In her Words

A Personal Brand is Your Best Friend

Finding ways to stand out from the crowd will bring you respect. Just ask Oprah.

-Suzanne Robitaille

Do you have a personal brand?

Years ago, when I was working at American Express, CEO Kenneth Chenault gave a speech to employees about establishing a personal brand. It was a fascinating theme, especially coming from an intelligent and thoughtful executive like Mr. Chenault, who already had the corner office and seemingly more pressing issues than honing his image. Turns out, that's exactly what successful leaders do to stay on top.

First, what's a personal brand? According to Seth Godin, the best-selling author of 10 marketing books, it is "a way of identifying and communicating what makes you a star and using those qualities to separate yourself from the herd to increase your success." In fact, Mr. Godin says personal branding is the real strategy behind the world's most successful people -- not where they went to business school or who they ski with in Aspen.

For example, when we think of Oprah, we're resonating with Oprah's persona -- her brand. We think of Oprah's do-goodness through her Big Give programs and her work in Africa. We think of her women-centric empire: The Oprah show and her two magazines, and how Oprah's Book Club can make or break a new author. We know she's wealthy (and probably a bit controlling), but her down-home style reminds us of her hardscrabble upbringing and her triumph over racial and gender discrimination. And that's exactly what she wants. read more...