6 Tips for Strengthening Your Personal Brand That’s Authentic to You

Welcome to The In Between Podcast. I'm Astrid.

And I'm Alexis. And we're 2 best friends on a journey to living a fun, intentional life.

We know it's easier to share on a season of life once it's behind you, but what about when you're in the middle of the growth, confusion, and decision-making?

This lifestyle podcast is for the everyday gal who loves to travel, talk about business, relationships, fashion, and everything in between.

Hello friends, and welcome back to The In Between Podcast. This is one of your hosts, Astrid.

And the other half, Alexis. And today on the podcast, we're going to be talking about personal branding. And I love this topic. This is something that I have spent a lot of my 20s thinking about. Like, it's just something I'm very passionate about. I also think that being— working on or strengthening your personal brand Or maybe you're starting from scratch, it doesn't actually always apply to you as an entrepreneur.

Yes.

Like your personal brand is something that I think goes beyond just you as a business owner. I think if you work inside of a company, then you have a personal brand at that company. Even like within your friends, like what are you known for? And that's also a part of your personal brand. And I think this is a really fun conversation. to not just have through a business lens, but through like a life lens of like, okay, what, what about myself do I reflect externally? And like, what do people remember of me? How do they feel whenever I'm not there? Like when they think of me, what feelings come to mind? What thoughts, memories? Like that's a part of your personal brand. And so, uh, I could geek out on this a lot and I'm really excited for this topic.

Oh, me too. I feel like a lot of people will associate the word brand with an entrepreneurial or a company sense.

Right.

But really, whether you identify it or not, you have a personal brand. And it is the things that— what do people think about whenever they think of you? They might think, oh, the tacos or the travel or the whatever it is that you're super into. Maybe it's the wellness routine that you have, that your family is always aware of the fact that you're very into anything holistic. That is a part of your personal brand. And I think Being able to really embrace it, being able to really define it and let it evolve is such a great way to then connect with other people, find new friends, or be able to decide where it is that you want to head with your personal brand.

Yeah, agreed. And I also think knowing your personal brand helps you if you are an entrepreneur or you're a side hustler, it helps you distinguish between what products you offer. So like, for example, a lot of my friends have like physical or digital products, and that is like a part of their brand, but then they as an individual have their own brand. So for example, like my friend Jake, he is a business coach and he's a published author, and he also has a business called Big Idea to Bestseller. And over the past year, he has been learning like so much of his business was Jake Kelfer. And now he's detaching and saying, okay, the Big Idea to Bestseller is the product and that brand can stand on its own. And I also have this Jake Kelfer personal brand that doesn't necessarily have to be attached to the Big Idea to Bestseller business. And so I've been seeing a lot of this lately, even with Courtney Shields with Dibs. Courtney Shields has her own personal brand and Dibs is the product-based brand. Same thing with Mariana Hewitt with Summer Fridays. So I think we see this a lot in business and I think it's something that we can lean into and have a bit more freedom because we think when we're creating something, it has to be about the product or about what we're offering. And I think that sometimes it can be helpful to detach sometimes the business we're building to who we are as an individual.

Yeah.

Yeah. Again, I'm getting too, I'm getting too into it. I'm getting too into it already.

I love it. No, this is going to be such a great conversation. I think there's many angles to take this. And again, if you're not an entrepreneur or not a business girly, this will absolutely still apply to you. So just hang on tight for that. But before we jump into our topic for today, are there any life updates that you have for us?

Yes, I do. So for those of you that listened to the That Girl Financial Edition where I exposed myself and I talked about my overdraft fees and just like not keeping an eye on my finances, y'all, I got a letter from my bank that there was like this new law put in place where if you actually had— so what happened is I would overdraft on my checking account. And I actually had money in my savings account that I had never transferred over to cover the overdraft. So I guess there was this law put in place that if the bank dinged you with an overdraft fee when you actually had sufficient funds in another account, they would pay you back. So listen to this, y'all. I got this letter from my bank. Matthew always is like, money just follows you around. It's crazy. So I got this letter from my bank this week. I opened it up and they're like, Alexis, this is this new law that was passed. We noticed that between the years of 2018 and 2021, there were several times where we dinged you with an overdraft fee where you had sufficient funds in another account and we're refunding you. I got $200 this week from that.

What? That is the best case I have ever heard of the way that things have flipped around for you. I know, the universe, baby.

The financial universe is on my side.

They're like, she's doing well now. Let's compensate her for her good skills. Yeah.

She's really grown and matured with her financial, like, you know, management. And we're going to give her this money back.

What are you going to do with the $200 is the real question.

