The Personal Branding Blog: William Arruda and the Reach-Certified Personal Branding Strategists

Katherine Duchess of Cambridge: fitting a personal brand into a national brand

Screenshots of official Royal websites: Prince of Wales, Royal Wedding, Facebook, YouTube

“Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire”, a quote from St Catherine of Siena, whose day it is today.

These were the opening words from the Bishop of London in his address to the congregation after William and Katherine’s marriage ceremony, which couldn’t be a more appropriate mantra for today’s Royal couple.

As I write this, the Royal wedding party is safely back in Buckingham Palace "doing the photos", prior to the much anticipated appearance on the balcony. Mounted police have sedately escorted hundreds of thousands of people down the Mall to the front of the Palace, BBC commentators are marking time with light-hearted commentary and the Spitfire, Hurricane and Lancaster Bomber of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, along with some modern jets, are positioning themselves for the flyover ...

I wrote those impressions as I sat glued to the TV, brimming with patriotic pride. Our future King's wedding was conducted with a wonderful blend of tradition and modern sensibility which proves that our small island is still worthy of its title "Great".

Whatever people think about Royalty, I believe that its traditions, going back hundreds of years, give us a sense of continuity and stability that helps to counteract the upheavals of political change and global turbulence.

At the heart of the tradition is the Abbey which has seen all but two coronations for hundreds of years. Key members of the wedding party were chauffered to the Abbey in sedate Rolls Royces and Jaguars through the crowd-lined streets. With traditional pomp and pageantry, for the return journey to the Palace the bridal party were in ornate carriages, accompanied by 200 horses and soldiers of the Household Cavalry. Their exceptional horsemanship and beautiful uniforms are a wonderful spectacle, set against the backdrop of London's most imposing architecture.

But there was a notable restraint: the Abbey decorated with stunningly simple seasonal greenery ...tubs of trees and elegant floral arrangements in shades of white, cream and chartreuse; unprecedented sensible minibus transport for most of the members of the royal wedding party; an informal buffet reception with a relatively modest cake and, as a final treat, William driving his bride from the reception in his father's classic Aston Martin, with an L plate on the front grill and a JU5T WED plate on the rear. They could have been any normal couple having a lark at the start of their married life.

Inevitably people will be making comparisons between Katherine and Princess Diana. Indeed, how do you follow in the footsteps of "The Queen of Hearts"? Well, Katherine has firmly established herself in my heart as the "Queen of Exquisite Taste".

Wedding fashion houses around the world will be grateful for the manageable proportions and lack of bling as they copy Katherine's dress to satisfy popular demand. It was absolutely spot on. A simple veil, perfect silhouette, gorgeous lace bodice and sleeves, a pretty sweetheart neckline, just the right amount of detailing. The width of the skirt and length of train were large enough to hold their own in the vastness of the Abbey, yet not too oversized. Her hair was partly worn up, the rest curling down her back and the modest tiara was borrowed from the Queen.

Katherine's good taste extended to the flowers ...her modest bouquet, the bridesmaid's little head-dresses and the men's buttonholes based on lily of the valley (expect to see that cropping up in gardens and pattern designs everywhere!). 

The bridesmaids and the ladies in the family party were also dressed in perfectly simple dresses, mostly in off-white pastel shades. The bride's mother was exquisitely elegant and Camilla looked stunning.

William and Katherine have shown the world that restraint and good taste are worth a million dollars. I am absolutely delighted ...I hope Kate has a huge influence on designers in all disciplines. Less is definitely more. There are a lot of celebrities who could take a leaf out of their book.

Prince William will continue in his job in the RAF air sea search and rescue team, based in Anglesey. It is quite clear that William and Katherine will be a very modern Royal couple and their wedding, while it had to follow tradition, has set the tone for a more realistic approach to Royal life and it will be very interesting to see how their personal brands continue to influence the way the Royal family are perceived.

We can all take inspiration from the way the couple embraced social media to connect with their audience in the run up to the wedding.

Further reading: What You Can Learn from The Royal Wedding’s {#rw2011} Use of Social Media sbryant.me

One of the best collections of photos I've found: #RoyalWedding: From sunrise to sunset - CNN.com http://bit.ly/kwZA78 #rw2011

In 2011: Increase Your Prospects With Better Differentiation

Well, it’s that time again! As we put one year behind us and position ourselves for improved fortunes, we look to the experts to give us the edge. A shot at a better career, and a better life. It’s probably why predictions are so popular at the start of each year. But let’s face it. Without a concerted effort to act on your own behalf, what good is all that advice?

