Build your Personal Brand Well

By Dickson Tumuramye

Anyone desires to live a life that is admirable by others. Though some people like to live a private life, there is still something that they would like the world to know about them. In this world, we are like fruits on a shelf. We choose to be juicy and fresh or raw and rotten in the eyes of those who pick us, said Amos Wekesa. I relate Wekesa’s statement with your personal branding. 

Personal branding is a way of establishing and consistently reinforcing who you are and what you stand for in your career and life. It is true people will always have their own way of looking at us and judge. Each one of us can never be good or bad for everyone.

Nonetheless, our style of living has a lot to do with our branding. The person who can sell your worth and value is you. You know yourself better than anyone else knows you. You are quite sure of your inner ability, strength, and weaknesses. In case you don’t know, I advise to ask your friends to help you. They can tell what strengths and weaknesses you have.

Building a brand for yourself is a choice you have to make. An effective brand strategy gives you a major edge in increasingly competitive markets. You have to market yourself in a way that will sell you to the outside. Ask yourself whether you have a symbol or design or a name that identifies and differentiates from others. Even when you appear before an interview panel, the way you talk about yourself in two minutes matters and can determine if you are worth the job offer or not. The people you also associate with can sell you negatively or positively. As they say, “tell me your friends and I tell you your character.” That means people watch your associates and give you a brand.  The type of friends you have may determine who you will be known to be. The words that come out of your mouth have a lot to say about you. If you are a person who looks at life with a negative attitude, with only words of hopelessness, you will not attract good friends.

Think about the way you market yourself.  When you meet people casually for a talk, talk nicely, talk business, be yourself, be confident. Avoid putting yourself in a class that you are not. Always be a man/woman of truth and integrity. The bible says that you will know the truth and it will set you free (John 10:32). Don’t say much about yourself when you know that you are just exaggerating. Aim at leaving a positive impression on the person who listens to you. Where you can exchange your contacts, social media accounts, email address. You may never know who one day will get back to you, depending on your services/products. Market yourself as a brand, then your products and services. All of this will have an impact on your lifestyle. Your lifestyle can become your marketing tool.

Create your personal branding statement that will be a catchphrase and will speak about you. This helps you to quickly get an audience that will follow you. Your dress code speaks a lot about you too. Your outside presence in public can give a summary of what you are. I know you may say that do not judge a book by its cover. But remember a bad looking cover may never attract your attention to check what is inside. A nice looking cover will entice you to find out more about the book, and that is you.

Make an effort to brand yourself well in a way that advertises you as someone with great potential, wisdom, man/woman of his/her word, pulling trust from your counterparts. Be your own advocate and look forward to better opportunities all the time. If you are dealing with products, make sure they have a name, logo, brand colors, address among others. This adds value to your customers and you stand out in the competition.

The writer is a child advocate and parenting coach.

tumudickson@gmail.com