Why Networking is So Important & 3 Ways to Get Out There

How’s the old saying go? “It’s not about what you know, it’s who you know.”

Well, that’s true no matter where you are in your career or life in general! Whether you’re job searching or just trying to reach knew prospects and grow business connections it's logical to connect with others. Both online with social media or offline at networking events, one of the most important elements of your personal brand strategy should be to get out there and meet new people.

Familiarity is comfortable. When you meet up with people again it feels good to see someone you know. It’s important to remember that the best relationships don’t happen overnight. Well, some do - but that's the odd occasion. Most business relationships take time and dedication to grow and nurture into meaningful connections. Luckily though, we live in a world where there are so many tools we can use to tap into and grow our professional networks.

Today, it’s so easy to get lost in the noise of social media. That’s why we firmly believe that one of the best and most successful ways to grow your network is the good ol’ fashioned way of face-to-face networking. You’re able to read body language and pick up on cues that you wouldn’t be able to see hiding behind a computer screen. While social media may be great for showing others that you’re committed to bringing valuable information to the table, nothing quite beats a firm handshake paired with an intimate conversation. Your vibe attracts your vibe - and shocking but true - Most people are very different in person to how they are online.

What are some ways you can get out there and start networking in real life?

Professional Associations

Professional associations are an excellent place to grow your network. They’re typically focused in on a specific industry. They're a great place to go to generate new ideas and exchange information amongst peers.

While joining an association in your industry can be excellent tool for professional growth and job searching, you may want to consider joining an association that reflects your target audience as well. Not only could you meet a new client, you can also learn about the latest trends within your target market and identify opportunities you might not know existed.

To get a sense of what associations might be the best for business growth, try asking some of your best clients what organizations they participate in. Ask why they decided to join that association over any others that might be available to them. This will help you to narrow down which association best aligns with the goals you’ve set out to achieve.

Volunteering

Giving back to your community is an excellent way to extend your network. Not only do you show your willingness to give selflessly, you’re also able to establish new connections (and the positive PR doesn’t hurt either).

While you can (and should) give your time to any organization you like, there are also some community service clubs that have been around for ages that allow you to establish a solid word-of-mouth network. Lions and Rotary Clubs are some of the most well-known community services clubs around. Many of these organizations are structured so that each member represents a profession, and among many other things, all members work to help one another grow their businesses.

Attend or Start a Meet-Up

Social media has become ingrained in our society. The number of virtual relationships we are able to build on LinkedIn and Twitter can grow exponentially, but you may be wondering how you can take your online relationships offline to start truly developing them into meaningful connections.

Meetups were designed for that very purpose. They help local individuals with similar interests connect in real life. You’re not only able to connect with people who already live in your social network, but they can also help you to meet individuals you’ve never had the pleasure to tweet.

If you find a local meetup and want to make sure you're getting the most out of your time, don’t forget that you get what you put into it. Say hello to existing friends, introduce yourself to someone new, or volunteer to present at the next meeting. Adding value with your participation will pay you back in dividends when you least expect it.

If you tap into your social network and find that there isn’t a local meetup already available for the target interest you’re after, start one up! You’ll prove to be a leader who is eager to help others connect.

What other ways do you network offline?

These are just a few of the options you have available to you to expand your network and establish meaningful relationships. What are some of your favorite ways to get out there and grow?

Personal Brand Spring Cleaning

Spring is a great time to look at your existing network and evaluate how you need it to grow to help you reach your goals

Just like your house needs a little sweeping every once in a while; it can’t hurt to also sweep the dust off your personal branding strategy.

Once you establish your personal brand, you’re not stuck with that brand for the rest of your life. Your brand should and will evolve overtime to continue to reflect what you have to offer to your network. Times change, demands change, and even your value to customers changes as you gain experience; it’s important that you keep your brand up to date with what you wish to represent.

