Podcast #28 Dropping the Façade

Mia LaMotte, Brand Strategist and Transformation Coach, helps womxn entrepreneurs and disruptive corporations find their brand voice. She has the ability to help others achieve their goals by giving them tangible tools and information that can facilitate growth and execution. She can breakdown complicated subjects into bite- size pieces.

Her unique background in image consulting, leadership development and transformation coaching coupled with her futuristic thinking sets her apart from other brand and business coaches. She is able to use her forward looking focus to help her clients create compelling brands that inspire.

https://www.mialamotte.com/

FULL UNEDITED TRANSCRIPT

Mia LaMotte 0:00
If you're wondering, I am in Mexico right now I'm in Todos Santos. And I had never heard of it before. My friend mentioned it to me. And I got here, let's say Tuesday, Tuesday, I was supposed to get here on Sunday. But we had a snowstorm in Raleigh, that stopped me from getting here on Sunday. So I'm here. And so I'm in a, this is the main house that I'm in. So you might see some people coming in and out. That's why I have this headphone. And so I can hear you so you guys can hear me so I can talk to the guests when they're on. And we won't have that much distraction. But just so you know, my view is one of the beach like I'm looking at the beach, from here, it's it's higher up in the mountain, so we're not directly on the beach. And then behind me are some mountains. So it's it's an amazing place. And I'm just so grateful to be able to do this. From anywhere, I'm grateful to be able to work from anywhere. And I'm also very grateful that you guys decided to show up today and be a part of this community. So with that being said, for those of you who don't know, me, I am Mia Lamott, I am I've been working in the entrepreneurial space for over 11 years. And I started out as an image consultant. Those of you who don't know what an image consultant is, this is usually a person who will help you to dress or have yourself be perceived in a different kind of way. And what I realized is that as an image consultant, or as I was being trained to become one, the information that I was receiving, like I thought I had to be proper, I thought I had to be appropriate, I thought I had to be a certain way in order to get certain things to happen. And I believe that a lot of us think that about personal branding. And what I've really discovered is like, we can definitely take looks and you know, put them up a notch or two, right and make somebody feel really confident in their bodies and what they're wearing and how they speak. But what I realized is that a lot of what the issue is, is that it's some internal work that needs to be done. So and that was my own journey. And so I decided that I was going to become a transformational coach, because I wanted to help my clients transform from the inside out. And then as I kept doing this work, it dawned on me that that none of us are actually getting paid to be ourselves. And that's what we really should be doing. Right, we really could be getting paid to be who we are, and dropping the facade, dropping the what we thought was proper, what we thought was good. And when I was talking to another group of people last night about the same thing, and I really appreciate and if you haven't seen it, give you the links. For everything that I mentioned, today, I'm going to give you all the info. So just kind of be present. Definitely take notes, if you feel like that's what you need to do. But we're not going to, like disrupt everything so that we can get the links and stuff like that again. But the video that I'm talking about, it's actually commercial, and it's a LinkedIn commercial. And the LinkedIn commercial is about professionalism. I was having a conversation with a friend, and we were talking about education, you know, being smart and professionalism. And what I've learned through my journey as an image consultant is that we get to define what professional is now and from, from my perspective is like, professional is how you should like you got to show up as yourself. And I'm not trying to say that there's no decorum to be had. But what I am saying is that we don't have to change our hair, we don't have to cover our tattoos, we don't have to hide who we actually are, in order to be considered professional. That's the message that I want to send. And that's the message that LinkedIn is sending with their new commercial that they have out there. They also have another commercial about priorities