Expert tips to build your personal brand at your workplace

Welcome to Consult a Coach, our regular careers clinic for Bazaar readers. Send us your work dilemmas, and we’ll ask our new careers agony aunt—the industry professional, executive coach, and motivational speaker Jo Glynn-Smith—to answer it.

Here, Glynn-Smith tackles the question of whether having a personal brand is really necessary to succeed at work.

Dear Jo,

I’ve noticed that some of the most successful women I work with have managed to build strong personal brands. There’s Georgie, who everyone says is the go-to for style advice because she always looks impeccable; Alice, who people say is so creative because she’s constantly visiting art galleries and coming up with brilliantly artistic ideas; and Jai, who has thousands of followers on Instagram and seems to have contacts in every possible field. I feel a bit dull by comparison—I think I’m pretty good at my job, I’m hardworking and I get results, but I don’t know what my niche is and I’m certainly no influencer. Do I need to work harder to create my own brand?

Charlie, 38

Dear Charlie,

First of all, try not to judge yourself too harshly; whether you are conscious of it or not, you are already projecting a personal brand of sorts. This is the identity and reputation you’ve created simply by ‘showing up’ in your career and life so far. In the same way that you have noticed some of the strengths your colleagues have cultivated, there may be things that you are known for, but have not yet recognised in yourself.

So, perhaps start by asking a few people you trust about the qualities they think you bring to the table. You may be surprised. That said, a strong personal brand is not a prerequisite for success, but it’s worth knowing that it can be a powerful calling card and is something that is totally within your control. As you’ve already identified, it can help people understand you better, know what to come to you for, differentiate you, and create opportunities.

As a coach, I am all about creating awareness for my clients, so I would start by taking a moment to think about and write down how you would define your personal brand right now. Begin by asking yourself the following seven questions, and try to answer them without judging or justifying yourself.

Presentation

How do I currently choose to present myself at work? Think about your clothing, hair, and accessories—what do people see when they first meet you?

Attitude

What is my attitude at work? What energy do I currently bring to what I do?

Consistency

How consistent is my attitude and how do I present myself and behave on a day-to-day basis? What affects this positively? Negatively?

Skills and strengths

How clearly am I communicating or demonstrating these right now?

Values

What are my key personal values? How do I communicate these? How do I respond when these are threatened or called into question?

Digital Footprint

How aligned is my online persona with my physical one? Does my digital footprint support or detract from my personal brand?

Network

How is my current network supporting my brand and progress? In other words, am I swimming in the right pool based on how I see myself and where I want to go?

These are difficult questions, especially if it’s the first time you’ve practised self-awareness, but the key is to answer them as genuinely as you can so that you have a solid foundation to build on. If you are brave enough, you can give the same set of questions to a colleague or friend and ask them for some honest feedback.

Then, take a moment to look over your answers. How content are you with what you see? Does the description on paper truly represent the person, skills, and strengths you are trying to communicate? If not, what part of you would you like people to discover that may have a positive impact on your career and/or your opportunities? Highlight the areas that you feel could do with some focus, and use these to create an action plan.

For a strong personal brand, you are aiming for a clear and consistent message that can be communicated across every touchpoint where your name comes up—both physically and digitally. Only you can decide on how ‘amped up’ this message needs to be, but remember that authenticity is key to your success; role-playing through life is exhausting, so have the confidence to be yourself.

To create your action plan, list the points you’ve identified as focus areas. You may not immediately know how to improve each of them, but by acknowledging that you’d like to give them attention, you are at least creating awareness. If you can, write a realistic goal next to each one, and then list three small steps you could take in the next month or two that could move you closer towards that goal. It may be as simple as doing some research or speaking to a colleague—all that matters is that you make a start.

This piece originally appeared in Harper's Bazaar UK