Books about Career Development (and everything else)

Through my foray into social media about 2 years ago I've met a lot of interesting people with great ideas about career development, personal branding and other nu-age ideas that are relatively cutting edge. I can't believe how many influential business books I've found through recommendations and even directly from authors I've met through social media sites such as Twitter.com and Linkdin.

It is interesting to think about who these books are targeted towards and why. Books such as "The Dip" by Seth Godin or "Me 2.0" by Dan Schawbel don't seem to me like they are targeted towards high school seniors or individuals about to graduate from college. Actually, these books seem best geared towards people who are currently working jobs that they don't find particularly fulfilling and might need a self re-invention. Am I amongst those ranks? Sure am! I love both of these books and many others like them.

I guess you can't really target young people and tell them what's up with the real world. You sort of need to just encourage them to experiment and not be afraid to take chances while they're young and have less on the table to lose.



Developing a persona brand isn't easy for anyone of any age because even though we live in a society of "individuals" (especially Generation Y!), there is still a relative hesitancy to step out into the crowd and be critiqued for who you really are, rather than being associated with a larger group. This is why personal branding is so confusing; what identity should any given individual cling to? Do you make something up that benefits you, or do you explore yourself and cultivate an image that expressed who you really are? Are the two concepts mutually exclusive?



I'm glad that I'm playing to my strengths as so many people, both famous and locally influential, have told me. I think that's the key. Not sure what the full payoff is yet, but I'm already seeing dividends and that's a great motivation to keep going. The soul searching part is tough though.

It's almost like all of these great books are written for people who are too busy to read them. But we do find time to read them. We must!

Do any of you struggle with your personal branding? Have any of you given up on the idea? If so, what alternatives are there? Just letting the chips fall where they may?

I Need Queer Eye for the Liberal Guy

http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20080925/sc_livescience/conservativeorliberalworkspacerevealsall

So I find this article to be fascinating and quite spot on. I mean, I've never been a big decorator in the traditional sense, but my clutter tends to be somewhat nice looking in my own eyes.

In every job I've had I always wind up putting the many books I read over the a course of time lined up somewhere for reference or just so I feel proud and smart for reading so damn much. I've torn pages out of magazines that had great articles that should be posted. When I interned for the state I had all my Hunter S. Thompson memorabilia out including a large font explanation of why George W. Bush is a blundering idiot compared to Richard Nixon who was a mean old "gin sot" in his own right. I definitely got some looks and everyone knew where I stood politically.

In my office now people talk half heartedly about politics and where they stand. I honestly can't bear the thought of being upset over someone else's party being different from mine when I've got more work on my plate that I know what to do with.

Currently my cubicle's entire top shelf is nothing but books that I have read this year. About 30. I let people come by and borrow them as they like. I move so much I figure even if I don't get a book back it's one less thing to box up when I hit the road again. Plus it's a great conversation piece! I mean seriously; who wants to strike up conversation about a framed picture with some flowers or a dog in them? No, I'm a stinking liberal and I want to talk about literature.

Don't even ask me about what was on television last night because unless it involves mixed martial arts or politics I probably didn't see it.

So, should I make my work space more neutral and boring like many other people have theirs, or should I keep it the way I like it? At least I feel comfortable to some extent. Plus when the networks go down I'll have something to keep me entertained.

***On a side note, I left Worcester at 7:15 am and got to work at 8:15 am with very little traffic. Nice!