What Are You Built On? Discovering Your Core Pillars
Building the foundation of your personal brand when you have no idea where to start.
Ever feel like you're trying to fit into a box that just isn't you? I've spent much of my career feeling like an imposter, unsure if I was a "real" developer or designer. If you've been there too, this post is for you. I'm sharing how I defined my core pillars - the things that keep me grounded and guide my path - and how you can find your own.
In today’s digital landscape, getting lost in the noise is easy. We are constantly bombarded with information, trends, and expectations, making it hard to stand out and communicate our unique value. Like many, I do enjoy my work, but I’m lately I’ve felt that there’s something missing — a deeper sense of connection and assurance that I’m truly providing value to the world. As an empathetic person, my driving force in life has always been to improve the human experience and provide people with one of the best feelings in life: happiness.
On this journey to find that “something more,” I realized the first step was to try to evaluate who I am as a designer and developer. What are my core strengths? What principles guide my work? That’s where personal brand pillars come in. Think of them as the core values and areas of expertise that support your professional identity. They’re the foundation for building your online presence, networking, and career decisions. By identifying these pillars, you gain clarity, focus, and the ability to confidently articulate your strengths.
This post isn’t about claiming to be an expert on personal branding. In fact, I’m still navigating this myself. But I’ve found the process of defining my core pillars incredibly helpful, and I want to share my journey with you. My goal is to provide insights and practical steps that will empower you to uncover your own foundational principles and build a personal brand that feels authentic and aligned with your aspirations.
Who Am I? My Core Pillars
So, what did this journey of self-evaluation reveal about my core professional identity? It came down to these six key pillars that consistently emerge in my work and the things I’m most passionate about:
Crafting intuitive & accessible experiences
My focus is on designing digital experiences that are inherently user-friendly and universally accessible. I believe thoughtful design removes friction and ensures inclusivity, a fundamental aspect of creating successful products.
This pillar stems from a core belief that technology should empower everyone. Seeing someone struggle with a poorly designed interface or a website that isn’t accessible truly bothers me. I want to use my skills that make digital interactions seamless and inclusive. It connects back to that feeling of wanting to improve the human experience, even in small digital moments.
Building scalable & cohesive design languages
I specialize in the creation and implementation of design systems. This involves establishing clear guidelines and components that enable teams to build consistent and scalable products efficiently, bridging the strategic vision with practical application.
This is where I've found a real sense of purpose. It's about creating order from complexity, building tools and guidelines that empower teams to create consistently and efficiently. It satisfies that part of me that enjoys problem-solving and creating sustainable solutions.
Mastering the digital foundation
A deep understanding of HTML and CSS is foundational to my approach. I leverage these core web technologies to build semantic, well-structured, and performant front-ends, ensuring a robust base for any digital project.
My journey into the web started with these technologies. Even now, a solid understanding of HTML and CSS feels like coming back to the basics, ensuring a strong and semantic foundation for everything else we build. It’s about respecting the craft and understanding the fundamental building blocks.
Empowering growth through guidance & insight
I am committed to continuous professional development and find significant value in mentoring and sharing insights. Through informed guidance, I aim to empower individuals and teams to elevate their skills and achieve their goals.
Reflecting on times I felt lost in my career, the guidance of mentors made a huge difference. This pillar represents my desire to pay that forward, to share what I've learned and help others navigate their own paths in tech and beyond. It connects with that desire to provide value and foster growth in others.
Driving product vision to user value
My perspective integrates design and development with a strong understanding of product strategy. I translate overarching goals into tangible user benefits, ensuring the final product aligns with business objectives and user needs.
As I've grown, I've realized that design and development don't exist in a vacuum. Understanding the "why" behind a product and how it solves real user problems is crucial. This pillar reflects my interest in the bigger picture and ensuring that what we build truly benefits people.
Leading with collaboration & clarity
I advocate for collaborative work environments characterized by transparent and effective communication. My leadership style emphasizes clear direction and fostering a shared understanding to achieve collective success.
