YOUR BRANDING SUCKS.

YOUR BRANDING SUCKS.

I know it's a bold claim, but chances are, it's true.

If you've been in the entrepreneurial or business world you know that we're constantly being bombarded with words like branding, marketing, authenticity, and stupid phrases like, "tell your story," etc. But if you aren't a marketing firm yourself, then how the hell are you supposed to know what that means?

So if you're like me, you search for it. You read articles and books, seeking knowledge on how best to brand yourself. You watch videos about being authentic and showing up as your true self, and the list goes on. If you're reading this, you're probably an entrepreneur - or looking to be one - and you know first hand that all of this can be SO overwhelming.

Everyone has an opinion on what or how you should show up, but the one thing people pretend to do -and fail miserably at- is taking into account is the very thing that makes you different than the rest.

YOU, duh.

You see, you can read a million articles and books, watch just as many videos on YouTube or Instagram, but at the end of the day what you really need to do is put that all down and sit down with yourself. GET REAL with the one and only person that knows you fully.

You.

We are constantly looking to everyone else to tell us who we are, what to do, and how to do it. It's time to take responsibility for our own lives. Getting real with ourselves is something we avoid because it's difficult. It's challenging to sit down and make a list of our goals and dreams, and what makes our heart go pitter patter. In doing this you might realize you're on the right path, or you might realize you're entirely on the wrong one. It's scary, and deep down you know it's the ONE thing that is holding you back. It's the hardest thing to do, and because of that, it's the one thing we avoid the most. It's hard work. Very few people have learned to like hard work.

And that's why we aren't billionaires.

Shift gears with me for a minute.

At the end of 2020 I had booked a call with an energy healer and she had me repeat the phrase, "I'm afraid of failure."

The point of this was to see what resonated with me and what didn't so we could get down to the bottom of my self-sabotaging, and self-loathing habits.

I said the phrase in my most convincing voice.

Nothing.

She then told me to say a different phrase. "I'm afraid of success."

I could barely speak the words.

Fuck.

This one resonated.

This one was true.

THIS was my problem.

You see, I'd become perfectly comfortable at failing. I did that all the time; I could do that again. But succeeding? Woof. That thing terrified me. I grew up in a challenging household and I used that as my crutch all throughout my adult life. Not in the way you would expect though. I had been to therapy and worked on healing all sorts of issues, but the one that remained was an undercover woe-is-me mentality. Subconsciously, I had learned that if I shared my sob story then people would empathize and sympathize with me. They could relate. They would see me. There's power in vulnerability right? Yes, but I was using it as my crutch. I was continually putting myself in the same exact scenario to be -yet again- the victim. Life, love, work, you name it.

Now you're probably reading this and wondering, okay... I clicked on this to learn about branding, why am I reading about your problems? I'm not your therapist, you twat.

Yes, yes, I know, but I share this for a reason . I struggled for years with my branding and marketing. I would sit there for hours and hours pondering questions like,

What is my passion?

Who my dream client?

How do I tell my story?

Blah blah blah. It's not that these are bad questions. They're actually really good questions and I'm glad I did it, but in all reality, I didn't truly know the answers. I made some up to the best of my ability, but my vulnerability hadn't reached it's full depth yet, so half of me was missing.

I was still able to create a beautiful, and somewhat authentic brand image, and I did fairly well for myself. I was showing up at the level I was capable of, and that's okay. Your brand is you, and just like you, your brand is ever changing.

I was showing up as authentically as I could. I was capable of showing up as half of me, so my branding reflected the same. Now my branding has more depth. It tells a deeper story.

"PEOPLE CAN ONLY MEET YOU AS DEEPLY AS THEY'VE MET THEMSELVES..."

-Matt Kahn

As such, you can only connect to others to the level you have connected with yourself.

Your capacity to brand yourself is limited by your ability to see yourself.

Your branding sucks because your self awareness sucks.

So you want better branding?

Get fucking real. Learn about YOU. The good, the bad, and the ugly. Then, and only then can you show up authentically. Then you can learn what your true passions are, and most importantly, what your purpose is! This will lead you to your target clientele, and THEN and only then will you understand how to reach them.

