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The most important message you can get across with your portfolio is your personal narrative. To do this, you’ll need to know what you value as a designer-developer, and maintain consistent messaging throughout.
New Terms:
Personal Brand -- the practice of marketing oneself
Further Reading:
Previously, we covered what your users
would expect when viewing your portfolio.
0:00
But let's now talk about what
you would like to expect.
0:05
We need to establish your
expectations because your portfolio
0:09
is a collection of what you value and
what you are passionate about.
0:13
And how you're chasing after those
things with a long-term career in mind.
0:18
In other words,
0:24
we need to establish your personal brand
or the practice of marketing yourself.
0:26
Your personal brand is a culmination
of your personality and
0:31
the things you do, and care about.
0:36
Your personal brand defines the voice
you use throughout your portfolio.
0:39
So it's important to consider three
primary factors when defining your voice,
0:45
proficiency, authenticity,
and consistency.
0:51
Let's define these.
0:55
First, proficiency is
the strength of your skill set.
0:58
We rely on proficiency to
discuss what specific skills
1:02
you bring to the portfolio.
1:07
Are you quick when it comes to coding and
swift?
1:09
Do you have a keen eye for
typography and mobile devices?
1:13
These are your bragging rights.
1:16
Even if you're early in
the adoption of these skills,
1:19
be proud of what you've learned.
1:22
But remember that you're still
in the process of learning.
1:26
Second is authenticity.
1:30
Authenticity is the clarity
of your values.
1:33
Meaning, what are the things that matter
to you both professionally and personally?
1:36
Are you excited about certain types
of projects or subject matter?
1:41
I'm strongly encouraging you to
use an active voice when writing.
1:46
Here's an example.
1:52
My talents and
passions are my guide as I train for
1:53
start-up life in the next
chapter of my career.
1:58
That sounds far more engaging than I hope
that I might work for a start-up one day.
2:02
On the language that you incorporate into
describing your projects and process.
2:08
Last, we have consistency or
the predictability of your message.
2:14
This is a very important but often,
overlooked piece of building a portfolio.
2:19
You want the way you show and
2:25
discuss your work to be predictable
in the context of your portfolio.
2:27
This predictability shows up as
formatting, scale, language,
2:33
and even in the form of using a spell
check to avoid possible errors.
2:38
Are you speaking formally, or informally?
2:44
Long form or brief?
2:46
Humorous or serious?
2:48
Consistency goes a long way to adding a
professional polish to your body of work.
2:50
The thing that makes you,
2:57
you is exactly what we are looking
to highlight in your portfolio.
2:59
You aren't everybody else, and
you should acknowledge, appreciate,
3:04
and use those differences to give you
a voice that sets you apart as well.
3:09
I'll see you in the next video.
3:14
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