where they say it's let's we're gonna make it okay that you take a sick day if you need to, we're gonna make it that you are number one, and your job come second, like you and your family are one, our number one and then the job comes second. And we're shifting, the world is shifting, and we get to be a part of that and I am here for it. I'm so excited that we get to be a part of that journey and that I too, like I'm in the I'm on the forefront of this whole movement thing. So I am super excited about that. Now I do welcome any questions that you have. So if you have questions for me, please post them in post them here. I see that we have more people on and then introduce themselves so if you are on please Introduce yourself so we can get to know you and also get to know what you came here to learn. Yes, yes, yes. All right. So let's get started with this whole idea of personal branding. Most people don't even know what it is, right? So from my perspective, personal branding is the total sum of who you are. It is your mindset. So for me, your mindset includes the way you see the world, how you move about the world, your values, right? This is your mindset. All of us operate from a mindset. And your mindset can be one of negativity, your mindset can be one of positivity, your mindset could be one of I can do anything, or I can do nothing, right. And your mindset is also a reflection of how you see yourself. And we see that in the way that people dress, we see that in the way that they behave. And we also see in the way that they communicate with others. If you've ever been around someone who's been like super combative, or someone who is very frank, right, like, I'm very frank, I tell it like it is, it is because I want people to tell me like it is I don't, you don't need to, to fluff it up for me, you don't need to sugarcoat it. I appreciate compassion, when when stating what it is that you need to state. But I also appreciate the honest truth of the feedback, right. But also, I realize and invite you guys to realize that everybody's not qualified to give you feedback. If they've not been on a journey that you are on, if they have not experienced the things that you've experienced, they might not be able to tell you, or to give you the feedback. So filter feedback from a place of Do I really need to do to do some work on this, or this person might not be the one to give me the feedback. Right? The next thing is that our online presence, our online presence is part of our brand, right. And if we don't have a congruent brand, people, people feel a disconnect, right? They feel a disconnect, we feel disconnected. And we also don't move around with this vibrancy with this confidence that we know what the hell we're talking about. Right? I can tell you that I know what I'm talking about. Because not only have I studied this work, but I've done the work for my self. And I believe it's important for people who are teaching something to have experienced it, instead of just learning it. A lot of us can read a book, a lot of us can take a course and a lot of us can have you know, this knowledge poured into us. But until we embody it, we don't know it. I am, I'm really good at saying it. I know a lot of stuff just because it's one of my deflection. It's the way I deflect. And it's also a defense mechanism. But what I've realized is that the things that I actually know are the things that actually do. And I can say all day long that I know it's really important to exercise every day, right? I know this, but I don't always do it. So when we know something, we actually do it right? We know that if we don't brush our teeth everyday, we're going to lose them. Right? So most people will get up and brush their teeth. So just start to think about the things that you actually no, are what you think, you know, and what are you actually doing about what you know. So just to recap, I want to go back to what your personal brand is, right? Your personal brand is your mindset. It's how you think what you think of the world, how you move about the world, it is the way you dress, it's your hair, it's your makeup, it's the it's the way you actually walk, because walking is a form of communication. It is your behavior. So how do you have yourself? How do you behave with others, right? And then it's also the way you communicate? So are you communicating in a way that is tempered? Is it a way that you think you should be communicating because it's what society said, Are you communicating from a place of authenticity, and we're gonna get into authenticity in a second.

