Episode 13 How to develop your personal brand authentically

Speaker: 00:00:05

Welcome to Unstuck and Unstoppable,

the podcast for ambitious female

2

: 00:00:10

leaders who want to create more impact,

income, and influence in their careers.

3

: 00:00:14

feel connected to their passion

and purpose, but without

4

: 00:00:17

selling out or burning out.

5

: 00:00:20

I'm Sarah Archer, a leadership coach

and career strategist, helping women

6

: 00:00:24

like you thrive in leadership roles

while staying true to your values.

7

: 00:00:29

I'm the founder of CareerTree

Coaching and have over 15 years of

8

: 00:00:33

coaching experience and significant HR

leadership experience to share with you.

9

: 00:00:39

I know as a female leader it can

be hard to find time to focus

10

: 00:00:43

on your career aspirations.

11

: 00:00:45

The day job can be all consuming.

12

: 00:00:48

Plus, no matter how senior you are,

there are always going to be times

13

: 00:00:52

when you feel stuck, when you have

self doubt, or feel like an imposter.

14

: 00:00:57

And that's where unstuck

and unstoppable comes in.

15

: 00:01:01

Each week I'll be sharing practical

strategies, insightful interviews and

16

: 00:01:06

inspiring stories to help you boost

your confidence, lead with purpose

17

: 00:01:10

and achieve sustainable success.

18

: 00:01:13

If you're ready to stop playing

small and unlock the incredible

19

: 00:01:17

potential you have within you and feel

unstoppable, you're in the right place.

20

: 00:01:22

Let's get started.

21

: 00:01:29

Welcome to episode 13 of the

unstuck and unstoppable podcast.

22

: 00:01:33

I am so glad you're here.

23

: 00:01:35

And today we're talking

all about developing your

24

: 00:01:38

personal brand authentically.

25

: 00:01:41

. When I'm working with clients,

this is often something we we work

26

: 00:01:44

on together and a lot of women

find this a really tricky area.

27

: 00:01:48

We're going to explore that a little bit

more . Because it can feel quite exposing

28

: 00:01:52

and it can also feel like a non essential.

29

: 00:01:55

But actually, there's lots

of great reasons why you

30

: 00:01:59

should have a personal brand.

31

: 00:02:00

Do you feel like you've got one?

32

: 00:02:01

Can you articulate it?

33

: 00:02:03

Are you actively promoting it?

34

: 00:02:05

And yeah, I'd love to know what you feel

about the thought of developing your

35

: 00:02:10

personal brand and actually using it.

36

: 00:02:12

And it can feel like, you have time

for developing a personal brand.

37

: 00:02:15

My job is full on, but it is important

to spend time thinking about it because

38

: 00:02:19

whether you like it or not, you have one.

39

: 00:02:22

What we're putting out

there it gets, seen.

40

: 00:02:25

You will have a personal brand, even

if you haven't actively created it.

41

: 00:02:30

And , if you are actively working on your

personal brand, it's going to be great

42

: 00:02:34

having a strong reputation that people can

see, that people can recognize, because

43

: 00:02:39

it's going to lead to more opportunities

both internally and externally.

44

: 00:02:43

Whether that's getting a secondment,

whether it's getting the opportunity

45

: 00:02:46

to lead a project that you're really

interested in, getting an offer to speak

46

: 00:02:50

somewhere, or write something, or get

that promotion, it is definitely going

47

: 00:02:56

to contribute to Accelerating those

opportunities for you and, it enables

48

: 00:03:02

you to have a consistent message about

your talents, which is really important

49

: 00:03:07

because that helps you stand out.

50

: 00:03:08

It is a crowded market.

51

: 00:03:11

There are going to be lots of

other people who've got similar

52

: 00:03:13

skills and experiences to you.

53

: 00:03:14

Having a personal brand that

you're actively engaging with.

54

: 00:03:17

Managing will help you to stand out and

the research shows that if you do have a

55

: 00:03:22

really strong personal brand, you're more

likely to attract an internal sponsor.

56

: 00:03:27

And having an internal sponsor is useful

because that means you've got a champion.

57

: 00:03:31

You've got somebody in your corner who

is probably, talking about you selling

58

: 00:03:36

your value into the organization.

59

: 00:03:39

And the research also shows that if

you have a sponsor, you are 23 percent

60

: 00:03:44

more likely to get a promotion.

61

: 00:03:47

That's definitely something

worth thinking about.

