We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Brian E Thomas a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Brian, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

It was just a few short years ago that I wanted to move up into the C-Suite at a Fortune 500 company. I had some experience in the C-Suite, but at medium-sized companies. To grow my career, I knew I had to take some risks. So, I decided to do just that and put myself out there. I opened some social media accounts, started interviewing for jobs and volunteering for some notable projects in my community. Before long I had signed up to give a few speeches including a keynote at a large regional function in my city. I also applied for writing privileges at several of the large top tier publications. After about 6 months or so I started to see some large traction as far as gaining notoriety and attention from companies and hiring managers alike.

After experiencing some success, I decided to launch my own website, and started to contribute more of my writings to other publications as well. In another six months or so, I went from zero followers on social media to approximately 70,000 across my platforms. I also was named as a technology influencer and made the list of the top 100 Chief Information Officers in the world. Additionally because of my exposure on social and my activity in the community and in my contributions, I became an influencer in the journalism and public relations spaces as well. Five years later looking back, this work has provided some amazing opportunities which allowed me to be part of some boards both nonprofit and profit. Additionally, it allowed me some other career opportunities as a Chief Information Officer.

Brian, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I have a humble beginning, after spending four years in the United states Marine Corps, I went back to college and obtained my four year degree in computer science. From there I started to work as an entry level application developer. With some continuing education, encouragement from my family, and a little bit of hard work, I was able to quickly move up the corporate ladder. This was a great, yet busy time in my career. There were many challenges along the way, but I did enjoy the times where I was growing and making forward progress.

As I shared previously, I eventually made my way into the C Suite as a Chief Information Officer. It was here that I wanted to continue to expand my career and learn more.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

Just go for it. Of course, you will learn by trial and error. However, if you have anybody that has been down this path or has been trained in this space of marketing and social media – please reach out and ask for some guidance or mentorship. You’d be surprised at all the help you would get from and acquaintance or stranger.

The one thing that I found is you just need to be consistent with your social media. Trying new things look at what other people are doing and find out how they’re being successful and mimic that.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Never give up. There are times that you want to quit, but always remember why you started this journey. Yes, it takes discipline to continue the journey some days, but discipline is what will help you continue to make your goals. If you need a little help, phone a friend for some encouragement or advice, or plug in some music to get you into that mode to get over the hump. There if there’s anything that I’ve learned, consistency will ensure the completion of your goals. Of course, remember to write out your goals. That means short term, mid-term, and long-term goals.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://brianthomas.me/
• Instagram: @DivergentCIO
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianethomas1/
• Twitter: @DivergentCIO

Image Credits
Brian E. Thomas