The Art of Being Pink in a LinkedIn World, Miranda VonFricken's Branding Wisdom

Ever felt trapped between being your true self and fitting into a professional mold? Miranda VonFricken joins us to shatter that mold, advocating for the power of personal branding that's as unique as you are. Our candid conversation with this LinkedIn luminary and entrepreneur will inspire you to infuse your career with authenticity. From managing the tightrope walk of corporate conformity to embracing your quirks, we promise you'll find actionable advice to create a brand that's both genuine and professionally savvy.

In this episode, we share our own personal branding journeys, reflecting on those moments when we've felt the pressure to suppress our individuality for the sake of a job. We discuss the delicate balance of adapting without losing the essence of who we are, and how leaning into our true selves can attract the opportunities and connections that resonate most. You'll hear real-life stories illustrating how embracing one's whole self can lead to growth and unexpected career paths—because who says you can't have blue hair and be a powerhouse in your field?

Concluding with a deep dive into LinkedIn strategy, we provide insider tips on how to leverage the platform for career advancement. Whether you're eyeing that next promotion or seeking to redefine your professional persona, this episode is packed with wisdom on fostering a personal brand that stands out and aligns with your aspirations. So plug in, as Miranda and I guide you through embracing your unique professional identity, and watch as the right doors begin to open just for you.

CONNECT WITH ME MORE AT:
http://www.stopshoulding.me
https://www.instagram.com/minessa.konecky/

🎵 Thank you to Karacter for allowing me to use Telepathy (2005) in my intro.
This is one of my favorite albums of all time.
👉 Check it out: https://karacter.bandcamp.com/album/karacter

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:08

Hey there, I'm Vanessa Konnicki, and welcome to Stop Shitting All Over Yourself. The podcast that empowers you to embrace your authentic self. Every episode, I chat with extraordinary individuals who've boldly navigated the journey that you're embarking on, a journey of shedding societal expectations and scripted life paths. Together, we're ditching the shoulds and creating a life blueprint that's genuinely our own. Get ready for stories that uplift and strategies that will pave your way to a life filled with happiness and joy. As always, a huge thank you for tuning in. If you're watching on YouTube, don't forget to hit that like or subscribe button for all the uplifting content from Manasa TV.

Speaker 1: 0:46

Now let's dive into today's conversation with Miranda Von Frickin, linkedin expert and coach. Now, in addition to having the most incredible last name of all time, miranda is the perfect person for this podcast because, if you've seen her, or you've seen her LinkedIn, which the link is in the show notes, she is pink as fuck. Like seriously, she is bold, she is wild, she is pink On LinkedIn. I know I'll pause while we all grab at our collective pearls. She does it, and she does it successfully.

Speaker 1: 1:14

So she is exactly what people like us need on our journey, because one of the biggest challenges to our growth and authenticity is the resistance that we're met with as we try to buck societal norms. People really resist that, even though they know that our unique perspective is exactly what's needed to solve their problems. So the secret, then, is for us to provide companies and organizations with a spoonful of sugar to help our particular type of medicine go down. As Miranda shows us how she shares her story, going from a game changer in corporate to recognizing that for her to really fly, she needed to step away, we'll learn the techniques for getting accepted as your authentic self in the corporate world and what to do if you realize it's not for you anymore. Let's listen in If you swear. We're very chill.

Speaker 2: 2:01

We're all very chill here.

Speaker 1: 2:04

Hello, hello everyone, and welcome to the Stop Shitting All Over Yourself podcast, where today I have Miranda with the greatest last name ever. If I'm fricking with me today, I love your name and we'll talk about that. But Miranda helped me to completely revamp my LinkedIn. I cannot tell you how much I love my LinkedIn now.

Speaker 2: 2:25

It's so gorgeous now, thanks to you.

Speaker 1: 2:27

Oh, I love it, and so I wanted to ask I might have her on, because I want you guys to hear her genius and her fantasticness. But before we dive into all of that part, first I'd like you to get to know her a little bit, because I've spent the last you know six to eight months following you, but my audience is not. So, miranda, tell us a little bit about yourself. Who are you? What do you do? How do you help people?

Speaker 2: 2:46

Thank you so much I'm pumped to be here. I feel like I follow you, even though I'm not even in your industry. I just feel like your energy is just a light in the darkness and I'm here for it. So, of course, thank you for being here and bringing me to your audience and so grateful. So I am a LinkedIn strategist and a personal branding evangelist is kind of what I've been terming myself these days. I feel like I switch my title whenever the spirit moves me, like I call myself something different depending on the weather. It's hilarious, but those are the things that I do. Besides female empowerment, it's mostly LinkedIn. So expressing yourself on the platform, feeling confident in your content, like all that good stuff, and that's really what you and I talked about when we talked about LinkedIn.

Speaker 1: 3:35

It's true, it's true, and I'm curious, you mentioned the personal branding and when somebody goes to your LinkedIn page, which is in the show notes for you guys to check out later, but you have a presence, Nobody is going to be like, oh, there's Miranda. It's like, oh, miranda, you've got an energy, a vibe. I'm curious, like a personal brand. Actually, you have what I would call a personal brand and you mentioned that your personal branding evangelist, not a LinkedIn evangelist, which is interesting because so many people are all about the platform, but you're really more about the branding. So can you tell me a little bit about what? The what's the story of personal branding and why do you care?

