"In tough competition, learning to navigate is the key to turning challenges into success."
Welcome to ValiantCEO Magazine’s exclusive interview with Talyn Rahman-Figueroa, the dynamic force behind Boss Diplomat—a brand consultancy that transforms solopreneurs into industry Brand Ambassadors.
In this captivating discussion, Talyn shares insights into the art of personal branding and business evolution.
As a former diplomat turned brand expert, Talyn’s journey is a testament to the transformative power of a compelling personal brand. Boss Diplomat emerges from Talyn’s extensive experience with Grassroot Diplomat, where she trained citizens to become diplomats and worked with public figures on enhancing their personal brands.
Now, her mission is to turn business leaders into Brand Ambassadors, believing in the potential of every solopreneur to become an industry icon.
Join us as Talyn reflects on her past successes, navigates the challenges of business competition, and provides invaluable advice for thriving in the ever-evolving landscape of entrepreneurship.
This exclusive interview unveils the strategies and philosophies that have propelled Boss Diplomat to new heights, offering a glimpse into the mind of a visionary leader shaping the future of personal branding.
Check out more interviews with entrepreneurs here.
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Table of Contents
We are thrilled to have you join us today, welcome to ValiantCEO Magazine’s exclusive interview! Let’s start off with a little introduction. Tell our readers a bit about yourself and your company.
Talyn Rahman-Figueroa: Led by the charismatic Talyn Rahman-Figueroa, Boss Diplomat is a brand consultancy that specializes in turning solopreneurs into Brand Ambassadors for their industry. Our mission is to craft personal brands that are so powerful, they can’t be ignored!
We do this by uncovering the real story behind the business owner, and weave threads of their backstory into the foundations of their overall business brand. As a diplomat-turned-brand expert, Talyn is a great example of how powerful a personal brand can be.
Boss Diplomat is the natural evolution of all the work Talyn did in
diplomacy through her first company, Grassroot Diplomat. As a diplomat consultant, Talyn trained citizens to become diplomats, and worked with public figures in upgrading their personal brands.
Turning people into Ambassadors is what she does. Now we turn bosses/ business leaders into Brand Ambassadors because we believe every solopreneur can become the brand icon in their industry.
Talyn now works with solopreneurs who are service providers, product developers, and content creators.
As an entrepreneur who has done all three in the past, Talyn has a rich cultural history in working with people from different countries, backgrounds, and social needs, and has lived in 4 continents.
What advice do you wish you had received when you started your business journey and what do you intend on improving in the next quarter?
Talyn Rahman-Figueroa: When I reflect on the inception of my business journey, I wish I had received advice on navigating the intense competition that characterized my experiences.
Despite being highly qualified in my field, the cutthroat nature of the business world, where a sharper presence could easily steal the spotlight, was a constant challenge. After a decade of swimming in a sea with sharks, I discovered the game-changing potential of personal branding.
By narrowing my focus to working with diplomats and politicians, I not only found my niche but also created a significant buffer against the fierce competition. Suddenly, what was once a constant battle for opportunities became a distant echo.
As a trained diplomat, I mastered the delicate dance of understanding and connecting with individuals of high stature, enabling me to carve out my expertise in diplomacy. Now, I’m taking that skill set directly to solo entrepreneurs, recognizing them as the lifeblood of our society. In the next quarter, my primary focus is on leveraging this expertise to help solo entrepreneurs stand out in their industries.
I aim to make my clients the uncontested choice through targeted campaigns, including press, media, and influencer marketing. The goal is not just to survive in the competitive landscape but to thrive and become the go-to figure in their respective fields. By turning personal stories into powerful business brands, I’m here to make my clients the leaders in their industries, transcending the challenges posed by competition.
Online business keeps on surging higher than ever, B2B, B2C, online shopping, virtual meetings, remote work, Zoom medical consultations, what are your expectations for the year to come and how are you capitalizing on the tidal wave?
Talyn Rahman-Figueroa: Zoom meetings are not going to go out of fashion any time soon.
In fact, there are more virtual and digital businesses that are embracing the stay-at-home lifestyle and therefore looking for growth opportunities on building their business on the online space whilst also maintaining traditional networking opportunities in person.
This is why it is more important now than ever before to ensure that your personal brand matches with the perceived value of your business, and what people see online is the person they get to meet in person.
Business is all about overcoming obstacles and creating opportunities for growth. What do you see as THE real challenge right now?
Talyn Rahman-Figueroa: Many business owners are ghosts in their own company who stay behind the business and expect other people (consultants or employees) to be more client-facing than them. However this leads to a lot of missed opportunities, brand misalignment and misunderstanding.
If business owners were the face of the business and more involved
in speaking on behalf of their business like what a spokesperson or a brand ambassador would do, they have a higher chance of connecting more deeply with their target
audience.
In your experience, what tends to be the most underestimated part of running a company? Can you share an example?
Talyn Rahman-Figueroa: Working with solopreneurs, I often have clients who claim to be shy and cannot be in front of their business.
What I’m offering instead is giving business owners the power to control what they say in their business, how much of themselves are part of the business, and what story to share to connect with their target audience. This isn’t a reality TV show where you bare your soul to the world.
Instead, it becomes an opportunity to reveal a small portion of yourself that fits well with why you started the business in the first place and giving your audience the answers they want before they decide to invest and work with you.
Don’t lead with your product or service, lead with yourself. For example, if you’re an artisan soap maker who is only showing off their products, it becomes difficult to differentiate you from other competitors in a similar space.
However, if you decided to talk about why you started to make soap and build a narrative behind the founding of your business and how much these soaps mean to you, building stories around each soap, and then talking about the product itself, it changes the narrative and people look at you in your business differently.
On a lighter note, if you had the ability to pick any business superpower, what would it be and how would you put it into practice?
Talyn Rahman-Figueroa: My business superpower would be to replicate myself and the space and time around me so that I’m able to help and work with more people without doubling my hours.
But of course, there truly only is one of me (just like there is truly only one of you) so I have decided to delegate non- essential tasks like marketing to my assistant so that I can focus on working on clients and focus on the bigger picture.
Jed Morley, VIP Contributor to ValiantCEO and the host of this interview would like to thank Talyn Rahman-Figueroa for taking the time to do this interview and share her knowledge and experience with our readers.
If you would like to get in touch with Talyn Rahman-Figueroa or her company, you can do it through her – Linkedin Page
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