That's a great question. Right now it's just sitting in my checking account, but I have, I'm going to pull it over for travel actually. That's just going to go towards like this year's travel.

Fund towards me and our trip.

Towards you and our trip to France.

Thank you, overdraft fees.

Yeah, literally, like, thank you, Regions Bank, you know, and this like refund law that was passed. So that's—

We're gonna get like a ton of DMs. They're gonna be like, oh, okay, I was an overdraft girly and now I got my money back.

It's insane. So that, that's a life update. And then other than that, like Pretty chill on this side, like, you know, figuring out how to again manage stress better and all of that, but like one day at a time, finding new ways for my routine. So yeah, what about you?

Any life updates? Um, yeah, I hit my 15th personal training session this week.

Let's go!

And yeah, and it's been going amazing. This was probably the week that was the best workout I've ever had with the personal trainer, and he was just Whenever you get a compliment from your trainer, you're like, okay, I can take on anything right now. And so it's just been really cool to start to see the results of all that hard work, to see how strong I'm getting every single week, to see the changes in my body as well. And honestly, I'm just really grateful that it was really my boyfriend's idea. After Thanksgiving, he was like, well, if you're tired of the gym? Why don't you train with Jeremy? And so anyway, I just signed up on a whim and yeah, it definitely takes time to feel it.

Yeah.

But it's been an amazing process— progress because even on the days where I'm exhausted and I probably would have still gone to the gym, once I get there and I have somebody else almost taking the mental load off of me of what I got to do, how I got to push and all that stuff, I push so much harder where I know if I would've gone to the gym that day, I would've checked the box of going, but it wouldn't have been to that level. And so, yeah, it's been a really cool experience, even just mentally, to get myself through the things that I don't want to do. And I would perhaps skip at the gym, like certain ab workouts and certain specific ones. I'm like, oh, I don't want to. And now my back pain is gone because I learned through him that A lot of people have back pain because they don't have a strong core. That's why we work out our abs every single day. And so anyway, overall, just feeling really good in my wellness, in my body, and just very accepting of myself. And I'm letting go of what do I want to look like, which I feel like I did that a while ago, and then I went back into wanting to look a certain way.

Mm-hmm.

And now it's just more I just want to feel light and healthy and all of that good stuff. And I feel like I'm actually thinking those things now. I wanted to think that, but I wasn't there, if you know what I mean.

Yeah.

I was being very critical of my body, even though I wanted to be in that ease. And now I feel like I'm in that ease of accepting myself on my bloated days, on my non, on whatever it is, because I just feel overall stronger. Yeah, this sounds like an in-between, but that's my update.

I love it. It's also, it's so cool to hear the desire to be thinking and feeling a certain way and then doing the work and actually putting in the effort to get to that place where you start to feel that way. I can deeply resonate with that where I can fixate on how I'm looking or results I want to see or wanting myself to look a certain way. I think it's really hard, especially when you are in the gym and you are working out 4 to 5 days a week. You're like, why am I not? And, you can just get so critical of yourself.

Yeah.

And, I'm really proud of you for focusing on— I literally wrote this affirmation in my journal this morning, things I'm reminding myself of. It's like I actually go to the gym for mental health and mental clarity. And, the physical stuff is great, but I think whenever I am fixating too much on how I look, I'm not focusing on the mental value of being there. And I was texting you this morning of like, what about this idea for the podcast? And I was messaging clients and I was feeling so good. And I'm like, yeah, this is why I'm here. Who gives a crap what my butt looks like?

Not really.

It doesn't really matter.

Yeah, absolutely. And we put so much pressure, especially this time of year, on how we look, how we want to look for something. And even planning a lot of vacations for this year, I'm like, oh, okay. I will catch the glimpse of my thoughts going there of like, I want to look a certain way.

Yep.

And then I reel myself back in and be like, okay, we want to feel comfortable in our skin. And so we're going to keep up these healthy habits, but we don't have to look a specific way by the time we're there to feel happy, to enjoy, to be in the bathing suit and feel comfortable. We're going to be comfortable no matter what. We're just going to stick to the process. And so it's a rewiring of the brain. It's a whole journey. But Um, overall feeling in a good state with my relationship with myself and my body. And, and that feels really good when you've had some really low days.

Yeah, thanks for sharing that. Do you feel like that's your in-between?

Yeah, absolutely. Let's count that as my in-between. What are you in between?

Growth path here. Um, I'm in between, so I'm in between weaning off birth control, not even weaning. I just stopped taking my birth control. I was doing a lot of research and a lot of thought. And for the past 6 to 8 months in particular, I was just having a lot of variation in my hormones and my moods and my body. And there would just be days where I would look at Matt and I'd be like, I want to get off birth control. That's just been so top of mind for me.

