Branding yourself for Professional success.
This article is from a series published in 'Herald' Publication titled...'Best Among Equals'
© Valerian Mendonça
“Your ‘Personality’ is the product and your name be it ‘Amita /Eugene / Sharmila / Rajiv’ is the Label or Brand name your ‘Personality’ caries. The prospective employers in the market are the ‘Customers’ interested in hiring and using yours services. So, your Bio-Data, just like a company brochure has to contain enough information, presented in an interesting manner, highlighting your personality features so as to evoke interest in him to invite you for a personal interview.”.In the super market, among a vast array of product, the product with most attractive packaging catches the customer’s eye. Similarly how you package yourself for the interview matters. If you are turned out neat and smartly dressed you are bound the catch his attention.In the super market, the customer selects the product, based on the information from the product leaflet, the quality of packaging, and also at times comparing the price. He pays for it and tries it out. If the product meets his expectation then he purchases more of the same product. So also based on the information of your resume, the way you have dressed up for the interview and the discussion during the interview he judges your suitability for the job. Just as he compares the price tag on the product, he may also compare your salary (price) expectation with other candidates at the interview. Just as we at times ask for opinion of a product from its users, so also the employer cross checks with people you know or have worked with, they are called referrals.You will observe that the above analogy holds good for all type of jobs, be it Accounts, Clerical, Sales, Secretarial… All of us knowingly or unknowingly have to market 'ourselves' to get a job. It is upon us to ensure you don’t pick up tags like “he or she is lazy/irresponsible/unpunctual/selfish…” Such feedback from your referrals will prove very costly and cause irreparable damage to your career prospects. So, please do take care that you don’t get wrong attributes attached to your brand image. I end here with a quote “ Do unto others what you want them to do to you, treat them the way you want to be treated, talk about them what you what them to talk about you.”You are free to circulate this article among those you feel will benefit from it. Only request is to ensure it goes with my credit by line.