Episode 205
Master Personal Branding: 8 Powerful Lessons on Authenticity, Influence, and Success
In this episode of The Business Development Podcast, we’re diving into one of the most important tools for your success in 2025 and beyond: personal branding. I’m here to show you why building your personal brand isn’t just a nice-to-have—it’s essential for standing out in today’s competitive world. Together, we’ll explore how authenticity and trust can transform your career, why being discoverable online is a game-changer, and how to leverage your unique expertise to open doors you didn’t even know existed.
I’m sharing eight powerful lessons to help you master personal branding, from overcoming imposter syndrome to creating a content strategy that works for you. You’ll learn how to embrace authenticity, continuously grow your skills, and stay relevant in a rapidly changing business landscape. Whether you’re a sales professional, entrepreneur, or just someone ready to take your career to the next level, this episode is packed with practical advice and inspiration to help you build a personal brand that truly sets you apart.
Key Takeaways:
1. Personal branding is essential for standing out in today’s competitive business environment.
2. Authenticity builds trust and creates lasting connections with clients and peers.
3. A strong personal brand makes you more discoverable and opens doors to global opportunities.
4. Overcoming imposter syndrome is key to sharing your expertise confidently.
5. Sharing your knowledge authentically positions you as a trusted authority in your field.
6. Personal branding requires consistency and commitment to a long-term strategy.
7. Investing in continuous growth helps you adapt to evolving trends and tools.
8. A clear, intentional content strategy is vital for building visibility and credibility.
9. Personal branding is a lifelong endeavor that follows you across all career paths.
10. Betting on yourself and putting yourself out there leads to opportunities you never imagined.
Links referenced in this episode:
Companies mentioned in this episode:
- Capital Business Development
Transcript
Welcome to episode 205 of the Business Development Podcast.
Kelly Kennedy:And today's show is all about personal branding.
Kelly Kennedy: going to change your life in: Kelly Kennedy:Stick with us.
Kelly Kennedy:This is an episode you are not going to want to miss.
Mark Cuban:The great Mark Cuban once said, business happens over years and years.
Mark Cuban:Value is measured in the total upside of a business relationship, not by how much squeezed out in any one deal.
Mark Cuban:And we couldn't agree more.
Mark Cuban:This is the Business Development Podcast based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada and broadcasting to the world.
Mark Cuban:You'll get expert business development advice, tips and experiences and you'll hear interviews with business owners, CEOs and business development reps.
Mark Cuban:You'll get actionable advice on how to grow business brought to you by Capital Business Development capitalbd ca.
Mark Cuban:Let's do it.
Mark Cuban:Welcome to the Business Development Podcast.
Mark Cuban:And now your expert host, Kelly Kennedy.
Kelly Kennedy:Hello.
Kelly Kennedy:Welcome to episode 205 of the Business Development Podcast.
Kelly Kennedy:Today I want to chat all about personal brands.
Kelly Kennedy:Yes, today is the day.
Kelly Kennedy:We've been getting lots of questions about it.
Kelly Kennedy:I was actually just on a podcast not that long ago chatting about building a personal brand.
Kelly Kennedy:And so it just seemed fitting, it seemed like the right thing to talk about.
Kelly Kennedy: It really was the theme of: Kelly Kennedy: And as we head into: Kelly Kennedy:And so today we are going to define it.
Kelly Kennedy:What is it?
Kelly Kennedy:Why do you need it?
Kelly Kennedy:Why is it important in business development?
Kelly Kennedy:And how can you start building one today?
Kelly Kennedy:There is no doubt about it.
Kelly Kennedy: was the year of AI and: Kelly Kennedy: And I predict that: Kelly Kennedy:A gigantic flip away from AI and robots back to the need of genuine human connection.
Kelly Kennedy:I genuinely think, guys, that if you spend the time this year to put yourself out there in an authentic way, it is going to pay off for you in leaps and bounds and dividends.
Kelly Kennedy:Personal branding plays a very big role in that for those of us that are brave enough to take that leap.
Kelly Kennedy:What is your personal brand?
Kelly Kennedy:According to Harvard Business School, personal branding is the intentional strategic practice of defining and expressing your value.
Kelly Kennedy:It is the amalgamation of the associations, beliefs, feelings, attitudes, expectations that people collectively hold about you.
Kelly Kennedy:Personal branding's goal is to ensure the narrative about you is accurate, coherent, compelling and differentiated.
Kelly Kennedy:If you don't intentionally craft your personal brand, other people's assumptions and perceptions of you may not align with those four attributes and by engaging in personal branding, you can define what you would like to communicate and do so effectively.
Kelly Kennedy:Guys, I.
Kelly Kennedy:I hadn't even really heard of the idea of personal branding, you know, until I launched the business development podcast.
Kelly Kennedy:And believe it or not, as sill as this may sound, I wasn't even thinking about personal branding when I launched the business development podcast.
Kelly Kennedy: his show, guys, back in early: Kelly Kennedy:And I recognized that I had the skillset, I had the expertise, and I could share my knowledge with the world through a podcast.