And then finally, is your online presence. So that's online presence is everything from your website, to social media, to any videos that you have out there, and you want to take all of these elements and you want to make sure that they all are cohesive and congruent, that that leads to an amazing personal brand and you want to be the same you want to be the same which is why you want to be authentic. You want to be seen throughout all of them. Now, as we grow, our brand is going to grow and Things are going to be different. Right? My website, the first iteration of my website, as an entrepreneur is very different from what it is today. And even what it is today is going to change because I've grown, and my brand is gonna grow and the things that I the things that are important to me now are definitely not the same things that were important to me when I first started on this journey. And can I get an amen on that one? I don't know if anybody else has experienced that. But once you become an entrepreneur, and you get into the trenches, things change your the way you see yourself the way you want to be in the world, it actually changes. And if you're not, if you don't have a strong mindset, and you're not working on a daily, you can easily be thrown out of wanting to be in this entrepreneurial game. Because it is not easy, right? It's not. It is easy. I mean, it's simple, but it's not easy. And one of the things that I learned along the way is that it's the best personal development program on the planet. There's no way you can be a successful entrepreneur and not grow as a person. It's just, it's illogical. And I love that I love the fact that I set an intention a long time ago that I want it to grow, right. And throughout the journey, I have grown and it was painful, right? I had to look at myself, I had to look at the people around me. Why were those people around me? Why was Why do I do this? Why do I do that? And why do I react in a certain way. And once I realized that, oh, I can actually shift the way I see this. I was seeing it as a painful thing. I was seeing it as this, oh my God, you're a horrible person, or you're so wrong, or you're so this. And what I realized is that, oh, this is opportunity for growth. And I was telling my girlfriend that you'll get to meet later today to area we're here together in Mexico. And yeah, it has taken me probably 12 years. So finally, finally understand gratitude. I've been preaching it like you need to be grateful for the things that you have, you need to practice gratitude, you need to show it every day. But honestly, when I got here, there was this like series of events, and I'll share that with you guys along the way. But there was a series of events that had me realize, oh, this is what it means to be grateful. So I'm grateful for the things that feel like shit. And I'm grateful for the things that that helped me feel like I do right now, right in total bliss. Being here with you been able to present. I don't always feel this way about this too. So if you are one of those folks where you're like, oh my god, I hate presenting, I don't like to do public speaking. I'm not really sure about what I'm gonna say. Keep talking, keep showing up for yourself, keep showing up for your audience, and you will get better. But you have to start, the only difference between you and me or a person who doesn't want to present or get out there or put themselves out there or create a brand is I started and I was available to fumble. So let's get back to this whole feedback thing. Just recently, I was visiting a friend, I used to live in Louisiana. I'm originally from Louisiana. And I was visiting a friend who's had a couple strokes. And so she doesn't really speak. But her husband is her caretaker and I know him very well. And so one of my other friends met me there, because I hadn't seen her in a while. So I went there for the visit. And her husband said to me, he's like, so how's your business going? And I was like, Well, this is going really well. I said, I you know, I am actually starting to thrive in my business and really feel good about what I'm doing. And he was like, Yeah, because I saw you fumbling there for a little while. And when he said it, it, it son me a little bit, right, because nobody wants to hear like that they've messed something up. But when I thought about it, I was like, Yeah, I did fumble a little bit. But now guess what I found some footing. And I'm really starting to grow as a business owner, and as a brand and as an authority in this space. Whereas I didn't know anything about this when he first saw me doing this. So the my point in saying all of this is like, monitor who you're getting your feedback from number one because he's always had a job. And then number two, give allow yourself to make mistakes, you're going to make mistakes. And if you think that you're going to do this perfectly and if you think that Bryant your brand is going to be perfect all the time. If you think that you're not going to make mistakes in this space, you're going to do that. The key is to get started and not to beat yourself up about it like learn what you need to learn from it. and move on. Right? Can I get another Amen about that one? Yeah, cuz I beat myself up a bunch of times about stuff. Like, I remember putting out a post and there was a misspelling, or something like that. And I immediately went into crazy lady mode about the misspelling. And it's like, people misspell stuff all the time, right? But all I got to do was go back in and change it, like just go in and change the message, and also be present if I'm present. So what I'm doing the the mistakes probably won't happen. Right? So being present to what's happening there. Any questions about what I just spoke about as far as the pillars of personal brand? Before I get into authenticity? Any questions for me? I'm gonna take a sip to what you guys were there.

