Each morning when you wake up, you gaze into the mirror. You see someone others seldom see. You see the you that has sleepers in your eyes, pillow lines in your face and a nasty case of “bed head”.

After your shower you return to the mirror, looking a little more like the “you” that others see and know. But who lies behind the persona… behind the reflection? Identifying your personal brand attributes will help you answer that question and requires you to look into that same mirror from an entirely different perspective.

While its essential to put your best foot forward in business and in life… it really must go beyond “image” to include those aspects that truly make you unique. Like a snowflake, you are one of a kind and unlike any other, but when you look in the mirror, what do you see staring back at you? Do you see someone extraordinary… or do you see someone who is not quite good enough, flawed in some fashion or simply ordinary?

While most can summons the intellectual insights to recognize that they are unique, few look in the mirror and see something more than a series of flaws and dysfunctions. In an effort to rise above the conditioned limitations of our past, humans have an uncanny ability to project these limitations back into their future.

Personal Branding puts an end to the futile dance that keeps you stuck between self perception and self promotion.

As human beings we are meaning making machines, yet the meaning we create is based entirely on human mis-perception

What we believe to be truth… is nothing more than a belief. And our beliefs are flawed and inaccurate… but yet when you look into that mirror, the beliefs you hold about yourself, good or bad, feel so incredibly real. What’s a human to do?

As you begin to recognize that your life & your identity and your “self” are all predicated on nothing more than the meaning you’ve assigned to everything… you begin to gain incredible insights into magical world of marketing.

Choose to explore for yourself, the benefits of personal branding, and you will be inspired to become more effective at introspection… More vigilant as seeing yourself for who you honestly are as a person. Your personal brand is made up of your “brand attributes” and consists of those personality traits that define how you move through the world. But when you look in the mirror do you see what others see?

A Fun Challenge Few Will Take

This exercise will rock your world… and its very sad that so few of you will actually try it. Why… because its scary. Anything worth its merit is intimidating… especially when it reveals something new about yourself.

For those you up for a little personal growth and self improvement I challenge you to take a small pad of paper and give one sheet to 10 different people. Ask them to write down your four strongest personality traits, and to fold the paper closed before giving it back to you.  Refuse to look at or discuss any of the answers until you have collected all 10. These anonymous pieces of paper hold within them the very personality traits that make you unique. You will be amazed at how many of them are the same or similar to one another.

These are your “personal brand attributes” and are the essence of your personal brand. Choose the three that resonate with your soul and begin to focus on how to add value to others through these attributes. Who knows, tomorrow when you wake up, you just might look in the mirror and see something truly extraordinary.

Let me know about your results by leaving a comment about your experience below.

A Solid & Recognizable Brand is built from the inside out. It just as much “Being” as it is “Doing”. You are not who you think you are… and the swimming of unconscious thoughts and habits often inhibit your ability to fully articulate your own Personal Brand.  The “Doing” side of any Personal Brand is very simple (not necessarily easy) and is nothing more that acquiring a new skill-set. The “Being” side however of your Personal Brand is often obscured by our goals, aspirations and dreams. We need to come from that space inside of you, where nothing needs to be different than it is… that space of stillness where the authentic self freely expresses itself.   This is how you find a Personal Brand that congruently resonates within you and therefore inspires others… simply because it comes from a place inside of you that is so real.  Let’s start to build your Personal Brand from the inside out and ask ourselves, “What are the components of “being”?”

You will want to uncover and reveal the centralizing theme that aligns your passions, talents, skills and capabilities with the needs of a niche market. This MUST occur before You can truly have a Personal Brand of relevance. So let’s roll up our sleeves and get to work on uncovering the “Being” side of this complex yet riveting side of a brand called “YOU”.

If we were to follow this line of thought into the world of Sociology, we can glean some insights into the innate arenas of “being” that are inherent in every culture, sub-culture and social structure that exists.