My best experiences have always been in collaborative environments where communication is open and clear. This pillar emphasizes my belief in the power of teamwork and the importance of guiding with transparency and mutual respect.
Why You Need Core Pillars
You might think, “Okay, these are your pillars, but why should I bother defining mine?” That’s a fair question. For me, taking the time to identify these foundational elements has brought several key benefits, and I believe the same can be true for you:
Clarity in your messaging and content: When you know your core pillars, it becomes much easier to articulate what you do and what you stand for. This clarity helps you communicate more effectively and authentically. It also provides a filter for the content you create and share, ensuring it aligns with your expertise and values.
Attracting the right opportunities and audience: Think of your pillars as a beacon. Clearly defining them makes you more likely to attract opportunities and connect with individuals who resonate with your specific skills and passions. This can lead to more meaningful collaborations and a more engaged audience.
Building a consistent and authentic online presence: Consistency is key in the often chaotic online world. Your core pillars act as anchors, ensuring that your various online interactions—from social media to your website—reflect a cohesive and genuine professional identity. This builds trust and recognition.
Guiding your learning and development: Your pillars can also be a compass for your professional growth. By understanding your core areas, you can focus your learning and development efforts more strategically, investing in skills and knowledge that directly support your brand and career aspirations.
Making it easier for others to understand your value: When someone asks what you do, having clearly defined pillars allows you to articulate your unique value proposition concisely and confidently. It moves beyond generic job titles and highlights your specific expertise and perspective.
For someone like me, who sometimes felt a bit lost between different areas of tech, these pillars have provided a sense of direction and a framework for understanding my contributions. They’ve helped me see the through-line in my seemingly varied interests.
How to Identify Your Core Pillars
Defining your core pillars is a deeply personal process; there’s no one-size-fits-all approach. However, I can offer you some steps that guided my own exploration and might be helpful for you:
Reflect on your passions and what energizes you: Consider what truly excites you in your work and what activities make you feel most engaged and fulfilled. These can be strong indicators of your underlying passions. What problems do you enjoy solving? What topics do you find yourself drawn to learning more about?
Identify your key skills and areas of expertise: Take stock of your strengths. What are you good at? What tasks do you excel at? What do people frequently ask you for help with? Be sure to include both hard skills (e.g., coding languages, design tools) and soft skills (e.g., communication, problem-solving).
Think about the impact you want to make: Consider the broader contribution you want to make in your field or the world. What kind of difference do you aspire to create? What values are most important to you in your professional endeavors?
Look for recurring themes in your experiences and interests: Find common threads connecting your experiences, skills, and passions. Do patterns emerge when you reflect on your career path and your interests?
Ask yourself what you want to be known for: Imagine your ideal professional reputation. What do you want people to say about you and your work? What qualities or areas of expertise do you want to be recognized for?
To help you get started, start with this simple exercise:
List 5-7 things you are passionate about, feel you’re particularly skilled at, or find consistently interesting.
Then, look for connections between these items. Can you group them into broader categories? These categories can serve as potential core pillars.
It's important to remember that your core pillars may evolve over time as you grow and your career progresses. The key is to engage in ongoing self-reflection and be willing to refine your pillars as needed. For example, my journey into design systems significantly shaped my understanding of my strengths and passions.
What Defines You?
Defining your core personal brand pillars isn’t a one-time task; it’s an ongoing process of self-discovery and refinement. However, taking the initial step to identify these foundational elements can bring immense clarity and direction to your professional journey. It’s about understanding what truly drives you, your unique strengths, and the value you aim to bring to the world.
I sincerely encourage you to embark on your own exploration. Take some time to reflect on your experiences, your passions, and your aspirations. Even identifying just a few initial pillars can provide a powerful lens through which to view your career and your online presence.
What are some of the initial thoughts that come to mind when you consider your own core pillars? I’d love to hear what resonates with you. Share your potential pillars in the comments below.
Let’s learn and grow together.