Yesterday I had the opportunity to talk to a classroom full of college students about my approach to personal branding. The instructor just happens to be the mother of one of my piano students, so she has seen first-hand how I’ve built my own personal brand over the last couple of years, both online and locally.
I was a new professional, fresh out of graduate school, when I began building my personal brand. I was afraid of getting lost in the sea of music therapists, and wanted to make a name for myself as I started my career.
First came Listen & Learn, where I established a presence and voice in the online world. Soon after, I started a Facebook page so that I could further connect with people interested in my work, my blog, and me in general — in other words, my personal brand. I joined Twitter for the same purpose.
While I was working hard to spread my message online, I was simultaneously doing so in my community. Presenting at conferences and workshops, performing at various local venues, and being featured in newspaper articles were all ways to make my brand known.
And while I didn’t have a specific strategy at the time, as I look back, I realize that I followed a pretty simple set of self-written rules:
It’s never too early to begin building your personal brand. No matter how young or inexperienced you are, just get started. Your brand will grow as you do.
Be genuine in everything you write or post. When people meet you in person, you should come across the same as you do online.
Be consistent. Use the same profile picture and style across platforms.
Be transparent. Don’t inflate your credentials, your numbers, or your network; just show your true colors and eventually all of those things will inflate on their own.
On the flip side, don’t give yourself too little credit. If you underestimate your abilities and potential to be an authority in your niche, others will do the same.
Even though I still have a long way to go, I feel like I’ve been pretty successful in my efforts within a relatively short period of time. So based on that success, here are the six things that, in my opinion, are essential to every personal brand:
A goal. What are you working towards? Where do you want to be a year, 5 years, 10 years from now?
A resume. Always have this on hand and ready to share, and always be adding to it. Every experience counts.
A website. Even better, a blog. Create dynamic content so that people have a reason to keep coming back.
A slogan that people will remember. Mine is “helping children learn and grow through music” — which sums up all of the different kinds of work I do.
Social media presence. Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube…the more platforms for people to find you, the better.
Business cards. I use VistaPrint to create custom cards that reflect my brand’s aesthetic and message.
Whether or not they realize it, most people are building their personal brand on a daily basis. What are you doing to set yourself apart from everyone else?
My former high school’s show choir is coming to perform for my students today. I was a member of Seven & Senators at Springfield High School from 1998-2001, and can’t wait to see and hear how the group has evolved over the last ten years.
I wrote about my show choir experience (which is probably the reason that I am a total Gleek) last year, but think it’s worth bringing up again…this time, in relation to my career. Because as far-fetched as it might sound, those three years in Seven & Senators actually helped prepare me for life as a music therapist:
I gained an appreciation for all genres of music. We performed Broadway, golden oldies, love songs, classic rock, jazz, and just about everything else under the sun. Now there’s a special place in my heart for “Blue Skies”, “Bill Bailey”, and lots of other music therapy standards.
I got experience singing in front of audiences of all ages and abilities. Every year, we made the rounds at elementary schools, nursing homes, hospitals, and facilities like The Hope Institute (where I work now). I always enjoyed talking with the students and residents and brightening their day with our performances.
I learned how to improvise. Both vocally, and otherwise! Reinterpreting choreography when my dance partner was MIA, riffing with the audience when our sound system failed us, and creatively solving various other issues were par for the course as a member of show choir.
I taught myself how to memorize at lightning speed. Not only did my brain have to remember all of the music we sang, but it also had to remember countless dance steps, positions, and song order. Now, working with children, I memorize all of the music I use in music therapy sessions so that I can focus on my students — not the lyrics or chords. All that memorizing I did back in the day has served me well.
I bonded with others through music. We all know that the therapeutic relationship is a crucial aspect of music therapy. There’s something about music that speeds up a budding friendship, as I realized early on being involved in show choir and musical theatre. And though my clients aren’t necessarily my friends, our relationship is strong because of the music that we make together.
I’m sure there are other ways in which show choir helped shape me into the music therapist I am today. It’s so cool to look back at my past and realize how all the dots connect perfectly. What about you? Did your past experiences (show choir or otherwise) prepare you for your current career?
I had the pleasure of spending Wednesday morning with a great group of middle school students (I’m the non-student wearing stripes in the middle) from Lincoln Magnet School. They contacted me last month about interviewing me for a project in their video journalism class, and of course I said yes!
