512. Stuck Building Your Personal Brand? Here's How to Break Through with Rory Vaden

38 snips

Jun 30, 2025

Rory Vaden, co-founder of Brand Builders Group and personal brand strategist, shares his journey of rebuilding after losing everything. He emphasizes the importance of defining your unique problem and audience to avoid getting stuck on "Sheehan’s Wall." Vaden discusses how past setbacks can shape your brand and why serving who you once were is key to personal branding. Transforming fear into service and the need for focused effort are essential lessons he imparts, supporting listeners with actionable insights and self-reflection challenges.

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ANECDOTE

Painful Reset to Zero

Rory and AJ were forced to reset when AJ was unexpectedly fired from their company they built over 12 years.
Their income went to zero, and they lost team members and identity overnight, which forced a fresh start.

INSIGHT

Identity Crisis as Opportunity

Identity loss is common when life or career crashes, prompting deep questions about who we are meant to be.
This crisis is an opportunity to redefine ourselves and our mission in life, beyond just brand strategy.

INSIGHT

Clarity Builds Strong Brands

Building personal brands without clear identity leads to shaky foundations like a house of cards.
Clarity about who you want to become and serve is essential to lasting success.

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What happens when everything you’ve built suddenly disappears? In this episode, Jay Papasan sits down with Rory Vaden—someone who knows what it’s like to lose everything and rebuild from scratch. After Rory and his wife, AJ, were forced out of the business they’d spent 12 years building, they had to start over with nothing but a non-compete, their expertise, and a lot of hard-won lessons.

That painful reset led to the creation of Brand Builders Group, a business built around the exact process Rory and AJ used to reinvent themselves—one that now serves some of the world’s top personal brands. But at its core, their conversation with Jay isn’t just about strategy. It’s about identity, focus, and service.

Rory explains why most people get stuck on the wrong side of what he calls “Sheehan’s Wall”—trying to emulate big names by doing too much, too soon, with scattered focus. True breakthrough comes from relentless focus on one thing: the unique problem you solve, in one word, for a specific “who.” Together, Jay and Rory break down the six key questions that define your brand DNA, explore how your past pain and setbacks can prepare you for your greatest impact, and discuss why the person you’re best positioned to serve is who you once were.

Challenge of the Week:

Get out your notebook and journal your answers to these questions: What challenges have I conquered? What setbacks have I survived? Who is the person I once was—and how could I serve that version of myself? Use this reflection as your first step toward clarity and breakthrough.

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To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit: the1thing.com/pods.

We talk about:

How to find your “one word” problem and the audience you’re meant to serve
Why focus beats diversification—especially when building a personal brand
The six questions behind Brand Builders Group’s brand DNA process

Links & Tools from This Episode:

Read Wealthy and Well-Known by Rory & AJ Vaden
Brand Builders Group: freebrandtraining.com/TOT
Read Take the Stairs by Rory Vaden
Listen to The School of Greatness podcast with Lewis Howes
Free Resources
Want to be a guest or share feedback? Email podcast@the1thing.com or send us an audio note at Speakpipe.com/the1thing.

Produced by NOVA