Toward the end of the Women Founders Summit, a woman in the audience asked the question I hear from clients all the time.
She'd spent her career in marketing, being the voice of other companies over and over. She'd left corporate to build her own thing. Now it was her turn, and she didn't know how to start talking about herself.
I felt that one. Telling other people's stories is the job. Telling your own is where the head trash lives.
Here's what the panel told her.
There's no money in being scared
One founder runs personal branding programs for a living. For years, she still refused to post about herself. She loved being the voice for other people and companies. Her own voice, she kept quiet.
What changed her mind was simple: there's no money in being scared, and there's no money in believing you have nothing to say.
She didn't start with a big launch. She started with a few LinkedIn posts and a few videos, sporadic and imperfect. Her voice didn't arrive on day one. It showed up over time, the more she kept moving.
Her rule: keep the action going. You get closer to what sounds like you by doing it, not by planning it.
Make a list of words other people use for you
Nancy A. Shenker had a more tactical answer. When she started her consultancy more than 20 years ago, she made a list of the ten words people used to describe her. She pulled them from old performance reviews and bonus appraisals: tenacious, funny, and a few others. She shared the list with close friends, and it became the persona for her brand.
Later, a friend misheard "Nancy A.S." as "Nancy A.F." She took it as a sign. After two decades in business, she stopped worrying about whether people thought she was too much. Being a disruptor and a truth-teller became her asset.
The lesson: your brand isn't static, and you don't have to invent it from scratch. The words are often already out there. Collect them.
Another panelist suggested a version you can do this week: text a few friends and ask, "How would you describe me?" Put the answers on one page and look for the pattern.
Show up in rooms before you show up in feeds
Not everyone loves posting, and the panel was honest about that.
One founder came from corporate, where the big company name on her badge opened doors for her. She's an introvert. On her own, she gave herself a challenge: for a year, she went to every event she was invited to, so she'd learn which ones were worth repeating.
It worked. It's how she met people, landed partnerships, got on podcasts, and ended up in the Phoenix Business Journal more times than she could count. The rooms built her voice before the posts did.
She also made a point I love: your brand has to be sustainable for you. If daily posting makes you miserable, it won't last. Pick the version of showing up you can keep doing.
Your face is part of the product
Another founder shared the tech version of this lesson. When she started her company, she tried posting content without herself in it. Nobody paid attention.
So she put her face into educational videos, even though she doesn't love personal social media. That's when the traction came. Her mix now is a little bit of her, a little bit of the company, and a little bit of the product, posted consistently.
As one panelist put it, as a founder you are your company. If you won't put it out there, who will?
Consistency beats cleverness
One more story stuck with me. A panelist has sent a monthly marketing newsletter for 15 years. She can trace about $1 million in revenue to it.
No fancy automation. Just a gentle tap on the shoulder every month, without being a pain. People who'd gone quiet for years came back because she never stopped showing up.
That's the whole game. Not the perfect post. The repeated one.
What I'm doing about it
The irony isn't lost on me. I've spent my career helping other companies find their voice. I host a podcast, Women [In]…, where I help other women tell their stories. This series is me finally doing it for myself, out loud, one post at a time.
If you're in the same spot, here's a starting plan:
- Collect your words. Ask three friends for three words that describe you, and pull a few from old reviews.
- Pick your channel. Rooms, posts, video, or a newsletter. Choose one you can keep up.
- Publish something small this week. Imperfect is fine. Done is the point.
- Repeat on a schedule. Monthly is enough if you never miss.
Next in the series: your first customer is in the room. How community, events, and asking for feedback turned into real clients.
If you want help finding the words and building a rhythm you can sustain, The Cheeky Rooster is here for it.