Hmm.

But Matthew and I are not actively desiring a family right now. And so I think that when you're in that place where you don't, like, you want to get off birth control because you don't like how it makes you feel, but then you also aren't in a place where you are like planning to have a child. It's a weird decision. Not weird, but like, it's a, it can cause some like inner tension. And make the decision more complex. And so through a lot of thought, and I even like asked the Deep Reset community because it's all women, like what their experiences have been, and got some incredible responses from women and just their experiences. So yeah, I stopped taking it this past week, and I'm like 5, 6 days off of it. And I obviously can't tell a difference yet. But some of the symptoms that I was feeling is like before birth control, I had actually never experienced any mental health issues.

Hmm.

And then when I was on it, there was like a lot of things and circumstances in my life that also, I think, you know, unlocked a very deep depression in me. And I, I've always wondered, like, you know, was birth control a contributing factor? And same with just things with my skin and my body and my mood. After a week of my period, the week after where I'd get back on the packet, I would be so mentally low. I would be so depressed and lethargic. And, it was almost like my body was regulating to being back on it after being off of it. And, I would notice that every single week, my first week of my birth control packet. So that mixed with a lot of other stuff, I was just like— and I'm not bashing birth control in any way. Like, I think that it is such an important tool, and I think everyone has the right to decide what they, you know, if they want to take it or not take it. I think it gives women important choices, you know, for, you know, um, being more strategic around family planning, if they want to have children, if they don't want to have children. So this is in no way like bashing or speaking negatively about it. And I think I've been on it for 5 years and I feel like I've been on this journey of like my health and fitness and nutrition. And I feel like this is the one factor that, in my opinion, is not actually natural. Like everything else I'm doing right now feels very holistic. And this is the one piece where I'm like, I kind of want my body to feel like fully mine and I want my moods to be fully mine. Yeah. I want to feel each part of my hormonal cycle. I don't like how this makes me feel, and that's kind of the decision I came to. And so I'm in between that and like the nerves around that and the tracking and like you know being a lot more diligent with all of that because I need to be. So yeah, I'm I'm actually really excited about it. Like I think there was a level of nerves, but I'm feeling really good about the decision and. We'll see where this goes.

So how do we love being a woman?

All the joys of being a woman. Femininity. Yeah.

Oh my gosh, I'm so proud of you though. I feel like being able to talk about the different options that we have as women is so important. And sometimes we're not taught those options. It's like either or, you're on it or you're not. And it's like, okay, I would like to learn more about my body and how it works. And our generation specifically didn't really get that as much. And I feel Younger girls now with the internet are getting more educated on birth control, the effects, the different variations of birth control that you can have.

Yeah.

And so it's been really hard for our generation to navigate that change because we are very health-focused or we're shifting towards that direction. And it's hard and it's hard to feel the changes. And to feel like there's a sense of loss of control, but also you're getting the control back.

Right.

And so it's truly an in-between. So I'm proud of you. I'm excited to see how this journey goes and how you feel in your body and how that all navigates. And tracking your temperature is always— and all that stuff is very interesting to just get to know yourself. And you're like, oh, okay, I feel like I didn't realize my temperature spiked on these days. And then I feel more lethargic or I feel more energized. And it's, it's very empowering to see what's going on in your body. So, um, yeah, it's new year, new you, boo.

I know, I'm ex— I'm really excited. I downloaded this app, um, just through some research called Natural Cycles. Yeah. And is that what you use?

Yeah.

Okay. And they send you like a thermometer and everything that syncs with the app. And so I'm excited to get started with that. And then I'll link it with Matthew so he can like You know, keep in the loop with everything. And I want this to feel like something that we are both experiencing together. And he's just been super supportive. Like, he's like, this is, this is your body. And if you're at this point where we need to go about planning in a different way so that you feel more comfortable, then, then like, you know, do it. So yeah, which is helpful. Not that it's, you know, your partner needs to have a— say. And like, if you are actively trying to not have children, there is like a level of communication and, you know, being really thoughtful and intentional with each other of what that looks like. So anyways, that's what's happening in my world.

Yeah, it's just so exciting, babe. I know that you've been working on, on balancing your hormones and all that journey, so I feel like there's going to be such a great step.

Thank you. Yeah, I'm excited. So with that, let's discuss personal branding. I always love these like dark shifts from wherever we are in between. And then we're like, let's go to today's topic.

