Staying fresh.
Good question. I’ll be doing a podcast on that in a while in my mini series. I was interviewing Usher, and the biggest thing he said that stuck out to me was Evolve or Evaporate. You’ve gotta keep re-inventing. Look at the greats that are still relevant. He is one of them. Madonna, U2, etc. They all have re-invented over the years.
The same applies to us. I think it’s the mindset. You have to stay hungry. Devour knowledge. Strive to be the best “person” you can be. I went through a time a couple years ago, probably around the same time we bid on the cruise line job where my sales dropped significantly. It was depressing. Emotionally downward spiraling. I went to a dark place. I realized that I was putting my self worth into who and what I was shooting. I ended up taking an emotional intelligence and leadership training in LA through 2013 and 2014 that reshaped the way I saw things. Helped me to be self aware of so many things personally that I was un aware of so I can change them for the better. It helped me to regain a new vision for my life and career. From there, it was about growing as much as I can personally because when we grow personally, it fuels our art. My hashtag, #CreateYourMoments is all about the mental decision to harness the power of CHOICE to create our lives from the smallest of moments. What we create stems from who we are as a person and who we are being first and foremost. This video, is an authentic representation of where I’ve come to “BE” in my life. I’ve done a lot of internal work to get to where I’m at today.
I’m humbled that MTV chose to feature me, my life, and all the projects I’m up to in this awesome video by LGTR Productions. Life is about Creating Your Moments, for moments are the only thing we walk away with at the end of the day.
Special thanks to Tyrrell Winston for making this happen! Also special thanks to the guys at BOTU for my favorite song, HULA HOOP on the soundtrack.
LET'S CONSPIRE & CREATE
CULTIVATING YOUR VISUAL UNIQUENESS AND STREAMLINING YOUR BRAND'S EVOLUTION
Staying fresh.
Good question. I’ll be doing a podcast on that in a while in my mini series. I was interviewing Usher, and the biggest thing he said that stuck out to me was Evolve or Evaporate. You’ve gotta keep re-inventing. Look at the greats that are still relevant. He is one of them. Madonna, U2, etc. They all have re-invented over the years.
The same applies to us. I think it’s the mindset. You have to stay hungry. Devour knowledge. Strive to be the best “person” you can be. I went through a time a couple years ago, probably around the same time we bid on the cruise line job where my sales dropped significantly. It was depressing. Emotionally downward spiraling. I went to a dark place. I realized that I was putting my self worth into who and what I was shooting. I ended up taking an emotional intelligence and leadership training in LA through 2013 and 2014 that reshaped the way I saw things. Helped me to be self aware of so many things personally that I was un aware of so I can change them for the better. It helped me to regain a new vision for my life and career. From there, it was about growing as much as I can personally because when we grow personally, it fuels our art. My hashtag, #CreateYourMoments is all about the mental decision to harness the power of CHOICE to create our lives from the smallest of moments. What we create stems from who we are as a person and who we are being first and foremost. This video, is an authentic representation of where I’ve come to “BE” in my life. I’ve done a lot of internal work to get to where I’m at today.
I’m humbled that MTV chose to feature me, my life, and all the projects I’m up to in this awesome video by LGTR Productions. Life is about Creating Your Moments, for moments are the only thing we walk away with at the end of the day.
Special thanks to Tyrrell Winston for making this happen! Also special thanks to the guys at BOTU for my favorite song, HULA HOOP on the soundtrack.
5/22/15
Staying Fresh: nickonken x MTV Breaks
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masterfully aligning perception and reality through personal branding
masterfully aligning perception and reality through personal branding
Staying fresh.
Good question. I’ll be doing a podcast on that in a while in my mini series. I was interviewing Usher, and the biggest thing he said that stuck out to me was Evolve or Evaporate. You’ve gotta keep re-inventing. Look at the greats that are still relevant. He is one of them. Madonna, U2, etc. They all have re-invented over the years.
