A Year of Personal Branding, February Edition

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Welcome to the February edition of A Year of Personal Branding“, where I’ve broken down key branding concepts as part of a month-by-month guide to help you with each step of growing (and implementing) your personal brand.

I invite you to use these monthly Year of Personal Branding posts as a map that will allow you to navigate the whole arena of Personal Branding. As you’ll notice, some of the monthly strategies have been chosen in accordance with a particular theme or natural points in the calendar; others were chosen to follow concepts from the previous month.

This is supposedly the “month of love and passion” so let’s talk about how to get more of what you love in your life.

Think of passion as the fuel that propels a successful brand. You can’t necessarily see it, but when there is passion — for an idea, cause or belief — your chances of attracting others increases exponentially. In personal branding, passion is magnetic.

Exploring your Passion

Take a look at what made you feel most passionate last year (in your work or personal life) and when you felt your “personal best”.

  • Can you tap into this passion this year?
  • What activities feel the most meaningful and fulfilling to you?
  • Can you invest in causes that move you by becoming more directly involved in them this year (e.g., volunteering for a charity, advocating in your organization, joining an association)?

Remember, passion can equally be things that make you light up and sparkle, as much as issues that make you angry. When you are connected to your passions, you will truly be in the flow of your personal brand, allowing people to connect with you more deeply and showing the true authentic you.

Connecting with your Passion

  • Each week this month, do something that incites your passion. This could be as simple as buying that magazine about moving to France or freeing up Sunday afternoon to do so some baking. Remember, you don’t have to sign up for a whole baking course, it’s all about fitting your passion in where you can.
  • Take a long hard work at what you are doing professionally. Does that fulfil your passion? It doesn’t have to. Many people indulge in their passions outside work, but if your life is lacking in passion and you’re doing a job that leaves you numb, something has to change, yes? What action steps can you identify, no matter how small?
  • Perhaps things have been more stimulating in the past, but it’s somehow lost its spark. What can you do to inject a little more passion into life? Volunteer for a project, arrange something social, or ask for extra training? We can’t always expect it to be easy and we have to take responsibility for fulfilling our own passions.
  • Finally, as I mentioned previously, passion also includes things which concern you or get you angry. Is this your time to stand up for something? Plenty of people include social responsibility as part of their personal brand, and this is something that is fulfilling on some many levels, far beyond the immediate. You will make connections with likeminded people and fight for tangible change, taping unto a strong sense of purpose and meaning. Take a look at my thoughts on being pro-social as part of your brand here.

You can also learn more about how to connect with your passion from brand icons like PrinceDavid Bowie, and Lady Gaga, but also from emerging creatives such as Claire Norwood and Cecilia Harvey on how passion has shaped their lives.

And one final reminder for this month…

Lisa

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