i have a confession [1]
im playing a character
and if youre building a personal brand
you should do it too
i call this the 5% character
(this is how i gained 240k linkedIn followers)
and heres why it works
on social, nobody wants all 100% of you
youre a full complex person
instead people want the 5% of you
thats MOST RELEVANT to them
i first realized this years ago
when gary vee invited me out to a wine bar
at first, we were on camera
and he was his usual loud, rapid-fire self
then the camera left
and Gary became soft-spoken and more complex
i realized
in public, gary is playing
a CHARACTER named gary
its the version of himself
thats designed for an audience
this is so useful
because it gives you purpose and direction
once you establish your 5% character
you know how to show up every day
you become reliable and predictable
want to build yours?
ask yourself this:
1. what does your target audience need?
2. how can you solve their problem with content
3. what are the most important 3 attributes of your character that youll always embody?
for me, the answers are:
my target audience needs clarity
in complex work environments
i solve their problems
with useful stories and frameworks
and I am always approachable, optimistic, and solutions-oriented
BOOM
thats my 5% character
every day,
when I sit down to post here,
thats who I embody
===
in other words
its like what lisa simpson said
when bart became famous
"youre a one-dimensional character with a silly catchphrase" [2]
oh, one last thing before you go...
i was 15 and she was 12
we were the love of our lives
and we got married pretty early
but when our first-born turned 12
she noticed weird patterns about him
and she couldnt put her finger on it
i never told her, probably should have cos...
i only showed my 5 percent version to her
she didnt know i was secretly gay
get more punchlines at punchlineday.com
naii "is stretching sexual jokes until utter exhaustion" io
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[1] https://www.linkedin.com/posts/jasonfeifer_i-have-a-confession-on-linkedin-im-playing-activity-7364635944387289089-GTEQ
[2] https://youtu.be/P_iiXWzqHRw?feature=shared&t=68