Speaker 2: 4:11

so much about it. So I kind of fell into my own personal brand. Back in the day. I call myself a reformed non-defyver. Often I have escaped death rates. I spent 15 years in human resources and technology in the office full of engineers and I was very much the outcast. Like I'm pink, I'm bubbly blonde, high energy, high-viving people spinning through the corridor and they're very like who is this thing? What is she doing? What is happening?

Speaker 2: 4:42

here and so my brand can't be based on my energy. So that's the difference. I didn't through this personal brand. I'm just me, I just do me, and it turns out it's a personal brand online. So I just kind of leave into more of me and what I love, what moves me, and I think that is really what makes me stand out. Especially back in the day in my industry, I was a recruiter and I lived on LinkedIn.

Speaker 2: 5:06

It was a platform of choice for me to recruit people and I think what I had to say, and how I felt about organizational workforce, really drew people in and they wanted to hear more, they wanted to see more. So this I just turned turned out that I had a personal brand and I really tap into the power of that, pour a little gasoline on it as the years progressed and I turned into an entrepreneur and that is really what attracts people to me. I don't do a lot of sales, I don't do a lot of outreach. I didn't reach out to you and say, hey, can I do your LinkedIn? You came to me right Because you have seen me through whoever and it's just, it's an energy, it's a vibe. Your, like, personal branding is so important. Whether you're an entrepreneur, employee, an executive, doesn't matter what you're doing. For us, having a personal brand that aligns with who you are and where you're going is just a game changer, and the platform of choice for me is LinkedIn.

Speaker 2: 6:03

So I'm an evangelist because I'm always preaching personal brand LinkedIn as well. But LinkedIn it just happens to be the platform of choice. You can express yourself and shine the light on your awesome on any platform. When it comes to personal brand, it doesn't have to just be LinkedIn. It just happens to be that. I've been on LinkedIn forever and I hope people have straddled on it.

Speaker 1: 6:22

I love that that you step right because, like the thing is, some people may be like, oh, I don't really want to be on LinkedIn. My entire audience, everyone I know, is in Facebook and it's like Okay, great then you're on Facebook, but you still have to know what your personal brand is and you know what's interesting. Going back to, you were talking about how you need a brand, whether you're an entrepreneur or a business owner or a employee or a corporation. You know, one of the things I train on a lot in the research administration conferences that I go to is the personal branding aspect related to being a manager and a leader. Right, Like, what do you want to stand for as a leader and as a manager? You know, because I use this example, like, have you ever had one of those bosses that you don't know who you're going to get when you go into the room? Like, are they going to be like super happy or are they going to be like who are we getting?

Speaker 1: 7:11

today, but you don't know and you're terrifying because everyone's like and that's usually where, like, people are like, hey, watch out for Vanessa, they're on a rampage today. Like everybody like, lets the others know so that they're aware, like, that's the like you have a brand. In that case, you just don't know that your brand really sucks, like, it's really bad, and then people are terrified of you. But, like you know I think you mentioned that you kind of fell into it and I think I also sort of fell into mine. It became intentional later, right, like first I was like oh yeah, here's the thing.

Speaker 1: 7:42

But you know, to the point that I sort of was just talking about, is that, like, if people are not intentional about their brands, they can end up being that without even realizing they're being that. So, like, let's say, someone hasn't fallen into it and well, they don't know they have a brand or they've fallen into one that they're like Ah, this isn't who I want to be. What do you do to like, be like? Oh, I want to change that. Or I want to set up a brand Like, how do you start?

Speaker 2: 8:06

I often say, create your personal brand to somebody else, that's for you, right. Like, how uncomfortable. And who is that? If someone said like, like, what are the, what are people saying about you when you're not in it? Right, that is essentially your brain, your personal brain that somebody gave you, and if you have no control of it? So what I like to say is it's the combination of what I tell you I am, who I am, how I roll right, and your perception of it, because at least your perception is based on the action, not just what I happen to say on my page or on my website. It's also the actions I take, what I speak, what I do when I'm in a room. So it's a combination of what I say and what they say and what they perceive of me when they're around me.

Speaker 2: 8:50

So the way you can kind of figure out if you have one or what it looks like is to kind of ask people. I know that sounds really uncomfortable. I was at a training on time for a group of new leaders and I had them as an assignment, reach out to three people that they interact with most at her job, in their office, and say can you give me three words to describe me as an employee, as a boss, as a co-worker? One woman almost refused to do it because she was afraid they were going to be so negative about her and I felt really bad and I said wow, why do you think they're going to be negative? And she may have had a little insipid about it, but her response was just I'm very analytical, I'm very to the point, I'm not fluffy and I just think people take me as mean and aggressive and need a really nervous to ask. And so I urged her, as with the table she was sitting with, to ask anybody, because I said is that how you want to be seen? Because if she was like yep, that's how I roll, I'm aggressive, like then cool, like we did it, like let's just up it up, you know, ante it up a little bit and she's like no, I don't want to see that way, like I'm not like rainbowed uniform but I'm also not, you know, aggressive, and she really saw the difference. And so she did reach out to a few people. She didn't. Some people got excited and reach out to a bunch. She did like two or three and she got words like professional this is an American, of course and then she got a word that said driven and passionate. Two of those words she was like oh, I am driven and passionate. She got the analytical because it's kind of an obvious, she loves fushies, but I remember saying her and she got very emotional. She had a tearing up a little bit when we got the response the second day and she was like I love that some people actually see through the surface of my actions, like being demanding, and see that I was very passionate about my work and driven to get results. And you know we all high fived her in a beautiful moment.