Kelly Kennedy:It wasn't until, you know, deep into my business development podcasting that I realized that what I was actually crafting as well was my personal brand and how it associated with the business development industry as a whole.
Kelly Kennedy:And obviously great things started to happen when I was willing to put myself out there.
Kelly Kennedy:Guys, the business development podcast has afforded me access to people I would have never met had I not taken the leap and started this show.
Kelly Kennedy:It's given me opportunities I would not have seen had I not put myself out there and started this show.
Kelly Kennedy:I've gotten coaching out of it.
Kelly Kennedy:I've gotten incredible retainer contracts out of it.
Kelly Kennedy:I've gotten sponsorship opportunities out of it.
Kelly Kennedy:And frankly, I'm incredibly well known now in the business development space, which has been an amazing, amazing benefit of being willing to put myself out there.
Kelly Kennedy:And I didn't recognize it at the time, but what I was doing was building my personal brand, which has continued to get bigger and bigger and bigger as I continue to put myself out there on social media through, you know, avenues such as video now as well.
Kelly Kennedy:So it's, it's a learning experience for me.
Kelly Kennedy:I'm by no means the expert in personal branding.
Kelly Kennedy:I have interviewed some incredible experts on personal branding, though I would highly recommend that you guys check out Nat Berman, that you check out Marcus Chan, and in an upcoming episode, Emelia Serdell, because they are really killing it in that personal branding space.
Kelly Kennedy:But I know enough to be dangerous.
Kelly Kennedy:I've done a few things in this space and so hopefully today I will be able to share some knowledge with you guys to help you start your personal branding journeys.
Kelly Kennedy: mportant for professionals in: Kelly Kennedy:Your personal brand sets you apart.
Kelly Kennedy:Guys, you know this.
Kelly Kennedy:If you're in business development sales, there's a lot of experts in your field.
Kelly Kennedy:There's a lot of people out there doing Incredible things.
Kelly Kennedy: t, that we can help people in: Kelly Kennedy:In a digital world where you're competing against a massive amount of people, you have to be willing to put yourself out there, to showcase your expertise, to stand out in an ever increasingly larger crowd.
Kelly Kennedy:And so we have to focus on building our personal brands in order to keep competitive in a time and industry where there are increasingly larger and larger numbers of people in the sales and business development spaces.
Kelly Kennedy:We need to build trust and authenticity with our clients, with our peers, with our future customers.
Kelly Kennedy:Okay.
Kelly Kennedy:Trust and authenticity is created by sharing who you are with the world in an authentic way, in a real way.
Kelly Kennedy: ing to be as professionals in: Kelly Kennedy:We need to create visibility in competitive markets.
Kelly Kennedy:Guys, if you're not willing to put yourself out there, you might as well be invisible.
Kelly Kennedy:And we need to be as visible as humanly possible to as many people as possible when we are in business.
Kelly Kennedy:Whether you're an entrepreneur, whether you're a founder, whether you're a business development specialist, whether you're a sales professional, you are always better off when people know who you are and you have a great brand associated with you.
Kelly Kennedy:We need it for career growth and better opportunities.
Kelly Kennedy:Even if we're employees, guys, even if we are employees, we need to be working on our personal brands.
Kelly Kennedy:Why?
Kelly Kennedy:Because the more well known you are, the more valuable you are to your organization.
Kelly Kennedy:The more eyes you can bring to your products and services, the more people are willing to trust you and give you a shot when you reach out to them.
Kelly Kennedy:If people find you and you have no history, no one knows who you are, what you're doing, it makes it a lot harder because now you have to build that trust from nothing.
Kelly Kennedy:With a personal brand, it gives you a leg up in the trust building phase.
Kelly Kennedy:Networking and influence.
Kelly Kennedy:The more well known you are, the more people want to know you.
Kelly Kennedy:It's kind of like that weird thing where when you have a whole lot of money, it's easier to make more money.
Kelly Kennedy:When you have a whole lot of personal brand, it's a lot easier to make great connections.
Kelly Kennedy:Let's take it back to the podcast.
Kelly Kennedy:I've been able to meet people that there is absolutely no question I would have not been able to meet them without building my personal brand through the Podcast through my social media, through my experience with opportunities that I got because I was willing to put myself out there.
Kelly Kennedy:Guys, opportunities present themselves to people who are willing to put themselves out there and take the risk.
Kelly Kennedy:So there are just opportunities that are going to come your way if you are willing to put yourself out there that you just would not experience otherwise.
Kelly Kennedy:And last but not least, you take it with you everywhere, no matter what you do.
Kelly Kennedy:If you spend time building your personal brand, it follows you from career to career, from business to business, from place to place.
Kelly Kennedy:Okay?
Kelly Kennedy:Your personal brand, it's yours, you own it, it's yours wherever you go for as long as you like.
Kelly Kennedy:And so it's important that we are working on ourselves and not just our businesses.
Kelly Kennedy:They are not one in the same.
