Personal branding is one of the hottest topics on the personal development and business genre today. It is based on the fact that the world of work that we are living in today is changing very fast without any sign of slowing down; therefore individuals should accept responsibility for their lives and chart their own course. It used to be that a person works for several years in an organization and then retire, but now with changes in technology, consumer behavior, climate changes, globalization and the internet, the world we live in is fundamentally different from the world that the previous generation lived and worked in.
Barely twenty to thirty years ago, competition was primarily localized but now your competition is not only in your locality or country, but can be from any part of the world. And just as brands are getting better and better so are human capacities. Therefore the essence of personal branding is to help you unearth your authentic self, differentiate yourself and then add tremendous value to your primary audience- your organization and customers.
The late management sage Peter Drucker, described the 21st century as, “the era of the 3cs: accelerated change, overwhelming complexities and tremendous competition” the market place is highly competitive today, therefore to become relevant you must be remarkable and outstanding at executing your key result activities.
Today the president of the most powerful nation in the world is a black man.
Today of the Fortune 500 companies 38 are headed by women.
Today some cars run on electricity.
Today Nigerians now collect cash from ATM machines.
Today Nigerians now buy things online and they get them shipped to Nigeria.
Now these are some of the changes that the world has gone through besides the recent economic meltdown. Yet despite all the financial turmoil the world went through consumers where still loyal to Coca Cola, MTN, GT Bank, Madonna(she made over $100m from tours in 2008) Angelina Jolie (she is a $15m per film actress.) The main reason why these corporate and personal organizations thrived amidst these though times is because, they have established themselves as brands in the hearts of customers.
It has been discovered that, the same principles that made product brands like iPod; Xbox; GTBanketc successful can also make individuals successful, standout and prosperous.
Everybody wants to be great and outstanding in their field of play in life, however most people are not willing to pay the price and put in the sweat equity needed to succeed. Well, here are a few things i have learn t from people who are stunningly good at what they do.
1. THEY DON’T PURSUE PROFIT, THEY MANIACALLY PURSUE CUSTOMER SERVICE: Profit is the reward that customers give us for wowing! them in our stores, shops, website, and companies.
2. UNORTHODOX APPROACH TO LIFE AND BUSINESS: For example when Howard Schultz returned as CEO of Starbucks coffee he closed 100,000 of their stores to do training about the culture of Starbucks to his staff. Steve Jobs wore only a black turtle neck, blue jeans, and trainers to run a $350 Billion dollar company called APPLE before he resigned.
3. INSANELY CURIOUS: They are always looking out for new ideas that will improve their: business, marriage, health etc and they do that through reading.
4. OBSESSIVE ATTENTION TO DETAILS: They know that everything counts, from the way they look to the way their store or office is arranged they make sure that it all reflects their vision.
5. THE HAVE AUDACIOUS GOALS: Pastor Steve Furtick put it beautifully this way, “If the seize of your dream is not intimidating to you, then it might mean that it is an insult to God.” The set big goals for themselves knowing that we humans are gods, and that we have the capacity to turn our dreams into reality.
6.THEY TOY WITH FAILURE: They are not afraid of failure, because they know that failure is the school fees we pay to get admitted into the school of success
There is only one person responsible for the quality of life you live. That person is you.
One of the most critical realities of life you must accept is the fact that you are responsible for your life. Everybody has their life to live, including your parents. There is a limit to how far they can assist you in the journey of life. They can pay your fees but they can’t pass your exams for you. They can buy you books but they can’t read them for you. Government can provide infrastructure such as light, water, good roads and the likes, but you are ultimately responsible for making the best of those amenities for your good.
By accepting responsibility I mean that you are to be held accountable for the quality of life you are currently living - whether or not your life is working and whether or not you are maximizing your potential; not your parents, government or your educational background.
A lot of young people have become accustomed to blaming other people for the state of their lives, but you have been given a great opportunity by God to make your life an inspiring example of possibilities. It is your responsibility to be who you really want to be. Nobody can stop you; you have what it takes.
