Cynthia Johnson - Platform: The Art and Science of Personal Branding

EPILOGUE
YOUR PERSONAL BRAND NEEDS A GROWTH STRATEGY

Lets say you have already reached the place where you have a brand message, a website, media, your own byline; you are speaking at events, and your social media is on its way. You are the top person to call when someone needs a wealth manager, a real-estate agent, a doctor, a life coach, a commercial actor, or whatever you are. Congratulations!but now what? Thats right: whats next? You cant keep doing the same thing over and over. You will get bored, the world will change, and so will your audience.

Think about what happens when child actors grow up, and their audiences grow up, too. When I was young, I was obsessed with Lance Bass from NSYNC. I watched all of the bands videos and bought all of their CDs (yes, CDs). Now that Ive grown up, the only NSYNC member who has remained relevant is Justin Timberlake. He got into tech investing with Myspace, he started acting and producing, he had a solo music career, and he kept on changing. He changed his appearance, his message, and the way he delivered his message. Miley Cyrus is another great example: she went from country to outrageous overnight. That was the right next move for her personal brand to make. Were people concerned? Yes. Were they upset? Yes. Did they get over it? Of course they did.

When you are ready to grow your brand, evolve, and move on to the next thing, it is crucial that you do it all at once. If you try to gradually implement change for your brand, you will create confusion and inconsistency. You have to plan the change and then make it happen quickly. Go back to the drawing board, and think about where you are now and where you want to go. Create a new brand statement, a new look for your website, and updated bios that emphasize the new you. When you are all preparedboom! You change everything in a day. Just like that, you flip a switch. People will definitely noticethey always doand they will have opinions about your new image. But you have to trust your gut and remember that you are not living for anyone elses amusement. The reason you need to make such a fast transition is to avoid confusion.

Get out of your safety bubble. There are people who have no idea who you are. The longer you sit in the small world of influence you have created around yourself, the more out of touch you will become. Dont hang on to that job you quit four years ago. Dont speak at the same conferences every year on the same topics. Change it up. Every industry changes, even yours. If you keep speaking as a topic expert about something that you and your industry have outgrown, you are no better than the political pundits who have no real experience in politics.

Dont sit back and watch less-experienced people take your seat at the table. If you are more experienced, more knowledgeable, and more qualified, then you wont have to compete for a seat at the table. But you will have to ask for one. Dont practice humility so much that you become prideful in your humility. The world needs more real experts to be heard so that fewer fake experts can be heard.

When you settle into that new area of expertise, it will be a shock to your system, because you will realize that not everyone knows who you are. Some of the people are new, the conversation has shifted, and you find yourself feeling as if you are starting over. You will want to run back to that safe place, but dont do it. If you have a preexisting brand, pivoting to grow your brand and your reach is not starting over: it is expanding your network. Before you know it, the question you will hear most often is, What do you do now? People will always ask that question whenever they see someone who has multiple exemplary career paths.

NOTES

Chapter One

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Chapter Two

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Chapter Three

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Chapter Six

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Gordon W. Allport and Leo Postman. The Psychology of Rumor, Henry Holt and Company (New York, NY: 1947).

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Chapter Seven

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Chapter Ten

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