Dolly Parton Is A Powerful Example Of Authentic Personal Branding |
The most authentic woman in show business looked anything but natural. Big blonde wigs. Rhinestones. Elaborate makeup. Outrageous clothes. An instantly recognizable voice and laugh. Virtually nothing about Dolly Parton’s appearance said natural. Yet few celebrities felt more authentic. That’s the paradox, and the important personal-branding lesson for all of us: Authenticity isn’t about fitting in or looking natural. It’s about being true to yourself. Dolly Parton’s life is a lesson in personal branding.
1. Authenticity Does Not Mean Toning Yourself Down
Dolly didn’t minimize the things that made her different. She amplified them. Her hair became bigger. Her clothes became brighter. Her personality became more Dolly. Sometimes people approach personal branding by asking: How should I fit in? Dolly asked a different and important personal branding question: What makes me unmistakably me? And there’s a lesson in that.
Your strongest personal brand often comes from turning up the volume on the authentic qualities that differentiate you, not sanding them down. Personal branding is about standing out from everyone who does what you do. Dolly mastered that.
2. Know Who You Are Before You Show Who You Are
Behind the visual spectacle was remarkable self-awareness. Dolly knew where she came from. She talked openly about growing up poor in Tennessee as one of 12 children in a house without running water. Those roots weren’t an embarrassing chapter she edited out as she became successful. They remained part of........