Metamorphosis: Ty’s personal branding experience
Ty Heath is the Director of Marketing Engagement at the LinkedIn’s B2B Institute. She has worked at LinkedIn for almost 6 years and has been the President of LinkedIn’s Black inclusion group. She’s also her own brand; co-founder of a conference called TransformHer, which invests in connections between women of color and allies.
Ty’s session was all about her discovering and stepping into a new side of herself. In this blog post, I summarize the conversation about our session. The full video is at the end of the post.
You have a fascinating backstory, Ty. Could you share a bit about that?
I’ve been in the space of digital marketing for quite some time now. No one ever says, “I’m going to be a B2B marketer”, but here’s what happened. I went to college at Georgetown and was always interested in politics and international relations. At the same time, I was running as a member of the Georgetown Track and Field team.
“I’m on a mission to help marketers understand their power to make decisions about the stories that get told and the stories that don’t . ”
After graduation, I moved from DC to the Bay Area to run with Nike. This was in the heart of Silicon Valley. I landed a role at Google to supplement my income and support my training. While I was there, I got introduced to digital advertising. I saw it as a way to scale ideas that transform things and move people, whether in industry or in politics.
I’m on a mission to help marketers understand their power, that we make decisions about the stories that get told and the stories that don’t. We choose which images represent the companies and brands out there, and which voices to amplify. I’m out to help marketers to understand that we’re part of the socialization that impacts our entire society so we can use this power responsibly.
I’m excited to work every day within the B2B institute to help marketers be more effective and do it in an inclusive way at the same time.
Why was this the right time for a photo shoot?
Ty is on a mission to help marketers understand and use their power responsibly, and to change preconceptions of what a successful senior marketer looks like.
My last photo shoot was a while ago, and we’re constantly evolving. I still have the same core values, but I’m a different woman today. I wanted photos to reflect who I am today, to express myself in different ways and have fun with it! Obviously, I wanted photos that were more professional, but I also wanted to show how I feel personally, show up with vibrant color and glam. I want to show up unapologetically in the world for the issues I care about.
Tech in general, and marketing, still suffers from issues of representation. Things are getting better, but there are still not very many people that look like me, especially in senior roles. If you close your eyes and imagine, “What does a senior-level marketer look like?” I’m probably not what you might visualize. In order for us to transform things, people need to see what’s possible. One of my big intentions is to shift and normalize that.
More specifically, I want to work on a second book and do more public speaking. It was time to do something fresh and new, and I was excited to see your work on your site. I instantly felt like you were someone who could help me bring those elements out.
Thank you! What was it like to work on your mood board? What did you learn about yourself during the process?
When Ty first started on her mood board, she had several pictures of women in athletic outfits. However, as she went through the process, she started to reflect on what she actually wanted to convey. She realized that while her athletic side is an important part of her, she’s not defined by it. She wants to look toward her future self and embrace her colorful, ‘glam’ self that she’s stepping into. Link to mood board.
Putting together a mood board is a great way to communicate what kind of outcome you’re looking for. Sometimes it’s hard to put the feeling, the emotion, the way you want to show up into words. But being able to visualize what you want and what you don’t want is pretty amazing!
There’s so much inspiration out there in the world! I love Pinterest in the first place, and I had a really great time looking at people who I think are very iconic in how they express themselves. Tracee Ellis Ross resonates with me as a very empowered single Black woman who is confident and unapologetic in how she shows up. Janelle Monae is someone whose fashion and style are impeccable and inspiring. It made me think, “How can I tap into that side of myself now?”
When I first started on the mood board, I went back to my time as a Nike athlete. I still feel very powerful when I’m working out in athletic gear and I thought I’d use one of my outfit options to reflect that.
But then I had second thoughts. “Where am I going with this? How do I want to use these pictures?”
I had a beautiful orange dress which a friend said would make a very powerful statement. Athletics are still an important part of who I am. Competing and training for the Olympics twice was a beautiful and powerful phase of my life.
However, I’m looking forward now. I’m a marketing leader, a person who stands up for diversity, inclusion and equity, for women and people of color to show up powerfully. I realized I wanted to go to this new space; explore my transformation with a more ‘glam’ look. My mom will tell you that I choose neutral colors. I wanted to change that up a bit.
Ty decided to embrace her ‘glam’ side and step into her new, powerful self. Wearing bright, bold color is an important part of her self-reinvention, as she decided to express through this orange dress that a friend suggested she wear for her shoot.
In the past year, I’ve started to break out of this former phase. Maybe it doesn’t feel like it, but it was a brave move for me to go with the orange dress. I was going to originally wear something more muted - like blue. However, when my friend pointed to the orange dress, it made me realize how it represents me breaking free of who I have been and going into who I want to be.
Were there any concerns that came up before the day of the shoot? How did it go?
Oh my gosh, I was nervous. I’m not a model, this is not something I do. I had no idea how to pose.
You did a great job of easing my anxiety by sitting down upfront and talking about it again; helping me reflect on my goals, how I felt and what was going on for me in the moment.
It was also helpful to map out where we’d be going but be free-flowing within that. We walked into the park and started looking for places that were visually appealing. We ended up going to places I wouldn’t have thought of! It was helpful to have you as a coach along the way.
Once you showed me the first couple of pictures, it was great! Before that, I was a bit worried, “Do I look crazy?”. And once I saw the pictures, I was like, “Who is THAT? Is that really me?” Then I was like, okay, I can do this!
What has it been like to see your photos and share them?
Ty loved having some photos show her softer, more sensual side.
Blown away. Just blown away!!!
The pictures were fabulous. Just the depth of color itself — it felt like you could touch the dress. It felt very natural and I was fully expressed. I felt a sense of freedom and confidence from the photos.
You were able to coach me to give a range of expressions, some even outside the boundaries of what I usually take. It’s nice to have the professional photos of course, but I loved some of the softer photos. There were some photos in there that made me go, “Somebody call Essence Magazine or Vogue right now!”
I can’t wait to use the photos. I want them to make a splash. I’m going to update my social, but I want it to coincide with something because it’s going to command attention. I want to leverage them to convey a message.
I did share them with my mom, and of course, she took them to work and showed all her friends! She was very excited. She said, “Oh, I wish I had someone to take a picture of me like that at that age!” She was just so happy.
I’ve also shared it with a few friends and they were super, super excited. The reactions were just; wow, that’s so beautiful and awe-inspiring!
Would you recommend this experience to a friend? What would you tell them?
Of course I would!
“Oh, I wish I had someone to take pictures of me like that at that age!”
I’d tell them that the process is incredibly professional from end to end. If this is not something you usually do, you can trust that Raj will help you feel comfortable and confident and coach you. You’re going to be really pleased with the outcome because he’s gonna listen to what YOU want to get out of it. And then when you change your mind like I did, he’s going to flex with you, not questioning why you changed your mind.
It was a great experience and I just want to acknowledge you for shining a light and supporting this community. One of my values is freedom and I want that for everyone. The work you’re doing helps people break free, see themselves and other people see them. So, thank you for your work!
Full interview with Ty Heath (20 min)
Want to find out what YOUR new identity could be?
Try out this free guided exercise that’ll help you connect with your own brand and values in a fun, intuitive, visual way.
