Stand out at work with your own personal USP

Having a strong personal and professional brand starts with getting clear on who you are, what you stand for and what impact you want to have on others.

Next, it is about reflecting on how the actions you take demonstrate this consistently. The more real you are about who you are and how you show up, the more authentic your brand will be to those around you and the better results you’ll see.

We often talk about the concept of a Unique Selling Proposition in products and services, yet we rarely think about it from the lens of ourselves.

We know that to consistently sell, brands must establish enough credibility to convince us that we want to engage with them. And yet, we don’t invest enough time and attention on the most important product of all, OURSELVES.

Getting clear on my own professional and personal brand has been a journey, to say the least.

It has required patience, perseverance and absolutely has required time to reflect, dig deep and get real with myself.

Equally, though, it is one of the most liberating and confidence-enhancing tools I have ever invested in. It has allowed me to know, own and leverage my unique strengths more than almost anything else.

And, best of all, it has meant that out of eight billion people on the planet, I am the only one that carries my USP.

To support the development of my own USP, I have created a personal formula for my USP which incorporates the following:

Experiences + Thought Leadership + Presence = USP

What does this mean?

Experiences

What are the pivotal career (or life) experiences that have shaped you and led you to where and who you are today? (e.g. a particular opportunity you were given, a travel experience etc).

For me, I know that some of the most challenging times in my life have been the key moments and experiences that have shaped me. I wouldn’t be where I am today without them.

Thought Leadership

What are your own personal beliefs, values and thoughts that you have and hold about things that impact how you show up?

How do you see the world?

These beliefs and values are the things that make you, uniquely you. They ultimately inform how you show up and how you share your story.

For example, I believe that the world needs more heart. More humour. And more honest conversation, human to human. I try to bring this belief into everything that I do.

This belief won’t be the same for others and that is why it forms part of my own personal USP.

Presence

Consider what the 'vibe' or impact you want to have on people is. How do you want to make others feel? What tone do you set when you walk into a room? This is not a trick question.

Yes, we assume that for 99 per cent of people, the impact you want to have on others is a positive one. However, we want you to get more specific than that.

For some, their presence is about warmth and relatability. For others, it might be bringing a sense of calm amongst the chaos.

It is about being intentional in what that looks like for you and then telling that story every day in the way that you live it.

Creating your own personal USP is a powerful tool to enable you to live your story every day. To know it. To own it. And to leverage it.

It empowers you to show up in a way that is authentic to you. And it acknowledges the very fact that every one of the eight billion of us on this planet brings something unique to the table - and I, for one, think that's pretty damn cool.

So tell me - what is your own personal USP? I’d love to hear it.