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 laws are the Manifesto's account of why personal branding works at all. They are sequential: each depends on the one before it, which is why the order matters when you plan where to put your effort.
The fourth law is the one most people overlook. A personal brand is not something you decide to have; it exists from birth whether or not you direct it, and it outlives you.
As a person becomes more familiar with a subject through the use of their 5 senses, the more they naturally come to trust it.
Personal Branding: A Manifesto on Fame and Influence, Second Edition, 2.1
The moves ISIA, the engine behind the Brand Audit, draws from this part of the doctrine. Each one is something you can do this month, and the reason it matters.
This page is a summary. The subchapter itself goes further, with the reasoning, the stories behind it, and the exercise that closes it.
The Law of Familiarity, the Law of Connection, the Law of Fame and Influence, and the Law of Personal Branding, set out in chapter 2 of Personal Branding: A Manifesto on Fame and Influence.
Each law depends on the one before it. You cannot connect with someone who has never encountered you, and connection without reach or trust has little effect.
Advice Isaac Mashman has given on his own shows and in interviews on this subject, from the same library MCG consultants work from. Each one keeps the words he said it in, and links to the transcript where there is one.
When your numbers feel small, picture them in a physical room. Ninety new connections a month is a full conference room.
Read the transcript ↗ (opens in a new tab)“90 people would pack out a hotel room”
Chase the Vision with Isaac Mashman, “People, Personality and Personal Branding”, September 26, 2020
As your recognition grows, check regularly that you are not using it to put yourself above others.
Read the transcript ↗ (opens in a new tab)“with great power, it comes great responsibility”
Chase the Vision with Isaac Mashman, “People, Personality and Personal Branding”, September 26, 2020
Name the kinds of attention you would refuse even if they worked: the stunts, the party content, the shock value. Build only the reputation you would be proud of.
Read the transcript ↗ (opens in a new tab)“i don't wanna be known as that”
Chase the Vision with Isaac Mashman, “Being A Public Figure”, September 26, 2020
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.
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.
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.
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.
