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By Tamsin Mackay, Brand Storyteller and Director of Coffee Content

Michelle Obama said it perfectly when she said there is a power in a woman allowing her voice to be heard, in telling her own story, and in using her authentic voice. Today, especially, women’s voices need to be louder as access to roles and opportunities for women are regressing across the world. The McKinsey Women in the Workplace report from December 2025 found that women are experiencing less career support and even fewer opportunities to advance as ‘companies show a declining commitment to women’s progress.

So how can we take up space and own our future? We can stand out with authenticity and create a space that allows for other women to rise with us. And we can focus on building our own brands in ways that allow us to establish the right relationships, grow our own skills, and expand our voices into new areas without compromising our peace of mind. 

It’s time to make 2026 the year you build your Big Beautiful Brand Bible (B4).

1: Create your own evidence bank

If you’re a seasoned career professional, this may take a while, and you may find you’ve forgotten more than you remember about your achievements but take the time to create a running log of outcomes and impacts. Use a simple format such as context, your action, and what changed. If you can, capture numbers such as time saved, revenue earned, risk reduced, satisfaction improved – data like this is invaluable for building your B4. If possible, get quotes from people who worked with you on these projects as these are just golden when you’re building your profile. 

Why does it matter: Because you’re creating proof points of your strategic impact alongside data that reflects the value of your work which can be used to enhance your online presence, bolster your resume, and support your career progression. 

2: Create your positioning statement

This is a tough one. It’s harder than you realise coming up with a single one-line positioning statement that defines your skills, capabilities and value within the business context, but once you’ve done it, you’ll be amazed at how it helps you to focus your career goals and abilities. Some ideas to help you:

• Lead with outcomes and start with the result you create like: ‘I help teams deliver complex projects on time without burnout’.
• Use a simple formula ‘I turn [problem] into [result] for [who]’ or ‘I am the go-to for [thing] when [stakes],
• Be specific – don’t say ‘I help teams thrive’ instead say ‘My teams achieve X% above others’.
• Keep it short and easy to remember so you can share it easily and people can understand it instantly.

This statement is so useful. It is the cover tagline for your B4 and it is also your LinkedIn headline, your About section opening line, your Instagram bio, your website hero line, your speaker profile tag line, your email signature line, your interview answer, your panel intro. The list is endless. 

Spend time creating it and test it on friends and colleagues to see if they agree or if they’d add things. Women tend to be more conservative in their recognition of their abilities so let this statement be both bold and beautiful. 

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3: Define your brand voice

These are your rules. Isn’t that divine? Isn’t it just delicious to have the ability to decide exactly how your brand will communicate and connect and you get to be as creative as you want. Your brand voice does need some rules, but these will evolve and change alongside you and your career.  You need to ensure your voice matches your industry, is authentic to who you are as a person, captures your personality, and reflects the perception of you that you want to earn.

• Choose three words you want people to associate with you (credible, calm, human, warm, bold, thoughtful)
• Choose three traits (clear, direct, smart)
• Pick your tone for your communication – make sure this is who you are otherwise it will feel false (calm authority, approachable leader, witty creative)
• Build your word bank. This is so much fun. What words feel like you? What words have a shape and flavour you love? Put these into your Big Beautiful Brand Bible and use them when communicating. 
• Create a list of words you do not want associated with your brand. These are just as important. 
• Decide what you believe in – this is your spine and what you will stand behind. Create a list of three beliefs that give you grounding and that you can return to when you feel like you’re losing focus. These will also help you to set healthy boundaries, so you know what you won’t do, won’t tolerate, and won’t participate in.

4: Build your signature strengths story

You have so many strengths. Identify three that come up in feedback reviews, conversations and that you rely on in your business. Write a short proof story for each one so you can clearly articulate why these strengths are invaluable to you and to those who hire you. 

These four steps are only just scratching the surface – there is so much more you can do to create your Big Beautiful Brand Bible and use it as your stepping stone to your voice, your identity and your career future. Just remember, as you embark on this bold adventure, that this is about you. So have fun and embrace the experience because you can use every drop of knowledge you gain about yourself to expand your presence and shout even louder in the market. 

Tamsin Mackay is a Brand Storyteller and Director of Coffee Content

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