Camilla Young is a UK-based change leader and career reinvention coach.
She leads an industry-wide digital transformation programme and plays a central role in translating complex technology into practical adoption across retail. She regularly represents this work publicly, sharing clear and accessible insight with leaders across retail and technology globally, and is recognised as a Top 100 Retail Technology Influencer. Alongside her work in tech, Camilla is the founder of Rebel Spark, where she helps mid-career professionals stop playing safe and pursue bold new chapters with clarity and confidence.
When people talk about “personal brand”, it is usually seen as something you build once you have “made it”.
That assumption stops a lot of women before they even start. If you are new to tech, or pivoting into it, imposter syndrome is loud. Everyone around you seems more experienced, and the idea of building a personal brand can feel premature, awkward, or uncomfortably close to self-promotion.
I know that feeling well. My career has been anything but linear. I moved from HR into sales and commercial leadership, and now lead industry-wide tech transformation work. Each pivot came with the same fear. I had jumped off the cliff without knowing if the parachute would open.
When I found myself responsible for driving adoption of a technology I was still learning myself, the question became unavoidable. How do you talk about your work publicly without feeling like you are blagging it?
Here is what I have learned. Personal brand in tech is not about positioning yourself as an expert. It is about building consistency in how you speak, think, and contribute.
You already have a brand whether you shape it or not. It is the sum of how people experience you. How you explain your work, the questions you ask, whether you are thoughtful, reliable, or energising to be around. Together these moments build trust.
Stop waiting to feel ready
One of the biggest traps I see women fall into is waiting for confidence to arrive before they show up. I will speak up once I know more. I will share once I have been doing this longer. I will put myself forward when someone else pushes me to do it. But confidence does not arrive first. It is built through action.
Your personal brand does not start when you feel ready. It starts when you allow yourself to be visible as you are. That might mean talking about what you are learning rather than only what you have mastered, asking thoughtful questions instead of staying quiet, or explaining complex things clearly even while you are still figuring them out yourself. None of that requires expert status. It requires presence and courage.
Redefine what expertise looks like
In tech, expertise is often imagined as deep technical knowledge. That matters, but it is not the whole picture. Career switchers frequently underestimate the value they bring because it does not look like a traditional tech CV. But expertise also shows up in other ways. Translating between technical and non-technical teams. Understanding users, customers, or commercial realities. Bringing structure, empathy, and decision-making clarity.
When I moved into digital transformation, I was not the most technical person in the room. But I was good at asking the right questions, connecting the dots, and moving people forward. Over time, that became part of my brand because I consistently showed up that way.
Build credibility through authenticity
A lot of women worry that visibility in tech means becoming louder, more confident sounding, or seeming like you know it all. It does not. In fact, people can sense very quickly when someone is performing a version of themselves that does not quite fit.
Credibility is not built through sounding like an expert before you are ready. It is built through authenticity and consistency. It comes from being clear about what you do know and honest about what you do not, following through on your commitments, staying curious rather than defensive, and letting your thinking be seen even while it is still forming.
You do not need to fake confidence to be taken seriously. You need to trust yourself and trust that showing up as you are builds far more credibility than pretending to be further along than you are.
Let your brand evolve with you
Your personal brand is not a fixed statement. It is a story being written. Especially during a pivot, it is normal for it to feel slightly unfinished, and that is not a flaw. It is a sign you are growing.
Instead of asking how to look like an expert, try asking what you want to be known for at this stage, what kind of contribution you want to make, and what you are learning that might help someone else. Answer those honestly and you are already building a strong personal brand, one rooted in integrity rather than image.
You do not need to wait until you feel like an expert to start showing up. You just need to start showing up as yourself, that is often the fastest way to earn trust.
