Can You Go Too Far With Self-Branding?

The advancement of technology has brought many changes to society through the way that social and economic barriers can now be broken. Not only are labor positions changing, but new positions are being created. The Web 2.0 and the desire to act as an entrepreneur in self-branding has allowed for society to create new labor positions which focus on the marketing of an individuals self image. This new entrepreneur ideal of marketing your own image online through social media has recently become popular among all age groups because of technological advancement and the large population you can reach online. An individual is no longer limited to face-to-face interactions to gain a following. 

Self-promotion ultimately works within Fisher’s theory of how network work is greatly blurring the division of what labor and work are considered to be. The liberation of this network employment often allows for more freedom in how you work, what your labor produces and what your action of work is considered to be. Ultimately it is evident that this concept of self-promotion through the internet has created online personalities who thrive and gain power through this online liberation. 

An example is bloggers who provide video’s online for personal enjoyment that vary in subject content. Successful ‘vloggers’ as they are called, often become financially supported and celebritized in this process. Thus, blurring the line of whether posting videos online is work or play. Although there are benefits from becoming successful at creating an online persona, there are as well negative aspects which can arise from this micro celebritization of an individual. An example of this is Essena O’Neill who created an online presence and was considered a micro-celebrity. She was able to gain fame and fortune through an imaginary that she created of herself, but admitted that the girl she displayed to the world was in fact not who she was. Do you find that these micro-celebrities actually gain power with their self-promotion or do they gain weakness through their personal exposure? Do you believe that there are economic, social or physical implications that cause for an individual to gain power or weakness?