Career Transparency: Why Personal Branding Is Bullshit (SXSW)

'Personal branding' is bullshit. Diplomas are bullshit. Your network is bullshit. It's not about who you say you are, it's about who you are. It's not about being an 'expert', it's about being accountable, making mistakes and getting shit done.

Self-management used to be about self-improvement. If you wanted to be calm, you learned to meditate; if you... [read more]

'Personal branding' is bullshit. Diplomas are bullshit. Your network is bullshit. It's not about who you say you are, it's about who you are. It's not about being an 'expert', it's about being accountable, making mistakes and getting shit done.

Self-management used to be about self-improvement. If you wanted to be calm, you learned to meditate; if you wanted to be a better designer, you studied Paul Rand and William Morris; if you were looking to advance your career, you got a Masters.

Just like a corporate brand, your personal brand needs to embody who you actually are and what you represent. If you position and promote yourself as an expert, but don’t have the knowledge required to be one, you will fail.

Take Mr. Branding Expert. He spends hours over his blog, stuffing it with keywords, building profiles, shmoozing movers and shakers. He spends his savings on a Ben Sherman wardrobe and goes to SXSW. He lands a meeting with the Product Manger of a large company. She asks to see Mr. Expert's work and the successive ROI. Mr. Expert shares case studies from Lorna’s Consignment Shop, Park Ave Diner and his Uncle Bob’s plumbing business.

Ms. Product Manager then proceeds to laugh in his face and share all this with her 25k Twitter followers. Mr. Expert? Get ready for a career in sales.

This talk is not about networking or fans or Twitter. It's about transparency. It's about honesty. It's about hard work for little money. It's about being real.

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