WHAT IS PERSONAL BRANDING ?

MICHAEL JACKSON, OPRAH AND MICHAEL JORDAN HAVE ALL DONE IT, SO HAS MADONNA. WHEN YOU SEE THEIR NAMES, YOU KNOW WHO THEY ARE AND MAYBE EVEN SOMETHING OF WHAT THEY STAND FOR. (HECK, OPRAH, CHER AND MADONNA HAVE EVEN GOTTEN IT DOWN TO "FIRST NAMES ONLY" - NO LAST NAME REQUIRED.)

What do you think of when you think of Michael Jackson? "The King of Pop," the "Gloved One." Madonna? "Material Girl"? Oprah? Maybe, "the most powerful woman in show business"? Whatever you think of, they are instantly recognizable by name and have personal appeal or charisma.

What else are they? They're aces at what they do and they love what they do. They have a passion for their "product" or "service," to put it simply. It excites people to watch them do their jobs. And, although most of us will never be recognizable to the masses, we can certainly be recognized within our fields of expertise as those who are to be watched by colleagues. This is because our excitement and passion is contagious to others and perhaps because our standards of excellence are what others strive for.

So what is it that you can do to "brand" yourself?

First of all, passion for your work sells. Whatever you do, find something for which you have a passion, that you love to do and that you're good at. When you have passion and professionalism, you'll give it everything you've got because you can't imagine doing anything else. Your attitude alone will beat the guy who's just doing it for a paycheck, but it's also important to keep in mind that you need to be professional, provide a quality product or service and be on time. (But then, it's also much easier not to procrastinate or skimp on quality when you're not dreading your work and just slogging through it, so you'll have an advantage.)

As you develop in your field of expertise with these elements in mind (passion and professionalism), you'll automatically begin to command respect from those you work with, from other colleagues and partners. This, in turn, will ultimately allow you to set higher prices (either as salary or product prices) than your competitors, because clients, customers or your employer will be willing to pay for what they know is "a sure thing." They know you'll provide high quality products and performance that will not disappoint.

By Will Toh Kwang Hwee