No, all right. So let's talk about authenticity. This is a word that has been thrown around so much. And I remember I was I had an acquaintance that I used to hang out with a lot. And she would say, oh, there'll be an inauthentic. There's no authenticity there. And it used to drive me nuts. I was like, What is she even talking about when she's talking about authenticity, right. And I think a lot of us operate from this place of authenticity is you being you with no filter. And part of that is true, right part of that issue. Like, if you are in my community, everybody in my community knows that I'm going to drop an F bomb, I'm going to curse. And I'm unapologetic about it. And the reason being is that, I don't want to filter myself, because I don't want you to filter yourself. Now, here's the caveat. I'm also very careful about other people's feelings, like you get to communicate with compassion, I get to communicate with compassion. But I also am going to tell you the truth. And sometimes that requires, you know, a curse word here and there. So that's number one. The other part about authenticity is that authenticity is about you understanding that you get to author your life, authenticity about you getting to author your life. I remember when I first started, this is actually what started my entrepreneurial journey. When I first heard that I was in control of what happened to my life. I was blown away, I didn't quite believe it. And I was blown away. It was during a personal growth seminar it happened to be I don't know if you guys know anything about Tony Robbins, is started with him, it was over 11 years ago. And I remember when he said that, you know, when people say something to you, like, oh, it just resonates with you and excites you when it gets you into this. Oh, my god, is that really true? And like, let me learn more about it. And let me let me be in a space where I can actually make that happen, right. So when he said that, I was like, Oh, I took it, and I ran with it. But when I ran with it, there was still this part of me who didn't believe that I could do it, right didn't believe that authoring my life was actually available to me. And so when you come from a place of offering your life based on your desires, based on what it is that you desire, not what people have told you, you should do, because I was told to get a good job with benefits, and get married and, you know, have children and live my life in a traditional kind of way. And what I realized was like I was bored out of my mind, bored with this secure job in the secure relationship. Like, I didn't author that I actually, well, I didn't author it, because we authored things all the time. But I authored it from a place of what I thought I should be doing, instead of what I actually wanted to do. Right? I didn't even give myself permission to even dream enough about what I wanted to do, right? So when I got into like, after I left the seminar, and got into Image Consulting, because I didn't even know that was a thing, and most people still don't even know what it is. So I made up my own definition about what I as an image consultant or brand strategist, what I am bringing to the table because I'm bringing the image principles, I'm bringing in the branding stuff and I'm also bringing into transformational work, right the inner work and because of this, like I've I've authored for myself the same thing, I had to go through those transformations because first of all, I needed them. That was the reason why I sought them out. I I sought them out for myself first and then realize that there's so many other people out here that are seeking this as well. Right so That's how this, this whole thing began. And once I got clear that authorship and authenticity comes from me, from me, not to me, it was a game changer. So I want to invite you guys to really look at what what are you authoring for yourself? And is it absolutely what you want? Right? Is it absolutely what you actually desire? Is it somebody else's idea. That's how this whole disrupter brand came up with, right? That's how I came up with the brand of a disruptor. Because what I realized is that a lot of us operate under Status quo, we, we believe what society tells us, we're supposed to be we show up in a way that, you know, is not really who we are, like, you know, I have a really great example of one of my clients, and I'll share this with you later. But when we show up as our full selves, right, and we do this on a consistent basis, we begin to know and like, and trust ourselves more. And if you know anything about marketing, if you know anything about branding, if you know anything about the entrepreneurial space, or relationships like that, those are the cornerstones of people wanting to work with you, or people wanting to be in a relationship with you. Knowing liking and trusting you, we have to do it for ourselves first. And then. And then and only then will other people finally get us. Right. Yes, absolutely. Okay, I'm looking at these comments. I'm trying to make sure I'm not missing anything from you guys, but also want to make sure that I'm giving you the information that I promised to give you. Alright, so that's authenticity in a nutshell. And my invitation is to look at are you living your life? authentically? Is your brand authentic to who you really are? Or do you feel like you need to polish it up here? Or do this here? Or do that there? Or act a certain way when you're around these people? Or be a certain way when you're with these people? Right? Take a look at your your brand. And let me know if you feel like it's authentic? If you feel like it's if you feel like it's on point for you, right? Yes, when we begin to know like and trust ourselves, that's when the magic happens. That's when it happens. So I'm glad that you found that to be a great nugget. Alright, so here, we're gonna go to the next part of this. And the next part of this are the three trends that that I feel like are pretty. Pretty significant when it comes to personal branding, and why this work is so important. A lot of people think that this is esoteric, they believe that it's part of some bigger scheme to make somebody else rich. And this goes back to mindset, right? It goes back to mindset. And and that's just not true. If we so let me break it down. I typically don't do statistics, I don't do math, I am more I operate more now from a feminine place. And from a place of who I really am. Because I never have been interested in math. I never have been interested in statistics. I don't like spreadsheets. I like the way they look. I like for other people to do them for me. But I don't like doing them myself. And so once I gave myself permission to be who I am and to accept who I am for who I am. Somebody else does that stuff for me. Right. So I want to invite you to do that as well. But let's get let's get back to why we're here today. Personal Branding, like now that you have a really good understanding about what I mean by personal branding, note that the statistic, the statistics that I'm going to give you are based on a study that was done, it was a national research study conducted by the brand builders group. And I'm letting you know who they are. So you can go and look up the research for yourself. I am going to put a link in our in the information that I give to you guys later, you'll have the link for this study. So you can go and look at the stuff yourself. It was absolutely fascinating. So the first trend for 2022 Is that personal branding is the future. I'm going to get into all of why is the future in a minute. But personal branding is the future. So either you are a personal brand and you get to uplevel your personal brand now, or you are a person who teaches personal brand like me and you're going to be on the forefront of teaching other people how to how to maximize their brands. The second trend is that personal branding is highly profitable. People who have a personal brand tend to make more money than those who don't. So, if you think about influencers, if you think about people who have paved the way for themselves, and they're making multiple streams of income, they're doing it because of their personal brand. And then the third reason, and this is going back to authenticity, right? Personal Branding is a trust accelerator. So if you have a personal brand, people trust you quicker than they would if you did. So we're gonna get into all of those in a second, I just want to give you guys an opportunity to ask any questions that you might have about what I just said. Anybody have any questions about those three trends? Yes, no.

