A personal brand is not quite about who you are —it’s about how you choose to present yourself to the world. It’s a version of ourselves that we want to make public to serve a specific purpose.
This concept could’ve surely been harder to explain a couple decades ago, whereas today we all create and shape our personal brands (almost intuitively and often inadvertently) through social media. We decide how to present ourselves, what to share and what to keep private, which topics to express opinions on, and which to remain silent about. Most people do this selection based on a single purpose —to express their own unique personality, while making themselves look good in the eyes of others. But what happens when the motivation is to present our professional selves instead?
While your personal self is made up of your full identity, including your private thoughts, emotions, and experiences, your personal brand is the intentional, strategic expression of your professional identity, the version of yourself that you craft and curate to communicate your expertise, values, and unique strengths to your audience.
Your personal brand and your personal self run parallel but should not be identical. It’s not about creating a false persona though —it’s about highlighting the aspects of yourself that are most relevant to your professional growth and aspirations.
To define your personal brand, start by asking yourself a few key questions:
- What expertise or skills do I want to be known for?
- What are my core values and beliefs?
- Who’s my target audience?
- How do I want people to feel when they interact with my work?
- What unique traits or perspectives set me apart from others in my field?
Defining a personal brand requires clarity about what you stand for and how you want to be perceived. It’s about understanding your core skills, passions, and the unique value you bring to the table. Just like a corporate brand, a personal brand should have a consistent tone, message, and visual presence across all platforms, whether it’s your website or your social media accounts. When people encounter your brand, they should immediately recognize it and associate it with credibility and professionalism. This will give you control over your professional narrative, set you apart from the competition, and build trust in your professional ability.