It is not productive to criticize self-branding’s emphasis on commodification just because it feels distasteful. As Adam Arvidsson writes in the preface to his book Brands, “to be critical of brands per se is about as fruitful as it is to be critical of factories or bureaucracies.” The problem is that self-branding, as a practical technique, is limited and will only be successful for a slim sliver of the population, yet it is being advocated as a universal solution to the economic downturn that can be adopted by anyone.

Alice E. Marwick, Status Update, loc. 525