62

: 00:03:50

But I have to say oh, and the other

thing, actually, that it's useful for

63

: 00:03:54

is it helps you stand out in your field.

64

: 00:03:56

So then if you're facing redundancy

at any point in your career, you're

65

: 00:04:00

more likely to get snapped up

because people can recognize you

66

: 00:04:03

have a strong personal branding.

67

: 00:04:05

They can see how you can add value.

68

: 00:04:07

But the thing I was going to say

is it can be really challenging

69

: 00:04:10

for women, particularly to actively

promote their personal brand.

70

: 00:04:15

for different reasons, but one of the

reasons is this thing called a likability

71

: 00:04:19

conundrum, if you've heard of that, , we

have gender norms, which unfortunately

72

: 00:04:24

are still out there, and the gender

norm around women is that we are nice,

73

: 00:04:28

that we're warm, that we're nurturing.

74

: 00:04:31

And we all hold these

kind of gender norms.

75

: 00:04:34

It's not just, men seeing it that

way, other women see it that way too.

76

: 00:04:37

And if those gender norms are breached,

and the breach can be through stepping

77

: 00:04:41

up, making tough decisions, having strong

opinions, self promoting, then what

78

: 00:04:48

can happen is that we can be penalized

in a way that Men aren't penalized.

79

: 00:04:52

So people can then think about us as being

too aggressive, too pushy, too ballsy,

80

: 00:04:58

too cold, maybe even, calling us the B

word and, that can then put women off

81

: 00:05:05

stepping up and taking on that personal

brand that is about being assertive.

82

: 00:05:09

That's being a leader that's

actually, being able to take those

83

: 00:05:13

decisions or voice those views.

84

: 00:05:15

But what I'm going to hopefully share

with you today is some ways that you

85

: 00:05:18

can navigate that likability conundrum

in a way that feels authentic to you.

86

: 00:05:24

And also that you can give yourself

confidence to, to manage your personal

87

: 00:05:29

brand successfully without fearing

that you're going to fall into

88

: 00:05:33

those penalizing views about you.

89

: 00:05:36

The first thing to think about

is, controlling your narrative.

90

: 00:05:40

Because often we tend to think, okay,

I don't need a pestle brand, I'm just

91

: 00:05:43

going to work really hard, and people

will notice that I'm great at what I do.

92

: 00:05:48

Or if I've made some career choices,

I've taken a career break or

93

: 00:05:51

I've made a shift or a switch in

some way, people will understand

94

: 00:05:56

why I maybe have had to do that.

95

: 00:05:57

But the reality is that we're all too

busy to really think deeply about other

96

: 00:06:01

people in our orbit, and often we

might make assumptions about people.

97

: 00:06:06

about the choices they've

made or what they do.

98

: 00:06:10

So if you don't talk about the complexity

of your job and the challenges that you

99

: 00:06:13

face, then your manager might just assume

that actually, okay, you have it easy.

100

: 00:06:17

You don't have to deal with all of

these difficult things that maybe,

101

: 00:06:20

a counterpart is dealing with that's

actually telling their manager

102

: 00:06:23

I've had to navigate all these

challenges to get to this end result.

103

: 00:06:27

You might just be beavering away

and getting to that end result,

104

: 00:06:29

still facing those challenges,

but not telling anybody about it.

105

: 00:06:33

So there's assumptions made that

maybe you've got an easy ride.

106

: 00:06:36

You do need to think about how can

I let people know about the value

107

: 00:06:40

that I bring in terms of managing the

complexity, managing challenge, managing

108

: 00:06:45

difficulty, and sharing successes.

109

: 00:06:48

Or, if you've made a career switch you

don't want people making assumptions

110

: 00:06:52

when you switched because you couldn't

hack that previous career, it's having a

111

: 00:06:55

narrative that allows you to tell people

in a way that you feel comfortable with

112

: 00:07:01

the value that you might bring from that

previous shift or that previous role and

113

: 00:07:06

how it adds value to what you do now.

114

: 00:07:09

Often I talk to clients about it's not

just about moving up in your career.

115

: 00:07:13

It might be about making choices that

allow you to have more creativity or more

116

: 00:07:18

challenge or stimulation or, staying in a

specialism rather than becoming a manager.

117

: 00:07:24

But being able to articulate why

that is enables people to see.

118

: 00:07:27

, you're really committed to this

and you're bringing all of this

119

: 00:07:30

great creativity or whatever it is.

120

: 00:07:32

Being able to control your narrative.

