Branding Yourself as a Professional

Who you want to be isn’t just a question you ask yourself when trying to decide which career path is best for you. It is also a question you should answer when thinking about which skills and personality traits make you as an individual stand out. Branding yourself as a professional is important because it helps you create a positive and memorable first impression for potential employers.

Take a massage therapist for example. When searching for a massage therapist, people tend to choose someone who has a good reputation, is recommended by someone and/or works at a credible company that is known in the community.  Branding yourself also helps clientele remember who you are and what you have to offer, which helps them to build trust in you.

Below are some tips to help you begin to brand yourself. These are also a few ideas that can help prepare you for an interview with a future employer:

• Write down 70 words that describe you. It can be anything that comes to mind: personality traits, colors, random nouns. The most important part of this step is: DO NOT EDIT. Put the list away for a day, and when you take it back out, circle the top five words that really pop out at you. Use these to start building your brand
• Define your business and your goals. What can you offer to a future employer or clientele that makes you unique? What do you want to achieve? How do you want people to view you?
• Write an elevator speech. If you had 15-20 seconds to tell someone who you are, what you do and why you should be hired, what would you say?
• Network. One of the best ways to land a job is to network with people – you never know when you will need a reference. A great way to begin networking is to talk with teachers on a regular basis and participate in class. Another idea is to volunteer for an event that is in your field of study. This is a great way to gain experience and meet with other people in the community who could be a potential employer or client

So, why brand yourself? It’s a great way to help you find out who you are and what makes you unique. When you are confident in yourself and your skills, it helps employers and clientele be confident in you, too. Just remember, people often base their opinions on first impressions, and you want to be the one that shapes their first impression of you.