The 4 Pillars of “Being”:

• The desire/need to connect with others
• The desire/need to express ourselves
• The desire/need to self-actualize
• The desire/need to contribute

These are innate human qualities that on the individual level can be expressed and/or experienced in a variety of unique and interesting ways. Here are several questions that will help to reveal/refine your Personal Brand on a “Being” level so that you can build your “doing” practices on a more authentic foundation.

• How do You connect with others and what need does it meet in You? In them? What does this look like within Your business? To Your Customers? To Your “Tribe”?

• Do You have a desire to express Yourself? Are You able to meet this need effectively?  How? (through business, through art, through ritual?)

• What specifically are You trying to express?  To whom specifically is this important or relevant?

• Is self-actualization a focus in Your life or do You let it occur naturally and on its own terms? What is your relationship to personal growth and transformation? What is the relationship your customers or “tribe” have with personal growth and transformation?

• Do you and your business stand for something beyond profit and wealth? How can/do you involve your “Tribe”? Is this important to them? Why is it important?
  

It is the deeply seeded and primal needs of the 4 Pillars of Being that bring people together and form “Tribes”. The current trends in social media are helping You and I meet these needs like never before… connecting with people around the world virally before connecting with them face to face.

This is the essence of your being… because it’s within Your “Life Tribes” (family, church, educational institute, sports teams, peers, etc.) that Your personality was formed and thus reinforced throughout Your life. For you to truly understand Yourself and how You can impact people’s lives… You must understand the influences that shaped  and continue to shape the person You are now… and the person that you are becoming. Be willing to look at the unconscious influence of your “Life Tribes”.

This is where the discussion of someone’s Personal Brand must start. Only through this process can you begin to uncover the elements that allow us to adhere to the Unchangeable Law of Personal Branding.

The Unchangeable Law of Personal Branding

“At the center of every successful persona,
is one centralizing theme”

From here we can dive into the thoughts, emotions, desires, and passions You have in life. This will help You reveal to Yourself  ways you currently express Yourself unconsciously and authentically.

While we all share the human journey of “being” that includes the list above, no two people will express these desires the same; herein lies the power and beauty of intelligent Personal Branding and authentic differentiation.

The doing part comes next, traditional marketing tactics, creative copy & imagery, market research and social media practices serve to reinforce this “One Centralizing Theme”. Now You are ready to shine compelling light on the strengths of Your Personal Brand… that has been revealed to You from “The Inside Out”.

If a brand is identified and packaged from the inside out, You are providing that individual/organization with a model, and blue print if you will, of how to walk that line of being vs doing. Having a clear step by step doing process identified and built upon the essence of who You are and what You stand for is a powerful and life affirming gift to offer anyone ambitious enough to embrace it.

This is the kind of Personal Brand that is built upon an authentic foundation… one strong enough to sustain your efforts to impact people’s lives. It is through effectively impacting people’s lives that you will achieve your dreams of wealth, freedom and personal reward.

This is how the people that “be”… be it. And the people that “Do”… do it!

In your corner and on your side,

~M

Mark Allen Grainger is a Personal Branding Expert & Relationship Selling Mentor to ambitious small business owners who wish to increase their sales by 15-144%. As a “Tears To Cheers” Inspirational Speaker, audiences across the country are empowered to take control of their marketing, their business and their lives.

Your Personal Brand is about getting CONNECTED. Having friends and building relationships is now based upon your delivery of superior forms of value… and has never been so important. Here’s how to make friends and connections in the new world of business, marketing and sales.

1.) ATTEND CONFERENCES AND WORKSHOPS

• Dress just above everyone at the conference/workshop
• Completely engage in the program, ask questions, make comments etc
• Introduce yourself to someone new every half-hour while at the event
• Create an auditory anchor that recalls humor in everyone you meet
• Use the anchor frequently to spread the cheer

A lot of business is done at conferences and workshops. The caliber of people attending these events are generally people who invest over and over again in their lives and their businesses.

