Women Leadership 101

People believe what they see and perceive all objects based on those perceptions. Those of us who have had some exposure into marketing will know the maxim ‘Perception is reality’. And in fact, it is! For someone looking at another, reality is the manner in which he perceives the other.

And which is why it is not surprising that managing your personal image is as important as managing brands for your companies. It is how you think and project yourself that creates impressions about you as a person. Your own brand is similar to any product. Just as you build an ongoing relationship with a product branded by a company, people view you according to how you position yourself before others.

In today’s competitive age just as companies spend millions of dollars to create a brand to enable to capture market shares, you too need to put efforts towards creating a personal brand and ‘market’ yourself to retain a competitive edge over your peers. This will allow you to have a higher share of mind in the people who really matter.

Brand imaging is tougher for women because it comes naturally to men. With single-minded focus on their careers, they have the time and the inclination to further their careers by actively being in the right places at the right time to say the right words that take them forward. Men are also more adept in thinking of workplace strategies to further their prospects. Women, on the other hand, tend to me more focused on the actual work alone, either due to their inherent introvert traits or due to lack of time or other things on their minds like additional responsibilities as a homemaker.

While managing yourself as a brand, remember it is the same basic 4P’s of marketing that you may need to think of.

Product – The product is what you actually have to offer – your work. But remember that is just 25% of the whole personality that needs to be projected. Indeed, this part is extremely important because when the ‘moment of truth’ arrives, it is your work that will be assessed. And this is exactly why your performance is actually the basic hygiene factor without which rising to the top will be difficult. While there are others who you may feel reach the top merely by networking their way through levels, you should also know that staying on top without substance is not possible.

Place – This factor can be related with being at the right places at the right time and therefore refers to networking and team work. Ask yourself about the number of management dinners that you avoid or why your team does not have as many team outings as the other teams. Being present at the right time also means that you may need to keep your ears and eyes open about the various happenings in the company. When you know that there is a new pitch that is being thought through or a new product that is being evaluated, you may need to think up some idea and share with your boss. Proactive measures like these will obviously get you noticed.

Positioning – This, in fact, is the most important aspect of how people outside of your working group think of you. It includes almost everything that you say or do. It encompasses what you wear to office, the manner in which you carry yourself, the people you talk to, how you talk to various people and the body language that you have when you are working, in a meeting or with your boss in a serious discussion. Think of how you would like others to think of you and then make conscious efforts towards projecting that image at all times.

Price(y) – While this section does not deal with your cost of company, it refers to the attitude that you show at work. How difficult are you to access? What does your boss think when he wants to assign you work that is outside of your purview? How willing are you to take on more and take on the challenges that come with it?

A personal brand at workplace is a holistic picture of you and it is necessary that you work on this with a conscious mind and not let things occur in the organization in a free-flow manner. Take your future in your own hands and work towards it.