Ep 70 – Establishing Your Personal Brand as a Leader

Hello and welcome to this week's episode.

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Today we are talking about how to build

a strong personal brand as a leader.

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And the reason we're talking about

this is because it came up quite

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recently for one of my clients.

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And it's also something that Jackie

covers as part of her leadership

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launch pad, which is part of the

first 90 days program that she runs.

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So we were throwing around some

ideas about, how can people

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strengthen their personal brands?

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How can they even start to

think about creating one?

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And how to be really intentional

and consistent with it as well.

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So before we get into the detail of, what

you can do and why it matters, I think

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it's really important for us to define it.

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So Jacqui, how would you

define personal brand?

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Jacqui: You know me, I like

to keep things really simple.

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When I'm working with clients,

what we do is just strip away.

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And I think some of the reason that

this becomes quite a muddy topic at

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times, and people have that question

of how do I create a personal

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brand, is because it seems like a

bigger thing than it needs to be.

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And I just boil it down to your

personal brand as a leader is quite

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simply your reputation , at its

core, that is what personal brand is.

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It's what do other people,

and that can be internal.

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It can be external stakeholders.

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It can be other people in your industry.

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So there's a whole range of people

who will have a perception of you that

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is created by your personal brand.

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Behavior by your actions, by what

they see and experience of you.

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And that in olden money was

quite simply your reputation.

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So I think we've probably muddied

the waters by creating this whole

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personal branding and actually.

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It really is quite simple

and straightforward.

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That doesn't mean it's easy to know

exactly what to do about it and how to

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create the one you want necessarily.

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And we'll explore some more of that, but

at its core that's how I would define it.

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I'm interested as to whether

you keep it that simple.

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Pam: Yeah, I think you're

absolutely spot on.

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It is your reputation, isn't it?

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That's what it comes down to.

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And I think it's always

a hard one, isn't it?

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To start looking at personal brands

and go, What is my reputation?

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And I suppose, why does it matter?

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Because reputation is huge, isn't it?

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And it is really the difference between

getting that promotion or not, especially

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if you're looking internally and

you're trying to create a reputation

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that shows you're the strong leader

that can drive the business forward.

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And it does reflect your values

and everything that you stand for.

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So there's so much to it, but actually

that you say can also be really simple

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if you just boil it down to reputation.

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So why does it matter so much?

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Jacqui: I think there's

quite a few reasons why.

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And I think when people start

to recognize this, that's often

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when the penny drops as to yeah.

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Okay.

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So maybe this is something I

need to pay some attention to.

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So the first thing.

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for me is always about it has a

real impact on your ability to

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have success in your current role.

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So if you have a strong reputation

internally, especially, but also

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potentially with clients, suppliers,

some of those stakeholders that

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you might work closely with.

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If you've got that real solid base

where people respect you, where they

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buy into you, where they believe that

you have their best interests at heart,

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or you will act fairly and reasonably,

then it enhances your ability to have

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that influence with those people.

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If it feels that people can trust

and know what to expect of you.

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And that allows you to build relationships

that then allow you to be more successful

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in the role that you're already in.

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So if for no other reason, then to

me, there is that kind of importance

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of building that reputation.

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So that you can make life easier

for yourself by making it easier

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to achieve what you need to

achieve in your current role.

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Pam: Yeah, and I think that the

key thing there is about being

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intentional, isn't it, with that?

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And if you've not already done

that, because I suppose we get

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so caught up in the day to day.

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Of our jobs that sometimes you

can almost overlook the fact

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that you need to focus in on you.

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And I suppose everything that we do on the

podcast is about unlocking your potential.

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So it's about giving yourself

that time and space to think

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about, how do I come across?

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How do I want to come across?

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What are the things that I need

to focus in on in order to be

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effective now in my current role?

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And sometimes it's a hard conversation

to have with yourself, isn't it?

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It's not always that easy.

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And sometimes, especially, if you've

not been particularly self aware,

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when you start delving into it, it can

feel quite uncomfortable, can't it?

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Jacqui: And there are two questions

that I use with clients when we're

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working that first 90 days phase,

because that's a perfect time, if

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you are starting a new role, it's a

perfect time to start to be intentional

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about building your personal brand.

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And the questions that I will

ask are around, one, what do

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you want to be remembered for?

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When you move on from this role,

what do you want to have created?

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What do you want other

people to know or remember?

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when you move on from this role.

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So you're starting with that kind

of outcome in mind, that assumption

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that you're going to move on, whether

that's an internal promotion or moving

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elsewhere for a different opportunity.

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What's that legacy that you want

to have created by that point?

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And then there is that question

of, and what are the key

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factors that will determine your

success or not in this role?

