Leah Warwick: Hi, everyone. I’m Leah Warwick, and you’re listening to “The Admin Edge.” Personal branding is a key pillar of our training here at the American Society of Administrative Professionals to support your career growth. Our guest today, Jodie Mears, presented on this topic at the ASAP training event, EA Ignite, and talked more about the value of your personal brand with ASAP Advisory Board Member Rachel Rice. Take a listen.

00:00:36

Rachel Rice: Hello, I’m Rachel Rice, Director of Administrative Coordination at the Corporation for Supportive Housing. My guest today is Jodie Mears, Executive Assistant of Bentley Systems, and also a roundtable facilitator and panelist at this event, EA Ignite. Welcome to the podcast, Jodie.

00:00:55

Jodie Mears: Oh, thanks for having me. I’m actually loving it here. This is my people. This is the place to be. I absolutely appreciate you inviting me along.

Rachel Rice: Awesome. Love that. So today we’re talking about how to build your personal brand. The million-dollar question: What is a personal brand?

Jodie Mears: It’s you. It’s personal. That key word: personal. You have one already. It’s your reputation at scale. It’s who you are at your very core. It’s what people say about you when you’re not in the room, so be really mindful of that. Businesses have one and it’s very different from a corporate brand. Your personal brand is you. It’s solely you, how you come across; what you add, what you don’t add; what you say, what you don’t say; what you advocate for and what you don’t advocate for. It’s what everyone notices about you.

00:01:57

Rachel Rice: I love that definition. So a personal brand is, indeed, personal. It’s about what you bring to the table and also what you don’t bring to the table. It’s about what people say when you’re not in the room. I love that. Now, if someone has never focused on their personal brand, how do you identify, how do you know what it is? And what are some of the steps that you take to grow or change that personal brand?

Jodie Mears: Yeah, it’s something you can’t just start building because it’s already built. With your personal brand, what I’ve come to understand about it and the penny-drop moment for me was when I heard [that your] personal brand is already working 24 hours, with or without you. So it’s not a case of saying, “In July, next year, I’m going to start working on my personal brand.” It’s already working.

00:02:52

At the very crux of that, it’s already happening. Maybe it’s already built and you don’t understand, so that’s where feedback comes in. That’s where being intuitive comes into play as well, understanding how you come across, understanding how you affect people, how you help, or maybe how you don’t help people. That is your personal brand also.

Rachel Rice: Amazing, amazing. Now, for those who may not be as self-aware, you just mentioned that your personal brand is always working. How do you build awareness to tune into your personal brand? What are the cues? How do you know that this is the true essence of me?

Jodie Mears: One statement that changed my perception of that — because as a confident introvert, I do struggle with coming forward with ideas and actually taking action because of my introversy [sic] was when I heard this: It’s not about “look at me, look at me.” It’s about “look what I can do for you.”

00:03:59

Rachel Rice: Interesting perspective.

Jodie Mears: And then that really unravels and gives you that comfort barrier that you’re seeking. It’s not “look at me.” Instead “look what I can do for you,” and then you’re putting across what you can do, what you bring to the table, how you help people, how you organize and manage executives.

Rachel Rice: So communicating your value.

Jodie Mears: It’s all part of it.

Rachel Rice: Awesome, awesome. Now, for those that are still seeking to find their voice, and they’re fighting the little voice in the back of their head that’s saying, “No, you’re not the one. It couldn’t be you.” What advice would you give to those who are struggling with imposter syndrome?

00:04:42

Jodie Mears: We need so many different voices, and all of us here today are pretty much EAs, so we’re all doing the same thing, but you don’t do things like I do. I don’t do anything the way you do it. So consider yourself unique because no one does the job like you, just how you do it, and that’s why people love you, and that’s why you’re hired as well. So I encourage assistants to think about how they’re bringing value, leaning into their expertise, wrapping that into their personal brand and saying, “This is what I’m good at. This is what I’m leaning into, and this is why you should hire me,” or “this is why I can add value to your event, because it’s solely me. It’s authentically me, and there’s only one me.

Rachel Rice: Awesome. So your last comment leans into my next question. Can you explain how authenticity plays a role in building or understanding your personal brand?

