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Brand You: Turn Your Unique Talents Into a Winning Formula
You already have a brand. As Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, once said, "Your brand is what people say about you when you are not in the room."
The best way to market yourself is to build your brand.
This book will show you how to:
-Identify your unique talents and turn them into a winning formula.
-Identify your values and your unique combination of skills and experience.
-Discover your purpose.
-Build a strong brand identity.
-Make sure employers, clients and customers remember you. When they have a need, they will ask for you.
John Purkiss is an executive search consultant and a regular speaker on personal and professional development. He was a Partner with Heidrick & Struggles prior to co-founding Purkiss & Company.
David Royston-Lee is a business psychologist and a senior executive career and personal coach. He was Head of Career Management Services at KPMG and Human Resources Director of Ogilvy & Mather prior to founding Partners in Flow.
The best way to market yourself is to build your brand.
This book will show you how to:
-Identify your unique talents and turn them into a winning formula.
-Identify your values and your unique combination of skills and experience.
-Discover your purpose.
-Build a strong brand identity.
-Make sure employers, clients and customers remember you. When they have a need, they will ask for you.
John Purkiss is an executive search consultant and a regular speaker on personal and professional development. He was a Partner with Heidrick & Struggles prior to co-founding Purkiss & Company.
David Royston-Lee is a business psychologist and a senior executive career and personal coach. He was Head of Career Management Services at KPMG and Human Resources Director of Ogilvy & Mather prior to founding Partners in Flow.
196 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 4, 2009
51 people are currently reading
236 people want to read
About the author
John Purkiss
3 books40 followersDespite having studied and worked hard, I got completely stuck. Nothing in my life was working. Then I learned to meditate and the situation improved rapidly. Within six months I had a highly-paid job with one of the world's largest executive search (headhunting) firms.
I noticed that many of the people I met were trying to market themselves (to me) but didn't know how. Having become a partner, I co-founded a new firm and began writing books. The first was 'How To Be Headhunted'.
Most people are never headhunted. They get promoted, or answer an advertisement or find a job through personal contacts. Many people are self-employed. Some are non-executive directors, sitting on the boards of several companies. This led to my second book, 'Brand You', which is designed to help everyone to discover their purpose/mission and market themselves effectively.
In recent years I've been struck by how many people find life difficult. It's usually because they're trying to do everything through mental and physical effort - as I did. Fortunately, there's an alternative, which is much more productive and enjoyable. My new book is called 'The Power of Letting Go'. It was published in the UK and the USA in 2020, and has just been translated into Spanish.
I noticed that many of the people I met were trying to market themselves (to me) but didn't know how. Having become a partner, I co-founded a new firm and began writing books. The first was 'How To Be Headhunted'.
Most people are never headhunted. They get promoted, or answer an advertisement or find a job through personal contacts. Many people are self-employed. Some are non-executive directors, sitting on the boards of several companies. This led to my second book, 'Brand You', which is designed to help everyone to discover their purpose/mission and market themselves effectively.
In recent years I've been struck by how many people find life difficult. It's usually because they're trying to do everything through mental and physical effort - as I did. Fortunately, there's an alternative, which is much more productive and enjoyable. My new book is called 'The Power of Letting Go'. It was published in the UK and the USA in 2020, and has just been translated into Spanish.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
May 13, 2021
I like how they incorporated journal prompts to get you thinking about where your interests are and how you want to present yourself. It seemed more geared for corporate jobs and parts of the social media sections have become outdated. Overall a good starting place to develop your personal brand.
September 4, 2012
The notion of this book is that it's not aimed squarely and solely at business owners. You don't have to be the CEO of an organisation or business; it's relevant if you're an employee too, applying for jobs, or wanting to further your career and stand out. With the economy not in it's best shape, this is about trying to find ways of "marketing" yourself and stand out from the crowd. It's a book that actually job hunters and business owners can all benefit from.
The book has a few excellent areas especially with regards to the exercises. I've always struggled with the concept of "values" and "talents" and more importantly, "authenticity" when they're bandied around in other books. Is it just about saying "I'm not going to do that because I don't like it", or "I'm going to be as sincere as I can be"? This book actually identifies what those words mean, and offers exercises to help the reader work out their talents, values and authentic views.
The exercise of identifying archetypes is also useful - how you can find your "archtype" role, how you can use that to your advantage and further, the language you can adopt to portray that archetype and encourage clients confidence.
It will help you to identify your Unique Selling Point. One of the best pieces of advice, is that a USP isn't about being cheaper, because that's not unique if everyone else could do it too if they wanted.
There's also some excellent advice about pricing, about negotiating prices or payments with clients or prospective employers. The value of not underpricing, and being reassuringly expensive.