2.) ACCEPT ALL SOCIAL NETWORKING INVITATIONS & INTERACT

• Post memorable comments
• Guest post
• Participate in interviews
• Conduct interviews and ask intelligent questions

Ever been to a party and witnessed someone who sizzled with positive energy and effectively “lit up the place”? —even on-line your enthusiasm can be felt. Get good at reaching out to others… offer them value… give them well deserved compliments and strive to keep that connection through time.

3.) SPARK INTERACTIONS BY NETWORKING ON SOCIAL MEDIA SITES (Facebook, LinkedIn, Ning etc.

• Ask them an irresistible question
• Generate a discussion that others will view with interest
• Keep the discussion active by responding timely to postings
• Invite the lurkers to contribute
• Be debatable… challenge people to stand behind their opinion and stand behind yours.
• Donut responses- Positive statement or compliment, opposing opinion, positive statement or compliment

Staying positive is the key to success in life and in making/maintaining relationships. Be happy, enthusiastic and a leader. Be the kind of person you are after you’ve had a couple of glasses of wine and you are relaxed, with no agenda other than to enjoy the connection.

4.) JOIN PRIVATE GROUPS IN YOUR NICHE & YOUR NETWORK

• Supply clear and concise answers to the questions
• Back your answers with credentials with prior written posts or quotes
• If you don’t have the answer, steer them in the right direction
• Discover a balance between conversational writing style and formality
• Write in 12-15 second sound bites
• Avoid simply throwing up posts that drive people to sales pages
  
• As you do this… start to ponder your “crowd conversion” strategy

When working with groups, you want to become known (branded) for providing insight, resources and answers. So creating “deliverables” that you offer others as gifts allows you to pepper the community with your flavor… after they like your flavor… offer them opportunity to taste more.

5.) THE LAW OF RECIPROCITY IS REAL

• Supply others with what they want/need
• Set up Google Alerts to deliver you relevant content and then give it away or use it as inspiration for you own blog posts
• If you don’t have an answer, ask an additional question or steer them to a resource

Be willing to invest you personal time to give away your creativity, your knowledge and your contacts. Going above and beyond with just one person each day, 5 day’s a week will create 250 loyal followers in a single year. If you continue to nurture them, help them and provide them value… they will spread the word of your loyalty and good cheer. Your appreciation goes a long way. Friends bring along more readers, customers and investors. They will take you under their wing and introduce you to popular bloggers, speakers and networkers all of whom have their own loyal following that you can now be exposed to and connect with.

Including & Leveraging Your Personal Brand

Those who have taking the time and energy to engage in the exhausting but spiritually liberating work of discovering their Personal Brand will have significant advantage and leverage over those who don’t. The time has come for you to understand and embrace the numerous benefits of Personal Branding. You must have a communication/connection style that is uniquely your; and this is an uncovering of who you are that will continue for the rest of your life.

• Have a unique and memorable profile photo
• Have an interesting but relevant title or label
• Use language to create your culture — create your own rhetoric
• Formulate your sound bites in advance and use them repeatedly
• Work on communicating a sense of humor and easy going approach to problems

This post provides you with very simple tools for creating relationships and expanding your network using your Personal Brand. With the right mindset and planning, the above becomes a daily routine… a practice that you refine through time. An hour each day, five days each week will be enough to amaze you… expect to see momentum in as little as 30-60 days.

In your corner and on your side,

Mark Allen Grainger- I am “The Inspirational Marketer”.com

Take a look at your Twitter feed for one minute and you will notice that some of the hottest topics today are “social media” and “personal branding”. Everyone and their grandmothers are looking to promote themselves or their products through social media channels these days. The problem is the majority of these people tweet a few times, create a new Facebook Page and get discouraged when only their friends support the cause.  There is a better way!

