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Welcome to Jon Michail’s Personal Branding Masterclass. Jon is the founder and CEO of Image Group International, an award-winning image consulting and personal branding pioneer established in 1989. This podcast will bring you old-school wisdom, inspiring ideas, strategies, and hacks for the new tech world. Here, you will learn everything about personal branding: the system, the techniques, and the right mindset to have a successful personal brand, image, and reputation.

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Hello everyone, and welcome back to my personal branding masterclass. Thank you for joining me today. We're tackling a topic that's incredibly important in the world of personal branding, and it's called the ethics of authentic personal branding. It's an important subject, of course, because we're living in an era where ethics sort of hold questionable right now in all sorts of areas, and that's why we thought we'd cover this particular area briefly today. First, let's understand what is authentic personal branding that I'm sure we've gone through previous episodes in different ways. The aspect of personal branding from an authenticity point of view, to sum it up, is being according to one's true self and behaving congruently with values, personality and, of course, your actions. So authenticity is not the same as being honest, consistent or real. Authenticity is largely subjective, and what that means is research shows that we feel it's only when our prism of a situation justifies it, you know. And this is really interesting, because although we talk about authenticity all the time, depends on people's actual interests and motivations at that moment, if authenticity is really what they're looking for. So this is an interesting paradox. But of course, I will try to explain this as we go along, and I'm sure we can all experience this at times, when we've done business or we bought something from somebody that might not have come across as authentic, but we needed it for whatever reason at that moment in time. So authenticity and honesty are related but distinct concepts. Honesty refers to being truthful and sincere. Authenticity goes beyond honesty and involves behavior that reflects deep feelings, core values and, of course, inner qualities. So experience says honesty at times, can sometimes be cutting and hurtful, but authenticity is more compassionate because it resonates. And, of course, we resonate with the concept of compassion, even at times when that you know the person that does resonate is being inauthentic. So authenticity definitely builds trust and, of course, elevates your currency. Being authentic also makes us feel good and creates a synergy between people, as I sort of noted before. So when you're authentic, definitely there's a connection there people like that, as I said before, even if they themselves are not being authentic. So we feel good when we see ourselves as authentic, and when we perceive another person as authentic, even if at that time would feel inauthentic, it still works beautifully. So I had to repeat that, because it actually is that powerful. So authenticity does not mean consistently being the authentic guy. It's not about that. It's important, though, to understand and identify when you're also being inauthentic. 

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And what that means is, when you are being inauthentic, recognizing this is also part of being authentic. That's the paradox. So in reference to honesty and integrity, we as a society recognize them as cornerstones, of course, of an ethical life. However, I will not elaborate on them today, as I honestly believe they are separate subjects, and I will not do justice on them. Just to briefly cover them. Now I will share with you, though, some key practices to ensure authenticity in your branding. First of all, share your background Yes, it's important to know your background story. People like that. And of course, your experiences, your your lived experiences, some of your ups and downs mistakes. Acknowledge all of that, and what you've learned from them. And this is very important, because people actually resonate and really connect to that. Personal stories, of course, play a big role there. So this is part of sharing your background, and you can do some of that, of course, on digital level, of course, using LinkedIn and your digital media, your you know, website, etc. Also, of course, your socials stay consistent with your values. And this is very important because we're living in times where values are also getting questioned and skewed, and people, at times, are not staying consistent with them. And the problem with that is, of course, if you're unstaken to. Selling your values over time, it's going to have an impact on you, potentially with your health as well, because it's all integrated. So ensure that your actions, both offline and online, align with the values you promote. So what that means is, if you're going to be virtuous, be virtuous, not a virtue signaler. You know, for example, do you really believe in a cause, or are you just doing it to fit in with some group? And the typical of that is, you might see all sorts of demonstrations out there. At times, people don't at times, might not even believe in that, but they do it just to fit in with the group. I've had many, many experiences of this, and I'm sure you have as well. You you might have experienced it yourself, or you've witnessed that with other people doing that, where people publicly say one thing, example, they believe in women's empowerment, and in private, they do the opposite to what they said. What I would say, are acts of disempowerment, and it's very important, so when you're aware and your what I would call is awake, you can see distinct differences here, and some of them are hard to pick because they're only on the fine line. But it's important that, of course, words are translated into actions in a congruent way, as opposed to opposite, because that will create all sorts of cognitive dissonance as well for the person that's actually doing that. So you can use this example for many decisive topics in the world today, and social media plays a huge role in personal branding from obviously an online perspective. But of course, the online perspective can also affect the offline perception. So we've explored various social media platforms on the last episodes, so make sure you check some of them out, because social media is a powerful tool for sharing your story. We all know that and engage you with your audience. However, it also comes with the responsibility to maintain ethical standards in how you present yourself and interact with others. So the amount of fake, illegal and contentious content is what's known as let the buyer beware. It's an environment where, with all the talk inquiries and government threats to come down on social media ethics with the big tech companies, it seems to me to be more smoke and mirrors and bluff than reality. However, I will say that changes must and will come in the future abate in the slow pace, because the damage done cannot be any longer ignored, especially around mental health and the dopamine hits that are designed in the algorithms to create and last but not least, when it comes to ethics and personal branding, remember to set boundaries between your personal and professional life. 

