The Most Important Word in Blogging (And in Life)

Last weekend I turned 21 years old, and since then something's changed.

My entire 20th year, I felt an incurable angst at being nested between the clueless teenage years and the duty-laden world of years 21 and beyond. I approached with awkwardness such fundamental issues as "Am I too old to wear ripped jeans?" and "Should I file my own taxes this year?" I got fired for the first time at 20, and I didn't take it very well. I moved out of my parents' house, moved to a new city, started school at a new university and started The LC Studio. I bade a bittersweet farewell to 20 for the memories I made with it.

Maybe that's why I've been absent from blogging for three weeks. And why I've acquired a new-found love of jazz music, bedtime yoga and business casual Pinterest fashion. I'm not ashamed to admit I've shifted perspectives in the months leading up to my big day and in the few weeks since.

Brilliant Branding: What is a Brand?

Like a yearbook embodies a period of life for a school, a brand embodies the life of a business. Each + every one upholds a look + feel as distinctive as a yearbook photo – even the ones you hated the most (my three years of braces perpetuated merciless picture days).

A “brand” isn't just synonymous for a company, product or service; a brand encompasses the identity of those things. It personifies them. It gives them a face. Branding allows us to differentiate between the goofy, carefree personality of Google and the sleek, sophisticated personality of Apple.

All brands accomplish the same goals:

• Representing the values of the company
• Influencing consumer perception of the company
• Sustaining a relationship with consumers

In essence, branding controls how people feel about a company. All advertising, customer service, package design, hiring decisions + web design cater to branding.