121

: 00:07:34

And I think one way to do that

is to think about, okay, what

122

: 00:07:37

do I want to be known for?

123

: 00:07:39

What are my brand elements?

124

: 00:07:41

You can think about this in three ways.

125

: 00:07:43

How do I add value?

126

: 00:07:44

What are the skills and capabilities

and talents that I bring?

127

: 00:07:48

That I demonstrate that add value, that

make a difference, that make change,

128

: 00:07:53

that leads to things having impact.

129

: 00:07:57

And then what am I like

to work with or for?

130

: 00:08:00

What's my brand in terms of

how I want to be at work?

131

: 00:08:05

And how do I make people feel?

132

: 00:08:07

Because there's that old adage,

people don't remember what you

133

: 00:08:09

did or what you said, but they

remember how you made them feel.

134

: 00:08:12

Thinking about those brand elements

and weaving them together into a

135

: 00:08:18

narrative that you feel comfortable

with, that you can then be explicit

136

: 00:08:22

about in terms of how you add value.

137

: 00:08:26

Maybe you're great at problem solving.

138

: 00:08:28

But because you're great at it, you feel,

Oh, I don't need to tell people that

139

: 00:08:33

this is something that I'm good at.

140

: 00:08:34

I just get on with it.

141

: 00:08:35

But actually thinking about

how can I really demonstrate

142

: 00:08:39

that problem solving ability is

a real advantage to the business.

143

: 00:08:43

And then, being ready to talk about that.

144

: 00:08:45

And this is all going to take practice.

145

: 00:08:46

It's not going to be something you're

going to feel comfortable doing overnight.

146

: 00:08:50

But thinking about, OK, when I'm having

an interaction with my boss or my boss's

147

: 00:08:53

boss, how am I telling them about

what I do and the difference I make?

148

: 00:08:57

When I'm talking to my team,

how am I making my team feel?

149

: 00:09:00

What are they experiencing as a

result of my leadership style?

150

: 00:09:05

And maybe being explicit about the

culture that you want to create and making

151

: 00:09:08

your team aware of your leadership style.

152

: 00:09:11

the second thing is then to look

for opportunities to be visible.

153

: 00:09:14

Once you've created this brand and

you're really comfortable with it

154

: 00:09:17

and you're comfortable talking about

it, you've got to think about how

155

: 00:09:20

do you want to get that out there.

156

: 00:09:22

And it's looking for opportunities

both internally and externally in

157

: 00:09:26

ways that you feel comfortable with.

158

: 00:09:28

It might be about looking for writing

or speaking opportunities, might

159

: 00:09:32

be thinking, okay, how can I go

and do maybe a lunch and learn

160

: 00:09:36

if your organization runs those?

161

: 00:09:37

Or how could I write something

that contributes to the intranet

162

: 00:09:41

or the website or writing a piece

for a trade organization or trade

163

: 00:09:45

press or something like that?

164

: 00:09:47

And how can I demonstrate my

expertise beyond my immediate

165

: 00:09:50

team and my immediate boss?

166

: 00:09:53

How can I go and present at a different

team or in a different department, or

167

: 00:09:57

go to senior leadership team and talk

about something that I'm working on.

168

: 00:10:00

Looking for opportunities, and it

might even also be pushing yourself

169

: 00:10:03

forward in those opportunities

as well, creating them for you.

170

: 00:10:07

Which kind of leads me on to my

next point, my third one, which

171

: 00:10:10

is about networking internally and

externally and networking people

172

: 00:10:14

go, I don't want to do that.

173

: 00:10:15

But it's about doing it.

174

: 00:10:16

And again, in a way that

feels right for you.

175

: 00:10:18

for you.

176

: 00:10:18

It might be one more on a one to

one basis than on a group basis.

177

: 00:10:22

It might be more about writing than

speaking, finding ways that you can

178

: 00:10:27

build your network And also focus

on what they call bridging capital.

179

: 00:10:32

.

That's about looking for people or groups that you can develop networks

180

: 00:10:36

in that are different to you.

181

: 00:10:38

Cause when we tend to network,

we tend to network in with

182

: 00:10:41

people that are similar to us.

183

: 00:10:42

So within our function or our specialism

or our department or our team.

184

: 00:10:46

And actually we want to take it broader

because the more people that know you and

185

: 00:10:50

know what you do and can talk about you

and see your value, then the more your

186

: 00:10:55

personal brand is going to be boosted.

