Building a strong personal brand & portfolio

Building a strong portfolio for
your leadership toolbox

Introductions
834 Design & Marketing
Kim Bode – Owner/Operator
Twitter: @834design
LinkedIn: 834 Design & Marketing
Facebook: /834design
Adrienne Wallace MS, MPA – Project/Digital Director
Twitter: @adriwall
LinkedIn: /adriwall
Facebook: /adrienneawallace

Activity
• The warm up:
– Write down the names of 5 leaders.

• The leader brand is the key that unlocks energies for leaders and
followers alike.
• Role play [theatrics, playing a part] vs. true style [temperament, attitude,
mood, level of optimism, and determination]
• Leader’s real work is to create followers and build relationships.
– Brand suggests that followers can leave if brand is compromised or
invalid
– Command and keep trustworthiness
– Broken trust = forfeit brand contract
Theory-Leader
Brands

• Brand=hallmark of trust.
– Leader brand is a thought [examples]
• Become greater by committing to something greater.
• Focus energy to create meaningful change.
• Manifest our vision in all of my actions
• Create change, understand, adapt, and lead.
Theory-Leader
Brands

• Create followers
– What are plans for the future including outcomes
– Invite people to participate
– Leaders awknowledge follower needs
– Leader declares a willingness to fulfill needs
– Be overt about intentions
Theory-Leader
Brands

• Can’t fake a brand
– Leader brand is shorthand for the relationship value proposition
– Must be quickly grasped in a few words
– How do we know it works?
• Viability and success
– When a leader walks in to a room…do people think the
brand?
Theory-Leader
Brands

• When a leader slips from the brand, the consequences are dire
– Followers leave
– People feel betrayed
– They tell others
– They lose energy for cause
– They leave
Theory-Leader
Brands

Branding importance in a tough economy
• Branding is as important as ever, as long as people understand what
that means.
– It's not a self-promotion campaign
– Or some dress-for-success kind of idea
– It's really who you are deep inside
• what passions you have and how you can lead your most
successful life
Creating a BRAND
new you

Rebranding after YEARS in one place
• Not difficult to do
• Should not hold you back
– If you've been branded by a performance or reputation issue, that's
a difficult place to reposition within the company.
– Probably better to start somewhere else and try to rebrand.
Creating a BRAND
new you

Challenges of branding when you are new to career or have been
unemployed
• Be honest with yourself— the strengths and gaps that you may have —
because certainly a future employer would do that on your behalf
anyway.
• Do a good brand audit of where you are and what you have to offer.
• The thing that's empowering is you have overlooked transferable equities
you have.
Creating a BRAND
new you

Learn from big brands
• The first thing to realize is that a brand is merely a promise to a group of
target consumers
• The experience those consumers have — which results in the relationship
that consumers have with that brand.
• Promise + experience = relationship.
• Personal branding should ask ‘what is our promise to people who matter
in our lives, and are we delivering against that expectation?’
Creating a BRAND
new you

About branding
• Great brands communicate in a consistent manner and create a unique
position in the marketplace.
• Brands that stray from their core positioning frequently find themselves in
the trouble mode.
Creating a BRAND
new you

• Consistency communicates.
– It's more than just what you wear; lt's your personality, the way you
approach challenges — it's the way you interact with people.
– Example: if your goal is to be seen as a person who is willing to help
other people in their careers, but your calendar is never open for
people to meet with you, then the audio doesn't match the video.
Creating a BRAND
new you

Conduct your own SWOT
• Strengths
• Weaknesses
• Opportunities
• Threats
ACTIVITY: Creating a
BRAND new you

• The thing that people are good at is identifying their functional SWOT
components.
• However, they frequently miss their emotional SWOT components — and
many times that's a tiebreaker for success or failure for somebody in his
careen
– It’s that emotional quotient they bring to their jobs.
• Step back and look at this during positioning work and see what
strengths and weaknesses you have.
– Helps in growth and identifying gaps or opportunities.
Creating a BRAND
new you

Partner UP and conduct a SWOT of 1 of your 5 leaders identified earlier-2
SWOT’s total
• Strengths
• Weaknesses
• Opportunities
• Threats
Activity: Creating a
BRAND new you

Partner UP and conduct a SWOT of 1 of your classmates; exchange results
• Strengths
• Weaknesses
• Opportunities
• Threats
Activity: Creating a
BRAND new you

• Sometimes people need to look through the eyes of another for the
SWOT
– Especially when you think about the W.
• Oftentimes people miss gaps because they try to rationalize that it's not
a real issue.
– It's better to face the gap right away and address it either by
targeting different organizations or different careers than trying to
convince yourself that this doesn't matter to an employer.
• The second thing is that people narrow the field of opportunities.
– Keep options bigger in general SWOT and use bullets for more
concise opportunities.
Creating a BRAND
new you

