Authenticity is a real bone of contention when it comes to finding your personal brand and marketing it

This for the most part due to the fact that many still consider personal branding as unimportant or a facade. This is not the case.

Personal branding is about finding your true self, your values, passion, mission and with the skills and knowledge you have acquired you are able to present your unique promise of value to the world in a way that differentiates you from the rest.

The process of finding yourself can be daunting,because of the so many influences awe are faced with at various stages of our lives. Peer, family or environmental pressure can lead to us settling for obvious, trending and comfortable choices. It takes a desire and quest for something greater, different, meaningful to burst this bubble called mediocrity and rise up above the ordinary or obvious.This desire when fueled can develop into a passion that can become a profession.

BUT, we need to find that passion.

Most of the time in the quest to be better and more productive citizens, we hurriedly put ourselves out there with many questions still unanswered. Its just a matter of time with one challenge, and we are back to the drawing board but not without consequences; we will be branded as fake or not trust worthy.It is better to walk slowly and stay the course than to race fast and leave the course.

I discovered in my ongoing journey of finding myself that the surest and most secured way of coming across as authentic is by discovering your passion and living it fully.

Passion is born when you catch a glimpse of your true potential and worth. This entails looking on the inside.Those who seek to know what they are passionate about by looking outside always end up with another persons vision for them.

Passion is that quiet voice within that calls out to you when you least expect and when you heed it, it swells up and becomes a world of ideas that appear scary and  unrealistic most of the time.

The exciting thing about passion is, you are ever ready to do,irrespective of whether you get paid or recognised for it. The satisfaction and joy of being able to serve a client or a need suffices.

But this is what I love again about passion, when you seek to understand and cultivate your passion, in the long run, it becomes your profession.

I have always loved to help people become self confident,and for several years I never hesitated to be of help or contribute something, it gradually grew to become a lifestyle and at some point I knew I want to do this for the rest of my life even if I don't get paid for it.

What makes you unique is what makes you different and when you bring that to the market place, clients will be willing to pay anything. People don't buy what you sell, they buy why. The why is your passion, values, mission.

A truly passionate person cannot hide and cannot lie. Passion is like the fuel of the soul. It keeps bubbling and the more you fuel it, the clearer it becomes, the more it attracts and the more authentic you become.

Being authentic is not dependent on a set of rules you follow to become, it is realising who you already are and developing it into a clear and consistent mission statement, that can inspire trust.

Being the best is good but being You-nique is better.

You are original, you are YOU don't die a copy.