About the author
Sushmita Das Gupta is the founder & chief ideator at Smart iDeAS, a consulting organization that primarily focuses on brand building for both corporations and individuals. Susmita is a serial entrepreneur and is credited with setting up four successful businesses since 2008. In 2022, Susmita set up her latest start-up, ContentRite, which aims to connect marketing content to marketing ROI. Prior to her entrepreneurial stint, Susmita worked as Head of Marketing for India Subcon Business for USD4 Billion conglomerate based out of New Jersey, USA. She left her job to pursue MBA and graduated from the Great Lakes Institute of Management in Chennai with a dual specialisation in marketing & finance. She is credited with being one of India’s first few personal brand strategists having worked with individuals across professions and domains for more than a decade now. Her clients include top senior management to internationally known mountaineers, the lead guitarist in a band, and lawyers. This book is her attempt to write down some of the key principles of personal branding in a simple form, for everyone to understand and implement, and to motivate individuals to find their passion. While not managing her businesses, Susmita is also a self-defined tea artist, teaching and training the fine art of making and drinking tea. She is a ballroom dancer, traveler, and occasional painter.
Amazon Book Link: https://tinyurl.com/yburk6v
Let’s explore the author’s insights in-depth:
Q1. Why this title?
Ans: Very good question.
See, we are brought up with the belief that what we desire and what we deserve will never match because we shall always have lofty dreams about ourselves that will never come true.
I say, thrash that belief. Have the loftiest dream about yourself, dream as big as you can, be audacious, fearless, and confident. And I will show you the way to get there. In other words, what you desire is what you deserve.
Q2. You have mentioned that people already have personal brands. Is that right?
Ans: Yes. Absolutely.
We may not realise that since the time we started talking, and walking we have been showing signs of who we are and who we will grow up to be. But when we grow up, start our careers, and chase our lives, we sometimes forget who we are authentically and end up being someone else. Personal branding is the process of digging out our authentic selves and identifying and understanding what part of us makes us tick for the work that we have decided to do. It’s a very powerful and uplifting exercise.
Q3. Please explain what you mean by the solution statement.
Ans: We are familiar with the concept called elevator pitch, which is simply a sales pitch about yourself and/or your product or services. While the elevator pitch was effective 20 years ago, it is not going to fetch you any results in the world that we live in.
What is important now is to understand or anticipate your customers’ problems and provide a solution that best solves them as compared to your completion. The solution statement is that one hook statement that you use to let your customers or audience know that you know them, you understand their pain points, you can predict the problems that are coming in the future and you have or are the solution to this. You can say the solution statement is what makes your first impression inspiring and impactful.
A right solution statement is very empowering. It’s also the first touch point for building a long, mutually beneficial relationship with your customers.
Q4. Why is this book relevant now?
Ans: As mentioned earlier, there is no time to lag now in establishing who you are and why you are special. The way we see work, jobs, careers, and organizations – are going to change drastically and dramatically very soon. And the only way to stay relevant is by establishing yourself as an expert with specialized skill sets and problem-solving abilities for your clients and the future. Staying just run of the mill will not work anymore. The world will be run by professionals who are specialists in their core expertise, and this expertise needs to be as nice as possible.
This book shows you how to begin your journey to do just that and I have given plenty of guidelines and tips to help you begin right away.
Q5. What’s your advice to professionals and individuals who are embarking on the personal branding journey?
Ans: Firstly, congratulations on your decision to build on your personal brand.
My advice to you is:
- Always stay authentic to who you are. Don’t copy anyone else, even, in fact, most definitely, the people you admire the most.
- Understand your skill sets and identify a niche that you are better at than others. Be the only go-to person in that niche of yours.
- Offer solutions. Don’t sell yourself.
- Find your cheerleaders and influencers. They are the ones who will put you right in front of your customers. (To understand who your cheerleaders and influencers are, you have to read the book.)
- Create an immaculate plan and follow it to the end. But keep the provision to tweak it based on current market situations.
- Be Confident. Believe in your abilities and ask for your price.
Amazon Book link: https://tinyurl.com/yburk6v
See her full profile here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/susmitadasgupta Email to: [email protected]