PERSONAL BRANDING: HOW TO BRAND YOURSELF

In the former times, branding involved the burning of marks on livestock, slaves or criminals as a form of identification or differentiation. The meaning of the concept gradually evolved and became a phenomenon in marketing which includes putting a logo or trademark on a product to give it an identity, differentiate it from other products and make it more discernible. In recent times, branding is now defined from a customer-centric perspective and it is viewed as the mental association customers have with brands. A brand can be a product, a person or a company with a mental or emotional connection to its target audience. However, this article focuses on the type of branding that has to do with individuals- personal branding.

Have you ever wondered why David Beckham is overly idolized even among non-football lovers or why Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs is still among the most loved hip-hop megastars in the world? These celebrities are not just individuals with money and fame; they are brands with financial value, they are businesses that can be franchised and their names sell products and services they endorse. This is what personal branding entails, that is, transforming your individuality from a prosaic being to an adorable, influential and valuable entity. There are seven steps to becoming a brand and these steps are detailed below:

THE DEARTH OF VISIONARIES

The English dictionary defines Vision as “far-sightedness; the ability to anticipate possible future events and developments”. In parapsychology, a visionary is a seer, someone who can predict the future. However, the popular meaning of a visionary is someone of unusually acute foresight, a thinker, an innovative mind, a forward-thinking being whose thoughts run miles ahead of others. While others are thinking of what tomorrow will look like, a visionary is already imagining what next year will be like. People who possess this innate ability make great leaders. Yes! I said great leaders! But unfortunately for modern Africa, there has been an endless scarcity of such leaders in recent times.

HOW AFRICA LET ME DOWN

I usually take a double-decker bus anytime I journey back and forth from my flat to the campus and these trips are the ones I relish a lot. I like to sit in front of the bus and just stare at the splendor of the city and admire the old and modern aesthetic British architectures. But this evening’s ride was not so much enjoyable because I didn’t have the motivation to take the front seat neither was I in a touristic mood to be enthralled by the sites and scenes in the city. My mind was heavy as I kept mulling over what happened in class today. My thoughts ran deep and it was as if my mind had been separated from my body. My pensive state almost made me miss my bus stop but I regained consciousness in time and alighted. The thoughts that flooded my mind were birthed by the class discussion we had about top companies from emerging economies with high prospects of becoming global and reputable brands.