We provide variety when it comes to our podcast. Yes, we do. Okay, when it comes to our personal brand, we already talked about how we are not specifically focusing on personal brand as it relates to business, though we'll still touch base on that. But overall, as a human being, we each have a brand, we each have a distinct personality that we're able to cater to and we're able to cultivate. And it can be a really fun journey to, in a sense, reinvent yourself. And I think a lot of times, especially with women, we go through a breakup, we go through a thing like a big crisis or even 2020, and that makes you take a step back and say, okay, who am I? Who do I want to be? Like, okay, I want to take care of my skin more. I want to do this with my hair. I want to actually get my style. I think it's different now. And you shift your style and you shift like your lifestyle. You say, now I want to be a digital nomad and now I want to travel the world. Like we're constantly reinventing ourselves or lack thereof and wanting to reinvent ourselves. And I think that that a lot of times relates to our personal brand and who we are. So, um, with that, what would be one of your first tips to cultivating and creating your own personal brand?

Yeah. So we're going to go over 6 tips total. And this is like, you know, an opportunity to figure out what fits for you. So some of these tips are going to land and some of them aren't. And that's totally okay. My first one is be genuine. So I think there's nothing like building a personal brand and then it not actually feel like you.

Yeah.

Like, and I think there's a difference between experimenting with, you know, I want to be the kind of person that does this, and then you experiment with it and you're like, I actually don't like that. And that's okay. However, I think when I— what I'm saying about being genuine is that when we actually show up in the world, in our relationships, in our workplace, in our businesses, and we are real, We are a real person and we bring our full self to that experience. I think it, it comes across so much more connective and so much more like relational. Whereas when you aren't genuine and you aren't really being yourself or you're trying to be like other people, it doesn't— it kind of like takes away the opportunity to connect. So like when I've shown up and I'm trying to be someone else or I'm trying to like tap into who I think might be more likable, more popular, more whatever, and it's not really me, it doesn't land. Like one, it doesn't land with me. I always kind of feel like leave feeling a little like disconnected with myself.

Yeah.

And I leave those social situations or like client situations or whatever feeling like Oh, I don't feel like I really connected with them in the way that I wanted to. Whereas when I bring that authenticity and that genuine energy, it connects differently. And so an example of this is me showing up online. And I don't know if anyone has had any experiences like this where you follow someone online and then you meet them in person and you're like, oh, you're exactly who I follow online. And I love that this who you are and who you show up as online are the same. And that's the biggest compliment.

Yeah.

Or you meet someone and they actually are not the same. And there's almost like an online persona to their personal brand. But then who you meet in person is very different. And there's a lot of controversy online of letting people be who they need to be whenever you meet them out in public. And we don't need to hold TikTok stars and celebrities to this standard where they can't have a bad day. And I think that whenever you have this very positive, polished, upbeat personal brand, and then you meet them and they're mean or they're talking crap or they're just like, they don't connect. I think that's where something that I always think about is if someone were to meet me In person, would they be like, oh yeah, you're, you're the same. There's like, that's genuine. So that's something I think is helpful when you're building your personal brand is making sure that it actually feels like you and not like someone else. And then whenever you bring that out into the world, people see that and they're more connected and they're more drawn to it.

Yeah. Oh, I love that. I think it's so important to be genuine just because First of all, you will be able to have more exciting content that people can actually relate to, that you're excited about. And also, as human beings, we evolve. And so say, for example, you didn't have a movement routine and then you start one. It's not that you're out here trying to be a fitness influencer. It's you're sharing your journey of starting something new. You're sharing your journey of consistency. You're sharing your journey of doing it and then falling off track and then doing it again. or whatever it might be, like you're cooking. I think sometimes we get so specific about the thing that we can post or not post, and we forget that we're humans with multiple layers to us. And so it's like you have a business on coaching, or even for me with photography, I share so many non-photography related things to my story just because I love it.

Yeah.

From fashion to travel, to food, to fitness, to like a night at home. It just doesn't even— I don't even think twice about it. And some of those have led to the best offline conversations with my clients, new friends, new connections. And I think that's the cool part of it all too, is being able to intentionally build an online, uh, personal brand specifically, even though obviously that exists offline as well, right? You can connect to a lot more people when you do have that, that are like-minded, that maybe have your same hobbies or have your same, um, interests overall that you otherwise would've never met if you didn't put yourself out there.

Right.

