Persona Files: Meet Jordan Santos
Jordan Santos is a Filipino-American who has worked in the social media world for the past 11 years – both in consulting brands and business and personal content creation. She is also the founder of Seen Library, a community for readers—new and old, casual and serious—to connect and immerse in meaningful and inclusive storytelling.
What advice would you give to people looking to cultivate a genuine and meaningful online presence, whether for personal or professional purposes?
The advice I always give is to share what you really want to share! It’s so easy to get caught up in the numbers and what gets the most likes, which then turns into us creating and sharing what we *think* we’re supposed to share instead of what we actually care about or feel inspired by. More about that here!
We love what you’re doing with Seen Library– can you share the inspiration behind it?
Over the past 10 years in the industry, I really felt that shift from social media being a tool for connection to becoming a tool for self-promotion and became pretty disillusioned with the work I was doing. So at the end of 2021, I decided to really cut back on work - I decided to make less money and take on less projects and clients so that I could figure out what I really wanted to do. I realized then that I wasn't necessarily sick of social media but that I really missed that feeling of connectivity I enjoyed so much in its early days and wanted to find a way to get that back, which is why I created Seen Library.
Since 2015, I was doing in-person book exchanges with friends, but it wasn't until 2021 that I decided to do them more frequently, as a way to not only get existing friends together, but also like-minded people who I may not know as well so that I and those joining in could make new friends. I was just tired of being on my phone all the time, working and living and breathing on social media, and I really wanted a way to connect with people in-person again, especially after finding ourselves so isolated during the lockdowns in 2020.
The bag you’re obsessed with at the moment?
The Row Everyday Bag, forever and always!!! My other top 5 favorites here :)
Must have Persona product at the moment?
Lip Liner in Rosewood - it’s the perfect nude and is so creamy and glides on perfectly. Daymask Peptide Lip Balm in Clear - I love pairing it with the lip liner and I love the scent – it’s so fresh and juicy.
