Do you have a brand?

Have you ever been asked by people “What do you do at work?” or a similar kind of question? Most responses come in the form of a job title or position, like “I am a business analyst”, “I am a finance manager”. You get what I mean.

The problem with such response is, it tends to give people a certain perception of their image of you at work based on what they understand about the job title – in short, you choose to let people stereotype your professional ability. I am not suggesting that you omit your professional identity, I am proposing that you extend your response to include your competencies, your unique strengths and the organization that you are working in (or have worked in) if the organization is worth mentioning.

Keep your pitch to around a minute long. Any longer, you will sound like you are trying to sell yourself too hard. Shorter than minute may lead you back to the same problem mentioned in the first paragraph.

One of my friend commented that the pitch sounds awkward for him to use as a response because he is still in a job and has no intention to leave the company yet. I told him, “if you wait till you are ready to switch jobs, it’s usually too late”.

Whether you are in a job or unemployed, it is important to give people a consistent message about you (in the advertising world, it’s called “Branding”). You use it on new acquiatance that you meet in the church, you use it when you are meeting your boss’ boss who is visiting your office. You use it when you meet someone in a external seminar. Because you can position yourself better than others, you will leave a great impression with people that you meet.

If you are in job, a branding pitch helps you to increase your presence and get an edge for that promotion, if you are unemployed, it helps you to differentiate yourself from other candidates.

This branding effect is not just for others, it also create a psychological effect in yourself, giving you more self-confidence when you keeping reminding yourself about your expertise and strengths, rather than just a job title.