Branding yourself comes in many forms. It could be that you have a strong presence in the Google search engine, you have many recommendations through LinkedIn, you’ve been quoted in numerous articles and publications, or you’ve been asked to make tons of speeches. But the backbone of any personal branding campaign is the life story. Who are you and why should anyone take enough interest in you to hear what you have to say - or hire you.
If you haven’t crafted a strong life story, now is the time to do so. Here are some ways to get started …
Think of Questions They May Want to Know
Any great storyteller attempts to answer all of the questions on the reader’s mind in the most effective way possible. You’re job is no different than life story teller. You want to sculpt a picture of your accomplishments by doing more than simply listing them. This can be done by explaining how much time you saved or how much money you made for a company in a clear fashion. In this case, it means you will need to learn how to answer the questions on the minds of potential employers.
A way that you can do this is to look at each accomplishment you want to mention then ask yourself, what problem were you solving? After that, think about how long you had the problem, how many people were affected by the problem and what the cost was of not solving the problem. Then ask yourself what you did to address the issue, how you got involved in the first place and whether solving the problem required a major time investment. The more you tell about each situation you successfully overcome, the "juicier" your life story will be.
Keep Your Focus In Mind and Refrain from Tall Tales
Remember, your job when creating a strong life story is not to tell tall tales that may sound impressive but could get you in trouble down the line. Instead, you want to find a way to describe your involvement with your industry in a way that allows potential employers to clearly see your before and after - how you made certain situations better because you were around. This is what you want to focus on. Also, when you tell your stories, it’s good to add surprising or memorable elements so that whoever reads your story will not forget you.
Telling a great life story is a key element in building your professional brand. As you write, it’s important to remember the questions to ask yourself while keeping your focus on providing a memorable, yet honest rendition of your experiences. If you do this, you’ll be well on track to creating a life story that will have potential employers knocking down your door for meet and greets.
Executive Resume Writing
Find executive resume writing experts.
By Heather Eagar
No comments:
Post a Comment