Don’t Be a Negative Nancy!
In college, I had a friend who was always complaining about some aspect of her life. Her classes weren’t going right, a friend wasn’t being nice to her, and all the guys she met were jerks. Of course, she was great to talk to when I wanted to complain about something–but not a lot of …
9 Questions to Take Your Brand to the Next Level
Personal branding is an iterative process. As you change career paths, relocate, find new lines of work or climb upward at your current job, it’s helpful to step back and reflect on what makes you, you. Answer the questions below to make sure you’re in tune with You, Inc., and can articulate your value effectively …
Are You Fun to Advocate For?
Much of the time we talk about ways to be connected, referred, recommended and advocated for. From logistics, strategy and tactics, there are many valuable tips and posts! Yet, there’s a basic question that we often fail to address and that is….am I fun to advocate for?
When someone speaks positively on your behalf, engages …
When Does Appreciating Lead to Advocating?
Gratitude seems to be a rare or discounted commodity. In our time deprived, hyper-connected world, we may text a quick “thx” or smiley face and go on our way. And, practices like that make us like everyone else – just average.
How do you stand out in someone’s mind? How do you engage and inspire …
Do You Also Have These Misconceptions About Personal Branding?
A recent blog post by Jonathan Rick of Booz Allen Hamilton suggests that personal branding isn’t really that important for job search or career success. He’s both right and wrong.
Jonathan’s article was guest-posted on Lindsay Olson’s blog. In the well-written piece, Jonathan takes a look at 3 people – Cyrus Krohn, David Kralik and …
Building Relationships Organically – Part 1
When we don’t need anything and simply interact with the people around us—with the other students in our classroom, the other players on our sports team, the other professionals in our office, our neighbors next door—we build relationships organically. Proximity leads to conversation and shared experiences, which brings us closer and leads to more conversation …
Break Out of the Social Media Prison
This is a direct response to Carlos Miceli’s post on Owl Sparks: Prison, Fear, and Personal Branding
You know that feeling you have when you first meet someone? It’s that feeling that you have to put your best foot forward so that you can make the best first impression. We have this feeling at networking …
Branded Introductions
The way we introduce ourselves and others can leave us branded. Branded either for the good and highlighting what is uniquely our strengths. Or, branded negatively by shining a spotlight on our weak areas.
Living in West Texas, when I use the term ‘branded’ I imagine cowboys or vaqueros (Vaquero Regional Note: Used chiefly in …
The Excellence Equation: Passion and Commitment
When someone seems stuck in their career and unsure of their next step, a question they’re often asked to answer is, “What are you passionate about?” That seems like a logical starting point. After all, when you’re working on your passion, whatever it is, the belief is that you’ll enjoy yourself more and be more …
YouThinkInc Versus GroupThinkInc
In Sunday’s New York Times magazine, there’s an inventors’ support company featured, Quirky.com. It’s purpose is to take your crazy idea and put it out in the Quirky community for a group grope on what your concept would be if it were better than what you could think of on your own. I love this …