Making a career transition often comes with a personal rebrand. Face it, you’ve changed. Whether it is what you do for work or how you feel about yourself now that you have left a company, you need to modify your image for those around you so you can lift off in to a different direction.
A personal rebrand is a little bit like a product or service rebrand. You need to evaluate what you stand for, find out who is your new audience and uncover what now makes you different.
Here are a set of questions you can ask yourself if you are trying to figure out what your brand is and especially if you are looking to make a career pivot onto boards:
Self-Assessment:
- What are my core values?
- What motivates me professionally?
- What is my unique value proposition?
- What do I want others to know me for?
- What is my 5 second elevator pitch?
Boards or Job Target
- What industry or field do I want to be a thought leader in?
- Who is my target audience (CEOs, Board Members, Decision Makers)?
- Where will I find these people?
- What are their pain points?
Communication
- Is my messaging clear in face-to-face settings?
- Do I communicate my new direction with confidence?
- Do I bring executive presence to my interactions?
- Do I talk too much about the past and not the future?
- Is my messaging clear on LinkedIn?
- What kind of content do I comment on (or should I comment on) to strengthen my brand?
- Do I follow the right people? Who is following me?
- What have my last 3 posts been about?
- Which of my posts have performed the best and why?
- Do I showcase my subject matter expertise in my profile and posts?
Align and Take Action
- Is my current work aligned with the brand I want to build?
- What do I need to do to start pivoting my brand?
- What can I do right now to kick off my rebrand?
Take control of your personal brand and embrace change!