Where to Start

I suggest starting the same way you did when you first sat down and discovered your why. Write down your best skills and greatest attributes. Ask your closest clients and peers what they think about working with you and what they feel you excel at.

Next, look at how your client’s needs have changed. Are you still addressing the same challenges that your original statement offered up? Reflect on how you’ve grown and think about where you want to be. Will your existing branding statement help you to get there?

Evaluate Your Presence

Hopefully, over the last year you’ve worked hard to get your personal brand out there. Review all of the channels that you’ve worked to get your voice on. These might include your website, social media, business cards, or flyers.

Is it time to freshen up your look?

Is your site easy to navigate, and do the images of yourself even really still look like you? Make an effort to keep you branding up-to-date and modern. Hire a Professional Branding Headshots photographer to create some fresh new images atleast every 2 years.

Read through and look at how relevant the information is. Does it still pertain to what you’re working to accomplish? Consider refreshing the content even if you are still working towards the same thing.

If you utilize testimonials in your communications consider switching them out with newer ones. For anyone who might have been scoping you out over time, this can help to enforce the fact that people like doing business with you.

Looking Forward with Strategy

Spring time is also a great time to re-evaluate your personal branding strategy, and brand audit is a great place to start to help you freshen up.

To start, take some time to reflect on the last year’s strengths and weaknesses.

What did you do over the last year that worked for you? Which activities didn’t work well?What goals have you helped your clients reach over the past year?What goals can you help them with this year?What organizations were worth your time and investment? Which were not?

Next, look at your entire network. Separate your connections into a few different groups. Perhaps you have a Best Clients, Good Clients, Not Quite Clients, and Want to Be Clients. Start to walk through everyone on your list and segment them with the following questions.

Who are the people you helped the most? (Best Clients)Who are the people who you provided a solution for, but you know there’s way more opportunity to help? (Good Clients)Who are the people who seemed interested, but you weren’t able to successfully close a deal with? (Not Quite Clients)Are there any people on your list that leave you wondering “Who the heck is that guy?” (Want to be Clients)

When you have them grouped, create an action plan for each individual segment and highlight 5-10 contacts in each that you’d like to focus on to begin with. Chances are your best clients receive the most routine communications from you.

How can you tailor your messaging to get a “good” client moved up into the “best” list?

How will you break down the invisible wall that will move your not-quite-clients into the good client list?

I suggest writing out some action items that will guide your touch points to help you move an individual from segment to segment. Some examples might be to mail brochure on your latest solution, share an idea to promote your expertise, or you might plan to run a workshop specifically targeted at a specific segment.

By planning out the steps you’re going to take to engage with a specific connection based on where they are in your segment groupings, you’ll be able to keep yourself accountable. To top that off, you’ll begin to identify what works best to motivate those you’re targeting, and you can roll-out that approach to more connections in any given segment.

Continue to Evolve

You don’t have to wait until spring time to make sure your brand is up to date. I suggest regularly evaluating how things are working for you. It’s important to keep your brand and all your marketing messages consistent and in line with what you’re trying to achieve.

Any other things that are important in revamping ans dprucing up your Personal Brand?

How Work/Life Balance Can Improve Your Personal Brand

You look good, you feel good. By taking care of yourself – you in turn build confidence and motivation.

You know, it’s unhealthy to “be on” all the time. You work so hard to develop your personal brand and to breathe it into everything you do. You spend hours making calls or running to meetings that you sometimes put off grabbing lunch or dinner. You want to show your client's that you’re willing to go the extra mile to make things happen, and that’s completely admirable.

Where it begins to get scary is when those extra k's start turning into hundreds of klm's, and I believe there’s a word for that… workaholism.

A workaholic is defined as someone who’s addicted to work.

They’re often the first ones into the office, and almost always the last to leave. They skip their lunch hours to do get more accomplished, and they have trouble shutting off their work brain when they should be engaged in spending time with their family and friends.

