Create a Brand Strategy to Help You Position Yourself

I think it's important to have a personal brand strategy before you begin job hunting when you want to build your career. It's fine not to have one if you just want a job to earn some money for a while.

But if you're in the early stages of building your career, or in the midst of a career transition, having a brand strategy is one of the key ways of helping you create a clear path for yourself.

Ask yourself these questions when building your strategy:

• What do I want to accomplish?
• What am I good at doing?
• What am I passionate about?
• What skills & knowledge are companies looking for?
• How do I want to be described when someone describes me to a potential job referral?

Jot down the words that entered your head when you read those questions. This is the beginning of a mind map, which is a way to capture feelings, thoughts and images all on a piece of paper. It's a great way to begin to organize your strategy on positioning yourself as a brand.