LTM 20. Build Your Own Brand

20. Build Your Own Brand
What do Coca-Cola™, GEICO™, and Nike™ have in common? They
each have a well-developed and recognizable identity or, as they say in
the marketing world, a brand. Marketing experts maintain that a
company’s brand should deliver a clear message, confirm credibility,
motivate a buyer to connect, and stimulate loyalty to repurchase.
Just as companies carry a brand, people also carry a brand. Branding is
how the world sees you: the impressions you make, the values you stand
for, and the qualities that mold your personality. All the LITTLE THINGS
you do and say combine to form the foundation upon which relationships
are built and maintained.
Chelsea Greenwood—owner of a 1.4 billion-dollar marketing firm—said,
“You are your own brand whether you like it or not. And every
experience has a lasting impression.”
58. LITTLE THINGS MATTER
Qualities and Actions That Create Brands
How important is the brand we communicate?
 Do you notice people who show evidence of a negative attitude?
 Do you notice people who dress inappropriately?
 Do you notice people who don’t seem to be listening? Who
interrupt when you are talking? Who talk too much? Who talk
too loud? Who use offensive language?
 Do you notice people in restaurants or in line at the grocery store
who talk loudly on their cell phones?
 Do you notice people in meetings who keep scanning their phone
for messages?
Whether you realize it or not, you form an opinion about people every
day. The things they do, the way they look, and the words they speak are
branding themselves in your mind. Which co-worker stands out as
someone you would rather not work beside? If you were to describe his
or her brand, what would it be? Think of your neighbors. Which person
is your least favorite and why?
Branding Yourself
Now let’s move closer to home. How do you think you have branded
yourself? What kind of impressions are you making?
 If your co-workers were to sit in a conference room and describe
you, what words would they use?
 If your friends were to chat about your characteristics, what traits
or habits would they list?
 If your business acquaintances were to portray you, what picture
would they paint?
 If your children were to tell their friends about you, what would
they say?
 If your spouse were to ―tell all,‖ what characteristics would he or
she share?
 At your funeral, as people reflect on who you have been and the
experiences they’ve had with you, what will be their dominant
thought? When they listen to your eulogy, what would you like
for them to hear?
Tony Jeary, popular author, communication coach, and seminar speaker,
warns us about our brands.
Every day, in dozens of different ways, you're sending a
message out to the world. The wrong message will cost
you respect, career promotions, and perhaps
relationships. And the right messages will enable you to
achieve your personal and professional best.
Brands Have Power
Who you are—reflected through your brand—will affect many people
and many things, such as:
 Your influence with others as a leader
 The level of pay increase you receive
 Whether you are selected for the next promotion
 Whether you are selected to be laid off or retained
 How receptive people are to your ideas
 The type of friends you attract
 How well you are accepted, liked or disliked
 Whether you are asked out on a second date
 What people think about you or say about you
 Whether you are included or excluded in events
 The relationship you have with your spouse or friends
 Your image in the eyes of your children or neighbors
 Whether people want to do business with you
 The level of respect people have for you
Build a brand that consistently makes positive impressions and
commands respect. As you adopt the little-things-matter way of thinking
and improve your brand, the benefits will be noticeable. Your value
increases, your relationships improve, and your sphere of influence is
broadened. You feel better about the person you are becoming and as
your self-confidence grows, you feel like you can conquer anything.
LTM Challenge
Take some time and think about how you want to be viewed by others.
Consider making a list of what your brand’s defining characteristics will
be. When you are clear on the brand you want to build for yourself, start
paying close attention to the LITTLE THINGS you do and say. Whether you
are greeting a clerk at a convenience store or attending an important
business meeting, start presenting yourself to the world in a way that’s
consistent with the brand you want to create for yourself.
The brand you create for yourself is how
you will be viewed, treated, and remembered.

LTM - 19. What Is Easy to Do Is Easy Not to Do

19. What Is Easy to Do Is Easy Not to Do
One of Jim Rohn’s most quoted sayings, “What is easy to do is easy not
to do,” has become a foundational pillar in the little-things-matter
concept. It has become clear to me that most people know in their gut the
simple things they need to do to achieve their personal best; they just
don’t do them with consistency.
We know we should listen without interrupting, but we still find
ourselves interrupting. We know we need to finish our projects on time,
yet we find ourselves missing deadlines. We know we should remember
someone’s name, yet we don’t pay attention when introduced. We know
we should answer that email or return that phone call, yet we keep putting
it off. LITTLE THINGS do matter. In the words of legendary basketball
coach John Wooden, “Little things make big things happen.”
Being consistent in doing the LITTLE THINGS you know you should do
has many positive benefits beyond the obvious desired outcome of
achieving your goals. You become more respected and admired. You
develop new friendships and build deeper relationships. You feel better
about the person you are becoming.
So, why don’t we do the LITTLE THINGS that are easy to do? The reason is
because they are so-o-o-o easy not to do—to neglect, to procrastinate, to
promise ourselves that we will do it tomorrow.
Another reason was identified by Napoleon Hill years ago: ―A big success
is made up from a great number of little circumstances each of which
may seem so small and insignificant most people pass them by as not
being worthy of notice.”

What’s the reason you aren’t consistent in doing the LITTLE THINGS you
know you should do? Perhaps you have never focused on the importance
of LITTLE THINGS. After all, how much of an impact could letting a few
days go by before sending a written thank-you note to a prospective
employer? In my mind, a lot—your competitor will get the job!
Or perhaps another inhibiting factor to our productivity comes into play.
In a recent interview on a popular blog for aspiring entrepreneurs, I was
asked: What was the greatest obstacle you had to overcome in order to
achieve your goals? My answer: laziness.
I certainly know the LITTLE THINGS I need to do (I have been making a
list of them for over 25 years) and I understand their importance. To this
day, though, I have to push myself to do the LITTLE THINGS I know I need
to do.
I also want to point out that the habits you exhibit in your professional
life are often a reflection of your personal behavior. If your bedroom is a
mess, then your car is probably a mess. If you don’t have the discipline
to clean your home and car, you will likely struggle with having the
discipline to do the LITTLE THINGS required of you to achieve your
professional goals. You can’t be one person at home and a different
person at work. You are who you are!
LTM Challenge
If you want to achieve more in your life, if you want to grow as a person
and achieve your personal best, then you must become a person who does
the LITTLE THINGS that are both easy to do and easy not to do. This will
likely be one of the greatest challenges you will ever take on, but if you
will make a commitment to use your personal initiative to do the things
you know you should do with consistency, your life can be transformed.
Your greatest successes in life
come from your disciplined effort
in doing the easy things that are easy not to do.