And so I think like there's so many of us that think our career is our brand. And if you have an interest, say you're, uh, in a specific field with, you do marketing, but you love to cook, start like just sharing all your recipes, sharing everything that you do. And you might meet people out there that love to do that as well. So yeah, I think that's really important. The one that I was going to share is that it goes along with that is your personal brand is not just one thing that you do. It's everything that you are and how you develop as a human being. And so I think a lot of times being able to take that even offline. So for example, say you're someone that you like to be bold. You like to be bold with your style, with your personality, how you show up online, how you show up offline. Say you're going to work at a corporate job. How are you dressing? How are you talking? How are you emailing people? What is your aura that you carry when you walk into a room? That is your personal brand. So if you don't have an Instagram or you don't really care for developing an online presence, how you show up in a room, Even taking it to a different side where you're like, I want to be the friendliest girl in the room. I want to bring people together. Like, people notice that and that becomes a part of your brand where you're like, okay, I want to invite Alexis because every time I invite her, she always makes it a point to have a conversation with most of the girls in the room. And so I want her there. And so that unintentionally becomes your brand. And what is it that people say about you? about you. And I noticed that a lot in corporate, and I'm sure you do as well. People talk about you. They're like, you're, you're doing a conference, a summit, they're talking about your personality. They're talking about how rude you are. They're talking about your follow-ups. Like, oh, that person speaks amazing. But honestly, it was a pain to get ahold of them last year. And so we don't really want to work with them anymore because they don't get back to us.

Yep.

Now that becomes part of their brand. They don't get back to us. So I think being able to really encapsulate what it is that you do already, whether it's intentional or not, is your brand. So can you take more ownership in that of who you actually want to be and then be able to develop that into who you want to be in the future? So I always think that's fun. I always think As simple as it sounds, doing Pinterest boards that represent those things that you can say, I want to be this kind of person, allows you to step into that. Otherwise, it just tends to happen and then you don't even realize what kind of brand or persona it is that you're developing.

Yeah. I also think that when you bring a multifaceted version of yourself, it's more interesting actually. You become very fascinating. It's not just like, oh yeah, Astrid has this photography business, but she also— sharing your background and sharing living in Miami and speaking fluent Spanish and even your love for fashion and how that has inspired people and even clients to find their confidence through fashion and your music suggestions and where you're traveling. Your credit card points, and I'm learning you know how to be better at at like travel hacking with credit card points. Like yeah, you can focus in on one thing, but I think what makes people memorable and like top of mind is like like you said the whole part of you and like the everything that you are as a person, not just like what maybe your skill is. And I think that's like why I enjoy following people online. Similar to what you said about when you walk in a room. And how people feel and what people remember of you. My next tip is being kind. I think this is a huge personal branding, like skill, and I do think that it it might take time to develop depending on your personality type, and that's absolutely okay. But it is no surprise that people like working with people that are kind. Yeah, and like you mentioned. You know, in business situations where people aren't getting back to you, or they ghost you, or they were hard to get a hold of, hard to get an answer, or they were just mean, you know, on a call. You're going to remember that, and you're going to say, "I don't want to work with them again." And so I think being kind, leaning into your personality, being enjoyable. I also think that where I've seen this come up in my career specifically. is in moments where I could have leaned in to like company gossip or like back alley conversations about colleagues or leadership, by the way that I've shown up in those situations and has actually allowed me to build more trust with leadership.

Yeah.

And like, that's just not a part of my brand. Like, I don't— that's not how I show up at work. And even with my girlfriends, like, yeah, I don't gossip. I'm not going to talk crap about this other girl. Like, we might disagree and that's okay and we can say, oh yeah, I didn't agree, but I'm not going to like tear that person down. And I think that comes back with like the kindness that the way that I show up at work has allowed for like leadership to confide in me, ask for my opinion, grow trust, build a deeper relationship because they see the way that I handle situations like that. And that really does go a long way. And so same thing in your business or even in your interpersonal relationships. How can you bring that sense of kindness that again is genuine, not manipulative kindness, right? We're not, we're not doing it just to get ahead. We're doing it because it's a part of our value system. But I do think that that allows you to stand apart because, I mean, and I'm sure you've experienced this too. It's not hard actually to have a really solid, memorable personal brand if you're nice.

Yeah, absolutely.

That's my tip.

No one— or sorry, what I was going to say was I think people underestimate how you can make somebody else feel and they will always remember that above anything else. And it's funny that you mentioned that because Um, this week I had a meeting with my team and I mentioned to them, I was like, I fully trust your professional capability to shoot anything. And I want to reiterate that a big part of my brand, even though this is on the company front, it's also on the personal front, is how we make clients feel in that moment. There's a million talented photographers out there. I have zero interest in just producing beautiful photos. I have all the interest in making people feel special and seen and excited and comfortable and like the most special people on their wedding day. And same goes for any other situation, like kindness and how you make people feel. They'll remember that when you get invited to an event or a social situation and they were the ones who showed up by themselves and you sat down and you asked them questions and you got to know them. They'll remember that so much whenever you're in a networking opportunity and you're seeking out other people and not just reserved to your own little group. Like, people really, really see that. And I think the kindness factor is very much underestimated. And it's probably, I would say, like the most impactful and what people will remember the most about you. They may not remember what you wore. They might not remember all the details about your life, but they'll remember you made them feel special because you asked questions.