Furthermore, while they may feel they’re going above and beyond to make things happen, they can actually be hurting their personal brand. Putting work first too often can leave your audience with the impression that you’re needy, desperate, or not in control. I

t’s important to also show them that you are leading a satisfied life and value a balanced approach to life.

What are some ways you can have a better work-life balance?

Schedule Down Time – When you start to plan out your week or month, make sure that you’re adding time to spend with friends and family. Not only will it give you something to look forward to, but it will also giving you the motivation to complete your work on time so you don’t have to cancel your plans.

Schedule YOU Time – Whether in the morning before work, over your lunch hour, or just before bed – it’s important that you take a little bit of time to focus on YOU. Pick up the phone and chat with a trusted friend. Go for a walk over lunch and recharge.

Unplug from all electronics and clear your mind.

It doesn’t matter what you do during your “me” time – what matters is that you take the time to enjoy it.

Get Up & Move It, Move It – Exercise is an incredible thing. It helps you get your blood flowing, helps you to clear your mind, and the energy you begin to accumulate over time is invigorating! If you’re not one to really work out, start small. Take a 15 minute break the next time you get stressed at work and walk around your building. Physical activities are stress-relieving activities. It’s important to decompress when work gets a bit overwhelming.

What will you do for yourself today?

Life’s too short to be overworking yourself. Make sure you’re taking the time to work on you so that you can stay in control and make the impossible happen for your customers.

Anymore suggestions?

The Power of Giving

The Gift of Giving provides benefits to both the receiver and the giver.

“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” – Winston Churchill

Oh, how true that is. Giving is one of the most incredible acts anyone can perform. While it’s true that the receiver undoubtedly reaps the benefits, one could argue that, in fact, the giver reaps even more benefits. The giver often leaves the situation feeling fulfilled, like they’re a part of something bigger.

Research has even shown that giving impacts the giver in several positive ways, particularly for older adults.

A study conducted by Carnegie Melon University showed that older adults who volunteered for 200 hours or more a year had a 40% decreased risk of suffering from high blood pressure. Another study from Cornell University found that environmental volunteers were 50% less likely to suffer from depression in future years.

Giving selflessly is also one of the most powerful ways to build your personal brand. You’re able to reinforce what your brand is about while also providing clarity to help others help you. When they truly understand your brand’s purpose, they’re more able to help build your brand on your behalf.

What are some ways you can give to build your brand?

You can donate money, food, or clothing to organizations whose cause you’re passionate about. You can offer your time to an organization and help them reach their goals. As mentioned in a previous post, volunteering is also an excellent opportunity to expand your network and develop meaningful relationships.

Perhaps, one of the best ways to add value to your relationships is to offer members of your network an idea without expecting anything in return. Inevitably, the act will come back to you. In fact, a study conducted by London School of Economics showed that those who regularly gave were between 7% and 16% happier than their counterparts.

Another way is to simply show appreciation to those who are a part of your network. Challenge yourself to send a note to one different person each day for a week and let them know how much you appreciate them.

Or how about connecting two individuals in your network who could benefit from working with one another? This presents a dual opportunity to impact the lives of two people who, in turn, will likely return the favor. If you’re meeting someone for the first time, try, mentally running through your network and identifying one to two people that person could benefit from knowing.

How will you give today?

Giving back to those around you provides your brand a purpose and shows that you stand for something bigger. Challenge yourself to find a way to give back to your network that helps to reinforce your purpose and make it a part of your personal branding strategy. You might just find that the benefits come back to you ten-fold.

Sure, you invest in what you look like, but how are you perceived in the marketplace.

Your personal brand is your business identity. It helps you to show that world that you’re confident in who you are and what you can provide those who do business with you. It’s absolutely vital that you take the reins and start investing your time and effort into making sure your personal brand represents what you want it to.

If you’re still on the fence about whether developing your personal brand is worth it, I’ve outlined five key reasons why you need to be investing in your personal brand below.

Lets count them down...

