When it comes to career advice, more and more people are talking about “building your personal brand.”  Essentially, your personal brand is your reputation. The term can mean anything from the smaller scale of making a name for yourself on the job by engaging in idea sharing and doing a little self-promoting, to a more inclusive self-marketing campaign equipped with a personal website touting your success across all social media platforms. However big or small you decide to go, creating your own personal brand is a great place to start in order to expand your professional horizon.

  If you are looking for a way to kick your professional life into overdrive by going after that juicy promotion or even venturing out on your own, there are a number of ways to creatively expand your outlook. Defining and maintaining a personal brand is a solid foundation for this type of growth. Regardless of what station you are at now in your professional life, chances are that you have already amassed a certain skill set that can easily be translated into a successful career transition or side hustle. Branding yourself is a way to encapsulate all that you are and all that you have done into one comprehensive image.

Here are three quick and simple ways to get a jump start on developing a strong personal brand:

 1.      Set a goal:  What story do you want to tell about yourself?  Consider who you want people to see you as and then highlight the accomplishments that will help paint that picture. So you want to be considered a thought leader on a particular topic – then join appropriate online discussions and make meaningful contributions to the exchange. Once you’ve developed a following, become the creator of those conversations by writing engaging posts.

 2.      Manage your presence online: The quickest and most impactful place for online professional networking is … you guessed it – LinkedIn. If you have not already, join LinkedIn and make sure you have a complete, well written and up-to-date profile. To take it a step further, consider running a blog or personal website that positions you in a way that matches up to the end goal you set for your personal brand.

3.      Remember that your personal brand is a living, evolving thing. It should grow and expand as you do. Which means that you do not stop growing. Continue to educate yourself on the topics you’ve identified as important to you. Continue your involvement in discussions that fit your brand. And continue to grow your network. It’s been said a thousand times before, but networking really can open doors. And when the right door is poised to be opened, you want to be able to walk through it with the confidence that your personal brand is one to be reckoned with.

 Whether your aspirations involve seeking out a promotion, changing your career focus altogether, developing a side gig or becoming an entrepreneur, you want to be able to present yourself as someone who is knowledgeable and valuable in your field. A solid personal brand and a strong reputation are essential marketing tools for establishing yourself as an expert in your field.