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By:

Divyaa Advaani 

2 November 2024 at 8:58:38 am

Being Liked Is Not Branding

AI Generated Image Think of someone specific you met in the last six months who seemed genuinely interested in connecting further. The conversation was warm. There was energy in it. They said all the right things — let us stay in touch, I would love to explore this further, I will reach out next week. And then they did not. Not because they were rude or dismissive. Not because something went wrong. But because by the time next week arrived, you had simply faded. This is one of the most...

Being Liked Is Not Branding

AI Generated Image Think of someone specific you met in the last six months who seemed genuinely interested in connecting further. The conversation was warm. There was energy in it. They said all the right things — let us stay in touch, I would love to explore this further, I will reach out next week. And then they did not. Not because they were rude or dismissive. Not because something went wrong. But because by the time next week arrived, you had simply faded. This is one of the most quietly expensive things that happens to accomplished founders — and almost none of them know it is happening. Being liked is not the same as being remembered. Being remembered is not the same as being recalled at the right moment. And being recalled at the right moment is the only version of any of this that actually creates business. The gap between a pleasant first impression and a phone call that begins with "I immediately thought of you" is not filled by warmth or competence or even a genuinely great conversation. It is filled by a personal brand strong enough to occupy a specific, distinct place in someone's mind long after the meeting has ended. Here is what most founders are not told. When someone leaves a conversation thinking "what a lovely person" they have given you a compliment. When they leave thinking "she is exactly the person I would call if I ever needed to solve this specific problem for someone I care about" they have given you a business. The difference between those two outcomes is not how much they liked you. It is how clearly they understood what you stand for and who you are for. Most accomplished founders are genuinely likeable. Many are impressive. Very few are specific enough to be recalled at the moment an opportunity arises. They exist in the minds of their network as pleasant, capable, talented — and entirely interchangeable with the other pleasant, capable, talented people those same contacts met last month. That interchangeability is costing you more than you realise. Every time someone in your network encounters an opportunity that should be yours and instead recommends someone else — not because they like that person more, but because that person's name surfaced first and most clearly — your brand has failed at its most fundamental job. The founders who get called first are not always the most qualified. They are the most memorable. Not memorable in the sense of flashy or loud or relentlessly present online. Memorable in the sense that when a specific need arises, a specific face and a specific name and a specific value proposition surface together, clearly and immediately, without the contact having to work to reconstruct who you are and what you do. That kind of memorability is not an accident of personality. It is the result of a personal brand built with enough clarity, consistency and intention that it leaves a distinct impression rather than a pleasant but general one. It is the difference between being someone people enjoyed meeting and being someone people think of when it counts. Think about your own network right now. When an opportunity arises that is perfect for you — do the right people think of you immediately? Or do they think of you eventually, after they have already recommended someone else, and feel a pang of recognition that they should have called you first? If it is the second — your brand is not broken. It is just not specific enough yet. And that is entirely fixable. I work with founders on exactly this — building a personal brand clear and consistent enough that the right people think of them first, not eventually. If you are ready to stop being the person people liked and start being the person they call, book your consultation call with me on this link: https://www.calendly.com/divyaaadvaani/founder-brand-audit — Divyaa Advaani, Personal Branding Strategist (The author is a personal branding expert. She has clients from 14+ countries. Views personal.)

Larger than life, lighter about himself 

Quaid Najmi
13 hours ago
2 min read

Mumbai: There was always something cheerfully disarming about Vishwanath Gajannan Patekar, alias ‘Nana’ Patekar. For all his on-screen intense, raw and authoritative performances in over 100 films, he himself would easily puncture his awesome stardom with naughty jokes and naive smiles.


Nearly two decades ago, when the actor agreed to sing a couple of jazzy rap numbers for “Horn OK Pleasss!” (2009), he displayed the same self-deprecating humour that was so quintessentially Nana.


“Initially I was very reluctant, almost dreading the thought of singing with a full orchestra,” he had confessed to this correspondent soon after recording the songs.


“I even told my director Rakesh Sarang that ‘my voice is only suited to give playback to buffaloes’,” he grinned with a mischievous glint.


The music director, Lalit Pandit of the celebrated Jatin-Lalit duo, was persistent. The film’s situation and Nana’s role as a bored Mumbai truck driver demanded it. So, Nana airily agreed to give singing a shot.


It was hardly his first brush with a recording room microphone. His maiden attempt came with “Yeshwant” (1996), and its unforgettable number, ‘Ek Machchar Aadmi Ko Hijda Bana Deta Hai’. Here too, he mischievously dismissed it as a “prosey-talking song” that would barely qualify him to earn the tag of a ‘singer’.


More than a decade later, however, the “Horn OK Pleasss!” numbers were full-fledged lyrical compositions, albeit with some other singers, but Nana confessed that “surprisingly, I thoroughly enjoyed this experience!”


When reminded that legendary singers such as Mohammed Rafi or Lata Mangeshkar could wrap up a song in a remarkably short time, Nana immediately folded his hands and bowed his head reverentially. “Arre they are Gods. I am a devil. There’s not the remotest comparison with them,” he said.


Yet, he revealed that his own song was recorded in just 30 minutes. His explanation was pure Nana-esque wit: “Probably, the poor music director had simply given up - that there was nothing more he could do to improve my voice or singing style”


In fact, there had been no elaborate rehearsals either for the numbers. “Lalit is a dear friend. He is such a master that he can make anything sing, even a cow,” Nana had quipped. “Maybe, that’s why I succeeded in this experiment.”


Lalit Pandit, however, was considerably more generous, acknowledging that “Nana is a natural singer” and the recording session had been great fun.


‘Nana is immortal’
“Aamche Nana will be remembered forever as a lovable, supremely talented, completely irreverent, self-critical and never too enamored of his own image as a legendary actor. He fitted every character like a glove. Given his humble origins, he remained earthy and close to the people, social service, compassion for the poor and respect for the downtrodden. Even his jokes – that his voice was suited only for buffaloes – reflected his humility and humour – all of these qualities combined to make himself eternally unforgettable,” said a grieving Pradeep Menon, the actor’s friend of many years.

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