A friend of mine once told me that a good practice is to write ones own obituary. What would it say of you? Is it in line with perceptions?

Excellent post and so very true on many counts. One other reason for not building things I've heard, albeit surprisingly, is that some people seem to think they haven't done enough to deserve a personal brand. This has been said more than a few times, in the midst of helping others position as experts online.

However, having expertise and being known for it is VERY important and can really make you into something amazing, as someone people need for what you know how to do. You can carve a recession proof and career building position if you become known for and needed for something that is deeply felt and known about by you.

Your post is well thought out and builds a strong position. One other point to make – your personal brand being built on solid ground (I like Chris's one word description idea, too) with good positioning on the internet can be of importance now and into the future. There is simply no reason to wait. Build the brand now, especially if you are battling for position online with others in your field or others with your name (or perhaps both!!!) It is "never too late" but over time, the front page of Google and the "first name to come to mind" fills up – per subject area.

Look forward to more from you on the subject.

Andy

Write down 5-10 words (adjectives or nouns) that represent you, your strengths, your unique qualities and/or your differentiators. Then have your coworkers, family, friends etc. do the same thing, and find out where these overlap. This will show you where your perceptions meet others' perceptions and this is a great place to start. I also recommend taking the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) personality assessment to identify your unique personality type and google the type to find out more information on how you best function in teams, at work, in relationships etc. This will really help you establish your personal brand.

Pick one word from all of this that best represents you and make this your one-word brand. The beauty about the one-word brand is that it is really easy to follow up with a personal brand pitch filled with more information and adjectives supporting it. The one-word is also more memorable to employers and anyone else you present it to.

Make sure to translate your personal brand consistently across all of your channels, including your resume, your cover letter, your emails, your online profiles and social networks, your interviews etc.

Chris

It is surprising how many talented individuals (who recognize the importance of branding for products and services) tend to downplay the significance of promoting and managing their own personal brand. Some of it may be the "I am who I am" mentality that you referenced in your piece. I suspect some people may view managing their personal brand as self-promotion and may fear that this is distasteful. But if we don't know someone and can't mentally "position" him/her based on what we can glean from his/her own branding efforts, then we are left to guess. I'd rather proactively establish my own personal brand attributes than leave it to others to position me. I wonder if others agree with this?

Thanks again Stefan.

David

I do believe in people buy people and marketing yourself is as important as your company, especially in today’s climate and smaller organizations.