Sonya WareOur coaching relationship shifted into high gear and we began to work
on her personal brand. Through personality assessments and discovery
coaching, she was able to understand and articulate her personal brand in
such a way that her track record, talent, and value spoke for itself.
But hadn’t personal brand always been a factor? A reputation just
happens. A personal brand is a reputation that is proactively managed.
Personal brand always matters and it is built on a foundation of gifts,
talent, abilities, and experiences. Here ’s how the story ended, the client
was able to define and arti culate her personal brand and nailed every
internal job interview landing in a dream job that came with a
promotion! We were made to shine! Marianne Williamson says it best,
“Our d eepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is
that
we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that
most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous,
talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child
of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing
enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure
around you. We are a ll meant to shine, as children do. We were born
to make mani fest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some
of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we
unconscious ly g ive other people permission to do the same. As we are
liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates
others.” (From A Return To Love: Reflections on the Principles of A Course in
Miracles, Marianne Williamson.)
WRIGHT
So what would you say would be the highest c ontribution to your
professional succes s?
WARE
The highest contribution to my professional success has been, what I
call, “staying in my lane”—recognizing and leveraging my personal
strengths and talents to deliver results. When leading others, it was
also important to acknowledge the strengths, t alent, and contri butions of
each and every team member. Placing people in the right role
maximizes results. This is not to say that we don’t pay any attention to
weaknesses or areas of opportunity, but our goal, where weaknesses