The opinions expressed by Entrepreneur authors are their own.
I’ve been pondering about this a lot these days facial. When it involves my business and even who I am as a person, I often ask myself, “Where is this going?” We all focus on the future, especially in business, but what about the past? What about how we came and where we stand today?
Every marketer knows that to actually connect with your community, you have to be an expert storyteller. It occurred to me that I have never shared my story about how I ended up here writing this text for Entrepreneur.
Every now and then people tell me that they give the impression of being at my LinkedIn and see that I’m doing great and say, “I’m killing it.” But most days I do not feel like that at all.
To be honest, the victories sometimes overshadow the huge losses that I do not like to share. Yesterday, while walking, I began pondering about the retrospective of my entrepreneurial profession. I can stand here today with pride and let you know about the business I built, but for the first 5 years of my business, I was ashamed to even say: “I have my own company.” I thought it could sound like a snob. Better to say I’m an independent marketer – suffice it to say I have a long technique to go.
Today I wish to share this journey with you – in three acts:
Act I: Shrinking Violet
How did I find yourself working in marketing?
Well, my mom told me I needed to earn money to maneuver out of home after college, so I became a business major. I loved drawing and creating; Numbers were never my forte, so finance and accounting weren’t going to be it. I landed in marketing when I saw an opportunity to mix business with creativity. I excelled in my college classes and internships and was able to take on the world… until I graduated in the face of a recession and couldn’t find a job.
Luckily, the amazing company I was interning at agreed to offer me a fancy title, marketing experience, and the ability to pay my monthly Blackberry bills until I found something everlasting a 12 months later.
I will always remember my first full-time job at an agency. I was on cloud 9. This place had every part, copy, creative, production – every part in-house. I was an account assistant on three casino accounts, which meant a constant amount of orders and work. I sometimes had nightmares that I forgot to submit an ad to a publication – it was intense, but I gained so much experience.
However, after the second 12 months I got bored. I saw where my life as an Account Manager would take me, and I wanted more. I was also able to move out of my parents’ house and move to the great city of Philadelphia, so I moved to a global consulting organization, becoming a marketing manager in their life sciences division. It ought to be noted here that I knew nothing about science and was surrounded by a team of the smartest people I had ever met in my life.
The intimidation doesn’t even compare to what I felt. I finally found myself in a situation where I began to know my value – people needed someone who could get things done. The more I achieved, the greater my price (at least that is what I thought at the time).
Based on my previous experiences, I felt comfortable taking on the role of task manager. I can check things off my list prefer it’s no person’s business! But if you asked me for my opinion on something, I would turn into a hermit crab. I stuttered and felt so awkward that I almost passed out and couldn’t remember what I said. However, I was definitely good at taking notes, and when someone told me to do something, you best imagine it was done.
The next step in my profession was to work for a boutique strategic agency. This was the place that made me fall in love with branding. I worked for the most amazing brands and got my feet wet in marketing research, but I still felt unfulfilled. One of my clients once pulled me aside and asked me why I never speak up during a presentation. She said I knew their account best and they desired to know more from me. This astonished 27-year-old Sunny. I knew I was the least smart and experienced person in the room – why would they wish to hear about it?
The truth is, I was afraid to talk up because I didn’t think it could be “right.” I didn’t know that in marketing there is not at all times a right answer. It’s about contribution, and your opinion is essential and obligatory. I was so afraid of looking like a idiot that I was actually worse – someone who had nothing meaningful to contribute to the conversation.
If there was anything positive during this time, it was the mentorship I received. I was fortunate to have some truly amazing colleagues who took an interest in me and my development and took that time beyond regulation to show me skills that I still use today, corresponding to methods to deal with conflict, speak with confidence, and make sure my phone is put away before you begin talking bad to customers.
Act 2: Freefall
Two years later I had one other job. I couldn’t help it; I was miserable. I at all times thought one other role would fill the void. It was like Cinderella’s slipper: I had to search out one that may fit perfectly.
I knew the last role I had was not the right one, but I was stunned when I was fired. I wish I could say I took it like a champ: cool, calm and collected. No, I cried. My boss’s wife watched over me as I packed my things while all my co-workers looked at each other in horror. Not a good look. I prefer to joke that it was like being dumped by a boy I didn’t particularly like, but that did not make it any less terrifying.
I was approaching thirty, unemployed, and had no idea what I desired to do with my life. I immediately began applying to every job I could find in Philadelphia, but each interview made me more and more discouraged. I had offers, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that I could be doing more of the same and expecting different results.
A friend suggested that I start my own company and start working as a freelancer – all I needed to do was build a website and do the work I already knew methods to do for others. Through one other friend, I was introduced to my first client who needed part-time marketing help. It was enough to pay my rent, so I thought it could be a nice bridge to my next full-time job.
I didn’t know I would fall in love with working for myself. It took several years to completely realize this, but I had the power and control to create my reality. If I didn’t like something, I needed to fix it. All my successes and failures were my own. As time went on, I began taking on more work and focusing more and more on what I liked and didn’t like, but I still felt that crushing feeling of imposter syndrome. I argued so much about every little thing that got here up. For days I wondered if I knew what I was doing. But here’s what no one tells you: you have to be here, in a place of uncertainty, to search out a place of work trust.
My biggest saving grace? Finding a great community of girls entrepreneurs. After years of timidly attending one-off events, I finally decided to hitch a mastermind group. It wasn’t a joke – it was a lot of responsibility and work, but due to the support system of other women who had passed through similar things in their firms, I stepped up. They say you are the sum of who you surround yourself with, and it’s true. Being around really smart, committed business owners made me feel smarter and more confident every time we met. I now not felt like I needed to play small – as a substitute, I felt encouraged to dream big.
During this time, I really began investing in myself and my big dreams. I hired 4 amazing marketers, got an office space, took my business marketing to the next level and improved the quality of my work. I went from having no idea what I was doing to feeling like this was exactly where I was speculated to be.
Act 3: The Marketing Slayer
Please know that I do not like to take myself too seriously and I’m laughing as I write this title. (I’m a huge fan of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.) This era of my company is very different. So many things have modified – what I want, where I’m going and how I wish to get there.
Ever since I was 21 and studying abroad in Rome, I desired to pursue marketing internationally. This 12 months I traveled to London to exhibit at a trade show for small business owners, attended two marketing presentations for SMEs in the UK and am working to develop partnerships with international trade organizations at home and abroad. This is what lights up my soul at once.
I understand more and more why I do this. It’s not only for me; it’s because I want to go away a legacy of positivity and creativity – for others to know that they, too, have the ability to create their own paths. With this in mind, I taught classes in the Junior Achievement League, volunteered for the Be A Mentor program, and created a scholarship at my alma mater (hello, Rowan University) to assist support the next generation of promoting geniuses.
Total transparency: I don’t know where this is all going anymore. I used to spend a lot of time setting goals and planning – and while it’s still useful – I’ve found that living, experiencing, growing and changing is one of the most rewarding parts of my entrepreneurial profession.
When you’re taking the time to carve your own path, you possibly can dictate where it goes. I used to think I needed to follow this path to achieve success. I saw it so clearly in my mind. The funny thing is, as I was checking things off my list, I realized I didn’t want it at all. The most significant thing for me is the autonomy to create my own journey and leave a lasting legacy of support, creativity and fun.
On the journey of entrepreneurship, we regularly ask ourselves what we’ll achieve along the way – awards, accolades, recognition, etc., but I imagine the more essential query we must always all ask ourselves is what we would like to go away behind.