Personal/Professional Separation is Dead

Want to be successful? Don't stop working. Work harder, faster and more efficiently then anyone you know. Look at the leaders of the pack and emulate their strong points, subtract their weak points and incorporate the traits into your personality. Did you lose the crowd and surge forward in your field? I'm guessing not. You just found out you were smack dab in the middle of another pack.

Now that you've come to this rather unfortunate conclusion, how do you bring yourself out front again? You have a few options: Getting an M.B.A., work on building a wider audience for a campaign, or my personal favorite injecting your personality into your brand. I'd go with number three. (Note: This assumes that you have continued to work harder then any human on this planet.)

The age of the corporate monotone voice of PR, marketing and advertising is no longer the best voice to use when talking with customers/clients. It's impersonal, annoying and extremely detrimental to your business. People are sick of filters and want to hear the unedited blasts from various people. I choose to incorporate all of my personality into my professional life. I blur the line completely. I don't even know if I really have one anymore?

This lets people into my life and makes me more accessible. I'm human, fallible and occasionally downright wrong about things. However, now you can call me on it. I've opened the door to criticism, praise and everything in between. I have no buffer zone (and no limits).

Does this incorporation of personality alienate a few folks? Sure, but for the 20% I piss off, the other 80% adore me. I like speaking my mind, not holding back and really being able to have the flexibility to call b.s. what it is. I'm 100% Stuart Foster.

Does this work for everyone? Nope. But you better start getting used to it. I'm not putting on a gray flannel suit and blindly following orders. I want to know why we are doing something, how we intend to fix a problem and the strategy behind it. I need to wrap my head around the issues at hand and take a really strategic look at what I can do to help.

Today's marketing/pr worker is no longer a cog. He/she is a finely crafted driveshaft that can function with crazy efficiency...if you place them right. You wouldn't put an exhaust system on a mini-van. So why do it with your business?

tagged as 24 hour news cycle, Marketing, Personal Branding, professional/personal, professionalism, Social Media, work leak, workaholic