Monday, February 1, 2010

How does having a Quarterlife Crisis relate to creating a personal brand?

Since I started my public relations certificate three weeks ago, I have signed up and used more social networking sites than I can ever imagine. Facebook and Twitter were the only ones that I used out of the myriad of online communities available. Still, they were restricted to friends and family. But now I am encouraged to blog, participate in conversations with strangers on Twitter, and even make video blogs. The thought of developing an online identity and creating a personal brand is daunting.


I am not a laggard. Rather, I am the poster child for Quarterlife Crisis. No one but Kate Carraway can describe this phenomena so succintly. I am indecisive because I do not know what I want. I do not know what I want because I do not know who I am. I do not know who I am because I have been encouraged to become anyone I want. I am essentially:

  • Lost
  • Insecure
  • Indecisive
  • Frustrated


I obviously want to be a public relations practitioner. But I do not know what sector I want to be in. Fashion, entertainment, and music are among my interests. Yet, I do not consider myself as an expert in any of them. At the same time, I feel part of creating a personal brand in conjunction of an online identity is about knowing what I want to do in order to excel in a niche.


So how can I be expected to leverage social media to develop my personal brand if my offline identity is so volatile?


I do not have an answer. But I am starting to view the imminent task of creating my personal brand as an opportunity to get to know myself. Because I will be connecting with people that are outside of my immediate network on the Internet, I am hopeful that my focus and interests will be streamlined.


This blog will be my incubator. It will shape my online identity and I cannot wait to get started!