Want to control how others see you & speak about you when you are not in the room? Check out this step-by-step guide to personal branding, inspired by and adapted by content from Dux Raymond Sy, Miri Rodriguez & Dona Sarkar.
1. Personal
Branding
Presented by Melissa Sassi
Chief Penguin, IBM Z
Entrepreneur & Student Experience
@mentorafrika
How to control your own
narrative in 5 easy steps.
*Inspired & adapted from content by by Dux Raymond Sy, Dona Sarkar & Miri Rodriguez*
2. If you follow these 5 Steps...
you will create your own
Personal Brand
and control how others see and describe
you when you're not in the room.
3. STEP 1
FIND YOUR SUPERPOWER & OWN YOUR (NOT SO SECRET) WEAPON!
Google yourself. What are you known for?
What's unique about you? What's the one thing
you're known for?
Focus on your strength. Be authentic, credible &
transparent.
Google
yourself!
Know yourself!
Be you!
4. STEP 2
ALWAYS KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE. WHO'S LISTENING?
Don't apply the same language everywhere you go &
with everyone.
Be your authentic self. Don't be afraid to be
vulnerable. Tell relevant stories.
Always act with empathy & be prepared to teach &
inspire others.
Speak!
Share & Write!
Just Be!
5. STEP 3
BE THERE & CONSISTENT. JUST SHOW UP!
Take part in social media, create content & take
part in events.
Build useful messaging & stick with that message.
Create your own website. Manage it. Control your
message with your own mediums.
Be Present!
Be useful!
Build your
Brand!
6. STEP 4
WHO ARE YOUR INDUSTRY PEERS? ENAGE WITH THEM!
Set goals to expand your network & actually do
it. Don't just talk about it.
Be proactive when meeting someone new. Follow-up
right away.
Be prepared to learn from others & share. Help
others. Be a friend.
Network!
Follow up!
Lend a helping
hand!
7. STEP 5
BUILD UNIQUE, EMOTIONAL CONNECTIONS!
Empower others to share their story. Listen &
speak with empathy.
Find what connects you & enable them to shine.
Encourage others to be authentic...it's
contageous. Own your vulunerable side & thoughts.
Empower with empathy!
Emotionally connect!
Enable vulnerabilities
to shine!
8. I turned my worst nightmare into my superpower.
When I discovered my children did not have access to tech in their classroom, I
began to devote my life to digital inclusion & making
meaningful use of the internet.
STEP 1
Find your
superpower.
Own it!
9. I work with Heads of State, Ministers, UN officials, students, academia,
nonprofits, entrepreneurs, devs, CEOs, CTOs, peers & IBMers.
I adjust my message & style each time; however, the lens is always the same.
I'm authentic, transparent, approachable & I tell emotionally relevant stories, I
show my vulnerabilities while being strong & confident. I share my skills forward &
volunteer to help. And, empathy is always key for me.STEP 2
Know your
audience &
who's
listening.
10. I spoke at 52 events in 10 countries last year & impact at least 20K people per year with my
talks. I am active in Twitter, Facebook, Instagram & LinkedIn. I talk about digital inclusion,
entrepreneurship, startups, youth empowerment, gender inclusion, while also showing my
personal side. I blog; however, I need to build my personal website. This is something I am
planning to do next year.
STEP 3
Be there &
consistent.
Always show
up.
11. I strive for meaningful & lasting connections with industry peers. I set goals to
meet new people, I follow up as best as I can & establish common ground of
learning, advocating, sponsoring, mentoring, reverse mentoring as colleagues,
friends, and leaders.
STEP 4
Find your
industry peers
& engage with
them.
12. I build unique & special relationships with everyone I meet & do my best to find an
emotional connection between us by showing empathy, empowering others to tell their
stories, finding common ground, inspiring others to shine in their own way,
encouraging everyone to be authentic. I give people space to feel comfortable being
vulnerable & encourage everyone to share their thoughts openly.
STEP 5
Build unique,
emotionally
connected
relationships.