The One Ball: Your Personal Brand Equation

Personal Brand = ( Strengths + Value + Visibility ) x Engagement

Way beyond cereal boxes. Personal branding is so much more than being a box of tide or writing a clever slogan about who you are and what you do. Your personal brand is your identity and your reputation — it is less what you say about yourself and more what others say about you. You also may learn more about your brand by listening to others who know you than you would by simply listing your strengths and value.

Personal Brand = ( Strengths + Value + Visibility ) x Engagement. This is not intended to be an exact mathematical equation rather an indicator of the keys to creating bounce in your work and strengths. To me, your personal brand is a combination of your strengths, plus the value you offer, plus your visibility. This is multiplied by how engaged you are with these 3 key ingredients of personal branding.

Strengths. Know you strengths. Live your strengths. Leverage your strengths in the service of others. A good brand is a strong brand. Read authors ranging from Peter Drucker, Tom Rath, Marcus Buckingham, and Martin Seligman to get a diverse and powerful foundational knowledge of your strengths. Don’t settle on one source for your personal brand strength training.

Value. It is nice to have strengths but this must be paired with value. How do your strengths deliver value to others. This value could be economic or social value. Carefully consider how your strengths add or create value for others. Look to leverage your strengths for increased value for customers and clients.

Visibility. How do people know about you? What are they saying about you? If people are looking for your strengths and the value you add, do they know how to contact you and where to find you. In your organization do you stand out? How well do you network and make use of social media to create visibility and broaden your visibility?

Engagement. Creating and sustaining a personal brand is delivering on your promises or your strength and value. It is a process not an event. Personal branding is more than a clever slogan. Ensure that you continually engage in developing your strengths, think and act upon the value you offer others, and maintain a vibrant and authentic visibility.

Personal Leadership Brand. Watch the following 10 minute Harvard Business interview with Dave Ulrich and Norm Smallwood on Personal Leadership Branding. Engage in your personal leadership brand by enhancing your reputation and identity through the personal strengths you have that deliver value to someone else.

Got Brand? Create some bounce and color by creating stronger employee engagement through the strength and value of personal branding. What is your personal brand? If you can’t quickly answer that question use your vagueness or ignorance as the first step towards creating a personal brand based on your strengths, value, and visibility fused with full engagement in all 3 of these variables.

Contact David Zinger to learn more about personal branding and employee engagement.