1. Identify what you know -- or can teach others -- that is worth promoting.
2. Once you have identified a theme or topic to pursue, make it
marketable.
3. Once you have identified your point-of-view and pitch, identify the
best platform to achieve your personal branding objectives.
Bliss, J., & Wildrick, M. (2005). How to build a personal brand. Consulting to
Management, 16(3), 6-10. Retrieved from
http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.gvsu.edu/docview/215901221?accountid=
39473
3 Steps Building
Personal Branding
Plan of
Action/Process

What do you know-or can teach others-that is worth promoting to others?
Keep two things in mind:
• First, it's helpful to pick a subject on which you have some proprietary
information, HEAVY experience or BIG passion.
• Second, make sure the topic is of interest to your target audience
(clients and prospects) and their gatekeepers (the media, conference
organizers, television producers, book publishers, and so on).
39473
3 Steps-
Identify a Point-of-
View

Make yourself marketable.
Your PITCH must meet at least one of the following criteria in order to appeal
to your audience
• Predictive: The pitch identifies industry trends or forecasts emerging
developments.
• Prescriptive: The pitch outlines key steps for accomplishing an important
strategic and/ or operating goal.
• Provocative: The pitch is counterintuitive and thus newsworthy.
• Prudent: This is essential, or else the pitch is likely to have negative
branding consequences.
39473
3 Steps-
Develop YOUR Pitch

There exist many venues for
communicating your message:
• Bylined articles
• Photography
• Monetary contributions
• Committee work
• Board work
• Op-eds
• Books
• White papers
• Speeches
• Panel discussions
• Media interviews
• Volunteering
• Advocacy
• Social media
• Blogging
39473
3 Steps-
ID your target
platform

• The goal of personal brand building is simple:
– To create a steady stream of original thought leadership that you
can disperse to clients, prospects, and the business media.
– You become uniquely qualified to achieve the objective of a
professional in need.
39473
3 Steps-
Purpose

• Relationship building and cultivation are fundamental for consideration
of board positions.
• A personal brand is our calling card in all aspects of career progression
strategies.
• We must benchmark ourselves to establish the best practices that link to
our personal brand criteria metrics.
3 Steps-
Deeper Purpose

• Personal brands are comprised of assets that contribute to the board
development strategies we employ. The goal is to make sure the brand -
you - gets noticed.
• Serving on a board requires that how we are perceived can result in
referrals to be considered for board appointments.
• There are many characteristics contributing to a personal brand and are
closely aligned with board development approaches.
Leadership, Boards
and Personal Brands
Banks, S. (2012, Apr). Leverage your personal brand. Michigan Chronicle.
Retrieved from
http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.gvsu.edu/docview/1013445531?accoun
tid=39473

• Integrity: Social, intellectual, emotional and other attributes are among
the core value characteristics consistent with honesty, trustworthiness,
reliability and compassion that boards consider.
Leadership, Boards
and Personal Brands
Banks, S. (2012, Apr). Leverage your personal brand. Michigan Chronicle. Retrieved from
http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.gvsu.edu/docview/1013445531?accountid=39473

• Leadership: Often businesses and initiatives don't fail on their own - lack
of direction and leadership can be the culprits.
– Boards are seeking leadership perspectives that can help establish
policies, represent the organization and assist with strategic business
planning implementation. Those who fail to treat leadership abilities
as a priority simply cede opportunities to those who do. Leaders who
don't embrace change will be replaced by those who do. We have
all heard the sayings "Lead, follow, or get out of the way," and "Lead
by example."
– Our personal brand is consistent with board development that
requires leaders with vision to help direct an organization.
Leadership, Boards
and Personal Brands
Retrieved from
http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.gvsu.edu/docview/1013445531?account
id=39473

• Commitment: Showing up when no one else does to do things no one
else will often is a game changer that sets us apart.
– Dedication to a vision and mission is critical to being a sought out or
referred as a board candidate. The strongest argument for
commitment is what happens when it is absent - very little.
– Boards are seeking committed members who get things done.
Leadership, Boards
and Personal Brands
Retrieved from
39473

• Persuasive: It is often said, many can draw a crowd, but not everyone
can build a community or move people to action around a vision.
– Those who are able to stimulate, encourage, support and convince
are ahead of the curve to reach and engage organizations seeking
board members.
– Board development includes researching and understanding an
organization's goals to help them achieve desired results.
Leadership, Boards
and Personal Brands
Retrieved from
39473

• Discipline: Discipline is focused, not frivolous.
– Discipline to do what is right and follow through may have you
standing alone for awhile.
– Lack of discipline will bring regret in the long-term. Identifying goals is
a good thing; discipline to strive to achieve desired results is even
better. Discipline is required as a function of our board development
to aid achieving measurable outcomes to the organization.
Leadership, Boards
and Personal Brands
Banks, S. (2012, Apr). Leverage your personal brand. Michigan Chronicle. Retrieved from
http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.gvsu.edu/docview/1013445531?accountid=39473

