What is a personal brand?What Is a Personal Brand?A personal brand is the perception of you that you create and have control over. A personal brand is what people say about you when you’re not in the room. In other words, it’s your reputation. It’s how people describe you to their friends, family and coworkers. When someone refers to your personal brand, they are talking about how personable or professional you are and how much value you bring to the table. Your personal brand is even more important than your resume because your resume only shows what actions you’ve taken in the past whereas your personal brand speaks to what kind of person (i.e., CEO, mentor) and employee (i.e., hard-working, creative) others can expect from you going forward.Market yourselfBuilding a strong personal brand is vital if you want to stand out and get noticed by hiring managers.A good headshot is a must-have for your LinkedIn profile, Twitter account and even your personal website. Not only does it give people an idea of what you look like, but more importantly it gives them a sense of who you are. A headshot should reflect your personality and brand—it can be fun, professional or somewhere in between!Proofread your resume for typos and grammatical errors, which can negatively impact the way others perceive you. This is especially important if you’re applying for jobs in the PR industry where attention to detail is key or any other position where written communication skills are required. You should also consider proofreading all of the written content on your website and social media accounts before posting to make sure there are no mistakes that could hurt your credibility.Social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram allow anyone to showcase their talents in front of millions of people every day. Use social media as an opportunity to show off what makes you unique. Share interesting articles that relate to your business or industry, post photos that highlight past projects or events you have attended and connect with like-minded professionals on LinkedIn who can help increase visibility for your personal brand. Some hiring managers will search for job applicants online before scheduling an interview so it’s critical that all of the content associated with your name portrays you in a positive light!Volunteering not only helps others but also boosts your own career prospects by helping establish new connections within the industry while gaining valuable experience at the same time. If possible try looking for opportunities that allow volunteers to take on leadership roles such as organizing fundraisers providing them with experience managing budgets planning events etc without having any prior work experience beforehand! This will help set yourself apart from other candidates when applying for jobs because employers want someone who has shown initiative within their community instead just going through motions when doing tasks givenShow up where you want to be seenBe visible where you want to be seen. If you love writing, start a blog. If you’re an expert in a certain field, start answering questions on Quora. If you work for a nonprofit and want to build a career in philanthropy, get on the board of another charity and show up at events like the Global Philanthropy Forum. Whatever the medium, find ways to put yourself out there where people can see your ideas and message.Show up at events where you want to be seen. There is so much power in getting down to business at an event—having meaningful conversations and meeting people who align with your goals. However, there’s also value in simply being visible at these events as well; when people see you around often enough, they start associating your name with something very specific: that thing that you represent or are known for doing best (e.g., “Oh yeah! You’re that girl who founded that nonprofit coffee company!”). Be sure to do both: Get down to business while networking (make meaningful connections), but also consider the importance of being present just so other people know what it is that you do well and associate it with your name or brand identity!Be consistent with your personal branding efforts (e/g/, show up at those same events every year). It doesn’t matter if some of those events are small and might not have any real impact on your brand right now—it matters more that there are other people who saw you there last year who will remember seeing you again this year, too! They may not even know why they recognize your face (or name) yet, but they will connect it with something soon enough if they keep running into “you” everywhere they turn—it could even just be from seeing “you” throughout social media channels over time as well…the point here is consistency counts!Get help from mentors or advisorsBe consistent and confidentTIP 1: BE CONSISTENTConsistency is the building block of trust. Being consistent makes you predictable; people will understand and recognize your brand just by seeing your logo or reading a single sentence. If you’re not consistent, your brand will feel disjointed or erratic, which can confuse people and discourage them from working with you.In order to be consistent, focus on fewer things and do them well. Don’t focus on being “great at everything.” It’s better to have one great strength than five mediocre ones.Personal branding is not as complicated as it sounds, but it can take some timePersonal branding is not as complicated as it sounds, but it does take some time. To get started, you need to research your industry and define what you want to be known for. Once you’ve figured out your personal brand, be confident in it and show up in places where your brand will be seen. You also need to stay consistent with your brand and market yourself so that people know about it.You can build a strong personal brand using these five steps:Research your industry and competitorsDefine who you are and what you want to be known forBe confident in who you are (and don’t waver)Show up everywhere (online and offline)Market yourself through storytelling