​How would you describe yourself to an employer in less than 30 seconds? Some may call this an elevator speech but what it is all based upon is your “personal brand,” or how you would brand yourself to others. No, not like Nike or Red Bull but YOUR own personal brand.
            According to PR and Social Media Professor Suzanne Mims personal brand can be across many mediums:

• A symbol, design, name or sound.
• Reputation, emotion, image, photo business card
• Resume, website, writing samples, blog or social networking profile
• Appearance, behaviors, profession, friends and family.

Let’s not limit this though, personal brand has become extremely apparent in today’s society. It could make or break a candidate within the professional world, especially with social media. In fact, your personal brand can be highly affected by social media, especially when you have an extensive digital footprint. A digital footprint is that trail of breadcrumbs you leave online, or the imprint you make on social media. The most common traces are active traces, such as Facebook, Twitter, blog activity, images or video uploads and even the things your share.
            Another thing to consider when thinking about your personal brand is the digital shadow you leave behind, or the way other people think about you on social media.
            Kevin Loker, George Mason University Alumnus and now program coordinator at the American Press Institute, would describes your online reputation and presence as highly valuable.

“Do you network? Do you keep in touch with people? Are you relevant?” he asks. “This could only be a deal breaker if you stack up less than another candidate for a job.”
“People will be intrigued by the amount of followers you have,” he said.
What if by chance you don’t have an online presence, how could you plan for it? Professor Mims breaks down a very simple process in which you can plan your social branding:

• Plan certain goals: What are you trying to achieve, constantly change this as you reach your certain goals
• Target audience: Identify specific audiences you are trying to reach
• Message plan: What messages will interest your targets
• Content plan: How will you “feed the beast;” commit to a frequency schedule (the amount of times you will post during a certain time period)
• Conversation plan: What level of engagement do you seek

Some other things to consider when going through this process are the age you live in, the persona of your profession, your attitude towards millennials as well as the attitudes and behaviors of your cohort.
Ann Friedman, a writer for the New Republic, mentions that your personal brand is something that you never stop working on.
“(Personal branding) is something that you actively have to manage online, offline, in your organization, in your industry and on social media,” she said. “Which means there are dozens of opportunities every day to question whether you’re doing it right.” 
Throughout this process, don’t lose track of your authenticity in your experiences and attitudes, there is no need to stand for something that you don’t believe in.
“Your authenticity, how you differentiate yourself and how you keep yourself relevant are all things to contribute to personal branding,” Loker said.
Friedman describes the process of selling yourself rather than describing yourself as a paradox.
"I’ve noticed a paradox: The more time I spend defining my personal brand, the more contrived it feels when I talk about myself,” Friedman said.
“I’ve also learned an important lesson: Don’t confuse ‘authentic’ with ‘effortless’,” she continued.
Stay true to yourself and if you do what you love, the money will follow. ​

One of the many things added to PRSSA’s game plan this year. 
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​Following our last meeting, the executive board along with its chapter’s members made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the homeless. Members made over 40 sandwiches. PRSSA provided all the supplies and Patrick Fernandez, outreach liaison, delivered them to Bailey’s Crossroads Community Shelter in Falls Church the next day.
 
“This is great,” said Mario Wright, supervisor of residential and hypothermia services, Bailey’s Crossroads Community Shelter. “We are going to give these to the kids and I know they will love it.”
 
Helping members develop their professional skillsets is always a goal for PRSSA, but this year we added another element to the PRSSA game plan; providing for others and raising awareness of key issues within our community.
 
“This year we wanted to focus on giving back to the community more than we had in previous years,” said Logan Rice, president of PRSSA. “We want our chapter to not only impact Mason students but also our community. Giving back to Bailey’s aligns with PRSSA’s key objective – helping people.”
 
PRSSA will host a canned food drive later this month as well as participating in the Greater Washington Heart Walk to spread awareness of cardiovascular disease, Nov.7, in Washington D.C.
 
We look forward to what is to come when it comes to our outreach and encourage you to join the fun! If you want to get involved with anything that we are participating in, contact Patrick Fernandez via email at patrickfernandez314@gmail.com.