10 Steps Toward a New Professional You

by Mel Carson

1. Get a Professional Head Shot. Your new professional image starts with an image. Squinching, smiling and dressing sharp makes you more competent, likable and influential.
2. Be Discoverable Online. Someone somewhere will be searching for you at some point in your career. Use your real name on the internet and optimize your social media profiles for discovery.
3. Have a Professional Purpose.  What gets you out of bed in the morning? What helps you be better at what you do? A professional purpose is way more than a paycheck.
4. Learn to Listen and Practice Empathy.  To have a well-rounded personal brand, you need to strike the balance between what you know and what you have yet to learn and understand.
5. Practice Writing.  Think before you jot down and share your thoughts online and hone your writing skills over time.
6. Re-Engineer your Digital Presence. Keep all your social profiles up to date and add social channels to all your professional touch points.
7. Analyze Your Competition.  Make time to understand what other people in your niche are doing, saying, and how successful they are.
8. Craft Your Personal Branding Statement.  Include your audience, mission, value and avoid using buzzwords.
9. Embrace and Expound your Experience.  We all have great experience and stories.  Start weaving a professional narrative more completely.
10. Be Social by Design.  Use social media tactics to boost discoverability, speaking engagements, in-person interactions, and more.