Personal Brand, Personal Experience – Part 2 of 2

March 16, 2010 • Joseph Thornley • JosephThornley, personalbran, personalbrand

Yesterday, I posted part 1 of my Personal Brand Camp keynote presentation, in which I talk about my pre-social media existence and my general approach to presenting myself online. Today, in part 2, I talk about what I have learned and offer some guidelines that I live by.

If you are thinking about the concept of your “personal brand” or simply how others see you online, I hope you find these simple rules to be helpful.

There’s only one me

Personal brand sounds like a marketing concept, something where can I separate myself from my brand and my brand is a contrivance. That’s not possible. Ultimately, my brand is about me. And there’s only one me.

Be conscious of my decisions, but never contrived

I make conscious decisions about what I will reveal (I protect my privacy by thinking through my boundaries in advance), what I want to say about things and how I want to interact with other people. Authenticity will be seen. Duplicitousness will be seen through.

I must be conscious of my decisions, which is good, but definitely not contrived, which would be artificial and bad.

Be introspective and self aware

Before going online, I ask myself, “Who do I want to see in the mirror?” Once online, I’m mindful of how others perceive me. I must acknowledge that what other people see in me is what I am. And I understand that if others don’t see the same person who I see in the mirror, then I have failed in communicating who I really think I am.

Lies will be found out

There’s no point in trying to construct and project a “public persona” different from the private person. And the judgment that I exercise in my personal life will reflect upon the judgment that I may exercise in your public life.

I can’t hide deception. We’re all just too visible for that. And too many of our friends are online and connecting with one another. If they see deception, they’ll recognize it and they’ll call it out. So, I try always to be honest and not live a lie.

It’s not just about the words. Actions speak louder.

From time to time, I have been called to account through social media. I may not like what people tell me. But I must listen to what they say and accept that some of it may be right. And if it is, the true test of my character is whether I act upon it. If I’m not prepared to change the way I am, I will be a lesser person.

Be human. Be vulnerable

Vulnerability is a basic human condition. If we aren’t willing to show our vulnerability, we won’t come across as authentic or trustworthy.

I’ve learned to admit when I have uncertainties. It’s hard to do. But it will lead to much stronger and real relationships.

“Draft” is my friend

It never hurts to think twice about something we might want to say. If I’m in doubt, if I’m writing in the heat of the moment, I save it, sleep on it and don’t hit the “publish” button until I’ve had time for second thoughts. ‘Nuff said.

Sarcasm and sniping are the refuge of the unimaginative

Why hurt someone to demonstrate how smart and witty I am? It’s harder to be original in my thinking and to advance our understanding in a positive way. Why not be kind, honest and helpful to everyone? It won’t cost anything and I’ll feel a lot better about myself when I face that moment of truth before sleep puts an end to the day.

Don’t feed the trolls

I never respond to anonymous comments. Unless I recognize truth in what they say. (See “Actions speak louder” above)

Trust is the currency and I have to earn it

You’ve heard the mantra before: Transparency, authenticity, reliability, generosity. Absorb them. Live them.

I try not to keep a tally sheet of who received how much. Instead, I simply give as best I can and then celebrate when I receive something back.

Become the person I want to see in the mirror

Put all of this together and I will thrive in social media. At least this is what I believe and this is what I try to live by.

Personal Brand, Personal Experience – Part 1 of 2

March 15, 2010 • Joseph Thornley • personalbrand, personalbrandcamp

Do you think you have a “personal brand?” Do you consciously develop or manage it?

I’ve been online for several years and never really thought of myself as having a “personal brand.” But I had to give it some thought when Michael Cayley invited me to keynote Personal Brand Camp 2 in Toronto. What I came up with was probably the most personally revealing presentation I’ve ever been called upon to deliver. I’ve decided to share it here. I hope you find it helpful in sorting out your own perspective on your online “personal brand.”

I’ve broken the video into two parts so that I can upload it to YouTube.

In part 1, which I’m posting today, I talk about my pre-social media existence and my general approach to presenting myself online. In part 2, which I will post tomorrow, I’ll talk about what I have learned and offer some guidelines that I live by.

