Why should you care about personal branding?

What is all the fuss about personal branding?  When I Googled “personal branding” I got
6,570,000 hits!  Is this simply the
latest narcissistic fad?  Or something of
relevance in our professional lives?  And
should you even try to blend your work and your life in your personal brand?

The questions intrigued me, so I went looking for insights
into how to express a personal brand.  This
is the most useful description I found:

“To crystallize your personal
brand, ask yourself what you want to be known for — what differentiates you from
everyone else who might have a similar background or set of experiences? In
other words, what skills, abilities, knowledge and attitudes do you have (or
are developing) that will make people want to work with, follow or
"friend" you — online or off? What value can you create for others as
a friend, blogger, colleague, teammate, boss or subordinate? And what will make
you satisfied and fulfilled that you are indeed making a contribution?”

And…

“Your brand can also aspire to
describe who you are; what you stand for; what makes you unique, special, and
different; and what your values are.”

I have been working recently with high-performing senior
professionals who are striving to build a higher level of competence in
leadership while struggling to find balance in their lives.  This challenge of reaching for personal growth
while staying true to who you are has led me to embrace the process of developing
a personal brand. 

And yes, the process of articulating a personal brand
may be as valuable as actually having one. 

Want to see why?  Try
completing the following three sentences (and I mean sentences, not paragraphs):

1. I am (or am becoming)…
2. I believe…
3. I will…

 I would be willing to
bet you did not find this an easy exercise to complete satisfactorily.  I would be further willing to bet that when
you did complete it, the process actually changed your thinking. 

And if you really want to stretch yourself and push your
thinking, I suggest you share this work with a trusted advisor and ask them to
challenge your statements in terms of a sound balance between growth and
fulfillment. 

I think you will find that those are important goals for
both a professional career and a personal life.