The most recent incident was a friend from college passed away. I have not kept in touch with him since before we graduated, therefore his death is not personal, but rather philosophic. I read his online obituary. He was the same age as me. It listed his education, current job, hobbies, relatives. All the basic stuff.
It made me wonder what would be said about me if I were to die. Sure, the basic stats -- birth and death dates, family (including the names of all my great-grandchildren, of course), perhaps education. What then? I won't be here to write my own obituary. What will someone else deem important enough about me to share with the rest of the world for posterity?
This then made me think of a networking meeting I went to a week ago. The topic was branding -- as in making sure people know about our brand, not as in leaving a mark on cattle.
One speaker talked about the importance of getting the word out there about what your business does. As a sole business person, what people think of me (my perceived image) is my brand. He was so adamant about working on his branding image that he refused to share with us the labels he does not want associated with himself.
If someone were to describe me, what words would they use? Here are a few words that might come to mind:
Mom
Wife
Daughter
Runner
Librarian
Disney Fan
Writer
Photographer
Friend
Volunteer
Actor
Blogger
Traveler
Christian
Not a bad list. Perhaps you could add to it.
However, as I form my business, I would rather my professional list look more like this:
Memoir writer
Photographer
Journalist
By keeping the list short, it is easier for people to remember and for me to get the word out about what I do, and what I want to do.
Over the next few months I want to work on branding my image through the use of social media. We'll see by Christmas how well I have done with reinventing my brand in the eyes of others.
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