I recently sat down with the lovely Anthony Gell, the founder of the online platform Leaders In (a platform that showcases the opinions and views of some of the ‘world’s greatest leaders’ – I mean seriously! What an honour to be featured there!!!!).

Anyway, we discussed all sorts of things such as accidental entrepreneurship, online success and visibility, blogging, entrepreneurship and personal branding. 

And over the next few weeks, I’ll share some short snippets with you, starting with this one about personal branding.

The term branding has long been linked to companies, but today almost every individual has a personal brand. Building a personal brand one of the keys to getting yourself noticed, standing apart from the competition and leaping ahead of competitors. You can’t build a personal brand overnight, but you can start by outlining two key elements.

What do you want your personal brand to say about you?

When I started my previous online business Talk to the Press, I realised that no one really trusted journalists. So if  I wanted to build a company that people relied and trusted I would have to do somethign different, and that would be pushing forward my personal brand into the forefront of the company message.

I thought if I can show I am a nice, honest, kind person, then I can build the integrity of my company – that is when I really started to learn about the value and importance of a good personal brand. Your personal profile can enhance your company: just look at business leaders such as Branson and Dyson.

Have a mission statement that is bigger than you are and bigger than you can ever achieve

Having a mission statement makes you more memorable and makes you stand out from your competition. People with strong brands are clear about who they are, what they value, what their strengths are and what their mission is. They know what they know about and who they can help.

For example my mission statement is: “I want to help every business and person become better known for what they do.”

In reality I probably won’t achieve this – I mean, helping everyone. That’s not going to happen. But leading with a mission statement gives me purpose and helps other people understand me quicker and more easily.

However, it’s no use you just knowing your mission, other people need to know it too. So clarify it on your about page, in your posts, in your online profiles and across social media, and seek opportunities that allow you to showcase and demonstrate your strengths.

See my full interview on the Leaders In website.