All right. Let's get back to it. All right. So the first trend about personal branding being the future. So here's the stat 74% of Americans are more are more likely to trust you if you have a personal brand, right? So it's not about being popular. It's about showing the world who you are, and why they should care. Like why? Why do people care about who you are and what you're doing? Most of the people that I'm working with, want to make an impact in the world. And you can only do that if people know who you are. Right, you got to have support, you can't make an impact on the world by yourself. The forthcoming generation of leaders and trendsetters with the largest spending power for the next 30 years, they don't consider a personal brand, a game of vanity, or popularity. But something that is critical, and an essential component of work, learning and trust that influences their everyday life. I used to use it irritate me so much like in the image consulting world, that skills that we teach, are considered soft skills. And I stopped saying that a long time ago, because what I realized is that what we teach are actually essential skills that are actually essential to you growing as a human being, but also for you to grow with others and have relationships with others. So figure out which of the seven essential skills that you haven't, that you haven't mastered, like figure those out and then get to work on them, right. Millennials and zingy. Xin, I'm sorry, Gen Z, place and unexpectedly high emphasis on personal branding. So when I talked about the spinning power for the next 30 years, that's what I'm talking about. And this helps them to determine what they're going to buy, where they're going to work, who they're going to listen to, who they're going to recommend to their friends, who they're going to hire, who they're going to vote for, and even even who they're going to date. Right? If, if you are looking for someone to date, let's just say you're out, you're single, you're in the dating pool, you're gonna go check out what they've said on social media, you're gonna go check out to see if they even have a voice. You want to know who you're getting yourself involved with, because a lot of us have been, you know, a lot of us, like, the world has gotten smaller, and we have access to everyone in the world now. And so it helps us to get to know people on a on another level, because they have this personal brand out there. Right. Alright, so that's all about the first trend. The second trend is that personal branding is highly profitable. So historically, we thought about personal branding about likes, follows the people that who are sharing things about us. But now it presents a different story. It reveals that an established personal brand connects to a higher likelihood of profits. So in the study, 60% of Americans say that they would be willing to pay more to receive services from a professional who doesn't work for a large company, but has an established personal brand. So let's think about one of my clients. She is a candle maker. And she makes candles and because of her personal brand, because of her personality because of her values, and because she's been willing to share these things. Someone would be more likely to buy a candle from her than when then from, let's say Bath and Bodyworks because they want to support her. They want to be in business with her. They love her mission and therefore they're going to invest with her. Most Americans also believe that it's important for their doctor, their lawyer, their financial advisor, their banker, their insurance agent, their real estate agent and several other key professional service providers who have an established personal brand. They also believe that their employer should have one. So when you're working for someone you want to know who you're working for. And you also want to know who you're doing business with. And for people who are in those higher trust factor. Professions, like doctors and lawyers and financial advisors, like, you're not just gonna have one, know anybody off the street, looking at your money, you're not gonna have anybody looking at your, your health history, you want to know who you're getting involved with. So this is an opportunity for people who are in the branding world to say, look, everybody who is in this high trust profession, you need to be working on your personal brand, or establishing your personal brand and letting people know who you are. Right. And this is not about lying about who you are. It's about telling the truth about who you are. And the people who are for you are going to be for you and the people who are not, they're not, it makes your messaging really easy, right, because a lot of people talk about your brand message, your message is easy when you're telling the truth about who you are and who you want to work with. Domestic is really easy. Let's see, personal branding is so important to rising employees that 70% 70% of older millennials, think companies should actually teach all employees how to build a personal brand. So going back to those folks who are in this industry, get yourselves some corporate contracts, let them know these statistics, this should be part of your marketing write it, I'm doing it. There's a lot of companies in the Raleigh Durham, Durham area that are doing like software and computers and, and even in the medical industry that I'm sending out letters to because of this. Right? All right. What do you guys think about that? Where are we? Let's see. Do I have any more comments? Any more nuggets that you got from this so far? Any questions? Any questions? Who's there? Come on, let me know that you guys are live over there?

