your brand. When you see a variety of different words, it may indicate that you’re acting one way with certain people and another way with others. Beware: This inconsistency can lead to leadership personal brand confusion.
Once you work through the entire Master the Brand Called YOU™ personal branding system, you will be well on your way to aligning the three points of your Leadership Personal Brand Triangle. No matter how successful you already are, you will then have the opportunity to distinguish yourself further in the workplace.
Just as Starbucks can command a much higher price tag than a standard cup of coffee at a local cafe, so YOU™ can create a premium leadership personal brand that commands a bigger paycheck, better perks, and/or brings you greater recognition and satisfaction in your career.
Think of it this way: Your leadership personal brand is what you stand for in the minds of others. Who is __________™? Insert your name in the blank, and let’s begin.
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