WASHINGTON 鈥� Amanda Miller Littlejohn鈥檚 father lost his job several years ago, and despite being 鈥渁 brilliant engineer,鈥� he had trouble finding new work.
鈥淚 watched him go from this vibrant, lively person who was contributing to society, to someone who was depressed and could never really get back into the game and back into the swing of things,鈥� said Littlejohn, who is a and author of 鈥�.鈥�
The ordeal made her realize that while her father was an excellent engineer, he wasn鈥檛 a marketing specialist. He had all the skills and experience required for a new job; he just needed someone to notice them.
鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 matter how good you are or how smart you are if you don鈥檛 know how to connect with the people who need you,鈥� said Littlejohn, who is based in D.C.
The start of a new year is a time when many set goals for the months ahead. And if taking your career to the next level or tapping into a passion project is on your list, Littlejohn has some advice on how to build your brand.
Find what energizes you
First, think back on the last few years of your career and identify the projects, products or moments that energized you. Also, take note of any volunteer work or personal interests that instilled the same excitement.
Next, 鈥渓ook at what the world is mirroring back to you,鈥� Littlejohn said. What do others thank you for, or come to you for?
鈥淏oth the 鈥榯hank you moments鈥� and the 鈥榓sk for your help moments鈥� are clues to the value you are already providing others,鈥� Littlejohn said.
Update your online resume
Once you鈥檝e isolated what motivates you and how you help others, it鈥檚 time to update your LinkedIn page, which Littlejohn said is one of the top hits of any personal Google search.
鈥淵ou want to find words and phrases that capture the global essence of what energizes you and what people thank you for, and you want to craft a narrative that speaks to not only what you鈥檙e good at doing, but what you love doing and what people want to see you doing, because they鈥檙e coming to you to get your support with it,鈥� she said.
Make sure your summary captures where you鈥檝e been, what you鈥檝e done and what you hope to do in the future. If what you鈥檙e doing has a visual element, utilize other social media platforms, such as Instagram.
鈥淚t really depends on what your goals are and the audiences that you鈥檙e trying to reach,鈥� Littlejohn said.
Making a pivot
It鈥檚 one thing to love baking, but it鈥檚 another thing to make a living off it. If you鈥檙e considering a career pivot to pursue a passion project, Littlejohn recommends reflecting 鈥渂ack to those 鈥榯hank you moments鈥� and those 鈥榓sk for your help moments.鈥欌��
鈥淏ecause a lot of times when people identify something that energizes them, I encourage them to make sure there鈥檚 a match on the other side with the external world,鈥� she said.
Start small. Littlejohn recommends testing your new service out on a few people before you go full-scale, but don鈥檛 be afraid to sell yourself and your talents.
鈥淪o many of us don鈥檛 take the opportunity to pitch what we鈥檙e doing to people who may need it,鈥� she said.
鈥淭he idea is to think of how what you have to offer is a solution to someone鈥檚 problem because people pay for solutions.鈥�
Don鈥檛 hold back, don鈥檛 stay silent
Littlejohn said too often, she sees professionals who are hesitant to make a splash 鈥� but that won鈥檛 get you anywhere.
鈥淲e have to toot our own horns because who else is going to do that for us?鈥� she said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not obnoxious to connect someone with a resource or solution that helps them solve their problems. And if you鈥檙e not willing to talk about how you can help people, and how your product or service can support them and help them face the challenges that they have, then how will people know about it?鈥�
For those reluctant to jump in with both feet, Littlejohn recommends starting small. Write a short article or record a short video and break down solutions to problems you’ve solved with a few tips to get your brand out there, by way of a LinkedIn article, a Facebook update or an Instagram post.
鈥淚f people don鈥檛 know the projects that you鈥檙e working on, if you鈥檙e not speaking up and reminding people and sharing those case studies of [what you鈥檝e done and the value that you鈥檝e added], when it comes time for your performance review, people suddenly get amnesia, and it鈥檚 just hard for you to get ahead,鈥� she said.
鈥淲e have to speak up, and stand up, and let people know that we鈥檙e here.鈥�
