personal brands are dead (here's what's replacing them)

Hey [Name],

I've been thinking about something kinda painful lately:

As I’ve begun to take the idea of building my audience more seriously (on top of focusing on client work AND putting out my first information product — I’ve realized that the concept of "personal brand" has lost its meaning and purpose.

What started as a path to freedom and authentic self-expression has devolved into cookie-cutter content creation focused on monetization and mindless/forced engagement, rather than impact.

Look around, we now have:
• Influencers who sell attention instead of value
• Content creators who can’t think freely
• Personal brands becoming obsessed with funnels

All 3 of these archetypes have somewhat lost the ‘point’ in all this.

Instead of leveraging the internet to be more fulfilled, they’ve put themselves in a box, yet again.

A slave to the very thing they were using to “free themselves”

Getting attention, creating content, and having a funnel or sales process are all important parts of making your living online.

But on their own, they misguide people and they lose the underlying purpose behind taking this path in life.

You’re doing this to actualize your life purpose because modern day provides us the tools (at our fingertips) to do so. Don’t get lost in all the sauce & tactics out there.

Hours of Paul Graham and videos of other startup founders taught me this, and I’ll never forget it:

“REMEMBER YOUR WHY”

For most of us, it’s putting your highest purpose out there in the world for people to resonate with, and exchange value for the fruits/byproducts of it.

Four things make this possible:

1. Purpose (a positive aim for your future)

2. Perspective (a unique one that attracts people with similar views, not limited to your “niche”)

3. Projects (turned into products… articulating the probs & solutions you’ve discovered in your life)

4. Persistence (consistent experimentation and iteration)

Notice how those points correlate to the 3 main types of “creators” online.

Influencers garner attention, and they think attention alone will give them a sense of purpose in their life — it won’t. (these types sought external validation in every area of life, so they’re generally doing what’s natural to them)

Content creators focus on the engaging perspective, while neglecting their own (which is their biggest asset)

Personal brands make the business and the offer the cornerstone of their entire existence online, neglecting the personality and relationships required to make their offer prolific in any way.

Good intentions, but half-cocked, and misguided.

The most important shift happens in how you think about your work:

• Brand becomes an ecosystem for vulnerability, trust & authority building, and thus — transformation

• Content becomes perspective-based

• Marketing (top of funnel) is built around educating instead of persuading (you can’t persuade someone who isn’t problem aware)

• Products are solutions & systems you've personally tested (with yourself or clients)

This isn't an overnight transformation. It's an evolution that happens through consistent creation and deepening your thinking.

If you’re copying and pasting axioms from big accounts you’re not thinking for yourself or providing any value to the space.

Same goes for ai replies and low-level emulation.

Next newsletter will be about how to actually emulate instead of paraphrasing so that you can learn something in the process (which is the whole point)

Creative work should be creative. Not monotonous.

P.S. — Reply to this with anything you’re struggling with and I’ll help you. Shouldn’t need to mention this but it’ll be free.

Have a great week

Sperry