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And when you ask yourself those

questions, they're powerful at any

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point, but when you're going into

a new role, it's a really good time

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to think about who do I need to be?

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How do I need to show up in order to

be successful in this particular role?

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So it doesn't have to be, again,

it doesn't have to be complex.

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It doesn't have to be over the top.

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A lot of this is about that thought

process that says okay what does my

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reputation need to be in order for me

to be successful in my current role?

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Who do I need to influence?

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How do I need to show up and how

do all those different people need

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to experience me and how can all of

those different strands pull together.

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Pam: That's a really good point

isn't it like what do I need to do

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who do I need to influence because I

think if you don't think about that.

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And, if you've not got that side of things

sorted or you're quite a chaotic person,

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and you want people to think that you're

more in control and things like that.

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It is about.

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really go getting under the skin of

how you're currently performing and the

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things that you're currently doing in

order to work out what you need to change

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and how you want people to perceive you.

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Jacqui: Absolutely.

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Pam: So what is the second thing then?

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Jacqui: I think the other thing that's

important when it comes to personal brand

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is how much it can matter when it comes

to securing future career opportunities.

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So yes, there's a success in the

role that you are currently in.

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, there is a huge amount.

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of future opportunities that can come

from being intentional about creating the

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personal brand that you want to create.

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So it, they naturally

flow from each other.

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The more successful you are in your

current role, the more likely you

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are to get opportunities, but it's

also broader than that because so

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many future career opportunities.

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Come from a ways beyond just being

successful in your current role.

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And again, I think that's

something that people don't

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necessarily always think about.

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And when you do, then it's

oh yeah, that's obvious.

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But so many future opportunities come from

how other people perceive you, whether you

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are known for something, whether people

immediately think of you when it comes

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to a certain type of problem or a certain

type of business or having a certain

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type of contribution, because those are

the things that are going to put you

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in the frame for future opportunities.

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Pam: Yeah, I completely agree with that.

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And I suppose that leads in quite

nicely to enhancing impact, doesn't it?

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Generally.

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Jacqui: Yeah, because When you are

intentional about creating a personal

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brand, that is not, I think sometimes

people feel that it's a bit self

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absorbed to focus so much on themselves.

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And I think for me, it's important

to recognize that this is a tool that

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allows you to have greater impact.

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It allows you to achieve more of

what you want and to contribute more.

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And I think if I look back on my own

career, I have that kind of probably

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feeling of it feels a bit self absorbed.

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It feels a bit weird to think about how

do I influence others to think of me the

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way that I want them to think of me, feels

a bit Machiavellian and pulling strings

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and what have you and counter intuitive.

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And, This is definitely an area that when

I look back on my career, I could have

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done a far better job had I have spent

a bit more time thinking and reflecting,

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I could have done a far better job,

and it would have allowed me to enhance

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my impact without a shadow of a doubt,

because what it allows you to do is

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establish relationships and ensure that

people have that consistent experience

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of who you are and what you're about.

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And that allows for deeper impact in

both the roles that you're in, but also

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in terms of your industry reputation

in terms of we've got an episode

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planned on the hidden jobs market.

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And, there's so much that comes from being

intentional about it and I think we just

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really want to encourage people to not be

shy and feel like this is weird and self

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absorbed but to recognize that actually

you can have greater impact by taking the

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time to reflect on some of this stuff.

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Pam: So I suppose overall, that is

what differentiates you, isn't it?

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As, as a leader.

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So the more that you can focus in on

personal brands and the more that you can

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really be intentional about it, they're

going to be the differentiating factors.

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They're going to make you stand out

in your industry and the job market

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and within your current company.

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It's all really good stuff to start

thinking about and really start having

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those conversations with yourself as well.

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So I suppose the next question

really is how can you be intentional?

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Jacqui: And this is the million

dollar question, isn't it?

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And this is why it is that we have this

come up where people are working with us

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because it's okay, if I get all that stuff

and I get all that great opportunity that

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comes with defining my personal brand.

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How do I actually go about doing that?

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So for me, when I'm working

with clients, it always starts

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with what do you want it to be?

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So going back to what we said about that

being successful in your current role.

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It's that question of who do

you want to be as a leader?

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What do you want other people

to notice or say about you?

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What do you want to be known for?

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And I think when you start with that,

then everything else comes more naturally.

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And that is a different question than what

do I think I should be or what do I look

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around and see other people and think,

oh, I want people to say that about me.

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Some of that will influence it,

but I think it's really important

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to be true to yourself with

knowing what do you want it to be?

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And as an example with this, this

was my own experience in, in my

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career, I'm an introvert, I'm not

naturally great at small talk and

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striking up chit chat with people.

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And my impression was that

leaders should be charismatic.

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So in the earlier part of my career.

