Wikipedia describes personal branding as the practice of people marketing themselves and their careers as brands.

So how can one practically create their personal brand in order to experience success in their careers?

Hannah Muchuki, a consultant with InsideOut development takes us through four steps in ensuring that one does embrace Personal branding in their careers.

First up is appearance. Hannah highlights that how you dress dictates how one will be addressed therefore according to the type of career one needs address appropriately.

Second is Attitude. How you treat and relate to persons within your work environment is a component of your personal brand as this indicates how people will respond to you.

Skills and competencies. Being well dressed with the right attitude counts for nothing without having the necessary skills and competencies for your job.

Personal differentiation. How different are you from your colleagues performing a similar function? Differentiations such as your interpersonal skills do go a long way in ensuring that you stand out from your colleagues.

Personal branding goes hand in hand with career growth and success according to Hannah Muchuki, a consultant with InsideOut Development.

Ms. Muchuki says such elements as dressing define a major element of branding, which by extension determines perceptions about one’s competencies.

“How you dress dictates how you will be addressed, so depending on the specific career, one needs to dress appropriately,” Ms. Muchuki says.

Other elements of personal branding that Ms. Muchuki expounds on are attitude, skills and competencies, and personal differentiation.

These elements, she says, are key to achieving career success through personal branding.