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We’re Too Young to Worry about Our Personal PR

7 January 2010 1,511 views Comments

This post is part of the Guest Blog Grand Tour over at Life Without Pants – an epic journey of over 75 guest posts. Want to learn more about Matt Cheuvront & see how far the rabbit hole goes? Subscribe to the Life Without Pants RSS feed & follow him on Twitter to keep in touch!

“Personal Branding” has become an idea I wish I could delete from my memory. I get it, really I do – I understand that, especially in this day and age of technological innovation and public communication, we need to consider the things we do and say, and realize that our information is not private online. But we have gotten so caught up in this concept of Personal Branding that it’s starting to take control of our lives.

beyourselfWe’ve become obsessed with maintaining and promoting a positive (personal) brand image – saying the right things, keeping up appearances, being careful not to offend, and dancing around issues. We’re an indoctrinated culture of “personal branders” who are so focused on always being at our best that we lose track of what really matters most – being ourselves – being real and honest with ourselves and each other – speaking what’s really on our mind even if it means we make a mistake from time to time.

I’m 24 years old. To me, at this age, I’m far too young to even consider being “right” all the time. I know I’m not, I know I’m just your average guy who can say stupid things, get frustrated, and retaliate when someone rubs me the wrong way. I’m human – and as far as I know, so are you. That means it should be OK to be vulnerable, OK to be wrong, OK to screw up and say the wrong thing from time to time.

The minute you stop being yourself in favor of being something you’re not in an effort to shape your personal brand is the exact moment that you lost the point of “personal branding” in the first place. There is NO right or wrong in the personal branding world. Your personal brand is YOU – whatever that means, for better or worse, you are who you are and once you embrace that and run with it, everything else will fall into place.

The Internet allows us to share ideas and discuss opinions easier than any generation that has ever preceded us. Use that to your advantage. We have tools at our disposal that no one ever has, so get out there and LEARN something – you don’t have to be perfect, no one expects you to always be on your “A” game, and it’s OK to be wrong and ask questions. Let your Personal Brand evolve and develop around YOU, don’t force yourself to model behavior after a cookie-cutter idea of what people think is “right”.

These are the years in our life where we are supposed to screw up and get things wrong. We go to high school, graduate college, and get thrown into the fire of the “real world” – which, come to find out, college doesn’t really even prepare you for. Do you honestly think you’re supposed to have it all figured out already? Do you really think a mistake here and bad decision there is really going to have a long-term effect on what people think of you forever?

I don’t. I’m open to failure and mistakes because I know they are an inevitable part of growth and success. This realization has allowed me to effectively speak my mind without regret – because at my age, the PR I create for and around myself and my “brand” is a work in progress, not a final product.

What do you think? Are we too young to be worrying about our Personal Brand? Are you as tired of hearing about “personal brands” as I am?

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  • Unfortunately only getting to this post today - but it really is a great topic to start a Friday morning for me. This hits home. I don't think we're too young to worry about our personal brand. I think we're too young to get over-worked by it. Just like you say Matt, I too am open to the mistakes I am going to make and have learned from my past mistakes. For me, I need to let things go better. Stop beating myself up for the things perhaps I could have done better and actually just do it better the next time.

    "These are the years in our life where we are supposed to screw up and get things wrong" - I forget that sometimes. Thanks for the reminder.
  • Nice post, Matt! I know I'm a little late to this comment party, but I'm just now catching up on my Google Reader and just wanted to give you a virtual high-five for this post. I don't think we're too young to be worrying about our personal brand, but I totally agree that our personal brand is, at its core, being yourself. It's important to convey yourself in a way that you can be proud of, but it's easy to get caught up in worrying about who will read what, and the tone of a comment here, or the way a certain blog post is written, or how often you tweet about your personal life, etc. Sometimes you just gotta be a 20-something, and that's totally fine. We're all changing and learning, there's no denying that. Your blog will not look the same three years from now, and your content will not be the same. That's ok. All we can trust in is that we are being ourselves, and that's totally fine.
  • laurenfernandez
    Bah. Personal branding. I almost didn't read when I knew that was the topic. :)

    I think who we are makes us endearing. I also think that if we do social marketing for brands (which many do) we do have to be careful, even on personal pages. When I write stuff on LAF, on my Twitter, on Facebook - I remember that I not only represent myself, but I represent a myriad of different things. It was obvious when I worked at Mensa that I was the PR/SM person, as well as the spokesperson. For the brands I work on now, it's also obvious. It's the reason I don't curse, talk about every little thing - it's smart transparency in my opinion. What I do reflects those brands every single day.
  • In your described case, I think it's a tough balance between representing brands and representing yourself. Because at the end of the day, you're always going to be there. The brands will come and go. You mention cursing. If that's part of who YOU are, shouldn't you just be you and not worry about it? Of course, the flip side is that you probably shouldn't while representing the brands especially if cursing isn't in line with them. But do the two ever separate in this case?

    Hmm.
  • The term "personal brand" is just another social media attempt at categorizing something that already exists (and has always existed and will always exist).