Just add another hot trend to the equation, “systematization”, and organize your efforts to maximize your results (to learn more about systematization read The 4-Hour Work Week). If you have a great story to tell and a systematized approach to spreading your story, you can use social media to build that dynamic brand that will propel you to the next level. Here are some simple yet powerful steps you can take:

Read entire article here ->->

The most successful personal brands belong to those who have a compelling and comprehensive vision for the future of their customers, colleagues & networks. These business leaders are in fact inspired individuals that have  learned to unlock the visionary inside of themselves; envisioning the dramatic impact their unique skills and talents will have the lives of others. By unleashing the creative and inspirational side of their personality, they are able to formulate a detailed vision that is the future of their Brand. Their comprehensive vision serves as a roadmap they actively pursue to lead and inspire their customers and colleagues  to untold wealth, prosperity and personal transformation.

The development of inspirational communication skills has allowed them to harness the power of vision. It has been said that “without vision, the people will fail”, and this is particularly true for those individuals interested in creating and maintaining a lasting legacy spurred on by a provocative Personal Brand. If you don’t have a vision for your Brand that involves the transformation, success and emotional fulfillment of your customers & colleagues, it will eventually fail, simply because it no longer meets the needs of hungry consumers. This kind of ambitious individual  is always forging a path toward vision fulfillment that they  intentionally designed to be evident in  their own Personal Brand.

You vision of success lies right in front of you… only you can bring it closer. Design it & refine it by including the inspiration your customers and colleagues will experience by interacting, collaborating and doing business with you. They are waiting for someone with vision to help transform their limitations into the personal power necessary to launch their courage and achieve their dreams.

Here is a great video that everyone who deals with people at work and in life M-U-S-T watch. Danial Pink gives this ENGAGING presentation about the mismatch between what science knows and what business does when it comes to motivating others.

Outstanding speaker and articulated message that will inspire you to think differently about motivating and relating to others with people systems.

So… what do you think of his point and how can you use it to create people systems that will impact your bottom line?

You are standing at the tallest point of the world… looking at a horizon 100s of miles away… life here is simple… you live or you die. Ravaged by wind and storm… this is a place where every single breath is a struggle.

But on this day all is calm and all is clear. You are in the moment completely present and able to experience life from the inside out. From this vantage point you can see the world in all its glory. What do you reflect on… your website… your next tweet? Probably not. You  ponder your life and the people that have made an impact in it. Your thoughts turn to the people that have supported you… loved you… nurtured you and believed in you.

As you survey the horizon of Personal Branding & Social Media… you realize the one and only thing that truly matters… when done correctly it initiates authentic relationships. Social media mirrors life… there are fake, in-authentic & shallow people… but also kind, genuine and gifted people who are able and willing to help you conquer the Mount Everest in your life.

Business is about relationships and with social media we have to CHOOSE to learn a new way of connecting and relating. It’s about being “good with” and “good to” people as we navigate the peaks and valleys of our lives.

Marketing is no longer something you outsource… it something that you do. While pieces of advertising may be outsourced, your Personal Brand is a series of daily marketing practices that allow you to effectively walk and talk your uniqueness in a world looking for personal evolution and transformation. Its the epitome of personal growth and development; that which you discover is great about yourself, becomes the very fabric upon which you effectively serve others.

Personal Branding 101:

Discover your gifts, talents & passions: This may take time and experience. Today you have a passion for sailing… only to learn that tomorrow you passion is for boats… later to discover that its really bodies of water. As you step more fully into your interests you learn about yourself, what you truly love compared to that which you simply know and enjoy. Be willing to move forward and sink fully into yourself as you learn, grow and develop.

The tumultuous but profound path to uncovering my own Personal Brand went like this…

Sociology of Relationships & Families –> Counseling Psychology –> Network Marketing –> Health Club Sales –> Radio Advertising & Marketing –> Wizard of Ads, Inc. –> Career of Influence –> Culture of Influence –> Team Building –> Innovative Leadership –> Uncommon Strategist –> Relationship Selling –> Personal Branding

This spans 20 years of professional education and experience and as you look over the list… a few commonalities begin to present themselves; relationships, communication, & branding strategy. As a branding strategist, my “deviations” in search of my own Personal Brand actually served to enrich my skills and ability to deliver value to Executives, Entrepreneurs & Experts within any field.  Each step along the your path will help to reveal your Personal Brand as you discover and determine your authentic skills and talents. And, more importantly, how to truly impact the lives of others with them.

