The “Brand You” idea is about 20 years old now, but some folks are just coming in contact with it. One entrepreneur sent me a wonderful “thank you for the idea” email yesterday, referring to his first exposure to Brand You. BY has been praised and also has often been pilloried, and I replied with this:
“A lot of people have taken the Brand You idea and twisted it out of shape. ‘They’ say it’s about egocentrism. That’s off by 180 degrees as far as I’m concerned. The idea is that in a wildly competitive market, each of us, including Marriott housekeepers, has to be clear about our ‘value proposition’ and so-called USP. It’s a matter of survival, not ego. Others have said Brand You is disloyal, a looking out for #1 attitude that puts the organization 2nd. Again, off by 180 degrees as I see it. I’d rather go to work with a stable of Brand Yous, hell bent on improving and producing Excellence, than with a bunch of ‘just passin’ the time’ folks. Third, some say Brand You is anti-team. Again, all wrong. An effective Brand You is an effective networker (!!), hence more rather than less likely than usual to pay attention to supporting his or her mates.”
This is just an “FYI.”