Speaker 2: 10:54

But it came for her to realize that the personal brand she wants it to be more than just what they think. She wants to also have some good say in her personal brand. And so I said, right, well, what do you want to be seen, as I said besides, so we can be more personal. There were some other words. I want to be seen, as you know, of course, passionate and driven, but also, you know, thought leader, you know people leader, and I just want people to see me as someone that I go to. And I was like All right, that's great. So this is what you start talking about, telling people, or acting as a.

Speaker 2: 11:26

And next thing, you know, you know she started really the confidence and she pulled it off, just stood up straighter, and so the personal brand isn't just for them, it's also for us, for us to get in alignment with who we want to be and to start recognizing ourselves as that person. And then we start acting our way when we tell ourselves that we're passionate and driven. Next thing, you know we're really not into that, becoming more of that. So it was beautiful. And she's an employee, she's a manager. She wasn't, you know, not pretty or looking to get more attention. She just wanted to be seen for who she actually was, and the personal brand can have to do that.

Speaker 1: 12:07

You know, that is such a beautiful thing, like I love what you said at the very end. She wanted to be seen for herself in her office, you know, because I think that we spend so much time at work right, just with people. I mean nowadays we're, I mean, a lot of people are remote, but I mean we're still engaging with people in the workspace and I think for a lot of us we feel like there's a way we're supposed to show up right. So that's like and that's actually always been one of my biggest challenges. You know, 15 years ago yeah, 15 years ago I couldn't be this. You know, in the workspace that I'm in now and in fact, you know I left and came back and now it's fine.

Speaker 1: 12:47

But the world had to change to get there. But I think that I always was very there was a price to pay for the brand I chose. So the brand I chose was you know, there were things about me that I'm like this is who I am and I don't want to change them. I can, I don't want to, and one of them is I call everybody dude. It doesn't matter who you are, everybody's dude, right?

Speaker 2: 13:05

And it's not a gender thing.

Speaker 1: 13:07

It's also not a, not a like if you're a doctor, I'm going to call you dude, right? If you're a you know CEO, going to call you dude. If you're an admin, and if you tell me not to, I won't. But, like I tend to be, you know, sort of just, generally speaking, very casual, very chill. Most people are fine with it, but it sends the message that I'm unprofessional and, as a result, many people see me as a child or very child like or kid like, and I accept that. That's the price that I'm going to pay for this because I want this, I like, I like being kid like, like yes. So I'm curious to know have you worked with people who have brands like that, where there there is a price associated with the brand that they're selecting? How do you typically navigate that challenge with people?

Speaker 2: 13:50

I mean I've been behaving my own example. I work a lot, I'm bubbly, I'm also very emotional, I've tried meetings. It is what it is, and so I have often been called unprofessional or I need to mature a little bit more when it comes to office politics and blah, blah, blah. I'm like something, but so there is like a quote, unquote price to pay for being ourselves. But let me tell you, I'm willing to pay that price because I want to be around people who are really like and so can't stop being unprofessional.

Speaker 1: 14:32

Although now they embrace me with hilarious.

Speaker 2: 14:34

they're like oh yeah, we need some energy and some light, and I'm like funny you called me and sensitive, but now, now I bring light, I mean I'm like oh my god dude, I totally know what you mean.

Speaker 1: 14:48

I had people before who were like oh my god, you're extra. We need your energy and I'm like I'm like, well, okay, what was too extra 10 years ago, but now you want my energy, told you I was right. So hard.

Speaker 2: 14:59

And here's the thing you said the world hasn't changed. And when you said that, yes, the world after the midfield. We've got a lot of change in the world. But I think we also have achieved our perception and what we accept for ourselves. I think that's something I had to realize.

Speaker 2: 15:14

I was so like nervous or shy around the suits, right Like the tall guy in a very suit, and still me out. It wasn't intimidated mentally, but it was more. And it wasn't until I learned about energy that really needed to change how I feel about things. It was his energy coming at me with I know more than you and I just assumed he did. He was taller and had a bigger title and had a bigger paycheck and had given them even for the same fee. I just assumed they know more than me because of their level in the organization, which is actually not the case, because I'm in one office and you really need all the offices you know. So it's a little different. My expertise had. I had to change the fact that I know my expertise better than you specialize in this piece of our office. You may be specialized in people, numbers and health and profit. Mine was just for you know, so for me I had to remind myself of my power individually for my own confidence within, and that kind of helped the outcome change.

Speaker 1: 16:22

That's such a good point, miranda, about how we feel about ourselves. Like I was also like when you described that I'm like you know what? I can see that in myself, like it wasn't like you said, like I'm intimidated by you because you're a CEO, it's. I just feel like you obviously know more than me, like obviously right, and I think I felt that way about everybody, and I think that I had and this was actually feedback that one of my bosses, who actually nurtured me throughout most of my career she was amazing, I mean, still is and she often would say that I was so shy, anxious, it's almost, I just didn't, I had low self-esteem and it came, it was evident, you know, and so it was almost like I had my brand, but I lacked the confidence to really carry it, you know, and it's possible that I, and again, energy, that energy work. I actually want to pause a little bit and ask you this question because, like most of most of you, a lot of people are like, oh, business and spiritual and person and all that stuff.

Speaker 2: 17:20

Oh London Very separate, I don't care, Exactly Right.