187

: 00:10:59

It is then going and looking for

opportunities to talk to a different

188

: 00:11:02

team or get to know a counterpart in

a different organization or, just ways

189

: 00:11:07

to broaden, your network so that you're

not just reliant on your immediate

190

: 00:11:13

network to to sell your product.

191

: 00:11:14

praise it.

192

: 00:11:15

You've got more champions

in the organization.

193

: 00:11:19

And then my fourth area in terms

of the strategy to navigate the

194

: 00:11:24

likability conundrum is to be authentic.

195

: 00:11:27

Often if we've got to make a tough

decision or we've got a voice, a strong

196

: 00:11:30

opinion, or, if the culture is quite

say male if you don't want to be seen

197

: 00:11:35

as that nice, warm, nurturing person,

you might feel you've got to go to the

198

: 00:11:38

opposite end, if you like, of that.

199

: 00:11:41

But actually, what I would

say is to be really authentic.

200

: 00:11:44

So if you've got to take a

tough decision, you can still

201

: 00:11:46

do that in a compassionate way.

202

: 00:11:48

If you've got to voice a strong

opinion, you can still be collaborative

203

: 00:11:51

in how you voice that opinion.

204

: 00:11:53

And if you're promoting yourself, you

can do it in a way that's helpful.

205

: 00:11:58

You can link your skills and previous

experience to something that's going to

206

: 00:12:01

be useful to your boss or whoever it is

you're talking to about what you're doing.

207

: 00:12:06

It is about bringing

that authenticity into it.

208

: 00:12:09

And that's why doing that piece about

what your brand elements are, so if

209

: 00:12:13

you want to be known for compassionate

leadership, then that is what's

210

: 00:12:17

going to be underpinning the brand.

211

: 00:12:18

The decisions that you're going to

make and how you operate as a leader

212

: 00:12:23

or as a specialist so that you don't

feel that you're going to be penalized,

213

: 00:12:28

and if you are, authentically, I made

that decision in the best way and I

214

: 00:12:32

put things in place to support people

who are affected by that decision.

215

: 00:12:36

I know that's a lot to think about,

but just to recap, if you are

216

: 00:12:39

thinking about wanting to actively

promote your personal brand in an

217

: 00:12:44

authentic way, it is having a strategy.

218

: 00:12:47

It's thinking about

controlling your narrative.

219

: 00:12:49

that means developing what you want to

be known for and then thinking about

220

: 00:12:53

how you want to communicate that.

221

: 00:12:56

And then looking for opportunities

to get that visibility and

222

: 00:13:00

then networking internally and

externally, but in a diverse way.

223

: 00:13:05

So not just sticking

within your known group.

224

: 00:13:08

Plus being authentic in terms of

how you operate and how you want

225

: 00:13:12

to promote yourself and your brand.

226

: 00:13:14

It's not following a cookie

cutter approach to it.

227

: 00:13:17

It's really thinking about this is

me, , how I want to live my brand.

228

: 00:13:21

It has got to be, coherent.

229

: 00:13:24

With my actual brand.

230

: 00:13:26

I know that's been a

bit of a whistle stop.

231

: 00:13:28

tour through developing a personal brand.

232

: 00:13:30

And obviously, there's a

lot that goes into that.

233

: 00:13:33

So if you want any support or

any help with developing your own

234

: 00:13:36

personal brand, then do get in touch.

235

: 00:13:38

It's something that I do with my clients.

236

: 00:13:40

It is part of taking

yourself to that next level.

237

: 00:13:43

and being really proactive.

238

: 00:13:45

This episode is also available to

watch on LinkedIn live and I'll pop

239

: 00:13:49

a link in the show notes for you.

240

: 00:13:51

And while you're over on LinkedIn,

if we're not already connected.

241

: 00:13:54

Please do send me a connection request.

242

: 00:14:01

Thank you so much for listening

to this episode of the Unstuck

243

: 00:14:05

and Unstoppable podcast.

244

: 00:14:07

I have lots of free resources you

can access on my website, ww.career

245

: 00:14:12

tree coaching.co

246

: 00:14:13

uk, and I'll also put

links in the show notes.

247

: 00:14:17

If you found this episode

helpful, then please subscribe

248

: 00:14:20

so you don't miss the next one.

249

: 00:14:22

And please do share it with a

friend and leave me a review

250

: 00:14:25

and I will personally thank you.

251

: 00:14:28

Remember, you're capable of more

than you know, shine brightly.

252

: 00:14:33

Lead boldly and unlock the

extraordinary potential within you.

253

: 00:14:37

Be unstoppable.