A cause needs a face people trust. A personal brand is how the leader earns that trust, and then points the attention at the mission instead of at themselves.
The Manifesto names mission as one of the three reasons to build a personal brand, beside vanity and money. A widely known name gives a leader the overhead to talk about what they care about, spread awareness, and progress movements at low cost. It also observes that charity programs led by public leaders attract more donations because of their ability to tell stories.
The same book sets the limit. Good deeds are best done in private, and when one is public, the attention must be directed away from the person and onto the cause. Its subchapter on crises adds that charity started to save face rarely appears genuine. Isaac Mashman's advice is to make your own conviction visible before you ask anyone to fund or join the cause.
A widely known personal brand gives you the overhead to talk about the things you care about, spread awareness, spark and progress movements, and is conducive to doing good with low cost and high efficiency.
Personal Branding: A Manifesto on Fame and Influence, Second Edition, 1.7
Many nonprofit and community leaders are known to the people they already serve and the volunteers beside them. The Local Hero is the tier to build toward: respected and trusted within a community, known through events, handshakes, and positions such as a school board seat, and never reached unconsciously.
Where most stand: Tier 2, Friends and FamilyBuild toward: Tier 3, The Local Hero
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 nonprofit and community leaders, 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 nonprofit and community leaders, 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.
Before asking anyone to fund or join your cause, make sure your own conviction is visible in how you talk about it and what you have already done.
Read the transcript ↗ (opens in a new tab)“how do you expect people to fund you”
Chase the Vision with Isaac Mashman, “Being A Public Figure”, September 26, 2020
If you hide behind the cause or the company, start attaching your own name to the work: sign the posts, take the interviews, introduce yourself first. Then point the attention you gather at the cause.
“the more you make it about your name”
Unrivaled Results with Mashman Ventures, “UNRIVALED: Personal Branding Training”, April 13, 2022
Choose one cause you care about and use your platform for it on a regular schedule. Report what your attention helped it accomplish.
Read the transcript ↗ (opens in a new tab)“the more traffic and attention you can drive to topics and charities”
Chase the Vision with Isaac Mashman, “The Fundamentals of Personal Branding”, August 19, 2020
Do good deeds privately. Do not record yourself giving to people less fortunate for content.
Read the transcript ↗ (opens in a new tab)“you shouldn't be seeking recognition for it”
Chase the Vision with Isaac Mashman, “Good Deeds”, April 14, 2022
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 fact about the problem your cause works on, explained plainly. | What first drew you to the cause. |
| EntertainMake it enjoyable to follow you. | An event being set up, from behind the scenes. | What you do on a day off. |
| InspireShow what is possible. | One person the work has helped, told with their permission. | The moment you decided to lead instead of watch. |
| ConnectGive people a reason to reply. | Ask supporters which project to take on next. | Your neighborhood, and the people in it. |
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).
When a good deed is public, make the cause the subject. Post once and leave it.
Sign the work, take the interviews, and introduce yourself first. Then point the attention you gather at the cause.
Giving started to save face rarely appears genuine. Conviction shown over years is what supporters believe.
Twenty-five questions, about seven minutes, free. Choose Other on the intake, name your field, 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.
The firm’s topic guide on the subject, with the doctrine, terms, tips, and interviews in one place: Personal Brand Strategy, Executive Visibility.
Yes. The Manifesto counts mission among the three reasons to build one: a known name gives a leader the overhead to spread awareness and move people to act at low cost. Supporters and donors already form an impression of the person leading a cause; building it on purpose is the choice.
Not if the leader directs it. The Manifesto's rule for good deeds in public is that all attention must be directed away from the person and onto the cause itself. The leader's name opens the door; the cause is what people are invited to join.
Through deliberate effort. The Manifesto's Local Hero attends events, shakes hands, and aims for positions such as a school board seat; that public awareness is never achieved unconsciously. Pair each local appearance with one simple way for people to take part in the mission.
A teacher already shapes how hundreds of students think. A personal brand carries that reach past one classroom, to other teachers and to everyone who wants to learn the subject.
Your company has a brand. So do you, and the two should grow together. A founder's personal brand opens doors the company cannot open alone.
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.
Four questions MCG asks every client before any strategy, in this order, because each answer depends on the one before it.
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.
Be transparent about what you want and why. Letting your intent be known creates advocates out of the people around you.
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.
How MCG measures the quality of a personal brand. Five pillars, always in this order, weighted into one composite out of 100.
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.
