Last month I wrote about the benefits of setting aside time to be creative and I shared my creative outlets: cooking and baking. This month, I’m whipping up a tasty recipe for personal brand using the ingredients from my favorite cookie recipe - chocolate chip cookies.
Flour – Just as flour provides the base and structure for cookies, your personal brand sets the foundation for how you want to be known as a professional and distinguishes you from others in your industry. These would include your work experience, education and achievements that form the core of who you are as a professional.
Sugar – Sugar adds sweetness and flavor to cookies. In branding, this would be your personality traits and professional skills such as compassion, leadership, creativity or humor which helps leave a memorable impression on clients, prospects or hiring managers.
Butter – Butter adds richness and moisture to the batter. When it comes to your brand, this would be represented by the services or products you provide, needs you fill or problems you solve which speak to the value you provide your customers, prospects or peers.
Chocolate chips – Chocolate chips are the highlight of the cookie adding lots of delicious flavor. When it comes to your brand, this would be your unique strengths and abilities that set you apart from the competition.
Vanilla Extract: Vanilla extract gives the cookie depth and sweetness. In personal branding, this would be your personal values, beliefs and passions which give you meaning and are the basis for your decisions and actions.
Eggs – Eggs are the binding agent, holding all the ingredients together. In personal branding, this would be stating your WHY – WHY you do what you do - which inspires people to choose you over the competition.
Baking Soda – Baking soda helps the cookies rise. In branding, this would represent your ambition, desire for learning and professional development.
Salt - Salt balances the sweetness and enhances the taste of the cookie. In branding, this would be your positive attitude, resilience and adaptability which allows you to successfully manage yourself through the challenges and changes that come your way.
By aligning these ingredients with the elements of personal brand, you can create a delicious, unique personal brand that is a true representation of you as a professional, distinguishes you from the competition and makes you the top choice when people need your service or when looking to hire.