Topic: personal brand

Bullish: How To Sell Yourself As An Expert

I have often written that establishing expertise – preferably in something objective and quantifiable – is an excellent way to make money, to bypass sexism and other forms of discrimination, and to get ahead when you’re young and maintain a thriving career when you’re old. (See Bullish: Tech Skills Are Not Optional for Your Career.)

But now that J.K. Capote-Snicket has done this, how do we turn it – in a gentlewomanly manner – into cold, hard cash? More »

Did Lauren Conrad Just Kill Her Career As An Entrepreneur?

This may be the first time Lauren Conrad has had a career blunder. The designer, author and all-around crafty girl (she has an online series called Crafty Creations) found herself in hot water when she put a video up of a DIY craft that required destroying books in order to make storage space. Conrad, 26, called the project a “beautiful way to showcase vintage books,” even though they are shown without their stories inside them. So a beautiful way to showcase books but kill reading. Gawker posted a link to last week’s Crafty Creations video with the headline “Watch Lauren Conrad Rip Apart Books to the Sounds of Soothing Guitar.” The video was taken down by the site quickly after they realized how her cute craft looked but is it too late? Has Lauren lost her credibility as an entrepreneur? More »

Rachel Zoe Says Women Relate To Her Because She Also Struggles With ‘Having It All’

In a new interview celebrity stylist turned designer Rachel Zoe says she thinks the reason women are so drawn to her is because she too struggles with working and being a mom and doting wife. “You know, I think the answer to that is I think someone who is a career woman and a family person might be interesting because you kind of wonder – many women struggle in life how to do both — so I think that might have something to do with it.” More »

10 Ways Recent Grads Can Stay Focused On The Job Hunt

Summer was made for children. Study hard from September through May, and you’ll be rewarded with three long months of swimming, popsicles and freedom. That’s the way it is beginning with kindergarten.

For recent college graduates, this summer is different. This summer consists of prowling the Internet for jobs where that fancy new degree can be used. But it can be difficult to focus with the welcoming sun beaming through the windows and sounds of children’s laughter filling the air.

If you’re a recent grad who needs a little help staying focused on the job hunt, check out my list of job-hunting tips to help you land a new job successfully. More »

6 Female Olympians That Could Make Millions From Endorsements

Michael Phelps earned up to $5.25 million in endorsement deals last year and Ryan Lochte is reported to have signed contracts in the past year that could earn him between $3 million and $4 million. But what about the female athletes at these Olympic games? What is their endorsement potential? America is captivated with celebrity,” IMG Consulting senior veep and managing director David Abrutyn told Variety, “and the size of the audience of the Olympic Games and the number of casual sport fans that tune in really do make for sort of overnight success stories.” Endorsements are critical for these athletes as this is where the real money lies. According to Variety, after Phelps won six golds at Athens in 2004, his corporate endorsement earnings swelled to an estimated $5 million annually. Then, upon winning a record eight gold medals at Beijing in 2008, Phelps became practically ubiquitous, with deals ranging from Kellogg’s to Hewlett-Packard that put him on track to pass the $100 million mark in lifetime endorsement revenue, not to mention gigs on “SNL” and “Entourage.” But which of these women could potentially see as many endorsement deals as Phelps? We have our eye on a few. More »

The Only Interview Rule I Follow: Don’t Badmouth Your Former Employers

Don’t complain about your former employer. It amazes me how this simple interview rule applies to every job position at every company you’ve ever heard of. Here’s why it’s so much more important than any other tip you’ll find. More »

Bullish: Marketing Yourself Without Being An A**hole

Why Do Some People Market Themselves Like Douchebags?

I think about this a lot. I don’t make a lot of money writing Bullish. I do know how I could make more money doing this, but I make good money in my other professions, and as I always say — Don’t take business advice from people whose only business is giving business advice. That is what we call a pyramid scheme. (I do plan to publish a book. Other plans are in the works.)

Here are some things other coach-type people have been doing: Stretching every one-sentence piece of advice into a five-minute video; posing on a hardwood floor, wearing a bandage dress; trademarking phrases like “Trust Yourself,” as in, “This webinar will teach you how to Trust Yourself™!” More »

What We're Reading:

Thank God: Sofia Vergara Beat Out Kim Kardashian For Top Earning Woman In TV

Forbes just named Sofia Vergara as the top earning television actress, mostly due to her multiple endorsement deals. According to Forbes, Sofia earned $19 million this year and her Modern Family salary is only a small part of that. You may be surprised to hear that Sofia is actually an ace businesswoman and she has been for years.This is great news but what is even greater is she beat out second place taker Kim Kardashian who also has multiple endorsement deals but possesses zero talent, no pizazz (unlike Sofia who has tons) and makes me cry for America everytime I watch her. More »

10 Pivotal Career Moments For Jessica Simpson

Today is Jessica Simpson’s 32nd birthday. It has been quite a career ride for the singer/actress/reality TV personality/super successful designer. She has a worn a lot of hats in her career but through out it all she has also emphasized her strong Southern roots, goofy personality. “She is the girl next door and has great product that surrounds her. People like her. People look at her as a style icon,” Vince Camuto, the founder and CEO of Camuto Group, says for WWD. In honor of her birthday, we thought we would look at 10 of her most pivotal career moments. More »

Katy Perry Did The Unthinkable: She Is Both A Sex Symbol And Role Model

“I kind of want to be a leader but, you know, then there’s all those responsibilities.” – Katy Perry at 18

These are the first words you hear from the mouth of Katy Perry in her new documentary, Katy Perry: Part of Me. They come via a self-made video by an 18-year-old Perry, and when you’re talking about the skyrocketing career of this very unique 27-year-old, no one could have said it better. In just over a decade, Katy Perry has gone from sheltered Pentecostal God-fearing schoolgirl to record-breaking pop singing and songwriting sex symbol, and Perry herself is the product of that dichotomy. Many have accused Perry of relying too much on sex appeal to sell records, and other have seen it as a backlash against her strict upbringing. Essentially, critics and fans alike have wondered if Perry is trying to be a role model or a sex symbol, but her film seems to be proposing the idea that perhaps, she could be both. More »

Gaining A Ton Of Weight Is The New Career Savior For Celebrities

This week it was announced that Jennifer Hudson will be launching a new clothing line for women with curves. Though Jennifer won an Oscar in 2007, it was her dramatic 80 pound weight loss and resulting Weight Watchers contract that really brought her career to a whole new level in the last few years. And then we are just counting down the days until Jessica Simpson loses weight with her $3 million Weight Watchers contract as a result of her much publicized pregnancy weight gain. Valerie Bertinelli is also sitting pretty with her Jenny Craig contract and who can keep track of how many times Janet Jackson (NutriSystem) gains and then loses weight and gets a commercial out of it. We can’t help but think with the average salary paid to celebrity endorsers for weight loss programs ranging from $500,000 to $3 million, is gaining weight when you are a celebrity and then landing a major business deal to lose it the new career savior? More »

10 Pivotal Career Moments For Mary-Kate And Ashley Olsen

Today is Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen’s 26th birthday. Though it seems like they are much older considering they have been in the public sphere since they were six months old, they are only 26. But oh my, what they have accomplished in those 26 years is just incredible. They have evolved from iconic child stars into business moguls and now fashion gurus, who just took home the biggest prize from the CFDA. Did I mention they are also millionaires? And according to Newsweek, they will be billionaires in the near future. In celebration of their birthday, we thought we would look at the most important moments in their career so far. More »

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