In an era when personal branding is linked to virality and fame, Carolina D’Souza brings
together strategy, storytelling, and self-expression to help people build reputation with
purpose. Based in Dubai, she is a brand advisor, publishing consultant, and founder of Crown
Ink, a media and business consultancy.
She is also the creator of #BeyondCubicles, a LinkedIn storytelling series celebrating journeys
of professionals who stepped away from corporate life to build something of their own. What
began in 2024 as a pay-it-forward gesture has grown into more than 75 stories of courage,
resilience, and purpose shared through human experiences.
For Carolina, brands are not built in boardrooms but through stories that reflect who we are,
what we stand for, and how we choose to show up in the world.
The Person Behind the Title
Carolina is a storyteller at heart and a brand advisor by choice. With over two decades of
experience across journalism, government communications, PR, and brand consultancy, she
brings a multidisciplinary perspective shaped by her values of curiosity, learning, and
compassion.
Her path from the newsroom to entrepreneurship was not a planned one. What began with a
chance internship at a newspaper grew into a lifelong fascination with how stories shape
perception and trust. Years later, that same curiosity evolved through her work in PR and
brand strategy into a consulting practice focused on personal branding advisory, helping
leaders, founders, and professionals articulate who they are, what they stand for, and how
they want to be remembered.
Bringing Strategy to Storytelling
Carolina’s mantra, bringing strategy to storytelling, defines her approach to branding. For her,
storytelling is not just about creativity; it is about intention and purpose. Every message,
every word, and every brand interaction must connect to a larger vision.
She works with clients to uncover their values, purpose, audience, and find an authentic tone
that feels true to them. The result is storytelling that builds trust, sustains credibility, and
supports long-term brand goals
Creator of #BeyondCubicles — A Movement of Authenticity
BeyondCubicles is more than a hashtag. It began in June 2024 as a LinkedIn storytelling
series inspired by Carolina’s own shift from corporate life to independent consulting. It now
features more than 75 founder stories.
Through these weekly, unpaid features, the series highlights courage, resilience, and purpose
across industries from tech and education to wellness and adventure. The idea is to
demonstrate how people and personal brands evolve and how people move beyond a 9-to-5
identity to build something that is authentic and meaningful.
For many readers and featured founders, #BeyondCubicles has sparked ideas aroundreinvention, turning lived experience into lessons, and ideas into action.
Storytelling as a Tool for Empowerment
For Carolina, storytelling is not just a communication tool but a catalyst for empowerment.
From her early years as a journalist, she learned that every story, no matter how
straightforward, can move someone, teach something, or inspire change. That belief
continues to shape her work today.
She helps clients uncover meaning in their own journeys and express it with honesty and
purpose. By helping people own their stories, she guides them to bring more of themselves,
anchored by values and purpose
A Voice of Authentic Leadership
Carolina believes authenticity is the cornerstone of building reputation and influence. She
defines personal branding as the alignment between what you want to be known for and how
you show up in the world. It is not a title, company, or curated online image, but the sum of
your values, lived experiences, and expertise.
Her approach draws from her background in journalism, PR, and government
communications. She teaches clients that visibility without clarity is just noise and that
authenticity must have context. Sometimes it is about being genuine or unique; other times it
is about excellence or legacy.
Through her advisory work, she helps founders and leaders communicate with intention,
balancing strategy and storytelling.
Solving Challenges through Strategy
Carolina’s journey shows how personal branding can solve one of the biggest professional
challenges: being defined by your title instead of your value. After leaving her corporate role in
2020, she faced a stark realization that beyond her job title and company name, her personal
brand barely existed.
She soon discovered that many professionals, though accomplished, wrestle with the same
question: “Who am I beyond my role?” Through a personal branding strategy, she believes,
people can articulate their expertise, build credibility, and create opportunities on their own
terms.
In times of uncertainty, the safest bet is on yourself. Titles change, companies evolve, and
industries shift. But the brand that endures and travels with you is your own.
Merging Creativity with Corporate Wisdom
Having spent years navigating corporate environments, Carolina has learned how to balance
storytelling with strategic business outcomes. Her experience allows her to connect data and
business intelligence with purpose and impact.
She partners with leaders and organizations to translate stories into strategy, guiding them to
align their voice, values, and goals. For businesses, this means crafting brand stories with
clear messaging and audience insights. For individuals, it means linking their values to their
goals and developing messages for key stakeholders.
Advocating for Human-Centric Branding
Carolina’s approach: people connect with people, not logos. She encourages organizations to
replace corporate jargon with stories that feel human, relatable, and honest.
She teaches that branding is not just a nice-to-have function but a way to build trust and
meaningful relationships. For her, effective storytelling is about connection, not performance,
and when done with authenticity, it turns communication into trust and eventually, influence.
Building a Personal Brand in the Digital Era
In today’s attention economy, Carolina believes personal branding begins in the real world,
not online. A strong brand is built on lived experiences, values, and consistent actions long
before it is reflected on digital platforms.
She helps professionals define who they are and what they stand for, then translate that
clarity into their online presence.
When asked: how do I find out if need personal branding? And to that she asks three
questions:
- Do you have clarity on what do you want to known for?
- Is there a gap between your identity (how you show up in the real world) and your
online presence? - Is the community or audience you are building helping you with your personal or
business goal.
If the answer is ‘no’ to any, you need to work on your foundation, defining your values,
goals, audience and your USP.
Empowering Students to Own Their Narratives
Carolina describes working with students as among the most energizing experiences of her
career. Through personal branding workshops at universities including American University in
the Emirates and Murdoch University Dubai, she helps students connect who they are with
how they want to show up in the world.
Her sessions focus on real-world authenticity, guiding students to define their values, goals,
and voice. When asked if one’s personal brand changes between work and life, she replied,
“You’re the same person in both.” Her mission is to help students build confidence, credibility,
and purpose from the inside out.
Inspiring the Future of Purpose-Driven Branding
At the heart of Carolina’s work is a belief that branding is not about trends or algorithms, but
about purpose. She envisions a future where both personal and corporate brands stand for
something meaningful and lasting.
For her, the power of branding lies in alignment between values, actions, and impact. Every
story told should add value, build trust, and serve a greater purpose. This is the foundation of
how she approaches strategy, storytelling, and the work she continues to shape through her consultancy crown link.
Lessons from Carolina’s Journey
Carolina’s journey offers key lessons for anyone seeking to build an authentic and enduring
personal brand:
- Authenticity builds clarity: Your values and actions must align, because visibility without
purpose is just noise. - Strategy gives storytelling direction: When aligned with intention, stories shape perception
and trust. - Your story is your power: It connects who you were, who you are, and who you are
becoming. - Human connection builds credibility: People don’t connect with titles or logos, they connect
with people. - Growth begins beyond the cubicle: True freedom comes from defining your worth beyond her role.
A Vision Beyond Personal Branding
Carolina is also helping people preserve their stories. Her Publishing Program at Crown Ink is
based on the belief that in an AI-driven world, there is nothing more human than sitting
across from someone and telling your story.
Through the Program, she pairs clients with award-winning UAE-based editors and writers to
create life memoirs and legacy books that capture purpose, reputation, and history. In its
early stages, the program revealed an important gap, the space between commercial
publishing and private editions.
For Carolina, these projects are not about bestsellers but about preserving memory, meaning,
and legacy for generations to come. Because stories, when told with intention, outlive titles,
timelines, and trends; they become the legacy we leave behind for those who come after us.
Do connect on LinkedIn
