We’ve all been through some kind of training, whether it was for work or for sports, but we all went through a very grueling boot camp that we were not even aware of at the time. High School. Yep, the awkward haircuts and the constant quest to figure out where you fit in. It was the original life skills training, not just for adulthood, but for sales.
So this Fall, I want to reflect on the lessons we learned back then and how you were selling yourself.
Before you even realized what “selling” meant.
Whether you were in the marching band or the debate club, voted most likely to succeed or most likely to skip gym class, you were already selling yourself every single day.
Not in the briefcase-carrying, hand-shaking way. But in the “here’s who I am, please accept me” kind of way. And that right there? That’s personal branding. That’s selling.
High School Assumptions
Remember when you picked out your first-day outfit like your life depended on it? It did, at least socially. You were defining your personal brand. Were you sporty? Artsy? Brainy? Mysterious? That image was how you wanted to be seen.
And just like now, people made assumptions based on what you presented. The brand you wore on your sleeve (and in your backpack and your lunch tray) became the impression people had of you.
Fast-forward to today: you still have a personal brand. Only now, it’s influencing your job opportunities, leadership roles, client trust, and even your social circle. That high school cafeteria? Turns out, it was your first networking event.
High school cliques were basically mini marketing agencies. If the “cool crowd” wore a certain brand of shoes or listened to a new band, it suddenly caught on like wildfire. Why? It is the power of social influence.
We do the same thing as adults. We check reviews before buying a product, and we ask friends for recommendations. It’s the trust we put in what others are already doing.
Opportunities and Adulting
So how do you use that today? Find your success stories, collect testimonials, and ask others to share their success stories as well. When you show that others trust you, new clients or employers will too.
High school was full of opportunities to ask for what you want, and those were sales skills in the making! Asking your teacher for extra credit, asking a crush to prom (or, let’s be real, chickening out but writing the note) or asking your parents to extend curfew just 30 more minutes.
You learned how to frame your request, time it just right, and read the room. All of which are still incredibly valuable sales skills when you’re asking for a raise, presenting a new idea or negotiating a job offer.
High school gave us practice runs. Whether we were trying to fit in, stand out, or just survive gym class, we were already learning how to influence, connect, and show our value—without even knowing we were doing it.
We’ve grown. We’ve learned. We’ve made choices we’re proud of—and some we laugh about now (looking at you, senior prom outfit).
Think about it, if our high school yearbook photo defined us forever, most of us would rather dig a tunnel and crawl into it. Between the over-plucked eyebrows, the braces, the baggy flannel (or questionable glitter lip gloss), and the “trying so hard to look cool” smirk, let’s just say that version of us was a “work in progress.”
Who You Really Are
Your personal brand isn’t frozen in your yearbook photo. It’s not limited to who you were. It’s built on who you choose to be now.
You get to evolve it. Every day. You get to shape it. Strengthen it.
Because this time around, you don’t need a superlative or a clique to define you.
You get to decide how the world remembers you—and you get to Sell Yourself.