By: Keena Wiliams-Finney
You see it everywhere now — develop your personal brand. Build a strong personal brand. Why is having a personal brand important? As I started pivoting my tech transition journey, I panicked — wait, what is my personal brand? Do I have one? Then I asked, “What the heck is a personal brand, anyway?” And trust me, as we chart our course in tech together, we’ll tackle this and many other crucial questions.
Defining Your Personal Brand
Wikipedia defines a personal brand as a widely recognized and consistent perception or impression of an individual based on their experience, expertise, competencies, actions, or achievements within a community, industry, or the marketplace at large.
I agree with their definition — it’s what you’re known for. I think of it like this: if you were to walk in a room and you’re standing in the doorway with the spotlight on you and the wind is blowing your hair just so (of course, this is precisely how I envision it happening) and someone asks the person next to them, “Who’s that?” And that person whispers, “Oh, that’s Keena, and she’s…” Everything that comes next is the personal brand you’ve established or fallen into. Again, it’s what you’re known for.
The Why Behind Your Personal Brand
When developing your personal brand, it’s so important to understand why you’re creating one in the first place. Is establishing a personal brand attached to a specific goal you’re trying to achieve?
Understanding your ‘why’ is fundamental because it gives direction and purpose to your personal branding efforts. It’s like setting the destination on your GPS before starting a journey. Without a clear goal, you might end up crafting a brand that doesn’t serve your long-term objectives.
Your ‘why’ could be:
– Transitioning to the tech industry
– Advancing in your current tech space
– Becoming the fashion-obsessed new badass in tech
– Attracting specific opportunities or clients
Whatever your reason, make it explicit. This clarity will guide every aspect of your personal brand development, from the skills you highlight to the story you tell about your professional journey.
Let me share a little about my own journey to finding my ‘why’ and how it’s helping to shape my personal brand.
The Rebrand
For me, coming from a brand/marketing background in luxury retail is a long way from now wanting a career in tech. So, understanding my ‘core’ strengths was crucial because strengths like Strategic, Communication, and Ideation (refer to section CliftonStregths) are going to be of value and transferable to almost any industry. And if I’m being really honest here, my real “why” came much later on my personal brand development journey.
If you glanced at my roadmap of what I’ve done in a year — I had to start with kind of a cleaning of myself. Not. like I had a dirty or bad image, but more of a rebrand of sorts. I started with a cybersecurity bootcamp to get my feet wet (bad idea, in my case, but we’ll get into the pros and cons of bootcamps a little later in the series).
Discovering My Real “Why”
It took some time, but I eventually started connecting my ‘why’ to the personal brand I was building. It really began taking shape once I discovered what I wanted my career to look like — I want to contribute to making an impact and increasing the representation of women in tech (great, right?).
This discovery didn’t happen overnight. My experiences along this journey and some of the things I discuss in my self-reflection exercises — such as who am I to myself and what keeps me up at night, helped to connect my real why to my personal brand. And if I go a little deeper, it’s really what inspired this series. Writing a series to help career changers navigate the tech waters, I’m pretty sure that falls under the ‘contributing to making an impact and increasing representation’ bucket. (Psst, this is the brand-building part)
Remember, your personal brand isn’t set in stone — it evolves as you do. My journey illustrates the personal side of branding, but let’s not just take my word for it. To. understand the broader impact of personal branding, let’s get into some numbers.
These statistics highlight the importance of developing a solid personal brand, whether you’re starting a career in tech or transitioning into one. Let’s break down what this means:
- Online Presence is Required: With 70% of employers screening candidates online, having a digital persona and personal brand is starting to feel more like a requirement.
- Personal Brand Leads to Opportunities: 71% of professionals believe a strong personal brand leads to more opportunities. It’s not just about getting the job but shaping your career trajectory.
- Show Them What You Got: 45% of job seekers use side projects or personal websites to showcase their skills. It’s important to show your abilities, not just list them on a resume.
- Online Visibility Matters: If 57% of employers are less likely to interview candidates they can’t find online, it’s clear that having no online presence can be just as bad as having a negative one.
Developing Your Personal Brand
Great, so now we know what a personal brand is and how important it is for us to have one — my next question is, “How do you develop one?” Developing a personal brand can be challenging, but developing a personal brand during a career transition can be like reemerging on the dating scene after being in a long-term relationship. You want to present those desirable qualities without constantly referencing your ex because, after all, you are looking for something new, right?
So, how do you establish a personal brand that says you want and need me in your organization? I used a combination of exercises to help me figure out what my personal brand was currently saying and what I wanted it to say:
Self-Reflection Exercises:
- I thought about who I am to myself, who I am to my family and friends — what am I known for to those around me?
- I considered what’s most important to me when I wake up each day and what keeps me up at night when I go to bed.
- And then, finally, I asked myself whether I was actively demonstrating these things outside of my internal circle.
Understanding Your Strengths
I started thinking about the psychology of who I am and remembered taking the CliftonStrengths survey — we’ve all taken at least one of these tests in our lives. The CliftonStrengths assessment is a tool that helps identify a person’s natural talents and strengths. My Signature Themes report shows my five most dominant talent themes in rank order. The results really resonate with the person I know myself to be and the strengths I demonstrate. Here are my top five strengths:
- Strategic: The ability to sort through clutter and find the best route, seeing patterns where others see complexity.
