Elevating Remote Work: Personal Branding & LinkedIn Strategies with Mandy Fransz - ep. 069

What an engaging and insightful discussion! In this dynamic episode, our hosts, Rick and Kaleem, dive into the fascinating world of remote work, personal branding, and LinkedIn strategies guided by Mandy Fransz, Co-creator and Chief Community Officer at Remote Workers Worldwide. From lighthearted banter unraveling the nuances of Dutch culture, language, and accents to Mandy's captivating journey from the Netherlands to a thriving career in remote work, this episode is a gem!

Mandy offers a delightful glimpse into Dutch culture, playfully sharing unique phrases and intriguing locations in the Netherlands, before sharing her compelling path, ignited by a burning desire to explore the world. From backpacking adventures in South America with her twin sister to her tenure at LinkedIn in Ireland, her journey has been nothing short of extraordinary. While the LinkedIn role enriched her experiences, Mandy missed the freedom of remote work, prompting her to transition into freelance consultancy.

Her transition into consultancy was not impromptu; leveraging her LinkedIn experience to assist individuals and companies in maximizing the platform for business growth, she took the first steps. The insights shared on the most common mistakes made on LinkedIn, highlighting the significance of relationship-building and personal branding for remote job seekers, are valuable nuggets in this discussion. As an authority on remote work, she recognizes the pivotal role of personal branding in securing remote positions, leading us to her latest venture: Remote Workers Worldwide! This thriving community, with over 100,000 members, facilitated her shift from corporate collaborations to offering unwavering support to individuals within the remote work community.

In the fiercely competitive remote job market, job seekers face challenges like never before. With this in mind, Mandy has introduced a comprehensive four-step strategy, emphasizing the importance of defining a brand message aligned with individual aspirations, especially leveraging LinkedIn to showcase this message effectively. The long-term effort needed to craft a compelling personal brand is vividly apparent!

Memorable remote work experiences, like Mandy's amusing tale of being stuck in a camper van for 18 hours in Portugal yet continuing to work seamlessly with perfect Wi-Fi, showcase once more the resilience and adaptability crucial in the remote work landscape. Mandy's transformation from a globetrotting enthusiast to an expert in remote work and consultancy is the essence of this insightful and enlightening discussion.

Do yourself a favor and tune in! Discover the power of adaptability and problem-solving, essential qualities in the dynamic realm of remote work. Thank you for sharing your expertise with us, Mandy!

Learn more about Mandy:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mandyfransz/
• Personal Webpage: https://www.maketheleapdigital.com/
• Remote Workers Worldwide: https://www.remoteworkersworldwide.co/

Transcript

Mandy: 0:35

I'm from the Netherlands, where I currently am. Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Kaleem: 0:39

Oh, man. How do we get out there? Rick?

Rick: 0:41

I don't know, but that's a

Kaleem: 0:42

figure out a way to pay for us to get out there? If you got a hookup, let us know.

Mandy: 0:47

Have you never been?

Rick: 0:48

never.

Kaleem: 0:49

no. And the accent is unbelievably attractive. I love it.

Rick: 0:54

If you could teach us how to swear in Dutch on the show, it would go viral.

Mandy: 0:58

Dutch people actually are the worst in the world with swearing. Like we swear with diseases, that's like typical for Dutch people. But let's do a non offensive Dutch swear word that I would love to hear your accent in, which is Godverdamme,

Rick: 1:14

One more time.

Mandy: 1:16

Godverdamme.

Kaleem: 1:17

Hot for Damas. It's hot for Dama over here.

Rick: 1:21

I got it bad, got it bad, got it bad, I'm hot for

Kaleem: 1:25

Hot fat DMAs.

Mandy: 1:27

Maybe this word is not a swear word, but it's a city in the Netherlands, Scheveningen.

Rick: 1:34

One more time.

Mandy: 1:35

Scheveningen.

Kaleem: 1:37

this so much.

Rick: 1:38

I can't, I couldn't hear you because Kaleem was laughing too

Kaleem: 1:40

Sorry. One more time. One more

Mandy: 1:42

Okay, one more time, Scheveningen.

Rick: 1:45

Oh man,

Kaleem: 1:48

This

Mandy: 1:49

So this is, when you ever come visit the Netherlands, and you know this word, Scheveningen, you're seen as a typical local Dutch person.

