Your Resume-The Brand YOU Brochure

March 27, 2006 by Liz

Forget the Rules

The rules are for everyone. Personal brand is about showing you are the only one.Somewhere along the line, you probably learned rules about writing resumes. What I’m about to tell you is going to break them. I like breaking rules, especially when that works in our favor. I don’t usually do it when it doesn’t.

You don’t need a resume anyway. You need something that works like one, but is more than that.

Get Rid of the List

It’s easy to think of a resume as a list – three suits, two blue, one gray, of what you’ve done and to write it off as a painful requirement of job acquisition. That’s a major missed opportunity. With a few tweaks, your resume can be a dynamic tool in your personal branding strategy.

Throw away the list as concept.

Think about Brand YOU and promotional tools.

You’re making a personal branding brochure. Just let other people think it’s a resume. They’ve been confused before.

A Personal Branding Brochure

Imagine that you’re a product — a Ferrari. Your resume is your specification sheet. Add some marketing copy, and you’re well on your way to a promotional brochure for that Ferrari. On my own resume I include the usual career experience with the chronological job history, but that is page 2.

On page 1, I include branding information built around my branding big idea – that I am a leader and a strategist with a proven track record and competencies in several key areas of publishing. I want the person reading my resume to read this first, to know what I can do before where I did it. The former is more important than the latter. As you read through, you might notice how I took the opportunity to further my brand identity by targeting first statement under each core competency.

Turn a resume into a personal branding brochure.

Use It as a Promotional Tool

Change the way you look at your resume, and you soon find a world of uses for it. Use it as you do your business card. Just this week I sent mine to a business friend with a note saying, “Let me know if my voice might help you in the meetings with the publishers you told me about.” Design it into your blog’s About Page to let your readers know more about you, your brand, and your business.

I use my “branding brochure” a lot when I’m networking.

It’s one more way to let people know you’re not just another suit. You’re uniquely valuable.
Without you, the world would be missing something–the one and only Brand YOU.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

BusinessWeekOnline Agrees

March 24, 2006 by Liz

I just got this in my BusinessWeekonline email.

It seems that Carmine Gallo, corporate presentation coach agrees. Click the screenshot to reach his presentation tips.

Thank you, Carmine. The facts are the facts. 🙂

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Brand YOU–You Are What They See

March 24, 2006 by Liz

Covers Sell Books

People say, Don’t judge a book by its cover. People judge books by covers. Covers sell books. We only have so much time to look at books, and the cover is what gets our attention. This photo lets you know how important a cover can be. As a publisher, I’d edit that old advice to say, Judge a book by its cover, but also judge the book builder too.

A book cover makes a promise about what you will find when you open the book.

Your image works the same way for you.

What’s Your Cover?

What people see about you, your first impression, your image, is like the book cover to your personal brand. Your first impression literally makes a mental image. Your image makes a silent promise about who you are and what people can count on when they get to know you. That mental image lasts. Pictures stay longer than words.

When there’s a question about what to believe, your image might just tip the balance. That’s a powerful reason to be sure that the big idea of your brand carries through into all things that people see around you. Here’s a checklist that might help you make sure your image supports your personal brand.
For the sake of this checklist let’s imagine that you want to be known as one who is always on top of information.

Your personal image. Do you dress the part? Do the clothes you wear and your haircut look pulled together? Do you sit and stand like one who is always ready to take notes? Have you got the right energy level? Do you carry the tools you need? Notebook, pens, list of phone extensions to use when outside your office? When you’re asked, can you look things up and find them?
Your workspace. Is your workspace organized? Is your computer desktop organized too? Have you put the things you use most often closest to where you use them? Have you placed the things people are likely to ask for in a place where you can find them quickly? When you stand at your doorway, does your space look like the workspace of one who handles information well?
Your skills. Have you mastered information software programs, such as spreadsheets and databases that might be useful in your job? Do you know more than usual references that people might use to answer questions that come up?

Once you start thinking in this direction, you’ll start to see that everything you do is an opportunity to enhance the big idea of your personal brand. It’s not so hard to develop habits that form around your big idea. That’s the key learning to live your brand.

