THE 4 "I" WORDS THAT ARE NEVER ABOUT YOU

THE 4 "I" WORDS THAT ARE NEVER ABOUT YOU

We often get stuck trying to figure out what to say when we build our brand. It is critical to remember that most of the time your personal brand should not be about you.

Here are 4 key ways to add value and build your thought leadership without talking about yourself and wearing out your welcome. As you build your content strategy for the week, month, and year, this framework can help ensure you deliver on your brand without talking about yourself too much.

90% of the time, or more, you should post content that falls into one of these four buckets.

1. Inform

Providing information to your audience is a great way to add value. Identify the knowledge you have gained over the years through success or failure. Create little “bundles of knowledge” that you can share.

Examples:

  • If you are an entrepreneur, maybe it is about the key information you need to know before you leave your paying job to start your company.
  • If you are a lawyer, write about the impacts of new regulation and how it might affect your constituents.

2. Inspire

Who doesn’t want to be inspired? We all need some motivation and inspiration. Do not over post quotes, be thoughtful and intentional about why you are sharing them. Maybe they are related to a time of year or a person – let’s say Martin Luther King Jr. – and you want to post it around MLK day.

Recommendations:

  • Pictures are more likely to be shared – so turn your quote into a photo and attach it in your Tweet or Facebook post.
  • Use tools like Canva to create your image for free.
3. InfluenceFor executives and entrepreneurs, it is critical to post content that reflects your thought leadership. This type of content is all about influencing a conversation. What do you believe about an industry or something happening in the world? Think about what you have credibility and permission (from your audience) to talk about that would resonate. You want to break through the noise, not add more noise.

Things to Consider:

  • Research what others are saying about the topic and be sure your perspective is not just repeating the same old content.
  • Keep it short,  sweet, and actionable if possible – make it easy for people to care and share your influential ideas.
4. IgniteSpark a conversation. Be thoughtful about being provocative, but not polarizing. Unless you want to have some parts of the audience not like you, or you do not care about it. Provocative is all about starting a conversation.

Things to Consider:

  • Be careful of your topic – recommend not talking about religion and politics – unless that is your space (it can be too polarizing)
  • Don’t be mean. You can ignite a conversation diplomatically, there is no need to ignite a conversation with mean or negative comments.

Remember that the purpose of sharing content is to help create value for others. It is not just to hear yourself speak. If you genuinely are sharing information that is  insightful – the odds of it being shared are much greater.

Remember your audience and be your best self,
Jen Dalton