The One Action That Makes or Breaks Brand You - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

The One Action That Makes or Breaks Brand You - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career It’s not attitude. And, communication is a close second. The one action is appreciation. When you are more appreciative; when you look for opportunities to be appreciative; and when you are appreciative of yourself and your surroundings it changes how you react, interact and respond to other people and your environment. Genuine gratitude goes a long way towards building your strengths. Reason #1: It helps you connect deeply with colleagues and team members. Simple gratitude is appreciated on a much deeper level than many people are aware of. Gratitude has an emotional impact, one that people remember for longer. As such, showing gratitude goes a long way in creating a lasting impression with people more than a beautifully designed portfolio. Reason #2: It creates an avenue to build lasting relationships Every successful business person understands the value of building lasting relationships. It effectively leads to more brand loyalty, strong supporters and trust. When your connections feel valued and that their comments and views are important, they are more willing to establish a relationship, take time to get to know you and to even introduce you to their circle of friends and trusted advisors. Reason #3: Separates you making you visible and memorable. Solopreneurs and small business owners tend to be very passionate about their endeavors and even then are not able to separate themselves from others who are in the same profession or industry. The norm now is to either say “thank you” in passing or via email or in group situations. If you want to stand out you must do something extraordinary. It doesn’t have to be grand â€" just extraordinary to them and “ordinary” (or your normal operating procedure) for you. Appreciating someone and communicating that appreciation in the way they would like to receive it is one of the ways to separate you from the herd. Reason #4: It raises your level of awareness of what’s around you. As a business owner, you will constantly rely on others to grow and expand, and every time a supplier delivers on time, an employee meets their deadline, or customers take interest in your brand is an opportunity to say thank you. Such gratitude has to be genuine and sincere. Face it, no matter what profession you are in you need relationships with other people to succeed.  [tweet this] The more you are appreciative of the little things in your life and make it habit, the more it transcends to your relationships with others at work. For a long time, appreciation was not viewed as important in the workplace. However, research has shown that appreciation, more than recognition and reward, is what team members truly value.