Personal Branding Archives - Page 2 of 4

November 14, 2013

There will always be Garbage In

By Dr. Kwabena Amponsah-Manager

There is a popular saying that ‘garbage in, garbage out’. What this means is that if you receive poorly refined instructions, codes, methodology, you act on it as you receive it. When this is true, it reduces one to the level of a robotic machine or a lower level being.

What makes you a superior being, that is if you think you are, is that you are not at the mercy of the external instructions you receive. You have the capacity to refine and filter out the ‘garbage in’ so that the output is not garbage. This is the reason I do not run chemical reactions that explode and burn my laboratory buildings or develop ‘weapons of mass destruction’ despite the myriad of information available to me on the web and the library.

You are the middleman between the instruction, information and codes you receive and the output they are meant to produce. Whether you receive the bulk mixture from your accountant, PTA, spiritual leader, politician, counselor, etc., your role is to filter out the garbage, retrieve and concentrate the fine code to get required output.

There will always be garbage in, but that does not mean there has to be garbage out if you and I pay our part.

October 3, 2013

Celebrated or Tolerated?

By Darasimi Oshodi

Have you ever been with people who never saw anything good in you? Have you associated with people who would always tear you down with their words and actions? These people do not think you are worth anything and they try to lecture you on what you must do before they approve of you.

On the other hand, have you been with people who see in you the good that you never thought was there? People who encourage you to be the best. People who love you for you. People you do not have to impress before they accept and approve of you. People who see you as the best thing to happen to them or as the next superstar and will not stop at anything to inspire your confidence.

I want to assume that you have at one time or the other been with these two sets of people. But the sad thing I have noticed is that there is a tendency for us to stick to the crowd that tolerates us instead of staying with the crowd that celebrates us. I think the reason for this is simple. We want to feel accepted and if there are people who show us that we have not earned their acceptance, we want to do everything to earn their acceptance. But if I may ask, why do you need the acceptance of someone or those who do not accept you unconditionally before correcting you? Must you earn anyone’s acceptance before you feel good about yourself? Why don’t you bask in the fact that there is a crowd cheering you on in your journey through life. Why do you neglect and trivialise the company of those who accept you first before making suggestions on how to improve some aspects of your life?

I believe I have a great smile. In fact I believe my smile can disarm anyone. I believe my smile can melt any heart. But you will be shocked if I tell you where this belief came from – from a commercial motorcyclist! That was many years ago. I was trying to persuade him to accept a particular amount of money as the fare I had to pay him for transporting me to where I was going, when he commented on my smile. Since that day, I have always believed that I have a great smile. Recently, my inspirational boss commented on my voice and I cannot tell you how much that comment has boosted my self-confidence. A personal rule that I follow is to identify the people who celebrate me and stick with them.

Your self-portrait determines your self-confidence and those you stick with have a big part in shaping your self-portrait. Your self-portrait is the way you see yourself and what people say about you contributes to how you see yourself. Do you then see why you need to associate with those who water the seed of greatness in you? It is because your self-portrait controls your self-confidence and conduct. You will always act out what you think you are. So who is that person who speaks to the greatness in you? Identify your cheerleaders and stick with them. Who is that person who celebrates you? Don’t you think it is better to stick to such a person than to seek the favour of the one who only tolerates you?

I leave you with this question: are you being celebrated by those people you are with or are you just being tolerated?

August 19, 2013

Barack Obama, David Beckham and the Halo Effect

By Darasimi Oshodi

Barack Obama, president of the United States of America is a man of the people. His popularity extends beyond the shores of the U.S. He is loved all over the world. I believe he is loved on the African continent mainly because of his colour. He is seen as the hero of the black race and many Africans prayed that he would win the election that brought him into power in 2009. One of the things that Obama is admired for and which helped his presidential bid in no small measure is his oratorical power. In fact, Obama rose to national prominence as a result of an electrifying keynote speech he delivered at the Democratic National Convention on July, 27, 2004 in Boston Massachusetts.

The name, David Beckham, is a name the average soccer buff is familiar with. One of the things that have made Beckham famous is the way he takes free kicks. His free kicks are simply beautiful and breathtaking. Actually, his free kicks gave rise to the slogan, Bend it like Beckham. In fact, in 2002, a movie was produced bearing the title Bend it like Beckham. And there is more to David Beckham. He is a brand, a global brand. Beckham is actually a fans’ favourite; he is loved all over the globe. Thus, it is not surprising that he has endorsement deals with many huge companies like Coca-Cola, IBM, etc.