Certainly, there are trends that will have a direct impact on your career prospects. For example, as social media continues to grow, employers will rely on it increasingly to source and qualify candidates. Knowing this, it’s likely that you’ve already established an online presence on LinkedIn. But how differentiated is it? Does your profile present you as a plug-and-play candidate, or does it establish you as a truly differentiated and attractive?

Hard to know, right? But knowing is increasingly critical.

In a sea of sameness, only the truly differentiated stand out. It’s as true of job candidates as it is of products. Of course, avoiding the perception of sameness has two broad, though interwoven, requirements: understanding the offering and understanding the market. In managing your career, you are the offering, and your customers are the people you’re most suited to serve.

Like an entrepreneur running a business, you need clarity about these things. In fact, making your career your business begins to drive the process of differentiation. As Pam Slim, author of Escape From Cubicle Nation: From Corporate Prisoner to Thriving Entrepreneur, says"...knowing the fundamentals of how to work for yourself is a core career competency that everybody should really be learning….” That is, you need to be in control of your career. Yet, even if you agree with this perspective, your first order of business is actually not creating a business plan. 

It’s making the choice. 

In his book, Linchpin: Are You Indispensable?, Seth Godin tells the story of Binny Thomas who got a new job without leaving her old one by simply choosing to stand out rather than fit in. According to Godin, one of the most fundamental shifts in our new economy is the role of self-determination. You can no longer make it on connections. Working for the right boss matters little. Even the right background won’t help.

What matters are your internal choices. According to Godin, “How we respond to the opportunities and challenges of the outside world now determines how much the outside world values us.” Yet, this is not solely about what you deliver, but how. It’s about your ability to give generously, to transform others by going beyond the expected. Godin sees this as your artistry.

Artistry, of course, is not something you can get from a “ten tips” in a CareerBuilder article. No, it’s more a product of the deep insights that show you where you’ve been, the choices you’ve made, and what you’ve achieved that makes you the proudest. This is your backstory. Knowing it helps you uncover the themes that will be the most reliable guides to shaping your future. It’s introspective work, and until you do it, you’ll simply not be in the best position to sort out what tools and trends will work best in running your career and making a difference.

Why?

Because if you know what drives you to accomplishment, and for whom, you’re better prepared to stand up and make the choices that matter and pave the way for you to put your own artistry in service to the world.  Not an easy path, for sure. Yet, this kind of differentiation is the price of admission in an increasingly mature marketplace.

Cross-posted at Threshold Consulting

Telling Your Story. Not Whether But How

Seems to me that today we are encouraged to tell our stories, as never before. Actually, career coaches have long stressed the importance of being able to respond well to “tell me about yourself.” Yet, today personal branding and social media are driving story as a key to becoming known, liked, and trusted. Clearly, there is little question that we need to tell our stories.

The real question is: How?

You don’t need to know that “storytelling” produces over 11 million results on Google to realize that storytelling is a creative pursuit open to a wide range of interpretations and approaches. So, how do you proceed when crafting your story for online consumption?

In the spirit of full transparency, my partner Carol Ross and I have addressed that in our Remarkable Online Profile kit. Still, we can begin to give you some guides for what constitutes a solid story:

• Commands the listener’s attention from the start, so they want to keep reading.
• Has a clear theme that defines who you are and what you offer. 
• Validates what you offer by giving the reader a sense of your career journey without getting bogged down in details of your employment history.
• Shows the attributes and competencies that make you stand out.
• Has particular words and phrases that “ring true,” and are especially clear and emotionally powerful. 
• Clearly communicates how you make an impact.
• Makes an emotional connection that sets the foundation for creating trust and likability.

Of course, telling your story does take a substantial investment of time. Yet, when you have it, you have a tool that can best establish your brand and attract interest, online and off.  Ready to tell your story?

Cross-posted at Random Bits from Walter's Life

Real Life: Here, There, and Everywhere

There was a time, not so long ago, when people believed that relationships formed online somehow simply weren’t real. These were designated virtual relationships developed, perhaps in a chat room or perhaps in an online forum -- but clearly detached from every-day life. As such, they were typically regarded as somehow suspect; and if not ignored altogether, at least they required a different set of networking strategies.

Yet, in a world where social media fosters acceleration of interpersonal connections, and online interactions support the deepening of relationships, the distinction between virtual and real life relationships is increasingly meaningless. And while we still see people expressing interest in meeting up IRL (In Real Life), the bonding that can take place over a series of online interactions is no less real than the bonding that happens in the course of face-to-face meetings, or telephone calls.