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That probably would have been something

that I wanted people to say about me.

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Whereas actually the further

I've gone through my career,

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the more I've recognized that I

can influence and I can strike

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relationships up in a different way.

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And I don't have to try and be like

those charismatic leaders that I see.

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Because that works for them, because

it's about them and their character and

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their personal brand, I don't have to

try and follow that and be like that.

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So when you're asking yourself that

question of what do you want it to be, I

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think it's really important to separate

do I want to be like that, or do I

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feel like I should be like that, and be

really honest and true to yourself about

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what do you actually want, rather than

what do you feel that you should be.

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Pam: Yeah, I think that's a

really good point, isn't it?

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Because that is the thing, isn't it?

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Because most of the things that

you'll read around personal brands

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is find somebody, use them as a role

model, and then you almost become a

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version of them, but on your terms.

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And I suppose when you look at

that and you break it down and

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you're like what do I want to be?

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And is this right for me as well?

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I think that's really key, isn't it?

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Because if it's not right for you.

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But you want to emulate that in some way,

then maybe there's a better way that you

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can do that, or there's a different way

that you can approach it that fits with

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your personality and your way of working.

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Jacqui: I think you can absolutely be

inspired by other people and by how they

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operate and by what their reputation is.

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But you can also recognize

that way works for them.

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And you might need to

find a different way.

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So if you are going to look for those

role models to try and emulate, then

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I would say, try and find people

where it feels like that could be

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something you could adopt and would

feel natural and with time and practice.

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Would become second nature to you.

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So you don't have to be like that

immediately, but if you're finding

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somebody that just feels like they're

a million miles away, then you can

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very easily set yourself up to fail.

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And the problem with that, then is

that comes across as inauthentic.

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If you are trying to be like something

that does not inherently feel like

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you, you're putting on this kind of

facade, as opposed to being true to you.

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So I think it's just really important

to find if you are going to look

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for inspiration to find people

that feel like they are realistic

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and that they're doing the things

that you want to do really well.

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They also feel like those are realistic

for you as opposed to things that just

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feel like, yeah, that would just be me

play acting and me getting up on a stage

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and pretending to be something that I'm

not because that is never going to work

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when it comes to your personal brand.

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People will smell that a mile off.

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Pam: Yeah.

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And I've just had a real

vision of stars in their eyes.

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Like tonight, Matthew, I am going

to be, and it's like sometimes going

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into work and sometimes feel like

that concert, when you get to the

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front door and you're like here we go.

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Let's put on this mask.

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Let's get in there.

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Let's just do that.

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But it can be really

exhausting concert as well.

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Jacqui: Yeah, absolutely.

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And, I think this often happens as well

when people have had personality based

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feedback, where they've been told you're

too nice, or you're too loud, or you're

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too this, or you're too that, and people

feel then that they have to change

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that rather than be true to themselves.

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So they're trying to be what they've

perceived the other person is asking

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of them, as opposed to really going

inwards and understanding what do I want?

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What is it important to me that people

know about the real me and who I actually

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am is a very different question to what

do I feel like people expect of me and

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how can I try and yeah, stars in their

eyes is such a brilliant reference.

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Pam: Hopefully people that

are listening can remember it.

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But if not Google it, cause it was

amazing, but yeah, it's funny, isn't it?

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Cause I do remember getting some

feedback that said I was too chatty

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once and I was in a senior leadership

role and I was told, you're too chatty.

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You should really try and reign it in.

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Yet, I was always the first person that

they came to if they wanted something

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delivering really quickly, because I

had such a strong network internally

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and externally, that meant that I could

get things over the line really quickly.

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So it's funny, isn't it?

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Because stuff like that, at the

time, I've took it so personally

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and I thought, Oh, my goodness, I

can need to stop chatting to people.

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I need to stop visibly chatting to people.

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But then actually, when I thought about

it, I thought no, all of those little

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chats in the corridor, at the tea machine,

wherever it was meant that I built

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up some really strong relationships,

and I could deliver things fast.

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So I suppose that the message there

is, what people say about you isn't

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always it's not always the truth, is it?

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It's their perception.

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Jacqui: Yeah, absolutely.

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And I think that probably brings us

really onto the second point, which

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is, if you're going to be intentional

about it, you do have to understand

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what your reputation is currently.

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And some of that feedback can sting

at times because some of it may be

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Different to how you want people to

perceive you, but it's important to

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know once you've established what you

want it to be, it's important to have a

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baseline and understand what is it now.

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And understanding that what you'll

often find is that different people

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will have different perceptions.

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And I think that's often where a lot

of the work is with personal brand is

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it's what do you want to be known for?

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What do you want your reputation to be?

