想在职场上成功，请打造好个人品牌

MPW内部网络是一个在线社区，商界内外最具影响力的人士将在此及时回答关于职业与领导力的问题。今天我们的问题是：“管理个人品牌的最好方法是什么？”以下是优步营销副总裁凯莉恩·史密斯·肯尼的回答。

如果说多年的营销经历教会了我什么东西的话，那就是打造或毁掉你职业生涯的不是你为之工作的那个品牌，而是你为自己树立的那个品牌。你的个人品牌可以竭力为你服务，也可以成为你的累赘。

当然，在这个流行自拍杆和标签的时代，很难打消把个人品牌作为营销噱头的念头。但你的个人品牌不仅是自我推广和社交媒体上的“赞”，它也是你在工作场合的通货。

积极的个人品牌会带来最有意思的任务，较多的功劳以及和顶尖人才公事的机会。消极的个人品牌则会让人定型并错失升迁的机会。你的个人品牌还影响着同事们看待你工作成果的方式，从而对你的部门或团队产生影响。它决定了别人是否愿意跟你合作以及他们怎样跟你分享和接收信息。

同时，就像所有消费品牌一样，如果人们能记住你的三个基本特征，你就会成为幸运儿。在脑海里搜索一位不经常跟你打交道的同事。你会用哪三个词来形容对方呢？第三个词可能很难确定，对吧？如果要把别人对你的总体印象浓缩成三点，你就应该好好想想，自己希望这三点是什么，而且要专门采取行动来强化它们。

赶在个人品牌影响自身形象前对其进行塑造的方法如下：

真实性

只有真正体现你特质的东西才能给别人留下印象。但我经常看到人们犯错的原因是他们想通过一些自己不是特别擅长的东西来争取别人的承认。一段时间以前，我辅导的一位仁兄觉得自己需要成为金融专家，因为他周围都是这样的人。但他是一位营销人员。做了一些辅导后，他意识到需要足够金融知识的想法很危险，而且他在自己擅长的领域已经是一位专家，比如深入了解消费者和创造性策略。发挥已有能力并依靠自己的强项，这一点很重要。

差异化

成为既定企业文化的一份子后，员工们往往会有许多令人印象深刻的共性。在很多公司，“聪明”并不是异于他人的特质，而是别人对你的期望。虽然应该达到这些要求，但不要为了用共性来凸显自己而浪费时间。把精力集中在让你与众不同的东西上，比如冷静的行为方式或者跟多个团队协作进而完成工作的诀窍。

适应性

更换了角色、团队或公司后，你的个人品牌也应该有变化。在微软，我最出名的特点是擅长零售渠道和了解消费技术，但在Capital One，这些东西帮不上什么忙，所以我把注意力集中在别的强项上。在优步的新岗位上，我特意再次调整了自己的个人品牌。要注意自己带给新团队的东西，还要做好准备，以便在周围环境出现变化时发挥不同的优势。

勇敢

有一些负面特征怎么也洗不白。如果有不诚实或者抢功劳的名声，那就应该首先解决这些问题。我的建议是跟那些最坚信这一点的人谈一谈。（要勇敢！）。承认自己以往的过错，并请他们监督你进步。人们会关心你的弱点，而且愿意为你的转变做点儿事。

你不可能在一夜之间改变个人品牌，但跟别人的每一次接触都是你树立（或毁掉）声誉的机会。因此要抓住每时每刻。在我这个行当，我知道管理一个成功品牌需要付出多少努力。相信我。你的耐心和坚持终将得到回报。（财富中文网）

译者：Charlie

审校：詹妮

The MPW Insiders Network is an online community where the biggest names in business and beyond answer timely career and leadership questions. Today’s answer for, “What’s the best way to manage your personal brand?” is written by Kellyn Smith Kenny, VP of marketing at Uber.

If my years of marketing experience have taught me anything, it’s this: The brand that will make or break your career isn’t the one you work for—it’s the one you build for yourself. Your personal brand can work hard for you or it can weigh you down.

Of course, in an age of selfie sticks and hashtags, it’s tempting to dismiss the idea of personal brand as a marketing gimmick. But your personal brand is about more than self-promotion and “likes” on social media: It’s your currency in the workplace.

People with positive personal brands get the most interesting assignments, more credit, and the opportunity to work with top talent. People with negative personal brands get typecast and passed over for promotion. Your personal brand also influences the way your colleagues perceive the work you do—and reflects on your department or team. It determines whether people want to work with you and how they share and receive information with you.

And as with any consumer brand, you’re lucky if people remember three defining characteristics about you. Think of a colleague you interact with on a semi-regular basis. What three words would you use to describe them? You’re probably stretching for the third, right? If the sum total of what you’re known for gets boiled down to three attributes, you owe it yourself to think hard about what you want them to be and take deliberate action to reinforce them.

Here’s how you can start defining your personal brand before it defines you:

Authenticity

You can only be known for something if it’s actually true to who you are. Yet I often see people get tripped up because they want to be recognized for something they’re not particularly adept at. A while back, I mentored someone who thought he needed to be an expert on financials because he was surrounded by folks who were. But he was a marketer. After some coaching, he realized he needed to have enough knowledge in financials to be dangerous, but an expert in the areas he was already good at, like customer insights and creative strategy. It’s important to work with what you’ve got and lean into your strengths.

Differentiation

When you’re part of an established corporate culture, it’s common for employees to share a number of impressive attributes. At many companies, being “smart” isn’t a differentiator—it’s the expectation. While you should live up to those standards, don’t waste time trying to distinguish yourself on qualities that everybody has. Focus on what sets you apart, whether it’s your calm demeanor or a knack for working across teams to get things done.

Adaptability

Your personal brand should evolve whenever you change roles, teams or companies. The qualities I was most known for at Microsoft , like retail channel expertise and consumer tech knowledge, weren’t going to help me much at Capital One , so I focused on different strengths. And in my new role at Uber, I’m intentionally shifting my personal brand once again. Be self-aware about what you bring to a new team, and be prepared to exercise different strengths when circumstances around you change.

Bravery

There are some negative traits that no amount of polish can overcome. If you have a reputation for dishonesty or stealing credit, you should work on those issues first. I recommend a direct conversation with the people who hold this belief most strongly (be brave!). Acknowledge your wrongdoing in the past and ask them to help track your progress. People respect vulnerability and will want to be part of your transformation.

There’s no way to change your brand overnight, but every interaction you have is an opportunity to polish (or tarnish) your reputation. So seize the day. In my line of work, I know how much effort it takes to manage a successful brand. Believe me. Your patience and persistence will pay off in the end