Put Your Brand To Work at Work

Selling “Me”

It’s worth noting that research, across many organisations, highlighted three factors which determine your chances of success and promotion:

10% - doing the task
30% - how you behave when carrying out the task
60% - your exposure and visibility

Ensuring exceptional personal presentation exposure and being visible for all the right reasons to key decision makers in the office or customers on the ‘shop floor’ should be part of your overall strategy for building a strong and influential personal brand. But, firstly, make sure you project the desired image.

When in contact with people and specifically customers, ask yourself:

• What kind of image do I project?
• What impression do I make on strangers upon meeting?
• How do clients and colleagues react towards me?
• What one behavioural trait might be worth changing?

Personal Conduct

Apart from the above (which we have dealt with in Personal Branding) you would find that the lasting impression you leave with people is impacted by:

Your interpersonal skills – your ability to influence others through the application of good communication skills.

Interpersonal communication involves interchanging ideas with others using an assortment of methods, such as words, gestures, voice tone, facial expression, and body posture. Interpersonal skills are the lifeblood of selling your brand and selling the brand of your organisation.

You could apply basic techniques helping you to sell your personal brand to others. Ask yourself: “How will I modify my behaviour to create the impression I intend to?” Remember that branding, whether corporate or personal, is about the perceptions of others; so, really taking control of your personal brand image is perception management. You have a personal brand image anyway, whether you like it or not, agree with it or not, so it’s up to you to make sure people see the real brand values that ARE YOU.

And now for some key tips on capitalising on your strengths and minimizing the weaknesses:

Use of Voice

Listen to your current voicemail message and to a voicemail message you might leave to a client whom you haven’t yet met. What does your voice say about you? Does it say upbeat, dynamic, interesting person, or does it say downbeat, flat, boring, and functional? Be honest and change it if necessary. It is elements like these that we don’t notice but others do. Practice reading a passage aloud of text or a presentation and get interest in the voice by changing the tone, modulation and pace. In other words, get more interest and variation into the voice. Would you fall asleep listening to this presentation?

Body Language

Facial Expressions: Be attentive, keep eye contact, but don’t stare at people. Look up when somebody comes into your office. If you are busy, give a signal that tells them that you will attend to them shortly. Don’t frown unnecessary, sigh, stare at the ceiling, roll your eyes, etc.

Smile: People who are the life of the party usually have one thing in common: They’re happy. If you smile often and have an upbeat attitude, your co-workers will be drawn to you. And when you’re having a bad day, don’t try to pull others down with you. You may find that people pass you by in favour of those with a more cheerful outlook.

Head Movements: Your head movements must agree with your message. Don’t say “no” while shaking your head up and down – the messages contradict each other. When you listen, keep your head still except if you agree completely with the other person.

Gestures: Use appropriate gestures to help you express yourself verbally. A few gestures that should not be used in the workplace are:

• Don’t point your finger at people.
• Don’t wring your hands or fiddle with things like your ring or tie.
• Refrain from using gestures that are dismissive, disrespectful or aggressive.

Spatial Relationship: Don’t intrude in another person’s space. Respect their comfort zone. When in doubt, take your cue from them. If they start retreating or shift away, you are invading their space. Remember, different cultures have different preferences.

Listen To Others

Unfortunately, active listening is becoming a lost art. Being an active listener shows that you intend to both hear and recognise another’s perspective. By using your own words, repeat what the speaker has said. In doing this, you’ll know that you’ve processed their words, and they’ll realise that your answers have been genuinely thought out. Colleagues will feel more connected to you knowing that you’re an active listener, and you’ll develop a better understanding of them.

An empathetic person can understand how another person feels, and empathy is an important trait when working with others. Always consider circumstances from another person’s viewpoint. What may seem like the obvious, correct answer to you, could have entirely different implications when seen from another perspective.

Above all, keep in touch with your own feelings; people who are unable to tap into their own emotions often have difficulty empathising with others.