the blog critique | 10 | The Native New Yawker

The Blog Critique #10: Developing Your Personal Brand

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Last week I totally lost track of time and by the time Thursday came around I was all like.. “It’s Thursday?! It’s Thursday.. Shit.” But this week I was on it.

It’s still quite awesome that you all are still submitting your blogs for the critique. I promise, no blog will go without a critique, it’s just going to take some time to get to everyone. I thought I would probably end this series by the Fall, but since starting this series I’ve gotten so much supportive feedback so long lives The Blog Critique! If you haven’t submitted your blog for a critique, you can do so now on the Contact page — simply fill out the form & hit send! So, let’s get into this week’s Blog Critique.

TaraPook.com
Lifestyle Blog

After wanting a blog for the longest, Tara finally took the leap and started her blog over a year ago. The excitement of just having a blog made her overlook important factors like who was her audience or what exactly was her blog about. She started blogging about what was popular at the time, whether it was about natural hair or personal style, but that wasn’t exactly her area of expertise. The more she blogged, the more she started listening to her audience and realized it was actually her inspirational or observation about life post that they enjoyed the most. Now, a year in, she’s found her niche. She’s looking to aim her blog towards a more inspirational lifestyle blog. She submitted her blog to the critique in hopes of getting some good advice on really creating her brand through design and content. As I always say, Tara, you’ve come to the right place. We’ve all been in your situation before, so hopefully I can help.

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lunchtime linkage / the computer: a dangerous instrument? | The Native New Yawker

“The computer is such a powerful instrument that it defines, after a while, what is possible for you. And what is possible is within the computer’s capacity. And while it seems at the beginning like this incredibly gifted and talented service it actually has a very limited intelligence. The brain is so much vaster than the computer, but, the computer is very insistent about what it’s good at. And before you know it it’s like being with somebody who has bad habits — you sort of fall into the bad habits and it begins to dominate the way you think about what is possible.”

— Milton Glaser

I can literally spend hours watching Milton Glaser interviews. If you’re unfamiliar with Milton Glaser, I’m sure you’re more familiar with one of his greatest logos: ‘I ♥ NY’. Yes, this is the man behind the iconic symbol New York City has been using 1977. Not to mention, this guy is the acting chairman of the School of Visual Arts so I’ve had the honor of meeting this legend in person a few times. He’s a wonderful man that shares a wonderful view on design. Personally, I love his perspective on design and it’s process. This just happens to be another one of his wonderful thought-provoking interviews. Bookmark this for when you have 45 minutes to spare.

“The computer’s a dangerous instrument because it shapes your capacity to understand what’s possible.” – Milton Glaser

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lunchtime linkage / design must change | The Native New Yawker

“Design education requires more curation and context. If the goal is to facilitate an experience that helps students define who and what they might become as designers, then we must provide vehicles that allow them to veer off traditional pathways of learning.”

The Dean of Parsons: Design Education Must Change | Arch Daily

Great article written by the Dean of Parson discussing how the design curriculum must change up to keep up everyday challenges we face in the twenty-first century.

The world has changed; the role of design has changed. And the way that designers are taught to engage with the world must change, too.

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site share | contently

Contently | https://contently.com/

Are you a journalist or blogger that writes for many online publications and blogs? Have you been looking for a way to build an online portfolio of all your articles without having to create a brand new website? Well, I’ve got just the website for you. Today, I present Contently.

Contently is a site that allows you to make a portfolio of all your articles published, with no design or coding skills required. The main mission over at Contently is to help journalists build careers doing what they love, help brands become compelling publishers, and help journalists and brands connect and tell great stories. Check out how awesome your writing portfolio can look like before joining. Highly recommended for those looking to contribute to more blogs. Oh, and did I mention all of this was free? Oh, yea.

lunchtime linkage | more doing, less promoting

“The problem is that we’re now all publicists and promoters, constantly talking at others in an attempt to sell what we’ve made. Social media has become an echo chamber of “buy now,” while offering little reason or value as to why someone else should.”

More Doing, Less Promoting: The Key To Creating Great Work | Paul Jarvis

Are you selling to make people’s life a litter easier or are you selling to just make money? Great read that discuss how to stand out amongst the sea of endless promotions on social media through simply creating great, meaningful work.

Social media is an amplifier, so it can only amplify value in the work you do. It can’t create value that isn’t there.

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