Yes, no, nothing is resonating with you. Come on, let's go. Yes, Deva, what's your question? Please ask it.

Tiffany has a week.

Great question. So David's question is if a person is just starting out, what's a simple way that they can begin to establish their personal brand, what's free, what's out there that's free, that you can begin to get yourself notice social media is free. An email list is not free, but and you can find a service that will give you like free up to a certain amount of people, sending out emails, sending out text messages getting on a tech service. That may be you know, it's it's pretty inexpensive. So I'm gonna say tech service, social media, and text, and email marketing, like these are the things this is how you get yourself out there, I will begin creating videos, I would also because those are also free, you can get on YouTube, or you can create videos from your phone, like those things are very inexpensive. And, again, it does not have to be perfect. And I want you guys to understand that getting something done and getting yourself out there is better than trying to be perfect. Because if you wait for the conditions to be perfect, if you wait for your skills to be perfect. It's never, you're never going to start. You just gotta start. And then you go back and reflect on how much you've grown. I do the same thing. Like I didn't want to put myself out there. I don't want to go and speak to groups or I don't want to go and do videos and put a website website up because there's a level of vulnerability that you have to access in order to do these things. But what I realized is that if you don't who is going to know about what you're doing, you can't just have your business in your head. Right? You can't have your business or your brand just in your head. It has to be it has to be out in the world. It has to be the other thing that you can do if you're just starting out so let's just say you don't you haven't even begun to think about who you are right? You got to know who you are people like to get on a journey of self discovery. So that when you do start this brand process or you let folks know, look, I'm in a discovery process. I'm not really sure. You know where this is going to take me. But right now, this is how I'm feeling. This is who I am. And I'm also on a journey of uncovering, you know, did did my grandparents tell me I should be this way? Therefore, I'm this way? Or is this really who I am? And my self expression as is 100%? Me? Right? So definitely going on a journey of self discovery. And then those other things are the, you know, practical, tangible things that you can start to do Davao?

