DIY Personal Brand Strategy - 22 Questions to answer

As the saying goes … if you want better answers, you need to ask better questions. This is exactly what the role of a coach is all about: getting their clients to think differently by asking questions that they may not have asked themselves and/or that are uncomfortable. No matter if you’re starting building your Personal Brand or want to rebrand - this blog post is for you to get you started with building your DIY strategy 

Just between us: are you where you want to be?

If so - congrats!! 

If not - why not?

What is the reason you’re not there (yet)?

The reasons that probably pop in your mind may be that the timing is not right, there are other financial priorities to tackle first, you don’t have enough [fill in the blanks].

WHatever it may be - there is a way to fast-track your results and that is by learning how to look at a challenge or situations from a different angle. Because the reason why we haven’t been successful yet or haven’t been able to tackle a big challenge is that we haven’t been triggered to do so. This is (one of many things) I absolutely love being a coach: teaching my clients not only the ‘what’ but most importantly the ‘why’ because that means that the skills they develop working with me are life-long skills and they can apply those over and over.

Over the last few weeks, we have been joined by some incredible guests on the show to talk about reinventing, disrupting and leading their profession/ industry.

Why?

Because we all face more and more change and learning how to be adaptable is probably the most critical skill set for you, no matter which industry or profession you’re in.

Since launching my new offer in June, the full day VIP experience with some intensive pre- and post work,, I’ve also been running a ton of brand strategy workshops, to help my clients bridge the gap quicker from where they are to where they want to be.

I’m not going to sugar coat it … it’s quite an intense and tedious process because developing a personal brand strategy - as any other strategy - doesn’t follow a straight line. There are ups and downs, insights and realisations that may have not been clear beforehand and in the second our brain encounters change, we of course, put our hair up and try to fight it.

We humans don’t make decisions logically. We make them based on emotions and this is unfortunately also the biggest reason why we don’t get the results we want because as much as they drive us to do something, they also prevent us from taking actions because of fear. We are talking and walking creatures who say one thing, like ‘wanting to post more on LinkedIn and build thought leadership’ or ‘changing profession/ industry’ but acting in another way, like making excuses that ‘I don’t know what to post on LinkedIn’ or ‘no one is really interested in what I have to say’ or ‘my role pays well and it isn’t that bad’ … 

Does any of that sound familiar?

Then don’t worry- been there (way too many times also), and know how hard it is to get away from the known and face the unknown.

This is also the thing that excites me the most working with my clients because it isn’t as easy as branding and marketing products or services for that reason. Psychology plays a massive role in the equation and seeing when it ‘clicks’ and my clients don’t just get the excitement and spark back that many have lost but also get the financial rewards that is associated with it, is just another level of satisfaction.

Coaching gets you to learn how to be more objective, how to solve problems with a different mindset than what created it and making things obvious that have been grainy in the past.

A session that I ran only last week was exactly all of the above.

An incredible accounting duo has lost their interest and passion for their business and obviously that also resulted in low-paying clients and a decreasing number of them which put a lot of pressure on them. When we started the strategy day, the energy was low and the only vibe I got was ‘I just give up’. By late morning, when we clarified not only what excited them in the first place about getting into the profession and what they would love to do also without getting paid but the value they can create for small business owners that goes beyond the compliance aspect of accounting - I tell you, it was electric. The next few hours were just flying by because based on that initial spark and aha effect, the creativity was flowing and by the end of the day, we not only defined a clear (and premium) value proposition but also simplified their commercialisation model with only offering 3 distinct packaged services with a higher price than they had charged to date. I had my follow up call with them yesterday and they told me that they immediately raised the price for 3 of their retainer clients by nearly 30% and their clients didn't even blink.

That’s the power of realising your value, realising how your unique competitive advantage can add value to others that they’re happy to not only pay for but pay a premium for.

No matter if you’re in the starting phase of your personal brand and you want to build a portfolio career and/or commercial solutions around it or you want to rebrand because you’re ready to change direction and step into a new or different industry or profession, work through the 22 questions (feel free to pause in between) and I promise you, you’ll trigger a new way of thinking., You may not have all the answers straight away but our brain is wired to find the answers so you’ll start looking for those in other ways that you used to. Again - this is the power of coaching that helps you rewire your brain so you can get the results you want.

If you’re interested in getting more accountability an personalised support - then I’ve got great news for you: I know that it’s not in everyone’s budget to hire me to run VIP strategy days with them which is why I’ve reworked my Authority Brand Accelerator and will relaunch it again for a live intake in September. Over 3 very comprehensive modules and weekly live calls, you will get the exact blueprint how to clarify, communicate and commercialise your personal brand so you can increase your influence, income and impact. If that sounds right up your alley, then hop over to impaccct.com/authority-brand for all the details.

But for now, let’s get your DIY strategy started and work through the 22 questions.

1.) How did you get to where you’re now?

2.) What do you love doing (and would you do, even without getting paid?)

3.) What are some of the results you’ve achieved and you’re super proud of?

4.) What is it that others come to you for already (inside and outside your official role)?

5.) What’s been a turning point in your life (personally or professionally) that got you thinking differently/ What’s a challenge you’ve overcome? (Brand Story)

6.) What’s a quirky characteristic of yours?

7.) WHat do you stand for and what do you not stand for?

8.) What does success look like for you (and how do you know you’re on the right track)?

9.) What big changes have you seen in your profession/ industry over the last 12 months?

10.) What’s a common method/ approach/ belief/ tool etc that is used in your industry/ profession 

11. Who or what has had an impact on you, your thinking, your way of solving a problem (and why do you admire them)?

12.) Who do you enjoy working with the most (and why? What are their traits, characteristics, topics they discuss …)?

13.) What is their biggest challenge that you can support them with?

14.) What type of content/ topic do you enjoy consuming (and why)?

15.) When you think of the impression/ impact you want to make, which 3 words come to mind that you want to be known for?

16.) How do those 3 words translate into colours?

17.) If people you don’t know (yet) but are your ideal decision makers see your online footprint only once, what is it that a) you want time to remember and b) how much aligned is it to your current footprint?

18.) Which 3 trends excite you most (and why)?

19.) If you could choose how to make money, what would be your preferred way?

20.) Do you have a proven, repeatable and predictable way to create the results / the impact you want to be known for?

21.) Would you hire yourself / buy from yourself based on what you see from your research about you?

22.) What are 3 actions you can take to bridge the gap today and that get you closer to your goal?