Once in a while something striking and tremendously
significant happens, and the major news outlets are utterly and totally
preoccupied with it, neglecting scores of less interesting topic. To Al
Jazeera’s credit, the last time this happened – with the birth of the royal
baby the other day – they did make a valiant effort to address some issues
which would undoubtedly evoke less burning interest – like Nelson Mandela’s
legacy. A few days ago I accidentally caught two minutes from a conversation
between a blond South African woman and a dark-haired man, both middle-aged and
apparently some sort of experts or pundits. They were discussing Mandela as he
seemed to be approaching the point when it is time for him to depart peacefully
from the world he fought so hard to make a better place for everyone.
The female participant was explaining how Mandela had become a global brand – everyone knows who he is, a level of name recognition from which South Africa must be reaping some tangible benefits. Her male counterpart interjected that part of the reason for this worldwide resonance was that Mandela had persistently “stuck to his values.” At which point the South African woman exclaimed: “He knew the value of his own brand!” And her interlocutor responded solemnly: “Exactly!” Who knew that, in addition to remaining a tireless fighter for justice and racial equality, Mandela had used all those years in jail to develop valuable expertise in (personal) brand asset management? From which хис нативе country could also handsomely profit?
The female participant was explaining how Mandela had become a global brand – everyone knows who he is, a level of name recognition from which South Africa must be reaping some tangible benefits. Her male counterpart interjected that part of the reason for this worldwide resonance was that Mandela had persistently “stuck to his values.” At which point the South African woman exclaimed: “He knew the value of his own brand!” And her interlocutor responded solemnly: “Exactly!” Who knew that, in addition to remaining a tireless fighter for justice and racial equality, Mandela had used all those years in jail to develop valuable expertise in (personal) brand asset management? From which хис нативе country could also handsomely profit?
Which reminded me that I need to work on this skill
set, too. A few years ago I was talking to a student who had requested a letter
of recommendation for an internship with a Croatian NGO. As I asked her what
she wanted to accomplish after graduation, she started by saying: “My strongest
selling points is…” – I no longer remember what. But I do recall that the phrase
struck me as somehow awkward. Worse, I still feel that way, so I do need to
make an extra effort to overcome this unhelpful prejudice; and to help some of
my more skeptical students achieve the same life-changing paradigm shift. In
one of my classes, I occasionally show excerpts from a book advising women over
35 how to land a husband using the marketing techniques the author learned at
Harvard Business School. The book was probably a best seller, and the web site
promoting it (and some related consulting services) is perhaps still attracting many hits. But some of the students
laugh incredulously as if the kind of practical advice it offered were a bit
lame and even inappropriate. This is a reaction which will undoubtedly hold
them back not only in the marriage market – unless they at some point can shed
it.