Mm-hmm.

They'll remember you for how you made them feel. So I absolutely love that tip. I think that is crucial.

I agree. One thing I wanted to mention just before we move on, the advice around kindness does not mean that we're people pleasing. And it doesn't mean that we are allowing people to walk over us too. So I just, I want to caveat that, that building that inside of yourself as a value and as a part of your personal brand, It doesn't mean that you're a yes woman or you're a yes man. It means that, you know, you treat people with kindness and respect. And that also starts with you. You're kind and respectful to yourself. And so you know how to say no and you know when you might be taking advantage of, you know, when like your people pleasing self comes in. And so there's a level of like boundaries there, I think.

Mm-hmm.

So I just wanted to like caveat that because sometimes I think our good girl syndrome Yeah. Can come in and we have to be nice and kind to everyone, which sometimes means that we get taken advantage of.

Yeah.

And I just want to say that I don't mean that with that piece of advice.

Absolutely. And I think that's where your values also come in, where if your value is, I am kind and I have boundaries and I respect myself, then when somebody crosses that line, you're able to just put a stop at it and be like, get out of here. You got to go.

I'm sorry, but you got to go.

You got to go. My next tip for personal brand is not overthinking your personal brand and really thinking of it more as you're sharing everything with a friend. Think of your best friend every time that you post, whenever you're going to share a recommendation on a restaurant, recommendations on travel tips, recommendation on anything that you're maybe second-guessing yourself and being like, oh, are people going to think that I'm an influencer now, that I want to be an influencer? Like, that can be There's nothing wrong with that. And that can sometimes get in our head of, of what is it that I'm portraying? So just focus on sharing it like you're sharing with a friend, some great recommendations, some great tips. And also, I think this applies even to the deeper parts of us and our experiences. And so sometimes people have navigated some really hard things in their life and they want to share their story. They want to share how they overcame that. And that is a part of your personal brand and being able to bring that to the forefront of I'm sharing it not because I want to be famous, not because I want the spotlight or the specific special treatment. I just want to share this so other people can look at this and say, me too. Thank you. I see you. I relate to you. And that a lot of times is the purpose of the personal brand as well. So whether you do this online or not, um, I think that's important. But if you do have an online presence, That I feel like just not overthinking it and remembering that you do have something special to share. You do have a story to share. We all do. And we want to hear that. Like, stop, stop being so mean to yourself and saying that, oh, this is just another thing. Like, it's not that important. My life is not that cool. Like, I need to be in XY location, or if I had this lifestyle, then I could share a lot of content. No, just share from where you're at. People love you for you. Yeah.

I love this piece of advice. I think this is a really important tip because maybe we feel like we know ourselves, we know what we want to share, but then we overthink it because we're worried about what people might think of us or people from our past follow us online. What are they going to think if I post this cooking video or this outfit of the day video? Whatever it is. And, I think it's just giving yourself the freedom to recognize that, one, people are not really following you or noticing you as much as you think they are. And so, we can kind of— the ego can come in and say, the spotlight's on us and what's everyone going to think? Just have some peace in knowing that a lot of people are not paying that close attention to us.

Yeah.

I think that while we want to share out of a place of service and like you mentioned, I love the advice on creating content and writing captions in a way that you're talking to your best friend because I think that's the most authentic version of you, is that also you're doing that for you.

Yeah.

You're posting the video for you. You're showing up, you're writing, you're helping, you're serving, you're creating content because you like it. And because you want to do it, not necessarily because it maybe even serves some larger purpose.

Yeah.

So I think like if we can kind of lower the pressure and the stakes, and it just goes back to like, I share online because I genuinely like it, not because I feel like it's this thing I have to do or I'm worried about what it's going to do for my relationships or my business or whatever. And I can't always say that's the truth because I used to very much overthink it, but I've come to this place where like, yeah, I like it. It's fun. And like, that's it. It doesn't have to be so deep. Yes.