It's a bit dry to start with, but the opening quote from Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon, is probably one of the most memorable and effective opening lines: your brand is what people say about you when you are not in the room.
That's not to say the book doesn't have a few bits which I feel could have been left out, or feel a bit "tacked on". The areas about karma, or the laws of attraction, flow... I appreciate them, but it's things I remain a bit skeptical about. On the plus side, they're only briefly mentioned, so it's not that the book takes a diversion route down the roads I'd personally attribute to self-help gurus and life coaches. I suppose they mention it as a means of making sure there's no areas left undiscussed.
The chapter about being famous... again, my personal inner skeptic comes to the forefront reading this. The lines about improving presence so "have a website, make sure it has good search engine optimisation.", just feel a bit tacked on. Again, it feels like the writers want to make sure they mention it, but it feels more like it's a checked tick-box in things they think you should know, and didn't want to stand accused of not covering.
Unlike some books about branding, this is very much a British approach. So there's no overstated, book-the-fireworks-and-dancing-girls, Americana in this; you won't read it thinking "but if I do those things, I'll feel fraudulent and a bit of a wally"; it's calm, achievable, and applicable to a British workforce and clientele. You can do the things they suggest, build a "brand" around yourself without feeling that it's forced or fake.
Overall though, I enjoyed this book, and its exercises immensely. I like the list of recommended reading at the end, I think that's something that offers possibilities for exploring certain areas further
The book has a few excellent areas especially with regards to the exercises. I've always struggled with the concept of "values" and "talents" and more importantly, "authenticity" when they're bandied around in other books. Is it just about saying "I'm not going to do that because I don't like it", or "I'm going to be as sincere as I can be"? This book actually identifies what those words mean, and offers exercises to help the reader work out their talents, values and authentic views.
The exercise of identifying archetypes is also useful - how you can find your "archtype" role, how you can use that to your advantage and further, the language you can adopt to portray that archetype and encourage clients confidence.
It will help you to identify your Unique Selling Point. One of the best pieces of advice, is that a USP isn't about being cheaper, because that's not unique if everyone else could do it too if they wanted.
There's also some excellent advice about pricing, about negotiating prices or payments with clients or prospective employers. The value of not underpricing, and being reassuringly expensive.
It's a bit dry to start with, but the opening quote from Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon, is probably one of the most memorable and effective opening lines: your brand is what people say about you when you are not in the room.
That's not to say the book doesn't have a few bits which I feel could have been left out, or feel a bit "tacked on". The areas about karma, or the laws of attraction, flow... I appreciate them, but it's things I remain a bit skeptical about. On the plus side, they're only briefly mentioned, so it's not that the book takes a diversion route down the roads I'd personally attribute to self-help gurus and life coaches. I suppose they mention it as a means of making sure there's no areas left undiscussed.
The chapter about being famous... again, my personal inner skeptic comes to the forefront reading this. The lines about improving presence so "have a website, make sure it has good search engine optimisation.", just feel a bit tacked on. Again, it feels like the writers want to make sure they mention it, but it feels more like it's a checked tick-box in things they think you should know, and didn't want to stand accused of not covering.
Unlike some books about branding, this is very much a British approach. So there's no overstated, book-the-fireworks-and-dancing-girls, Americana in this; you won't read it thinking "but if I do those things, I'll feel fraudulent and a bit of a wally"; it's calm, achievable, and applicable to a British workforce and clientele. You can do the things they suggest, build a "brand" around yourself without feeling that it's forced or fake.
Overall though, I enjoyed this book, and its exercises immensely. I like the list of recommended reading at the end, I think that's something that offers possibilities for exploring certain areas further
September 8, 2019
A guide to developing your 'own brand'.
I found this densely written but lacking any real detail.
Reading time around two hours.
I found this densely written but lacking any real detail.
Reading time around two hours.
March 1, 2018
Skvělý úvod do archetypů, důležitosti značky a jednotlivých pohledů na prospěch značky v podnikání (zaměstnání či navazování kontaktů). Kniha byla protkaná cvičeními pro zjištění vlastních hodnot a práci s vlastní značkou. Pro mě byla nejzajímavější část o slovech, která evokují určitý osobnostní archetyp. Docela čtivá, zároveň docelá staršího data vydání – což jde v kontextu knihy poznat. Doporučuji přečist (např. místo Tomáše Lukavce a jeho "Jsi značka?"). Podle mě nebylo téma ve "vytvořte si vlastní značku" probráno do dostatečné hloubky. Vyzkouším ještě přečíst "Hrdina nebo psanec".
June 12, 2013
http://m360.sim.edu.sg/article/Pages/...