These kids were pros, let me tell you. I had reserved the board room at The Hope Institute for our interview, and as soon as we walked into the room, they began discussing the best placement for their video camera and me as the interview subject. They had already sent me a list of questions, so I looked over those as they finished setting up.
This was just page one of the excellent questions they had for me. It was interesting to listen to their reactions as I explained what music therapy is all about, and how my students benefit from it. They came up with some fabulous on-the-spot questions, as well.
After the interview was over, I took the students and their guidance counselor (who I had as a teacher when I was in middle school!) on a tour of the building. They had the chance to meet some of my students, chat with my principal, see lots of cool aspects of our facility, and get an idea of all the kinds of services an organization like Hope has to offer.
The students will be editing their video into a short piece that will be shown at their class’s end-of-the-year movie screening, and I can’t wait to see the final product. Not only was this a fun opportunity for me, but it’s one more way to get the word out about music therapy in my community.
This is what I came home to on the first day of my studio renovation. Eek! A hole in the wall! But that meant I was one step closer to a beautiful new waiting room, even though it’s not looking quite so beautiful in this picture.
By the end of the very next day, our contractors had installed the door leading to the garage, where students and their families will enter and exit through the “people door” you can see above. They had also ripped up the old carpet to get ready for the new flooring, which left the room looking like this (click to enlarge pictures):
Here’s a view of the door from the garage. You can see how close the new door is to the existing door through which everyone will enter from outside. We’re planning to partition off the rest of the garage from this little alcove:
The trim and step still need to be painted, but the hard work is done. What I like about this renovation is that we didn’t have to add another exterior door to the house, which might have affected the resale value if/when we decide to move. And this new entryway can easily be reversed if a buyer does not want it.
The contractors have also begun framing in the door that will separate the studio “wing” from the rest of the house. I thought it was hilarious when last Friday, after one of my students’ parents used the restroom, she came back and asked, “Did Sadie rip up the trim in the hallway?” A valid question, since I hadn’t yet explained the renovation :) Here’s how the doorway was looking a few days ago:
It’s further along now, since the guys have been back every day to mud the drywall. (Don’t I sound like I know what I’m talking about?) But it’s definitely still looking rough, and I’m very anxious for this part to be completed since it’s visible to everyone who comes in the house.
The room that will become my new studio is still fairly untouched, aside from housing the other room’s closet doors and a couple pieces of furniture. But soon they’ll be repainting and recarpeting, at which point I can start decorating — the most fun part of any renovation.
So that’s where we’re at right now. A lot of thumb-twiddling as we wait for the new flooring to come in, which won’t be for another couple of weeks. This process is most definitely a lesson in patience!
The end of a month-long Church Mice session is always a little bittersweet. On one hand, it’s nice to have Sunday afternoons to myself again until the next session begins; on the other hand, I miss the fun times with my sweet kiddos. I mean, just look at those faces!
My helpful husband came to our last class of the winter session earlier this month and caught some of the action. (You can see all 60+ pictures here.) One of the best parts is the hugs and thank you’s I get after we’ve sung the Church Mice goodbye song:
It’s time for us to go, oh, oh, oh,
Church Mice is over for today.
It’s time for us to go, oh, oh, oh,
So tell me, what do we say?
Goodbye, goodbye,
Farewell, and so long.
Goodbye, goodbye,
This is the goodbye song.
I wish that we could stay, hey, hey, hey,
But I’m afraid our time is through.
I wish that we could stay, hey, hey, hey,
But I have to say goodbye to you.
Goodbye, goodbye,
Farewell, and so long.
Goodbye, goodbye,
This is the goodbye song.
Listen & Learn vets may recognize this song as a repurposing of the goodbye song I wrote for my students at The Hope Institute a couple years ago. That’s one of the great things about my different jobs: there’s lots of overlap :)
I’m already gearing up for the spring session of Church Mice, which begins the first Sunday in May. But until then, I’m going to enjoy my free Sunday afternoons!
Welcome! I’m Rachel Rambach, board-certified music therapist and creator of Listen & Learn Music — educational songs and musical materials for children. I love sharing my work with you, along with my behind-the-scenes creative process, adventures in business ownership, and life as a mom of two.
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