Personal Branding Weekly - Build Your Relationships First - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Personal Branding Weekly - Build Your Relationships First - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career It’s not often, even though I’m from Texas, that I can say I spent a few days with some cowboys. But, this week I did. Actually, they were once known as the culinary cowboys (lucky for me â€" people who know and love their food!) Yet, they were cowboys in other ways. To me a cowboy is often a risk taker, forges out to discover something new and is a great adventurer no matter what dangers the adventure brings. These cowboys (who I’ll introduce in a future post) have forged out with a new and pretty amazing way to network, promote and teach others how to harness the power of word of mouth. What’s their secret sauce? Build relationships first. If you go into any meeting (formal or informal) with someone for the first time and you think you’re going to sell them, garner support, convince them to hire or to invest in you, then you lose immediately. When you build relationships first, you create something lasting that builds trust and opens up far more circles of influence than you will ever reach all by yourself. Here’s what our Personal Branding “cowboys” covered last week: The Unique and Necessary Combination of Will and Skill by Skip Weisman How to Avoid Tanking Your Career: An Interview with Richie Frieman by Bill Connolly Branding by Association Part II by Kevin Monahan Why You Should Attend a Career Fair? by Ceren Cubukcu What Your Look Says About Your Brand by Heather Huhman Negotiate the Job Offer to Win by Alex Freund Leading with Questions Increases Sales by Elinor Stutz Content Marketing and Personal Branding Success by Roger Parker Whos Directing Your Career? by Richard Kirby Parents Beware: Branding Beyond Home Life by Chamber of Commerce Your Own Personal Brand No Fly Zone by Maria Elena Duron The Power of Focus Choose the Reality that Serves by Sharmin Banu There is No Such Thing as Luck by Jeff Shuey Eight Steps to Overcoming the Post Summer Blues by Beth Kuhel Tell People Youre Job Hunting Without Seeming Desperate by Erik Deckers Brand Check-Up: 4 Questions to Ask Your Market by Leslie Truex Are You Going to Accept the Wrong Job Offer? by Ken Sundheim Just Stop Talking by Nick Inglis Knowing When Your Career Tank in on Empty by Marc Miller One of my cowboy moments was the creation of #brandchat (a weekly chat of Twitter all about branding). Here’s an interview of how I leveraged a Twitter Chat and focus â€" click here. Enjoy these seven stand out key points on Personal Branding from the Personal Branding Authors: Working when your career tank is near empty is not good for you, your company or your personal brand. (Author, Marc Miller) Look for people who convey positive thoughts. Optimism is a key component to a quality company that you want a job offer from. (Author, Ken Sundheim) You are the expert in the delivery of your product or service, but you’re not the authority in how your market perceives your brand. (Author, Leslie Truex) Whether you are just starting out your career or whether you are well established in your chosen profession, put in the work. (Author, Jeff Shuey) Being a parent is part of your core but you can successfully brand yourself outside those limitations. (Author, Katie Parsons) Creating and executing your unique career plan can provide you a competitive advantage over 90% of your competition. (Author, Richard Kirby) Your appearance tells others that you’re capable of taking on whatever task you’re given. Others will be drawn to you because you seem confident and successful. Back this up with intelligent things to say, and you’re golden. (Author, Heather Huhman) This week â€" look forward to insights and practical tips about: • The #1 killer of job hunting success • Keeping confidences • Developing a personal brand mindset • Moving to a new city and what that means to your personal brand • The importance of the language of branding • Focusing on what you can do and the importance of mindfulness • How to handle personal branding when you’re an independent contractor • And, the best way to partner with recruiters Author: Maria Elena Duron, is managing editor of the Personal Branding Blog, CEO (chief engagement officer) of  buzz2bucksâ€"  a word of mouth marketing firm, and a professional speaker and trainer on developing social networks that work. She provides workshops, webinars, seminars and direct services that help create conversation, connection, credibility, community and commerce around your brand.   Maria Duron is founder  and moderator of  #brandchat   a weekly Twitter chat focused on every aspect of  branding  that is recognized by Mashable as one the 15 Essential Twitter Chats for Social Media Marketers. Are you busy? Here’s some quick and easy tips on  Social Marketing for busy people.