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Excerpt from Chapter 4
Find a Great Self-Brand Strategy to Get Great Results
Strategy is the brains of branding.
A good self-brand strategy is similar to a brand strategy for a company or a product. Strategy is developing a winnable position in the marketplace with a smart game plan and tactics for achieving it.
When you look at the successful people around you, you might notice that they may or may not be the smartest or the most talented, but I’ll wager they each had a strategy (whether or not they called it that).
Smarts and talent are important but overrated. We all know lots of smart and talented people who are not doing well professionally.
Even luck is overrated. Sure, luck helps. But most successful people create their own luck. Then they give their stories a more romantic spin by saying it was luck and not hard work that got them there.
Strategy is underrated and much more valuable. As the marketing consultant David Beckwith has stated, “All strategies are not created equal. Terrific strategies and tactics more than beat good ones; they work hundreds of times better.”
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Self-brand strategy: A crisp positioning statement that defines your “big idea” or unique selling proposition (USP)—what’s different and special about you in comparison to others and why it matters.
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I agree with Beckwith, but don’t wait until you figure out a “killer” strategy. Get started now. You’re ready for strategic development after you’ve done the research, analyzed the competition, and completed your analysis of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT).
Having a strategy gives you a lot of advantages. Developing a strategy forces you to think, and that in itself will start to give you an advantage over many people. Strategy also compels you to think big picture and long term.
Develop a Self-Brand Strategy
Your self-brand strategy should be short and focused.
It should be short enough to write on the back of a business card. If you can’t say it briefly, your strategy is probably muddled.
Your strategy should dramatize a benefit. And it should be unique enough to intrigue people and make them want to know more.
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