If you haven’t heard of Penelope Trunk, it’s time for you to start reading her blog, Penelope Trunk’s Brazen Careerist. I have just recently started reading it and combing through some of the old articles. She’s a phenomenal writer. Her writing is, for lack of a better word, honest. Her openness fascinates me. She takes an introspective look at her failures and recognizes them with a rare sort of confidence. She’s an entrepreneur who has had her share of success and failure – she’s taken a business public, only to subsequently be part of a merger, and later a bankruptcy. She sold equity in her blog and started another business when she was able. She makes a solid living as a freelance writer and a public speaker. To say the least, I’m impressed with her. (So much so, that I’m considering buying her book.)
Her blog is so good that it sort of makes me feel bad about my blog (my blog has a crush on her blog). When I have a weakness, I hide it as thoroughly as I can. When I fail at something, I try to make sure that no one ever finds out about it. She publicisizes her failures with a confidence I wish I had. She has an authoritative voice, but it isn’t off-putting. It can be endearing. I really feel like I know her just from reading her blog. That’s what great writers are capable of. Check out this post, where she shares the beginning of the end of her marriage. Or this one, where she talks about her divorce. She’s a strong woman, but she combines that with carefully placed vulnerability – you don’t see it much, but it means something when you do. And she’s the rare type of writer that can effectively convey it.
I’m really glad I found her blog when I did, which I guess was yesterday. I’ve been to her blog before a couple times, but I never really gave it a chance. I used to occasionally read her stuff on Yahoo Finance, but I was never as impressed as I am now. In fact, I don’t ever remember being very impressed at all. On the couple occasions I did happen to visit her blog, I wasn’t struck by her brilliance the way I am now. The articles on Yahoo Finance are written for a very broad audience, and maybe they’re too broad to touch anyone. For whatever reason, I never appreciated this blog until recently. It’s mostly a collection of career advice, which brings me to why I’m glad I found it now. Several of my upcoming posts are career oriented, mostly focusing on advice that people have given me over time. I’m going to focus on things that have really stuck with me, and how they affect (or have affected) my choices. I would say that most of Penelope’s advice is excellent. She has articles about blogging, careers, personal branding and a variety of other issues. Her blog can be risque at times, but that’s probably why so many people read it. Anyway, it’s something I think it worth reading, and I wanted to share it with my readers. Check it out and let me know what you think. Thanks for reading.
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Penelope Trunk does strike a note with the readers and deals with problems which are faced by common office goer. I have also come accross another great career guide. Do check it and let me know. http://tiny.cc/td4Ca
Regards,
N