A consultant's personal brand: critical or overrated?

The term "personal brand" is getting a lot of attention lately, and it's beginning to sound a little hackneyed. Nevertheless, It can be very empowering to condense and express your core attributes and desires. As an executive recruiter, I know how important it is to define peoples' capabilities quickly, in order to keep them in mind for future searches.

The most glaring and most common mistake that consultants make when looking for a job is to define themselves too broadly. Consultants develop the ability to function in diverse, challenging situations and act as an expert, even when they have not worked in a particular area for very long. Consultants must project an image of adaptability in the course of their everyday professional lives.

This approach has serious drawbacks when it comes to looking for a new position or in having discussions with executive recruiters. Hiring managers and recruiters respond quickly to what they can identify, define, understand and use. They are all trying to put you in a box. Wouldn’t you rather define it yourself, rather than let others take your presentation and draw their own conclusions?

You have been building your capabilities, and your brand, for your whole career. The question is, “How do you communicate it?”