This process also honed my passions of continuous personal development, teaching & communicating. All things I use to provide others with genuine and authentic value they can get no where else in the world.This is what you M-U-S-T identify for yourself, your brand, and your customers.

Be willing to decide right now what you stand for… knowing it may very well change. As you struggle to communicate effectively what it is that you do… you are learning and honing the very best that lives within you… and this is what your Personal Brand must be made of if others are to find value in it.

Consumer psychology tells us that people struggle to determine what it is that they really want. Therefore, as an extension of your brand, you must also have a skill set that allows you to help people discover their own talents, desires, passions and gifts. This authenticates your brand through delivery processes and ensures that you have established your business and your brand on the results that it promises to create. You must help others get clarity before you can genuinely help them.

Provide Value By Deploying Quality Marketing: Marketing is nothing more that the skill-set of building relationships through quality communication. For your marketing to be effective, you must first establish a “Messaging Platform”.

Imagine being able to connect with a prospect on Facebook or LinkedIn and immediately offer them a gift that provides them the ability to find a customer, make money or take meaningful action. To do this, you must have a “Messaging Platform” of:

1. Gifts, Links, Contacts, Knowledge etc. that is relevant, interesting and engaging.

2. Persuasive sound-bites that are relevant to your ideal customer profile so that you effectively use the exact words and phrases that describe your value, suspend dis-belief of prospects, and make you business serious money.

At a minimum, you need to have a rudimentary understanding of social media, profile set up, website navigation, email marketing, etc. With an effectively established Personal Brand and related messaging platform you can diminish your social media time to under an hour a day. It helps tremendously to possess excellent presentation and networking skills as well as a solid foundation in the language of persuasive marketing. Learn how to talk at networking events in a way the represents your brand, separates you from the norm and epitomizes you as the provider of choice. The marketing piece of your Personal Brand is a serious of skill-sets that involve the daily application of providing value to the world. The time is NOW to learn how to do this both on and off-line. Today’s business success has much less to do with what you do… but how effectively you communicate what you do.

Center Your Brand Around The Deepening Of Authentic Relationships: At the age of 9 I had the luxury of connecting heart to heart with a whale that swam right up to the boat my father and I were fishing on in Homer Alaska. I will always remember the swell of inspiration I felt when the whale and I locked eyes… and I felt the genuine curiosity and desire to connect that we shared. As I look back on that day… I realized that is when I fell in love with the idea of connecting. Its a natural part of life. All living things share a connection… and as people we must learn to remove the self-imposed barriers to the love and connection in our lives. Seek for opportunities to invest in your ability to deepen relationships with loved ones, professional contacts and with yourself. The spiritual work you do on yourself will have a massive ROI in terms of building value and loyalty with those who choose to be a part of what you do. And you will feel a deeper sense of meaning that can only come from contributing to the life of another.

While connecting on-line is a fundamental skill-set that is quite easy to learn… you must remember that people are always re-evaluating the value you offer. As you build your network(s) of prospects, clients, raving fans, colleagues & mentors, on-line, you must also provide opportunity to connect face to face with each of them.

One of the best ways to provide these contacts value is to become a promoter in what they do. If you are investing in a seminar… tell them you would like to invite your “tribe” and seek to craft a value price for them. Or, choose to purchase 5-10 tickets and give them away to your community. Then spend time with each of these people at the event to deepen the connection. Learn about their successes, struggles, concerns and frustrations.

My greatest strength has been the ability to create and sustain professional relationships. The current and future business climate dictates that you must do this too. You must have a skill set that allows you to dramatically and consistently impact lives. This is what you were born to do. Ask yourself, “Can I call 93%+ of your past clients and receive a phone call back?” What are you doing to show appreciation for the connection, support and business that others chose to give you? Deepening your relationships is about creating systems of appreciation and acknowledgment through time… ensuring that you put time, thought and emotion into these connections that another can experience and remember.