Kelly Kennedy:For a long time, I used to think that personal branding or stuff that you do on your own, it was optional.
Kelly Kennedy:You really didn't need to work on your personal brand outside of your business.
Kelly Kennedy:If you were a business development specialist for XYZ company, that's all you ever needed to be.
Kelly Kennedy:And you didn't need to work on yourself.
Kelly Kennedy:You didn't need to have a social media strategy.
Kelly Kennedy:You didn't need to do any of that.
Kelly Kennedy:And for the longest time, I believe that.
Kelly Kennedy:Why?
Kelly Kennedy:Because for the longest time in business development, guys, it really wasn't required.
Kelly Kennedy:I'm not going to say that I wouldn't have done better had I spent time working on it.
Kelly Kennedy:I probably would have, but I didn't recognize it at the time.
Kelly Kennedy:But guys, things have changed since COVID Things have absolutely flipped on their heads.
Kelly Kennedy:And a personal brand, you know, an online reputation, the way that you present to the world has never, ever been more important.
Kelly Kennedy:When people meet you in a meeting, almost guaranteed the next thing that they're doing is they're hopping on LinkedIn and they're learning about you.
Kelly Kennedy:And if they were smart, they actually did that ahead of the meeting.
Kelly Kennedy:So most people are trying to figure out as much information as they can find about you ahead of meeting you, ahead of doing business with you.
Kelly Kennedy:Why?
Kelly Kennedy:Because it's available.
Kelly Kennedy:We live in a time where your information is simply available online.
Kelly Kennedy:And so if it's going to be available, you have to make sure that you control the narrative.
Kelly Kennedy:And the way that you control the narrative on your information is by working on your personal brand and putting as much information out there as humanly possible.
Kelly Kennedy:I no longer think that personal branding is optional in business development, guys.
Kelly Kennedy:I don't.
Kelly Kennedy:I believe this so strongly.
Kelly Kennedy:I actually include it as a Pillar in my business development mastery program.
Kelly Kennedy:Absolutely.
Kelly Kennedy:I don't think at this point, guys, that in business development you're going to be successful long term.
Kelly Kennedy:If you aren't willing to build your personal brand, if you aren't willing to leverage your expertise, if you aren't willing to put yourself out there in the world as an expert, as someone who knows what they're talking about and is willing to share that information with the world, it is going to put you at a disadvantage.
Kelly Kennedy:Okay?
Kelly Kennedy:There's just going to be too many people who are willing to take that step, who are willing to put themselves out there, who are willing to share their information and knowledge with the world and situate themselves as experts, as true experts in their fields, that if you are not willing to do this, it may not be today, it may not be tomorrow, may not be next year, but at some point you're going to have a really, really hard time continuing in the career on the trajectory that you want to go.
Kelly Kennedy:Here's why I think that, Guys, number one differentiation.
Kelly Kennedy:You must differentiate yourself in a competitive market.
Kelly Kennedy:Okay?
Kelly Kennedy:I A personal brand and expertise and history helps others take you more seriously.
Kelly Kennedy:If you situate yourself as an expert in a field, guys, you will be treated as an expert in that field as long as you are congruent with that.
Kelly Kennedy:If you're putting out information that showcases your expertise, that shows you actually know what you're talking about, that shows a track record of success, you will be treated as such.
Kelly Kennedy: al as we move Forward here in: Kelly Kennedy:Number two, you are going to get better opportunities and be better situated for negotiations.
Kelly Kennedy:Okay?
Kelly Kennedy:People prefer to work with those they perceive as more credible and successful.
Kelly Kennedy:Guys, if you're willing to put yourself out there, you're going to show your successes.
Kelly Kennedy:You're going to show you know what you're doing.
Kelly Kennedy:It's going to put you in a better situation to negotiate in the future on different contracts or different job opportunities.
Kelly Kennedy:And it's going to make people more willing to work with you.
Kelly Kennedy:Why?
Kelly Kennedy:Because people want to work with the best.
Kelly Kennedy:They want to work with people who know what they are doing and who are leaders in their field.
Kelly Kennedy:Building your personal brand, showcasing your skills, positions you as a leader in your field.
Kelly Kennedy:Number three, business development and business in general is a relationship centric industry.
Kelly Kennedy:Trust, personal connection and credibility are key to your long term success.
Kelly Kennedy:Guys, people have to trust you.
Kelly Kennedy:People will not buy from people they do not trust.
Kelly Kennedy:People don't want to work with people who are not credible.
Kelly Kennedy:People want to feel safe in their decisions.
Kelly Kennedy:And having a personal brand and reputation that is positive helps people make that decision to work with you.
Kelly Kennedy:Number four, global expansion and digital reach are becoming increasingly important.
Kelly Kennedy:Being able to make connections outside of your immediate sphere is increasingly important and your brand helps you do that.
Kelly Kennedy:Why?
Kelly Kennedy:Because if you have a brand reputation and a digital presence, digital presences, guys are not simply part of your location.
