Marketing Yourself: Where's the Passion?

Probably the toughest job in marketing is that of marketing yourself. I am seeing that right now as I look for a new role here in the UK.

Why?

I am not sure. Maybe it is because it is very personal. When you are marketing products and services produced by an employer or client (if you are part of an agency team), then it is impersonal. Of course I am not saying that when you sell a product or service you should not have a passion about it. That is part of what drives success - your passion for the product or service that you are selling. But with yourself it is different.

The passion should be there moreso than in other marketing projects. It probably is. Yet business acumen tells us that we should be enthusiastic, yet restrained at the same time. Because restrained is professional. But what if enthusiastic even outlandish, unrestrained exhuberance was considered professional?

Too often I have walked into interviews where the atmosphere has the life of a dead fish. I want to be passionate but, should I? And even if the job was a good one, what about the work environment? Is the job interview a reflection of the rest of the company?

I realise that job interviewees have a thankless task. Get it right and no one says "great hire!" Get it wrong, however, and it can be costly in more ways than one. But show some life to your candidates! Let them know that being passionate is more than OK. It is a requirement for the role.

I love marketing and hope to back in the 9-5 swing of things real soon. Moreover, I hope it is with a company that values passion because just a check in the box in an interview.