Using Focus to Improve Your Life (Part 3 of 3)
The last two weeks I have been leading you down a path. I hope that you have been following along, because today is where it all ties together and I will make a pitch on why all of these things are so important.
The key to all of this is that you are essentially creating a personal brand.
Wikipedia defines brand as “the name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that identifies one seller’s product distinctly from those of other sellers.” Take out the business jargon and instead make it personal. All of us, every single one of us has a personal brand. When others conjure up their mental image of us in their minds they immediately have a gut reaction. A feeling that directly relates to their perception of us. Most people feel like they do not have much to say in how others perceive them, but I would disagree. We are always projecting a personal brand. People are gathering impressions of us during every moment time is spent together. But, most of us squander this opportunity.
What if I told you that everything that I have covered in the last two weeks is an incredible way to build your personal brand?
That by taking control of your life and choosing to learn specific things, doing those things, and eventually teaching those things to others, you are building a lasting impression with them. You are either negatively impacting the perception others have of you or you are making a positive impact. One thing you cannot do, is stay the same. So, which will it be? It is a relatively simple concept. Everything you choose to learn turns into you doing things and teaching others about it. Public speaking makes a huge impact on your personal brand. Learning and employing new leadership skills makes a huge impact on your brand. Learning to write makes an enormous impact on how others perceive you! These things completely change the game.
The difference is made when you decide to take hold of this knowledge and utilize it. If you focus on narrowing down what you want to learn, do, or teach, you can then change your life. Most of us are just content with sitting around and letting things happen. Not changing the flow. Accepting things as they are. That is exactly how you become insignificant. It is the perfect formula for leaving this earth without building a legacy that will impact lives for generations to come. We all have the potential inside us to make a difference in the lives of others. It could be as few as one other person or it could be millions. For me, if I can positively impact or change the life of even one more person before I am done, then all of this hard work is worth the effort.
Create your personal brand. Focus on what it is you want to leave behind to impact others and let that guide you in deciding what you learn, what you do, what you teach, and what you become. You make this happen. Here and now. Not later. Not in 2 months, 6 months, or a year.
It starts now.
What are you leaving behind?
Daniel I hope I am leaving behind the desire to improve how we communicate with others. Sometimes I feel like I am fighting an up hill battle with communication because it is something we think others need to work on, not self. Or if you are brave enough to recognize your need to improve, that resolve disappers when it gets tough.
Good communication is the center of all relationships, at work or home.
The funny thing about branding and legacy is that others have to tell you if your brand is effective.
In the meantime, I just have to keep learning and teaching, hoping that it will make a difference.
I hope to leave behind the legacy of making our lives about others. That has been my goal and always will be my goal. With selfishness being abundant, it has to spread to others in order to make an impact.