Welcome to my new blog.

Yes, my blog just had a makeover – to make it more hospitable. And now it also has a new home: www.jaculynnpeterson.com.

A couple of months ago, I decided to take the plunge and upgrade from my free-hosted blog at http://diablogue.wordpress.com. Of course, the Diablogue domain name was already taken.

I thought: “So now what?”

Naturally, I turned to Twitter and asked for advice. Four people immediately responded with great suggestions and food for thought: Kim Woodbridge, Ari Herzog, Angela Recchia, and Kevin Grandia.

However, it was this reply that caught me off guard: 

ariherzog @diablogue_chat For instance, why not jaculynnpeterson.com? 7:06 PM Nov 6th, 2008 from TweetDeck in reply to diablogue_chat

I never considered my own name as a domain for my business. Not once. Then I became curious as to why I never considered it. Why not?

Because I didn’t write a best-selling book? Because I’m not on the international speaking circuit? Because I wasn’t profiled in the New York Times? Because I didn’t make millions on my last IPO? Because, I thought, I’m not a rockstar?

I’ve always given advice to others about the importance of name domains as they relate to personal branding. I also made it a point to tell parents and grandparents to (secure and) buy name domains as gifts to bestow on children when they reach Internet age.

So why wasn’t I following my own advice?

What was stopping me from using my own name as a domain for my business? Frankly, it felt pretty comfortable safe hanging out hiding behind a separate blog domain name like Diablogue. That was less work scary than defining, refining, and sharing the evolution of me. Besides I was am having a great deal of fun exploring and sampling different paths, challenges, endeavors, industries, clients and projects. Why try to bundle all those mostly discrete elements into one personal brand? Was it even possible without a laser focus?

Why did I think that I had to bundle them? I didn’t.

Why the desire to create an identity package and a laser focus? I’m not a corporation for Pete’s sake. I’m a person.

And then I thought: Just like corporate brands are determined by their customers, your “personal brand” is determined by those who know and interact with you. And the only way they can get to know the real you, to interface with you, and get a true sense of you, is to be you – not a brand identity. By default, you will develop an associated reputation. That’s because people have reputations. Companies have brands.

So what do I really think about personal branding? It’s an industry – and as long as someone can make a buck off of it, we will always hear about “personal branding.”

There you have it: www.jaculynnpeterson.com is my new domain name name domain for my business. I chose it – among all the excellent suggestions from my Twitter friends – not to develop my personal brand, but for the freedom to be me.

Thanks all.

NOTE: Extra special thanks goes out to Mark Hayward for his ongoing inspiration! 

[Update: Clarification highlighted in green. Thanks for your comments!]