MY DIGITAL UPGRADE

Seventeen years ago, I took a decisive step towards a professional training in Journalism at the Ghana Institute of Journalism with the overarching purpose of training as a journalist to help deepen the path of democracy that Ghana had embarked upon five years earlier.

I successfully completed that training and entered the world of professional practice quite oblivious of the various online tools that professionals could utilize in self-development and career progression among others.

But on the job, I managed to pick up some ICT skills which were limited to sending emails, using desktop applications like Microsoft Word and other basic applications and using the internet for searches.

I came to realize that social activities could be undertaken online and thus began my first online chat using the Yahoo Messenger.

Later, I heard about Facebook, Google, LinkedIn and Twitter but did not really see the importance of these tools to my personal and professional development.

I joined the bandwagon by opening accounts with each of them, but these accounts were dormant.

In the course of my career I won two national awards and engaged in a number of other career-enhancing activities but failed to utilize these online tools for proper personal branding.

While pursuing my MA studies in Mass Communications with the University of Leicester, the ONE award was announced. I applied and the acceptance began a new chapter for me on the use of social media tools for personal, professional and academic ends.

For the first time, I heard about Digital Footprint, Visual Identity, Personal Branding and other concepts that were crucial to creating an impressive online presence.

I have learnt about the importance of values to success within my career and that my personal values must co-exist peacefully with those of my employer.

Armed with resources, I have been able to know my personality type and defined my personal brand.

For me, the responses garnered from the personal branding survey were interesting, revealing and sometimes surprising. Some confirmed skills that I possessed while others brought out revelations that I had not even thought of or considered.

With the little done so far which I have translated into practice, I find my network on LinkedIn expanding by the moment and more professionals asking me to add them while they endorsed me for a number of skills.

From a state of dormancy, my LinkedIn page is brimming with a lot of activities as I follow companies that I would like to have an opportunity to work with, joined professional groups that brainstorm on professional matters and following job postings.

The responses and activities that are taking place currently have clearly been borne out of the application of the knowledge gained from the ONE award which had helped me in identifying my strengths and communicating those in a tailor-made fashion to potential employers and others.

I now have a meaningful blog that will serve as the hub for giving out stories that will promote activities that fall in tandem with my personal brand.

From the perspective of my personal brand, my focus is communicating to potential employers/employees, a vibrant young man, with unique set of communication expertise, knowledgeable of modern day communication trends, with a history of setting and impressively accomplishing goals and who is passionate to achieve within a competitive environment.