Issue 2 Today's Manager
Rebrand Yourself and Succeed
BRANDING is an important part of business, regardless of whether it is for personal or corporate branding. This book helps readers rebrand themselves in order to stand out from the crowd. This is crucial in today’s fast-paced society where there is so much information vying for attention.
The authors give advice on how to be more visible in the markets you deal with. Another important aspect of the book is how brand image can be maximised using social media platforms.
This book is useful because of its various exercises and case studies. They help readers absorb information while learning to apply methods to improve their brand. The helpfulness of the book far outweighs the one concern for this reviewer. That concern is that readers may think that by following the book, their brand instantly improves. Think about it. If everyone read the book and did the same thing, we may end up having to compete for attention again. The reader could consider using certain key aspects, pace the chapters, and execution.
This is definitely worth the read as it will make you look at yourself as a brand, beyond the company you work for or own. For small business owners, this may be the branding book that will help you increase your company’s and your own brand presence.
Copyright © 2013 Singapore Institute of Management
Issue 2 Today's Manager
Rebrand Yourself and Succeed
BRANDING is an important part of business, regardless of whether it is for personal or corporate branding. This book helps readers rebrand themselves in order to stand out from the crowd. This is crucial in today’s fast-paced society where there is so much information vying for attention.
The authors give advice on how to be more visible in the markets you deal with. Another important aspect of the book is how brand image can be maximised using social media platforms.
This book is useful because of its various exercises and case studies. They help readers absorb information while learning to apply methods to improve their brand. The helpfulness of the book far outweighs the one concern for this reviewer. That concern is that readers may think that by following the book, their brand instantly improves. Think about it. If everyone read the book and did the same thing, we may end up having to compete for attention again. The reader could consider using certain key aspects, pace the chapters, and execution.
This is definitely worth the read as it will make you look at yourself as a brand, beyond the company you work for or own. For small business owners, this may be the branding book that will help you increase your company’s and your own brand presence.
Copyright © 2013 Singapore Institute of Management
November 10, 2015
Didn't do the exercises so don't feel it would be fair to give a star rating based on an incomplete impression.
What I will say is that the book's best ideas are condensed into the first half at most. Unfortunately it all goes a bit downhill and loses focus, trying to catch all the fish with one net, as it were, glossing over such broad strokes as "should I become famous?" and "why unity and meditation is important".
In a nutshell: Be authentic, don't contradict yourself regardless of communication medium, don't set your fees from a position of scarcity (ie: be "reassuringly expensive" insofar as it can be justified).
The specific sections on social media and public speaking are serviceable, but no new wisdom to be found here for anyone halfway familiar with the mediums.
What I will say is that the book's best ideas are condensed into the first half at most. Unfortunately it all goes a bit downhill and loses focus, trying to catch all the fish with one net, as it were, glossing over such broad strokes as "should I become famous?" and "why unity and meditation is important".
In a nutshell: Be authentic, don't contradict yourself regardless of communication medium, don't set your fees from a position of scarcity (ie: be "reassuringly expensive" insofar as it can be justified).
The specific sections on social media and public speaking are serviceable, but no new wisdom to be found here for anyone halfway familiar with the mediums.
July 13, 2014
I have to stop reading this book. I'm also reading "A New Earth" by Eckhart Tolle, and it is in DIRECT contrast to "Brand You". Tolle says "Give up defining yourself - to yourself and to others. You won't die. You will come to life. And don't be concerned with how others define you."
"Brand You" is 100 % about defining myself and my "brand", about "what people will say about me when I'm not in the room."
I choose Tolle's perspective.
"Brand You" is 100 % about defining myself and my "brand", about "what people will say about me when I'm not in the room."
I choose Tolle's perspective.
December 13, 2012
Even though it took me a long, long time to read (and I really have no idea why), this book is quite interesting and useful. Lots of exercises to identify and strengthen the brand "you". I especially loved the chapter on archetypes and how they fit into your work life. Pleasant reading with lots to think about.
March 29, 2016
This is a most enlightening book and would be useful both as a top up for people already well down the marketing road and as a helpful introduction for those of us just venturing into the arena. Full of essential information on all aspects of creating and maintaining an authentic and attractive personal and / or business Brand. I am actually reading it now for the second time in two weeks.
October 8, 2011
"only takes two days to read but an interesting subject on how to Brand yourself and your image. Good stories on Beckham, Bezos on lot of other people. still I have said before still looking for the best Brand yourself book out there
October 16, 2012
The book is filled with information, but the book is boring.
July 3, 2013
A must read if you want to get somewhere with your life.
April 28, 2017
This is the most useful book I have read about personal branding so far.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews