When you meet a new person, what is the usual question?  Most people will ask each other, “What do you do?” It is the way we network in social or professional events. It is a way to find common ground and provide a way to pave the way for new opportunities. Since you passed the age of 18, you have focused on how to make a living and build a lifestyle through a job or career path. Yet, the best …

Because technology and social trends are changing almost daily, it is important to review your Success Network to see how it can help you be more relevant. Here are some key tips to consider: How many of your contacts are in the generation below yours? For example, if you are a Gen X, check your success network contacts for Millennials or individuals at least 10 years younger. As humans, we have a tendency to stay in our comfort zone which …

Things continue to change, in the economy, in technology and even socially, with the continued increase in social media. You have to take charge of your career success in a manageable way. One is to do a personal marketing audit each year. It is easy to spend a short amount of time assessing how well your personal marketing is helping achieve your vision of success. Here are a few starters: Have you done a personal SWOT analysis in the last …

If you have a goal like travel, additional education, starting a side business, taking lessons, or other idea for next year, it is likely to require some funds!  So, here are some questions to make sure you set the framework for easily achieving it: How does this goal fit into your personal vision of your future success? For this new goal, will you be able to easily save/spend dollars out of your current budget or will it require a savings …

To be prepared for new opportunities as well as achieve your goals, here are some questions to determine if you have the self-promotion mindset about You, Inc.: Do you know your competitive edge? Have you updated your resume in the last six months and have a current publicity photo? Do you have your Success Network on the computer? Have you sent a personal note to someone in the past month to keep in touch (not email or a phone call)? …

Your Personal Strategic Plan. Do you have a plan framed out for achieving your vision of success? For your working life, your love life, and your creative life, do you have goals? You should have a plan for one reason, to make sure you focus on You, Inc., not be buffeted by the winds of change or other people’s ideas of what you should do! Your Personal Marketing Plan. Marketers often know how to market companies, but often do not …

What is your vision of success? Do you have a dream or goal that is just out of reach? Since you are the business of “You, Inc.,” it is just as important to have a plan and goals to achieve them. Funny thing is, many people tend to set a few goals for the year each January with the good intentions of achieving them. However, within a few weeks or months, they disappear in the mound of work projects and …

If you have been in marketing for several years, one thing that can happen is that your creative muscle gets worked hard during office hours. That may leave little creative energy for later, when you are considering new ideas or work on fun personal projects that excite you. Very important is to have a focus on creating marketing for “You, Inc.”  And, you may be rolling your eyes as you read this, thinking that you’re not an entrepreneur, but you’re …

In his book, Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell states that to achieve mastery in a sport, music, or other field of work takes 10,000 hours. While it is easy to joke that you have accrued “10,000” hours in your 5-year career of 8-hour days, you can’t stop adding value to “you” as a business. By updating, re-educating, gaining experience and practicing, we are never fully cooked or “done” improving. Think of how many books you have read in the last month, whether fiction, …

So often, marketers are not as good about marketing themselves as they are for their organization. Yet, building your own personal brand is key to more opportunities and better career moves, even within your current organization. Here are three things that are the building blocks to your personal brand: Your Competitive Advantage – why should someone hire you, promote you, want you on their team or to be a friend? Is it experience, expertise, knowledge, or education that makes you …