Tonight I attended the Manitoba Business Awards Dinner and really enjoyed myself. I love networking and meeting new people. As I arrived at the Delta I walked into a room filled with men and women all dressed up with the majority of them wearing black. As I walked in wearing my white blazer I had a few people turn their heads and make eye contact…boom! I was right there to stick my hand out and start talking. By doing something so simple as wearing a white blazer I was able to connect with people in an instant and get right into conversation.

The first woman that I talked to commented on the jacket and how I stood right out. We talked for a while and then I got a drink. As I got my drink I turned around and someone recognized me because of, you guessed it, the white blazer! She saw me online and in a magazine wearing the white blazer and recognized me from across the room and wanted to talk to me because she saw me all over the place and was meaning to speak with me. We talked for a while and she complemented me on well the jacket worked and how if I wasn’t wearing it she wouldn’t have found me through the crowd.

These are two great examples of how defining a personal brand for yourself can help in standing out, be recognized and help you connect when networking. The key take away from this entry is to carve out a personal brand for yourself, whether it’s a bald head, coloured glasses, hair colour, tie colour, whatever, do something that will help you stand out and get noticed as soon as you walk into a room. The more you show up with your personal brand in place the more recognized you will be as you continue to network and build your reputation.