Kelly Kennedy:It almost doesn't matter what country you and I connect with people around the world about my business development expertise.
Kelly Kennedy:I have people reaching out to me from Japan, from Africa, from Asia, from Australia, from England, from around the world all the time who are finding my information, finding it relevant and recognizing that I am a leader in the business development space.
Kelly Kennedy:Because I'm willing to put myself out there and share this knowledge with the world.
Kelly Kennedy:You can have that impact as well.
Kelly Kennedy:And the cool thing about that is, is that with things like coaching or other types of training, these are relevant around the world.
Kelly Kennedy:We are no longer living in a who you know world people.
Kelly Kennedy:We are now living and transitioning into a world of are you discoverable and who knows you.
Kelly Kennedy:Your future success in business development, in business, in entrepreneurship relies on your ability to not just leverage the people you know, but also make yourself available to be found so that people can find you and reach out to you.
Kelly Kennedy:In this modern world, you need to make sure that you are discoverable and that you are putting out information that people are going to care about.
Kelly Kennedy:Number five, adaptability.
Kelly Kennedy:Business development trends, tools and landscape are evolving and personal brands help you make that adjustment and stay relevant.
Kelly Kennedy:Okay, if you guys know I'm constantly on social media, I'm constantly working to upgrade my skills.
Kelly Kennedy:I've made a commitment this year to video and learning how to do video and learning how to do better video.
Kelly Kennedy:Because you know, when I started the business development podcast, I didn't even understand audio production guys.
Kelly Kennedy:I was a business developer.
Kelly Kennedy:I didn't understand this digital world.
Kelly Kennedy:I didn't know how to create content, I didn't know how to make audio shows, and I sure as hell didn't know how to make video.
Kelly Kennedy:But I've worked consistently to learn these skills because I've recognized that they are going to be a massive benefit for my career and for my future and my family's future and my clients future if I can continue to build this brand.
Kelly Kennedy:Okay, and building a brand means that you're going to have to learn a lot of skills.
Kelly Kennedy:And guess what?
Kelly Kennedy:A lot has changed.
Kelly Kennedy:There was no AI really when I started the business Development podcast.
Kelly Kennedy: nce of that really came up in: Kelly Kennedy:And so it's been a very big learning curve.
Kelly Kennedy:But you guys have seen, you've grown with me as we've gone through this show.
Kelly Kennedy:You've seen my audio production get better and better and better.
Kelly Kennedy:You've seen my social media posts get better and better and better.
Kelly Kennedy:You've seen my social media engagement get better and better and better.
Kelly Kennedy:And now you're seeing my videos getting better and better and better.
Kelly Kennedy:It's a constant willingness to do better.
Kelly Kennedy:I know that if I stop learning that if I stop trying to get better at this show, eventually I'm gonna fall flat on my face.
Kelly Kennedy:If I give up on myself and my skills, it's over.
Kelly Kennedy:Things are evolving so quickly that the strong are going to survive, the adaptable are going to survive.
Kelly Kennedy:And so adaptability, a willingness to learn, a willingness to consistently get better and improve is going to be a key in our long term success.
Kelly Kennedy:And all of these skills I'm learning, guys, no matter what I do in the future, all of these skills will help me do more incredible things in the future, no matter what I choose to do.
Kelly Kennedy:So you can't lose by betting on yourself, guys.
Kelly Kennedy:Betting on yourself is always going to be a win.
Kelly Kennedy:All right, so you've been listening so far and you're like, I'm in.
Kelly Kennedy:I totally get it.
Kelly Kennedy:I want to build my personal brand, but, Kelly, I simply don't know where to start.
Kelly Kennedy:Now, first off, if this is you, it's okay.
Kelly Kennedy:It's absolutely okay.
Kelly Kennedy:I know exactly where you're coming from.
Kelly Kennedy:Like I said, when I started the business development podcast, it hadn't even really occurred to me that doing this would actually build my personal brand.
Kelly Kennedy:I just thought that I was going to share information with the world and just be able to educate and inspire and kind of step into this podcast space.
Kelly Kennedy:I didn't realize at the time that it would.
Kelly Kennedy:It would build my personal brand along with it.
Kelly Kennedy:And frankly, the reputation that would come along with it would be absolutely incredible.
Kelly Kennedy:I didn't see that coming.
Kelly Kennedy:And call it naive, call it whatever, I just.
Kelly Kennedy:That wasn't my world.
Kelly Kennedy:I didn't understand it.
Kelly Kennedy:But as I've gone forward, the benefits of starting this show, sharing this knowledge with the world, only becomes more apparent on a daily basis.
Kelly Kennedy:As more opportunities come my way, as more coaching clients come my way, as more, you know, sponsorship opportunities come my way, and my ability to continue to reinforce this brand and make it better and continue to leverage it to educate and inspire.
Kelly Kennedy:You can't see the success coming.
Kelly Kennedy:You can't see what it'll do for you.
Kelly Kennedy:But you can start the steps that will lead you to that opportunity where one day you can open your eyes and be like, wow, that was incredible.