People do judge books by the promise of the cover. Make a promise they will value. One that you will keep–and they’ll notice it for sure.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Critical Skill 1: Strategic Deep Thinking

March 23, 2006 by Liz

No More Faster, Faster

We live in fast food culture, where now and yesterday seem to be the timing of every answer. “Faster, Faster,” was great when I was at the carnival as a child, but I’m not sure it’s the best answer for making decisions about my business or my future. I’m all for doing strategic deep thinking about important decisions, but our environment doesn’t do much to support or even to teach how to think deeply or strategically.

We sort everything into top ten lists. We find out the what of things and sometimes the how, but hardly ever the why. We ask for things done, but not necessarily done right. We stop looking as soon as we find the first answer. These are not the traits of a deep, strategic thinkers.

Thinking Deeper

Thinking deeply and strategically isn’t popular, but it is valuable. The folks who can do it are prized and sought after. They are also incredibly secure. How do they get to the thoughts that are past the surface? Here are some of the things that strategic thinkers do. These are all things anyone can do.

Go past the first answer. When you’re faced with a problem, once you find answer 1, keep looking for answers 2, 3, and 4.
Get a friend to find the holes in your thinking. Pick someone who wasn’t involved in finding the solution. Anyone involved in the thinking can’t see the flaws in it.
Set your thinking on the back burner and revisit it in an hour or so. This is the same concept as letting yourself sleep on it. Research has proved that it works. Tell yourself that you’re going to put the idea in your subconscious to work on it. I always touch the back of my head when I do this. When I return to the problem later, I find new information to work with.
Try on your thinking as you try on your clothes. Remember, we’re outside of the box here. This might sound silly at first, but it works. Take an inventory of how the idea feels in your gut, in your fingers, and in your toes. If something doesn’t feel right, explore what that is. You’d be surprised how much knowledge you carry in the cells outside of your brain.
Discount the obvious, and look for the invisible. Ask yourself outright, “What am I missing here?” When you find it, adjust your old solution to cover the new information too.
If someone disagrees with your solution, include his or her thinking as part of the problem. This IS one case where two ideas can work to become more than the whole. Keep your own goal, but add the new ones to the mix. You’ll find the new solution stronger than the one you originally reached.

These are just a few ways to take your thinking deeper than what I call the “skin of the pudding.” I like to think deeply, because I like to know that my answer will stand when I have to defend it.

It might not be faster, faster, but it’s worth it to know that the answer will last and last.

What parts of your brand could use some strategic, deep thinking?

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Brand YOU–What’s the BIG IDEA?

March 22, 2006 by Liz

What’s Your Big Idea?

Now that you know how to capitalize on your strengths and make your weaknesses irrelevant, you can work on the big idea of your personal brand.
WhatÃ¢â¬â¢s the big idea? People talk about the big idea of someoneÃ¢â¬â¢s personal brand quite often really. YouÃ¢â¬â¢ve probably even made big idea statements yourself. They sound like these.

Call Mario. He can do anything.
That Vanessa, sheÃ¢â¬â¢s so sweet.
If you want it organized, AnneÃ¢â¬â¢s the one.
MartinÃ¢â¬â¢s a whiz. HeÃ¢â¬â¢ll have this figured out in minutes.
I donÃ¢â¬â¢t know about Cat. She canÃ¢â¬â¢t find anything. Look at her desk.

ThereÃ¢â¬â¢s no question that folks who make such statements have a big idea about the people theyÃ¢â¬â¢re describing. The descriptions might be accurate, or they might not be. The point is that the people talking believe them. The people being described have communicated those traits strongly over time.

The big idea of your personal brand is the most powerful point of your unique value. It’s the one sentence that folks can believe in it and can share with others easily. As I said earlier

Everything about you contributes to your personal brandÃ¢â¬âeverything you say or donÃ¢â¬â¢t say, what you wear, your tone of voice, the look of your space, the look on your face, the way you shake hands. The quality of your work is an immense part of your brand, but not, by any means, all of it. Even there it matters whether itÃ¢â¬â¢s on time, done with friendliness, with teamwork, with innovation and flexibility.