Well, yeah, so David's question is, would you say that personal branding is a way to establish yourself as an expert in your field? Is that why people are more inclined to do business or hire, going back to the light trust, like know, and trust factor, they can't get to know you, if you don't put yourself out there. Right. And they can't get to like or trust you, if you're not being honest about who you are what you know, right? So it all falls into line. So yes, your personal brand will help people to get to, to like, know, and trust you, therefore, higher or buy from you. So personal branding. Personal Branding is not the way it's a it's a personal branding is a way to show people or establish yourself as an expert, as long as the content. And as long as you are an expert. Like don't, don't try to market yourself as an expert in something, if you have no clue about it, right? If you read a book about it, you're not an expert. If you have read a book, and taken some courses, and actually gone through the process that you're teaching, then it's likely and you've taught others to do it, then it's likely that you know that you are an expert, right. And if you're not an expert, don't like don't think that you can't establish a personal brand based on that either. Right. I just think it's essential and crucial to be very open about where you are. And the transparency is going to take you a long way. And it's going to help other people trust you. Right. So I hope that was helpful for you. All right, let's see. All right, no more questions, we'll go to this last trend. So we can take a break. And then we'll bring on our next speaker. So excited to have a chat with her. Alright, so back to David's question about this whole trust acceleration people buy, from the people that they trust, they know they're gonna do a good job, they know that they're gonna, they're gonna have their best interests at heart. And this is the reason why we want people to trust us. This is a reason why you want to put yourself out there, this is the reason why you want people to understand who you are. So we so the third trend is personal branding is a trust accelerator. So given our deep rooted belief that long term reputation, reputation, and legitimate expertise, just talked about that data, right? are what really matter. So not success hacks, not fads, like you have got to legitimately know what you're doing. We wanted to specifically measure the effects of personal branding that it had on trust. So this is, this is part of the study, too, right? It was the single area that was the most compelling of all this whole trust acceleration piece. 74%. So this is boomers, this is Gen Z, this is Gen X, like 74% of all Americans 85. And we're talking about older millennials reveal that they're more more likely to trust someone who has an established personal personal brand. So if you don't have one, get started today, because it's actually going to help you in the marketplace. Because what what we're finding is that there's been a lot of noise online, a lot of people have kind of moved away from being online because they found that it was a distraction. We're getting more into, you know, into being introspective because of the pandemic. And a lot of us just, you know, we're done with the screen time. So I'm really happy that you guys decided to join me today on Zoom. But you know, people want to be in person people want to get get back to that get back to relationship. So while we're waiting for this to happen, while we're waiting for the world to open back up, while we're waiting for Coronavirus to just leave the fucking planet already. You get to work on your brand. And you get to put yourself out there and the good news is that some people might not be watching you get right. The good news is that typically, when you first start out, most people aren't seeing what you're doing. So you can get over that whole fear of oh, I'm putting my stuff out there. And the whole world is going to be there to see it. No, I mean, yeah, likely it is out there for the whole world to see but the whole world doesn't No to come on, look for it. Okay, so give yourself a break and quit that mental, the mental gymnastics with putting myself out there, people are gonna laugh at me that kind of thing like, let that go, you have to be fully grounded, and what you're up to, to where that stuff does not matter to you anymore. Like I am on a mission for women entrepreneurs, especially to get that who they are is enough, and that they actually can get paid to be that person. Right. That's my mission. And the reason why it is my mission is because I didn't believe it for myself. But guess what, I know differently now. And I want other women to know differently now. And there's no one that can shake me or take me down or or shake the belief that that is true. So whatever it is that you're up to, you got to know from the deepest depths of your soul, that what you're doing is making a contribution and making an impact. Otherwise, you're gonna be dead in the water, and you won't want to post and you won't want to get on social media. And you won't want to get your message out there. Okay. All right. So back to the trend. And then we're going to wrap up in a second because it's, yeah, it's getting to be time. So most likely, so we're going to be most likely to trust someone who has an established personal brand, so get to it, get to it. We also, they also said that 82% of Americans agree that companies are more influential if they're executives. So even if you don't work for yourself yet, if you work for a company, or you're part of a company, the executives must have a personal brand that they know and follow. So who could who was an example of this? Somebody like Richard Branson, who is Virgin Airlines Virgin Records right now. Nectar Island, Richard Branson has an amazing brand. And people buy the bio from him because they like his personality. They like who he is. They like that he thinks out of the box, things like that. He has this this fun spirit. Right? So people buy from his companies because he shares who he is with the rest of the world. Okay. All right. So this just tells you like this is personal branding is so important. And it's not a vanity thing for younger people. It's not just for the Kardashians, it's not just for Elon Musk. It's not just for Jeff Bezos, it's not just for Tabitha brown. It's not just for Tyler Perry, or Oprah, it's for all of us. We all are significant enough. We're all significant in this world, like, Oprah is no different from you. For me. It's just that Oprah put herself out there, right, Oprah put herself out there. And she did it from a place of authenticity. And we all have seen her results. We've all have seen how she has changed and grown in in this space. So I want you to know that you can absolutely do this right. And the other thing that the study did not mention, but I feel is absolutely important for you to know about a personal brand, is that when we are when our brand is congruent with who we actually are. When we've done the inner work, we've done the dig, we've been doing the deep dive about who we are truly, we begin to self actualize. Meaning we have found our soul's purpose, we are acting on that we are living out that soul's purpose, we begin to become the best version of ourselves. And it sets the tone around for those around us, which makes us all happier and more fulfilled humans. And I believe I serve as my my mentor Betty, Betty Spro would say, I assert that that is the reason why we're sitting home now. That's the reason why this whole pandemic started. This is a human experience that we've all had, right? We've all had to deal with the with the pandemic, it wasn't just one country. It was our whole species had to sit there as is now and do some inner reflection. Yes, yes. So let's let's get, let's get the message or let's get the lesson and let's get the nuggets that we were supposed to get from the pandemic, right, and move forward as our authentic selves and move forward using the branding process to do so. Yes. All right. Awesome. All right, people. So this is those are the trends. The trends are I want me to go over those again. And like I said, we're gonna get all this information to you guys. But the trends are personal branding is the future. It's the future the people who are going to be spending the money They believe personal brand is important. The second trend is that it's highly profitable. People who have personal brands tend to make more money than those who don't. And then finally, it is a trust accelerator. If you want people to know like and trust you, you got to do your branding. But you also have to know and like and trust yourself first. So work on that daily working on a daily. All right. If we have questions about anything in a presentation, I will take those now.

And then we're also going to take a bio break once those questions are done, and we'll come back at the top of the hour. So any questions from any of you about any of the material that I presented or any anything about personal branding or the work that I've done, or you know, what it's like to do work with me or anything like that? Any questions from you guys?

