What is a personal brand and do you need one?
I'm going to start with the second question.
Do you need a personal brand?
The short answer is yes.
The truest answer is, you already have a personal brand.
Maybe your brow just furrowed? But it shouldn't because, at its core, a personal brand isn't nearly as sinister as it might sound.
I know we get wigged out in this social media age about how we can craft an image of ourselves. And to be clear, there is a need for caution and authenticity as we engage with the world.
But personal brands existed long before social media, and everyone has one.
A personal brand is how we present ourselves to the world. It includes our skills, past experiences, values, personality, the things we enjoy, the things we believe, and how we contribute to the world.
A personal brand is how other people make sense of who we are, what we care about, and what we want.
The real question
The question isn't, "Should I have a personal brand?"
The question is, "To what degree should I use my personal brand for work purposes?"
Or, "To what degree should I invest in establishing my personal brand online?"
Only you can decide that for yourself.
But maybe it would help to see your personal brand as a way to quickly and clearly communicate to others how you can help or serve them.
How we present our personal brand
Resumes and interviews are traditional ways to communicate our personal brand to future employers. A portfolio is a piece of our personal brand we have traditionally pulled together to present to potential clients.
We all need to curate and present the parts of ourselves that best communicate how we could be an asset to those who are hiring or buying. Our personal brand showcases our strengths, talents, and creations for the purpose of helping others see how we can serve them.
Our society works best when we are wise and honest about how we present ourselves.
Curating what we present about ourselves doesn't mean we should exaggerate or lie to be perceived as something other than we are. Manipulating people into believing something that's less than true and painting a false picture of who we are isn't the goal of a good personal brand.
The internet's influence on personal branding
Though the concept isn't all that new, the term "personal brand" has become a trend in recent years due to the rise of new opportunities available through the internet and social media.
The internet has given us the means of connecting with potential employers or customers worldwide.
Instead of having one stagnant resume or portfolio to share upon request, social media has made it possible to showcase our work, values, personality, and availability in an ongoing and interactive way.
The benefit of leveraging the internet for your personal brand
When it comes to our personal brand, the most significant benefit of the internet and social media is that it dramatically increases the chances that desirable work opportunities will find you.
There are now (thankfully) three paths for connecting with work opportunities.
The first path is the traditional route of searching for job postings that align with your skills, experiences, and ambitions. Once you find a suitable post, you "cold-call" the listing by sending them your personal brand (a.k.a. Resume, portfolio, etc.). Like many of you, I have done this, and it's awful and miserable.
The second path for finding work is networking and word of mouth. In this scenario, your reputation and personal brand circulate in the market, and a future employer or client reaches out to see if you would be interested in their opportunity.
The third path is intentionally using the internet and social media to showcase your ongoing experiences, skills, creations, portfolio, and interests. Unlike the first two paths, this third path casts a much wider net and draws opportunities to you.
Growing your personal brand online means letting everyone in your circle of influence know about the work you do, the work you enjoy, and the work you're uniquely good at.
It also makes your resume shareable. If friends, family, and colleagues come across work opportunities that align with what you do, they can easily point them to you.
It's hard to overstate how much leverage and opportunities are increased by investing in your online personal brand.
Creators and freelancers
I've heard a few fellow creators and freelancers grumble about how, in 2024, we can't just be creators and artists; we now have to worry about developing a personal brand!
If that's you, I understand your frustration, but I disagree that it's 2024's fault (or the internet's!).
The frustration is age-old. It's always been the case that if you hope to have people engage with and buy the things you're making, you have to do more than "make stuff."
Creators and artists have historically leveraged their personal brand the most. After all, the creator is the business, and their creations are the products. For creators to thrive in the market, we've always needed to intentionally let people know who we are, what we do, why we do it, what we're making, and who we are making it for.
The only difference in 2024 is that it's now so much easier to do this.
In 2024, you can leverage the internet to showcase your work and connect with others who enjoy it in a way that was unheard of thirty to forty years ago.
Example: recording artists
I live in Nashville and primarily work in music and songwriting, so the example of a recording artist initially comes to mind.
Just a few years ago, artists relied on managers and labels to help craft and build their personal brands. This meant that unless you were chosen, had a lot of money, or both, there weren't many options for growing your brand, audience, and work.
It might appear that artists of the past could “just be artists." But that's an illusion. Those artists had a team of people working behind the scenes, developing their personal brand and figuring out how to leverage that brand to make revenue.
And that is still a path today.
But in 2024, it's not the only path.
Artists and creatives (really every single person) now have the means to grow and develop their own personal brand in hopes of getting work opportunities that align with their ambitions, skills, and creative leanings.
Resume of the future?
Why wouldn't you take advantage of this massive opportunity to find work you love?
If you're happy with the work you're doing right now, great!
But if you envision a future with growing opportunities, I don't just think it's a good idea to develop your personal brand; it's close to necessary for everyone and absolutely necessary for those of us who desire to do creative work.
I'm tempted to say that your online personal brand is the resume and portfolio of the future. But if I'm honest, I think the future has arrived.
The truth is, many of the best opportunities will go to the people who are actively engaging in where the market is - and the market is online.
Your challenge is to figure out how to make an online personal brand work for you in a way that feels authentic and true to who you are.
I'm here to help however I can. I'm gonna keep writing and making videos about how to develop your personal brand online. If you have any questions (or objections), let me know in the comments cause it will help steer future content.
