When it comes to our goals in the workplace, we tend to focus on how to do the right thing that will impress our boss, colleagues or wow our clients. But the truth is in order to create an effective personal brand you need to focus on yourself just as much.
Yes, how others see you is very important but your brand really becomes defined when you realise that it is your own BELIEFS that play an equal role in creating the best version of you. What you think about yourself can drive you on or hinder you in your career so pay attention to them.
Our beliefs are formed through past experiences and how we were brought up.
For example I had a bad experience public speaking when I got very nervous, blushed and my voice cracked. From that I extrapolated the belief that I couldn’t public speak because I would always get nervous and embarrassed. This belief kept me from doing it again for quite a while. Once I understood that I held that belief, I was able to act to rectify it. And now I’m quite happy to speak in public at any time – I now actually enjoy it!
This was achieved by changing my belief system on public speaking entirely. A good mantra to use is “I used to believe” – this enabled me to re-frame how I thought.
“I used to believe that I would get nervous when public speaking but now I believe that no one wants perfection from a public speaker and no one knows what I am going to say so the pressure is off”
It is very worthwhile taking some time to think about the negative beliefs you hold about yourself – I recommend keeping a journal and noting these down over a period of time. Experiences in the workplace my prompt you to recognise some of them. Most negative beliefs come to the fore when you are struggling with confidence – tune into these feelings and recognise what is going on.
Work on identifying as many reasons that you can think of that the negative belief is wrong.
You need to chip away at it. Once you have a list re-frame the beliefs in the past. “I used to think I could not contribute to meetings” and create a new belief “I have valuable opinions and ideas to give in meetings and to not give them would be detrimental to myself and the company.”
This seems easy right? Wrong. Unfortunately it will take time and conscious effort to turn your negative beliefs around. But there is good news. Turning these beliefs into positives can define your personal brand and help you get that promotion which is fantastic. But more importantly it will improve your health and wellbeing overall – which is priceless.
It is crucial that you abandon beliefs that do not serve your best interests. These need to be re-framed into beliefs that serve you. Our beliefs can be a wall of protection – which if they are positive can act like a shield and drive us forward. But they can also make us a prisoner to our own negativity. Don’t let this happen. Create an effective Personal Brand and be the best you!
