In life, at some point, we all arrive at our purpose; for some of us, it’s thrust upon us in a “sink or swim” fashion.
When I think about the overall theme of my life now at 43, I can see it’s been “sink or swim” from day one. Why is that? Well, I’ve rarely had an authentic and consistent support system outside of my now partner and younger brother. I have, however, had many a person play bit parts in the story of my life, only along for the ride when it was easy.
The thing is, my life hasn’t always been easy. Living this life now as a 43-year-old gay transgender man in Hollywood, on the spectrum with CPTSD, I can see I have developed quite substantial and resilient personality features due to my living through many hardships without a consistent support system that most in life appear to have.
I’ve rarely had people authentically in my corner, and that, in part, has made me the mentally strong man I am today.
Now at 43, I have transmuted my pain into power and arrived at my life’s purpose.
It’s to support the economic empowerment of transgender people through sharing my lived experience and knowledge base with those from my community to strengthen positive visibility for transgender people as a whole. In my volunteering and PR skills sharing, I am helping those like me help to destigmatize the false narratives that have been perpetuated by transphobic individuals, news media outlets, politicians, religious institutions, and extremists rooted in hierarchy and patriarchy, and I am honored to be able to do so.
When I aid my community by sharing my PR, marketing, and media relations strategies, I help humanize the story of transgender people throughout the world by helping encourage and empower transgender people like myself to use our voices, to be proud of who we are, to take up our rightful place in this world — to be celebrated as opposed to being tolerated.
The personal adversities I have overcome have been the gateway to my life’s purpose.
So, it’s my time to shine, and my goal is to bring everyone who is transgender along with me so we can all radiate our greatest, most authentic selves out into this world, loudly and proudly.
What’s your purpose?
ABOUT DYLAN THOMAS COTTER:
Rebel with a cause, driven by authenticity, self-expression, and liberation for all.
Dylan Thomas Cotter is a strategist, public relations leader, and brand communications executive with more than fifteen years of experience at the intersection of entertainment, media, and technology.
Cotter is known for securing numerous Tier 1 (top-tier) and Tier 2 media placements across key markets including but not limited to GQ, Rolling Stone, Out Magazine, The Advocate, Pride, Inked Magazine, Real Simple, VICE, KTLA, Reader’s Digest, Mashable, Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Life UK, Newsweek, Men’s Health, Parade Magazine, Betches, U.S. News & World Report, Women’s Health Magazine, NursingColleges.com, Women.com, South China Morning Post, Truthout, MIC, The Manual, Curl Magazine, International Business Times UK, TechRound, GB News, The Irish Star US, The Mirror, MSN and AOL.
Cotter is an advisor to founders, artists, and executives on brand positioning, reputation, corporate social responsibility, and strategic communications. As an openly gay transgender professional, Dylan Thomas Cotter is committed to fostering inclusive, respectful, and affirming work environments.
His latest book, THINK LIKE A TRANSGENDER THOUGHT LEADER, is out now, and his memoir, TRANSGENDER & TRIGGERING THE LIFE OF DYLAN THOMAS COTTER, is available now at Barnes & Noble, Harvard Book Store, Book Soup, and Skylight Books, amongst other fine retailers, and is distributed worldwide through IngramSpark.