Speaker 1: 17:23

So tell me a little bit about you had. Did you have to blend them before shit started working for you 100%?

Speaker 2: 17:29

And you know what to do, I'll even think of energy a notch, and so I'm a strong, strong believer in my faith and so I had to. Actually I had to own that, and it's actually the name of the podcast is in Boston, but like I couldn't come up with that name until I did the work internally right, because I didn't know what it was right. So for me, I had to own all the pieces, right?

Speaker 2: 17:54

There's so many different species about us as humans, but and we're talking brand because we're talking about the global professional space, but it's really just who we are, and the brand is how we express it and how we own it, and you know, and what we allow other people to say about us too. So, yeah, I had to blend them all. It took a while, of course, like I never talked about my faith in the office, because it's just something we don't do.

Speaker 2: 18:22

I never like was silly and funny and told jokes. I decided my stay at grade typical and did my thing. I mean I decorated my cupicle Like I had a little beach in a box and I had palm tree, Like this bit is hilarious.

Speaker 2: 18:34

So people knew I was silly and like lunsical sometimes and I love fairy tales and I have like little fairy tricks on my cupicle, whatever, and some Star Wars movies, but it's hilarious. But like people kind of get bits and pieces of our personality based on how we express ourselves and maybe how we decorate our cupicle.

Speaker 1: 18:53

But when I go to meetings.

Speaker 2: 18:54

I would shut all that off. Like my cupicle was kind of my safe space in the office because it reflected who I am. It's like well good, but the minute I left that cupicle I put on this persona, this mass, a super professional person. Sometimes I'd wear my hair back, but they'd take me there seriously. I'd wear my black glasses instead of the pink ones Because I just felt like what I was talking to executives having pink glasses and a cupicle on and it really didn't command respect and so I wanted their respect because the executives with money they looked me on this one to, kind of how I felt in the face, and it wasn't until I started to realize that I have a calling and it's on my heart for a reason and I have to follow it.

Speaker 2: 19:41

The only way I can really be good and successful at it is to be who I'm needed, and so I got OK with the people exiting my world that weren't meant to be there, so that's a little bit of the price we pay, as we believe. I'm cool with that now. It wasn't cool with that.

Speaker 2: 19:57

I was kind of people thinking do you want to make everyone happy? The minute I realized it's not my job make everyone happy. My job is to do what I did. My job is to hire you. My job is to help you shine light on your awesome. So I actually changed what my job was, which helped me to bring more of the idea into your department of business. That's what's happening.

Speaker 1: 20:21

You know, that's actually a really good point. Sometimes you have to change the job, like so the job that you're at is not going to be the place. Where was that heartbreaking for you when you realized that when you had to leave, or was it?

Speaker 2: 20:31

free. You're going to laugh. I didn't leave, they kicked me out.

Speaker 1: 20:35

No, don't be sorry, you're the best you've ever been.

Speaker 2: 20:40

So I wish I had the story to say because I am too. And now people are like oh, hell, yeah, of course you're left. You were like peace out, suck it out. And I was like, no, I stayed over a big little a little bit more fraction of myself.

Speaker 2: 20:54

And then people go until they said we're eliminating your position and that actually I got eliminated position eliminated four times in that of three years. And so I had already heard the calling. You know, I knew what I was meant to do. I was ignoring it because I was scared. I was so freaking scared. I had the salary, I had the 401k, I had the benefits. I've got a kid in college, I've got another little one. We're both now Like. I had responsibility. So I needed the fee check and it wasn't until the universe took action For me because I would have eventually at least I'd like to tell myself I would have eventually, but it happened for me and I it worked for me. So there's usually something in our life that either it's a shitty conversation, somebody ignore us on a meeting, we don't get the job, we don't get the promotion. Usually there's some type of catalyst that wakes us up. I hope all of this and I just am really, really scared of them. I'm scared of them. I'm surprised they didn't punch somebody Like I'm not kidding.

Speaker 1: 21:56

You're ignoring all the signs. They're literally coming in front of you Like the sign in front of you saying anything, and I saw them. I don't see anything. What are you talking about? Excuse me, let me go around that time, excuse me, I was like dodging the signs.

Speaker 2: 22:07

That was crazy. Like I saw some of them, I'm sure I missed a few. When looking back, you're like, oh, that was a sign. When we talked about energy, until I started doing energy work and working with energy alchemists so raking healers and intuitive coaches I didn't realize what I wasn't realized. You don't know what you don't know when you're in the corporate space. And my mom told me to get a college education, to get a salary job. That was our way out of the projects when I was little like cool, that's what I did and I checked that box. I did the salary job and I got the husband, two kids and the 1.5 dogs. Like I did the things she wanted for me. I checked all the boxes.

Speaker 1: 22:46

I checked all the boxes.

Speaker 2: 22:48

Are you happy? I thought I was, but I knew I wasn't Because there was this one moment at a canary brim when I was like, oh, I'm so sick of this scene. I was cooking chicken for my family and once it's an era I was leading an estimate in person with a bunch of women. We were going around the table talking about our day and I said, look at so many chicken breasts today. They were like what are you talking about? They were talking about growing that bit on a chicken breast and I'm like, did Like, I'm so fucking sick of cooking the same chicken Like for dinner for the family.

