Is personal branding about building a "persona?"

Many entrepreneurs we speak with are intrigued by the idea of personal branding - but they’re worried.

They’re worried that building a personal brand is inauthentic.

They’re even worried that it has a slightly narcissistic connotation.

They worry if being "loud" on social media is for them.

And you know what? We agree.

That’s why we don’t talk about crafting or even building a personal brand. We talk about uncovering it.

A personal brand is rooted in authenticity. It’s simply the outward manifestation of who you are inside. This means that your personal brand is within. It’s not your social media posts or a well-crafted persona.

Your personal brand is a combination of your values, your beliefs, and your unique attributes, powered by your compelling brand story. It’s all in you, which means that all you have to do (if you are interesting in personal branding) is uncover it. And yes, it’s easier said than done, which is why we get hired to help. But we can definitely agree that there is nothing artificial or forced about the process.

Instead of worrying about having to create a persona, your focus is on uncovering the person within. It’s an exercise in introspection, not marketing.

And now let’s talk about marketing.

Where your personal brand will live and build its presence should be entirely a matter of your personal choice and consideration of where your audience hangs out. We all know incredibly-successful people with strong and inspiring personal brands who don’t even have social media profiles. Their brands live fully offline. If you don’t want a big social media presence or to expose yourself to hundreds and maybe thousands of strangers, you shouldn’t. You can build influence by giving talks, by writing a book, by being involved in your local community - there is ample choice.

When you go through a period of introspection, not only do you arrive at full clarity of what your personal brand is all about but you also know where and how to market yourself.

And of course, Brand of a Leader is here to help!

Marina Byezhanova is the co-founder of Brand of a Leader. She has given talks across the globe & has been featured in media outlets including Forbes, Inc., Success Magazine, Yahoo!, the Financial Post & more.