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Why Should Anyone Hire You?

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Lesson Plan

Personal Brand Blueprint

Students will identify their unique skills, strengths, and passions, and learn to articulate their personal value proposition to potential employers.

Understanding and communicating your unique value is crucial for standing out in today's competitive job market. This lesson provides practical tools to help students recognize and express what makes them a valuable asset.

Audience

9th-12th Grade Students

Time

65 minutes

Approach

Interactive discussion, individual reflection, and group activities.

Materials

Whiteboard or projector, Your Unique Selling Proposition Slide Deck, Strengths & Skills Brainstorm Activity, My Career Superpowers Reflection Journal, and Pens/pencils

Prep

Prepare Materials

15 minutes

Step 1

Warm-Up: First Impressions (5 minutes)

5 minutes

  • Greet students and ask: 'Imagine you have 30 seconds to tell someone why they should listen to you or trust you with a task. What would you say?'
  • Facilitate a brief class discussion. (Teacher Note: This ties into the concept of making a strong first impression and quickly communicating value.)

Step 2

Introduction: What is Your Unique Value? (10 minutes)

10 minutes

  • Use Your Unique Selling Proposition Slide Deck (Slides 1-3) to introduce the concept of 'unique value' and 'personal brand.'
  • Discuss why it's important to know what makes you stand out.
  • Ask students to think about examples of brands or people who clearly communicate their unique value.

Step 3

Activity: Strengths & Skills Brainstorm (20 minutes)

20 minutes

  • Distribute the Strengths & Skills Brainstorm Activity.
  • Guide students through the activity, encouraging them to think broadly about their academic, extracurricular, and personal experiences.
  • Circulate and offer support, prompting students with questions like 'What are you good at?' 'What do you enjoy doing?' 'What challenges have you overcome?'

Step 4

Group Share & Discussion (15 minutes)

15 minutes

  • Divide students into small groups (3-4 students).
  • Have students share 2-3 key strengths or skills they identified on their Strengths & Skills Brainstorm Activity with their group.
  • Facilitate a brief whole-class discussion, asking groups to share common themes or surprising discoveries.

Step 5

Wrap-Up: My Career Superpowers Reflection (10 minutes)

10 minutes

  • Introduce the concept of 'Career Superpowers' as their unique combination of strengths, skills, and passions.
  • Distribute the My Career Superpowers Reflection Journal.
  • Explain that this journal is for them to synthesize their thoughts and begin crafting their personal value statement.
  • Allow students time to begin writing in their journals. Encourage them to use the brainstorming activity as a reference.

Step 6

Homework/Extension (5 minutes)

5 minutes

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Slide Deck

Why Should Anyone Hire You?

Discovering Your Unique Value!

Welcome students and introduce the topic. Start with a hook about standing out.

What's Your Unique Value?

It's what makes you stand out!

  • Your strengths
  • Your skills
  • Your passions
  • Your experiences
  • Your personality

Explain what 'unique value' means in the context of careers. It's not just about skills, but also personality and passions.

Your Personal Brand

Like a company, you have a brand!

  • How do you present yourself?
  • What do people think of when they hear your name?
  • Why is your 'brand' important for your future?

Connect unique value to the concept of a 'personal brand.' Ask students for examples of strong personal brands (e.g., athletes, artists, entrepreneurs).

Discover Your Superpowers!

Today, we're going to uncover:

  • What you're great at
  • What you love to do
  • How to talk about it with confidence!

Introduce the idea that identifying these aspects is the first step. Explain that the next activity will help them dig deeper.

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Activity

Strengths & Skills Brainstorm: Uncovering Your Unique Value

Think about all aspects of your life – school, hobbies, family, volunteer work, clubs, part-time jobs, and even challenges you've overcome. What makes you, you? What are you good at? What do you enjoy?

Part 1: My Strengths

List at least 5 of your personal strengths. These can be personality traits, qualities you admire in yourself, or things you do well.

Examples: Creative, organized, good listener, problem-solver, resilient, empathetic, reliable, leader, curious.
















Part 2: My Skills

List at least 5 skills you possess. These can be academic skills, technical skills, artistic skills, or practical skills.

Examples: Writing, public speaking, coding, drawing, playing an instrument, teamwork, time management, research, critical thinking, customer service, conflict resolution.
















Part 3: My Passions & Interests

What do you genuinely enjoy doing? What topics or activities make you feel energized and engaged? List at least 3.

Examples: Helping others, learning new languages, playing sports, creating art, advocating for causes, understanding technology, solving puzzles.










Part 4: Experiences That Shaped Me

Think of 2-3 significant experiences (e.g., a project, a challenge, a leadership role, a personal achievement) and briefly describe what you learned or how you grew from them.

  1. Experience:



    What I learned/how I grew:





  2. Experience:



    What I learned/how I grew:





  3. Experience:



    What I learned/how I grew:





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Journal

My Career Superpowers Reflection Journal

Now that you've brainstormed your strengths, skills, passions, and experiences, it's time to reflect and define your unique career superpowers! These are the special qualities and abilities that make you stand out and will be valuable in any job or future endeavor.

Prompt 1: My Top 3 Superpowers

Look back at your Strengths & Skills Brainstorm Activity. What are the 3 most important or impactful strengths/skills you possess? Explain why you chose each one and how it could be useful in a career.

  1. Superpower 1:



    Why it's important:










  2. Superpower 2:



    Why it's important:










  3. Superpower 3:



    Why it's important:










Prompt 2: Crafting My Unique Value Statement

Imagine you're introducing yourself to a potential employer or someone who can help you with your career goals. How would you describe your unique value in 1-2 sentences? What makes you different and valuable?

Hint: Combine your strengths, skills, and passions into a powerful statement.













Prompt 3: Looking Ahead

How does understanding your unique value make you feel about your future career prospects? What's one step you can take this week to further develop or showcase one of your superpowers?













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