- Communication: A talent for explaining, describing, hosting, public speaking, and writing, bringing ideas and events to life.
- Restorative: A love for solving problems and bringing things back to life, whether practical, conceptual, or personal issues.
- Positivity: Being generous with praise, quick to smile, and always looking for the positive in situations, with contagious enthusiasm.
- Ideation: A fascination with ideas, delighting in discovering connections and new perspectives on familiar challenges.
This report was very helpful in understanding my strengths in this personal brand-building journey and how I present myself in my career transition.
Networking is a crucial aspect of developing your personal brand that we haven’t touched on yet. It’s incredibly important to network while you’re building your personal brand, but I’ll save the details for a future post all about how to be a “Network Nancy” (yes, I coined that phrase myself, or at least I think I did!). Stay tuned for that one — it’s a game-changer.
Overcoming Imposter Syndrome in Personal Branding
So, I’m a fraud. Well, not really, but having imposter syndrome definitely has made me feel that way. I remember hearing “imposter syndrome” in a workshop; I wish I remembered which one, but I don’t. However, what I do remember is how it made me feel in the context of the discussion. I remember writing it down and looking it up right in the middle of the discussion, and the definition was screaming at me.
Basically, imposter syndrome is that annoying voice in your head that says, “You don’t belong here,” or “You’re not qualified enough,” even when you’re crushing it. It’s like being a secret agent, except you’re infiltrating your own life and success. Spoiler alert: You’re not a fraud, but try telling that to your brain at 2 AM when preparing to speak on your first panel about AI Ethics.
Imposter Syndrome and Your Personal Brand
Here’s the thing — imposter syndrome can be a real roadblock when building your personal brand, especially during a career transition. Take me for example; I had the idea for this series months ago, but every time I started to write — I thought you’re not a writer, and you’re still on your journey, so no one wants to hear from you! It’s hard to confidently showcase your skills when there’s a voice in your head questioning every move. But here’s the plot twist — acknowledging and addressing these feelings is crucial in building an authentic personal brand.
Coping Strategy: The “Failure Resume”
Enter the “failure resume” — and yes, it’s exactly what it sounds like. Look it up — it’s a thing! This tool has been a game-changer in dealing with my imposter syndrome, especially when I’m applying for programs and opportunities that I know I could add value to, yet I’m constantly rejected. It’s a game of wins and losses (or lessons).
It’s a simple concept: instead of hiding your failures, you document them. However, you’re not just listing your flops but reframing them as learning experiences. It’s like creating a highlight reel of your lowlights, but instead of cringing, you’re growing.
Benefits of Acknowledging Imposter Syndrome and Creating a Failure Resume
- Compartmentalizing Setbacks: By documenting your failures, you can see them for what they are — isolated incidents, not defining characteristics.
- Getting Comfortable with Rejection: The more you acknowledge your setbacks, the less power they have over you.
- Strengthening Your Personal Brand: Believe it or not, your failure resume can help to boost your personal brand. It demonstrates resilience, self-awareness, and a growth mindset — all highly valued traits in the tech industry (and pretty much everywhere else).
- Building Authenticity: You become more relatable and authentic when you incorporate your setbacks into your personal brand narrative. Everyone loves a good comeback story!
- Boosting Confidence: Acknowledging your imposter syndrome and creating a failure resume can actually increase your confidence.
And hey, I’ll show you mine if you show me yours — don’t forget to bring your failure resume to post #2 of this series! We’re diving into developing a creative strategy to transition into tech, and trust me, that failure resume is going to come in handy.
Useful Takeaways
- Be aware of your failures, but focus on your strengths.
- Understand what drives and concerns you the most.
- Take a personality or strengths assessment like CliftonStrengths to understand your unique talents — if you don’t listen to anything, try this.
- Create a “failure resume” to reframe setbacks as learning experiences.
- Recognize and address feelings of imposter syndrome as they arise.
And hey, don’t forget to bring your failure resume to post #2 of this series! We’re diving into developing a creative strategy to transition into tech, and trust me, that failure resume is going to come in handy.
Wrapping It Up: Your Personal Brand Journey
Building a personal brand is no small feat, especially during pivotal moments in your career. It requires self-reflection, courage, and a willingness to embrace your strengths and failures. Remember, your personal brand is not just about marketing yourself — it’s about understanding who you are, what you bring to the table, and how you can make a unique impact in the space you’re in.
Whether battling imposter syndrome, crafting your failure resume, or figuring out how to become the fashion-obsessed badass in tech (sorry, I have this one covered!), know you’re not alone on this journey. Your personal brand is a work in progress, just like you are. So, embrace the process, be authentic, and remember to have some fun along the way. After all, if your personal brand doesn’t reflect the real you, what’s the point?
Now go on — get to it!!
Signing off,
The Fashion-Obsessed New Badass in Tech
This post is part of my ‘Pivoting with Purpose: A Tech Transition Journey’ series. Follow me on Medium for updates on my career transition and to gain valuable insights on navigating the tech industry as a newcomer — or even just for a bit of entertainment! Let’s connect on LinkedIn and continue the conversation. I’d love to hear about your journey, too!