From Invisible to Irresistible: Personal Branding For Job Seekers
Alright, let’s dive into the magical world of personal branding! As buzz-wordy as this phrase might sound, cultivating a strong personal brand can help you stand out and have greater visibility as a job seeker. Because let's face it, without visibility, you end up being just a ghost on the internet, and ghosts, my friend, don’t get job offers. 😜
What is Personal Branding?
Personal branding is a lot like company branding, and it consists of the unique combination of skills, experiences, and personality traits that you present to the world. It's a reputation you create based on how you want to be perceived by others. It’s how you tell your story and it includes more than just action verbs and quantified metrics on your resume. It's a thing that sets you apart so that when people hear your name, you and all your awesomeness immediately come to mind.
Why It Matters For Your Job Search
In this current job market, there's a lot competition and AI has leveled the playing field when it comes to resumes, cover letters, and automating the application process. The traditional job search process is like outbound marketing: it's up to you to find companies and apply to open roles yourself. Personal branding is like inbound marketing: you attract recruiters and hiring managers to you by aligning your wants with their needs. It’s not just about what you know or who you know—it’s also about who knows you.
A strong personal brand can:
Make You Memorable: If you make a strong impression with your brand, recruiters and hiring managers will remember you and your name will go to the top of the applicant list. No one wants to sift through hundreds of applications trying to find the right candidate. You'll have done them a favor.
Build Trust: Creating a personal brand is about putting yourself out there in an authentic and sincere way which builds your credibility. People are more likely to reach out to someone who they know and whose value they can clearly see.
Highlight Your Skills: This isn't about trying to be an expert or "thought leader," this is about sharing what you know, what you have experience in, and how you can help.
Grow Your Network: The more you put yourself out there and the more value you share, the more you'll attract the right people and opportunities.
At this point you might be thinking, "Okay Diantha, why are you telling me all of this?"
There are so many people struggling to get jobs even though there's a war for talent and tons of companies are looking for great employees. I want to make life at work better for everyone by helping the right people connect with each other without having to rely solely on traditional job search strategies in an over saturated market.
So over the next several weeks, I'll be writing and sharing articles about:
How to define your personal brand
Ensuring your online presence reflects your personal brand
Optimizing your LinkedIn profile and leveraging frequently overlooked platform features
How and where to showcase your skills and experience
How to create a content plan
Effective networking practices
How to create a LinkedIn commenting strategy to get the attention of recruiters and hiring managers.
And possibly more.
So, the bottom line is: Personal branding isn’t just some fluffy buzzword. It’s a powerful tool that can catapult your career to the next level. Stay tuned for my next post which will provide you with exercises and ChatGPT prompts to help you uncover your strengths, skills, values and passions, and align them with your next opportunity.