00:05:46

Jodie Mears: Yeah, don’t underestimate humans. We have that radar. We can instantly detect inauthentic people. You can always sense undertones of what they really want to say. So having that self-awareness, not only for yourself of how you’re coming across, but also understanding and kind of switching onto how other people are coming across or may be approaching you is a really good trait to have.

So, yeah, authenticity is a word that gets thrown around all over the place, and everyone’s a self-proclaimed “authentic” person, aren’t they, right?

Rachel Rice: Or an authentic copy. [laughs]

Jodie Mears: You wouldn’t say, “Hi, I’m Jodie. I’m inauthentic.” Everyone proclaims that they’re authentic. There are so many layers to authenticity, but at its heart, for me, it’s breaking down the barriers, removing my brick wall and saying, “This is who I am, and I’m very comfortable with it. And if you don’t like that, that is absolutely fine.”

00:06:49

Rachel Rice: Yes, confidence in who you are at every level of self. I love that. Now, as industries evolve, how can executive assistants adapt their personal brand to stay relevant and continue to be open to new opportunities?

Jodie Mears: Show what you know.

Rachel Rice: Tell us more.

Jodie Mears: Well, we’re not mind readers. We don’t know what you’re capable of. Now one knows what I’m capable of, apart from me, and if I’m not expressing that, if I’m not sharing my knowledge, if I’m not giving someone a little thread to pull on, then how would they know?

Rachel Rice: How would they? Yeah.

Jodie Mears: So show your expertise, be okay with saying, “I’m the geek who loves AI.” Or whatever it is. That all forms part of your authenticity, where people can say, “I can really see her now. I can see her for who she truly is, and I love that she’s comfortable with herself,” because that comes across. People just deal with humans, so don’t put up that façade because it really is obvious.

00:07:54

Rachel Rice: Awesome. One more question before I move into our listener questions. You talked about showing your work. EAs don’t always have a voice at every table. How do you show your work without being obtrusive or out of protocol? What are some tips for showing your work to really communicate your value and your personal brand?

Jodie Mears: Yeah, that was me. No one was really interested at work. [laughter] They didn’t care.

Rachel Rice: You’re not alone.

Jodie Mears: What I started to do was leverage LinkedIn more, so I was showing what I know through LinkedIn, through articles, through newsletters, putting down my areas of expertise, what I’m interested in. I think that that’s attracted people to me in a sense of, “Oh, I see myself in Jodie.” Or, “I see myself in that information.”

Rachel Rice: Becoming more relatable.

00:08:52

Jodie Mears: Yeah, so don’t always think that it needs to be solely work and corporate focused when you’re showing your value, because you can show your value in communities, you can show your value in networks, you can show your value to friends and family by showing what you know and how you can help people. Remember, it’s not “look at me.” It’s “look what I can do for you.”

Rachel Rice: Look what I can do for you.

Jodie Mears: And then I’ve found, when I’m showcasing my value or what I knew in a real subliminal way, even though LinkedIn is very out there and global, I would have my executives come to me and say, “Oh, I didn’t realize.” I said, “Well, you never were interested. I didn’t know you were interested.” Or, “I never realized that was your jam. I never realized that was your hot topic.” So it’s kind of opened up conversations for me where I thought those conversations were shut, being a bit more public with my knowledge.

Rachel Rice: Yes, that’s a great tip. So whether you’re an introvert or extrovert, consider leveraging social media platforms, such as LinkedIn, to help communicate those hidden pieces of yourself. That is great.

00:10:00

Now, we have a listener question, submitted by one of our community members. They write: “What are some things you should guard or protect your branding from?”

Jodie Mears: Yourself.

Rachel Rice: Oh, unpack that.

Jodie Mears: Yeah. It’s usually yourself. So one of my sayings I tell myself all the time is: Assumptions are going to be the mother of all mess-ups.

Rachel Rice: That’s quotable. I wrote that down earlier.

Jodie Mears: Yeah, you can add in whatever words you want, by the way, just to keep it clean. [laughter] But, for me, talk to other EAs and ask questions all the time. What you shouldn’t protect yourself from is being too out there because it’s ultimately leading to authenticity. So when you’re protecting yourself from that, you’re closing the door to authenticity.

