Welcome to the supermarket of people!
Whether we like it or not, we are all becoming products or brands on permanent display on professional networks. That is the future of work, and becoming a personal brand is your key to success… But let’s look into “why” and “how”…
It all used to be pretty straightforward. Companies had organizational diagrams with little boxes and names in them. Whenever a new box grew or a name was replaced by “tbd”, the company wrote a job profile, made a big ad in the paper on Saturday, collected CVs and took it from there… As long as you did a great job, you developed and even grew within the company, and lived happily ever after…¨
But then, large corporations discovered the apparent beauty of what I call “the crazy ings”: Outsourcing, Downsizing, Restructuring, Offshoring… All of those fancy sounding words that end on “ing” and are responsible for the destruction of the paradigm of life long employment. In many cases what happened was mere P&L cosmetics, where companies reduced jobs and hire folks back as freelancers, consultants, project workers…
What has happened is that all employees (those we started referring to as “talent”) have started paying back with the same currency. If you are not loyal to me, why should I be loyal to you? Companies hire the best talent they can, but retain the talent they deserve. And employees stay shorter and shorter periods of time within the same company.
Companies hire the best talent they can, but retain the talent they deserve
Whether we like it or not, we are moving into a new work reality where we all become what I refer to as “intellectual mercenaries”. You don’t have roles, but assignments and projects. And once completed, you move on to the next one. At the same or a different company? Doesn’t matter. Exclusively dedicated or serving several companies at the same time? Doesn’t matter. There is no job security at all. Only performance and results.
What does this mean for you?
You are a product. A brand. You are responsible for your own sales, product development and marketing. More than ever. In order to succeed, you need to find your positioning. Your offer. What do you have to sell? What do you want to be famous for? You have to design your brand and communicate it.
You are a product. A brand.
You have to find your place on the shelf in the supermarket of people. Currently, the biggest store worldwide is LinkedIn. Whether this will stay this way or evolve is a separate question. But here is where the world goes shopping. And the great thing is, that all products are there. Over 430 Million Products. We call them profiles… All available. Anytime.
So how do you make your product successful in this new environment? Whether you have a job or not, establishing and managing your own brand is essential for your current and future success. To do that, you have to follow a few simple steps, but do them right:
1.Define your brand: You need to first think about what makes you special, what you have to offer, what is it that you are selling.
2. Establish your presence: Starting with LinkedIn, but not necessarily stopping there, you need to build a visible and strong presence.
3. Connect with relevant people: Build a network of interesting contacts, not only with those you already know and who know you, but beyond that, those that might be interesting and relevant for your success.
4. Engage with your network: With a focus on adding value to your network, make sure you have something interesting to say. Engage with your full network, but also in individual conversations. Make sure you stay relevant and top of mind.
Over to you: Are you working on your personal brand? What works best and less so? If you like this article, don’t forget to clap all you got!
German Ramirez is a Digital, Social Media & Blockchain pioneer. Serial entrepreneur with over 20 years of strategy, marketing, branding, communications and storytelling experience. Author & keynote speaker. Co-Founder & Chief Relevance Officer @ THE RELEVANCE HOUSE.
