Rebranding Yourself - Image

Do you think you are taken seriously, are you considered? What image do others see in you? Or, in other words, what is your brand? According to marketers, a brand is a set of positive associations that are deposited in the mind. This tangle of associations creates uniqueness. What associations are associated with you? And do they correspond to your views, character, lifestyle?

Our "brand" shapes our environment, the attitude of people towards us, and our success in what we do. Just because you haven't done anything specifically to build and maintain your personal brand doesn't mean it doesn't exist. And before you start rebranding yourself, you first need to find out what your brand is.

HOW TO IDENTIFY YOUR BRAND?

In journalism and psychology, there is such a type of research as content analysis. Take, for example, a newspaper and calculate the frequency of using certain words. And according to this indicator, an analysis of the content of the publication is made. So, for example, if a publication often contains the words "fashionable", "stylish", "topical" - perhaps this publication has a very glamorous brand, unlike a publication where the words "political party" are the most frequently encountered.

Similarly, you can do content analysis yourself. Try to analyze what you usually talk about, what words you use most often, what books you pay attention to. During my first "rebranding" content analysis revealed an interesting picture. It became clear that, despite the fact that I wanted to be perceived as an attractive woman, I behaved like a blue stocking. I talked exclusively about work, read Nietzsche and Fromm. Who can perceive such a being as a woman?

When do you need a rebranding? Something happened to you: a divorce, a job change, and you want to feel like a different person. You want to start making more money abruptly. It seems to you that the husband began to look to the side, and you ceased to be interesting to him. You want to change your social circle, because you understand that you have already grown out of the existing one. It seems to you that you have ceased to be taken seriously and reckoned with. Finally, you are simply bored with your life.

THE SOUL OF THE COMPANY OR A FAITHFUL FRIEND?

Before embarking on a brand change, you should think it over very well. It is important to understand what you want to promote, by what signs should you be recognized? Try doing a little meditation, relaxing in whatever way you like best: either go for a walk, or lie down with your eyes closed. It is important that there is silence and a fairly neutral atmosphere around. Start talking to yourself about your unique qualities that you want to broadcast to others.

Next, make a list of these qualities. For example, you can write: “I am physically strong” or “I have perfect pitch”, “I have a talent for getting along with people”, “I can cook a fantastic barbecue” or even “I can park as masterly as none of my friends ". Write down at least twenty such qualities. There can be both global, value qualities, for example, "I am able to empathize" or "I am a faithful friend," and very specific. For example, "I am a master of quarterly reports" and even "I am brilliant at the simplified form of taxation." After that, you choose those qualities that you would like to broadcast to the outside world. There will be less than twenty of them. Then you choose those that are truly unique and can distinguish you from those around you.

Now you can relax and dream up about this topic. Think about what associations this word evokes in you, what images? It could be certain music. When you think about one image, a march will appear in your head, about another - a waltz, and sometimes even Tuvan throat singing.

Pay attention to the style of clothing: there are no unnecessary details in the rebranding. Its main law is to associate an image with something repetitive - an accessory, color, word, nickname or character trait. In one company with which I worked for quite a long time, there was a manager - a man who never parted with a pipe. Even when he did not smoke it - you cannot smoke during the training - he still carried it with him. Therefore, when asked where Gennady Ilyich was, people who were new to him shrugged their shoulders. But it was worth clarifying: "Where is this imposing man with a pipe?" - everyone instantly explained where he was.

DO NOT RIP

If you liked the image of a person with a pipe, do not rush to run after the pipe. First you need to understand what we want to broadcast. And if you say: “Why am I going to think about my brand, change it? This is bullshit!" - then do not complain that you are perceived as an aunt in slippers with limited intelligence, or as a person who “thank God for everything” and who cannot be trusted with anything, or as an employee who loves paperwork and does not know how to work with people.

By the way, we had an employee who was called that “aunt in slippers”. She worked as a chief accountant, was rightly considered a competent specialist, but when she came to work, she changed into ordinary slippers with backdrops, like her grandmother's. The slippers did their job. When the company was completely computerized, it met face to face with its brand. They put her computer and hooked up the system last. She was outraged: a laptop equipped with modern accounting software had traveled in her briefcase a long time ago. However, the slippers distorted information about their mistress, making her a "grandmother from the last century" for those around her.

SHOCK IS NOT OUR METHOD

So, the moment has come when you have a very specific goal, and … you can make a major rebranding and really surprise others. But shock is not our method, because it causes a negative reaction. The main principle of rebranding is that the brand change should take place gradually! Just start showing and emphasizing one thing and don't support the other.

Another classic example of rebranding is shock therapy. Remember how "our mymra" from "Office Romance" suddenly became a beauty? The reaction of those around was amazement: what is it with her? But, remember, she was preparing! She asked the secretary "what they are wearing now", how she looks and what they say about her.

So no sudden movements! First, buy CDs with classical music in your car, then tell them that you managed to get to the performance, which is designed for intellectuals, then subtly demonstrate that you carry in your bag not only novels for women, but also thick serious books.

Don't try to argue! If you prove: "No, I'm not at all the man who is obsessed with ladies' novels!" - you will only support this gluing "Masha and ladies' novels".

Start gradually wearing skirts and people will notice that you have legs. By the way, when you form a brand, buying clothes and accessories will cost you much less than chaotic shopping. Not only that, you will greatly facilitate the life of friends who will not have problems with gifts for you.

If you notice that your brand is not broadcasting what you would like, it means that it needs to be changed again.