What do you really know about me?

What do you know about me? Chances are, you know what you find on Google – my involvement in social media, Third Tuesday, my support of others in social media or through my companies, Thornley Fallis and 76design. Probably, you are unaware as the people in this video of my 35 year involvement with the Liberal Party of Canada, much of which time I spent in senior roles at the national level. In effect, my pre-social media life has been pushed to the background by how I have defined myself through social media. What doesn’t show up on the first page of search or in the flow of conversation seems almost not to exist.

Before social media, others defined me

In the pre-social media era, others defined me. What reporters and columnists said in traditional media was taken as gospel. However, I’d read the paper in the morning or watch the TV news and know that what I read and saw was not an accurate portrayal of who I really was or what I believed in. The problem with the news media, I realized, is that it’s one way. I was impotent to change what the media reported.

Others were defining who I was and I wasn’t very happy about that.

Through social media, we all own our own barrel of ink

Then I discovered social media. Through social media, I realized that I had my own barrel of ink. I could have a voice. I could be heard. I could take control of who I was. And the proof is in Google. Search for “Joseph Thornley” and you’ll see that I have been able to define who I am.

Not a marketing contrivance. Just me

But do I think of what I have done as creating a personal brand? Not really. I think instead that everyday I’m online is a chance for me to look in the mirror, to see what kind of person I really am. It’s not a marketing contrivance. That’s fake. It’s just me.

And I’m happy with where I am.

Tomorrow: What have I learned?

Two students are on their way to the Social Media for Government Conference

March 1, 2010 • Joseph Thornley • AdvancedLearningInstitute, ALI, SocialMediaforGovernment

Two students are on their way to the Social Media for Government Conference in Ottawa this week. I asked students to tell my why they would like to attend and how the conference subject matter fits with their studies and their interests. Melissa Loomans and Femi Fasoyinu earned the free tickets through their comments on my post.

I’ve also offered them an opportunity to guest post about their experience here on ProPR.ca. They’ve both accepted the invitation. So watch for these posts later this week or early next week.

Both Melissa and Femi persuaded me not only that they are interested in the conference content, but that they will put to good use what they learn there. Here’s what they said in their submissions.

Melissa Loomans

I am currently completing my last semester as an undergrad in Public Relations at the University of Guelph-Humber in Toronto.

A final thesis is required for graduation and the topic I have chosen focuses on the need for the Government of Canada to implement social media as a communication tool for relaying messages to citizens. A creative aspect of this thesis is creating a social media marketing plan outlining how social media (internal government tool and external tools) can be implimented into elements of the Youth Employment Strategy to help with promotion, FSWEP recruitment and public service renewal. Attending this event would allow for an understanding of how social media is already being implemented and the challenges these departments had to overcome or are facing.

I have spent the last three years working for Service Canada (formerly the HRSDC) where I have worked as a team lead on youth programs and assisted in client affairs. I’m currently completing a co-op term working as a Media Liaison Officer. A major project I am undertaking is promoting the use of internal social media / web 2.0 tools to supervisors and coordinators.

I am incredibly passionate about the public service and am interested in having the opportunity to speak with other government communicators and to network with them in an effort to learn more about what other branches of the government are responsible for and what they have to offer.

Femi Fasoyinu

I am a second-year public relations student at Algonquin College. I am very interested to see how online conversation is changing how businesses communicate and how the government is looking to get involved in this conversation.

As a young person in the government, I want to be at the forefront of this conversation. I want to understand how it is going to affect the relationship government has to the Canadians they serve.

Currently, I work for Human Resources and Skills Development Canada in the Medical Expertise Division, CPP Appeals, and have done so for the last two years.

It has been a great experience working with doctors, adjudicators, lawyers, and other support staff in providing service to the thousands of Canadians whose disability has hindered them from the simple daily tasks we able bodied people take for granted.

The importance of social media in PR and communication is growing and will continue to grow. It allows us to touch different networks in speeds we haven’t thought possible before.

