Brenda Bence

I watched with fascination the “Linsanity” that was the focus of global television, newspaper, and social media coverage for the past couple of months. After Jeremy Lin – a previously-overlooked New York Knicks point guard – scored 38 points against Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers during a February 10 game, “Linsanity” took the world by storm. The phrase, which combines Lin’s last name and the word “insanity,” has come to stand for shifting from being an overlooked asset to breaking records and being seen as a talent sensation.

Now, Lin – a Taiwanese immigrant to the U.S. – has made history. As the first player in NBA history to score at least 20 points and achieve seven assists in each of his first four starting games, he’s now the second highest scoring player in league history over a period of four game starts and drumroll … Nike has even launched a new shoe design named after him.

Think about it: A little over two months ago, the idea of Nike designing a shoe that celebrates Jeremy Lin was incomprehensible. In his few games with the team, Lin hadn’t scored very much. He hadn’t even stepped onto the court for 13 of the Knicks’ first 22 match-ups. He was sleeping on his brother’s couch at night, multiple teams had dropped him from their potential player list, and he was playing in the NBA’s “D-league.”

Then, of course, in the span of one 48-minute game, Lin became a worldwide phenomenon – the latest poster child for underdogs everywhere.

So, how does this “Linsanity” apply toward building a brand for yourself as a leader at work?

Where’s the Talent?

How many Jeremy Lins might you have in your own company right now? An important part of being a good leader is recognizing currently-untapped talent, sniffing out and cultivating previously-perceived “underdogs” at work.

Take a look around: Who on your team hasn’t yet been fully leveraged, and who isn’t completely expressing his/her talents? Who on your team hasn’t yet had a chance to “step onto the court” but could potentially perform brilliantly if given the chance?

If you’re like a lot of leaders I know, you may be thinking, “I can’t delegate to most people on my team because they just aren’t ready,” or “I don’t think so-and-so is up to the task yet, so I’ll just do that work myself.” When you think that way, you end up (1) increasing your own work load, and (2) holding back some of your most gifted people, never allowing them to rise to the occasion.

And, of course, if your team isn’t ready to step up to the plate and take ownership, whose responsibility is it to make sure they get ready? I’m sure the New York Knicks coaches saw to it that Jeremy Lin got ready. While they probably couldn’t have predicted Lin’s mind-blowing performance in February, you can be sure they didn’t put him on the court without intensive training.

It’s the same with your team. You can’t expect employees to automatically succeed without the opportunities to practice and grow.

Of course, once Jeremy was trained and ready enough, the coach had to be willing to give him a chance and put him on the court. What opportunities for “practice” on the job can you give your team members? Who among you do you think could perform well if given the right coaching and opportunities?

Find ways to apply the lessons of “Linsanity” at work and strengthen your leadership personal brand in the process. There’s always an element of risk, but the rewards – as Jeremy Lin has proven – can be great. That’s what leadership is all about.

As you may have heard by now, Starbucks certainly found a bug in its branding chain … or rather, in its Strawberry Frappuccinos. Ground-up cochineal beetles are government-approved food coloring used by a number of brands in the food industry, so why was it a problem when Starbucks added the ingredient to its frappuccinos?

Starbucks has long branded itself as “green” and safe for vegans, so when people who eat plant-based diets caught wind of this beetle-based ingredient, their organizations went … well (forgive the pun), buggy. And understandably so. It goes back to a fundamental principle that I always talk about: consistency in branding. The minute you do something that goes against who you say you are, you have created a brand disconnect. The damage can be significant and difficult to recover from. In Starbucks’ case, if their brand stands for environmental- and green-consciousness, the last thing they want to be known for is “beetle juice.”

[Of course, you don't need vegans to make this particular incident a branding mess. Even non-vegans were understandably grossed out by the news. Yeeuw!]

So, what happened? A broken link in the branding “chain.” Everyone – and I mean everyone – in your company can impact the way the public perceives your brand, no matter how big or small your business. It’s the same for the people in Purchasing at Starbucks. Those folks – seemingly in the “back office bowels” of the company – probably weren’t thinking about the impact on the brand that they could have by deciding to use beetles as an ingredient.

How about in your company? If any of your team members aren’t crystal clear on what you want your desired brand to stand for and how they, as individuals, could impact that brand through seemingly-simple, day-to-day decisions, you could be in jeopardy, too.

This Starbucks incident shows the significance of what I call The Corporate Brand/Personal Brand Connection™. If the personal brand of a member of your team is not aligned with the corporate brand, you could end up facing a similar type of “Starbucks Beetle Challenge.” How to avoid that happening to you? Here a couple of actions you can take.

Action #1: Make sure absolutely everyone in your company understands exactly what you want your brand to stand for. [If you aren't sure yourself and can't summarize your positioning in a simple nutshell statement, take action now to get clear! My latest book Smarter Branding Without Breaking the Bank walks you through a simple, step-by-step process for defining exactly what you want your brand to stand for, using a proven framework that has worked for large companies and small companies alike.]

Action #2: Make it clear to everyone that every single action your team members take – no matter how seemingly small – must be in perfect alignment with that desired brand positioning. If it’s not, you run the risk of damaging your brand.

So, use Starbucks as a cautionary tale. Make sure that everyone in your company understands the importance of brand consistency and only takes actions that keep your brand intact.