So what makes Obama, Beckham and many other famous personalities likable? It is called the halo effect. And what is the halo effect? Continue reading “Barack Obama, David Beckham and the Halo Effect”

March 24, 2013

Showing Up is the First Step to Success

I heard someone say that 80 percent of life is merely showing up. I thought about it for a while and I couldn’t agree less with him.

You have an awesome idea that can change the outcome; you have a question to ask that no one has thought of, but the first step is being there.

There is no substitute for being on the ground; there is no alternative to being physically present; there’s nothing of the same scale as responding YES to the invitation and showing up.

And if you show up and change the outcome, you pay for the remaining 20%.

March 7, 2013

Defining Success

By Tunde Oseni

Success is a relative term. It means different things to different people. Nevertheless, we all know successful people when we see them. According to The Pocket Oxford Dictionary (e-version), success means ‘accomplishment of an aim; favourable outcome; attainment of wealth, fame, or position’. People admire success and society rewards it. Simply, to me, success is what you achieve as a result of a calculated effort. This is what I mean: you succeed when you set a goal and meet it.

Let us begin with the story of a ‘skinny kid with a funny name’ who attempted to give life a shot with the hope that his country had a place for him too. Barack Obama overcame the stereotype of being born by a white mother, who later died of cancer, and a black father, who he truly never knew. He was raised by his maternal grandparents in Honolulu in the State of Hawaii and went to college with the full hope of making it despite odds. Barack studied Political Science at the Columbia University, worked as a ‘community organizer’ in the Southside of Chicago and went to read Law at Harvard University where he rose to become the first black President of the venerated Harvard Law Review. Barack then became an attorney, elected a state senator, appointed an adjunct professor, and then elected as a national senator, and eventually the first man of his skin colour to become the President of the United States of America. That is success.

Now, success is not just about becoming a president or a governor or being awarded a Nobel Laureate. Success comes in different garbs, colours and sizes. At times success may connote such a simple achievement as getting one’s dream job. For instance, one of my friends, Chukwuemeka Fred Agbata Jnr., now CEO of CFA Leverage, shared with us how elated he became after securing a job with Globacom Limited. He said he was hopeful that he would secure the employment despite the discouragement by many of his contemporaries who insisted that getting such a job with a big Telecoms required ‘connections’ and since my friend didn’t have one he would fail. He succeeded.

I believe that anybody can set a goal, make calculated effort, through organised planning and self-motivation, and reach that goal. It is however important to differentiate between good success and bad success. This may be a paradoxical way of looking at the concept of success. But we probably do need to classify some success as good and some as bad in order to separate what is truly glorifying from what is merely vain-glorious. Continue reading “Defining Success”

February 13, 2013

Beyond Showing Up: Did You Change the Outcome?

It’s tempting and comforting to put in an appearance and do what is anticipated of you: nod, take notes, and enjoy the refreshments and leave. Being negative should not imply actively pulling down only. If you’re not putting in the effort to add something, it’s equivalent to actively taking something away. It hurts all of us.

If you always show up and do just what you’re expected to do, you’re only faintly different from the guy who never shows up. It’s when you make a contribution that changes the outcome of the day, the meeting, the project, that you will be borne in mind and appreciated. Humans by nature respect and adore individuals who do more beyond just showing up.

There’s a cost for your inclusion: there’s the monetary cost, and also the cost of lost opportunity by the other person who does not get a seat at the table Continue reading “Beyond Showing Up: Did You Change the Outcome?”

January 9, 2013January 9, 2013

Before You Click That Mouse

Most people especially in the corporate ‘world’ are conversant with the quotation above in-part which concludes with: ”do a re-check”, or with any other grammartical structure suitable to the writer/speaker depending on its purpose cum contextual usage. Due to the advent of infotech and its consequential effect on our lives viz-a-viz business activities, hardly is there any corporate firm regardless of its size and module operandi that does not operate with the use of computers. Gone where the days when businesses runned on paperwork en-mass, conversely today, most information are stored, processed and saved in computers, making work easy and fast to execute.

As an employee, how do you handle tasks delegated to you by your boss or supervisor/s in the office. Take for instance, a boss briefing you to type a short memo for official use. Imagine you have a very short period of time at your disposal to act as instructed by your supervisor. Two possiblities exist; one, that you would quickly within the time left typesett the memo and then move swiftly as with a predating hyena to your supervisor’s office for submission, alternatively, you would type as fast as you can, then do a thorough re-check on what you typed to ensure that words, phrases, clauses and sentences wrongly typed are rectified. Sometimes, an experienced colleague may be contacted to help edit your work. Continue reading “Before You Click That Mouse”