Kaleem: 1:58

what did you

Rick: 2:12

Welcome back, everyone, to Remotely One. I am your co host, Rick Haney, joined by my esteemed colleague, Kaleem Clarkson. Hello, Kaleem.

Kaleem: 2:20

Oh, hello, sir. I love you in these glasses, bro. You look, you look professional. I mean, you always look professional,

Rick: 2:27

Yep. today is a special day. I had to wear the glasses because I've been getting such bad headaches lately, and part of it is eye strain, so I just did it.

Kaleem: 2:37

Okay, I mean, the studio's looking good. The studio's looking good, you're looking good. I'm feeling good.

Rick: 2:43

It's good to be back. So, uh, a couple of quick housekeeping tips for our listeners and viewers. Since you already know how to find us, do us a huge favor and go to ratethispodcast. com forward slash remotely one and just leave us a review. That would be amazing and we would be ever so thankful if you could do that for us.

Kaleem: 3:02

Thank you, thank you.

Rick: 3:04

Since 2015, Remotely One is one of the largest communities of remote work professionals, with over 3, 000 Slack members and 5, 000 email subscribers. And if I'm not mistaken, that number is still Growing It's absolutely free to join, so go ahead and check us out at remotelyone. com. And with that out of the way, Kaleem, give us a tease or two about today's guest.

Kaleem: 3:28

Oh yeah. Oh yeah. Another, another nervousness. I'm nervous. Look,

Rick: 3:33

Nervous Nelly over here. Nervous

Kaleem: 3:34

I guess it's over here cracking up. Now she's got me cheesing real hard, but it's the accent, sir. Rick, it's the best accent. I love it. I love it because she's originally from the Rotterdam Netherlands and is currently a resident guest. Is that where you're residing? Is that correct?

Mandy: 3:51

It is. Yes.

Rick: 3:52

Wow. Well, I already want to

Mandy: 3:55

Yes.

Rick: 3:55

there.

Kaleem: 3:56

Yeah. She said she's going to fly us out. Yes. She has a master's degree in marketing management from Rotterdam School of Management. Um, oh, this is some fun stuff. She's an identical twin.

Rick: 4:10

Oh.

Mandy: 4:11

Who, funnily enough, is not living in the Netherlands. So she's, uh, currently living in Portugal, where I'm about to move as well.

Kaleem: 4:19

Oh, Oh, wow. That's cool. And, and Rick, most people don't know this, but she's half Dutch and half Indonesian, which is interesting. Right? I mean, like

Rick: 4:29

Well, there's some geographical history there that we're probably going to learn about, I hope.

Mandy: 4:35

And the best, kitchen in the world.

Rick: 4:36

Oh, wow.

Kaleem: 4:38

And she wants went out on a date with her and her identical twin dating to other identical twins. Can you imagine that son? Can you

Rick: 4:48

Sounds like a double mint gum commercial.

Kaleem: 4:51

What was the jingle? You know, you know, the jingle son, you know,

Rick: 4:55

A double pleasure's waiting for you, double mint gum.

Kaleem: 5:01

Oh my gosh. She was formerly a sales lead and consultant at LinkedIn. So

Rick: 5:08

Wow, that's big time.

Kaleem: 5:09

Yeah, she knows what she's doing when it comes to LinkedIn. Check out her LinkedIn profile and you'll definitely see it. Um, she is also a LinkedIn top voice of remote work. Congratulations. Congratulations. Part of the fraternity.

Mandy: 5:24

Exactly. It makes it feels like, uh, like yourself. So happy to be

Rick: 5:29

Yes. Wow.

Kaleem: 5:30

She is, the co creator of Remote Workers Worldwide, which is a LinkedIn group and a community with over 100, 000 members, listeners, and viewers. Please give a warm welcome to Mandy Frum! Let's go. Mandy France. Yes. settle

Rick: 5:58

Down people. You in the front. Down in

Kaleem: 6:00

My gosh.

Mandy: 6:01

Wow. Wow. I've never had such a warm welcome. So thank you guys for like pressuring me up. But, uh, very excited to be here and to speak

Rick: 6:13

We are so excited that you're here to just learn from you. I mean, I want to hear all about the Netherlands. I want to hear all about your experience. but Mandy, first and foremost, you know, why remote work? What was the spark that kind of led to your passion for remote work?

