Today, I worked on my personal brand. I’ve been reading Danielle LaPorte’s The Fire Starter Sessions, (which I love) and I like her approach to marketing and personal branding. I actually hate the word “branding”. For me, it conjures up images of inauthentic and traveling-salesman-type promotion. But LaPorte makes the point–and I think it’s a good one–that we can also think of our personal “brand” as how we show up in the world, how we approach the business of being alive on this planet. She also makes the point that, when we get clear on who we are and what we stand for, we can be of more service to each other and the world.

So. Here goes.

I think my brand is “kick-ass princess.” This phrase, for me encapsulates the bad-ass whimsy I love so much, and the energy I seek to channel for a better world. I love the idea of reinventing the archetype of the princess: I want to turn her from a damsel in distress into a sword-wielding and feisty heroine, capable of fending off attackers or throttling dragons. (Or else befriending dragons and enlisting their support.) So that’s my brand. At least for now. Fortunately, kick-ass princesses have a tendency to reinvent themselves on a regular basis.

And I’m out.