In Episode #5 of the Life Is A Marathon show, I explore a personal branding topic: Everyone is Self-Employed. It doesn't matter who signs your paycheck or what you do, you must do it with the attitude/mindset that you are self-employed, that you represent the most important brand in the world: YOU! Having the mindset of being a brand and being solely responsible for how you represent your brand, helps you show up in the world in an entirely different way than if you have the mindset of just going to a job.

Quotes from the show:
Work is love made visible. And if you can't work with love, but only with distaste, it is better that you should leave your work and sit at the gate of the temple and take alms of the people who work with joy ― Khalil Gibran
Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude. ― Zig Ziglar
Every job is a self-portrait of the person who did it ... Autograph your work with excellence. ― Vince Lombardi
Show outline:

Life coaching issues

Personal presentation is very important

Get work/Get promoted
Improve relationships


Must create foundational mindset for success

Can't build sustainable behavior change if mindset doesn't support it




Topic: Regardless of who signs your paycheck, you are self-employed
The primary factor for success is connections and relationships

Your ability to connect with and build relationships with people impacts every area of your life
Regardless of how good you are, people do business with people/companies they like and trust

"Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude." - Zig Ziglar




You are your own brand! You own and represent a brand named You, Inc.

You are self-employed

You are CEO - casting the vision and direction of the company
You are head of Marketing - Creating connections/relationships so people know your name
You are head of Public Relations - you must deal with people who are upset with you
Most importantly, you are in Sales - you are responsible for getting new clients


Embracing this idea will make you more successful in every area of your life

Relationships will improve
Job opportunities will appear




Great companies are built around 2 foundational principles

Providing the best products or services
Love for their customers and a desire to keep customers for life!


What they don't teach you in school

Job Interviewing 101

You are NOT entitled to anything - especially a job!
You are not applying for a job, you are trying to gain a customer
People don't buy features, they buy benefits and feelings
Do not say "here are my qualifications for this job, how much will you pay me?"
Sell your benefits - how you can solve problems, increase their profit, ease their pain
Make it about your customer's needs, not about you or your desire for money

Ask questions

Do you want your customers to be greeted with big smile and sincere "how are you"?
Do you want your customers feel like they are genuinely appreciate and valued so they come back time and time again?
Do you have a hard time hiring employees who love their work, show up on time, smile while they are here, and do the work as if they owned the company?
If so, here's what you can expect from me....


Love the work you are doing right now!

See your employer as your customer
See everyone you meet in the course of your day as a potential customer or referral to a customer
Do the work you are hired to do with the greatest enthusiasm and highest quality because it reflects on your brand!
See the work you do as part of a much bigger picture!

The box you just loaded on to the truck is very important to the person who will receive it--it may change their lives
The person you are speaking to on the phone has their own set of issues, values, etc and deserves as much respect as you do--they may tell someone about how you treated them.