If I can bring the knowledge from this conference to my department, the communication processes for both the internal and external networks at Human Resources and Skills Development Canada has the potential to be improved and be a greater benefit to all who are involved.

Internally, communication between support staff, doctors, adjudicators, and lawyers has the opportunity to be improved and so there are better relations between this diverse group.

Externally, the Canadians we serve will be able to receive the information that will impact their lives in ways that will be more convenient to them and more efficient to us in our department.

Well done Melissa and Femi. I’m looking forward to meeting you at the Social Media for Government Conference.

Social Mediators 2 – Are you always one of us?

February 22, 2010 • Joseph Thornley • davefleet, SocialMediators, TerryFallis, TTC

In this week’s Social Mediators, Terry Fallis, Dave Fleet and I talk about corporate online communications polices and then delve into the case of the Toronto Transit Commission’s handling of their social media crisis.

Following my post of the new Thornley Fallis Online Communcations Policy, I received an unusual spike of traffic on ProPR. Over 1,300 pageviews on a Sunday, which is normally my lowest traffic day, followed by an increase the next day to over 1,500 pageviews. This, compared to the couple hundred pageviews on an average day. When I checked my Google Analytics, I saw the source of the traffic: MetaFilter. My post was the subject of a pretty heated discussion, focusing especially on my admonition to employees to be mindful that

Each of us represents the company to the world and the character of the company is defined by our beliefs and actions. We must be mindful of this when participating in social media and any kind of online communications.
You may be active in social media on your own account. That’s good. But please remember that whether you are on your own time or company time, you’re still a member of our team. And the judgment you exercise on your own time reflects on the judgment you exercise at work. There’s only one you – at play and at work.

Terry and Dave weigh in with their own view about this in our Social Mediators discussion. Dave suggests that guidelines and policies need to be closely tied to the prevailing company culture. He likens social media guidelines to a “safety net.” Terry suggest that it goes both ways. If you do something that reflects negatively upon your employer, it most likely also reflects negatively on you as an individual. “Once something bad happens”, adds Dave, “it’s like the toothpaste is already out of the tube.”

The TTC found itself facing a series of citizen criticism that started with a picture of a subway ticket taker asleep on the job and a bud driver who stopped his bus mid-trip for a coffee break. Management sent an email to employees suggesting that “you and you alone are responsible for your actions” and the employees fired back at the public. The damage has been done. We discuss whether it’s too late for the TTC to recover.

With logo

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Sites referred to in this episode:

Marketers Miss the Mark with Twitter, Mitch Joel

TTC Staffer caught apparently sleeping on job, National Post

Alleged TTC napper under investigation, National Post

TTC union shocked at uncaring response of riders to “sleeping” staffer, National Post

Second photo emerges of another alleged TTC napper, National Post

About Social Mediators

Each week, Joseph Thornley, Terry Fallis and Dave Fleet talk about social media, ubiquitous connectivity and their impact on communication, organizations and society.

Future episodes will be published on ProPR.ca and on Social Mediators.

A chance for two students to attend the Social Media for Government Conference

February 18, 2010 • Joseph Thornley • AdvancedLearningInstitute, ALI, SocialMediaforGovernment

I’d like to offer two students a chance to attend the Social Media for Government conference being organized by the Advanced Learning Institute (ALI) in Ottawa March 2-3.

What you’ll hear

The conference will feature a strong lineup of speakers presenting case studies of how government has used social media – both internally and externally. Sessions and presenting organizations will include:

Engaging your employees before you engage the public, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada;
Using social media to build relationships and reduce crime, Toronto Police Services;
Developing a collaborative network in a hierarchical organization, Canadian Forces Aerospace Warfare Centre;
Social Media And Government Communications: Using social media to communicate and engage the public while complying with government policies and laws, Government of Canada’s Community Communications Office;
Making the business case for social media, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation;
Social media strategy rules of engagement and evaluation metrics, Human Resources and Skills Development;
Using social media to address the needs of a diverse audience, Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-term Care;
Using Facebook and Twitter to communicate in an ever-changing communications environment, Genome Alberta;
Strategy before tactics, Public Safety Canada;
Expanding your social media network while staying within your agency’s guidelines, standards and policies, Parks Canada;
Using social media on both sides of the firewall, Canadian Tourism Commission;
Social networking to create a more agile and responsive organization, Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency;
New web analytics for a new wave of social media, City of Ottawa;
Using social media to foster innovation and drive change in a large organization, Royal Bank of Canada (Yes, not a government organization. But a very large organization exploring the use of social media.)

