The Art of Selling Yourself

Whether we like it or not, we are immersed in the era of Personal Branding. Today, individuals have become their own brands. Physical presence, your face and its expression, or your attire form your corporate identity; your name and surname (education, experience, etc.), the naming and its descriptor. Therefore, each person acts as their own Digital Marketing Agency. Like the advertiser who fights to ensure that personal goals (the growth plans of this peculiar company) are communicated effectively and turned into reality.

This is not something new, but rather the strengthening of a trend. In the past, it was enough for anyone to gather their merits, organize them according to the order and importance of the work performed, and put them into a resume that served as a weapon to find a good job. For the interview, you would dress with care and present your best face. No, knowing how to sell yourself is a very old art. What is new is the growing competition in the job market. It forces us to put a spin on this process to convey who we are, seeking to surprise those in charge of the recruitment process.

Furthermore, another fact that explains this great revolution is the incredible democratization of tools and resources. Until recently, they were off-limits to the communication guild. Today, without needing a massive financial outlay, anyone who wants to can set up a small office in their own home. Smartphones act as routers, taking photos and recording videos at a quality increasingly closer to that of professional cameras (whose prices, in turn, continue to fall). A personal computer can hold all kinds of design and layout, photo editing, and social media management tools… Never before has it been so within reach for the average person to generate professional-quality materials, both analog and digital, to autonomously promote yourself.

Examples of different resume presentations created by three graphic designers.

Online communication deserves special mention, the strategy we apply to the development of our increasingly sacred digital self. LinkedIn has managed to position itself as the social network par excellence for public professional image. Websites that act as platforms to connect people looking for work with companies offering positions are springing up like mushrooms. A great and very fun example of a digital resume is Robby Leonardi's. He created an interactive animation with which to promote himself. With this cover letter, it is unlikely that he had much trouble finding a job.

Initial screen of Robby Leonardi's interactive resume. 

Technological advances and cultural changes bring new tools and techniques. And they imply the need for constant adaptation. But the laws of this art are timeless. Thanks to self-awareness, and to the people to whom you want to convey a certain impression. Thanks to all that knowledge, one gains confidence and is not afraid to act to manage the course of this communication process. Enzo Vizcaíno must not have lacked confidence either. A young journalist who didn't think twice and planted himself with his ukulele in the Barcelona metro. The young man exceeded one million views and currently works as a scriptwriter at Crackòvia, the TV3 program.

Frame from Enzo Vizcaíno's video resume: Metro Curriculum Vitae. 

From this point on, the road is uncertain. What is original and surprising one day could be reproduced ad nauseam and become trite resources. Like Leonardi's resume or Vizcaíno's video. At least, by taking the reins of this task, anyone can be capable of improving their own personal image. Anyone can do it as circumstances, which define the times, require.