Establishing Your Personal Brand

"A brand for a company is like a reputation for a person.  You earn reputation by trying

to do hard things well."

- Jeff Bezos

(1964- ) American Businessman

Have you ever stopped to think about the importance of a brand?  Here is a list of names, what do you think when you hear them:

Tiffany                                                  Fine and expensive jewelry

McDonalds                                         Big Mac

Stradivarius                                        Violins

Steve Jobs                                          Apple

John Deer                                           Tractors

Earnest Hemmingway                    Writer

                The list could go on and on.  What makes us think of these names and their products?  Excellence in what they do.  Watch one, and the thousands of brands I have not named are all known because they do something better than the rest.  You could argue that others are better, but who owns the brand?  The war goes on forever, but when people want a soft drink they still ask for a Coke, not a Pepsi.  When they want a tissue they do not ask for a Puffs they ask for a Kleenex.

                Now, I want you to think about your personal brand.  Yes, you have a brand.  It is what people know you for.  That brand is not a label stuck on you but an identity that you can create and control.  It is the name (your name) that will come to people when your talent or gifts are needed.  There are a couple of ways to discover and develop this brand:

What Is Your Greatest Ability

                If you are like most people your quick response is, "I don't know."  You have got to know.  What is it that you do well?  Is it listening to others, making them laugh, creating things with your hands, writing, singing, it can be anything.  One way to find it is to ask yourself, what gives you the most pleasure?  We always feel our best when working out of our strengths.

How Can You Make It Your Own

                What do you need to do to make this ability yours?  How do you do things differently than anyone else?  What makes you unique?  Again, do not say nothing.  If you do not see anything unique, create it.  Figure out what you can do the be excellent, different and add value to others.  Achieve this and you will have the world coming to your door.

                Treat your life like a business in that you must compete to get a head.  Competing is not always being the best but being excellent and unique.  When you are the best you can be, you add value to all who you connect with.  You offer abilities that people need and will not find anywhere else.  You will be a brand that everyone will know.

To read more from John Patrick Hickey or to get his books, training and book him to speak to your church, business or group, visit our website at http://www.growthcenter.net or www.johnpatrickhickey.com.   © 2014 John Patrick Hickey