Speaker 2: 23:19

It was like frow-how day and it just kind of all flooded in. I started crying. It was a thing, and I felt so bad because I'm leading these women and going through the same thing they were going through, but them watching me. It was so empowering to them to see that they're not alone. Even the leaders have a huge like doctors need doctors, coaches need coaches, and so for me, I was miserable at work. I just lost my 18-year-old brother at that time. I was just in John Hogg's day with my sister chicken, that was a whole thing.

Speaker 1: 23:52

Greated a keynote about this chicken.

Speaker 2: 23:53

It was hilarious, bethan, but you don't see the signs in such a open-yourself to them.

Speaker 2: 24:01

And so obviously like the loss of my brother, was one. I got laid off two weeks later at a company. I drove to Kool-Aidak, I dropped all my side hustles just to work on this organization and their growth and he still picked me out while I'm like, grieving the loss of my brother. So those were some heavy, deep signs. We don't always get the heavy deep signs. Sometimes it's just this promotion of this review and so on and so on.

Speaker 2: 24:24

There's still signs and if they start to add up they start to change you and it can change you for the better. It can lead to more change for the worse and we kind of stay and become a different version of who you want to be. So I know this was a tangent Like I can talk all day, but we start. We talked about branding and blending our life and doing the work and personal development, connecting the feelers. This is what made me become more of me and to not only see the signs but act on them. So I may have gotten laid off, I didn't actually with the hand in my two weeks notice, I did actually have a plan to leave. It just happened a little sooner. So I think emotionally it worked out in my favor Always a gift, and I'm very lucky Because, looking back now, I can imagine what I would be, or who I would be internally, if I was still an obsessed with people. Now it doesn't mean everybody's meant to be able to be an entrepreneur.

Speaker 2: 25:22

It could just mean that you're in the wrong office, you've got the wrong department, you're acting off from who you actually are. It's just becoming more of who you are, and if you're not even sure who that is, that's probably the first place to start. I love to be practical.

Speaker 2: 25:39

So the first place to start is just to say am I living the life I'm supposed to be living in? Am I exactly who I'm meant to be or am I a version of it? You can be real with yourself. You may still lie to yourself sometimes, but if effort is to help with anything, people come in there, goes counselor affiliates and get some assistance. Have them draw it out of you. So what I do is, for example, branding tragedy, depression. I pull all the coolness out of people and they'll like integrate something up for them. I didn't even realize how cool I was until you got this. I'm so old.

Speaker 2: 26:13

I don't have any biases around you, in yours, Just me and you. You have your full upbringing, childhood, corporate experience, your feeling, your boyfriend from third grade that keep you on the playground Like you've got it all in your brain. Where I don't, it's just me and you and I'm seeing your light and I just happen to put it on paper and then you get to go to the women Like you'll keep it on the list. It's your life. I think creating a personal brand, even if you're an employee, you don't need to really shun the light on an outside and you'll have that journey. Shining a light on who you are is probably something about the mission of being a grown To be who you are, what you are now.

Speaker 1: 26:52

I think also, like you're saying, it's what you said about, like, even if you're not gonna be an entrepreneur, it's important. You know, I think I. I remember I started training on personal branding, actually honest, a long before I Really like I was still learning it, as I was still training it because it was such a new idea, but I was so excited to share it because, like no one was talking about this this was like my 20 years ago, like you know, where we're all starting to talk about it, and I was still learning it. But you mentioned during one of our conversations that I bring up here, is that, like your bosses have words that they associate with you, your colleagues have words they associate with you, and so on and so forth, like when you were asking, like what are those three words? And you know, if you don't know what words you want people to associate with you, right, then they're just gonna pick whatever words they want. But if you don't know, if you pick the words, then you can be like I'm going to always act in alignment with those words, right? So it gives you that framework. Then you are more likely to get promotions, you're more likely to get noted. People know when they can come find you or why? Because they know.

Speaker 1: 27:53

Actually, miranda, I'm really curious. Okay, I have ADHD, so I'm like all the fucking place. But here's where I ended up right now on this one. I want to ask you this question, right? So you think of Mar, I feel like there. Every single thing in this world is marketing. Whether you are trying to get a raise, whether you're trying to get promoted, or you're trying to sell someone your pencil or your widget, like, in the end You're marketing something to someone. So you have to know what you're marketing. So my question to you, I guess, would be is that when you work so let's say, I come to you and I'm working? Because when I came, when, when Miranda and I work together, I was like, really like.

Speaker 2: 28:26

I don't know what I want to do, dude, I just need to update my LinkedIn and we just need to make it look great.

Speaker 1: 28:30

And she's like alright, let's do this, so you can be as vague as you want, and she will pull it out of you. And Now I work in corporate because I had a very specific mission in mind of what I wanted to do. So now let's say, someone comes to you and they're in, they're in corporate and they're like listen, I either want to raise or I want, I want to move up in the ladder. And I've been stagnant for a while. Okay, what are what? And they're, they say to you I feel like LinkedIn is really powerful.

Speaker 1: 28:59

It's like this place where people do all these things all the time, but I don't. I've never seen any value in it. I don't know how to use it, which I think is what I said to you myself, actually, that I was like look, I don't know what the hell this thing is like. It's great, I know I'm supposed to use it. I know supposed to do things with it. I don't know what to post, I don't know what to say, I don't know what to do. What do you like? What would you advise someone? I mean like, alright, let's talk.