Mandy: 6:31

Ooh, now we go way back. Thanks for that question, Rick. Um,

Kaleem: 6:36

so, what year set it up?

Mandy: 6:38

what year? Well, actually, so, okay, to go really way back, actually I remember when I was in elementary school, so I'm from a small town next to Rotterdam, the Netherlands, actually, and, uh, I remember when my teacher asked me back then, I was like, probably seven or eight years old, and my teacher asked me, what do you want to be when you grow up? And I was like, I just want to travel the world back then I was seven years old and I knew back then already I wanted to see more than the small town in the Netherlands. I wanted to travel the world to explore different cultures, including Indonesia, where my roots are from. And, I stuck to that promise ever since. So, I studied international business administration in Rotterdam as well for my studies, and then I did a master in marketing management. And after that, I decided to not apply for any jobs. In an office, but, uh, to go and explore the world of remote work, actually. I booked a trip to South America first, where I, uh, Backpacked for two months around whole South America. So I went all the way from Chile, to the North Columbia and also to, Central America. And I started a blog with my twin sister, actually. The Backpacking Twins.

Kaleem: 7:45

Stop it. You said just doing twins. Just never, never separated. Are you ever separated?

Mandy: 7:51

We did everything together, same study, same work, and also this blog where we both wanted to figure out how to work remotely. So this has always been both of our dreams to somehow be a digital nomad. But then we had no clue how to get started. And

Kaleem: 8:05

And roughly what year is this just to give our, audience, you know, some context.

Mandy: 8:09

I think this was probably 2014, 2015 ish. So that's about eight years

Rick: 8:14

So this is long before the pandemic, before

Mandy: 8:17

Way before. Yeah, way before the

Rick: 8:19

Yeah. Yeah.

Kaleem: 8:23

I'm assuming you graduate college at this point and you both decide let's go to South America. And I mean, you just basically two twins with a backpack on. Did you have the same backpack?

Mandy: 8:34

we, we actually had the same backpack and, uh,

Kaleem: 8:37

on. When are you individuals?

Mandy: 8:40

we were thinking! We were thinking this must be such a cool concept, right? Like twin backpacking with the same backpack. But we were so, um...

Kaleem: 8:46

genius. That genius idea.

Mandy: 8:49

No, we couldn't be more wrong. It was a massive fail. We didn't, you know, we didn't make any single sense. So, uh, we, yeah, didn't make it work, uh, for this time. But, actually maybe like a fun side track story to that is that actually for my master. So this was when I graduated, we both graduated, we decided to travel and make this, the backpacking twins happen, but actually during my master degree, I decided to use. Because I already had a blog for a few years to use this blog post as part of my master thesis So I spent a month just using my blog to kind of prove to companies that, you know, the engagement or it pays off to have remote workers share their stories for, to attract more tourists, to attract more people to the country, et cetera. And this is what I used for myself to eventually to start my remote journey and, uh, have evidence that it's a pays off to start a digital nomad lifestyle. So,

Kaleem: 9:44

that's fascinating.

Rick: 9:45

So you finally get there and was there like a trial and error kind of thing? Did you immediately feel comfortable? Were there some hurdles when you were like, Oh, I gotta, this is, I wasn't expecting this, you know, or was it just pretty much like a smooth smooth sailing from the get go?

Mandy: 10:01

No, not at all. So we started this blog and, we tried out, you know, we had a Facebook group and Instagram page, et cetera. But back then this digital nomadism and remote work was very new and not many people at all were living this lifestyle. I had the fortunate that LinkedIn reached out to me for a job opportunity at LinkedIn. And I initially thought this was based in the U. S. in San Francisco, but it turned out to be in Dublin, Ireland. Where I'd never been before, but, that's actually how I landed my first full time job in an office, in, uh, LinkedIn's European headquarters. So I couldn't say no to LinkedIn, so I eventually decided to, you know, get rid of the backpacking twins or, not continue to continue that project and then to, work for LinkedIn and, uh, you know, have my very first full time corporate experience, which was like a red carpet deal. I always like to say there were, you know, I had worked world class perks and benefits from in office barista bar free gym and five star food, et cetera. And it was also the first experience without my twin sister. So, uh, it was the first

Kaleem: 11:03

There we go. There we go.

Rick: 11:06

Finally, some separation.

Kaleem: 11:10

Wait, so what did she do? So you decide, Hey sis, LinkedIn just call this backpack stuff isn't working now. Were you trying to, were you working as a digital nomad or did you just kind of save some money and we're just enjoying traveling? Were you trying to actually earn, you know, earn money while you were working in a new country?

Mandy: 11:30

Yeah. At that time when we had the blog, we were trying to figure out how we can make money online. But that didn't work out. So we didn't make any money. Um, and then I started working for LinkedIn and she started working for herself. She actually build this company, that she was organizing trips for remote workers and digital nomads all around the world. So, uh, she continued on that journey on that path and for, and I joined LinkedIn and that's. Actually, my job within LinkedIn was to help other companies how to leverage LinkedIn as a platform to find clients online so by using LinkedIn rather than a Recruitment platform using LinkedIn to build your personal brands to grow your network with you know your target audience You can also yeah find your friend clients online and that's when it's kind of clicked where I was like, well if I Can basically do this from anywhere because I was working in Dublin, but my clients were based in the Netherlands. I was thinking I can do this for myself as well and find clients, for myself as a freelance consultant. And that's how I, yeah, how I decided to quit my job back in 2018. Back then I didn't really have to plan to start my own consulting business. Yes, but, I booked a ticket to Bali. This was 2018. Booked the ticket to Bali to surround myself with like-minded people and also to see, you know, what they were doing

Kaleem: 12:43

The digital Nomad hotspot, right? You had

Mandy: 12:46

Exactly, yeah. Yeah, I figured where in the world, do I have to be, to figure out. And, both my roots are there, but also it's one of the most popular destinations for my workers in digital nomads. So I wanted to surround myself with people who were one step ahead of me and this worked out well. So, uh, within 30 days, I had my first freelance clients. And then I had obviously the skills and the backpack now filled with experience having worked at LinkedIn, to find my own clients online as a freelance consultant. So, um, yeah, that's what I've been doing.

Kaleem: 13:15

So your time. at LinkedIn, so you took the job and they're based in Ireland. Did you actually move yourself there physically? Or did LinkedIn say, Hey, we want you to do this remotely. Cause like this, you know, for a lot of people pitching remote work to their supervisors, to their companies. Probably the only chance some of these people are going to work remotely. So what is it that you did in that, when they said, Hey, we want to hire you in Ireland, how did you manage that?

Mandy: 13:43

Yeah. So like I mentioned, I originally thought that the job was based in the U. S. because a U. S. person reached out to me on LinkedIn. Turned out to be Ireland, so I did the whole interview process remotely. But I had to be based in Ireland because that's where the headquarters was based. So, I actually moved to Ireland with all my stuff, didn't know anyone, no family, no friends, and just decided to move there, without even having been to the country. I was lucky that I had a apartment eventually next to the office, like literally two seconds walk. So I didn't have a large commute, but I still needed to. Go inside the office every single day to show my face. You know, the company cultures to work in a team and work in your office cubicle. And for me, so I really love the company culture and the people. So like I said, it was a red carpet deal, but after two years, I, um, yeah, I was really missing that, you know, the freedom to work whenever I want at what time. And wherever I want. So, uh, not to be stuck in Ireland, where it's 200 days of average rain in the whole year,

Rick: 14:44

Yeah, right. So, I mean, that was kind of a shock to you, I'm sure, but, do you think that a lot of people who choose remote work kind of have stars in their eyes and the reason for their choosing to work remotely is so they can go somewhere that they've never been. And then once they get there, they realize, maybe that wasn't such a good idea. Have you ever heard of those stories?

Mandy: 15:07

of course, I think. And I think what's interesting. So now I manage this community, right? Of 100, 000 remote workers. I think 2000 members when I, joined this community obviously during the pandemic, we exploded, to 100, 000 members. And my initial thought was as well that people want to work remotely to travel the world. That was my, you know, my mission or like why I wanted to work remotely, but actually a lot of people want to work remotely. Again, for that freedom to work whenever and wherever you want, even if it's at home with family. So right now I'm in the Netherlands and also one of the reasons, and I saw your post recently, Kalim, and I was still meaning to leave a comment, but I'm very bad in replying on LinkedIn, but um, about work and life balance and family quality time. So that's why we're now back in the Netherlands to spend more quality time with family, here back home before moving to Portugal. Because that's also a big reason why people want to work. So it's not, um, to answer your question, Rick, only about traveling and exploring the world, but also, yeah, really to have that freedom to choose wherever you want to

Rick: 16:09

Yeah. So, tell us about remote work worldwide.

Mandy: 16:14

Are you, are you a member, Rick?

Kaleem: 16:17

Oh, I am Mandy. I am a member.

Mandy: 16:23

I was about to ask, so

Rick: 16:24

I will be by the time the sun sets this afternoon, though.

Mandy: 16:28

please join the community. And maybe Colleen, you can add a link in the show notes or whatever for people so that you can join the community for those who are interested in anything remote work but yeah, remote workers worldwide, as we currently are, names, you can find it by typing remote workers worldwide in LinkedIn in the search bar. And it really started out as a passion project. I was just working remotely for six months, I think. And then I still managed this LinkedIn community also with, somebody working at LinkedIn who, started this group called Digital Nomads on LinkedIn to begin with back then, 2000 members, like I said, and, I was just craving like for like minded people to, you know, to have a center space where we can learn from each other, exchange ideas, share stories, et cetera. And especially when you work remote, I think it's difficult, you know, I actually. Quit my job and booked a ticket to Bali to be surrounded by like minded people. So I wanted to create this virtual space where members can do that in a, you know, not having to quit their job or not having to book a ticket to the other side of the world. So like I said, a passion project to start with, we changed the name a couple of times. We're now instead of digital nomads, because I figured out, you know, it's not. Just a digital nomad who wants to travel. And now we switched it to remote workers worldwide because remote workers is basically both those who work from home, or the digital nomad who wants to travel. But what they have in common is that freedom and flexibility, that they want to work from anywhere. Yeah, that's where we are like today, now we grew to 100, 000 members actually we hit 100, 000 members this month. So, uh, it's very, uh, very exciting time.

Kaleem: 20:08

Um, so Mandy, just quick question. Quick question. So you had these experience, right? So you travel first as a digital nomad.'cause you knew you wanted to travel with your twin sister. Then you're like, whoa, LinkedIn calls, we gotta end this, you know, this trip.'cause we're not making any money selling our blog stuff. You go work for a LinkedIn and you're loving it. I mean, you move to Ireland. But then a couple of years into it, you're just like, you know, my commute's nothing. I get it. But, but the freedom for me to see the world has been taken away. So you decided to go out on your own.

Mandy: 20:46

Yeah,

Kaleem: 20:47

you made that decision, what were some of the first things that you thought that you could help either individuals or companies with so you created the remote work worldwide. So what type of services does Mandy offer to either individuals or organizations?

Mandy: 21:08

yes. So what I initially started out with, like I said, I wasn't planning. Really start my own consulting business. I thought maybe I can apply for a job. And back then, you know, I actually send out some applications and I wanted to move from sales into more of the marketing space to apply for some marketing jobs. But then I quickly figured out that, there was a ton of people wanting to work remotely and only a very few offering remote work.

Kaleem: 21:34

Yes, we've all

Mandy: 21:37

exactly. And that is actually why I think many people started venturing out on their own. And for me, I figured out it's easier actually to sell my own services and to, uh, use my skills having worked at LinkedIn to, like I mentioned, you know, build my personal brand on LinkedIn and optimize my LinkedIn profile so that clients find me, but also I can find my potential clients. And, offer them services. So what I actually used to do at LinkedIn helping companies to, use LinkedIn as a sales platform. So more than organic way. So really investing in building your employer brand, but also for freelancers and entrepreneurs, specifically in consultants, coaches, et cetera, how do you use LinkedIn to get in touch with your target audience and your potential clients. So I help my current clients and businesses with how to optimize your profile, how to grow your network with your target audience, how to reach out with using LinkedIn data and insights instead of, you know, just sending out cold messages out of the blue, and then how to actually get opportunities from there. So whether that's, you know, a remote job, whether you're looking for podcasts like this, uh, you know, that you want to get more exposure. Or maybe clients as a freelancer or consultant. So that's what I've been, doing in the last few years. And I, yeah, for me, it was easier instead of applying for a job to, I got this question organically from people as I was just sharing my message, what I used to do at LinkedIn. So, organically, received requests and, I've been doing workshops for companies, both virtual and in person, but, since the pandemic, mainly virtual. One on one sessions or, more tailored experiences for, entrepreneurs and freelancers, et cetera.

Rick: 23:12

Wow. So, what are some of the biggest mistakes that you've seen companies make when they're trying to use LinkedIn?

Kaleem: 23:19

Oh, yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Mandy: 23:21

Yeah, LinkedIn, how, you know, people usually view LinkedIn as a recruitment platform. so they use, that's actually how I got my first job at LinkedIn is, yeah, that a recruiter reached out to me and that's how LinkedIn is mainly known for, you know. So people use LinkedIn as a resume platform. So they build their resume or they only update their profile when they have to change jobs, et cetera. And that's what people working at companies do as well. However, I believe that LinkedIn is the, you know, number one, most powerful on a network in the world, with more than, I think more than 900. I see it as a virtual networking party. So, but, you know, if you want to connect with an awesome LinkedIn top voice, like Kaleem, for example, you know, you can just simply search him and within seconds, you can just send him a personalized message and reach out and start this relationship from there. It's not about directly going for a sale and that's what most companies, what I see, do, uh, do wrong, where they really want to, you know, go for that end result, but it's all about, relationships and building relationships from the start. So, you know, publishing valuable content, engaging in the private messages, offering valuable resources, et cetera. And, grow organically from there. So, yeah, that's, um, one. usually see, with clients I work with. However, now I decided to, actually move a bit away from working with companies and individuals, to, help them with their LinkedIn strategy and personal branding, because, now this remote workers worldwide platform has grown to 100, 000 members. And, yeah, I was thinking what can we offer those members to help their, them in their remote journey. So that's where I am at right now.

Kaleem: 24:58

Yeah, so, you know, not to put any pressure on you about that, because it's always challenging coming up with products and services. But, you mentioned something earlier, and I'd love to just kind of get your thoughts. So, you know, we're seeing a ton of return to office stories. I think, We can all agree that those return to office stories are getting a lot of Publicity because it strikes an emotion Right and a lot of people like to click on things that strike emotion. So it might not Depict, actually what's what's accurately happening right now but You know, you've already mentioned that applying for a remote job Is really difficult right now. So if you're listening or watching There are a lot of people now who are currently employed and have jobs that have to go into the office that are also applying for these remote jobs. So you're competing against people who are currently working and employed also in addition to the people that are not employed. So what would you advise to an individual who wants to get a remote job? What would you advise them to do on LinkedIn with their profile. Like, what do you do if you've been applying, you're not getting any callbacks. Cause you're going against a million people. I actually read somewhere that it's like a point. One job was like a 0. 06 percent chance of getting the job. Cause they got so many applicants and it was harder to get into, it was harder to get that job. And it was just like an admin administrative assistant job then to get into Harvard. Like, like, yeah, yeah, yeah. So like the chances of you getting this admin assistant job that was remote was harder than getting into Harvard. So what's your advice to somebody to people that are looking for these jobs and probably don't have their LinkedIn profile optimized at all.

Mandy: 26:48

Yeah. It's really interesting because you make me realize like how actually, the personal branding is so valuable for remote workers in any level, actually. I like, whatever, you know, you're looking or applying for a job, whether you are like us, looking for maybe clients online or opportunities to, appear in the media, et cetera. Or as a business, as a remote business to really brand yourself. So I think that's, yeah, really interesting because for people who are looking for a job, I think that's, you know, that's how you stand out. I think one, um, I heard it's from CEO of remote, you'll find the fund for it, where I had a. Live session with earlier this year that on one single job, there's a thousand more than a thousand job applications. So, you know, if you have a person with a background in marketing management, for example, like myself, there is probably like dozens of people who apply with the same background. So it's all about how do you stand out from the crowd? And that's where, LinkedIn profile, for example. So. I always teach my clients kind of my four step strategy. It's called social selling, on LinkedIn. And, the number one step is to, to invest in your personal brand. And this is all, you know, before even diving into your profile, think about what is it that you want to be known for and that you believe in, like, what is your personal brand message that you want to be known for on LinkedIn. And, you know, There's only one personal brand message that probably you are familiar with and you really believe in that's like a mission statement for a company. So this is something that you can stand out from the crowd with if you create content around those brand, that brand message and optimize your profile to really showcase that on your profile as well. So that's just one example, right? Of what I usually do with my clients. But, yeah, taking a step back and think about what is that, what does that personal brand look like and what do I want to be known for, before even going to your LinkedIn profile is crucial. So that's the next step then. Go into your LinkedIn profile and then, have that's on top of mind and then optimize your profile with, cool banner image at the back, for example. I always see, this is one of the top mistakes I see people make. Again, whether you're looking for a job or, you know, whether you are, you have your own business or you're a business yourself for a CEO. It's not to have this banner image because that's, you know, the first few seconds that you make this great first impression. So make sure you have a make a killer first impression with a background image that showcases that personal brand or that brand message that you want to be known for. And then as well through your profile in your about section, etc. So yeah, that's would be the first step to get started and stand out.