I’ll be chairing the conference and presenting a workshop on the day before it opens.

How you can attend

As I was preparing, it occurred to me that this conference would be a wonderful learning experience for a student interested in social media, communications, political science or journalism. But the registration probably puts it out of reach of all but the wealthiest students.

So … I bought a couple tickets to the conference and I’d like to give them to two students who will benefit from the sessions.

Interested in attending? Here’s how you can get one of these tickets.

Leave a comment below or write a post on your own blog explaining how this learning experience would fit in with your academic studies.

I’ll read the comments and posts and offer the tickets to the two students who I think make the best case. Simple.

So, if you’re a post-secondary student and you’d like to attend, tell me why. Also, if you know a student who you think could benefit from this opportunity, please point out this post to them.

I’ll select the winning students at 5PM Feb. 25 and contact them that evening.

Social Media: An Ounce of Prevention – in 500 words

February 12, 2010 • Joseph Thornley • No Tags

This week, I spoke at a conference of senior executives responsible for healthcare infrastructure projects. Projects such as new hospitals and expansions or relocations of existing institutions are important to their communities. And they are frequently caught up in controversy as they work their way through approval processes.

After my presentation, the conference organizers asked me to prepare a 500 word summary of my presentation for inclusion in the conference proceedings. I’m sharing this summary here in the hope that it might be useful to you.

———

Social Media: An Ounce of Prevention

Social media has given voice to every citizen with an Internet connection. It also has enabled them to find others who share their interests and to form online communities that they can use to organize real world activities and events. This happens in real time and transcends geography.

Tomorrow’s opinion leaders on any given topic may be unknown to us today. But if they use social media to say something that rings true with others, it can be shared instantly among new social circles, reaching far beyond the immediate followers of the initial writers. The Canadians Against Proroguing Parliament Facebook group is a prime example of this. A page created by a university student, Christopher White, attracted 225,000 fans, inspired others and, ultimately, led to thousands of Canadians attending anti-prorogation rallies in cities across Canada.

What can organizations do to protect themselves against social media-driven crises? Participate. Earn trust as a member of the community that shares your interests.

Six steps to social media success

So, you’re the leader of an organization. What should you do?

Designate a senior executive as champion of the organization’s exploration of social media. This executive must ensure that the organization’s culture is ready for social media. Mistakes should be treated as learning experiences, not causes for dismissal. The opinions of the community must be valued. The organization must be prepared to act on what they hear, even if it isn’t what it wanted to hear.
Define objectives, clearly stating what the organization hopes to achieve through participation in social media.
Develop and publish social media guidelines to provide employees with parameters for their social media activity.
Simultaneous with this internal preparation, begin to listen to the online conversations relevant to your organization. What subjects are being discussed and what is being said? By whom? Which social media are being used?
Participate in the social media conversation. Never come with empty hands or with a “now that I’ve arrived the party can begin” attitude. Like a good guest or a new friend, it’s always best to enter the conversation where it already exists, introducing oneself and offering a new perspective or additional information. Over time, part of what you contribute may be new tools and gathering places for the community. But at the outset, earn trust through participation, transparency, authenticity and generosity.
Measure progress against the objectives established at the outset. Without this, internal support for the program may dissipate.

You will find your community

With this preparation, you will be ready for any crisis.

You will know where discussions are occurring, what is being said and who is saying it.

You will be able to respond instantly. Your employees will be empowered to exercise their judgment and act within parameters established in advance.

Finally, you will not be alone. You will have earned the trust of a community that shares your interests. And that community will include people who will speak out on your behalf.