No questions.

A lot of information I know. And especially if you've not done any work with me or not listened to any of the work that I've done, if you're just meeting me here for the first time, I believe that a lot of this can be overwhelming. And my my suggestion is like, take it a day at a time. And the biggest part of this is really getting to know yourself. That's the biggest part. So do that first. Yes, Deva comment. David has a comment and I'll read it out.

Yes, Rebecca, authenticity is everything and absolutely the key to fulfillment and that and it happens when we're honest with ourselves about who we are, and unapologetic to. We have to be unapologetic about how we're showing up. Because it's, this is your life. Right? This is your life. It's the only one you're going to be given. And why in the hell would you live it for someone else? I don't know. Something to reflect upon. David, you said you had a comment. I guess you're typing it up now.

Throughout the day, guys, you might you might hear like construction or tools in the background. Because I am in like I said, I'm in Mexico. And it's a quite a rural area right now. And they're doing a lot of construction. So you might hear some of that noise, which is why I have this in.

So David says, I remember the retreat in New Orleans on the rooftop, and I was speaking really passionately about something and you asked me, Why didn't I make that part of my branding? Right. So those are the clues y'all the clues are like, what are you passionate about? What are you willing to put yourself on the line about? What are you willing to what do you know? So deep in the depths of your soul that like I said, No one's going to be able to shake you from that belief. Because you've lived it you've experienced it you've you've done the work around it. And that's what Dave was talking about. Like she was able to speak passionately about something and it's part of her brand because it's part of her How does Image Consulting and development personal brand differ from developing brand colors logos, how does that How do those two come together and what does that process look like? Oh, this is a great question. So the process with me is that you got to do both right? I believe. brand colors like logos and style and things like that only come from you. When you know who you are, what you like and what colors work best for your skin. What colors work best for your personality, what communicates who you are. So right now I'm in a neutral background. I have on neutral colors right? Actually these are inherent colors. So this is my skin my hair. I color that you're looking at in this in this dress, and a pop of color. That is my brand. Right? That is what if you go on my website, it's the colors. If you come to my house, it's the colors. It's what I like it's who I am. It's what I do. So take a take a look at that for yourself like you can begin to discover this for yourself. Look around you look at the car that you buy. Look at if you were going to be if your brand was going to be a car what kind of car would it be? Would it have leather seats would it be an S su SUV whatever Have? Would it be achieved? Like, is it going to be a bright color? Is it going to be black? Is it gonna be white? Is it gonna be something neutral? Right? So look at your patterns of how you have things that you like, right? Look at that first. And then there is a color psychology to things. So we all know that yellow is very optimistic, right? Remember the whole time that yellow ribbon around like, I might not be old enough for that. But Yellow is an optimistic color. And people who use yellow in their branding, I think Rebecca does, people will use yellow in their branding typically have to have a typically have a more optimistic look out on outlook on life, right? And people recognize that when they see that color, it means sunshine, you're bright and things like that. So there's a psychology factor to it. But there's also what what are these that you like? And what are these look good on you. Because when you're creating your website, when you're creating your story, when you're creating your brand, you want to you want to use colors that look good on you, right? You want to look, you want to look good in your photos, and you want your photos to look good against your website, and anywhere else want that to happen. So you want to make sure that you know what's best for you. And we can definitely walk you through that whole process. And then I'd say the logo also has to speak to your style. If you're some if you'd like classic and simple, why would you go out and create something that's modern and abstract, right? Those are two different fields, they're two different vibes. And then you also want to know like, I do it from a different place, because I feel like who you're going to attract are people who are going to be like you don't try to attract people that are not like you because you're not going to know anything about them. You won't know anything about them. So, um, let's see what else. And then yeah, Image Consulting brand person that but we can help you with all of that we don't do logo design, we don't do any of that stuff, but can definitely help you walk through walk through the process, based on what your brand is based on what your message is, based on what the values are. So absolutely can help you with that. And if you are working with someone on your logo and things and things like that, I highly, highly, highly recommend that you do talk to someone about a color analysis for yourself, just so that you don't waste money. You don't want to waste your money on something that's not going to be you and that's something that's not gonna represent you fully. So I hope that answered your question. And if it didn't, I'm happy to hop on a call and we can talk about it because I'm not really sure who you are because I just have Facebook either up here

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