PURPOSESCAPING : Build confidence to reinvent and find purpose in midlife

When it comes to personal branding, most people will remember the message not the photos or logo.

When you eat, breathe ,and live what you care about the most, people take notice. They'll think of your topic and then think of you.

When you stay on message,  you stay top of mind.

You don’t have to be featured in a major publication for people to understand what you’re passionate about. Your passion for what you do should ooze through you at home and at work whether you're delivering a talk on stage or making small talk with colleagues.

3 Ways to stay on message when it comes to what you care about?

1. Rant about what bothers you in the industry

If people don’t understand what you do, that’s a messaging problem you can fix. My program and others are designed to tackle that.

But if people don’t know what you’re passionate about, that’s on you.

Stay on message and they'll know what you're about - and they'll think of you when that topic comes up.

How many times have you formed an opinion based on one person's comment?

How many times have you made up your mind about a restaurant, a company, or a city after only having experienced it one time, or reading one bad review?

Do you tell yourself a story based on only 1-2 pieces of evidence?

And when it comes to going after clients, pitching yourself for media opportunities, or leveling up in your career - have you ever decided to give up after hearing one no?

We're all guilty of having done this at least once or twice.

But my message for you today?

Cast a wider net before you call it quits.

This is a wide and vast planet, with over  7 billion people at my last check. While you may not have been able to sell the last person you pitched on your idea, your business or yourself - you have likely not exhausted all of your options.

It's impossible to exhaust the option in most things, especially when there are new ones popping up that you may not even be aware of.

Here's your reminder of that - before you go making up stories about why you can't do or have what you want, ask yourself if you've cast your net as wide as possible.

If the answer is no, think outside of the box you've put yourself in.

I'm not sure if it's a high achiever thing or what, but overthinking has cost me so much as a professional. And it's directly tied to feelings of imposter syndrome.

In the past, when feelings of imposter syndrome made me anxious, I would find myself waking up in the middle of the night. If it hit me during waking hours, my stomach would turn somersaults whenever my stress point was triggered.

In recent years, I've learned a powerful reframe that I use whenever I start to veer toward anxiety. And that simple mantra?

"I've already done the work."

Shout out to my friend Dr. Reisha Moxley who gave me that excellent mantra. It's come in handy more times than I can count.

If you struggle with imposter syndrome - face it, we all feel like imposters at one point or another - try that mantra on and see how it helps you.

Then think if you're letting one failure cripple you indefinitely as I discussed in episode 80.

If you find that you are, make a list of every single reason you're ready for this opportunity. And keep referring back to it. When you find yourself overthinking your next move, or succumbing to anxiety, picture yourself doing everything on that list.

As I mentioned in the episode:

Congratulations to PYG Academy Maximum Exposure's Amber Cabral who was featured in Fast Company today! Check out the article - and please share:

Fast Company - I've Trained 5,000 Leaders. Here's how 1-Day Diversity Trainings Are Not Enough

My gift to you - save $$$ on my signature personal branding toolkit the Branding Box with the secret code you heard on the podcast. Enter the code after clicking checkout at www.thebrandingbox.com 

When I was a little girl, I remember thinking I was always doing too much. In fact, the message was reinforced by the well-meaning adults in my life who I felt wanted to put me in a box.

But they probably wanted me to fit in more than anything else. And as a parent now who is in charge of shaping young people, I can relate to the instinct to want your child to fit in at all costs.

But some of us were just born to be different.

Some of us were born to stand out.

Some of us have to do the most - it's just our natural speed.

Leaning into this daily podcast challenge has helped me see that doing a little extra is my normal. And while I may not keep the daily episodes going forever, it's certainly easier to pull off than I thought it would be.

In part because, I thrive when I'm given a big challenge. I like to be stretched a little more than usual. I'm in my bag when I've got something absurd to achieve. 

"Regular" doesn't keep my attention.

Reflection questions for you - what were you doing as a young person when you were told you were doing the most? Or maybe your experiences are more recent, and others think you go overboard at work, in your marriage, or in your parenting.

Whatever gets you side-eyes from the world may be a clue to your brand magic. Instead of dialing that part of yourself down, try turning it up. 

Let me know what happens.

As Mentioned in the Episode

Package Your Genius: 5 Steps to Build Your Personal Brand is available on Amazon. Get it.

The Package Your Genius Companion Personal Branding Workbook - a book full of introspective prompts - is there too. Grab yours now.

I've noticed a funny thing on calls with friends, clients and prospects over the last few days. And that is the idea that because you're giving your skills away to friends and family, they're not worth anything in the marketplace.

And it's an easy assumption to make.

Think about it - if you routinely offer up your life-changing, career-catapulting, business-building skills to friends and family for free, you'll subconsciously get the message that your skills aren't worth anything.

So be mindful when you offer up freebies to those you love.

Help friends and family out with your gifts. But don't make the mistake of assuming that just because people don't pay they're not getting massive value from what you're serving up.

You're not fulfilling a passion or hobby - you're operating a pro bono business that is already generating value for the world.

You just haven't figured out how to extract compensation for the value you provide yet.

More on that in a future episode :)

Traumatic events of the past have a way of shaping how we approach our present, and how we plan for the future.

I was reminded of that on a coaching call earlier when a client recalled a painful memory about a business venture she abandoned years ago after receiving a single negative review.

And the negative review ended up being fake news! The client recanted shortly thereafter, but the damage had been done.

The sting of "you're not good enough" forced my client to shut down any dreams she had of pursuing the business, even after hearing that the client was actually happy with her work!

It's the subconscious mind that grabs an idea and holds on to it for dear life. It's why so many people allow a failure - real or perceived - to cripple them indefinitely.

But these are stories you're unknowingly telling yourself about why you can't do what has been put on your heart to do.

And stories are just that - stories. They're not always true.

What stories are you telling yourself about why you can't do, go, or be what you desire most? 

I'm challenging myself to publish a podcast each day this month. Here goes the first episode - what to do when the opportunity seems to big, and you don't feel ready yet.

I recently had what felt like life ministering to me when I bought a new bicycle for my son.

He had aged out of his kiddie big box store bike, and I wanted to get him a new set of wheels from the bike shop.

When I ended up purchasing said new wheels, I immediately had buyer's remorse.

Because of his long legs, the salesperson had advised me to go with an adult-sized bike instead of the older youth bikes.

But when the new bike came in and we went to pick it up, I immediately felt it was too big. Knowing my child - and his reckless, careless tendencies - it felt like a recipe for disaster.

But disaster wasn't exactly what was on the menu for him. His ability to grow quickly taught me a lesson about how poised for growth we all are.

Listen in and chime in. I'd love to hear your thoughts.

As always, Package Your Genius: 5 Steps to Build Your Most Powerful Personal Brand is available on Amazon

Package Your Genius Personal Branding Companion Workbook is available on Amazon

If you want a tangible toolkit full of fun worksheets and exercises to help you get clear on your personal brand, check out The Branding Box.