By Catherine Tulina Kafumbe — the Deputy Country Director & VP, Customer Success — as part of a presentation to the Rotaract Club of Kampala North in the #KANOsMeetUp on July 15th, 2022.
In each of our career journeys, there is that one place we would like to work for in the world, and it always comes with a reason. Imagine that you have a name in mind and you have a chance to sell yourself to this workplace. What would you say about what you do?
Or maybe you could ask yourself: What is that brand that you are willing to pay more for and why? It could be that it is a reliable, relatable, consistent, trustworthy brand, name it.
With all these answers in place, think about your personal brand in relation to your best brands and in relation to those places we would die to work for. You could be at the start of your career journeys and there is no better time than this for you to worry about your personal brand.
Personal branding: Brand ‘I’
Your personal brand is:
- How you promote yourself
- The unique combination of skills, experience, and personality that you want the world to see in you
- The telling of your story and how it reflects your conduct, behavior, spoken and unspoken words, and attitudes.
Your personal branding is an intersection of how you see yourself, how others see you, and you wish to be seen. Imagine your name called out in a crowd of people. When somebody hears it, what comes to their mind? That is your brand, for better or for worse.
Developing your brand
Building your brand requires you to know what you want. You need to have a vision for where you want to be career-wise at a given point in the future. Additionally, you need to know what you have to offer and what is important to you. Take stock of your values, strengths, behaviours, among others.
A personal brand should also be accompanied by knowing what you want to say. At every opportunity, be ready to share your personal brand clearly.
Be Authentic. Knowing what you have to offer and attach values to it. The more closely you can align your values with the way you live and work, the more satisfied you are likely to be.
Starting the journey
Map out your career goals, list out your key values, and analyze your personal strengths. Set your personality, knowledge and experience.
Once you’re happy with the key elements of your story, choose a friend and share it with them. This may feel like a daunting task but it will be easier to hear constructive feedback from people you know, like and trust, rather than from an employer you were keen to work for.
The theory of the rocks, pebbles & sand
The rocks are equivalent to the most important projects and things you have going on. The pebbles represent the things in your life that matter, but that you could live without. The sand represents the remaining filler things in your life, and material possessions.
The metaphor here is that if you start with putting sand into the jar, you will not have room for rocks or pebbles. This holds true with the things you let into your life. If you spend all your time on the small and insignificant things, you will run out of room for the things that are actually important.
Food for thought
Overall, to thrive in a workplace:
- Be humble enough to learn and unlearn. Drop the wings!
- Build your financial muscle to freedom
- Stay relevant and keep learning
- Be aware of your emotional intelligence
- Be intentional in whatever you do, and make it count!