Kelly Kennedy:I can't believe where I'm at today.
Kelly Kennedy:That's the power of a personal brand.
Kelly Kennedy:It really.
Kelly Kennedy:It can be surprising, but it can be incredible.
Kelly Kennedy:Not just for the world, but for you, too.
Kelly Kennedy:I would say that for any one of you who are looking to embark on a personal branding journey, who are looking to take your careers to the next level, your businesses to the next level, yourselves to the next level.
Kelly Kennedy:It starts with one thing.
Kelly Kennedy:You have to identify what expertise you have that you can share with the world.
Kelly Kennedy:What is it that you are absolutely incredible at, that you are so good at that you could teach the world how to do it?
Kelly Kennedy:Not just teach the world how to do it, but be the best at it, be the best at it, and be able to teach it to an extremely high level.
Kelly Kennedy:Now, keep in mind, you know, this is the business development podcast, and so I get it, I'm talking to a lot of professionals right now.
Kelly Kennedy:But keep in mind, you don't have to build a personal brand on your business.
Kelly Kennedy:You don't have to build a personal brand based on, you know, your job or your experience with work.
Kelly Kennedy:You can build your personal brand on anything, anything you want, anything that you are incredible at.
Kelly Kennedy:And I would highly, highly encourage you to do so.
Kelly Kennedy:If you have a passion, a hobby, a sport, whatever it is that you are absolutely incredible at, odds are pretty good that if you're an expert at it, you also love it, you also are passionate about it, and that is what you should start building your personal brands around.
Kelly Kennedy:You don't have to build it on finance, you don't have to build it on entrepreneurship, and you don't have to build it on business development.
Kelly Kennedy:You can absolutely build it on Golf, on YouTube, on podcasting, on anything.
Kelly Kennedy:Anything you like, that you are passionate about, that you feel like you're one of the best in the world at, that you feel that you could teach somebody.
Kelly Kennedy:These are the things to build your personal brand on.
Kelly Kennedy:Why?
Kelly Kennedy:Because building a personal brand is not an overnight endeavor.
Kelly Kennedy:It is a lifelong endeavor.
Kelly Kennedy:It is lifelong, guys.
Kelly Kennedy:Your personal brand never stops being built.
Kelly Kennedy:And so you have to make sure that if you're going to build it on something that you're incredibly passionate about, those Things.
Kelly Kennedy:Me, I'm passionate about business development.
Kelly Kennedy:I'm also passionate about podcasting, content creation, and helping people achieve great things.
Kelly Kennedy:For me, I get a lot of thrill out of those particular things.
Kelly Kennedy:And so it keeps me coming back to this week over week, month over month, year over year.
Kelly Kennedy:What is your thing?
Kelly Kennedy:What is your thing that keeps you coming back week over week, month over month, and year over year?
Kelly Kennedy:Number two, we have to fight the imposter syndrome.
Kelly Kennedy:You are enough and you can do this.
Kelly Kennedy:Look, if you're an expert in something, you have to share that knowledge with the world.
Kelly Kennedy:Guys, you got to stop holding that information to yourself.
Kelly Kennedy:If you're an expert on something, it means you can teach it.
Kelly Kennedy:And if you can teach it, you have an obligation to share that knowledge with the world.
Kelly Kennedy:Guys, we live in this, like, protectionist society, or at least we have for a very long time.
Kelly Kennedy:Business development is a prime example of this.
Kelly Kennedy:For whatever reason, in business development for a very long time, we kept all of our cards close to our hearts, all of our relationships, all of our skills, our processes, and for whatever reason, we didn't teach anybody.
Kelly Kennedy:And so everybody who ended up in business development, basically over the last 50 to 100 years, has had to figure it all out from ground zero.
Kelly Kennedy:I recognized that, and I wasn't okay with it.
Kelly Kennedy:That is why I launched the Business Development podcast.
Kelly Kennedy:The goal from the very beginning has been to educate and inspire the next generation of business development professionals, professionals in general, entrepreneurs, and help equip them with the skills that people were not willing to share with them to help them be more successful in their businesses.
Kelly Kennedy:And I think I've done a pretty great job with that.
Kelly Kennedy:I think that we have definitely succeeded on that and continue to succeed by educating and inspiring the next generations every single week.
Kelly Kennedy:What is that for you?
Kelly Kennedy:What is your thing?
Kelly Kennedy:What is your knowledge gap?
Kelly Kennedy:Your area of expertise that you could really help the next generation, that you could really help people take it to the next level.
Kelly Kennedy:Avoid the hardship, avoid having to learn things the hard way because you know it.
Kelly Kennedy:In business, learning things the hard way can be the difference between making it and.
Kelly Kennedy:And failing horribly.
Kelly Kennedy:And I want as many people to succeed in business as possible.
Kelly Kennedy:Why?
Kelly Kennedy:Because the more people succeed in business, the better the world is going to be for everybody.
Kelly Kennedy:I really believe that.
