Bizflash
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I am speaking about personal branding this morning at Bizflash, a monthly event sponsored by the Sparks Chamber of Commerce. The title of my talk is “Is Your Cart Before Your Horse” and is based on an article I wrote here back in October 2009.
Whether you are a small business owner trying to put a personal face on your business or an employee attempting to create more career opportunities for yourself, the key to effective personal branding is to lead with your value and then wrap your personality around that value. Your value is the horse or engine of your personal brand. Your personality and style are the cart of your personal brand.
Everyone has a personality – there is nothing remarkable about that. It is what you can do to help others address issues or solve problems that matter to them that makes you remarkable and valuable. Keep your horse before your cart online and in the real world and you will be effective at personal branding.
If your brand is all cart and no horse, you are not really branding – you are just goofing off. Goofing off might please your friends on Facebook, but it won’t win you the job of your dreams or the new customers you need to keep your business open and growing.
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Thanks for a thought-provoking presentation perfectly suited for business owners and managers at this morning’s BizFlash. Social media provide us with tremendous opportunities to learn from as well as help others while building better businesses. The question you pose: what can I do do contribute value today? is both a challenge and an inspiration.
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Bret L. Simmons Reply:
March 5th, 2010 at 7:10 am
I strongly believe the opportunity space is wide open for those willing to do something different than the rest of the crowd. That should be YOU, Susan!! Thanks for the kind words. Bret
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