Personal Branding For Dummies
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A personal brand helps you stand out in the workplace rather than simply fit in. Try to understand your brand likeability, and pay attention to your behavior on the job to make sure that you don’t tarnish your personal brand. Here are some common-sense ways to make sure that you shine when you stand out:

  • Make yourself attractive. Appearance matters. No matter how long you’ve been on the job (a day, a year, or a decade), don’t slack off on your appearance; it influences the way your boss and coworkers perceive your performance every single day.

  • Find common ground. If you’re new on the job, find opportunities to talk to coworkers about their personal lives and identify things you have in common. If you’ve been on the job for a while and haven’t taken the time to get to know your coworkers, it’s never too late to make an effort.

  • Be authentic. No one likes a phony! This is the cardinal rule of branding. Your coworkers will eventually see through any pretenses. Be honest from the start, and you’ll feel more comfortable and confident.

  • Be interested in others. Even if you’ve worked with the same team for years, don’t assume that you know everything about them. Strive to be an active listener and to show genuine interest in their stories and ideas.

  • Practice empathy. Develop the habit of trying to understand something from another person’s perspective.

  • Mind your manners. Even if you’re struggling to connect with a certain coworker, strive to show that person respect and treat him with common courtesy. Your efforts won’t be lost on the people around you.

Poor behavior and a bad attitude will take you down no matter how hard you work on your personal brand. One truly bad moment on the job can sink your brand, as well as your prospects with that company. Make sure that you avoid these common causes of on-the-job failure:

  • A lack of self-discipline (which shows up as poor impulse control)

  • An absence of ambition (which leads you to expect the world to deliver every opportunity to you)

  • Failure to follow through

  • A tendency to gossip

  • The assumption that your level of education is sufficient and you don’t need to learn anything else

  • Poor time, money, or resource management

  • Narcissism (assuming that everything is about you)

  • Failure to cooperate

  • An unwillingness to do anything extra (because “That’s not my job”)

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