    You and I judge other people, whether we like it or not. It's neither good nor bad, right nor wrong. It's human. We have feelings, we have opinions, we have personal beliefs.

    Your actions, your words, your appearance, your decisions, they all affect my judgements of you. You can call your actions and words and appearance and decisions your "personal brand." Or you can just call them you.

    Either way, they're here to stay. You'll continue judging me and I'll continue judging you. We'll recommend each other based on these judgements, we'll make business decisions based on these judgements, we'll decide whether or not to pick each other for our kickball teams based on these judgements.

    I'm me. You're you.
  • Matt - First off, I want to commend you for writing a piece that inspires discussion. Not an easy task, yet you seem to do it with ease. As for the topic at hand, I have to disagree on a few points.

    I'm constantly confused when folks take personal branding efforts for “being someone you aren’t”. I see it as the polar opposite. Personal branding is about being exactly who you are. Here is how I define the path to building a “personal brand”: Be real, constantly improve, connect meaningfully, help others. That’s it. Nothing fake, nothing contrived, not even an eye towards what is “right”, necessarily. I honestly think it is just the term “personal branding” that gets people all freaked out.

    Also, I have to debate your notion that age is a factor in the discussion. Building a “brand”, even for century old companies, is an evolutionary process. A process that includes bumps and bruises, and one in which mistakes are inevitable. Whether 24 or 104, we are all going to screw up. And so what? Whoever said personal branding was bound by perfection?

    Lastly, I’ll leave you with the real irony here, which deserves more attention. Lots of folks (like yourself) that denounce personal branding actually tend to have some of the strongest brands around. Seems strange, right? But it makes sense. You feel personal branding is a forced, contrived activity because you already do it naturally. Your web presence, writing skills, networking ability…all have lead to an unintentional personal brand that is stronger than any manufactured brand. Take that as a compliment, but realize that not everyone possesses those natural abilities or innate understanding of why they are important. Hence, the necessity for personal branding…and the reason I like to write about it so much.
  • I once tried to register a person's name as a domain name only to find out that a parent had already registered it for their child... who was yet unborn. So, if 24 is too young, you'll soon have some stiff competition on your heels.

    These anti-personal branding posts are popping up regularly. I agree 100% that the "be yourself" component is important. I also agree that employing common sense is a good practice for the public side of the equation. What always seems to get ignored is the part of branding that should be going on in the background.

    In traditional branding, the outward facing component is the easy part. The valuable part of branding is the intense thought that goes into introspection. Distilling the essence of both where a company is and where it wants to go is imperative before any of the other stuff gets worked on.

    The next step in the process is internalizing everything that came out of the first process. More thought. More time.

    The second most valuable part of the branding process is figuring out how to connect the corporate DNA to the public through some form of communication. Just as the introspection, this typically requires multiple people with great brains.

    It isn't until we go through 3 rigorous sets of processes that we get to the dissemination of the messages themselves.

    So yes, I also agree with "Your personal brand is YOU". However, the assumption that one's common sense is a good enough substitute for the processes that traditional branding would invest 70% of their resources in figuring out seems short-sighted. Granted, some people already know exactly what they're all about and are good at communicating it. But I'd suggest that that is a rather small minority.

    Personal Branding is not just about being yourself, it's about figuring yourself out. ...introspection first, and becoming an excellent communicator second. If that groundwork had been done diligently, then (and only then) do I think it's okay to ignore personal branding as you suggest. Skipping those is the easy way out and results will typically be commensurate with the effort.
  • looooove this post. My perspective comes from the other side of the hill from 24, and this issue seems very prevalent at this age to. The key to branding is defining your self, or commonly your company, in a way that sets you apart from everyone else. The only way I can see to do that effectively is to stay true to you. As I've aged I've certainly obtained a stronger sense of who I that is, but in this age of information and busyness it gets harder and harder to stay in touch with who that is.

    Judy Garland said "Its better to do a first rate of being yourself than a second rate job of being someone else." I wholeheartedly agree and think you have done a wonderful job of articulating that in this post.
  • kenjicrosland
    What really gets me the most about personal branding is all the "pre-branding" that's going on. The idea that we have to "look good first, then do some good later." It's painful to see all the people my age who have decided to market their amazing selves and nothing else, no real product, no real message, just 10,000 twitter followers and thin air.

    Thanks for this post. It gives me the courage to be more stupid more often ;)
  • Very interesting point Kenji - I see what you're saying about the 'pre-branding' out there. Why do you think so many people are interested in creating that image before they really do anything?

    Here's to being "stupid" a little more often. I think we all can get in the habit of taking ourselves too seriously.
  • Interesting post. I don't think "personal branding" is about always being right and sacrificing your true self to do so. Where's the personal part in that? I'm 24, still trying to find my way into the PR industry and definitely don't have all the answers. But I know that you don't have to have it all figured out in order to work on establishing yourself. Your brand is YOU.

