For those who are persistent and driven to reach their goals, the constant launch and unveiling of Today’s-Hottest-Wow-Oh-My-God-This-Is-The-Next-Greatest-Thing-That-Will-Replace-Everything-You’ve-Just-Mastered-And-If-You-Don’t-Switch-To-It-By-Tomorrow-At-This-Time You-Will-Become-Completely-Irrelevant tools, it’s easy to forget that you’ve come a long way, baby. (Quick – what brand did that 1970’s slogan sell?)
After relentlessly working on your personal brand for weeks upon months – and for some, upon years – it’s time to step back and take a comprehensive look at the results to date.
What do you see?
Here’s today’s cup-of-coffee assignment:
1. Take a step back. Move awaaay from your Smartphone. No sudden moves. Sometimes you have to take a step back before you can move forward.
2. Take an inventory of where you are now. Google yourself (but don’t admit to anyone that you’ve done a vanity search – that will just be between you and me) and look at your online persona from an outsider’s perspective.
3. Recall your original goals. Did you want a following? Increased site traffic? More business? Better reputation? Have you reached those goals? Did you surpass them or miss by a mile?
4. If you reached one or more goals, what activity most contributed to making that happen? Make note of the actions that increased connections, drove followers, generated leads or increased ranking. Conversely, make note of the doings that least contributed.
5. Decide if you still have the same goals today. Are you on the right path or do you need to adjust your goals? Refer back to #4 – optimize your efforts by doing more of what worked and stop wasting your time on what didn’t.
6. Tell me what you see. I mean really – I’m interested. Email me directly or leave a comment here and tell us what worked and what didn’t. Tell me if you’ve kept your original goals or decided to change them and why. And let me know what you’re planning on doing to reach your desired end result.
A little objectivity helps
I recently took a step back and discovered two seriously out of date bios that were no longer consistent with my brand. A little objectivity allowed me to distinguish where I was diluting my brand by generalizing my message for a larger audience – an important reminder to prioritize efforts to my specific areas of expertise.
A little distance goes a long way. Take a look, and tell me what you see.
