The Importance Of A Personal Brand – Differentiating Yourself From Other Physicians

Guest Blog – A Note From Dr. Julia

Hello,

Enjoy the following guest blog from my good friend, Charlotte Weeks, career coach and resume writer. Charlotte and I met years ago while mentoring and speaking for the SEAK Non- Clinical Careers for Physicians Conference.

As you journey into the world of non-clinical careers, you will need to establish your personal brand to illustrate to potential employers your uniqueness and your transferable skills. A brand creates a picture of the whole “YOU” – rather than presenting yourself as ‘DOCTOR.”

Creating your brand is a fun and creative process. Charlotte’s advice will help you get started.

The Importance Of A Personal Brand – Differentiating Yourself From Other Physicians

If you’ve been in clinical medicine your entire career, you may not have needed to compete in a traditional job search. While credentials and experience do go a long way, there will be others with similar qualifications pursuing the same roles. A personal brand can differentiate you from those competitors.

The term “personal branding” sometimes gets a bad rap. However, everyone has a brand whether they realize it or not! Yet when you’re more intentional about your “unique value proposition” (a phrase many prefer), you can increase your chances of being sought out for positions, receiving an offer, and negotiating a higher salary.

So how do you go about determining your personal brand?

Ask yourself:

What attributes are you known for? Think about those that aren’t necessarily related to medicine, and may even have been present throughout your life. Examples include “calm under pressure,” “relationship builder,” or “detail-oriented.”
What type of job are you pursuing? It’s not enough to say non-clinical medicine. Will you be looking for positions in hospital administration, utilization review, or training?
How can you combine #1 and #2 into a statement to illustrate to employers your unique value? In other words, how will you apply your attributes to your target job?
Prepare examples of how this unique value provided a benefit: Even if you haven’t yet been in the position, offer evidence of past successes focused on skills that transfer between roles.

EXAMPLE:

What attributes are you known for? I’ve always enjoyed working with people, and can quickly and easily establish and build relationships.
What type of job are you pursuing? Medical Director in a multispecialty practice.
How can you combine #1 and #2 into a statement to illustrate to employers your unique value? Known for ability to quickly establish and build relationships with people across all specialties. [In this example, it’s assumed you’ve been able to do this in past clinical positions].
Prepare examples of how this unique value provided a benefit: You chaired a practice-wide committee and gained buy-in on a new initiative; you increased the number of referrals to your practice by establishing a relationship with another provider; you streamlined the patient flow process by working with fellow physicians to create a new system.

Now that you’ve got some ideas of how to define your personal brand, it’s time to let others know about it. Be sure it’s expressed in all of your marketing materials – resume, cover letter, LinkedIn profile, bio, etc. – but also when speaking with people. Incorporate your statement when networking and in interviews so that everyone you meet comes away with a clear idea of what makes you unique.