Branding yourself isn’t just for people already in, or pursuing, a career in marketing. Whether you realize it or not, you are marketing your personal brand every single day to everyone you meet or encounter in your classes and even at work. The personal branding process starts with who you want to be as a person, which can be whoever you want I might add! So take a step back, look at what you really want out of life and start building your personal brand with this foundation. Here are five steps to help you begin thinking about and creating your very own personal brand:

1.)    Define who you want to be as a person, know what you want out of life!

2.)    Identify your personal skills and ownable attributes (the ones you have now or the ones you want to acquire over time).

3.)    Make sure you can excel at each of those skills and attributes.

4.)    Determine whether you can use them to differentiate yourself from others.

5.)    Consider if these skills will bring you success and happiness over the course of your life (the most important part).

Once you have some of these things in mind, begin to think of all the areas in your life that you want success. Of course this would include your career but also think about your social life, relationships, children, and so on. Remember that your personal brand should be aspirational, so what you want out of life, not necessarily where you are right now. This is just a start but it should guide down the right path for personal branding success!

posted by Carly Larson, Career Assistant