Certainly, face-to-face conversations provide the richest information about the people we meet, yet, we don’t typically treat relationships built over the phone as less real. Think about it. When was the last time you said, “I can't wait to meet you in real life,” to a colleague you’ve only interacted with by phone? Most likely, you haven’t. That being the case, what makes it logical to say it to a person you’ve only interacted with on Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn?

Let’s face it. Saying “in real life” sets up an awkward distinction. So, it’s time for a new one; and here’s a clue to what it is:

Seeing this IBM commercial during an NFL game, it occurred to me that as the notion of  “Cloud Computing” goes mainstream, we now have a new way to think about how our relationships start and grow based on the medium of communication, which can include face-to-face at a specific location, over the phone, or “in the cloud” on various social platforms. All are real. Available everywhere! And all can grow and develop using the same relationship building skills, especially across mediums.

 Cross-posted at Threshold Consulting.

3 Steps To Being A Thought Leader

In the new world of work, mediocrity and conformity are the enemies to creativity and innovation. With easy mobility of human resources and availability of information on the web, employers and organisations are spoilt for choices in recruitment.

However, good talent is still highly valued by companies and good talent with  an area of expertise or thought leadership is even more highly prized.

Strong personal brands demonstrate expertise and thought leadership in their areas of work. Not surprisingly, they are highly sought after by organisations. Strong brands are known not for many things, but that one special thing which sets them apart from the rest of the competition.

I would like to share with you 3 steps to being a thought leader.

Identifying Your Thought Leadership
1. What is the dream that you have always wanted to become?
2. Is this expertise something that you are very passionate about?
3. Are you able to use this expertise as part of your mission to serve a community, country or world?
4. Even if there are no tangible rewards in doing this, would you still be willing to use this expertise to serve others?

Developing Your Thought Leadership
1. What are the ways that you can develop your expertise? Think of courses and seminars to attend, professional networks to join, qualifications to attain, mentors who can help you grow,etc?
2. Are you willing to continue to learn and grow professionally as long as you can?
3. What are the opportunities that you can seek to share, practice and work on this? It’s the culmination of the small steps you take which brings you to the top of the ladder.

Standing Out For Your Thought Leadership
1. What projects can you work on to achieve recognition, awards and credibility from people or organisations? Endorsement by others is essential to being acknowledged as a thought leader.
2. How can you communicate your thought leadership to others?
Think of blogging, articles submission, audio and video recordings, writing books, giving talks, conferences, forming groups, etc
3. Include components of your thought leadership in your daily communications with people, like your tagline, personal brand statement, elevator pitch, videobio, tweets, blogposts, other type of messages. Some of these can be used as your email signatures.

Finally, achieving the recognition of being a thought leader of your field in your group, department, organisation, industry or country requires the passion to see it through. That is why it is not surprising that many well-known thought leaders like Steve Jobs, Warren Buffet, Jeff Bezos, Walt Disney and many others started off as individuals who were unknowns, unrecognised and unbelieving

Frankie Mao, founder of Singapore’s Executives Branding company, is the chief career branding strategist whose goal is to help executives and professionals avoid burnout and achieve balance in their personal lives and longevity in their professional careers

Hiding in Plain Sight

Ah Halloween and careers! In thinking about the symbolism connected with the season, I can imagine that there are lots of scary mistakes that run across the full gamut of job search and career management activities. It’s a fertile area for metaphor. Yet for me, I think the scariest mistake is to run your career, including your online presence, as if you were The Invisible Man.

In the classic novella by H.G. Wells, the main character, Griffin, is “…a scientist who theorizes that if a person's refractive index is changed to exactly that of air and his body does not absorb or reflect light, then he will be invisible. He successfully carries out this procedure on himself, but cannot become visible again, becoming mentally unstable as a result.”

Since this was published, we’ve learned it’s actually possible to hide in plain sight. In nature it’s called camouflage, and it allows organisms to blend in with their surroundings. While the survival benefits may work out in the wild, blending in is a huge disadvantage in the world of work. In fact, if you’ve attended to trends in career management, you know the emphasis is on standing out. In today’s competitive world, the thinking goes, you need to discern and leverage your personal brand across a range of media – and especially on line.

Yet, most people don’t do it. Even if they take the step of setting up an online profile, most typically at LinkedIn, they make three critical errors that virtually guarantee they remain undifferentiated, and hidden:

Cut and paste a resume or bio. Sure there are career coaches out there who recommend this, but it’s not the best use of online real estate. It may seem that emphasizing your transferable skills makes sense. It doesn’t. People simply don’t read resumes to understand your skill set, and they won’t read your online profile to evaluate your skills either.