Kelly Kennedy:And so if I can do my little part, I'm going to continue to do it.
Kelly Kennedy:What is your part?
Kelly Kennedy:What is your area of expertise?
Kelly Kennedy:You have to fight yourself.
Kelly Kennedy:Guys, you're your biggest critic.
Kelly Kennedy:The reason that you don't have a personal brand right now is because you've been too afraid to put yourself out there.
Kelly Kennedy:It's the truth.
Kelly Kennedy:You likely have a set of skills that is absolutely in demand, that people absolutely need to learn, that you would be incredible at teaching, but you've been getting in your own way, and I get it.
Kelly Kennedy:I totally, totally understand.
Kelly Kennedy:I've been doing this with video forever.
Kelly Kennedy:Like, I've really struggled with doing the video thing.
Kelly Kennedy:Why?
Kelly Kennedy:Because, yeah, of course I, I, I have days where I don't feel good about myself.
Kelly Kennedy:I have days where I don't like the way I look.
Kelly Kennedy:I have days where I just didn't want to do that.
Kelly Kennedy:I didn't have the skills to do it at the level I wanted to do it at.
Kelly Kennedy:But understand this.
Kelly Kennedy:Nobody starts with the skills to do things epically great in the beginning.
Kelly Kennedy:Most people have a gigantic learning curve, and I was no different.
Kelly Kennedy:But, guys, this podcast has come out, and it sounds pretty incredible now, but it took a lot of learning.
Kelly Kennedy:And I've been editing and producing this show since day one.
Kelly Kennedy:And I've gotten better every single month.
Kelly Kennedy:Every single month I've produced this show.
Kelly Kennedy:I've learned something new.
Kelly Kennedy:I've implemented it, and the audio to the show gets better and better and better all the time.
Kelly Kennedy:It will be the same with me in video.
Kelly Kennedy:Absolutely.
Kelly Kennedy:Mark my words.
Kelly Kennedy:The time will come that my videos will be just as epic as the sound on this podcast.
Kelly Kennedy:But I'm going to have my growing pains.
Kelly Kennedy:I'm going to have my moments from like, oh, shit, I should have known that, or I should have done this better.
Kelly Kennedy:But I'm not going to let that hold me back.
Kelly Kennedy:I'm going to continue to grow my personal brand.
Kelly Kennedy:I'm going to continue to challenge myself to do things I've never done before.
Kelly Kennedy:And I'm going to learn along the way.
Kelly Kennedy:And you can, too.
Kelly Kennedy:You just have to get out of your own way.
Kelly Kennedy:You absolutely, absolutely can do this.
Kelly Kennedy:You are your biggest hurdle, and that's going to lead us into number three.
Kelly Kennedy:Recognize that your fears are very unlikely to manifest.
Kelly Kennedy:Okay?
Kelly Kennedy:We make everything worse in our heads.
Kelly Kennedy:I think most of us are afraid to put ourselves out there because we're afraid of being called out.
Kelly Kennedy:We're afraid that someone's gonna, you know, call us out for something we say or something we accidentally say.
Kelly Kennedy:Guys, I get it.
Kelly Kennedy:I get it.
Kelly Kennedy:We live in a crazy time where you can be called out for just about anything.
Kelly Kennedy:But understand, I think it's a lot rarer than you think.
Kelly Kennedy:I think you know, you might see it on tv, you might see people get called out and things go really poorly for them.
Kelly Kennedy:But I think in the real world, it's much less common.
Kelly Kennedy:Well, what do I mean by that?
Kelly Kennedy:200 episodes of the business Development podcast.
Kelly Kennedy:I've gotten negative feedback twice.
Kelly Kennedy:Okay?
Kelly Kennedy:One person didn't like a guest that I had, and the company that they worked for, whatever, that's their own opinion.
Kelly Kennedy:That's fine.
Kelly Kennedy:Another person mentioned that my intros were a bit too long, and so I made corrections, and here we are today.
Kelly Kennedy:But that's it, guys.
Kelly Kennedy:200 episodes, nearly two years of the business development podcast.
Kelly Kennedy:I've had two negative comments.
Kelly Kennedy:Neither were that bad, and we're still trucking along.
Kelly Kennedy:And you know what?
Kelly Kennedy:For those two negative comments, I have had hundreds, if not thousands of positive comments thanking me for the work we do here.
Kelly Kennedy:Trust me, you are far more likely to be okay.
Kelly Kennedy:Trust me on this, you are far more likely to be okay.
Kelly Kennedy:Don't be afraid to put yourself out there.
Kelly Kennedy:Don't be afraid to share your knowledge with the world.
Kelly Kennedy:You are enough.
Kelly Kennedy:You have the expertise and someone needs to learn it from you.
Kelly Kennedy:Number four, recognize you can learn any skill.
Kelly Kennedy:Just because you don't currently know show production, video production, audio editing does not mean that you won't be able to do it epically in one year.
Kelly Kennedy:Understand that.
Kelly Kennedy:Like I said, I started this show not understanding show production, not understanding podcasting at all, not understanding audio editing, and here we are, two years later.