5. The Competition is Steep

We live in an incredibly competitive business world. Whether you’re trying to stand-out for a job interview, or simply want to establish a new relationship with a prospective client, your personal brand will help you break yourself apart from the competition.

4. It Can Open the Door to So Much Opportunity

A strong personal brand is built on trust and credibility. It tells people exactly who you are and what you’re going to do for them. The more people that know and trust in you, the more likely they’ll be to work with you and/or refer you to their network.

3. You Don’t Want to Get Left Behind

There are companies and individuals out there that are looking for someone just like you, but guess what – you’re not the only one with your skillset. Your competition is likely branding themselves to drive results. Do you want to be left miles behind them, playing catch-up?

2. Others Will Manage Your Brand If You Don’t

It’s true that we all have a personal brand whether we realize it or not. Do you want the marketplace to manage their perception of who you are and how you conduct business?

Or do you want to take control of your reputation and make it what you want it to be?

The choice is completely yours, but I’m pretty sure you know which you should be choosing.

1. Become the Expert.

There’s that one thing you can do better than anyone else. By building a personal brand that showcase your best skills and targets your specific audience, you begin to establish credibility. As your brand becomes more well-known, you’ll become the go-to resource for your target audience and your business will begin to flourish.

*BONUS* It Helps Provide Clarity in a World Filled with Noise

Ever received a confused look when you tell someone what it is that you do? Well, defining and managing your personal brand will help you to avoid those puzzled stares when networking or being sought out by your audience. Clearly define who you are, who you serve, and what you do.

Why do you invest in your personal brand?

We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

How Hosting a Workshop Can Build Your Personal Brand

Are you looking to engage with your network in a way that brings them value while also helping to develop a meaningful relationship with them? Perhaps you should consider hosting a workshop.

Whether online or in person – hosting a class or workshop can do wonders for your brand. It’s a chance to build trust and establish yourself as a valuable resource.

Think about it. What better way is there to show your audience that your brand is all about bringing value to the table? Hosting a class allows you to share your expertise and begin to position yourself as a key resource for your audience. Workshop's or Classes can help you establish your reputation as an educator, and make doing business with you so much more personal.

How to Get Started

If you’re considering running a workshop there are a few things you need to define before you go pushing out messages to your audience.

What do you want to achieve?

Successful workshops start first and foremost with a strategically defined goal. Do you just want customer contact information? Do you want to sell a specific product or service? Do you just want to show them you appreciate them with a free educational and inspirational event?

What will you discuss? For starters, think about topics that will teach your audience something that is beneficial to them and also happens to be something you’re passionate about.

Where will you host the class?

There are so many ways to host an event or class these days. You could look at local restaurants or conference facilities for a space large enough for the number of people you plan to accommodate. Could multiple people at your prospect’s company benefit from your class? Consider running the workshop on their premises to save time and money and to make it more convenient for the staff. You could host an online webinar for the people who can’t get out of the office, or even better, if you’re hosting an offline class, record and/or stream your presentation to increase your reach.

Will there be a fee associated?

Another item to consider is whether you plan to charge for the class. If you’re handing away a golden nugget of knowledge, maybe it’s appropriate to charge a minimal fee to attend.

What time of day will you host the class?

You have the whole day to your disposal. Depending on the place you decide to host your class, you may want to look at a breakfast, a lunch, an afternoon seminar or possibly an after work hours meeting.

Executing Your Plan

Once you’ve decided on place, time, and audience – it’s time to start pulling together everything you’ll need to execute a top-notch experience for your audience.

Determine the format of your class. Will you walk-through a PowerPoint or provide hand-outs to guide the discussion in the class. Once you’ve decided how you’ll present your information, you can begin to outline and gather presentation aids - videos, audio recordings, etc.

I strongly encourage outlining your presentation before trying to hash out each individual slide. The outline will help you make sure the class flows naturally and that you’re appropriately addressing the topic you selected.