• Strategic Thinking: A good theory or idea is just that. It only becomes a
fact when tested and proven. Research, analysis, assessment and
evaluation are available tools for those seeking proof and validation
through strategic planning processes.
– Continuous improvement is what strategic thinkers do.
– Board development includes being a strategic resource who can
contribute information and perspectives.
Leadership, Boards
and Personal Brands
Retrieved from
39473

• Team Builder: Effective teams function based on "what" is right being
more important than "who" is right.
– Those who can inspire as part of a team contribute to the goals and
desired outcomes of an organization.
– Team players are providing a critically important attribute that
impacts every board's effectiveness.
Leadership, Boards
and Personal Brands
Retrieved from
39473

• Creating a resource:
– Potential employers
– Board-seeking organizations
– Alumni associations
– Coworkers
– Historical preservation
• Confirms your qualifications at a glance
• Decision-makers want to see proof of your skills and real examples of
what you’ve done
Toolkit/Portfolio

• Personal reflection statement
• Personal & professional goals
• Blueprint for success [action steps to fulfill personal and professional
goals]
• Education, training, competencies, professional skills
• Demonstrated & documented proficiencies, professional & personal
performance
Toolkit/Portfolio-
Contents

• What is your personal reflection statement? Include: Philosophy,
Objectives, Strategies and Methodologies
• Describe why you do what you do with a statement that reflects your
personal philosophy on life.
– What do find important? What gives you great satisfaction?
– What are your career values? Your life values? Why?
– What is your personality style?
– What is your self-management style regarding risk-taking? What
motivates you?
– What are your career and life goals? What approaches do you use
to achieve those accomplishments?
ACTIVITY:
Toolkit/Portfolio-
Contents

• What is your leader brand?
– Full blown thought (not a slogan or catch phrase)
– No more than seven words
– Expresses what followers FEEL will happen in their lives and in the
world as a result of you, the leader
– Share with partner
– Share with group
ACTIVITY:
Toolkit/Portfolio-
Contents

• What are your personal & professional goals?
– Okay to organize in bullets
– Be ready to make actionable [that’s next]
ACTIVITY:
Toolkit/Portfolio-
Contents

• What’s your blueprint for success [action steps to fulfill personal and
professional goals]
– These are ACTIONS you will take to fulfill the personal and
professional goals listed earlier
ACTIVITY:
Toolkit/Portfolio-
Contents

• What makes you qualified?
• Education, training, competencies, professional skills
• Better yet, where are the gaps you want to fill to fulfill your personal and
professional goals?
– These are SKILLS you have or will get to fulfill the personal and
professional goals listed earlier
ACTIVITY:
Toolkit/Portfolio-
Contents

• How do you know? Who cares?
• Demonstrated & documented proficiencies, professional & personal
performance
• Better yet, where are the gaps you want to fill to fulfill your personal and
professional goals?
– These are METHODS you have been evaluated to prove you CAN or
DID contribute
• Awards, mentions and articles
• Contributions and 3rd party endorsements
ACTIVITY:
Toolkit/Portfolio-
Contents

• Start with a hook
– When someone asks, "what do you do," start with a short statement
designed to peak their curiosity.
– This statement should be confusing and not lead the listener to any
preconceived notion. It should not include any details about how
you do what you do.
– You don’t want this to sound made up or too contrived.
ACTIVITY:
Toolkit/Portfolio-The
ANTI-Elevator
Speech
http://www.inc.com/marla-tabaka/fix-your-elevator-speech.html

• Stop talking
– After you deliver your hook it's important to shut up.
– Don't just do something, stand there.
– You need to give the listener time to contemplate what you just said,
get confused, and want to know more.
ACTIVITY:
ANTI-Elevator
Speech

• Reel them in
– After a successful hook, don't launch into a sales pitch or
commercial. Your hook does not give you permission to blast them
between the eyes.
– Ease into the next part of the Anti-Elevator Speech with the reel.
– Begin to tell how you do what you do, but don't give away the
show. Now you have earned the right to serve them.
ACTIVITY:
ANTI-Elevator Speech

• Serve, don’t sell
– Remain focused on your listener's needs, not on your needs.
– The more you give to the world, the more the world gives back.
ACTIVITY:
ANTI-Elevator Speech

• Analog
– Portfolio provided
– Table of contents with page numbers
– Intro letter [change this per the opportunity]
– MAKE COPIES and STORE A COPY IN THE CLOUD
• Digital
– Prezi 1: Digital Portfolios and Social Media
Toolkit/Portfolio-
Presentation: 2 ways

Building a strong personal brand & portfolio

Recommended

Recommended

More Related Content

What's hot

What's hot (20)

Similar to Building a strong personal brand & portfolio

Similar to Building a strong personal brand & portfolio (20)

More from Grand Valley State University

More from Grand Valley State University (14)

Recently uploaded

Recently uploaded (20)

Building a strong personal brand & portfolio