how to brand yourself Archives - The Sweetest Little Life

Why is it as women we are the first ones to totally bash ourselves and get the blues or stuck in the comparison hamster wheel, that let’s get real, is not healthy and has ZERO wins for anyone.

So you know your passion, you have your goals, and your are ready to totally CRUSH IT IN 2019 – but wait….Branding? Putting myself out there?

Maybbbbeeee I’ll just wait til next year? LIKE HELL YOU WILL GIRL! FIGURE IT OUT! Fall, scrape your knees, get up and learn how to do it again but now flawlessly with a little character built up behind you in experience.

Any one else out there have this internal argument on the daily? I know I did once upon a time.

So today we are spilling it all on how to create your personal brand to fit exactly you! The tips, tricks, and struggles I learned from I am sharing with you today in hopes that you can take at least one thing to help you launch into what ever it is you want to become in this whole “adulting” entrepreneurship were creating!

So grab a coffee or a BIG glass of wine (because whats the point of a small pour when were getting creative with our bad selves and lets dive right in.)

What is branding? Branding is creating your general look of what people see when they first come across your page or business. Its your little mark in this big world. What do you represent? Is it mommyhood? cooperate Business? Are you sweet, funny, a smart ass? What do you want people to walk away feeling when they leave your page? Do you want them to feel support? Like they learned something? Like they want to cry? Like they are moved? Like they are ready to shop? Branding is about creating your ultimate esthetics for what you are all about. Do your pictures all make the same sense or are you Posting “Make America Great Again” followed by a cute Puppy followed by a picture of a mountain? That is BAD BRANDING my friends. You want it to flow like a river Pocahontas would sing a magical song next too.

How do I make my photos all “flow” without having to match colors and spend hours planning? I am all about saving time and working efficiently. Planning all greens for 9 squares, then all reds, then all yellows…..Thats a lot of work and for my business just not practical. I’ve got mamas to support, businesses to run, and three crazy kids to chase. So how I personally make my brand flow is by using different presets in light room and making sure each piece of content I post is edited with that same preset. For example I will go on Etsy (because I love supporting another maker) purchase a preset and use that preset for Summer then when Fall comes I’ll find one with maybe warmer hues and use this for all of fall…Your catching my drift right? You want someone to not want to look away from your page so you get a chance to share your brand and what you are about. However if your page is not pretty to look at you will get over looked no matter how great your words and content are. Make everything flow together into what your overall big picture is.

Focus on what you represent and do not fall stray to this purpose. – Sure you can evolve and change over time, but always stay true to your core reason and truth. With this you will always have a strong foundation that can branch off where ever you want at a later time. Until your foundation is as strong as nails though do not squirrell from your core.

Video Video and More Video Nothing says personal like connection. The closest thing we have to human connection when branding is video! It is the most awkward thing in the whole wide world of course when first talking to yourself on your camera. This is the new age though and people do not just want to see pictures they want to hear your voice, see you, learn what your personality is like. SHOW THEM and be real. (This is where that large glass of wine comes in.)

The three C’s of Branding – Clarity, Consistency, and Constancy.

Establish a following and get to know your target audience. Do not be afraid to ask questions. What do they like? What do they want to see more of? Who are they? GET TO KNOW THEM.

Creating your personal brand is so special and so exciting. Dive in, go with your gut and learn as you go. What worked? Do more of just that. What flopped? Cross that out of your game plan. Move onward and upward and let no-one stand in your way. (Most of all the noone is ourselves.)
YOU ARE WORTH IT!

Where my makers at?! Most of us are so guilty of the procrastination gene! It’s in our DNA – So how do we use it for good? What is it? Were getting down and dirty with it all today!

Procrastination is the act of prioritizing less urgent and more pleasurable tasks over the more important stuff.

You procrastinate because you have a fear of doing something, because of unreasonable expectations, or because you haven’t generated enough reasons to get the job done.

Now, procrastination is not always “bad” nor “good”. I personally thrive when I have a dead line and need to get hustling the day before, but if it’s too much and not organized procrastination I will fail every single time to meet my deadline. I become stressed, overwhelmed, and start the hamster wheel of accomplishing absolutely nothing productive.

So why do we do this? How do we avoid procrastination or organize it to help us effectively? Today I am spilling all my tricks on what I do to stay on top of task that are not pleasurable or “exciting” to me. The ones that often get pushed to the back burner!

Get the hard stuff out-of-the-way – Every evening before bed I always make a list of what needs to be done the next day. This 1, helps me clear my head and sleep better and 2, allows me to strategically place the things i want to do the least top on my list.

(When I whip out the hard stuff first thing in the morning, there’s not enough caffeine in my system to talk me out of it, and then I am energized with the attitude of “Yeah I just did that, and it wasnt that bad.” “I am ready for more!”)

Set specific, measurable and realistic expectations of yourself – Do not over book yourself and realistically create timelines that allow you to not feel stressed out or like you need to skip a meal to accomplish everything. Remember a healthy you is going to be the most productive you.

Find out what motivates you and eliminate distractions – For my personal motivation I love Podcast. While I am working in my office I feel like I am learning new things from some of my favorite entrepreneurs while getting motivated on every word they say! Some of my favs to listen too for motivation are

Rachel Hollis – Rise
Jenna Kutcher – Goal Digger
Lori Harder – Earn your happy
and Julie Soloman – The Influencer Podcast
Mel Robbins – 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 Method

All of these women fire me up and make working enjoyable and not boring or lonely. I eliminate my text and phone alerts, the television, or any other ding that may distract me from accomplishing the one task at hand.

Complete small new tedious task immediately – Have a phone call to make? A form to sign for the kids? A volunteer obligation? A dish you borrowed but have failed to return? Just do it. All of these tedious task can haunt you and turn into giant mole hills for absolutely no reason. The minute something comes in that I can handle right away I do. This will completely avoid you forgetting later on down the road, or saying “Ill do it after dinner” and becoming to tired and pushing it to the next day.

Find your peak performance time and use it – We all have that time of day that we just kick ass and take names. For some they call it being a “morning person” or a “night owl” others its awareness, either way we all have a time that is perfect for our own individual peak spots.

Don’t get “stuck” on your time and know that as life circumstances or body changes happen your peak performance times may change as well. Perfect example – I am usually a morning person. I wake up before everyone in my house, enjoy my coffee and quiet time, and start busting out hard projects before any one wakes up. Than…. I got pregnant….and I am pretty positive this baby is going to be a night party animal. I’m worthless in the mornings and some days can barely move until 3-5 p.m., then I perk up and can rumble til 1 in the morning. Ya all, this is UNHEARD of for my body, but Im rolling with the punches, Im listening to my peak energy, and utilizing it to the best of my ability. With a few quick changes I just have my “work performance” hours after the littles are tucked in. Be open and accepting to change.

Focus on one thing at a time – Dishes, Etsy Orders, Local Orders, Kids Event, Volunteer Obligations, Date night, Dinner Plans, Laundry OH MY – I’ll take the lions and tigers and bears any day. Slow it down girl friend…..This is where list are crucial. Take ONE THING and ONE THING only. Nothing else matters until that one thing is complete. Are you writing a blog? Then you are only focused on doing your best and writing the best piece you can at that moment. Are you doing the dishes? Then you’re not on the phone, your finishing up the dishes so you can get the next meal moving and grooving. I often remind my self “I am only doing this right now.” I literally hold my self back from squirreling and starting 5 things at once but completing nada.

Tag: how to brand yourself

Overcoming Procrastination