Assignment #3 All about the BRAND!

(Maybe I need to take this class to help me out? Click here to go to the blog offering this class from Brave the Woods)

After reading The Brand Called YOU, and 5 Steps to Empowering the Brand YOU, I feel very urgent about creating my brand.  However, I feel like in some ways we all have been working on that all along.  We already are known for certain things, and characteristics, I feel like this idea helps me think about controlling that a little more, as well as being very intentional about promoting our strengths and being more cognizant of our weaknesses. I can see the importance of not overselling ourselves, and being careful not to undersell who we are and what we can do.

In my experience I have been a witness to some people doing a fabulous job of this, and it has really paid off (it appears) for them. It is far from my nature to be about self-promotion. To be honest it is something I find annoying.  As I read through these articles I can see the benefit and the need of branding and in a way that is self-promotion. As I ponder the difference between these two ideas I feel like branding is more about having some ideals and skills that you become an expert at, and then sharing that, and being known for that.  

If I can change my thinking, that will help me to become more comfortable with the idea.  We all need to stand out, stand apart from the rest by being able to offer a certain skill set in leadership and education. Finding out what to focus on for myself is something I am thinking about and working on. Glenn has already shared this idea with me, this last spring, as we talked about my future as an intern, I kept thinking about that conversation as I read these articles, and I thought about others in my cohort to seem to be naturals at it!  

Of course I want others to think of me as a leader! I want them to feel like they can count on me, and that I will do what I can to support them in their work. I want to be great at having ideas for interventions, and sharing those with other teachers. I want to be knows as being positive and encouraging among other things I need to continue to think on!

Being a presence in social media is a way to create that brand, and it is something that is exciting to me to be involved in again! J I enjoy blogging, and although my husband and teenagers are laughing at my tweets, I love learning more about it, and know that I can learn so much professionally from others through social media!  As I go forth I want to use a class blog this coming year, and encourage my families to connect with me through that, and I want to be a presence on Twitter as I connect with more educational leaders!  I am hoping to offer some professional development at my school along these lines as well, to help others feel empowered by the opportunities we have available!