Additionally, you’ll want to start promoting your class. Generate buzz by sending out emails, social media posts, maybe traditional snail-mail invitations. I suggest creating a since of urgency to boost demand by establishing a deadline for signing up and only allowing a certain number of attendees. Don’t forget to send out reminders to those you’ve not heard from the week before your registration deadline. Create an early bird special discount.

In the days leading up to your class, practice your presentation. The more you practice what you’ll be presenting, the more natural your flow will be. Your confidence in your presentation will help your expertise shine through.

Follow Up

A day or two after your workshop, make sure you reach out to all those who participated to thank them and make yourself available for any additional questions they may have.

Were there people who expressed interest but weren’t able to make it due to prior engagements or time restrictions? If you recorded your class, you could follow up with these individuals to share your recording and extend the reach of your workshop.

Do you have experience hosting a workshop? We’d love to hear how it went! Was it successful? Did it generate positive buzz for your business?

Forming Your Personal Branding Statement

Last time, we walked through four steps you can take to begin defining what your personal brand is. In simplest terms, your personal brand is all about defining why you do what you do, and more importantly, why someone should consider doing business with you over everyone else in your field. Today we’ll discuss how to take those common themes you discovered and turn them into a powerful brand statement.

First Thing’s First - Let’s address the fact that your personal branding statement is not a job title.

Rather, it is a brief 1-2 sentence statement that concisely answers the following:

What do you do best? (Your Value)Who do you serve? (Your Audience)What makes you unique? (Your Unique Selling Proposition, or USP)

Why You Need a Personal Branding Statement?

Think about the last time someone asked you, “What do you do?” Were you able to clearly describe what you do without leaving the other party with a look of confusion on their face?

Did it lead to them to question, “Well, what the heck is that?”

That’s what a personal brand statement is for. It clearly breaks down what it is you do for your clients, they value they get from doing business with you, and why they should choose you other in your industry. A personal brand is designed to make you stand-out and leave lasting impressions with those you meet. Without one, it’s very easy to just become an order-taker, and often times leave you vulnerable to being beaten down on price.

How to Write a Winning Personal Branding Statement

Good news for those of you who went through last post’s exercise of self-reflection and feedback comparison - those five key elements you identified will serve as the foundation of your personal branding statement.

With those five elements, try to write a 1 to 2 sentences that answer those three statements from the beginning of this post…

What do you do best? (Your Value)Who do you serve? (Your Audience)What makes you unique? (Your Unique Selling Proposition, or USP)

The goal here is to be concise and clear. Don’t worry about making it a pretty statement at first. Just ensure you’re answering those three questions and that you’re zeroing in on the target audience that can best benefit from working with you.

Be Authentic

This goes back to a previous post on how the best personal brands are REAL – reliable, engaged, authentic, and listening. Don’t go off and try to claim something you’re not. Adding fluff words like “guru” or “ninja” – while witty, shouldn’t be your goal when crafting your branding statement.

Truly, only your audience can decide how much of an expert you are, and believe me, you’ll know it. Aim to inspire and inform the reader.

Make It Short & Sweet

Being able to explain exactly what you do in a single sentence is impressive. It shows that you have an incredible professional focus and says a lot on your ability of self-reflection. At times, you have to carry a thought into a second sentence, but if at all possible, try to limit your branding statement to one, clear sentence.

And a Little Punch

When you’re presenting your personal branding statement in a networking situation or when reaching out to a prospective client, you want it to be memorable. I know I mentioned shying away from fluff words. Don’t overdo it, but try to make your statement something someone can recall and share with their peers.

Remember, It’s Not Set In Stone

Your personal branding statement is something that should evolve along with you. Once you craft your first branding statement, share it with you peers. Ask them for their feedback and see if they have any suggestions on how you can improve it without making it sound like something you’re not.

Over to You

What’s your personal branding statement? We’d love to hear what you’ve got!

Finding Your Why

Defining your personal brand can seem like a daunting task. Where do you even begin when trying to create your personal brand?

