The Startup Podcast

Edu: Personal Branding - Key To Success Or Vanity Exercise?

Jan 22, 2024

Michael Houck, founder and investor, discusses the benefits of building a personal brand for founders, tactics for growing engagement, the difference between personal and company brand, and overcoming posting anxiety. The podcast also explores the power of warm introductions, leveraging personal branding, and the dangers of the social media algorithm.

43:08

Creator website

Episode guests

Michael Houck

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Episode notes

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Quick takeaways

Building a successful personal brand is about having the right influential followers and providing valuable content.

Investing in your personal brand can attract investors, employees, and customers.

Authenticity is key in building a personal brand by balancing intentionality and being true to yourself.

Deep dives

Building the Right Audience for Your Personal Brand

To build a successful personal brand, it's not about having a massive follower count, but about having the right followers who are influential within your niche. By focusing on building strong relationships with these influential individuals and providing valuable content, you can make a significant impact. Social credibility plays a role, but the key is to have the right people in your audience who can genuinely support and help you.

Introduction

5min

Crafting a Personal Brand: Strategy and Authenticity

17min

Starting, Niche vs Being Yourself, and Leveraging Personal Branding

4min

The Power of Personal Branding

11min

The Dangers of the Social Media Algorithm and the Importance of Credibility in Personal Branding

6min

🤔Should founders care about building a personal brand?

Isn’t there enough “real work” to be done that posting on LinkedIn is a total waste of time?

We don’t think so and neither does Michael Houck, a founder and investor who has built his personal brand to create Houck’s Newsletter, which is read by 75,000+ founders every week.

Prior to focusing on his newsletter, Houck founded a startup that raised $15M from a16z, co-founded an early stage venture firm, and was part of the early team at Airbnb. When it came to personal brand, Houck was mentored by the best—including Sahil Bloom and Lenny Rachitsky. Here’s what we discussed:

✅ The benefits of having a strong personal brand for as a founder

✅ Being intentional about building a brand for maximum impact

✅ Tactics for growing engagement

✅ Why personal brand is even more important for non-traditional founders

✅ Personal brand vs. company brand.

✅ Overcoming posting anxiety and finding your voice.

✅ How to get the most value from your personal brand.

✅ The FIVE MINUTE PER DAY habit that you can use to grow your personal brand.

✅ Does AI change the game for personal brand building?

Whatever your opinion on personal branding, this episode will get you thinking.

Episode Links:

Do yourself a favour and subscribe to Houck’s free Newsletter: https://houck.news/

Megaphone: https://megaphone.network/

Follow Houck:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-houck/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/callmehouck

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