After HOW Design Live ends, our team gets to work editing the videos of the sessions for attendees. And, well, we love delivering them—which will be happening soon!—because they allow you to experience the best moments of the show all over again. (And again.)
One of our personal favorites from 2024: Michelle Garside’s session “How to Position Yourself Inside of Your Company.” So many of us feel like we have to be a different person at work than we are at home—but as Garside explained, bridging your authentic self with your professional brand has wild benefits for both.
Garside broke down how to do exactly that, so we pulled together a set of takeaways drawn from her talk, which is emblematic of all the standout sessions that make HOW Design Live the best event of its kind on the creative landscape.
Give it a read below—and stay tuned for the full set of videos from the show in Denver!
HOW TO POSITION YOURSELF INSIDE OF YOUR COMPANY—AND WHY “WHAT YOU DO” HAS VERY LITTLE TO DO WITH IT
Before launching Soul Camp Creative and penning the book Not Awakened, Garside worked at such hubs as Ogilvy Healthworld and Grey Healthcare Group, doing global brand development for the pharma sector. But every day, she felt like she was putting on a costume and persona for work, and then taking it off when she stepped outside the office. So she decided to quit her gig and start over—and in the process, she developed a lot of processes that can help anyone more meaningfully be their true self on the job.
Why is that important to begin with?
Garside believes that who you really are can be a critical differentiator between you and everyone else with the same job title out there—and that’s a priceless asset, especially in an age when we’re all craving authenticity and what’s real. In brand development, she noted, we focus heavily on the story behind the product on the shelf. When it comes to our own brand development, that’s no less key.
“When I work with clients, I always say we’re not going to create a brand based on what you do,” she said. “We’re going to create a brand based on who you are.”
Here’s HOW you can do the same.
- BEGIN TO DEFINE YOUR CORE
Ask yourself: What is your most foundational element? Who are you at your core?
When she looked inward, Garside realized that her North Star is belonging, and she places a high emphasis on vulnerability and transparency. Having felt like she didn’t belong growing up, she desperately wants people to feel as if they do today.
“And so everything that I create is based on that—how I run my company, everything,” she said.
When you interact with Garside, that’s exactly what you feel—and what sets her apart.
What is your brand? Why do people come to you? What do people Google to find you? And most critically: What do you offer that is different than others in your space? Take a deep look at yourself, and make a list.
- LOOK FORWARD AND LOOK BACK
Now, go big picture, and brainstorm: In four or five years, what do you envision yourself doing? How will you be spending your time?
Moreover: What will you be known for? What will your employees say about you?
Garside said she hopes her legacy is that her employees felt they were part of a community, a family, where everyone could show up as themselves, messy and real. What do you want your legacy to be, not just as a working creative, but a person?
Once you’ve defined that, look back. Who were you as a kid? Why got you into the creative industry in the first place? What did you love about the industry when you started?
Trace things out from there. “What has the journey to now been like? Has it been hard? Has it been invigorating? Whatever it is, all of that matters,” Garside said.
- FIND THE COMMON THREADS
Take a macro look at everything you’ve jotted down about your past, present and future, and then find the connections. Are there words or ideas that show up more than once?
You’re likely to feel a light bulb go off. And that’s where you can find your North Star—and where you can begin to home in on your brand, the one that drives both your work life and your life life.
“We are in an age where it doesn’t need to be one version of yourself outside of the office and a completely different version inside. That’s how we go crazy. That’s how we begin to resent and hate our jobs,” Garside said. “Once you begin to bring your personal positioning [to your job], you begin to like your 9 to 5 more—but you begin to show up fully as who you are, which is what we’re meant to do as human beings.”
Garside added that when we show up authentically, we’re more clear about not just who we are, but who we are not—and so decisions become easier, from the clients we take on to the projects we produce.
Ultimately, Garside’s session made us realize a vital truth: who we are is truly just as critical as who we aspire to be.