Using The Power Of Your Story To Strengthen Your Personal Brand
A common limiting belief that is the killer of dreams is to sell yourself the story that you don’t have anything special or unique to offer.
Thoughts like:
"No one cares about what I’ve been through in my life"
"My life is boring, I don’t have anything interesting to share"
This way of thinking is not only a huge disservice to your own uniqueness but also to the people who need to hear your one of a kind perspective. Believing that your story doesn’t matter could not be further from the truth.
You can’t allow your inner critic to sell you the belief that you have nothing valuable or interesting to say. Yes, sharing your story will require vulnerability but that is not a bad thing. In a world that glorifies perfectionism and highlight reels, we need more of us who are willing to show up real, raw and transparent!
Authenticity is the key to building a powerful personal brand that will allow you to stand out and build a successful online business. There are too many people trying to copy others and too many gurus teaching cookie cutter strategies to success and it simply doesn’t work.
So how do you go about using your story to strengthen your personal brand? By tapping into your real life experiences. These lessons can not be duplicated but more importantly sharing your story can give others the space and permission to do the same.
Here are 5 tips to help you get started in using your story to strengthen your personal brand:
1. Let go of the limiting belief that you don't have one. Your life up to this very moment that you are reading this blog post has been full of memorable lessons and experiences. You have mastered new skill sets and overcome struggles during your life. People need to hear the HOW.
Maybe you have a health issue you have been dealing with?
Suffered a loss and navigating grief?
Have a physical or emotional transformation to share?
Encouragement for those who are trying to find what drives their passion?
Have training or knowledge in an area that can educate others?
These are just a few of a thousand examples. The point is that there are billions of people on this planet who don’t want to feel like they are alone in what’s going on in their own lives. You probably won’t have the exact circumstances as others but in the process of sharing how you choose to live life, grow through difficulties and pursue your passions is what matters.
2. Grab a journal or notebook and start writing. Travel back in time and write down the things in your life that have mattered greatly to you over the years. Write out the lessons you have learned and what you gained from them. Journal about the good and bad experiences you would not trade for the world because it has led you to where you are now. How can these experiences help and inspire others?
I often talk about my struggles with skin cancer, sharing tips to help people avoid what I have been through with skin care tips. I am passionate about living life to the fullest, making life fun and hopefully inspiring other women that age is truly just a number and doesn’t define who we are. After dealing with years of thinning hair, I am obsessed with proper hair care.
I have also been very open about the heartbreaking struggles with a parent who suffers from dementia.
What parts of your life can you use to help and inspire others?
3. Once you have spent time journaling, decide which parts of your story you aren’t quite ready to share right now and which parts you can openly share with others. Some parts of your story may be too raw for you to share right now and that is okay but writing it out can bring perspective and lead you closer to a place where one day you can share.
4. The parts of your story that you are okay sharing, be sure to do it from a place of positivity. You can’t rant all over your Facebook page, for example, and expect to attract a positive response. Sure you will attract other negative people to rant back in the comments but that is not what you are looking for.
To build a business you are looking for people who want to turn their situation around. Who want to be inspired, not roll around in their self-pity. It’s all about attracting the right people but has to begin with you and how you choose to share.
5. Ignore the haters. I don’t say this to discourage you but to prepare you for the harsh reality that when we start to share ourselves in a vulnerable way, we open ourselves up to potential judgement. Some people don’t want to be helped or inspired. Others are just starting to deal with their own personal issues that they are easily triggered when they see someone share something that hits close to their own experiences. In their process of denial they lash out. Don’t allow this to deter you from helping those who need it and want it.
In sharing about my mom, her dementia and the hard decisions my family has had to face for her care I have received a ton of empathy and support but I have also faced criticism. Remember, no one has walked a minute much less a mile in your shoes. Leave them to work out their own path but don’t ever allow it to derail yours.
Putting yourself and your ideas out there can feel overwhelming and scary but the pros far out weighs the cons.
Your. Story. Matters.
It’s time to share yourself fearlessly with the world friend! People are waiting to be moved and inspired in a way that only YOU can.
