Building a Brand Is How You Win as an Independent Doctor

If you’re an independent doctor, you have to build a personal brand in order to make it, so today I'll show you what that really means and how to do it in just a few steps.

Think about Doctor Mike, or even a more niche physician like Dr. Yu (MYAutoimmuneMD).

They reach a lot of people and are clearly successful, but why is that?

Well for one, they’ve established themselves in this creator economy as somebody. They're known for something.

And because of that, the right people are constantly finding them and telling others to check them out, too.

That’s what it means to have a personal brand.

Your personal brand is simply the shared understanding of who you are and what you stand for.

And building one really comes down to defining those two components and then consistently reinforcing both through content.

Let me show you what I mean.

Step One: Define Who You Are

When I was a kid growing up in Virginia, I loved playing in the snow.

I thought I was Shaun White on my little Walmart snowboard.

We had this big hill in my nana and papa’s backyard, and after every snowfall all the neighborhood kids would show up.

There were inner tubes, sleds, trash-can lids – we had all sorts of options.

I always chose the snowboard, though.

I’d pick my spot with a little jump, ride it down, hike right back up, and do it again.

After a few runs, the snow packed down and I had my own track. Once that track was set, I could fly.

Ah, to be a kid again.

The point is: before I ever went down the hill, I decided who I was. I was the snowboarder.

Branding works the same way.

Before you create content, before you post anything, you have to decide who you are.

Are you a family medicine expert like Doctor Mike? Autoimmunity like Dr. Yu? Longevity Brain health?

You have to decide before you ride, baby!

If you keep switching it up, you’ll never create your track.

If Dr. Yu talked about autoimmunity one day and something completely different the next, he wouldn’t be known for anything at all. His name wouldn’t come up.

And nothing would compound.

So the first step to building a personal brand is as follows.

Define who you are by sticking to your one area of expertise, or you won't be defined at all.

Step Two: Define What You Stand For

Now, just like there are many brands of cars or basketball shoes, there will always be other doctors in your niche.

What makes you stand out isn’t being the only one, it’s defining what you stand for.

Doctor Mike isn’t just a family doctor.

He’s like the ambassador for western medicine who aims to make the field of medicine relatable, understandable, and fun (his words).

I think that's pretty clear in everything he creates.

When you define what you stand for, you get a north star.

It’s the spot at the top of the hill you keep returning to.

The style you develop on the way down, how you explain things, how you show up, how you teach, that’s what makes your brand feel like you.

And that’s how personal brands are built.

Not by doing everything, but by choosing your sled and riding the same track, over and over, until it compounds.

So here's step two:

Define what you stand for... it's the belief that guides everything you create.

• What do you believe about your field that others don’t emphasize enough?
• What outcome are you obsessed with helping patients achieve?
• What’s the hill you’re willing to climb every single day?

And here’s the final step for building your personal brand.

Step Three: Reinforce It Every Time You Show Up

Reinforce your brand every time your business shows up online and in person.

Marketing and branding are about taking deliberate action to make your message stick and shape how people perceive you.

So that means you have to stay on message and be the same person everywhere you show up.

In every:

• video
• post
• podcast interview
• media appearance
• speaking engagement.

Each one is another run down the track.

And the more runs you take, the more packed that snow becomes.

You get clearer. Your message gets sharper. You understand your audience better.

And they understand you faster.

One of the most practical things you can do is create a one-sentence identity that you repeat consistently.

Not something clever. Something clear.

For example:

“I’m a brain health physician, and I believe cognitive decline is largely preventable when you act early.”

Or:

“I’m a longevity doctor, and I believe most age-related disease is delayed because we intervene too late.”

You say it at the beginning of your videos. It shows up in your bio. It shapes how you answer questions.

And every time you reinforce that same identity and belief, you’re taking another run down the track.

Over time, something powerful starts to happen.

The right people find you organically.

They share your content to those who need it because you’re easy to explain.

Then they start searching your name instead of a general keyword.

Collaborators and media choose you because you’re clearly known for something.

Your area of focus is defined. Your ideology is defined.

Your brand is established.

And when that happens, your name alone draws attention.

You’re no longer a needle in the haystack of search results.

Your name becomes the search term.

That’s how this works.

You choose your sled. You choose the spot on the hill you want to go down. And then you ride that same track over and over until it compounds.

That’s how independent doctors win.

Not by doing everything.

But by being clearly known for something, consistently.