Andrew Sherman: Branding Yourself=Being A Good Friend First
Posted on October 14, 2010, by JD Kathuria, under Featured Interview.
Jones Day Partner Andrew Sherman shares his climb from successful entrepreneur to lawyer, educator, and author. Sherman accredits his success to simple, strategic networking…and a bit of luck.
How would you describe your online and offline brand?
My off-line brand is as a pragmatic and strategic legal and business advisor to both growing and established companies and my on-line brand is an extension of that commitment by writing articles and using social networking tools to help connect people to resources and to each other on both business and life topics.
It may seem hokey, but connecting with the right people at the right time and at the right place and for the right reasons has been the cornerstone of my career success to date and I do not expect that to change any time soon.
How has connecting with the right people helped your career?
It may seem hokey, but connecting with the right people at the right time and at the right place and for the right reasons has been the cornerstone of my career success to date and I do not expect that to change any time soon. The key is to put the concerns of other people ahead of your own and to make sure that the connection will be truly mutually beneficial. Nobody wants to connect and build a relationship with a contact whose middle name is WIFM.
When someone says your name, what do you want to think of first?
Educator. Whether it is in a board room, a classroom, or a hotel banquet room as a key note speaker, I would like people to think that my first priority is to educate them and make them better, smarter and stronger.
What advice would you give to someone starting their on-line brand?
My advice would be to start small, be patient yet persistent and to find an area where you can truly add value to a defined community and have a real impact on their lives or businesses right out of the gate. People have tens of millions of choices in the content that they can read on-line in a limited period of time so it is critical to have an understanding as to why people will want to read what you have to say.
You were instrumental in the launch of SECAF. What is SECAF and why has that been important to you?
SECAF is an acronym for the Small And Emerging Contractors Advisory Forum (www.secaf.org) which is an organization dedicated to the education and networking needs of our regions small and mid-sized government contractors. SECAF is now eight years old and has been growing steadily to ensure that smaller companies in the region have access to the same resources and information as their larger counterparts.
What is something most people don’t know about you?
I am a die-hard Springsteen fan and enjoy a wide variety of classic and alternative rock.
