Episode 37

September 2, 2021

by Melanie Reed

You have probably heard the term branding as it relates to marketing a product or service. You have probably also heard of branding a company or an organization. You might even have a friend or two that pursued marketing and branding as a career path.

What might be less known to you is the term personal branding. Personal branding is how you present yourself and how you are viewed by the world. It is based on what makes you unique; your skills, experiences, attributes and personality. Some say it is the sum of how people describe you or talk about you when you are not around.

So what does that have to do with your HR Career?

Actually, quite a lot. You, as an emerging HR professional who may be looking for a job or building your career also have a personal brand that tells people what to expect of you if they meet you.

If your brand is communicated in the right way and through the right avenues it can help you stand out, help you make more great connections and ultimately create more career opportunities for yourself both within your organization and outside of it.

In this episode, I talk about some of the best places and ways to communicate your personal brand and share a couple of things you can do today to be more intentional about how you show up online and in person so that the perception you leave people with is the one you want to portray. Being intentional about your brand will not only make you feel more confident, but it will also help you attract the right people to you so that you can realize a satisfying and fulfilling HR career.

Here is a summary of this episode:

[01:50] – I introduce how branding applies to you as a professional or job seeker. I use the example of Oprah Winfrey as someone we all know about and who has a great personal brand.
[05:48] – Being intentional about creating and communicating your own personal or professional brand is important to realizing a successful HR career.
[06:06] – There are three many avenues to communicate your personal brand., 1. What you write, 2. What you say and do, 3. How you appear online
[06:24] – I explain how what you write can help you communicate your personal brand. The most obvious place this happens in your resume and cover letter. You have an opportunity to use these documents to introduce who you are and what value you can add to an organization or team. It is also an opportunity for you to convey enthusiasm. You also have an opportunity to convey your brand through your social media profiles and about pages such as on LinkedIn.
[12:51] – The second place you convey your personal or professional brand is in how you show up in the world through your actions and words. Your interactions with other people say a lot about you. You can see this at work by watching the people you work with for a day or two and this will help you decide how you want to show up.
[16:02] – I share some personal advice a former leader gave me about creating a professional brand. It was very helpful to my career.
[17:28] – The third place your brand is conveyed is on social media. You might be surprised to learn that having no presence on social media, especially LinkedIn, can still be conveying something about you and can leave an impression on potential employers.
[20:25] – I share two exercises you can use to help you communicate your professional brand. One of the most important principles I conveying your brand is consistency. Know what you want to say and how you want to be perceived and then check all the ways you communicate your brand to see if there is consistency.
[22:25] – Another exercise you can use to help you communicate a consistent brand is to get a trusted, but honest friend or colleague to give you some feedback on how you show up, what you write and what your online presence tells them about you.

Here are helpful links to other relevant episodes and a link to sign up for my weekly newsletter!

If you are feeling extra generous and want to send some love my way, I would be so very grateful for a review and a rating on Apple Podcasts or a recommendation on LinkedIn. And if you haven't yet, don't forget to subscribe to The HR Mentor so you never miss an episode on the following platforms: