By Siddhi Jain
New Delhi, Aug 19 (IANSlife): When Covid-19 struck in 2020 and the first national lockdown was announced, author Mainak Dhar says he observed so many people's careers get impacted - "losing jobs, feeling insecurity and sometimes, having offers rescinded".
As the author began to use his corporate sector experience to help people on LinkedIn, he found himself repeating common themes, such as doing what fits you, learning how to differentiate and how to be more intentional in showing up at key 'moments of truth'.
As he began to contemplate collating a book on this, especially for those early in their careers, the author realised how important it was to be more intentional about building an authentic, differentiated and compelling personal brand as a cornerstone of their career success.
"At that time I had been working on a thriller, the next instalment in my 'Sniper's Eye' series, but I decided to put that aside for a few months, realising that helping young people navigate their careers, especially at a time of uncertainty, was more important. That's how 'Brand New Start' was born," says the IIM-Ahmedabad alumnus about his latest book. Dhar is a self-described 'cubicle dweller by day and writer by night', and is the author of over 15 books including the 'Alice in Deadland' series, '03:02' and 'Sniper's Eye'.
His most recent book 'Brand New Start: Fast-Start Your Career with the Power of Personal Branding' aims to teach you that a lot of success at the start of your career hinges on how well you understand, articulate and present the most important brand you can work on - 'You'.
"The experience of writing 'Brand New Start' and connecting with readers through it was a great one. It combined many things I enjoy- writing, connecting with people and making a positive impact to them. The most rewarding thing for me was hearing back from readers who found ideas and insights in the book to help them do better in their careers or make choices which better fit them. I do plan to write more books which aim to equip young managers to succeed in their careers.
"I have recently signed up with Bloomsbury (the publisher of 'Brand New Start') for a title which aims to equip new leaders make a more positive impact to those they lead and to themselves as they grow in their leadership journey. That book is still work in progress and I expect it to release sometime in early 2022," he tells IANSlife.
Dhar also says that several more books are in the pipeline, across genres.