Well, that parts simple – YOU. The question you’re answering is ...

Why would someone want to work with you?

The best personal brands are an authentic representation of the person’s core purpose and values.

Here are four tips to help you in self-discovery and brand development:

Get in Touch With Yourself - A personal branding strategy starts first by reflecting on who we are, what we believe in, how we behave, and what we want out of life.Think about things like your personality type, your interests, your skills, and your passions. Think about the moments in your life that made an impact on you, good and bad. Think about your values and what you stand for. Think about all these things, and then write them down.

Reflect On What Others Think - For you admittedly, this could fill you with a feeling of vulnerability, but reaching out to colleagues, clients, family and friends can teach us things about ourselves that we never even realized. Ask them about the same items you jotted down for yourself above. Ask them what they believe to be your top strengths and a couple of areas they think you could grow in.

Listen to how they describe you.

Evaluate & Compare Your Lists - Read back through the list you created for yourself. Do you see any common words or themes from what you wrote down? How do those common themes compare to the list of feedback you received from your closest confidants? Do they relate to any of the experiences that made the most impact on your life? Highlight the commonalities between all lists which will help you with your next step.

Focus on Five Key Elements - Now it’s time to zero-in on the top five elements you want your brand to focus on. Challenge yourself to think about the big picture.

Define what you excel at better than anyone. Think about who your ideal customer is and why they should work with you. Ask yourself, “What makes me get up every morning ready to serve my customers? “.

Read back through all of the common words and phrases you highlighted when comparing your list in step 3. Which commonalities matter the most to you?

Try your best to narrow down five key brand elements and rank them in order of importance to you.

Once you’ve narrowed down your top five brand elements, you’re ready to start crafting your personal branding statement.

Learn more about developing your personal brand strategy in our next post.

So last week I mentioned in my previous blog that we all have a personal brand. While each of us live and breathe a brand that is unique to only us, there are some common elements you'll find in some of the most successful personal brands.

They’re all R.E.A.L. – reliable, engaged, authentic and listening.

Is Your Brand Reliable?

Do you show up when you say you will? Do you call promptly at the time you said you would? Do you deliver everything you promised? Reliability is all about getting your customers and prospects to trust in you and is hands-down one of the most powerful element of your brand. Once people know they can rely on you, they'll confide in you and recognize you as an expert in your field.

Is Your Brand Engaged?

To sustain a successful personal brand you have to put in the time to engage with your networks.

You need to be consistently acting upon the value you bring to your audience. In today’s world, there are so many ways you can reach out and interact with your networks.

Here's 4 ways to engage with your tribe

Social Networks – It’s no secret that the world is becoming increasingly more and more social. Leverage it by creating a strong presence on the social networks where you can find your ideal audience Facilitate a discussion group on LinkedIn by asking open-ended questions and guide conversations into a dialogue. On Twitter? Seek out your ideal customers and follow them. Overtime you should begin to consistently interact with retweets and replies to build a rapport. Maybe offer to take your conversation offline if you feel you both could benefit from working together. I know this won't work for some, but for Coaches and other services offered (web design etc) maybe give it a go.

Real Life Networking – Get yourself out there. In order to build meaningful relationships, there’s a critical offline component that is still so vital today. People want to work with people they know. Invest in face-to-face time and don’t forget to follow-up! PLus don't forget the benefit of referrals. Give those business cards out - after you have connected and feel you can really be of value.

Be a Connector – Probably one of the best ways to engage your audience is to give them something that will benefit them. Know someone who could really use your prospect’s services? Introduce the two parties! Down the road, the favor may be returned.

Run a Workshop – Show your network your expertise by offering up an intimate workshop. Not only will you establish yourself as an expert, the added face time is another opportunity to grow your relationship. Remember the best way to learn something is to teach it! If you can do that you're on your way to adding value to your craft.

Is Your Brand Authentic?

