Can you imagine if you were able to connect on a deeper level with everyone you met? It took me 18 years to realize that achieving this is not only possible, but fun.
What’s the secret? It’s simple: put some time aside to identify how you want strangers to remember you. I learned firsthand how empowering it is to actively identify what makes you unique, and then find a way to get it across to others in less than a minute. Here’s how this realization changed my life……
I walked nonchalantly through the narrow hallway, dragging loads upon loads of baggage behind me, ready to conquer the world and impress the hell out of all the new people I’ll soon be meeting.
304….305….306! Here I am, my new pad, my crib, my abode. I turned the fake brass doorknob, warn down to a silver polished finished from years of abuse, and entered a new era of my life, entered my very own raggedy dorm room!
Over the next few weeks, even months, I emulated confidence, made countless “friends”, and generally impressed the hell out of everyone I meet. Or so I thought.
It doesn’t take me long to notice that people aren’t remembering my name. No big, I said to myself, I barely remember names too, I always remember a face though.
A few more weeks go by and I realize I’m fooling myself, these people are just genuinely not interested in me.
This realization came as a huge shock because, like most freshmen, I had just come from a place where as a senior, I was at the top of heap.
Without consciously knowing it, I had created a brand for myself in highschool over the years. I was the class president, captain of the lacrosse team, active member of the student council, and all that jazz. People knew what kind of person I was, what my family was like, what neighborhood I lived in, and WHAT MY NAME WAS.
Now that I was in college, none of that mattered, and I was in desperate need of a new approach if I truly wanted people to know the real me. This is no different then when you enter the job market, you can have all the qualifications in the world, but without the right packaging, they mean nothing. I needed something new, something fresh, something interesting, something unique and exciting.
I was pretty sure Me was interesting, but how was I supposed make everyone else realize that when I only had these minute fractions of time to create an impression? I let this dilemma tumble around in my head for awhile and finally decided to sit down and do some soul searching, little did I know at the time, but I had just initiated the first step of the branding process.
Essentially, I just wrote random things about myself that were worth remembering; things that would make people genuinely interested within the first 30 seconds of meeting me; here’s what I came up with:
1. I have six siblings: one is biological, two are Vietnamese, one is Black, and none are adopted. And no, neither my father nor mother have ever remarried. (Reaction: “What? How in Gods name does that work?”) A long conversation inevitably follows, and before you know it, there’s one person who will surely never forget my name.
2. My mother and father met in college and she was his professor. (Reaction: “No way! That’s classic!”) Then I beat them to their inevitable followup question with a grin: “Yes, he did get an A+ in that class!”
3. I’m from Burlington Vermont – and no, Vermont is not in Canada. Contrary to popular belief, not all Vermonters are hippies and, no, I have never gone cow tipping.
4. I like good conversations, passionate people, writing, kite boarding, the smell of rain, and comfy beds. Throwing something random in there always makes you more memorable.
The list continued to grow and grow, and low and behold, people not only began remembering my name, they were also positively itching to know more. I had successfully branded myself, not by making anything up, but by simply highlighting the things that made me unique, intriguing and memorable.
That is the true essence of personal branding, allowing people (and employers) to see your strengths and your unique value. Everyone has a story, everyone has a skill, everyone has something that is worth remembering; it’s just a matter of finding that something and giving other people the tools to find it too.
Recognizing your own value is truly empowering, and little did I know it could all start from a simple list.
It really comes down to one simple process: understand yourself, enjoy yourself, brand-yourself. Once you get that down, the world becomes your oyster, eat it up (or something like that.)
Evan Watson
