In the silence of the night...my heart wishpers its music....
for it sways to a far off land...it question sthe basis of my existence
my breathe is heavy with words...unsaid but felt hard
words I didn't utter to the world, words I hid deep within, words I confess to turbulent spirit
its me...myself...and only me....
not thy world...not thy rules....neither its judgement....
nothing to lamnet simply the conversation of the soul....
I cry, I laugh, I love...but I dont hate...
its me....my world and I speak to the whispers of the silent night...

Brand ‘ YOU’
The most distinctive skills of today’s marketer’s is the ability to create brands. It is the unfathomable art as well as the cornerstone in the history of marketing. The American Marketing Association defines brand as a name, term, sign, symbol or design or a combination of them, intended to identify the goods and services of one seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of competitors. Now, it shall be highly incorrect to curtail this definition to branding of products or services. Widening the scope of the word, I shall discuss simple ways of branding yourself. The benefit of the whole exercise, as evident from the definition, shall be a distinct image of YOU. Branding yourself shall ascertain that you are not one among the millions there; however you are one apart from the rest. Sounds a bit overboard or too ambitious?
Ophra Winfrey’s talk show garners high TRP’s or T-shirt’s signed by our very own Master Blaster Tendulkar get sold at exorbitant amounts, ever wondered why? Why did the ‘Rajasthan Royals’ moustache or turban became very saleable items during the recently concluded IPL? A simple answer is Branding. As you begin to compete with more people sharing the same IQ level or similar set of skills, you require projecting your distinctive identity whether in a college, an interview or a workplace. Personal branding is a way of communicating the value proposition you can offer. Branding yourself shouldn’t be misread as bragging about yourself. It is all about understanding your intrinsic value in relation to the situation or opportunity at hand and projecting it in the right manner. A brand is a complex symbol that conveys up to six levels of meaning:
1. Attributes: If Rolls Royce stands for classic elegance or Enfield motorbike suggests ruggedness as there essential attributes, similarly you have figure out the your basic qualities. Take help of friends, parents and people you have known long to suggest what attributes come to their mind when they think of you. Answer questions like what traits define your personality or which characteristics are intrinsic to your being?
2. Benefits: Qualities bring functional and emotional benefits. The Rolls Royce gives you an aristocratic feel or the trustworthy Bajaj provide economical running and maintenance. What benefits do you bring to lives of people around? Are you the intellect house in your group friends or maybe you add the extra spark of joy in banal lives of your classmates? Being an avid learner and enthusiastic to put your learning into practice shall be beneficial to the organisation you join...provided you have those attributes.
3. Values: Brand speaks about a producer’s values or his promise. TATA group stands for heritage, trust and goodwill. In all the twenty or twenty five years of your existence you might have never tried to figure out your values though you live with them and practice them daily. Your principles or dearly held morals add value to the brand proposition you shall offer.
4. Culture: The set of things around us impact our persona and culture has a deep rooted impact on what we are. Being an Indian will connote the positives of being hard working and the negative of being unpunctual or being a Punjabi represents loud, cheerful and enthusiastic attitude. Hence, don’t need to fret and fume to find your cultural roots and its evident impact on you.
5. Personality: Brand YOU speaks about the individual you are. It stands to represent your elements. Personality is the condensed form of you attributes, values and cultural upbringing. Many of us make the gross mistake of undermining our personality and shirking away from projecting ourselves. Firmly believe in your persona and look for means of enhancing it ( GD classes, Reading, voice modulation series can help overcome speech issues). Take some time to analyse your personality and only when you have comprehended it, look for ways of improving it.
6. User: Successful Brands are built with the users in mind. While you carry out the whole exercise of branding yourself, it is vital to remember the people to targeting. Your friends look for different benefits from you than your boss. When TATA branded Nano, it was targeting the lower middle class of India and hence, the product design to its marketing was aimed at the probable customers. When you trying hard to make an impression someone, it’s crucial to understand what the other person is looking for. Only then can you successfully brand your self.
This is just a simple methodology of building a brand and breaking the biggest misconception that Branding is limited to products or services. I sincerely believe that each one of us is unique and can be developed into a brand. As you shall read the steps and try to apply them gradually, you ll realise why branding is the big thing in this modernistic world of ours.