Use a formal third-person voice. Probably an outcome of a resume or bio cut and paste, third-person sets a boundary of formality. A boundary that can block any chance your profile will help people find a reason for wanting to know, like, and trust you.

Emphasize corporate buzzwords. Sure there is a SEO value in having certain words and phrases show up on your profile. Still, it’s kind of like playing the lottery, you may come up in a search; you may not. When you do, however, your buzz-word laden profile can keep you undifferentiated and hidden just as effectively as Nature hides her creatures.

It can be maddening if you’re trying to move your career forward. Yet, unlike our pal Griffin, you can reverse the process. And to do that, start by learning how to stand out by constructing your profile with the following characteristics:     

Write in the first-person to engage others. Writing for the social web means writing in first person; so, you can use personal pronouns (“I,” “me,” and “my”) to convey who you are. Think of establishing your online presence as your way of introducing yourself at an event. You don’t use third person there, don’t do it on the web.

Use plain language.  You may think it’s a sign of professionalism to present your knowledge of industry jargon. It’s not. In fact, it’s a turn off. The mark of a true professional is ability to find simple expressions for complex ideas. As well, if you want to connect with other people, you must first be a person. And talk like a person.

Tell your story like …a story. Just because you are the focus of a written document, doesn’t make that document your story. Telling your story requires marshalling key themes that best represent who you are and why you’re compelling for your audience. It should start with one of your key beliefs or operating principles and tie in the distinct value you provide to others. As well, it should develop your backstory, including the key experiences – even the twists and turns – that made you the professional you are today.

Succeeding your career today is not predicated on your skill sets. By themselves they are simply plug and play elements that can be easily replaced. So, to be successful, you need to be differentiated and visible. So, stop hiding in plain sight. Tell your story.

Cross-posted at Threshold Consulting.

The Happiness Project: A Year-Long Odyssey

You have often heard, “Don’t worry, be happy!” You may have laughed, but then wondered if you really happy. While happiness is a life goal for most of us, it seems to be an elusive. What does it take for you to really be happy?

Gretchen Rubin, author of the #1 New York Times best-seller The Happiness Project, will discuss her year-long experiment in trying out happiness principles and practices on Thursday, Oct. 21, 2010. She is the monthly guest expert on the Reach Personal Branding Interview Series and will be interviewed by William Arruda, founder of Reach Personal Branding.

Gretchen's book about her happiness experience started as a blog and turned into a movement! While she admits she thought herself to be happy at the start of her own Happiness Project, her happiness did in fact increase. She learned what it takes to make herself happy, and more about her personal brand and her commitment to social engagement with her brand community .

In this live call (recorded for later listening), Gretchen will address:

• why The Happiness Project is a blog and book,
• what you can do to build happiness into your life,
• how to blog authentically and on a regular basis,
• what social media tools worked best for her,
• how her personal brand was impacted by increased online visibility, and
• how to access The Happiness Project toolbox to start your own project!

UPDATE: Gretchen Rubin interview recording http://budurl.com/gretchenrubinaudio/

Motivation: What Really Works

Motivation is the activation of goal-oriented behavior, according to Wikipedia. That is as simple a definition as it gets. But how is it that we are actually motivated to reach a goal? That is not so simple to explain; in fact, there are an abundance of motivational theories, from incentive and needs theories to cognitive and unconscious motivation theories.

Whether you are a job seeker or a business owner, motivation plays a big role in your everyday life. Isn’t it amazing that we know so little about it? In practical reality, we often find the application of motivational practices revolves around the two extremes of incentives and punitive consequences (carrot-and-stick).

Dan Pink, author of DRIVE: The Surprising Truth about What Motivates Us says that the current carrot-and-stick model (Motivation 2.0) used by businesses is at odds with what science reveals about motivation. On Thursday, September 30 at noon EDT Dan will be interviewed by William Arruda, founder of Reach Personal Branding. Listen in on this one-hour conversation and learn:

• Why carrot-and-stick motivators do not work.
• What constitutes the third drive of “intrinsic motivation”.
• What Type X and Type I behaviors are and why they are important.
• How companies can fulfill employees’ needs for autonomy and mastery.
• Why sense of purpose is critical to drive.
• How traditional rewards can be revamped to align with intrinsic motivation.

Daniel H. Pink has authored four cutting-edge books about changing the world of work. These include the New York Times bestsellers DRIVE and A WHOLE NEW MIND, as well as Free Agent Nation: The Future of Working for Yourself (a Washington Post bestseller) and The Adventures of Johnny Bunko: The Last Career Guide You’ll Ever Need (written in Japanese comic format known as manga and a BusinessWeek bestseller).

