Have you ever wondered about other people’s perception of you inside and outside of the workplace? Amazon CEO and founder Jeff Bezos once said, “your brand is what people say about you when you are not in the room.” Sure, you can’t control what other people say behind your back, but you can enhance their perception of your professional skills. Why is a strong personal brand important? Personal branding is becoming increasingly important because modern consumers tend to trust people more than corporations. Therefore, a strong professional brand is the foundation for a lengthy and fulfilling career. Demonstrating to employers how you are unique and relevant can maximise your potential as an employee, while enhancing their perception of your professional skills and technical ability. Additionally, personal branding allows you to establish a reputation and an identity while still maintaining a personal level of trust and interaction. To help you hone your personal brand, we’ve compiled a list of important benefits: Networking – In today’s interconnected business environment, expanding your personal network is vital to a successful career. A strong personal brand will enable you to develop your network, which can help increase business opportunities. When you have a strong personal brand you will notice that more people will want to engage with you. For example, at a conference, if people know you will be present, they are more likely to engage with you because they recognise that you have a profile within your industry. This could then lead to invitations to speak at conferences, which will build your brand even more. Confidence – Confidence is a valued characteristic of successful workers. Importantly, you develop confidence as you develop your personal brand. This confidence comes from looking at your strengths and knowing that you have positive qualities to share. Therefore, your personal brand highlights your strengths and gives you a direction to focus them on. Credibility – Your colleagues want to know that you can walk the talk. You build credibility not through your words, but through your actions. Your actions, which align with your brand, validate that you can be trusted and demonstrate that you are credible. Your area of specialisation – You have a unique combination of work experience, life experience, and personal characteristics that create the foundation for determining your personal brand. Your colleagues will get to know this and if you depict your brand well, word-of-mouth will result in people starting to seek you out for what you do best. With business being ever more competitive, your best way of staying ahead of the pack is to stand out and have a unique brand amongst peers. In the end, it’s all about what you are known for. Others should be able to say what you are all about once they see you or your name.