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You know, share only what you're comfortable with, and prioritize self care, protect your privacy as best as you can and mental well being while maintaining your persona, because remember, the more you share yourself out in the world, you know you're taking the mask off, that also will create a lot of vulnerability, and you gotta look after yourself when you do that. So let me share a story with you about ethics and personal branding, and it's a client of ours. We've changed the name, obviously, to protect her, but her name. Will call her for today's story as Jenny. So Jenny is a talented consultant working for a large multinational. Well, I should say she did work for a large multinational. So she has a flair for creativity and innovation, and also is great, of course, been in that space in it. So with our help, she decided to reinvent herself and build the personal brand to stand out in a competitive marketplace, and, of course, eventually start her own business. So her first steps included creating a professional website and showcasing her portfolio with obviously great projects she has worked on in the past. She begins sharing her consulting process and thought leadership content on selected social media. So she starts to get some sort of traction. Her followers start growing, and she gains recognition for unique style, including by us placing her on numerous podcasts. One day, a potential client offers Jenny a lucrative project. And the catch in this lucrative project was it involved consulting on a product that she did not believe in. So Jenny now faces a dilemma, do I accept the project for the money? Obviously, I've just started a business. I need to create cash flow, or do I stay true to my values? Now, this dilemma is a common one. It presents itself regularly. It's a common one that, you know, corporations go through this, small business goes through this. Government goes through this, not for profits. Go through this. It happens all. All the time, so it's not so uncommon. So Jenny is at this point where she has to make a decision. She reflects, of course, on her brand's core values, and they will authenticity, creativity and integrity. But of course, her brand being an SME, a small consulting firm, her brand as a business is also integrated virtually identically to her personal brand. So it's a Double Wedge solid there. We're totally different. If you're working for a large corporation, you know their brand might not be exactly the same as your personal brand. So what Jenny realizes is that accepting this project would compromise her ethics and brand trust. So what Jenny did was she politely declined the offer. She explained the reasons the client, the client understood her challenge, even if he was not too happy about it. The positive outcome, though, was this, Jenny's followers and clients respected her decision to stay true to her values. And of course, had they find that out, is because we supported it in creating thought leadership case studies around this particular situation. And of course, some others that also were shared with the audience she gained also the new clients that sort of appreciated her integrity and ethical stance on this and felt they could trust her. This is not an easy situation, and I'm sure some of our listeners will be thinking, I remember typical situation where I've been in there myself, and of course, I can put my hand up as well and say the same thing, you know, so journey is personal brand, though, through this exercise of courage and I suppose, a willingness to look in the mirror, grew stronger, and, of course, has grown stronger as we speak, because it's built on a foundation of trust and authenticity. We don't have to agree with her decision, by the way, for some other people that would have had no problem, you know, taking the project and so on. But of course, for Jenny, it meant everything. And of course, that's where her decision came from. So personal branding is not just about self promotion, you know, it's staying true also to what you're on about your values. So ethical decisions reinforce brand integrity and build long term trust with the audience. So this was very important for her otherwise, why did she said to me, go out there and start her own firm and do all the other things that you did trying to build your own business, you could have stayed in her corporate job. So by aligning her brain with your principles, you attract like minded clients and followers.

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And remember what we say is, always stay true to yourself and your values, because long term, if your values, your internal values, obviously are not congruent with what's going on in your life, they will have an impact, and I promise you will have an impact on health, including mental health. So your brand is a reflection of who you are. Ethics and Authenticity will set you apart and lead to genuine success, even in the event of some short term what I'd say is unrealized gains. Jenny's commitment to the ethics pays off, because the brand now continues to thrive, and, more importantly, provides her with peace of mind, where she's also put on numerous consultants with her, so she's actually growing the business because of the courage and convictions. Finally, you become also a role model for others, inspire them to build ethical and authentic personal brands that empower you to greater things. Because when you're doing that, in my own experience, having mentored and coached for over 30 years, it actually inspires you to do greater things as well when you're actually acting your life in that way. So with that, it was a great story, great continuation of growth. And of course, something for you to consider where specifically you're building your brand and you're building that the authentic values that you actually believe in. So I want to thank you for tuning in the episode of John Michael's personal branding masterclass today. Before we finish our chat, I kindly ask you to connect with me on social media. My Twitter Twitter/X as Jon_Michail, my LinkedIn is Jon Michail. And you can find his image Group International on Facebook. If you enjoyed our chat, please rate us on Apple podcasts and subscribe for more valuable content. If you need our help in elevating your personal and business brands on Instagram and beyond, please contact patricia.bosa@imagegroup.com.au - until next time, I wish you a big Cheerio.

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Jon Michail’s Personal Branding Masterclass Podcast is sponsored by Image Group International, a global team of practical, digitally savvy personal brand and image strategists based in Australia, committed to maximizing your impact, influence, and authority in the business world. To learn more and apply for personal coaching, seminars, and group workshops, please visit imagegroup.com.au or call 1800 631 311.