Earlier today, I had a rather strange conversation with someone who had some rather bizarre assumptions about my personality and my character based on on the fact that I wear a suit on my profile picture.

I've muted that person, since it was clear that she wasn't actually curious about who I really was but merely ran with her prejudices. Nevertheless, maybe some of my regular readers _are_ curious about my choice of profile picture.

Basically, back in the early Noughts when I first joined assorted online forums (mostly #ttrpg -related ones), I had to pick a profile picture. More custom avatars did not appeal to me, so I decided to use an actual picture of me. And since this was back when people hadn't even heard of the concept of "selfies", I used the one I had available - a picture I used for job applications (adding a picture of yourself was standard in job applications in Germany those days, and I think it still ist).

And truth to be told, I liked the irony. I was a physics graduate, and the physics department at my old university proudly considered itself to be the "worst-dressed of the entire university". I don't really wear suits in my daily life unless I attend some function with a strict dress code, something that is fortunately rare in my profession.

And while I totally understand why someone would not use their own face and their own name online (these days, more so than ever), there _are_ advantages to this. People now frequently recognize me from other online forms: "Hey, I've seen you on Forum XYZ!" is something that happens surprisingly often.

By now, this profile picture(*) is pretty much part of my "brand identity", and having a recognizable brand identity has become even more important now since I sell my own books.

But _please_ don't assume that wearing a suit in this one picture defines who I am as a person. For you might look rather silly if you do.

(*) I updated this picture 10 years ago when I was last on the job hunt. I suppose I should take a new one these days to reflect my gradual physical decay, but as I am not hunting for a new job at the moment, the need is not particularly pressing.

Earlier today, I had a rather strange conversation with someone who had some rather bizarre assumptions about my personality and my character based on on the fact that I wear a suit on my profile picture.

I've muted that person, since it was clear that she wasn't actually curious about who I really was but merely ran with her prejudices. Nevertheless, maybe some of my regular readers _are_ curious about my choice of profile picture.

Basically, back in the early Noughts when I first joined assorted online forums (mostly #ttrpg -related ones), I had to pick a profile picture. More custom avatars did not appeal to me, so I decided to use an actual picture of me. And since this was back when people hadn't even heard of the concept of "selfies", I used the one I had available - a picture I used for job applications (adding a picture of yourself was standard in job applications in Germany those days, and I think it still ist).

And truth to be told, I liked the irony. I was a physics graduate, and the physics department at my old university proudly considered itself to be the "worst-dressed of the entire university". I don't really wear suits in my daily life unless I attend some function with a strict dress code, something that is fortunately rare in my profession.

And while I totally understand why someone would not use their own face and their own name online (these days, more so than ever), there _are_ advantages to this. People now frequently recognize me from other online forms: "Hey, I've seen you on Forum XYZ!" is something that happens surprisingly often.

By now, this profile picture(*) is pretty much part of my "brand identity", and having a recognizable brand identity has become even more important now since I sell my own books.

But _please_ don't assume that wearing a suit in this one picture defines who I am as a person. For you might look rather silly if you do.

(*) I updated this picture 10 years ago when I was last on the job hunt. I suppose I should take a new one these days to reflect my gradual physical decay, but as I am not hunting for a new job at the moment, the need is not particularly pressing.

Earlier today, I had a rather strange conversation with someone who had some rather bizarre assumptions about my personality and my character based on on the fact that I wear a suit on my profile picture.

I've muted that person, since it was clear that she wasn't actually curious about who I really was but merely ran with her prejudices. Nevertheless, maybe some of my regular readers _are_ curious about my choice of profile picture.

Basically, back in the early Noughts when I first joined assorted online forums (mostly #ttrpg -related ones), I had to pick a profile picture. More custom avatars did not appeal to me, so I decided to use an actual picture of me. And since this was back when people hadn't even heard of the concept of "selfies", I used the one I had available - a picture I used for job applications (adding a picture of yourself was standard in job applications in Germany those days, and I think it still ist).

And truth to be told, I liked the irony. I was a physics graduate, and the physics department at my old university proudly considered itself to be the "worst-dressed of the entire university". I don't really wear suits in my daily life unless I attend some function with a strict dress code, something that is fortunately rare in my profession.

And while I totally understand why someone would not use their own face and their own name online (these days, more so than ever), there _are_ advantages to this. People now frequently recognize me from other online forms: "Hey, I've seen you on Forum XYZ!" is something that happens surprisingly often.

By now, this profile picture(*) is pretty much part of my "brand identity", and having a recognizable brand identity has become even more important now since I sell my own books.

But _please_ don't assume that wearing a suit in this one picture defines who I am as a person. For you might look rather silly if you do.

(*) I updated this picture 10 years ago when I was last on the job hunt. I suppose I should take a new one these days to reflect my gradual physical decay, but as I am not hunting for a new job at the moment, the need is not particularly pressing.