Is being Gay a product of nature or nurture or both? This debate will rage on between liberals and conservatives for many moons to come. However, one indisputable fact will remain, how we relate to Gay members of our society is 100% nurturing. Once we see someone we’ve labeled ‘Gay’, our conditioning kicks in and a reaction ensues. This is the case with all brands whose values challenge the norm. I often have readers from this community who contact me in fear of losing their job, being ostracized by their families and many in fear of their life. Therefore, I thought it necessary to tackle this subject from a personal branding angle. Labels are instruction manuals from which we use to build our lives. Despite the range of labels- from material (ie- clothing, cars, jewelry…) to socialized (ie- smart, disadvantaged, class, sexual orientation…) to race (black, white, coloured…) they are all fundamentally constructed to assist mankind in navigating her/his spaces with more efficiency. Unpack any label and you’ll quickly discover your values and ultimately, your likes and dislikes. Our brains are wired to observe patterns, associate these observations with labels and draw conclusions about where we see ourselves fitting in. Our mental software’s ability to develop these sophisticated associations is why we’re able to march right into our favorite shop knowing which food and organic t-shirt to purchase in order to support our new found interest in the green-movement. But this process is also why we judge unfairly, go to war and alienate members of society. Labels trigger an orchestrated dance between our brains and emotions. Many avoid other people simply because they are labeled poor or diseased. Others are willing to kiss asses because they deem the label “famous” worthy of self-degradation. We fill our social networking platforms (facebook, twitter, etc…) with the best of us, ultimately trying to add value to our perceived labels. The true power of labels comes from our desire to group them in categories. Certain labels live in certain neighborhoods, shop at specific malls, go to these clubs, date these types of people and even go to certain Churches. This virtual instruction manual is so influential; ill labels impact our health in immeasurable ways. If our labels are accepted by the groups we admire, our existence is justified and our purpose affirmed. The moment we are labeled in an unfavorable way, social friction ensues and we are forced to develop a posture, which defends, avoids/ignores or rebels. Few labels inspire more controversy than ‘The Brand GAY’. Growing up poor, I developed a creative side which allowed me to escape some of the frustrations that come with not having the same social conveniences as the friends with disposable cash. Therefore I began to express my value in artistic impressions from clothing I designed. Because most of the male friends I grew up with weren’t artistically inclined, my creative predisposition was associated with femininity. As I studied the effects of labels and socialization, it occurred to me that my peers feared what they didn’t understand and therefore it was easier to label me rather than be interested and curious about my creative capacity. Different regions of the world have different social norms. The more conservative societies tend to be more aggressive at alienating those labels they don’t understand, particularly those who justify their beliefs with religion. And the brand gay happens to be one of those labels, similar to the women’s and civil rights movement, which causes discomfort due to its lack of information in the instruction manual. When labels restrict and prohibit basic movements in society, the easy thing to do (if its an option) is to remove the label and place it in a closet and bring it out when convenient. Many members of the Gay community find it easier to wear the label like a hat, putting it on and off as the environment dictates and some go as far as constructing pseudo family in order to be accepted and get on with life. And of course there are other’s who feel the enormous pressure society places on this label and become distraught and confused and simply bounce between worlds. Society will always have what I term ‘Median Labels’ or those that define its neutral position and become the fulcrum by which it swings and all those that lie on its extremes will present reason for a second glance. I envision living in a society where we develop an appreciation for diverse labels and allow space for each of us to learn from our various values. I have colleagues and readers who choose to wear their label proudly despite adverse social reactions and many others who hide because they aren’t strong enough to handle the onslaught of judgments and the resulting implications. The Brand Gay is associated with excellence, style and many other attributes that challenge and sharpen. The measure of our maturity as a society will be in our ability to probe our convictions towards various labels and ask ourselves are we operating on belief systems that are ours, or are we robots sent from the past. Whenever I hear that someone has labeled me Gay or any other label constructed out of fear, I smile and think- my ability to create and innovate must be awesome!