Yes. Oh, this is so true. I feel like sometimes our social media content can be like our virtual scrapbook, our virtual journal. And so lowering the stakes and saying, okay, here's this photo dump. I loved it. I had a good time. I just want to, I just wanted to live there. And when you genuinely don't care how many people like it or how many people comment on it, that is the most freeing thing in the world. Um, and I shared this with a client the other day too, from a business perspective is as creators, do you like it? That's the important part. Like when you go to your profile, are you excited about it? Do you love it? Who cares if there's one like on it? But are you excited about it? And sometimes it's just a post, but overall, in the overall scheme of our lives, when we look back, do we want to remember how much we stressed about it and how we didn't get that validation that we seeked? And so now we feel like we're not creative enough or talented enough. Or do we want to look back and be like, oh, I love that shot and I posted it and that's it. And I'm proud of myself and I love it. And if you don't get my weird artsy self, that's fine. Someone will, or I will.

I love that. I think it's like maybe we need to have a whole episode just on like not overthinking content and not overthinking social media. Because I think like so much of our stress and dopamine and like just all of that can come from that roller coaster that we ride with social media and like overthinking and not showing up when we want to and wanting to create but not creating. And then there's like that inner critic and that frustration of like, why aren't I doing the things I want to do? So I feel like it's like an interesting thing that a lot of creatives—

Yeah.

feel, whether they're making money from it or not. It's like this hobby, this art. I want to show up in this way, but I don't because I overthink. So maybe we'll bookmark that for another episode.

I think that would be so fun. I think that being able to just literally have fun with your content and have a blast and be an artist in whatever way feels fun to you. Like maybe for you is you have to let go of the aesthetics and you have to let go of having the perfect photo. But you love to write. And so how can you just literally post pictures from your Notes app of this beautiful writing that you have? And maybe your feed is just all screenshots of your Notes app, but it's this stunning writing that you bring into the world. And so I think there's just so many boxes we can put ourselves in, and finding what works for you and what you're most excited about is all that matters.

Yeah, I agree. I love this conversation. Yeah, we need to have a bigger one around it. My next and last tip on my side is be ready to evolve and maybe even fail.

Mm-hmm.

So I think a big piece of my personal brand over the last decade of being online, which is kind of crazy to think about, um, is I have transitioned a lot and I have gratefully built this community that has been on this ride with me. Not because of what I do, but because of who I am and because of like, you know, they, they are inspired by me. I help them. Like, they're like, oh yeah, I don't really care what Alexis does actually. Um, I don't even care what she does for a living. I just like her. And I know that might sound like egotistical, but that is just the way that like the online space is.

Yeah.

And so Being willing to evolve your personal brand and bring your audience and your community with you on that is, I think, really key for you to not overthink a transition, but also for you to showcase what pivoting looks like, normalizing changing, normalizing evolving. I did this for a couple of years and now I do this. I'm excited to share it with you. Here's why I care about it. Here's why I'm passionate. And when I see creators that I love, or just people that maybe don't even have like a creative business, when I see people do that on LinkedIn or do that on social, I'm like, I, I love that. Like they pivoted, they pivoted industries, they pivoted, they moved to a new location. And so my transition from when I first started creating content online I was a boutique owner and I was like fashion boutique, like a little bit of borderline fashion blogger. And then when I closed that business, I transitioned into a travel blogger and a travel content creator. And then I transitioned into a podcaster where I was talking about business. And now I'm a business coach and a life coach and cool. Some of these, some of— this is so crazy, but people that I have been internet friends with for for the last 10 years still remember me from the boutique days.

Yeah.

Or remember me from the travel blogging days. And it's like, I think that is such a testament to the community and the amazing people that are in my community because they're like, yeah, we don't care. We just like you for you. And I think that is such a culmination of what personal brand is.

Yeah.

It doesn't necessarily matter what you're creating or building, that the values of you and the, the like ethos of who you are, people again are a magnet to that and they want to follow, watch, be inspired. They want to cheer you on. They want to support you. And I'm always like just baffled at actually how easy it is To transition a personal brand from one thing to another.

Yes, absolutely. I think that is probably the backbone of any business, especially any business online, is who is behind it. And also, whenever you are the person creating content online and posting a lot of things online, you're going to probably outgrow where you're at right now, especially if you have the personality of an entrepreneur and a creator. And so how can you cultivate this relationship with your audience that is so genuine, so kind, so intentional that no matter what you do, you're able to pivot. And I feel like that is the most beautiful thing about our online space too, is your community will support what you want to do.

Yeah.

They're not so fixated on, you started this kind of company, like, where are my clothes at? It's just like, okay, whatever you do, I'm so excited for. And so I feel like that also ties into my last point is being able to fully embrace who you are and where you're at in that point, because those transitions can feel very intimidating. It can feel— we start telling ourselves like, well, now everyone's going to think, fill in the blank. They're going to think that now I want blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And nobody's thinking that. People love you. And if they are, then who cares? They're probably not for your community or for you either way.