Kelly Kennedy:My podcast sounds excellent, the skills developed, you will learn.
Kelly Kennedy:Trust me.
Kelly Kennedy:If you don't have the knowledge now, it doesn't matter.
Kelly Kennedy:You absolutely, absolutely can and will learn the knowledge to do these things in the future.
Kelly Kennedy:Anything you need to learn can be learned.
Kelly Kennedy:And trust me, you can learn it a lot faster than you think.
Kelly Kennedy:Number five, you have to share authentically and be real.
Kelly Kennedy:Don't be afraid to have your opinion, okay?
Kelly Kennedy:Don't be afraid to share it the way that you would share it.
Kelly Kennedy:I said from the very beginning, my very first intro episode of the business development podcast, that I was gonna be real with you, that I was gonna tell it how it is, that I was gonna teach it how it is.
Kelly Kennedy:No fluff, no bullshit.
Kelly Kennedy:And I have kept to that for the entire show.
Kelly Kennedy:And, guys, nothing bad has happened from it.
Kelly Kennedy:Actually, my personal brand has grown exceptionally.
Kelly Kennedy:By being authentic, by creating trust, by being somebody that is trustworthy, and by sharing my knowledge with the world and hopefully making the world a better place, you absolutely can be yourself.
Kelly Kennedy:When building your personal Brand.
Kelly Kennedy:And not only can you be, you absolutely should be.
Kelly Kennedy:Because you know what?
Kelly Kennedy:Life is better when you can be yourself.
Kelly Kennedy:And being authentic has the added benefit of building trust and helping you find your people out there in the world, the people you resonate with and the people who are gonna love you for who you are.
Kelly Kennedy:Number six, invest in continuous growth and get better all the time.
Kelly Kennedy:So I talked about it earlier.
Kelly Kennedy:I am doubling down on video this year.
Kelly Kennedy:I'm gonna try and put out as much video content as I can.
Kelly Kennedy:And every day I still struggle with it.
Kelly Kennedy:So let me tell you right now, I am still struggling with putting myself on video.
Kelly Kennedy:I'm doing better with it.
Kelly Kennedy:I'm working on it.
Kelly Kennedy:I still, when I sit down in front of a camera, feel out of place.
Kelly Kennedy:I still struggle with that.
Kelly Kennedy:But you know what?
Kelly Kennedy:I am willing to grow because I know that for me, doing video is going to be my next evolution.
Kelly Kennedy: will help me grow the most in: Kelly Kennedy: ill help you grow the most in: Kelly Kennedy:Figure out what that is for you and double down.
Kelly Kennedy:Get courses, get the programs you need to learn it.
Kelly Kennedy:If it's CANVA and digital editing and creating your own content, work on it every single week.
Kelly Kennedy:Create new content every single week at every time.
Kelly Kennedy:Do a little bit better.
Kelly Kennedy:But guess what?
Kelly Kennedy:You absolutely, absolutely need to be continuously growing.
Kelly Kennedy:Because guys, the world is changing quicker than ever.
Kelly Kennedy:Programs are coming out faster than ever.
Kelly Kennedy:AI is evolving quicker than ever.
Kelly Kennedy:Everything is changing.
Kelly Kennedy:And if we aren't willing to learn, if we aren't willing to continually grow and invest in ourselves, we are going to fall behind.
Kelly Kennedy:And we absolutely cannot afford to do that personally or for our businesses.
Kelly Kennedy:We have to be investing in ourselves, continuously growing, figuring out how to fill in the gaps and evolve as the world is evolving around us.
Kelly Kennedy:Number seven, we have to put in the effort.
Kelly Kennedy:Okay?
Kelly Kennedy:It's not enough to just post here and there.
Kelly Kennedy:It's not enough to just do the odd audio show or the odd clip.
Kelly Kennedy:Okay?
Kelly Kennedy:If we are going to participate in our personal brand building, we need to participate.
Kelly Kennedy:You can't succeed if you're not prioritizing it in your life, in your day to day life.
Kelly Kennedy:Okay, what does this mean?
Kelly Kennedy:This means that we need to commit to a content strategy.
Kelly Kennedy:If we decide that we are going to put out a podcast, how often are we going to put out this podcast?
Kelly Kennedy:Are we going to put it out once a week?
Kelly Kennedy:Once every two weeks, twice a week, once a day, whatever you want to commit to.
Kelly Kennedy:Whatever you can commit to.
Kelly Kennedy:But ultimately commit to something and stick with it.
Kelly Kennedy:Okay?
Kelly Kennedy:You cannot succeed if you are not consistent with it.
Kelly Kennedy:Doesn't matter whether it's your social media posts, it doesn't matter whether it's your podcast, it doesn't matter whether it's your YouTube or your videos.
Kelly Kennedy:You have to be consistent with it.
Kelly Kennedy:Commit to a schedule.
Kelly Kennedy:Commit to a long term game.
Kelly Kennedy:Hundred episodes is what I always suggest.