Speaker 2: 29:20

What is the first thing I say are we're going to tell your life goals, health goals, your career goals, your family's goals, and they're like why do you care about English? Should I ask about English? I want you to get to talking. You're like open about expressing yourself, right? So even if you're like, oh, I want to lose 20 pounds, or like I want to get six more tech to do, this is awesome, give me it all. I believe that and we don't even really get to the inside yet. So I keep you feel who you are and it's really just I, just guys that have a coffee check, I just Right, like I want to hear about you and we want to be your job and what's your heart's desire, and we obviously the career part comes because you feel so comfortable just chatting and having a cool conversation. Next thing, you know, feel calmer, your heart feels full and you're like yeah, actually you know I really want to get promoted, but I don't like to work at people actually, and it's funny like this shit that comes out during these calls. It's like so the next promotion level be working people. Yeah, I think that's seven of them I need to go over, and that's the funniest shit that comes out of people. But honest conversation. I'll ask you some really cool. So I'm trained as a life coach, so I'm really good at asking any question. I thought I was gonna be Barbara Walters when I was in high school, so I could. You know, I've come out undergraded in journalism, so I'm really good at asking questions and so for me, I get some cool stuff out. I highlight what I got to come back to you and then I'll say well, what makes you think you need to be on LinkedIn? But to get a promotion, you already have your office. Like, why do you think you need to be on LinkedIn? And they'll say I don't know, everybody's there. I feel like I should like FOMO. Somebody told me I need to be on LinkedIn. Those are the answers I usually get, unless it's somebody who's like I'm rocking on Insta. My audience is on LinkedIn. All right, cool. So, entrepreneur, you're really good at being there. Why do they need to be there? Employer Employees are usually like I don't know. My employer told me to yeah, they're usually that type of response Everybody's there, everybody's talking about it. I want to report the conversation. All right, cool, do you think you needed to achieve your goals? And they're like well, some of them. But maybe these two do have to do with my corporate experience of, you know, getting promoted. I want people to take me more seriously in the office so they see me as a leader.

Speaker 2: 31:41

Cool, how do you think LinkedIn can help? So I just keep asking how do you think LinkedIn will help? And sometimes they're like I don't even know, can you just tell me? And I'm like yes, let me just tell you. Eventually I'll tell them because LinkedIn, as corporate as it is, and we have our own opinion of this type of platform it can be whatever you want, and that's what I tell people. What do you want LinkedIn to do for you? What are your goals? And then I can tell you how LinkedIn can help you achieve your goals.

Speaker 1: 32:12

I'm actually curious how can like? So now, let's say I'm like hey, I don't know what it can do for me. What can LinkedIn do for?

Speaker 2: 32:17

people. So this is where it gets tricky. I need to know what your goals are. I know this is how you kind of, what it can do for you, because I can just tell you all the things that I will in a few seconds.

Speaker 1: 32:27

Right, and that might take too much.

Speaker 2: 32:29

Do you, could you use?

Speaker 1: 32:29

me as an example. I'm going to overwhelm them. Yes, this means an example, and my goal would be to, let's say, get promoted.

Speaker 2: 32:36

So in order for you to get promoted, you need your higher office to see you as an expert in your industry or field, or subcontractor expert. How are they going to do that? How do they do that today? How do they know your expertise? Are you getting the reports? Are you leading meetings? You have a team currently, so.

Speaker 2: 32:55

I dive into what you're currently doing. Where's the gap in what they think they see and what they need to see in order to promote you? Then I'll ask are you the people who need to see you on the job? Sometimes it doesn't matter. Sometimes it's like, yeah, they are and I want to get to them. I mean around about that. Sometimes it's like, no, they're not, but I have coworkers Cool, let's get your coworkers talking about what's happening. Let's get started, boys. So how we're going to do that is get your profile looking fabulous. It's going to say all the things you don't actually say in person. You don't walk into a meeting and say, hey, I'm Miranda, I'm a LinkedIn expert, I'm a evangelist for the brand.

Speaker 1: 33:32

You don't start your meetings on your own, Miranda. That's awesome.

Speaker 2: 33:35

I'm trying to give testimonials that say X, y and Z. No, we don't like walking through a room, we just start shouting our phrases. Sometimes it's actually really uncomfortable to brag about on your side. So to get promoted, people have to see you as fabulous in a brighter light. You need to shine the light on your awesome. You don't do that in person because it's weird. So LinkedIn is a fantastic platform to shine the light on who you are. It's a resume, it's a little bit of a social media site. Obviously it's a little bit of a portfolio. It can be an art gallery if you want it to be.

Speaker 2: 34:12

Linkedin has the ability to showcase all of your expertise through long form content, like articles, through conversations with people you can never be able to reach in the industry because they're like. We're the one country You're putting out short form content or videos for people to kind of feel who you are when you speak, when you're live, when you video, or for you to engage in conversation. Who would never be ready to? So when I start talking about if I'm an HR leader which I was back in the day and I wanted to there's an organization in Manhattan who had a lot of people talk about, especially when I was in tech. But that was the mecca and so I started talking to their age. I was working on LinkedIn. Somebody would see it and be like, holy shit, you talk to that up so and so at this company. Oh yeah, we talk on LinkedIn all the time. Oh, you're on LinkedIn, oh my god, I've done that.

Speaker 2: 35:02

I've so done that Triggering right and it's just like magic to me. So LinkedIn can show you in all these lights that you're not able to show people while you're in your tech like this. Oh, everywhere I really. I hated my side.

