Tags Are you sending the right message

Tags Are you sending the right message It is funny how we put labels on people and things, isnt it.   OK, maybe not everyone does it and maybe it isnt all that funny, but it is an interesting phenomenon. When you meet someone new, do you give them a tag or a label, mentally?   For example: Jills Mom, Cashier at Wegmans, Job seeker, Prius Driver Physicist?   Maybe you do this and dont realize it.   Why do we do this?   I think it may be to serve as a memory jogger.   Everyones brain works a bit differently, true? I wrote a post about categorizing your network to make it easier to reference for you. (Categorizing Your Network for Maximum Impact).   I realize that might not be the way everyones brain works, however, it d0es provide a context for how you know this person and who they are. We sometimes get labeled as something we arent.   For example, people frequently tag me as Human Resources, but I am not really HR.   I get tagged as a coach, but I dont consider myself   a coach.   So what is it that I want to be known for?   Jeez, maybe thats hard to put a tag on. I want to be known for career guidance and management.   But you know what, that doesnt make a lot of sense to most people.   So I will have to dig deeper. We have so many ways to spread the message about what we want to be known for, inside and outside of our company.   Lets start with LinkedIn.   You determine the words and phrases that appear here.   Make sure youve used the correct combination to send the right message.   When you introduce yourself, again, use the right combination of words to create the image you want to project. Another example of tagging/labeling occurred for me when I opened a bank account and they asked what kind of business I was.   The choices were archaic, manufacturing, construction, retail and many other buckets that didnt quite fit.   Eventually, I settled on Education I dont think there is a way to clearly wrap up this post, other than to help you realize that tags exist and well need to pay attention to how that helps or hinders up. What do you want to be known for?