I’ve had a little obsession with reading Twitter bio’s for quite a while now. They are like a down-and-dirty amalgamation of your professional life a la LinkedIn and your dirty, rock-n-roll Myspace page 10 years ago minus the audio. They also lend some serious street cred to your humor, wit and online prowess. But is it problematic when your Twitter and LinkedIn bio don’t jive? Example,
Terra has a combined 10 years experience in business transactions and contract negotiations in healthcare, pharmaceutical drug development and academic research. She is currently pursuing a Masters in Health Communication with a concentration in Environmental Health Policy. Admitted to practice law in New York (2003) and Vermont (2004).
and
Adirondack Native. Jersey Strong. Yoga + Wellness Junkie. Liberal Feminist + Tree-hugger with a propensity for politics, dirty chai and antiques.
The difference in story telling is glaringly obvious. In one I am power suit and pearls. In the other, tye-dye and yoga pants sans bra. Professional. Rebel. Employable. Good-time. Stuffy. free-spirited. To be fair, my LinkedIn account is dedicated to networking within my legal and academic worlds while Twitter is utilized for my blogging and often offensive political opinion(s) and commentary. From a branding consistency pov, this distinction is NOT AWESOME. I am definitely not living my brand, which could cause confusion. I could lose credibility in the healthcare industry as a lawyer who is a “yoga and wellness junkie” and any of my yoga students, health coaching clients or the political movements that I am active in would be appalled to learn that I have a background in pharmaceutical drug development. It makes me feel a bit like the female Harvey Dent.
I have been trying to figure out how to reconcile my two lives for a while now. For the time being, I am ok with having one foot in one world and the other, in another. It is going to take time to weave the two together. Besides, today Hilary Clinton started a Twitter account, of which she refers to herself as a pants suit aficionado and glass ceiling cracker. That’s pretty sassy for the next POTUS, don’t you think?
Is your Twitter profile brand consistent with your LinkedIn profile?
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