I Promise

Now is the time to decide the answer to this question

If you were known for one attribute, skill, or competency what would you want it to be?

ItÃ¢â¬â¢s a tough question, I know. However once you decide, you will have found your big ideaÃ¢â¬âthe focus of your personal brand. That will be what everyone sees when they see you, your work, your signature. ItÃ¢â¬â¢s the promise that you stand for. Think of your big idea as a promise that you know you will always keep.

–ME “Liz” Strauss

Eye-Deas 3-Photo Content Checklist

March 22, 2006 by Liz

Seeing your Work

Images–photos and artwork–can be used in two ways: as illustration–to extend or explain the content–or as decoration–to bring readers in and add interest to the page. Either way, choice of images reflects your personality, your thoughts, your brand, and your business.

Decorative Images Versus Illustration

If you’re using images solely for decoration, you can wander outside the box fairly far and folks usually will call what you do “art.” Even if your readers don’t like your choices, they will most often glance over and then continue reading, unless your choice is something that makes readers uncomfortable–say, a giant eyeball that seems to be watching them. It’s possible that a choice such as that will make them stop reading and move on.

Images used as illustration might show how to do something or how something looks. Readers rely on illustrative visuals to get more meaning from the words. Visuals can bring an idea home, by making it clearer or stop the reader cold by being a distraction. Placement is important here. The image should be close to the words that talk about it, so that readers don’t have to work to make the connection. A caption helps readers in the same way.

Photo Content Checklist

Content is king and images have content too. It’s not hard to underscore the impact images can have on your writing. They can kick up a notch and be the added value that brings readers back to you. Here are some rules about what you might consider when choosing an image to support your words.

When showing people, look for a diversity that reflects the culture around you. People are used to a certain level of diversity. Straying too far from what folks are used to can lead them to subconsciously discount your message as biased, or to see it as less than authentic.
Stereotypes just aren’t cool. It’s true that Mom often cooks dinner, but lots of Dads do it too. This is not being politically correct. It is choosing to show the exception, rather than always showing the rule. The folks who are the exception will thank you.
Keep in mind your readers are not you. They’ve had different experiences; might use different currency;, could be in a different season of the year. Making room for the differences without making a big deal of them can show you are inclusive–rather stuck in your own world view. Opening your view helps them feel comfortable. People everywhere like to see positive images of people who do what they do–who wouldn’t?
Watch for other unconscious bias in your choices. As humans we are drawn to the things we like and away from those things that we don’t. This could be happening in the images you choose. For example, a gardener may too often choose gardening photos. Go back through your blog and check the photos you’ve used. Is there a particular bias–beyond that required by the content you write about–that shows in images you use?
Look for “photo no-nos”–unbecoming details within photos that could be distractions, particularly if you are using photos taken by an amateur. Some examples might include hands with dirty fingernails, any animal’s posterior right in the camera, animal sex organs, action in the background that is unwanted or distracting. Read the words in every photo. Sometimes they say something rude.
Take care when cropping. It’s easy to crop out the interest. Any object by itself is rarely of interest. When cropping, try to put the main idea forward and just a hair off-center. A well-composed photo takes the eye from the upper-right corner area in a c-shaped counterclockwise spiral into the center.
Size the photo to fit the piece that you’re writing. Use the “Goldilocks Rule”–not too large, not too small, but just right. Look at your favorite websites, blogs, and print materials to get a sense of what works for you. Keep in mind if you have a huge splotch of color or a photo in your blog header, you already have a large image on the page.

Keep those in mind when using photos to illustrate and decorate your writing. Readers might not be able to explain what has changed, but they’ll notice it just the same. You’ll probably hear more comments about how wonderful your writing is.

See what I mean?

Photos are the fastest ways you change the look and feel of your blog. You can change your blog daily and signal your readers what’s in store right now. With great photos, you add depth to your readers’ understanding that your brand stands for quality in every way.

I’m sure you check photos for other “photo no-nos.” What are they?

–ME “Liz” Strauss