Tiger Woods Product or Man

Alter Identities

Michael Hardin
Watching what happened to Tiger Woods over the past couple of weeks I actually feel sorry for him. There are two personalities involved here Tiger Woods the man and Tiger woods the brand. This kind of makes it hard to distinguish which one is getting attacked at which time. Being a product can not be much fun especially when the name is tarnished for what ever reason.

The main question I have is which one had the affairs was it the man or the product? If he was a regular garden variety millionaire would it have went this far? If it was the product then is he to blame?

Most of us when we fall or have troubles of any kind we do not have it nationally televised. One might even say the local paper may not even carry it. So being in the shoes of someone who is a household name can be pretty hard to do. One must accept ridicule as a part of life.

Being a product a man or woman ceases to be their own person and cannot function outside of the brand without repercussions of some sort. They have to walk, talk, act, and look the way someone tells them anytime they are in public. How much does this cost to be someone else's servant or have an identity change? In Tiger Woods case about a hundred million a year.

Being a product only costs one their independence. This is kind of like being a super hero with out any one else knowing your alter identity. The person that is really you must never be revealed, that is not what sells products. The person that sells products is a fictitious image that no one else sees, Dr. Jeckle and Mr. Hyde so to speak.

How can Tiger Woods the man heal when his alter identity is constantly being attacked. No one knew that Mr. Woods had so many problems until a couple of weeks ago at least no one outside the golfing arena. This goes to show any one can be protected by the media for a few years. This is done to make them into an image a superstar an idol.

Time alone will help heal the wounds of the past weeks but even if Tiger Woods the man is healed will his alter ego be the same will the product heal or vice versa?

Published by Michael Hardin

Thirty years experience in the field of maintenance including plumbing, electrical, carpentry, painting,HVAC, pool and spa certification.  View profile

  • How hard is it to be a brand name?
  • Is there a difference between Tiger Woods the man and the brand?
  • Can Mr. Woods recover with so much publicity?
Does being a brand name change a person causing them to have an identity crisis?

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