00:10:55

Of course, maybe if we’re talking in context of too much information — for me, I don’t mention my kids. I don’t post pictures of my kids. That can lead to too much information. So, yes, in that context, maybe that’s what you’re protecting from. But I would say just remain as open as you can.

And reframing — when I’m talking about protecting yourself from yourself, reframe things that really scare you. So one thing that I didn’t want to forget, so I wrote down, is that fear of “I’ll do it when I’m ready.”

Rachel Rice: Oh, we have heard that, and I’m pretty sure I’ve said that before.

Jodie Mears: I’ll do it when I feel like I’m ready. I’ll do it when the time needs me to do it. I’m not ready for that yet, because that issue, that time has not presented itself to me yet.

00:11:48

So I’ve reframed that because it’s fueled my imposter syndrome in the past as well. Imposter syndrome thrives in silence, don’t you think? It gets bigger and worse.

Rachel Rice: And it echoes.

Jodie Mears: Yeah, when you’re silent about it. The more you talk it through, the more you release it. So the other thing that really helped me reshape and reframe everything when I was telling myself, “Oh, I’m not ready. I’m not sure why, what’s the point,” is [that] you don’t have to be the best all the time. You just need to be the best known.

Rachel Rice: Oh, tell me more.

Jodie Mears: So we often wait until we’re ready, until we’re perfect, until we have all of the information, and that procrastination leads to delay. I’m not ready. I don’t feel like I’ve arrived. I don’t feel like I’ve reached to be able to preach.

00:12:49

You don’t have to be. You just need to start. Don’t be perfect all the time your version of perfect is not my version of perfect, and I might like your imperfect way of doing things. That might resonate more with me. That might help me when you’re telling me your tips and tricks on OneNote, but you’re sitting there thinking, “Oh, I’m not an expert in OneNote. How can I possibly put an article together? I’m not the best.” Well, I don’t want you to be the best as a follower, as a mentee, as maybe an employee (if it’s an executive). I want you to be the best known to me.

Rachel Rice: Amazing. Now, before we wrap up our time together, are there any final nuggets that you would like to share with the EA community regarding owning your personal brand?

00:13:40

Jodie Mears: Yeah. If you don’t, someone else is going to. It’s working. I’ve been encouraging assistants here over the last couple of days to realize that if you don’t take control of your personal brand and own it, someone else will, and they might not get it right.

Rachel Rice: That is so true.

Jodie Mears: They’re going to be talking for you, and there’s going to come a point where you say to yourself, “But that’s not me. I didn’t want to be known as that.” But because you’ve stayed silent, waiting for the right time, someone else has elevated your personal brand — because remember, it’s about what people say about you. It’s about your impact. Your job is your job, but your personal brand is the way you do it.

00:14:31

Think about [it]. If you’re okay with someone else reshaping your narrative, then stay quiet. But the majority of people here — I would say, in fact, all — do not want that. That is not okay.

Rachel Rice: No. You can’t paint on my canvas.

Jodie Mears: Absolutely not, no.

Rachel Rice: Wow. Well, this has been a tremendous time spent together. I thank you so much for joining us on “The Admin Edge,” Jodie. Where can listeners find you online?

Jodie Mears: Obviously, LinkedIn. [laughter] I’m all over LinkedIn. But, yeah, please connect with me. I’d love to hear where you’re at, at the moment, in your journey, what’s bugging you, what’s working for you. Yeah, first and foremost, LinkedIn. You’ll find my email on there as well, but if you want to reach out to me for mentoring and coaching, you can have a free, 15-minute intro call. That link is also in my profile.

00:15:28

Rachel Rice: Amazing. Well, you heard it here, folks. Find Jodie on LinkedIn. And remember: Be confident. Be curious. And don’t let anyone else tell your story for you. Thank you so much for joining us, and we hope to have you again on “The Admin Edge” podcast.

Jodie Mears: Oh, I’d love to. And thank you so much.

Rachel Rice: Awesome.

[music playing]

Leah Warwick: Thank you for listening to “The Admin Edge,” produced by the American Society of Administrative Professionals, original music and audio editing by Warwick Productions, with audio and video production by 5Tool Productions. If you liked this podcast, please leave us a nice review, five stars, and subscribe. If you’d like to submit a listener question, you may do so on our website at ASAPorg.com/podcast.