The Doctrine Library.
The core methods of Personal Branding: A Manifesto on Fame and Influence, in short form, each with its method and its place in the book.
Personal Branding: A Manifesto on Fame and Influence is the world's first Philosophy of Personal Branding: eight chapters and 78 subchapters, with the Identity Positioning™ essay between the seventh and the eighth. This library sets out its core methods in short form: what each one is, the method itself, and where it sits in the book.
It is a library, not the book. Each entry is a summary in MCG's words with one quotation from the text. The reasoning, the stories, and the exercise that closes each subchapter are in the Manifesto itself. For the definition of personal branding, the four laws, and the six tiers on one page, start with What Is Personal Branding. For any single term, the Personal Branding Terms and Doctrine defines it in a few lines and links back here. To read by subject instead, the topic guides gather these methods with the professions, terms, and tips on one topic.
The Doctrine Library.
Foundations
The Hierarchy of Personal Branding
Six tiers that measure how far a personal brand reaches. Everyone starts at the bottom, and each tier above asks for more effort, time, and resources than the one before it.
The 4 Laws of Personal Branding
Chapter 2 of the Manifesto sets out four laws that build in order. Without familiarity there is no connection; without fame and influence, a personal brand has little reach or weight.
The 4 Pillar Questions
Four questions MCG asks every client before any strategy, in this order, because each answer depends on the one before it.
Fame and Influence
The subtitle of the Manifesto names the two forces that decide what a personal brand can accomplish. Reach without trust is empty, and trust without reach stays small.
Identity Positioning
The Skyline Strategy
A 2:1 ratio from Identity Positioning: A Macroscopic View on Personal Branding. For every two steps that grow the brand side, take one that grows the personal side.
The Five Personal Brand Pillars
How MCG measures the quality of a personal brand. Five pillars, always in this order, weighted into one composite out of 100.
Branding
Seamless Branding
There should be no doubt who you are when someone introduces you, on or offline, and no question that you are the right person to follow.
The Elevator Pitch
How you would describe yourself in less than a minute. The Manifesto's version is not a sales pitch; it sells you as someone to get to know or follow.
The Art of Storytelling
Sharing stories from your own life is one of the best ways to build rapport. People who only hear about your profession only stay for what they can get.
Avoiding Clichés
A cliché teaches nothing and moves no one. In a crowded market, originality is what cuts through the noise.
Reputation Management
The Leaning Tower
No matter how far a personal brand reaches, it is always a single misstep away from crashing down. The size of a reputation is not a shield.
Who Has Leverage Over You?
To be a public figure is to be watched. As your efforts pay off, the people who hold leverage over you, and what they could do with it, matter more.
Building Credibility
Follower counts only get you so far. What matters more is how much the people who follow you trust you.
Controversy With Purpose
Avoid controversy that concerns your own reputation. External controversy, handled with intent and class, can position you as the expert.
Dealing With Crises
Over a lifetime of building a personal brand, something less than ideal will happen. A crisis is rarely the end; how you respond decides most of the damage.
Giving Endorsements
Every endorsement is an extension of your good faith and your influence. Research before you attach your name to anyone or anything.
Compiling Wins
By compiling wins, future successes become easier to obtain. A record that speaks for you does the convincing you once had to do yourself.
Marketing
The Power of 3
Introduce yourself to three strangers every day for a year, starting with 90 days to build the habit. Developed around 2019 for clients who needed a simple way to grow their network, and channel agnostic by design.
Building Your Contact List
A quality contact list lets you solve other people's problems with a simple introduction, and makes you the person whose name comes up first.
Communicating Intent
Be transparent about what you want and why. Letting your intent be known creates advocates out of the people around you.
Distribution
The last thing you want is to pour your effort into work no one sees. Distribution decides whether it reaches anyone.
Sustainability
Pivoting
Who you are today differs from who you were a decade ago. A pivot is not something to fear; it is an opportunity to promote something new.
Establishing Personal Brand Habits
Every commitment you add to a personal brand asks you to show up and deliver. Habits keep momentum; motivation does not.
No method matches that. Try a broader word, or browse personal branding by profession.
The Full Methods Are in the Book
Personal Branding: A Manifesto on Fame and Influence, Second Edition, 376 pages, from Mashman Publishing. Paperback, hardcover, ebook, and audiobook.
Go Further Across MASHMAN
- Practise It
- Identity Quest™ (opens in a new tab), the free personal branding simulator, lets you play the building of a brand, week by week; its Player’s Guide (opens in a new tab) explains each move.
- Free Tools
- The Identity Positioning™ Toolkit (opens in a new tab) on identitypositioning.com: free tools that each follow a chapter of the Manifesto, from the Name Generator to the Brand Audit.
- From Isaac
- Isaac Mashman’s writing, interviews, and guides are on isaacmashman.com (opens in a new tab).
- Hiring Help
- Weighing outside help? Personal Branding Agencies, the vetted directory MCG operates, lists vetted agencies and publishes a guide: How to Choose a Personal Branding Agency, Step by Step (opens in a new tab).
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Doctrine Library?
Short summaries of the core methods in Personal Branding: A Manifesto on Fame and Influence and the Identity Positioning™ essay, each with its method and where it sits in the book.
Is the whole book here?
No. Each entry is a summary in MCG's words with one quotation. The full reasoning, stories, and exercises are in the Manifesto.
Which methods are proprietary to MCG?
The Hierarchy of Personal Branding, the Identity Positioning™ essay, the Skyline Strategy's 2:1 ratio, and the Power of 3 are the constructs that originate with the Manifesto. Identity Positioning™ was developed by Isaac Mashman with Eric Chow.
Your name is already being interpreted. The question is who are they, and what are they thinking?
Engagements are accepted by application and seats are limited each quarter. Tell us who you are, what you are building, and the position you intend to hold.
Consultations are virtual or in person. See what each includes, and what is asked of you: Virtual or In Person.