Speaker 1: 35:17

Great people too, by the way, I made it very colorful, I turned it into it. So my first boss, mark Miller he was amazing, amazing. He was the one who gave my sister and I a chance, got us started in the first place. He let us decorate our little dungeon like the way and we turned it. He came in one day he said, oh my god, this looks like a Turkish smoking den. We had tapestries everywhere and we had lamps all over.

Speaker 1: 35:41

Oh my god, it was amazing, it was fabulous.

Speaker 1: 35:45

You know you made so many good points here about like.

Speaker 1: 35:48

So the other day, dude, now that I'm going to tell you the fruits of your labor and how it all happened, so you help me with my LinkedIn like a while back it was probably about six to eight months ago and you gave me enough to where I needed to marinate on the information to figure out how I was going to internalize it, and then you know what was I going to do with it.

Speaker 1: 36:06

So it took about three or four months and I was like right now I know I'm going to use this and I've been posting clips from my podcast and clips from my commitment to clockout series and whatnot, yeah, whatever, and you think you don't know who's seeing these things. So now I was like shit, I haven't made my intro video for my commitment to clockout. So I paused on publishing some of those while I made the intro. So it was like a week or so before I actually published my next video. Some guy at work who I adore we're in a meeting with like all these, all the VPs and directors, and he's like I saw your video the other day and I'm like what are you talking about?

Speaker 2: 36:43

I literally have no idea what you're talking about, turns out he was on LinkedIn, saw my video, watched it.

Speaker 1: 36:47

He said I'm waiting for you to send me the rest, I'm waiting for you to post the rest of it. I was like, oh, people are watching my videos. It's got to upload this thing. So it's like so, which I didn't feel super bad about not uploading it. But what I learned, what you just said, is that people are, they see you and then they bring you up. Bring it up in a meeting which, in like, he's the only one who actually saw that video. But if you think about the impact that a video just had, eight other people in that meeting now know that I post videos on LinkedIn about committing the clockout and email efficiency, which I would never been able to do that on my own. Did you teach email efficiency?

Speaker 1: 37:23

when you trained other people One of the things yeah, so I do teach email efficiency. That's commitment to clockout. There's a whole video that I'm going to publish on that. But what I actually train on is how to adjust your day to day activities and remove the busy work and gunk that has actually grown over time, because many people are overworked but they don't realize that a lot of their overwork is because of the gunk that's built up over time, almost like your car with oil, and so I help people figure out their email. Most people do not know how to use their email. Did you know that you can get two hours back a day by changing how you interact with your email? That's how freaking amazing it is. Sorry I got to that's my soapbox.

Speaker 1: 38:06

I could be on that soapbox forever, but yeah, but it was really cool. It was very cool that LinkedIn allowed for that level of. I'm not actually looking for promotion, I just really am looking to help people. So that was my goal was to I want more people to see my content, because this is going to help more people find joy in their lives. Miranda, how do I do that? And that's that's not I want a promotion. It's not I want a job. That's not I want. And you were like here. This is how you do that. So I feel like that's really freaking cool. So anyone can be like here, miranda, I don't know what I want, but I know that I need to do something to get out of this space. I mean, it's almost like you're such a life career, business branding, coach, like strategic development. I'm taking all of this. I mean, I'm not too old but I'm in like I'm 43.

Speaker 2: 38:54

So I've done about 23 in the experience in the COVID space. I started as a recruiter in like an external recruiter for an agency, became a career director at a college for six years, then became the director of admissions at a college. So I've got a lot of like young personality examples of helping them to connect with opportunities like how to act as a movie, how to interview, so life coach, career coach master in motivation, then became a HR leader in an extended amount.

Speaker 2: 39:24

So I have I mean, everything has to be with people I got the life coaches and masters on the outside to make me better at what I was doing inside the job. Now, as LinkedIn specialist and the brand of evangelist, I utilize all of them. It's like taking all of my baby superpowers and just trying to get all onto you in order for you to do a little bit of it Like I shine the light on you. I help you figure out who you are, who you are, who you grow up, how we're going to get there and how to express it in a way that's authentic. It's not fake. We don't put crazy crap on LinkedIn that says like look at me, I'm fantastic, Like I can change your world in my office, Promote me. It's nothing crazy, it's just it's being very authentic, creating content that showcases your value. And I hope you don't just do any work. You can go get what you work, because it's a pageant. So I just take all of that stuff and I understand the personal

Speaker 2: 40:23

branding I didn't realize. There's two incidents in my corporate life that made me realize how important the brand is. One was a cover letter thing to me and said I only know about this. She didn't know she was writing a cover letter to me but said I know about this job because I follow Mariah Bonkbergen in your company. And I did. It was hilarious. Somebody would like what is Mariah doing. Why are people writing cover letters to her? So you're welcome to come to me. And the second one was it was actually a whole thing to one of my team's.

Speaker 2: 40:55

Most influential branding was I was in a meeting, ceo was meeting it. It was marketing, it was recruitment, it was resources and I sent it to them and I found it. I don't remember the name of the team, but they came in and the gentleman was like oh my gosh, like talk about LinkedIn. We're on LinkedIn. We've got, you know, 4,000 followers on the company. People, you know everyone's like crazy marketing, gay, gay, gay, when the staff can do really quiet. And he's like so why does Mariah have like 10,000 followers? What is she doing?

Speaker 1: 41:26

that we're not, of course.

Speaker 2: 41:27

I get side-eyed because marketing guys are like no what's the future?

Speaker 1: 41:32

Oh, so you're like lady.