I've included a list of questions that will help you connect deeper with your true self:

Who am I?

Who do I want to be?

Does who I am and who I want to be align? Why or why not?

What is my passion?

What is my purpose?

Am I pursuing this passion every day? Why or why not?

Am I pursuing my purpose every day? Why or why not?

Do my passion and purpose align? Why or why not?

Am I following my passion or purpose? Why?

How can I more consciously follow my purpose instead of just my passion?

What are my top 3 biggest strengths?

What are my top 3 weaknesses?

What are my top 3 biggest fears?

Is there anything I'm avoiding in my life? Why? How is this holding me back?

Am I capitalizing on my strengths in my life? Relationships? Business? Why or why not?

In what ways can I improve the level I'm showing up for myself to increase my self-confidence?

Am I choosing faith over fear? Why or why not?

Are my fears getting in the way of me pursuing my purpose?

Am I afraid of failure? Why or why not?

Am I afraid of success? Why or why not?

Am I setting realistic expectations for myself? In what ways can I improve this?

In what areas am I keeping my commitments to myself? Why?

In what areas am I not keeping my commitments to myself? Why?

Once you've gone through this list very honestly, read through it and see if you missed anything. Add to it with a red pen/font color, and make notes. Add as much detail as you can muster. The more the better. Then, read through it once again before going to bed, and pray or ask the universe to help you -as you sleep- process and find solutions to any challenges you may be facing. Ask it to fill in any gaps you are missing as far as your honesty and vulnerability go, and give you the answers you seek. The answers will come. Your subconscious brain knows the answers and will give you the solutions if you ask. Continue every day/night as necessary. Be intentional.

Now that you've figured yourself out, here is a list of questions about your dream clientele:

Who are they? Build out their profile and persona in detail.

Is my client a business or an individual?

Where do they spend their time? Work, recreation, etc.

Am I spending my time, or marketing in those places? Why or why not?

In what ways do I relate to them?

What is their #1 need/problem?

In what ways can I solve this need?

Am I putting myself in front of these individuals? Why or why not?

What is holding me back from reaching my dream client? What can I do to change this?

Why am I the best fit for these individuals?

What will these individual love most about me?

What -if anything- will they be hesitant of about me? How can I improve this?

What social media platforms are they on? Am I on those platforms?

In what ways are they searching for their answers to their needs?

Am I showing up in those places?

These are difficult questions. I'm not going to pretend otherwise. Both sets will require patience and deep reflection. You do not have to finish these in one day. Take your time and if you find that you need additional coaching or help please don't hesitate to reach out to friends, family, a therapist or life coach, or myself for resources and referrals, or brand consulting.

Now that you've done this inner work, to show up authentically you need a content partner than can bring out the real you. Someone you can connect with on a deeper level to showcase who YOU are, and who understands the depth and importance of branding. Whether this is me or someone else you trust, the important thing is that you trust them. You need to be able to be vulnerable with them., laugh, cry, all of it.

When we work together we meet before your shoot -in person if possible- and we get to know each other pretty deeply. Once I understand who you are I can create an outline for the perfect shoot. Whether this is just headshots or one of my branding packages, the goal is to capture the real and raw YOU. The best of you, yes, but the pictures and videos we create will tell a story that shows every other piece of you too, and beautifully so. We are far too critical of ourselves and never want to be seen. It can be terrifying, but in letting go of the need to show a perfect persona, we find true freedom. There is freedom in authenticity and in this day and age when everything on social media is staged, we desperately want to connect with someone REAL.

If you want to connect with your dream client online on your website or social media you have to be willing to show the real you. To show your interests, successes, failures, and you must be vulnerable. They need to know you are a real human with feelings, goals, and dreams, and they want to be able to connect with you on a personal level.

Let me know if I can help!

I hope this article helps. Branding is such a unique and individual thing and I hope that as you take the time to delve deeper into your psyche you find what resonates with you the most. If there is something on your heart it is there for a reason. If you resonate with a certain type of imagery, branding, colors, or marketing style, there is a reason. Go with that- but be willing to step out of your comfort zone. Follow your intuition on that one, and seek the expertise of a professional when needed!

Good luck out there! You're going to do wonderfully. :)