Kelly Kennedy:If you're going to start a podcast, don't start a podcast if you're not willing to do 100 episodes.
Kelly Kennedy:If you're going to start a YouTube channel, don't even bother unless you're willing to do 100 episodes.
Kelly Kennedy:Figure out what you're willing to do for the long term.
Kelly Kennedy:Commit to it, commit to learning, commit to getting better, and double down on that this year.
Kelly Kennedy:Trust me, if you are willing to commit to something like that, you're willing to build authentic human connection and connect in a real way, it is going to pay itself back in dividends over the next year or two for you.
Kelly Kennedy:And number eight, remember, it is a long game.
Kelly Kennedy:Personal branding is not overnight.
Kelly Kennedy:It's not an instant success.
Kelly Kennedy:It is something that once you start, you are going to have to commit to for your entire career.
Kelly Kennedy:It is not a one and done thing.
Kelly Kennedy:It is not a buy once, cry once.
Kelly Kennedy:Okay?
Kelly Kennedy:It is a long term commitment to positioning yourself as a thought leader in your industry.
Kelly Kennedy:Okay?
Kelly Kennedy:You have to commit to it and you have to be willing to give it the time it's gonna take for you to succeed.
Kelly Kennedy:And guess what?
Kelly Kennedy:That time is your entire career.
Kelly Kennedy:You cannot quit on it.
Kelly Kennedy:You cannot take a break from it.
Kelly Kennedy:You build your personal brand every single day, every single week, every single month, and yes, every single year and year over year.
Kelly Kennedy:You need to make it a priority.
Kelly Kennedy:Why?
Kelly Kennedy:Because it is worth it.
Kelly Kennedy:If you are willing to be a thought leader in your field, it is going to be.
Kelly Kennedy:It is going to pay itself off in dividends long term for you.
Kelly Kennedy:But remember, it's a long term game.
Kelly Kennedy:Just aim to do a little more every single day.
Kelly Kennedy:Aim to get a little better every single day.
Kelly Kennedy:And always aim to make the world a better place and a more authentic place.
Kelly Kennedy:And the world will pay you back in dividends.
Kelly Kennedy:Your biggest critic will always be your inner voice.
Kelly Kennedy:You deserve to be exceptional, share your expertise and watch the world open doors for you.
Kelly Kennedy: Personal branding in: Kelly Kennedy:Guys, I get it.
Kelly Kennedy:I get it.
Kelly Kennedy:We didn't choose this.
Kelly Kennedy:I know, I know.
Kelly Kennedy:I felt that way too.
Kelly Kennedy:At first.
Kelly Kennedy:But trust me on this, it is absolutely, absolutely worth it.
Kelly Kennedy:And the people that are willing to put in the time, the people that are willing to share their expertise with the world, they will be rewarded by the world in dividends.
Kelly Kennedy:Mark my words.
Kelly Kennedy:It has never been a better time to start your personal brand.
Kelly Kennedy:So get to it.
Kelly Kennedy:Remember, we have community questions open guys if you love this episode, if you have questions regarding personal branding, business development, podcasting, I am an open book.
Kelly Kennedy:Shoot any questions over to podcastapitalbd ca or shoot me a message on LinkedIn.
Kelly Kennedy:Happy to address them for you.
Kelly Kennedy: ent to the next level here in: Kelly Kennedy:Whether you're an entrepreneur, a business development specialist, Business Development Manager, this program is for you.
Kelly Kennedy:It is the Business Development Mastery Program with Kelly Kennedy.
Kelly Kennedy:You can find it on my LinkedIn page and book a free discovery call or you can learn more about it at CapitalBD CA.
Kelly Kennedy:And last but not least, please follow us, rate us, recommend us, tell your friends, tell your family and share this knowledge with the world guys.
Kelly Kennedy:That's how this show grows.
Kelly Kennedy:It is very much through word of mouth and I greatly, greatly appreciate your support.
Kelly Kennedy:Shout outs this Week Lauren Graf Marcus Chan, Tyson Hunt Colin Harms Tony Gray Roxanne Kasianchak Danielle Sonnenberg John Pelly Katherine V, Myrna Alta Tara Beherens Gary Noseworthy Steven Hood Ace Qureshi Cruz Gamboa Ricardo J.
Kelly Kennedy:Flores Nathan Plumber Michelle Sami Weeb Jack Dyer Kathleen Ula, Daniel Monzen Mo Altaquatkwa Kapil Kalra Steve Austin Jeff Ross Susan Pasaka until next time, this has been the Business Development Podcast and we will catch you on the flip side.
Mark Cuban:This has been the Business Development Podcast with Kelly Kennedy.
Mark Cuban: business development firm in: Mark Cuban:His passion and his specialization is in customer relationship generation and business development.
Mark Cuban:The show is brought to you by Capital Business Development, your business development specialists.
Mark Cuban:For more we inform invite you to the website at www.capitalbd.ca.
Mark Cuban:see you next time on the Business Development Podcast.
