After creating and using Your Brilliant Difference for 10+ years within client workshops, I’m finally calling it what it is: an unconventional personal branding method that rewrites the script for personal brand work as we know it and sets a new tone for career growth. Personal branding is a powerful tool for career advancement when done right. I’ve seen night-and-day transformations within my clients (70% greater communication efficiency, 3.6x more confidence in selling their ideas and offers) but that’s because Your Brilliant Difference Branding is completely different from traditional methods. Learn how you can use personal branding for career success with a method that actually works. With a method that actually gets you seen, valued, recognized, and promoted.
For an in-depth personal-branding experience that won’t shortchange your results and will help you uncover and use Your Brilliant Difference Brand, join me for my upcoming keynote: How to Move from Mid-Level to Next-Level in Your Career with Your Brilliant Difference Brand.
What is Personal Branding and Why Should You Prioritize It in Your Career?
In its essence, personal branding is about designing your public-facing identity, including elements like your image, story, convictions, and positioning. It has a massive impact on how well you lead, influence, and inspire people.
According to a trend report from Brand Builders: “82% of all Americans agree that ‘companies are more influential if their executives have a personal brand that they know and follow.’”
82%!
Now, if you’ve gone through personal branding work and are thinking, “I haven’t seen an 82% increase in my influence,” I’ll tell you why.
Chances are, you went through traditional branding practices, which aren’t wrong, but there’s definitely a better way to do it.
Traditional Personal Branding vs. Your Brilliant Difference Branding
Traditional personal branding isn’t wholly bad. It’s got good bones, but there’s a better way to do it that actually gets you to the results you desire, such as:
- Promotions.
- Value and recognition.
- Confidence and certainty about your career path.
- Fulfilling and purposeful work that aligns with your integrity.
- Amplified leadership and executive presence.
- Crystal clarity about your unique strengths and talents.
You deserve all that and more! So, let’s dive into how traditional personal branding differs from Your Brilliant Difference Branding.
Traditional Personal Branding
The difference between traditional personal branding and Your Brilliant Difference Branding all comes down to the approach and execution.
The Approach
The typical approach of personal branding centres you: who you are, what you do, why you do what you do. This is good. Afterall, you are the foundation of your brand. However, with the focus only being you, it limits your results. I’ll explain it in a moment.
The Execution
After you’ve uncovered your special sauce, typically you’ll then look at how to put your personal brand out into the world, both online and in-person. The execution typically looks like updating your LinkedIn profile and starting your thought leadership presence through blogging, podcasting, or writing. Again, this is a fantastic start, but this alone won’t get you the results you yearn for.
Your Brilliant Difference Branding
The Approach
While Your Brilliant Difference Branding does start with you, it quickly transitions into the impact you create for people you work with.
- Brilliance = your unique talents, skills, and convictions
- Difference = the impact you create for others and how you deliver that impact
Your Brilliant Difference Branding always starts with the foundation of who you are, but it focuses more on who you help, and the transformations people go through because of how you help them through your personal brand.
The Execution
Your Brilliant Difference Branding also focuses on leveraging and growing your thought leadership. BUT it doesn’t stop there. A LinkedIn post and profile update is a great start, but it won’t get you promoted. We take it to the next level with Edge Moves, by actually putting your personal brand into action that will have you recognized and valued by the people you work with. To apply your personal brand and get transformative career results, you need to hit the ground running where you are and start making meaningful change.
How My Brilliant Difference Brand Pulled Me From Rock Bottom
I was being micro-managed. I was working 12-hour days. I was constantly obsessing over sales results.
To be completely honest, this was a point in my life and my career where I was feeling completely stuck and unfulfilled. Not only was my work sending me into anxiety spirals, but it was bleeding havoc into my home life.
At this point, I was Josie the banker. And I dreaded it.
But when I got into an HR position where leadership was open to me trying new things, I was excited—excited to support people in their roles and careers, and eager to finally realign with my values and the impact I knew I had the potential to create.
It was within this role where I tested out Your Brilliant Difference workshops, helping people uncover their statements and stories.
Of course, I put myself through this work too.
I made the most of this role to shape my Brilliant Difference and set the tone for my business, Finka Inc.
By uncovering my Brilliant Difference and living it through my work, I was no longer Josie, but Finka, my true Croatian name.
I was no longer being micro-managed; I was leading my own business and clients.
I was no longer working 12-hour days; I got to build my own schedule.
I was no longer obsessing over results; I was appreciative of client transformations.
I was finally living a career that I knew I was born to work in.
It’s Time to Use Your Brilliant Difference Branding to Achieve the Career Results You Most Desire
So, the biggest difference between traditional personal branding and Your Brilliant Difference Branding? YBD Branding goes a step further, helping you take action that gets you noticed and promoted. When you use Your Brilliant Difference as a personal branding strategy, you’re not saying, “Look at me and what I do,” you’re saying, “Here’s the transformation you deserve and here’s how I can help you.”
