In 1997, Tom Peters introduced the concept of personal branding to the world in his article: The Brand Called You.
It introduced the idea that every person is a brand.
In this article, I share:
- My understanding of Tom's article.
- How it applies to how I think about personal branding.
- How it applies to founders and executives, today.
A Brand Called You
Tom's core idea is simple.
You are the CEO of your own company.
"Me" Inc.
As he puts it: "To be in business today, our most important job is to be head marketer for the brand called You."
In 1997, this was a new idea.
Today, it is obvious.
But most founders and executives still don't act on it.
They build their company's brand.
They invest in their company's marketing.
They hire people to create their company's content.
But they don't invest in their own brand.
Here's my take: a founder's personal brand and their company's brand are interconnected.
They feed each other.
When people trust you, they trust what you build.
Your personal brand is not a side project.
It is built on your identity — and your identity is the foundation.
Ask yourself: Am I investing in my own brand with the same seriousness I invest in my company's brand?
What Makes You Different
Tom says: "Start by identifying the qualities or characteristics that make you distinctive from your competitors — or your colleagues."
He pushes even further: "What do I want to be famous for?"
This is where many founders and executives get stuck.
They can clearly express what makes their company different.
But they cannot clearly express what makes them different.
This is why I believe identity must come before expression.
Before you post, before you launch a podcast, before you write a newsletter — you must know what you stand for.
That is the inner piece.
What you want out of life. What you stand for. What you live by.
When you define this, the question "what makes me different?" becomes easy to answer.
No one else has your combination of purpose, values, and principles.
Your identity is what makes you different.
Ask yourself:
- What do I want most out of my life? — That is your purpose.
- What do I stand for? — Those are your values.
- What do I live by? — Those are your principles.
How Do You Market Brand "You"?
Tom's advice on marketing yourself is practical.
Get visible.
He says: "The key to any personal branding campaign is word-of-mouth marketing."
In 1997, that meant:
- Networking.
- Speaking.
- Teaching.
- Writing columns in local newspapers / professional newsletters.
In 2026, it means:
- Networking.
- Speaking.
- Teaching.
- Building your own newsletter.
- Creating content on LinkedIn/ other platforms.
- Hosting a podcast.
- Creating short / long form videos of yourself / your life.
There's more you can do now. The principle, however, has not changed.
For founders and executives, this is where the opportunity is.
- Most of your competitors are not creating content.
- Most of them are not sharing what they know, publicly.
- Most of them are not building trust at scale.
When you create content consistently, you prove that you know what you are talking about.
People trust you.
Opportunities follow.
A note: don't market yourself before defining what makes you different.
That's Tom's approach.
I agree with it.
My take: Don't start with marketing. Start with identity.
If you market yourself before you know what makes you different, you will attract the wrong opportunities.
Or worse, you will attract nothing — because people can sense when there is no foundation behind the content.
Identity first. Then action + expression.
Ask yourself: Am I creating content that reflects my identity— or am I just posting to post?
What's The Real Power Of You
Tom redefines power.
Not title power.
Not office power.
Not ladder power.
Influence power.
As he puts it: "Most important, remember that power is largely a matter of perception. If you want people to see you as a powerful brand, act like a credible leader."
For founders and executives, this is the real value of a personal brand.
It is not about followers.
It is not about likes.
It is about influence.
When the right people trust you, doors open.
Speaking invitations.
Partnership requests.
Inbound leads.
Talent that wants to work with you.
That is influence power. And it compounds over time.
The way you build it:
- Define your identity.
- Create content that aligns with your identity.
- Do this, repeatedly, over a long period of time.
Ask yourself: What do I want to be known for in my industry — and am I actively building that reputation?
What's Loyalty To You
Tom's take on loyalty is honest.
He says loyalty is not dead.
It has just changed.
It is no longer blind loyalty to a company.
It is loyalty to your colleagues, your team, your customers, and yourself.
His point is aimed at employees: stop waiting for your company to define your career. Know your value. Take ownership. Grow yourself.
For founders and executives, that part is obvious. You are already building your own thing.
But, in my opinion, there is a deeper form of loyalty to yourself.
Loyalty to yourself is not just about growing your skills and your career.
It is about staying aligned with what you want most out of life, what you stand for, and what you live by.
It means knowing your purpose, your values, and your principles — and living by them.
Even when it is easier not to.
It means not chasing every trend.
Not saying yes to every opportunity.
Not building a brand that looks good on the outside but feels empty on the inside.
That is the inner piece.
Ask yourself: Am I building something I am genuinely aligned with — or am I chasing what looks successful?
What's The Future Of You
Tom says the career ladder is dead.
Careers are no longer linear.
They are a portfolio of projects, skills, and reinventions.
He recommends writing your own mission statement.
To write it, he suggests asking yourself questions like:
- What turns you on? (e.g. learning, recognition, technical mastery)
- What is your personal definition of success? (e.g. money, power, fame, doing what you love)
And reviewing it every six months.
My recommendation: Do one thing before writing your mission statement — define your personal identity.
A mission statement tells you what you want to do.
A personal identity tells you what you want most in life, what you stand for, and what you live by.
The second should come before the first.
That is what The Personal Identity System (that I developed in late 2024) helps you define:
- Purpose: What you want most in life.
- Values: What you stand for.
- Principles: What you live by.
It gives you clarity on all three.
And that clarity becomes the foundation of your personal brand — and every decision, personal and professional, you make from there.
Ask yourself: Do I have a clear personal identity — or am I building my career without one?
Four Things To Measure Yourself Against
Tom ends with four things:
- Be a great teammate and a supportive colleague.
- Be an exceptional expert at something that has real value.
- Be a visionary — a leader, a teacher.
- Be a businessperson — obsessed with pragmatic outcomes.
These four things have not changed since 1997.
For founders and executives, I would add one more: be clear on your identity.
Because without that clarity, the other four don't have a foundation.
Tom closes his article with this: "You are in charge of your brand. There is no single path to success. And there is no one right way to create the brand called You. Except this: Start today. Or else."
Start today.
Start with your identity.
The rest can be built on that.
Thanks for reading,
Yuvraj Mehta
The work I drew inspiration from to write this article