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And then you'll have some people that

probably will perceive you as fairly

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close to that and some people that might

not perceive you as close to that yet.

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And when you know what the reality

is, then you can start to make

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a plan for filling those gaps.

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Then you can start to understand,

okay, how do I create that consistency?

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How do I make sure that the

people that don't yet see me as

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that can start to see me as that?

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But you've got to start with

that honest picture and That can

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be a little bit uncomfortable.

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Most of us are not that keen in

terms of seeking out feedback.

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So this is one where, yeah, it can

feel tough because so many people are

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terrible at giving feedback as well.

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And we've talked about

that on the podcast before.

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So you do need to do it.

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It's important to think about how

you get that feedback as well.

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Pam: Yeah, definitely.

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And I suppose, would you recommend

that while people are trying to

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figure out, what is my current

personal brand, like where do I stand?

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Would you recommend going out

and asking for feedback and who

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would you ask, I suppose, is the,

is the starting point, isn't it?

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Jacqui: So I would always say, make

sure you're really clear on what

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you want it to be before you start

going and asking for feedback.

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And I think people sometimes go and

ask for feedback while they're still

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figuring out what they want it to be.

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And so it's almost okay I'll

go and find out what it is now,

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what do people think of me?

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And that can actually

have the opposite effect.

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Whereas the clearer you are about

what you want it to be, you can then

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ask much more specific questions

that will be far more helpful.

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Because what you can do is say, I want

to be known for this thing, for example,

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so if you take your example there, you

clearly had a reputation internally for

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being able to get things done quickly

and for having that wide network.

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So if that was something that you

intentionally wanted to create,

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then what you could do is think to

yourself, okay, who does know me quite

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well, and do they think that, and

who perhaps doesn't know me as well.

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Or you could think about, if I

wanted to enhance my reputation

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for this thing, for being able to

get things over the line quickly.

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What could you suggest that I

could do in order to do that?

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So you can start to frame those questions

much more specifically if you're

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really clear on what you want your

reputation to be as opposed to what do

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you think my reputation is as a leader?

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What do you think of me as a leader?

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They're more general questions.

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They're going to invite all kinds

of things from people's own frame

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of reference that potentially will

derail rather than help you to shape a

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plan, be more of what you want to be.

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Pam: Yeah, I think that

is the key, isn't it?

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Being really specific with

the questions that you ask.

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So what do you think about me in this

specific area rather than what do

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you just think about me generally?

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Because people will always there is with

feedback, I always feel like people go

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to more towards the more constructive

side of things a lot of the time and

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they feel like they need to give you

some development points when actually

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in this case, you just need to know how

you're coming across in certain areas.

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So I think that's definitely a good

piece of advice and something that

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everyone should think about following.

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Jacqui: Or if they like you, they'll

very often not be constructive with

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something more general than that.

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And if you're saying, what do

you think of me as a leader?

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It's such a broad question.

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And people that like you generally

will often not give you specifics that

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could be useful because there'll be

yeah, I think you're a good leader.

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I think you're doing a good job.

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Keep going.

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And because their overall impression

is positive, they won't necessarily

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pick out some of those nuggets

that could be really helpful.

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And I think specifically when

you're getting feedback, one of the

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things is there's inconsistency in

terms of the range of people, and

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how different people perceive you.

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So for example, people that know you

this, if I can, if I use myself as an

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example I know that people who knew me

quite well would see me quite differently.

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Compared to other senior people in

the organization, for example, they

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would only see me in relatively few

situations and they might not necessarily

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get the same picture of me from those

few interactions that the people who

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interacted with me day in day out got.

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So I think when you start to think about.

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Some of those questions, then again,

that can really shape that feedback.

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So that could be a question to

your boss of, I want the board to

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think of me in this particular way.

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I think so far it feels that

my team do see me in that way.

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But I'm not sure that the board

would, for example, see me as

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a really commercial leader.

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What opportunities could there be for

me to shape and enhance that view,

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given that this is the first time

that I've done a role at this level?

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So that is likely to get you far

more specific, actionable feedback.

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And very often what you'll find is

there'll be people that you don't

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necessarily have lots of opportunity

to interact with, or, it could be

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that their experience of you is

inconsistent, as opposed to consistent.

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And I think that's where a

lot of the opportunities are

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for enhancing that brand.

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Pam: So that's brilliant then so if you're

listening to this and you're thinking

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that there's somebody else that also

might find it useful, then please do share

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it and don't forget to rate and review

us on your favorite podcast platforms.

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And if there is any support that

you need with creating your personal

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brand or enhancing your personal

brand, then please do get in touch.

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Don't forget Jacqui's Leadership Launchpad

does cover all of this good stuff.

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So get in touch, drop us a

message, and we will be back

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next week with another episode.