You know that your personality has power.
If you can build a brand around your personality, you inject some of your magic into your business. You create that all-important human element that builds connections and engages clients.
But that’s also what you’re afraid of.
You fear that linking your personal brand to your business brands will make it impossible to separate the two. You worry that this will cause issues should you ever want to exit the business that you’re currently leading.
I understand those concerns.
In fact, this kind of resistance is extremely common among CEOs.
But I also need you to know that your personal brand is too powerful a thing to dismiss outright!
If you can overcome the resistance you have to build that brand, you create more authority. You put yourself in a better position to share your gifts with the world.
That’s what I aim to help you to do in this article.
But before we focus on how to overcome that resistance, let’s dig a little deeper into why it’s there in the first place.
The Wobbles (and Why They Set In)
Do you know what really gives most of my clients the wobbles when we start talking about personal branding?
It’s not the risks they perceive in linking their personal brand to their business brand.
Rather, it’s a simple question…
“Why me?”
Even people who have the utmost confidence in their abilities get the wobbles.
They start to ask themselves why anyone would listen to them…
That leads them down the route of worrying about how building the brand will play out. Sometimes, they focus more on the idea that people won’t connect with them than they do on the power of their brand.
And that’s where the resistance comes from.
It’s the question of whether you’re capable of manifesting your personal brand in a way that’s as good as you want it to be.
Perhaps sharing that with you makes you a little uncomfortable. You may share the very same wobbles that many of my clients have when we broach this subject.
If that’s the case, I want you to understand something…
You wouldn’t be reading this if you weren’t an extraordinary entrepreneur.
If you didn’t have a gift, the idea of building a personal brand wouldn’t even cross your mind.
People who have personal brands are bold…
They’re brave…
And they’re people who can inspire others to the point of transformation.
That’s exactly who you are!
Now, let’s work through the wobbles together so you can introduce your brilliance to the world.
Tip #1 – Think About Your Specific Circumstances
What makes you skeptical about the idea of building a personal brand?
I’ve talked about a couple of possible causes already. Again, you might have the wobbles because you feel like people won’t listen to you. Or, you may have concerns about linking your personal brand with your business brand.
Alternatively, you may have reasons of your own that I haven’t covered. Maybe there’s something about your specific circumstances that causes you to hesitate.
For example, you might be on the verge of exiting your current business.
That means you’re not sure if now is the right time to focus on your personal brand. You don’t want to create a myth around yourself, only to leave that with the old business when you move onto new pastures.
Or maybe you’re simply not passionate about your business anymore.
You feel like trying to build a personal brand when your passion is on the wane will lead to poor results.
These are all very valid concerns.
However, they also distract away from the benefits of building a personal brand.
I just mentioned the concept of “myth” and how you might worry that yours will stay with your business. But that’s not what happens when you mythologize yourself.
When you have a personal brand, people follow you —they don’t follow the business.
Take Apple as an example.
Of course, Steve Jobs linked his personal brand to that company to great success. But people still see him as a separate entity. There are pages and pages of websites dedicated to his quotes and business wisdom.
People still follow and get inspired by the myth of Steve Jobs even though he’s gone.
And that’s what having a truly powerful personal brand looks like!
So, when you encounter this resistance in your mind, think about your specific circumstances. Try to work through your own blockage and remind yourself that a personal brand is much larger than those circumstances.
Tip #2 – Read The War of Art
Let’s assume you’re coming from a place where you don’t want to build the brand if it can’t be as good as it can possibly be.
That’s the biggest cause of the wobbles for one reason:
Your personal brand is your art.
It’s creative.
It’s innovative.
Anything that involves manifesting your beliefs and core philosophies is a creative endeavor. As a result, building that brand means more to you than anything else that you might do in life.
That’s one of the reasons why you’re resisting it.
You fear that not getting it right could damage this thing that means so much to you.
If that sounds familiar, I recommend that you read The War of Art by Steven Pressfield.
Stop whatever you’re doing and spend a couple of days with that book. Pressfield does an amazing job of defining the inner battles that all creators experience. And he offers wonderful mindset advice that guides you as you fight to win those battles.
Reading this book will give you a greater understanding of why you’re resisting.
And once you have that understanding, there’s only one more thing to do…
Tip #3 – Don’t Be Afraid to Take Imperfect Action
Perfectionism is the enemy of progress.
The desire to do everything perfectly leaves us trapped in a prison of excellence. It’s this prison that prevents us from moving forward because we worry that people seeing us as imperfect will damage us.
And this leads to procrastination.
It leads to a complete lack of action.
In creating your personal brand, know that you don’t have to do everything perfectly.
That may sound strange when talking about building brands in the premium or luxury space.
But remember that your brand is your art…
…and there is no such thing as perfect art.
Creating your art is an uncomfortable thing to do and there will always be flaws in what you create.
That doesn’t make it any less exquisite or beautiful.
It just makes it human, which is what a personal brand is all about.
Imperfect action moves you forward while perfectionism stops you in your tracks.
Just know that anybody who follows you doesn’t expect you to be perfect…
They just expect you to be you!
Stop Wobbling!
I’ve seen the wobbles prevent many intelligent and extraordinary people from sharing their true gifts with the world.
I know that it’s not going to happen to you.
You have the ability to create stunning transformations in the lives of your clients. You can help them to expand their visions of what’s possible.
Have the courage to celebrate your brilliance.
Build your brand around your unique gifts and develop the myth of how you are through your personal brand.
You’re the icon.
Break through the resistance and recognize your potential.
At Iconic Influencers, we want to help you unleash the true power of your personal brand.