Let’s be honest… we should all be striving to be the truest version of ourselves. The easiest way to cultivate authenticity in your personal brand is to have it reflect your core purpose, values, beliefs and passions. It should incorporate your strengths, your dreams, and your uniqueness.

Be confident in who you are, and then go share that with the world by living and breathing it into your everyday actions. The strongest, most distinctive personal brands got that way by being authentic with their network. They allow their passion to ooze through and light the way.

Are You Listening?

How easy is it to go out and start offering up solutions to solve the problems our customers don’t even realize they need? While it may be easy, the best personal brands know what matters most – their ability to listen to what their customers need.

When you’re engaging with your customer, make sure you’re truly listening. Ask a question to start the conversation, and let them speak. Don’t think about where you’re going to take the conversation – listen to what they're telling you.

Don’t just listen in person either. Set up a Google Alert to stay up to date on what’s happening within your client’s business. Utilize social media to identify frustrations. Let your audience know their opinion matters by asking for feedback. Don’t underestimate the value of letting the other person speak.

Listening can be your biggest relationship-building tool.

What elements do you feel are the most crucial in building a successful personal brand?

Whether we realize it or not, we all have a personal brand! It's been developing since we were born and strenghtens throughout our day to day actions and communications. It's our reputation, how others see us and the experience we provide those we do business with defines what our current brand promotes.

Does the brand you currently portray align with what you want people to believe your brand is all about? Yes, No? Don’t worry. It’s never too late to take control and start creating the brand that truly represents you so that you can provide the ideal experience for your customers.

Below we share five ways that you can embrace, nurture, and grow your brand into something powerful. It's easy to blend in with the others and become a wall flower. To stand out you don't need to be a big personality... but you do need to stand out. Your ideal client's need to find you.

1. Brand Discovery

When your clients hear your name, what do you what them to think? Should they think of a certain subject matter? Perhaps most importantly, why should they choose to do business with you over all the competition? There's more than likely lots of others doing what you do right?

It’s important to sit down and really reflect on who you want to be as a person and where you want your life to go.

Some items to ponder:

Who is your ideal customer? What matters to these individuals?

Outline your skillset & analyze their importance. Will they help you lead a happy life and enable you to reach your goals? Can they help you differentiate yourself?

Values are our emotional currency of life. They are our core principles that give meaning to our life and guide us in evaluating the choices we make. What matters most to you?

If you had to focus on a few key things that you do really well – what would they be? Being AMAZING at very specific items can help you define your specialty.

2. Focus On Discovering The Value In Your Brand

Once you’ve defined what it is that your brand stands-for, it’s time to start thinking about how you will provide value to those that do business with you.

How will they benefit from interacting with you? Do you help your clients work smarter with the resources you provide? The key is to create a clear and concise statement of what you have to offer that you can serve as the framework for all of your efforts moving forward.

3. Find Ways to Produce Value

Now it’s time to start breathing it into everything you do. Find ways to educate, inspire, and bring value to those who interact with your brand. Offer up an idea, give away an ebook, or run a workshop and share your knowledge. Don’t just tell them how you’re going to bring value to their business – show them! Be active and keep doing the do.

4. Be Consistent

When you're working to get your brand out there, it’s important to keep a consistent look and feel to your brand message. Now, I’m not saying you should go all Steve Jobs and start wearing the same attire every day, but creating a consistent brand message both online and offline is incredibly important to your success. With all the available communication channels available today, being consistent helps alleviate the chances for confusion and keeps your Personal Brand aligned.

5. Constantly Evolve

It’s no secret that what we stand for evolves over time. Your personal brand should evolve right along with you. As you begin to test out certain methods of engaging your brand’s audience adn ideal clients, don’t be afraid to change directions. If something is not working for you, it's OK to revisit and ensure the effort aligns with your brand and its goals. In the end, your personal brand is simply just your story. It should blossom and grow, just as you do!

Now ... Over to You - What else do you believe is important to consider when building a powerful personal brand?

Love you to share your thoughts in the comments below.