    I think a lot of people mistakenly think that personal branding is all about building a facade. Yes, I go out with my friends. No, I'm not going to post a drunk picture of myself for everyone on Twitter to see. This isn't me being fake or pretending I'm someone I'm not, though. It's common sense. David said it well: act appropriately for the situation and the environment that you're in.
  • Don't disagree with you at all Abby - as I responded to David. Personal branding is all about using common sense - being yourself - and knowing that there is a time and place for everything.

    Thanks for the comment!
  • Lets rebel by throwing a big party getting hammered, naked and posting pictures all over facebook!

    Just use your reason. Don't sacrifice who you are for anything or anyone. You wouldn't act the same way at a funeral as you would at a bar. Act according to your environment and be true to yourself, and you have nothing to worry about.

    That goes for all ages.

    David
    Community Manager, Scribnia.com
  • Right on - know your time and place - regardless of age, status, whatever. There's a time and place for everything. Personal branding to me is just a fancy way of saying "use common sense".
  • Thanks for all the great comments :)
  • Thank you for saying (much more eloquently) what I have always been thinking! Personal branding is important, but it should be natural rather than manipulated- it should be who you are, like you stated. And you are totally right- when you're in your 20's, your supposed to mess up and make mistakes. With the pressure and constant criticism Gen Y is always under, it does feel like I should have everything figured out right away. Then I remember that I'm only 22!

    Great post!
  • Thanks Sheema - I'm not sure where this whole idea of personal branding came from - but it's gotten to the point where we're just brainwashed by the idea and let it control our online identities. Be yourself and screw personal branding - you're not always going to please everyone anyways - being true to yourself is more important than appeasing to the masses ALL the time.
  • I love this discussion, Matt. To me (and yes, I know not everyone feels this way) a person's brand is not and should not be the antithesis of being yourself. They should go hand in hand.

    Conversely, I have to disagree with you about monitoring our own brands. Many of us work in an industry where what you say can and will be a reflection of the company you work for, or even its clients. Our personal brands can have a negative or positive impact on brands we have chosen to associate ourselves with, simply by being employed.
  • I don't think we're disagreeing. I am the Internet Marketing Developer for my company, responsible for building a web presence from the ground up - so a lot - pretty much everything that I do for the company is a direct reflection of me. I'm careful about being tasteful because I know that people can and will make that connection between me and who I work for - but I don't let that control who I am or what I think. That being said, it's always important to BE AWARE and know if you're representing more than just yourself.
  • megmroberts
    You make many valid points in this post, Matt. I agree with almost everything you say - that there is too much emphasis on "having it all figured out" and that building a personal brand is based on a step-by-step process that is the same for everyone. Neither is true, as you point out.

    However, I don't think we are too young to worry about our personal brand. In fact, it's imperative that we are aware of how we are perceived on and offline. The real issue is that in forming personal brands, many people try to build false reputations that do not accurately reflect their personalities. There's a fine line to walk when building a personal brand, and it's okay to include mistakes and missteps as long as you show how you've learned from them.

    So, yes, personal brands are important. Does that mean I want to read about "how to build the best one" every day? Absolutely not.

    Great insight, Matt!
  • I hear you Meg - it does matter - everything we do contributes to our overall "brand image" - there is no argument there. We just have to be sure that we're not worrying ourselves so much about our "brand" that we end up holding ourselves back from new ideas and opportunities. It's imperative to get out there and try new things - even if it doesn't always pan out according to plan and might not have the optimal effect on your personal brand.

    Thanks for stopping by Meg!
  • jonathanhyland
    Great post, Matt. I've tackled this issue myself on my blog: http://themethodofmadness.com/?p=21.

    I think you hit it on the nail on the head, and I can find a lot of agreement between both of our posts: we're young, and personal brand is all about being honest, having integrity, and being yourself. I think that you can get too caught up in "personal brand" so that you ultimately create some facade that isn't reflective of who you truly are.
  • A friend of mine, @timjahn, made a great point on my own blog today and said that too often we're looking left and right to see what everyone else is doing when we should be looking forward toward what we can be doing differently. I couldn't agree more - we have to stop worrying about what other people will think and start worrying about making the most of ourselves. Thanks for the comment!
  • Great post, Matt!

    While I've talked about personal branding on PRettySocial before, I completely agree with you that the single most important thing is to be yourself! I think a lot of people try to be what they think people want them to be, or they try to emulate someone else that seems to be "doing it right". However, you meet them IRL and realize they're NOTHING like you thought they were and then they've completely lost your trust. The thing about social media is that there's no right way to be and no right personality to have...just be yourself and the community that fits with YOU will build around you.
  • If you're trying to be something you're not - it's going to catch up with you - without a doubt. I've seen it happen time and time again and it's not worth it. Just be true to yourself - go out and try new things, make mistakes, learn from them, and keep moving forward. Your personal brand will be defined by what you do as time goes on.

    Thanks so much for having me as a guest on your blog Nicole. Any time you'd like to swing by my place and write something, you are MORE than welcome!
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