A book or a talk is an extension of you, not the whole of you. Authors and speakers who are booked again are the ones whose name is the reason people show up.
The Manifesto treats an author and their book, like a podcaster and their show, as separate entities that should be built together. The book establishes credibility; the personal brand is what sells the next one and fills the next room.
Speaking is unforgiving: speakers who do not deliver find future engagements harder to land. The book asks speakers to make a habit of posting clips from recent talks, and authors to choose distribution wide enough that a reader could find the book on a local shelf.
Public speakers who do not deliver great speeches will find future engagements harder to land.
Personal Branding: A Manifesto on Fame and Influence, Second Edition, 5.2
A first book or a regional speaking circuit usually makes an author The Local Hero. The State Representative comes with a track record of appearances that speak for you.
Where most stand: Tier 3, The Local HeroBuild toward: Tier 4, The State Representative
The tier measures how large a position is. How good it is, is measured by The Five Personal Brand Pillars. Read more about the six tiers.
The moves MCG starts with for authors and speakers, grouped by pillar, in order. Each one cites the subchapter of Personal Branding: A Manifesto on Fame and Influence it comes from.
Advice Isaac Mashman has given on his own shows and in interviews that applies to authors and speakers, 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.
On the way to an event, talk to people in the airport, the car, and the lobby so your introduction is smooth by the time it counts.
Read the transcript ↗ (opens in a new tab)“getting warmed up”
Chase the Vision with Isaac Mashman, “Getting Flown Out To Washington D.C. By Meta | Not Wasting Opportunities”, May 23, 2022
After you study a topic, test yourself: could you explain it to a child, write a short paper, or give an unprepared talk on it? Turn that explanation into a piece of content.
Read the transcript ↗ (opens in a new tab)“can you explain this concept to a six year old”
Chase the Vision with Isaac Mashman, “Read to Learn, Not to Boost Your Ego”, April 26, 2021
After you speak at an event, publish the recording on your own channels with a short introduction for people who could not attend.
Read the transcript ↗ (opens in a new tab)“the audio version of my keynote speech”
Chase the Vision with Isaac Mashman, “Dreamer's Summit 2021”, July 21, 2021
Pick conferences and gatherings by the people you will meet and learn from, not by the program. List the three people you want to meet before you register.
Read the transcript ↗ (opens in a new tab)“not because of what it was but because of who was going to be there”
Chase the Vision with Isaac Mashman, “The Fundamentals of Personal Branding”, August 19, 2020
All consumed media educates, entertains, inspires, or connects. The Skyline Strategy asks for two pieces about your work for every one about your life. Here is one of each, for each purpose.
| Purpose | Brand Post | Personal Post |
|---|---|---|
| EducateTeach something useful. | One idea from the book in sixty seconds. | Where and when you write. |
| EntertainMake it enjoyable to follow you. | The chapter that was cut and why. | The worst writing advice you ever got. |
| InspireShow what is possible. | A reader's message that stopped you in your tracks. | Why you had to write this book. |
| ConnectGive people a reason to reply. | Host a reading or a discussion. | Ask readers which idea they applied first. |
Draw a Week
Two posts about your work, one about your life, drawn from the ideas above.
Plan the ratio with the free Skyline Planner (opens in a new tab).
In the Manifesto's view, paying to be on a stage signals your quality is not yet at the level to be paid. Build toward paid engagements instead.
Staying exclusive to one retailer means your book can never be on a bookstore shelf. Choose omnipresence nearly every time.
Without a media kit and a list of appearances, every booking starts from zero.
Twenty-five questions, about seven minutes, free. Choose Author / Speaker on the intake and the audit scores all five pillars, places you on The Hierarchy of Personal Branding, and returns the three moves that would raise your score most, each traced to the subchapter it comes from.
By building themselves beside the book: a consistent presence under their own name, wide distribution, and appearances that compound into a track record.
Deliver, then let the delivery travel: post clips from every talk, keep a media kit and a list of appearances, and earn introductions from organizers.
How you publish matters less than distribution and quality. A low-quality book is reviewed in public, so quality is the first requirement.
A large audience is fame. Whether it buys, believes, or follows you to a new platform is influence, and that is the part a creator has to build on purpose.
A coach's personal brand is the proof of the method. People hire the coach whose life and results already show what they are selling.
Clients buy a consultant before they buy the service. A personal brand with evidence behind it is what lets you charge for your judgment.
By compiling wins, future successes become easier to obtain. A record that speaks for you does the convincing you once had to do yourself.
The last thing you want is to pour your effort into work no one sees. Distribution decides whether it reaches anyone.
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.
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.
