Personal Branding: Your Strategic Plan Is Never One and Done
Recalibrated, iterated, call it what you want. Every personal, professional, or corporate strategic plan needs consistent focus and, at times, course adjustment.
A strong brand needs to be codified and constructed, with emotional dimensions that build connections and rational dimensions that deliver consistent results. Your strategic plan, what you want to achieve, and the steps you must take to get there help reinforce and bring your personal brand to life. It is powered by your values, motivations, and drive. It is never one-and-done.
To maximize success, your strategic plan must be treated like a business treats theirs: one that is planned strategically and executed purposefully.
Oddly, research shows that about half of all leaders and executive leadership teams spend less than one day a month focused on strategy. Many organizations fail to achieve their objectives because they underestimate the implementation challenges their strategic plans pose.
Other research shows that many firms spend limited time on strategy, rarely reviewing or revising their strategic plans and letting the plans they have invested in sit on a shelf.
Your personal and professional strategic plan cannot follow that same path for you to succeed. Just as companies may falter by not revisiting their strategies, professionals risk stagnation without consistently evolving theirs. Success means your plan must be implemented, nimble when challenges get in the way, and frequently revisited.
The Steps to Take When Revisiting Your Personal, Strategic Plan
Conduct a 360-degree performance review.
Look back at what you have done or did not do, what worked and did not, and where you succeeded and failed. What projects earned you recognition? Where did you over-commit or fail to deliver? Are there skills or experiences you have outgrown or underutilized? Essentially, this is a 360-degree performance review of your brand and strategy.
It is also a way of objective thinking, not one that casts personal judgment on or about you. Instead, individual self-reflection allows you to look toward the future with purpose, intention, and realism.
Audit performance specifics.
Was your strategy one-and-done, or were you focused on growth by seizing opportunities throughout the year? Did complacency set in, or did you consistently showcase your work and accomplishments for all to see? Did you walk your talk or fall out of date? If your goal was to gain industry exposure, how often did you contribute to industry publications and attend or speak at events? Was your wish list too long to allow real strategic planning to succeed?
Refresh your feedback.
If you created your personal and professional brand with feedback from others, refresh that feedback. Review what was said about you when you originally defined your brand, differentiation, and strategy. If possible, return to those who provided initial feedback by scheduling one-on-one feedback sessions or by sending a short survey to trusted peers for additional thoughts. Only then can you look to the future, prioritizing what stays, what goes, and what gets added.
Realign your goals, actions, and outcomes.
Your strategy plan must be focused and current. Knowing your direction helps you to make decisions with clarity and purpose. Setting personal priorities based on what matters most and avoiding wasted energy on distractions is critical to successful realignment. That might mean turning down opportunities that do not match your long-term goals and investing time in activities that align with your long-term vision. If your goal is to build a reputation as a thought leader in your industry, prioritize those writing opportunities and speaking engagements that position you as an expert in your niche instead of randomly accepting every opportunity. Or perhaps schedule blocks of time each week to listen to, learn from, and share insights with other leaders in your industry and industry niche.
Focus on intentional actions since those are more likely to achieve meaningful milestones.
However, intentional actions must match specific, measurable, achievable goals. It is not enough to say you will write more. Your goal must be matched with, “I will produce article drafts the first of each month, finalized and turned over by the 15th.” A vague goal, i.e., to become more successful, will not help – you must define your destination, milestones, and pathways clearly. For instance, instead of vaguely aiming to network more, set a measurable goal like, “Attend one industry event per month and follow up with three new connections.”
Businesses thrive when they have a clear strategy. Revisiting your personal and professional strategic plan is not just about setting goals; it is about achieving goals, and most importantly, it is about ensuring that every step you take aligns with the future you envision. Start today, and let your intentional actions define your success.
