I was recently interviewed by Kate Elks for Telstra’s new online magazine called NEXT Newsletter. It’s an interesting read filled with cutting edge information for CEO’s, CIO’s & IT Managers. Contributions come from some of the most widely respected experts in their field. Below is my interview, some of which will appear in the July issue in an article about “Personal Branding“.

Kate: How could a personal brand strategy potentially improve business or personal life?

Toni: By creating your own distinctive personal brand you can achieve success in your chosen field whether it’s in your career or as a leader.

In terms of your career, a successful career starts by defining what makes you distinctive. Developing your personal brand will give you an opportunity to identify your personal strengths and capability to add value to your organisation. It enables you to have a fuller sense of your own capacity and how to use it effectively. It allows you to find contexts that value and grow your brand.

Having a strong Personal Brand is a very important asset in today’s competitive jobseeker market.

In particular, as a leader: Knowing your leadership brand enables you to build connections with others on authentic and firm ground. It means you can, and will, connect with people on the basis of a sustainable core, not a false or shallow glimpse of who you are. It enables you to bring your whole self to work.

How should you approach the task of identifying your current personal brand, changing it, and finally reviewing the perceptions of your changed/improved personal brand?

Your personal Brand is made up of many elements – it’s often communicated by your behaviour, how you interact 1:1, how you empower and motivate others. It’s also communicated via physical evidence such as the way you present yourself, your resume, business cards AND, even your online presence!

It’s often not a matter of changing your personal brand; it’s often that you need to discover it!

Your Personal Brand should always reflect your authentic self, and should be built on your values, strengths, & skills (in particular the ones you love doing and are good at).

Then you need to be able to clearly describe the benefits you bring to others – your team, peers, company, community, family and friends.

Finally you need to be able to support your message with evidence (examples of when you’ve brought benefits to others) & be clear about what is it about you that makes you different & distinctive? This will give you a Sustained Competitive Advantage.

To ensure that the brand you advertise is embodied in your day-to-day work, check in with those around you. Do they see you as you wish to be seen? If you say you are flexible and approachable, do others find you so?

You also need examples or evidence to support your message …do you have 360 degree feedback from managers, direct reports and peers?

Get a coach to monitor what you’re doing and give you feedback. Your coach will help you to evaluate if the actions that you’re doing are consistent with the brand that you want to be known for.

Finally, don’t forget about your online presence – Google your name and see what appears in the first 2 pages.

What technologies or social media are the most effective tools that can help?

After you’ve discovered your personal brand, then others need to discover you!

Social media platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Google+ all help you to communicate your personal brand. They help to raise your visibility and help you to build credibility and become an expert in your field.

The important thing with personal branding online is to be consistent across all platforms with the same branding message. (For example; a boozy photo with your friends on Facebook can ruin your brand if you’re a C-level executive.)

It’s also important to pick the right platform – for business it’s essential to be on LinkedIn.

One reason for joining multiple platforms might be to push unwanted content farther back in your Google search results.

 “if you’re not on Google, you don’t exist”.

These days in business, most of us Google someone before meeting them for the first time, so it’s important to be as visible as possible online.

It’s even been suggested that your “Klout” score might be the deciding factor in who gets hired for certain positions. (Klout.com is a service that measures your social media influence online. The more influential you are, the higher your Klout Score.)

What advice do you have for other business execs who are thinking about this?

Don’t leave your branding to chance.

Start work on discovering your distinctive personal brand and then work to ensure it’s sustainable.

Your personal brand isn’t static; it should evolve in response to the different expectations you face at different times in your career.

Leaders with the self-awareness and drive to evolve their personal brands are more likely to be successful over the long term — and to enjoy the journey more.