Kaleem: 29:16

Wow. Y'all better. Y'all better rewind that. Y'all better. Y'all better rewind that. Play

Rick: 29:22

sorry, I was too busy scribbling notes. Could you repeat all of that please?

Kaleem: 29:27

Yeah,

Rick: 29:28

That was amazing.

Kaleem: 29:29

yeah, we've talked about personal branding on the show before, but the way you just broke it down of just thinking about yourself first. I don't think we've had anyone really articulate it in that way. Like for me, it's like, I want to be, a top remote work expert or something like that. And maybe for Rick, he wants to be the voice of remote work or something like that. Right. Like, so then, you know, Just thinking like that coming up with your mission, like, I want to tell stories about remote work that, connect to everyone's heart, And then basically, you know, in the banner image, I used to just have an image. I used to think like, you know, cause I'm from New England. I had a lighthouse up there. It was a nice photo. I thought it was great. But then looking around, I noticed that people were like stylizing their background image based on their expertise. And I was like, well, shit, I'll use the LinkedIn top voice image. Cause I think that that is just such a easy and lame way to do it. So, um, thank you very much. That was great.

Mandy: 30:25

Yeah, well, it actually gave me some inspiration as well. I think, because I think it's actually, you know, and always when I do this, only one exercise already with people, they like blows their mind. I'm like, Oh my gosh, this helps them so much just to, you know, yeah. I think about what is it that they want to be known for. So I'm actually going to include this in the, um, I'm working now on the, VIP, uh, community membership that I mentioned to you before it is, and, there's where we offer it. So this is, you know, we have the free community with 100, 000 members, and now we're working to launch this new platform for VIP members to connect on a deeper level to learn from each other and get access to more, resources to up level your remote journey. So I think this should be one of the resources. So I'm

Kaleem: 31:04

There it is. Oh, see, we just created a product. Oh. And the other point that, that you made that hit really hard was this idea of, because I feel like what happens is people get on LinkedIn when they're desperate. When they get on LinkedIn, they start becoming active when they're desperate. But at that point it's too late. But that point that you made of creating content, like on your personal blog and heck you can now use LinkedIn as your blog because you can write articles on LinkedIn. but putting out content based on your mission statement in your brand. I think that's the key part like that people miss. It's like, people ask me all the time, Oh, how'd you get a top voice? I was like, well, bro, I've been sharing remote work articles since 2013.

Mandy: 31:47

Exactly.

Kaleem: 31:48

like there's

Mandy: 31:48

Same here, yeah.

Kaleem: 31:49

there's no cheap way to do, to

Mandy: 31:51

Yeah, I love that. Yeah, that's a, yeah, you gave me inspiration already for it, you know, for a content piece, but yeah, it's so true. Like you're too late if you are at that point where you need to have that job or you need to have that client or you need to, you know, it's all about building those relationships. And then when you're ready, then. Yeah, then when the time is right, you can reach out and, it's a much smoother transition and, uh, you'll likely see more results then. Yeah, investing in personal brand today. And I actually said it earlier this year, your personal brand, I think is the most valuable currency in 2023 and beyond. And you know, it's not just about your resume, your resume alone is not going to have to help anymore. It's about, you know, building a personal brand and leveraging platforms like LinkedIn to reach your ideal opportunities.

Rick: 32:32

That is, that is absolutely incredible and, now we have reached the moment of the show where I'm hoping That you can share with us and our audience in that sweet, smooth Dutch accent. Of a comical time, a memorable, an inspiring moment, or something funny that happened to you while you were working remotely.

Mandy: 32:56

Well, I'll, I'll try to get rid of the accent, but I probably can't.

