We hear a lot about personal branding these days.  Many people balk at the idea of creating a pre-fab image.  They feel it is fake.  However, this is not the case.  Think of personal branding like you would preparing for a date.  You try to put your best foot forward.  You dress nicely, use your manners, you groom yourself.  It’s not fake.  You do actually bathe regularly (we hope), the clothes are already in your closet and you probably learned your best manners in preschool.  It’s not that the other bits of your complex personality aren’t there, you just don’t lead with the bench players.  It’s the same for branding.  The goal of personal branding is not to project an artificial image for the soul of purpose of making money.  At its root it is designed to be organic creating a sharper, clearer picture of what is already there.  It is bringing awareness to the individual about what is unique, appealing, powerful about that person.  In essence, highlighting one’s USP.  And who doesn’t want to be seen as unique and special?

It may seem strange to think about the winter and snow right now, but this is a good time to get deals on winter coats and jackets. I was just in some of the department stores and the markdowns are substantial. Even though not all of the stock is in yet, what is there has not been picked over and they are bound to have lots of sizes. The stores and malls are not crowded yet either with back to school shoppers.

This is also a good time of year to take stock of your fall wardrobe. You don’t want to hit the stores shopping only to get home and discover later that you already had 2 gray cardigans. Fall is a very fun time to shop with all the beautiful colors and sweater etc.  However, you don’t want to buy repeats. Check out your jackets, scarves, gloves etc. What needs to be replaced or repaired?  After you check over what you already have, make a list of what you need and THEN go shopping. Doing inventory now may seem strange, but is especially good for parents of school-aged kids. I find it much more challenging to take stock of the fall/winter wardrobes once school has started and everyone is heading in different directions.

Good luck out there!