Your personal Brand is one of the most important elements of your professional life. In fact, some could argue that it is the most important. Your brand is your professional identify. It is how others see and perceive you. As a result, you should take it very seriously and spend the time building a positive brand.

It takes time and effort to build up your brand.  Brand yourself around a subject matter expertise and let those around you know about your knowledge. You can do this by speaking at events, writing articles or blog posts, sharing resources with others, etc.

The more consistent and persistent that you are, the more people will recognize you for this skill or know how. Once people know about you, you will be a sought after professional. As a result, your network will flourish. You may have to be choosy about who you start to build longer term relationships with because you will get a lot of people coming to you. However, you still want to be approachable and assist others where and when you can. This will only further brand you as a leader.

Either way, your brand will be elevated in your business community and beyond. Opportunities will present themselves to you. Your relationships will grow stronger and bigger. Once you see the power of personal branding, you will be motivated to continue branding yourself and expanding your network.