The secret to great relationships; Communicate with a specific outcome. I believe in sending those who pay you money heart-felt gifts. The gift should be designed to communicate something specific that you see in them and that you feel needs acknowledgment & celebration. When you do this correctly, your gifts will bring clients to the brink of tears… and you don’t need to spend more that $20 bucks… but you might need to shift your paradigm and take a few hours to craft an authentic gift that actually matters. Communication is the toolbox of quality relationships… always start with a specific outcome.

Remember… your Personal Brand should be designed to impact people’s lives and through it, your marketing will provide value. Be willing to share you knowledge, creativity and network with everyone you meet. Send good cheer and be the creator of value everywhere you go.

The world of business is awesome. It will challenge you mentally and emotionally in ways that can only be compared to climbing the world’s most angry mountain. It also provides you with tremendous joy and beauty that comes from the magical vistas of reaching its peak… its an amazing journey. Today’s business climate is poised for the fulfillment and success of those who carve a Personal Brand that is relevant and engaging to their chosen consumer. Take moments to witness the horizon and remember to reflect on what is truly important in your life; the people that have helped you directly and indirectly to climb to the top of your game. They have impacted your life… now use your Personal Brand as extension of who you are to dramatically impact theirs.

PS> A special thanks to one of my most influential mentors Roy H. Williams for the Mount Everest metaphor that so accurately describes the human condition of rising to the challenges of life and business. As my gift to you, I encourage you to learn more from Roy himself.

What is your morning ritual?  Does it involve exercise, meditation, prayer, affirmations, goal setting, lifestyle planning…?   Or is it more reactive… hit the snooze button 3 times, get up late, cut yourself shaving, grab coffee on the way out the door, and speed through morning rush hour to arrive at work one or two minutes late.

How about your bedtime ritual?  Do you stretch, pray, prepare tomorrow’s clothes, prioritize your day, say a heartfelt goodnight to the family and read. Or are you more geared to a brush of the teeth, a quick pee, and take your clothes off bedside with the TV remote in hand?

I’m not advocating one style over another… what I am saying is that your morning and  bedtime rituals proudly illustrate your beliefs and priorities.

So what are rituals… communication in its finest and purest form.  Rituals are a natural occurring phenomenon within every culture that communicates to the individuals within that culture, “this is who we are, this is what we believe in, and this is how you fit in as one of us.

All rituals are a unit of communication that involve the following three components

1. movement
2. sound
3. symbolic meaning

The most powerful aspect of rituals is their innate ability to help you communicate with yourself.

I have had the privilege of being exposed to every “hot topic” seminar or leaning modality on communication and change that good money can buy.  Whether you are a Certified Master Practitioner of Neuro-Linguistic Programming, a Certified Hypno-therapist, an Energy Healer, or dynamic leader, effectiveness in any arena is directly associated with ones ability to communicate with their own internal self and manage their emotional states.  Some of us are lucky enough to have modeled very effective self-communication patterns; others have modeled very destructive ones.  Remember, if we don’t establish our own success rituals (self-communication habits), our unconscious communication patterns will often establish ineffective one’s for us.  Deep inside, our own minds and hearts live in a world of rituals. Let this post serve to remind you to be mindful and purposeful in the rituals you choose to engage your energy in… its self-communication at its finest and purest form and has been for thousands of years.

When I have the fortune of presenting on the road, I like to preview the training facility so that I can make the distinctions that really add to the seminar attendees’ experience.

Here I am preparing the room for the great people and Entrepreneurs of Sonora CA.  Here is a quick video to give you insight into the value you will get at this seminar… enjoy.

(click play… then click pause… let buffer… click play… enjoy)

I want you to enjoy the confidence and success that comes with knowing you are predictably orchestrating real value for you customers and clients. It makes a tremendous difference in the professional relationship you establish or deepen.

In your corner and on your side…

~M

Check this guy out… I love his message. Anyone can life a Giant Life.

What could you do right now… to move closer to living a Giant Life?