I'd like to congratulate you on your success. So you've been busting your ass, developing & growing both personally and professionally. Now it's time for you to rebrand and make sure you rock that big boy bravado.
Yes, you are representing a brand -- your personal brand. Everybody has one. We as individuals are making a conscious as well as subconscious decisions about the brand we present to the outside world.
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So what I want you to do is go to the mirror and take a look at yourself. What do you think of the brand that you are representing and presenting? Are
you happy with it?
We all need to periodically tweak and modify our personal brand to elevate it a notch or two. For instance, as we mature and grow personally as well as professionally, we continuously need to adjust and analyze our image and brand. Think of it like this: You're climbing the corporate ladder, and you're moving up. If your image is not adjusting or climbing with you, you're going to be at risk of not
receiving promotions. Even relationships could pass you by.
Case in point. How many of you dressed like crap in college? I know I get it; I was there. I was a complete train-wreck and didn't know whether or not I wanted to dress like a dirty hippie or keep it real. I lived in a complete dirty crap-hole with five other guys, and my car was beat-up with all kinds of trash and junk tossed in it. But what can you expect during that phase of life? Sound
familiar?
Here's the deal. Once I graduated and entered the real world, I quickly realized that my image needed a serious overhaul. If I was going to be taken seriously and succeed in this thing called life, I needed to project success in order to obtain success. I may not have known exactly what success looked like, but I definitely knew it didn't look like a dirty hippie in a filthy, dirty teal
car.
So what about you? Are you still living, dressing, and driving like you're a college kid? Your income and status levels may have increased, but you're stuck in a personal brand rut. So my question to you is: what are you going to do about it? Bingo! That is right. You're going to make the needed personal brand modifications to make sure that you are consistently and constantly presenting the brand of success.
The way that we’re going to do it is to break the personal brand down into four specific categories.
CATEGORY ONE | GROOMING First, you need to determine what well-groomed means to you. Then develop a grooming regimen and execute it. Maybe you've been growing a big bushy goatee or maybe even growing your hair out.
Maybe you've had the same old, tired-ass hairstyle for the past 10-years. Either way, you need to remember that your hairstyle, much like clothing, can go out of style. You need to make sure that you're changing it in order to be viewed as current. People will pay more attention to you and take your view more seriously with the proper grooming.
Alright gentlemen, if you were rocking a big, bushy, out-of-control beard, guess what? You may love it, and chicks might love it, but the personal brand that you are presenting maybe that you're a little bit sloppy and possibly a slacker. Gentlemen, you're growing so you're grooming regimen needs to grow too. If your grooming habits don't represent your personal brand, you need to fix
them.
CATEGORY TWO | WARDROBE Your wardrobe is a direct extension of your brand. Think of it like the pretty packaging. What you wear, the colors you wear, the way that your clothes fit, and your body are all part of the equation. After you’ve built the foundation of your wardrobe, you should consider investing in higher quality clothing as well as have certain
items tailored to fit you better.
Now I'm not saying just run out and spend a bunch of money on expensive clothes or a bunch of logos or labels. Replace and upgrade items piece-by-piece. Once you start getting into the higher quality clothing, you will observe a significant difference. The fabric is a lot nicer, softer, & more luxurious, and the construction is also better. A lot of times, the fit has been perfected. Bottom line, your wardrobe definitely is part of your
brand.
CATEGORY THREE | DOMICILEÂ Your domicile is your house, apartment, condo, crib, whatever you call it. It's where you live, but more specifically, HOW you live. How you live is definitely part of the brand equation, and I get it. When you're first starting out, you're moving in and moving up. You might have several roommates with a hand-me-down couch,
and you’re sleeping on a futon that smells like a foot and has stains on it. Right? But then you start doing a little better and only have one roommate. Someday, just maybe, you might have a beautiful place of your own. Well here's the deal.
It doesn’t matter if you live in an apartment or castle -- if somebody walks in and it's a filthy, dirty, and stinky mess, your personal brand execution is over. You have failed. Your domicile needs to be clutter-free, decorated, and taken care of. A man's house is his castle. Make sure that yours is looking appropriate, because it's definitely speaking volumes about you. I'm a firm believer that if you live in clutter, confusion, and chaos, the rest of your life is going to be that
way too metaphorically speaking.
CATEGORY FOUR | CAR What you drive speaks volumes about your brand. Now I know that when you're starting off and you don't have much money, you may be driving a clunker like I did. When you upgrade, you have to decide what car you're going to drive to represent your brand. For me the epitome of success was a Corvette because when I was six years old I
absolutely loved my little red Matchbox Corvette. But, the BRAND of the car is not the important aspect.The most important aspect is HOW you maintain your car. Is it clean on the outside AND inside? Is it free of trash and clutter? Those are the important parts of this part of your brand.
When it comes down to personal branding, everyone has one. Like it or not, there are four elements to your personal brand: grooming, style, domicile,
and car. All four pieces work and blend together consistently. Your image and brand are your responsibility, and it might be that time for you to rebrand yourself. Cheers to your personal brand success.
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