Photo: Gia Mack, shot by N. H., Feb 2025 birthday spread
“What it looks like to have your swag all the way right.”
When I signed up for my personal branding class, I thought it would be about logos, colors, and social media tips. Honestly, I didn’t know what to expect. What I did not expect was that it would give me a platform to build something this deep. The class required us to create a website, and that is how Weaponized Reading came to life. I could have picked a low-maintance topic, but I chose something that genuinely matters to me. That choice meant pushing myself, working harder, and building something that reflects what I value.
Building the site showed me that branding is not about selling yourself. It is about understanding yourself well enough to create a home for your purpose. Weaponized Reading became that home, a space I designed to hold complex topics, readings, and the kind of historical and social analysis I care about. Each post lets me pull apart the ideas I already wrestle with, laying them out in a way that shows how tangled and interconnected everything really is.
The class also required active social media pages and multiple posts a week, which ended up helping me more than I expected. Posting consistently pushed me past perfectionism and forced me to actually create. Managing everything across platforms also taught me to stay focused on my message instead of treating it as just another assignment tasks.
All of this pushed me to build something I did not realize I needed: a dedicated intellectual space where I can exercise my curiosity. It is a demanding space sometimes, filled with complex ideas and heavy material, but it is one I created intentionally. In most settings, conversations about the topics I write about are not encouraged, but here I can question, analyze, and reflect without shrinking myself.
Ultimately, this class was not about teaching me how to make a website. It gave me the structure, deadlines, and push to turn a long-standing desired outlet into something real. It taught me that meaningful work starts with knowing myself, committing to my perspective, and giving my thoughts a place to live. Weaponized Reading is that place, and without this class, it might still be an idea instead of a living project I am proud of.
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