The same applies to us. I think it’s the mindset. You have to stay hungry. Devour knowledge. Strive to be the best “person” you can be. I went through a time a couple years ago, probably around the same time we bid on the cruise line job where my sales dropped significantly. It was depressing. Emotionally downward spiraling. I went to a dark place. I realized that I was putting my self worth into who and what I was shooting. I ended up taking an emotional intelligence and leadership training in LA through 2013 and 2014 that reshaped the way I saw things. Helped me to be self aware of so many things personally that I was un aware of so I can change them for the better. It helped me to regain a new vision for my life and career. From there, it was about growing as much as I can personally because when we grow personally, it fuels our art. My hashtag, #CreateYourMoments is all about the mental decision to harness the power of CHOICE to create our lives from the smallest of moments. What we create stems from who we are as a person and who we are being first and foremost. This video, is an authentic representation of where I’ve come to “BE” in my life. I’ve done a lot of internal work to get to where I’m at today.
I’m humbled that MTV chose to feature me, my life, and all the projects I’m up to in this awesome video by LGTR Productions. Life is about Creating Your Moments, for moments are the only thing we walk away with at the end of the day.
Special thanks to Tyrrell Winston for making this happen! Also special thanks to the guys at BOTU for my favorite song, HULA HOOP on the soundtrack.
5/22/15
Staying Fresh: nickonken x MTV Breaks
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The Brand Intelligence Engine is an AI personal brand system that builds the complete infrastructure of a premium brand in three phases. Here’s exactly what happens inside, what it produces, and who it’s built for.
Your content strategy is not working because the problem isn’t content. It’s what’s underneath it. When your brand lacks identity and visual translation, posting more just amplifies incoherence. Here’s the trap and how to escape it.
This personal brand audit takes two minutes and reveals exactly where your brand is broken. Four questions, one for each layer of brand intelligence. Most people fail at least two. Here’s the diagnostic.
Your personal brand identity is not you. It’s a translation of you. When you confuse the two, you either freeze up or perform. Neither builds authority. Here’s the distinction that changes how you show up online.
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I spent 20 years photographing personal brands. I watched brilliant people stay invisible because they skipped the layers nobody talks about. So I built the Brand Intelligence Engine to fix it. Here’s the full story.
Your AI content sounds generic because the AI doesn’t know who you are. It’s not a tool problem. It’s an input problem. Without your identity, voice, and brand intelligence loaded, every AI produces the same bland output. Here’s how to fix it.
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The personal brand identity gap is the distance between your expertise and your visibility. When who you are doesn’t match how you’re seen online, it’s not a marketing problem. It’s a coherence problem. Here’s how to close it.
Most personal brands skip visual translation entirely. They jump from identity straight to content. But brand identity before website, before content, before the sales page is the order that actually works. Here’s the layer you’re missing.
Most personal brand strategy frameworks skip the foundation. Brand intelligence is built in four layers: Identity, Visual Translation, Content, and Business. Here’s why starting at layer three is the reason your brand feels off.
Your personal brand feels off but you can’t explain why. It’s not your logo or colors. It’s a coherence problem, a structural gap between who you are and how you’re seen. Here’s what to do.
Authority isn’t binary. You’re not either an authority or not an authority. Authority exists in levels, stages, and progressions. Each level has distinct characteristics, distinct positioning, distinct challenges, and distinct requirements for advancement. Most people get stuck at Level One. They’re visible, active, creating content, showing up regularly. But they’re not building actual authority. They’re […]
About the Blogger
I was born in a low middle class conservative religious family in the suburbs of Seattle. Art was and always has been my passion, and more than that a way of life. Starting as a graphic designer, I taught myself photography, built a commercial/editorial business shooting for the worlds biggest brands like Nike, Coca-Cola, Adidas and more. I've also had the opportunity to photograph the world's biggest celebrities like Justin Bieber, Usher, Jessica Alba and more. I've curated a lifestyle around creativity and have learned a lot along the way which I get to share here.
I was born in a low middle class conservative religious family in the suburbs of Seattle. Art was and always has been my passion, and more than that a way of life. Starting as a graphic designer, I taught myself photography, built a commercial/editorial business shooting for the worlds biggest brands like Nike, Coca-Cola, Adidas and more. I've also had the opportunity to photograph the world's biggest celebrities like Justin Bieber, Usher, Jessica Alba and more. I've curated a lifestyle around creativity and have learned a lot along the way which I get to share here.
