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By Keith Evans
Asst. Marketplace Editor
As an economic recession looms, job security for millions of workers across the nation faces mounting threats. Competitive forces such as outsourcing, off-shoring, and modern robotics continue to put workers at a disadvantage.
According to Dan Schawbel, the solution lies in the concept of "personal branding."
Schawbel, a social media specialist at EMC Corporation and expert on personal branding, met with Boston College's Entrepreneur Society last night to talk about the concept and application of personal branding.
Personal branding describes the process by which individuals differentiate themselves by identifying and articulating their unique values to achieve a specific goal. In other words, personal branding is a way of marketing oneself in order to achieve success.
"In the traditional style of business, a hierarchical structure breeds loyalty to a company," Schawbel said. "This has shifted, however, to treating yourself as the CEO of your own company, your own brand."
According to Schawbel, there are two main ingredients for creating your own brand - self-impression and perception. Self-impression is how you describe yourself, while perception reflects others' view of you. Personal branding takes place when these two ingredients come together as one and the same.
"You don't want to give off a vibe or portray a trait that is not representative of how you want to be branded," Schawbel said.
Schawbel listed four benefits that personal branding can have on a person's career. First, branding allows people to differentiate themselves from the competition. "Reputation is a buzz word for personal branding," Schawbel said. "If you don't establish who you are and what you're all about, then someone else will do it for you."
Branding also allows people to increase their visibility and presence in the workplace. With help from blogs, personal Web sites, business cards, resumes, portfolios, and social networks, people can get their name out, showing potential employers what they have done.
"Web presence can take you a long way. From videos to blogs, these things may soon be standard qualifiers in the employment process," he said.
Along with increased visibility comes another benefit - confidence. "Self-actualization is a confidence incubator," Schawbel said. Here, Schawbel makes a connection between accomplishment and empowerment.
The final benefit of personal branding is the eventual achievement of goals and objectives. "When you know who you are, and are passionate about what you do, work isn't work anymore. Instead, work becomes a hobby," he said.
Schawbel's career has taken off since developing the personal branding concept. Along with maintaining a blog dedicated to personal branding, he has also created a magazine, an online TV series, and an award for the concept.
Before opening the floor up to questions, Schawbel offered a few tips on how to begin the branding process. One of these tips was to remember that personality can be a tremendous differentiator. "Personality can go a long way for you in business. It's not like we're computers," he said.
He also reminded society members that "your brand is searchable." With employers increasingly turning to Google to find information about potential employees, it is important to stake the claim to your name on the Web, he said. Schawbel encouraged members to buy the rights to their name's Internet domain, as well as being attentive to what people can search about you.
Schawbel also described personal branding as only the tip of the metaphorical iceberg. "On the surface you are showcasing your talents. Underneath, you are building a network," he said. This behind-the-scenes network is where you can rely on for important favors and connections.
Finally, Schawbel reminded members that anyone can find success from personal branding. "It's a brand you world," he said.
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