Yes, I know it’s popular and ‘trending’ to discover your leadership brand, to define, express, and leverage your brand. But as a recent article published in the Harvard Business Review proposes:

“You probably already have a personal leadership brand. But do you have the right one?”

I started my coaching firm in 2001 while I was still in a corporate role. At that time, I named my company: High Potential Talent. The business name made perfect sense to me. I knew that the clients I would attract were designated by their organization as “high potential” or they were up-and-coming senior managers or executives possessing all the attributes and competencies associated with having a stellar career.

In the first year I launched my business, I received an assortment of questions, comments and assumptions about what I did and who I served, including:

* “So are you like a talent scout or sports agent?”
* “What does ‘high potential’ mean?
* “Is this a metaphysical reference? Do you help people reach a new level of understanding of their potential in the universe?” (Yes, someone really did ask me this question.)
* “What do you really do?”
* “Are you a Talent Manager for a corporation?”
* “Is ‘high potential’ an HR term?”
* “If I don’t know if my company has designated me as a ‘high potential’ will you still work with me?”

After receiving these comments and questions, within six months I changed the name of my company to my initials – CG (CG Consulting Group LLC). I thought this name would be easily recognizable as my initials. I developed a new tagline: “Every leader’s career is as unique as a fingerprint”™, updated my website, and linked another domain name www.christineglasco.com so that I could be easily found online by my name.

I congratulated myself that I had solved my branding problem.

As a Strategic Leadership & Career Coach, I require all of my clients to establish their leadership brand. So, imagine my surprise when during a branding discussion with one of my clients last week, he said:

“Christine, I thought the ‘CG’ in your company name – meant center of gravity. This concept of center of gravity and the alignment and balance you must achieve in your career really appealed to me. That’s one of the main reasons I decided to engage your services.”

Well – I know the concept of gravity, we have all studied the writings of Sir Isaac Newton. But I didn’t know the exact definition for the center of gravity. I began researching the phrase and found:

“The center of gravity (CG) is the center of an object’s weight distribution, where the force of gravity can be considered to act. It is the point in any object about which it is in perfect balance no matter how it is turned or rotated around that point.”

While the definition resonated with me, I found references concerning a military center of gravity: “(COG) the source of power that provides moral or physical strength, freedom of action, or will to act. The United States Army…considers a “friendly” CoG as that element—a characteristic, capability, or locality—that enables one’s own or allied forces to accomplish their objectives.”

I also found NASA’s aviation reference, the mechanical definition and a center of gravity reference to the human body.

</br>I must admit, the references for center of gravity are nice analogies.

However, just when you think you have this leadership brand thing figured out… you should ask yourself: “do I have the right brand and is it time to rebrand?”

If your answer is “yes, I need to brand or rebrand” remember these tips:

1. A brand should help you accomplish your targeted objectives.
2. A brand should help you find your perfect balance.
3. A brand should be easily understood by others.
4. A brand should resonate and be memorable.
5. A brand should not be totally dependent on a deep understanding of your particular career field or industry.

A question for you to consider:

* What does your brand convey about you? If you need help creating or refining your brand, please contact me at: cglasco@charter.net

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