I have often thought about changing the term ‘Brand’ in relation to people to something along the lines of ‘Personal Leadership Impact’ or ‘Personal Leadership Presence’. Most people associate a brand with the labeling on the tin, smart marketing and a glossy exterior.
The reality when it comes to building people brands is that we need to come at this from the inside out, rather than smart marketing. Building your brand begins with working on you. Afterall, your BEing drives your DOing, and how you are perceived and your reputation are just by-products of this. What’s the point in ‘marketing’ a by-product that may not represent who you really are? Brands need to be authentic, the real deal before we can begin to attract to us what we really want.
And as Jim Morrison so aptly said “It’s got to happen inside first”.