Welcome to the next installment of Defining Your Brand of Professionalism! During Part 1, I focused on the benefits of expressing yourself through your brand. After all, when you're able to embrace your style and share your unique wisdom, we all benefit. When it comes to becoming the creative professional you're meant to be though, that's only the beginning.

Mind the Mindset

I believe the most important evidence of creative professionalism transcends how you dress or where you work. While those factors definitely contribute to our confidence and contentment, real professionalism comes down to your mindset, what you do, and how you treat others.

You've decided it's time for something about your brand to change. Maybe it's your logo, website, or even your social media strategy. Whatever it is, you know it's time to level up and invest in your brand.

TO SHARE OR NOT TO SHARE

It's embarrassing to admit that something isn't working. If it were up to any of us, we'd love to only launch perfect things, but realistically that would mean never releasing anything at all. The journey of building a brand is messy and far from perfect. The question remains, how much should you be sharing?

Maybe your name is too difficult for people to remember. Or is it too common to stand out? And what about using your own name versus a creative company name for your brand?

THE STRUGGLE IS REAL

I completely understand what a challenge naming can be, and that's exactly what Daniel (one of my awesome subscribers) has been struggling with. He asks,

“I have a really common and boring name, so my plan was to come up with a new brand or pseudonym that suits me and is explainable, until now I had no idea or kinda bad ideas.. so how do you go at it? And what do you think about it? Good/bad idea? In short: how to create a personal identity when your name sucks”

I feel your pain, Daniel. 

I'm sure you've heard the term “brand” many times in your travels, but what does it mean? A spiffy-looking logo with a catchy tagline? A nicely designed website? Not quite.

Beyond the Logo

A logo is definitely essential and its value shouldn't be underestimated. Your logo acts as the face of your business, which makes you recognizable to the world. Investing in a quality logo can work wonders in terms of elevating or refocusing your audience's perception of your brand. Ideally your logo will be distinct and memorable, but it can't do all the work. The real job of a logo is to set the stage for the rest of what's to come.