As a working mom I’m always looking for ways to maximize value where I can - tips, tricks, hacks, ways to make it so that the limited time I have to I invest in something, compounds into something greater. I have a master’s in counseling-psychology. I didn’t end up going into the field but since going into business, I’m drawn to understanding how different people manage and develop their careers. There’s a bit of some art, some science, and a lot of right place, right time that goes into a successful career.
But I’ve found something to invest in where the compounding interest far supersedes any time I dedicated to it. Being known for something specific is career insurance — and like all insurance, the premium is cheap when you don’t need it and impossible to buy at the moment you need a payout. The payout moments (a reorg, a re-org-adjacent layoff, re-entry after maternity or medical leave, defending scope, a negotiation, a pivot) are exactly the moments you have the least leverage and least bandwidth to start building your brand. And as working mothers, the moment when you need to be building a brand happens to be the exact time when you “need” it the most. In other words, you don’t build your brand the moment you need it but before you need it. And usually it’s the least compelling time to be building it because it’s not the most immediate need you have to prioritize. Life is busy, the carpool needs to be run, the presentation deck is due tomorrow, you have a plane to catch, your child is getting sick, and there is always a never-ending pile of laundry that needs your attention. There is never, ever a good time to build a brand.
Building a brand is not about becoming a content creator on Instagram who spends time sharing her favorite kitchen gadget (but I do have a few in case you were interested) or finding time to post on LinkedIn about how your kid’s morning drop off taught you another lesson in how to hustle harder for your company’s mission (my ultimate cringe example). It’s not about shameless self promotion. It’s about educating others on what you do, how you do it, and what they might benefit from learning from you when you share it.
Do you notice the difference?
In order to have a personal brand, you need to understand what you’re known for. And you need to make sure people know what you’re known for with or without you telling them. Here’s what I mean. Being called a “marketing leader” doesn’t survive a hallway conversation — but “she understands how to position content so that c-level audiences engage with it” does.
Here’s a thought. If three colleagues described you in one line, would they say the same thing? If not, why? And if it’s not what you want to be known for, why? It can feel risky to be known for one or two things — but that’s the point. You want to be known for something that can be remembered with or without your resume. These days, we all know that a person’s career can be multifaceted. But having a few things you’re known for makes you memorable during times when you want your brand recalled.
Building a personal brand can feel vulnerable and loud, but I’m not talking about making noise or drawing attention to yourself obnoxiously. I’m talking about making sure the right people who decide your scope, comp, and career mobility know you. And even more importantly, you want to make sure you have a well-defined external circle (not a large undifferentiated LinkedIn audience) who knows what you’re known for. In other words, you want people internal to your company and external to your company to know your brand.
Here’s an exercise you can do right now. Name the five people whose opinion of you changes your trajectory in the next 18 months - a manager, a skip level, your org’s executive, a recruiter, your future manager outside of your company. Imagine how each of them would finish this sentence: “She’s the one who —.” Do you like what they would have to say about you? Do they even know what you’re doing without reading a promotion packet about you or your resume? That’s what’s going to determine the direction of your scope, promotion, and reputation.
Recently, I led a webinar on building a personal brand. It was well received (some people were able to move companies, retain a larger scope at their other company or start building their external brand for when they might need it at a later date). Of all the things I’m talking about on The Cabro right now, I keep going back to as I think about how mothers can create more value for themselves at work without having to actually do more work. Most of us don’t need to take on another project, we need to make sure the ones we are working on are seen by the right people.
Most of us don’t need to take on another project, we need to make sure the ones we are working on are seen by the right people.
I’m working on developing an on-demand webinar that walks through how you can integrate building your brand into an already busy career. I’m keeping most of what I taught in the past workshop and adding a few new thoughts that I’m learning in real time. If you’re interested in joining the waitlist, I’m opening up registration later this summer for my next cohort.
Proof of your personal brand is what gets cited when you’re not there to advocate for yourself — talks, docs, shipped work, a body of writing. And those conversations happen quickly - in hallway chats, quick Slack messages, and over drinks mid-conversation when your name comes up and someone blurts out “she’s so great at developing audience personas.” Building the right proof is hard. Because it takes some legwork on your side. It’s the slowest to build and the least immediately gratifying. But it’s a lot like investing in the market. You put the money in, you ride the market, and overtime, your value compounds, doubles, and the ROI was worth well over the few dollars you initially invested. It only takes 15-30 minutes a week to build a brand. The people I admire most have done it. I’ve done it. And the people I’ve helped with my webinar have done it.
When you leave the room, what’s left behind with your name on it? If the honest answer is “people’s memory of me being good,” you have no proof — you have goodwill, and goodwill doesn’t survive a reorg. It simply means people feel bad when you’re left behind, even if they know you did some great work (though they can’t quite articulate it enough to bring you along).
The reason this feels uncomfortable is that we’ve been taught to build a personal brand is — loud, unnatural, self serving — when it’s actually an asset. And assets don’g just happen. You choose to either build it or you don’t.
You don’t have to do anything performative. But you do need to decide what you want to be know for, make sure the five people who matter can say it, and leave enough proof behind that the claim holds when you’re not in the room. This is not about self-promotion. This is the most boring, defensible risk management there is — and you do it now, while the stakes are low, precisely so the coverage is in place before the day you need it.
Let me know what you think in the comments — how have you quietly (or loudly) built a personal brand and what did you do?
Registration for my next personal brand workshop (on demand) opens up later this summer. Join the waitlist to be the first to know.
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