Kaleem: 33:00

Don't do that. We told you it's part of your, it's part of your brand, Mandy. What are you doing?

Rick: 33:05

don't

Kaleem: 33:05

Goodness gracious. You just told us about that.

Mandy: 33:08

That's smart. I should, yeah, I should make it part of my brand.

Kaleem: 33:11

It is. I don't know what to tell you.

Rick: 33:13

yeah,

Mandy: 33:14

All right, here it goes, comical, well there's, I'm not sure if it's comical, but it was for sure like a memorable experience while working remotely. Actually Kaleem. So we, we had one zoom chats, I think last year when I was in Lisbon, right? It's like one and a half years ago, I think, or longer whenever whenever this is. So I'm in Lisbon and a week later, I was going to go for a camper van trip. To work remotely for a week with my partner and we are there, so we have this, you know, we have our laptops, we were planning to work remotely from cool destinations, across the coast of Portugal and,

Kaleem: 33:48

Okay. And you're in a

Mandy: 33:49

middle.

Kaleem: 33:50

so you're in a camper van.

Mandy: 33:51

Camper van. Yes. So it's a small camper van. You know, we don't have a shower. We do have like this small toilet thing that you need to pull out and It's not very fancy at all.

Kaleem: 34:01

it's a it's a toilet thing. Okay. Okay.

Mandy: 34:05

It's not fancy, let's put it that way. But, we did have a good wifi. And that actually came to a Handy when we, in the middle of the night, it was super dark, and we were stuck in the sand, and we were just getting stuck in the sand even more and more, and there was nobody around us at that time, and it was, I think, 11pm at night, so there was just no way to get out, And

Kaleem: 34:27

And do you speak Portuguese? Right? Are you you're in Port,

Mandy: 34:30

and I don't no, I don't speak for police. So the next day, yeah, next day I need to call the camper van owner. And, he arranged a truck for us to come and, get us out. But we were stuck for 18 hours. 18 hours in the middle of nowhere, in a sand. But we had calls, plans to work from, from there. So, um. We, uh, ended up working from the camper van in the middle of nowhere, being stuck in the sand with perfect wifi. So nobody noticed during the calls and, uh, it all worked out perfectly fine. And it actually turned out to be one of the best memories we had of that experience.

Kaleem: 35:04

That is

Rick: 35:05

Unreal.

Kaleem: 35:06

That's great. That's great. So,

Rick: 35:07

are the stories that keep us going.

Kaleem: 35:10

yeah, they really do. So like

Rick: 35:11

Yeah.

Kaleem: 35:12

during those moments, you're stuck in the sand when you call the person, what did they say? Like, how did you communicate with them? Did you use Google translate? Did they just happen to speak English

Mandy: 35:23

This person happily spoke English, so I was happy with that. But recently we were also working remotely in Italy. In rural Italy, somewhere in the mountains. And they didn't speak any English. So we used Google Translate all the time to communicate together.

Kaleem: 35:37

that's

Mandy: 35:38

highly recommended.

Kaleem: 35:40

that's awesome. Did you get sand in your computer?

Mandy: 35:43

No, we didn't. No. So also would recommend working in the middle of nowhere in Portugal with a campervan.

Rick: 35:50

Wow. Well, Mandy, where can our viewers and listeners find you?

Kaleem: 35:56

Yeah.

Mandy: 35:57

Well, of course you can connect with me on LinkedIn, Mandy France is my last name with an S and a Z at the end. so connect with me on LinkedIn, happy to chat. And of course, join the Remote Workers Worldwide community. Just type Remote Workers Worldwide at the top search bar. And I think Colleen will add it as well in the show notes. Yeah, happy to connect and feel free to reach out if you have any questions.

Kaleem: 36:16

Thank you so much. This was cool.

Rick: 36:19

has been an absolute pleasure.

Kaleem: 36:20

Yes. And we're coming to the Netherlands, right, Rick? We're coming to the Netherlands.

Rick: 36:25

I'm

Mandy: 36:25

please.

Rick: 36:26

already booking my ticket.

Mandy: 36:29

Yes, please come visit and tell me when you are so we can have an in person meet up here.

Kaleem: 36:35

Awesome. Awesome. Thank you so much. We'll talk to you. soon.

Mandy: 36:38

Talk soon.

Kaleem: 36:39

Great. Bye.