Unfollow.

Yeah, truly. And I think sometimes we just have to give ourselves the freedom to be that person that we want to become. And I'm speaking to myself because for a really long time, I've always loved fashion and content and beauty and all this stuff. And it just kind of fell secondhand or like fifth to my photo business. And there's been little glimpses of that that I've posted. And TikTok was my freeform for a little bit there. And it was really fun to see some of that content pop off on the travel front and the fashion. And I just never took it seriously. It's just like, I think it was more the intimidating part of this sounds so exciting and I don't know how to do it.

Mm-hmm.

And so I think just being able to give ourselves the freedom to have that extensive brand that doesn't have anything to do with our day jobs. And if you find yourself struggling with that, something that has always helped me is before I go on a trip or before I'm going to go do something for myself that I feel I want to be more creative on, I'll go on Pinterest and I'll look at images that I want to capture that excite me just as a creator. It has nothing to do with my photo business specifically, but it's like, okay, this captures the vibe, this captures like where I'm at, etc. And so being able to grab those getting ready photos that are messy or the view or the ones on the plane. Like all of that helps me a lot. And so Pinterest is really a tool for personal brand that we can all be using to be able to represent that however you want. So you're a writer, look up quotes on Pinterest that are modern and fit your style and that you can be like, okay, well, I'm going to start sharing my work online and my journal entries or whatever it may be. Here's the inspo and here's what resonates with what I like. So I'm going to start to do that. But sometimes the jump from I want to have a personal brand to here's where I'm at and how do I get there can be really hard. So if you want to start posting online, having some kind of visual representation can be a good start.

That's a great tip. I, I find myself when I am actually feeling creatively blocked, I'll go to Pinterest and just get ideas. Also, I want to support and encourage you that if you wanted to dip your toe into being a beauty and fashion content creator— I'm not going to let this go. I'm not going to just let you—

What?

You think I'm going to let—

I saw your smile and I was like, yeah, we're going to wrap up the podcast now.

No, no, no.

We're going to touch on this.

Um, I, I think that one, no matter what you do, it's gonna be successful because you're doing it and you're trying it and you're experimenting with it. So whatever that looks like in whatever capacity, I think that that would be amazing for you to feel the freedom to lean into that if you have capacity. But like, I think that I would, I would follow your YouTube channel. If I didn't know you.

Thank you. Live 101 coaching with Alexis Teichmiller. Yeah, I definitely have that on my radar for this year. But I do catch myself going back to, okay, when I do these trips, that's when I'm going to create content, not when I'm home. And so some— one of my goals for this year is once a month, do a fun creative shoot just for myself, even if it's on my tiny little Canon G7X, and so little by little getting there. And I appreciate you, even if it's just you watching. I will, I will talk to the camera like it's just for my best friend. Exactly, and it will be for my best friend.

I want to know how you get the perfect slick back. I want to know how you do your eyebrows. I mean, I want to know. I want to know all the little details.

So done.

Okay, what's your last step?

Follow my YouTube channel. What's that?

That was your last tip, right?

That was my last tip.

Oh, okay. You have another one? No, no, no, that was it. That was all 6. So that was— I loved this conversation. I feel like I could geek out on the personal branding side of things all the time. And I think the biggest key here is figuring out what really resonates with you, what do you want to be known for, but also what do you want to create? Like, what kind of life do you want to create and how does that fit in with how you show up in the world? Whether you have, as Astrid mentioned, an online presence or not. Um, I think that these questions that we kind of walked through can give you that clarity of like, hey, what, what is my personal brand at work or in my relationships?

Mm-hmm.

Like, how do I make people feel? And Am I trying to be too much like other people? Is my personal brand genuine right now? Where can I express more kindness?

Where can I give myself room to evolve?

I think that this is a nice practice even for me in my own personal brand. I feel convicted in some of this where I'm like, okay, these are ways I can strengthen this or evolve this. And I think it's a good practice for all of us, especially going into the new year and with different projects and different things in our lives. Um, it can be helpful to do a little pulse check on, on the personal brand. So I hope you found this helpful. If you did, leave us a review. We love them. We say this every episode, but, uh, we love them. We love the DMs. We've gotten some really kind, amazing, like helpful DMs, people sending us resources, books they've read about topics we're talking about. So. Please, uh, reach out to us on Instagram, um, @inbetween.pod on Instagram. And you can always connect with me @alexistechmiller on Instagram as well.

And you can connect with me @astrojohannaphoto. We will talk to you next time.