Speaker 2: 41:34

Let me tell you what I'm doing. But he was like what is she doing? That the marketing team is getting more confident, she's getting more attention than the company. And he's like good for you, mariah, that's awesome, clearly job security. And I started laughing. But he's like what's the difference? Like what are you doing that they're not, like it's my personal learning versus your company's learning.

Speaker 2: 41:53

People like when you ask for a restaurant review, you're not just going to go to the restaurant's page and see what they're telling you oh, mistake is the best thing ever. We've got the best disparity. I stand test. I want to hear Susie tell me the scare against the stand test. Like that's eight years last time.

Speaker 2: 42:08

So the difference was people, although we we trust brands like I love certain brands that I will only go to them for certain things, but it's probably because I have a good experience Right. So it was my personal brand and my experience showcasing what it's like to work there, how awesome it was, my cute little, you know palm tree pictures in my cubicle, which didn't say much about the culture. It was mostly about me and my personal experience at the organization, but it made people feel something right. They felt they wanted to learn more. They felt that I was happy there, so it was applied to the job.

Speaker 2: 42:41

They looked at the company. We took them from person to the place that was in the organization and that's literally like my funniest personal branding story Is that like of course it was awkward to not own the board in the office, but it's just like it's a professional platform so we can be social, we can share. I mean, I don't say share your lunches, but if you tie it into business, like I'm at a business lunch with someone, like you know, facebook will share, like our recipes and stuff, but LinkedIn, yeah, yeah, it's just as much social and fun as it is professional and close to opportunities.

Speaker 2: 43:16

So, why not bring a book together, you know. So, figure out who you are, create this personal brand. Feel really authentic and comfortable about who you are. Start expressing it. People will take notice. The only thing is people, when they start to take notice, they're like you said, they're really personal. The price maybe they don't like it. They want you to kind of stop Stuffings of fun. They want to silence what you're doing. I had one organization say we like what you're doing. Anything you post about us it has to be in part, and they were like really boring. And I was like not on my god.

Speaker 2: 43:54

I'm not putting silver and I'm not my LinkedIn page. It's pink and purple, yellow and happy, and I look that's not our problem, I'm not you on your page. I will put those colors and I'll share it to my page, but I am happy, yellow and fun, right? Just this. I'm not gonna change my brain on my page, so that's a thing. So I don't think he's our personal program and we can still be an ambassador. I actually teach organizations how to be brand ambassadors, right, so you can work for a company. Hmm, still be yourself, but express it in a way that's authentic to you. I don't have to say the company tells me the same. But if you want me to put out a post about what it's like to work here because we're recruiting, then I'll do them. But it's gonna be how I feel working, you know I'll say okay, it's negative, I will post it.

Speaker 2: 44:46

But you know we're looking, your team is hiring an Accountable person and you're in marketing. Maybe you can say, though, like oh, we're hiring, I'm so excited, comes during our team. Blah, blah, blah. My favorite part of being here is whatever you know, so you don't have to actually Post their job. You know it doesn't have to be what they tell right right making your own, and that's where you get noticed.

Speaker 2: 45:09

So there is a way to marry what they want versus what we want, but until they really address that, Right, absolutely, I've had the same thing where you know.

Speaker 1: 45:21

So it was like you have to do this and for me that is a deal breaker, right.

Speaker 1: 45:24

So, like I, and there was a certain, there was a certain point where I realized that I might work in research administration.

Speaker 1: 45:31

On, the great thing about research administration Is that you will always be employed. There's always a job, always, and so it's it's a privilege to be able to say, look, this is the brand I bring in and this is the brand I'm coming in with. And I think that, like, if a place isn't going to allow you to be yourself, then, as someone who spent many years masking in an organization, I really would encourage you to think about whether you want to stay in that organization, because you yourself will end up being damaged as you have to continuously restrict the more gregarious or exciting parts of yourself. So a lot of times, these kinds of conversations can be Tells whether or not a place is right for you because, like, let's say, you know your boss comes to you and says, listen, we want you as the brand callers. But I get that you may not. I notice that you do swear in some of your posts, like where you're sharing us like.

Speaker 1: 46:17

If you share, like, all right sure you know what I can definitely do that actually had somebody asked me that the other day. They said listen, we really want you to work. The swearing is just the thing I do every like and it's it is what it is. And I had someone asked me you know, listen, we really like you to be involved, but if you're going to be producing content for us, would you mind not swearing? And I'm like, absolutely. I was like that's your brand, I'm creating content for your brand. I'm not gonna put my branding in there, but I'm just gonna have the blue hair. It's still me.

Speaker 2: 46:46

I just won't swear.

Speaker 1: 46:47

It's okay, I'm not gonna die right. So when I think that, like I love how you brought, brought those things up, all right, as we start to wrap up because my god, we got so much good stuff from you today and it's funny we literally only asked one question on my list. All the other questions we just sort of like flew into from that first thing. So People are gonna want to work with you, they're gonna want to talk to you, they're going to want to follow you. I tell my, my, my friends how to find you one thing.

Speaker 2: 47:14

Really, yeah, I mean, first and foremost, find me out in. And then, of course, I'm an Instagram dude and Miranda's on her phone. You will definitely see the same type of content still great colors, still awesome vibes. You know you're gonna get the same stuff for me on every platform, so I'll tell you a little bit of what I did today. And then, of course, there's the Emmy to me, the end. We want to have a conversation, get to know each other.

Speaker 1: 48:04

You.