Day 13 Goal
Your goal this week is to talk to your Trusted Tribe and ask them two questions:
- What are my three best qualities?
- What am I good at?
How to Make it Happen
The Personal Brand Formula has two parts—on Day 8, you started with part one: how you see yourself. The second part requires that you find out how others see you.
Consequently, this isn’t something you can do on your own.
Identify your Trusted Tribe
Now, this might be a little uncomfortable, so “others” only includes your Trusted Tribe. These are your ride or dies. Above all, these people really know you, respect you, and care about your feelings. And, vice versa.
As Oprah Winfrey has said, these are the people who, while invited to ride with you in the limo, will also take the bus with you when the limo breaks down.
So, these could be people like relatives, friends, cool co-workers, mentors, or old college roommates. Pick at least 3 but not more than 7.
Reach out to your Trusted Tribe
Ultimately, you want feedback from your Trusted Tribe on how you are showing up in the world.
So, reach out to your Trusted Tribe and ask them two questions:
- What are my three best qualities?
- What am I good at?
Above all, do not “reach out” in a public tweet or Facebook post. You should get this information in a way that is private. This may be through text, phone call, or video chat. Or, something else.
Posting publicly will probably solicit a lot of “you’re greats!” and “you’re amazings!” While this is nice, it is not incredibly helpful. Real, honest feedback will help you move toward your goals. Because we’re trying to eliminate roadblocks, not stroke your ego, keep this between you and your Trusted Tribe member.
You need to do this because your reputation and personal brand do not exist without other people. A reputation, by definition, is a belief or opinion held by one person about another person. If you’re the only one who knows anything about your expertise and value, that’s not a reputation.
If you need help with this, here’s a template email/direct message that you can use for this exercise. Please tailor it to your specific needs.
Hey [Trusted Tribe]:
I hope this note finds you well. I’m writing with some great news-I’ve decided to take everything I’ve learned doing [X] to do [Y]. I’d love your help as I start this journey.
I’m working on a plan for all of this and need some feedback on my starting point. I’d really appreciate you answering two questions for me:
1. What are my three best qualities [or, what are three words you’d use to describe me]?
2. What am I good at?
Thank you so much, [Trusted Tribe]! Would it be possible for you to respond to me in about a week? I look forward to hearing from you.
Do not delete the first sentence! If you’re truly going to start a business or build a brand, you have to get comfortable telling people about it.
I believe in the power of speaking things into existence and there’s no better time than now.
What to do with your Trusted Tribe’s feedback
Once you collect some responses, look for overlap between your Trusted Tribe’s answers and your answers from earlier this week.
If there’s overlap, great! This is where you already have a foundation for your reputation, brand and business.
If there is no overlap, all is not lost! No one, Trusted Tribe or not, should have the power to make or break your vision and dreams. This isn’t intended to be a pure red light, green light situation. If no one in your Trusted Tribe sees you the way want them to, this just means that you’ve got some honest work to do in figuring out how to move forward.
You may need to build new skills or more clearly communicate about your expertise and experiences. Or, you may need to dig deeper with your Trusted Tribe about their answers.
Either way, this feedback will give you a real-time look at your current station.
Because this work may be super personal, I’m not going to ask you to share anything with me on social media today. Just know I’m here with you in spirit!
FYI: I hated doing this exercise myself, but I knew I had to. I actually got some great responses that helped me boost some efforts, pivot on others, and cancel a few things.
Join my support network
In addition, studies show that you’re more likely to meet your goals when you have accountability partners! To work together with a supportive community of other side-hustlers, creatives and entrepreneurs, you can join my private group by clicking this link or via the Mighty Networks App.
Download the Mighty Network app by clicking here. Once it downloads, click “Find a Mighty Network” and search for Shontavia Johnson. You’ll find accountability partners and other content there that I may not share elsewhere.
New to the #VisionChallenge? You can learn more about it, and sign up to take the challenge, by clicking here.
Sometimes I will refer you to other books, products or services. While I may be an affiliate of these companies, creators, or authors, these are all things I have used and trust. I would not recommend these things to you if I hadn’t experienced them myself.