Dan has provided analysis of business trends on CNN, CNBC, ABC, NPR, and other networks in the U.S. and abroad. His articles on business and technology appear in major publications, including the New York Times, Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, and Wired, where he is a contributing editor. He writes a monthly business column for the U.S. newspaper, The Sunday Telegraph. Dan lectures to corporations, associations, and universities around the world on economic transformation and the new workplace.

A free agent himself, Dan held his last real job in the White House, where he served from 1995 to 1997 as chief speechwriter to Vice President Al Gore. He also worked as an aide to U.S. Labor Secretary Robert Reich and in other positions in politics and government.

UPDATE: Daniel H. Pink interview recording at http://bit.ly/bwlbF1

Cross-posted at Career Goddess Blog

Expat & International Careers: 3 Resources to Help Job Seekers to Position Themselves as Experts and Increase their Visibility

One of the most common things I hear international job seekers say is that they don't want to be "too specific" about their area of expertise in their positioning and career marketing materials. Rather than having clear job targets they say "I'm really open to anything that would allow me to work abroad". They believe a broader, more generic focus will make them " more eligible" or considered for more types of jobs.

But the reality is the exact opposite. A generic, general focus to positioning will make a job seeker just like 90% of the rest of the highly qualified talent they are competing with globally for top jobs. If you don't stand out in the competitive global marketplace, you'll never get noticed - and never considered for any job at all.

But more importantly, people want to hire experts, not generalists.

Position yourself as an expert and you will have a better chance of standing out in today's competitive marketplace. And if you can find "that thing" you are an expert in that no one else can be, then you are in a niche all your own. With no competition, you are the ONLY choice for someone who is looking for what you have on offer."

This is why personal branding - leveraging what is unique and compelling about yourself to drive your success - is at the core of the work that I do.  I work with my clients to first find "that thing" - or unearth their unique value - and then clearly and powerfully communicate that value to those who who need "that thing" most.

So what are some resources to help job seekers position themselves as experts? Resources that help you increase your visibility?

Three resources come to mind.

Your Best Job Search Resource? You!

Normally, when people ask about resources for job seekers, they mean something that will be useful in helping the job seeker successfully secure new employment. It could be a book, a website, an article, an assessment, a contact management tool, or a networking or professional organization. There are lots of possibilities. And all you need to do is launch your web browser to find them. So, this post isn’t about any of those.

When all is said and done, success in a job search is meeting a short-term objective on a longer journey of career success. So, as I see it, the best resource for a job seeker is his or her own good judgment in making choices that lead to successful career management. Individual choices will be different for everyone. However, there is one common theme: developing the self-knowledge to be able to recognize the right kinds of opportunities, and then exercising the discipline to get out there to meet the people who can help connect you to them.

Frankly, the world of work has undergone epic change. Part of the reason more than fifteen million Americans are out of work is not simply due to economic melt down. No, loss of jobs started well before, when companies realized they should focus on core competencies and outsource everything else. This, of course, was aided and abetted by a global leveling of the playing field, so that work could be shipped anywhere on the planet.

So, the game has changed. Dramatically.

On a fundamental level, your ability to find work is all about discerning your brand and then making your career your business.  This doesn’t necessarily mean starting your own company. But it does involve your readiness to stand up and make dramatically new choices that allow you to make a difference.

Consider the case of Binny Thomas, as related by Seth Godin in his book Linchpin: Are You Indispensable? Binny got a new job, without leaving her old one. How? As Godin relates it:

One day, Binny Thomas stood up.

She stood up, spoke up, and started doing a new job. She didn’t leave her organization, didn’t even get a new title or new responsibilities. Instead, she started doing her old job in a new way. Binny stopped going to meetings with the goal of finding deniability or problems to avoid. Instead, she started leaning in and seeking out projects where she could make a difference.

Suddenly, Binny was inspired. She was looking for opportunities instead of hiding from blame.

 

According to Godin, one of the most fundamental shifts in our new economy is the role of self-determination. Conformity is not the path to success; rather, how “… we respond to the opportunities and challenges of the outside world now determines how much the outside world values us.” And this affects both job search and long-term career management.

Aside from reading Godin’s wonderful book as just one step, I can’t think of a single resource that will help you decide when and how to stand up. Yet, if you are looking to find a new job and to run a successful career thereafter, you need to turn to yourself and figure out when and how you can best take charge of your career, and what resources you’re going to need to make that happen.

Cross-posted at Threshold Consulting