A little while back I was invited to keynote at a young professionals’ event in Hamilton, on the topic of personal branding. I presented at the event this morning, and thought I’d post it here for you, too.

Rather than taking a single view on the presentation, I shook this one up a little by dividing the topic three ways:

• How to ruin your personal brand
• How to build your personal brand
• Things you can do today

I’ve embedded the presentation below; the primary talking points are summarized beneath.

How to ruin your personal brand

Online:

• Ignore the Internet – Reputations are made and broken online nowadays. Even if you think social media is a fad, the fact remains that the Internet is a significant driver of business in today’s economy. Even if you don’t care about that, know that employers will Google you. Ignore the Internet and lose the opportunity to manage other peoples’ impressions of you.
• Go negative – Few people like trolls. No-one wants to work with someone who only tears people down without providing anything constructive
• Broadcast without engaging – The 1990s web let people with technical expertise publish in a one-way fashion. Today’s technologies enable two-way conversations; use them for one-way broadcasting and you’re missing out.
• Think no-one is f&$#ing watching – It doesn’t matter if you think your Facebook profile is locked down – lots of people have found the opposite to their cost. If you wouldn’t want your boss or future employer to know about it, don’t post it. Want to ruin your brand? Swear away.
• Trigger-post - If you’re feeling emotional about something, hold off on posting. Sleep on it.

Offline:

• Know everything or nothing – You don’t know everything. Don’t alienate people by thinking that you do. On the flip side, you’re hired for your skills. Put them to use and contribute when you can.
• Write sloppily – Writing is a critical skill. This is especially so in communications, but true in any field. Be honest with yourself – if your writing isn’t up to scratch, take steps to correct that.
• Be “that person” – Don’t be the guy who leads with a business card, or who is constantly looking for the next person to talk to, or who asks for favours before getting to know you properly. Don’t know that guy? Then you probably are that guy.
• Do the bare minimum – Be hungry for more. Seek out work. Cruising is a path to mediocrity.
• Let up once you’re let in – Landing that dream job isn’t the end of your journey – it’s the beginning.

How to build your personal brand

• Build your brand before you need it – The time to build your reputation isn’t when you need it – it’s before. It takes time; start now.
• Be a sponge/say yes… enthusiastically – Spend the early part of your career in general, and of any job, being a sponge. Take every single opportunity to learn everything you can about your role and the organization. Try to continue that learning orientation throughout your career.
• Create opportunities at and outside work – Volunteer; participate in extra-curricular activities; organize sports teams; get out in your community. The more you do, the more opportunities will present themselves. They’re unlikely to come if you do nothing.
• Follow your passion; be yourself – Be authentic, both about your passion and about you as a person. Authenticity is critical, especially in online channels where one example of a lack of authenticity can hang around for a long time.
• Define your goal – If you don’t know where you’re heading, you can never get there. Figure it out early.
• Under-promise; over-deliver – Always aim to exceed expectations – delight rather than satisfy.
• Kill people with generosity – Give to other people more than you take. Help other people more than you ask them for help. Build social capital for the times when you need it.
• Find a mentor; don’t be afraid to connect – Find a mentor. Don’t let someone else assign them to you; find someone you gravitate to, who you respect and to whom you can relate.
• Network like crazy – Get out there, online and offline, and meet people (without being “that guy”).
• Be willing to fail – Failure drives learning. Find a supportive environment which encourages failure so you can develop.

Seven things to do today:

What do you think?

(Hat tip to Jeremy Wright for the idea for the videos)