Hallie Thompson
Branding and personal branding has been a struggle for me in my business. I find it exhausting and I often feel fake when I make posts on social media or promote myself. This past semester I took an entrepreneurship class where one of the lessons was on personal branding. This lesson really helped me get thinking about what my core-values are and if they come across in both my business and in my personal life. I believe that my personal brand is thoughtful and passionate. I am very thorough in what I do and take pride in the time and energy I put into the things that I do. I rarely find myself half-assing things. I think this comes across loud and clear in my personal life, but after reflecting I realized I was not bringing that passion and thoughtfulness with me to Wholesome Hal’s. Starting this season this was a goal of mine, to bring these core-values with me as a business owner.
My natural tendency is quite reserved and being a small business owner at a young age has forced me to do a lot of self-promoting that butt’s heads with my typical style of staying backstage. In past years this has led to dread of posting on social media and/or refusing to. I felt fake and inauthentic, and it was causing a lot of distress and burnout. This lesson helped me reflect on why this was happening and realize that the growth I have made in my confidence since I was a sixteen-year-old starting Wholesome Hal’s is immense. I no longer have to buy into the imposter syndrome that consumed me at sixteen and instead can step into reality—that I worked incredibly hard to get to the point that I am at in my life, I took advantage of the opportunities that I was given, and I deserve to start seeing myself as a business owner.
I started this season intentionally. I realized there was rebranding that needed to be done because I am not the same girl, I was five years ago. This was not a dramatic switch in branding or even something a new logo could fix. Instead, it was a lot of behind the scenes work and rediscovering of myself. I have become more in tune with they way I work best and started to own my strengths while not being afraid to ask for help and receive support in the things I struggle with. I have worked to stop getting caught up in what I think I should be doing and start focusing on what I like to do. This year I have gained more followers than I ever have before while also having the most fun. I have been doing the things I like and am good at like designing a cute post, prioritizing my blog because I love to write, and having a plan and staying organized. I no longer feel the need to spend ten minutes crafting the perfect caption. I also have been having fun combining my passions in the little ways that I can. I love getting to incorporating photography into my business by taking my own photos of my bowls. I also had a lot of fun crocheting a bag for my giveaway this past week. And I love dressing up and wearing sundresses, so I find joy in this small detail of my work life (and coordinating outfits with my sister).
I have been working on incorporating quality into my business as well. In academics I rarely cut corners and I take a lot of pride in the work I produce. However, in the past with Wholesome Hal’s I found myself being half-hearted. I used the lack of effort as a fall back in case I failed. I thought that if I knew why I failed it was okay but if I put in the work and didn’t get the results, it would crush me. This year though, I have dedicated myself to ensuring I have the same pride I have for my schoolwork as I do for my business. I have made sure that my posts are thoughtful and not thrown together but also, I have ensured that my food is quality. Sometimes it takes a long time for my smoothies to blend, but rather than being impatient and giving out half-blended smoothies I ensure that I am proud to give out every item. I get stressed when customers have to wait awhile for their order, but I have been working to put quality over speed because that is authentic to me. It gives me peace of mind and improves customer satisfaction.
Adding the rice bowls to the menu was also a large step for me. I was working to distinguish myself from other business while also staying true to the heart of my business—healthy eating. I am a rice lover so, rice bowls came as a natural option for me. As I set out to test recipes and decide on which were worth of getting a spot on the Wholesome Hall’s menu, I got help from my family and friends but ultimately choose the ones that I loved and would have no problem promoting. Poke bowls have become an obsession of mine after moving to Fargo and discovering them, the Mediterranean bowl was lunch for me most days this last semester after stumbling upon a recipe and making a few adaptions and the burrito bowl is filled with almost all my favorite foods: rice, lettuce, cherry tomatoes, avocados and more. I truly have a hard time answering the frequent question of which bowl is my favorite as I really love them all. On top of that, the smoothies and smoothie bowls have always been a love of mine. I have had a smoothie and a rice bowl for lunch just about every day this summer and I truly believe that it is more than just food, it is also fuel. I have been doing collegiate soccer workouts everyday during the week while also working at least 40 hours a week (a majority of it out in the sun). Food that fuels you does not have to be taste bad. (Also, quick note: I made the decision to make two out three of my bowl with no meat because I feel strongly that cutting down the amount of meat, we consume is an easy way to reduce our impact on the planet. This does not mean you have to go fully vegetarian, but I wanted to help show people that a good filling meal does not have to be built around meat. There are many other protein options and cutting down meat consumption is not nearly as hard as you might think!)
Another part of lesson I found powerful was finding a “personal board of directors” or people who will help you curate a personal brand that you are proud of. Whether you intentionally seek these people out or not, you can still learn from those around you by paying attention to your strength, what people compliment you on, what comes easily to you that others might struggle with, but also what brings you passion and happiness. I like this because branding is hard. I find it difficult to be true to myself while also “creating” in a way the image that I want people to associate with me. Having people supporting me along the ways is key to my success. Another line that stood out to me was “your vibe attracts your tribe”. It works both ways, by being yourself you will attract a tribe that will be positive and supportive. This has definitely been true for me. I find so much joy interacting with my customers and meeting so many kind people. I have found so many cheerleaders and supports through the years that have helped keep me going. Moving forward I will continue working on my personal brand and I hope as you watch my journey you continue cheering for me as I try to do for others!