I was listening to Dr. Crawford’s podcast again, and this particular post was on building your personal and professional brand, as well as intellectual property and how to protect that in your contracts with your profession. I already mentioned that Gary Vee was the first influencer for this blog, but I can tell you again that I really relate to Dr. Crawford’s style – medical, introvert, intellectual, researcher.
The first step is to identify who you are. You are your brand, and that really is the overarching idea behind a blog – it’s you.
So, Who Am I?
I’m a Veterinarian. I’m a thinker, an intellectual, an introvert. I’m a researcher, mainly reproduction, but anything in veterinary medicine to piques my interest. I am strong. Physically more so, and as I grow older, I become more mentally strong. Jiu jitsu – it’s my outlet for stress. But so is walking, walking in nature, eating, especially fresh fruit, or fresh anything. I love to educate – the whole reason I started this was to reach an audience that wanted to listen to me. I’m an aunt – love my nieces, and I want to be a mom – which I have been struggling to achieve and trying to accept these struggles by telling my story. I’m a farm girl in the earliest stages – which is why I have some root power, and feel powerful. Perfectionism – I try anyway.
What are my professional goals?
I love to educate, and love to learn. Research just feeds both of those, that curiosity to know more. The more you know, the more you can teach. I love animals, in case you didn’t know – and I love to teach them. Training, essentially. Then I love to teach people how to teach their animals. I love to hear people’s success stories after I have given them advice. When people listen, do, learn, and then succeed. I love that. That is fulfillment for me. I love to solve problems. I'm methodical, and while those complex medical cases can be frustrating, it’s a puzzle with missing pieces, and you still want to solve the puzzle despite the fact that you are missing information. Finding those missing pieces to solve the puzzle is rewarding. Surgery can be therapeutic for an introvert. You get to focus, escape conversation, and just live in your own head.
I think I’m still developing my professional goals. I have ideas, and want them to come to fruition. Things can change too. We need to be ok with that.