This is Me, Leaving the Harbor

Have you ever felt a tug in a new and unknown direction? It starts as a small tug on the rope tied to an anchor. Time passes and the tug gets more and more intense. It gains force and one day you realize it is time to pull up the anchor. Fear floods your body at the realization. 

One of the scariest moments in my life just happened to me— I decided to leave my advertising agency. Sometimes in life our passion overrules our fear.

I’ve been with 22squared for 14 years, starting back before my daughters were born, before I had any clue of the trajectory my career was going to follow. 22squared has been an incredible foundation and I treasure every moment there. Many leaders and team members have left their mark on my soul in ways I will carry with me forever. 

There has been this mysterious pull to change direction for a few years now. It began as I was building back from the lowest point in my life. Possibly the first moment of clarity was when I was sitting around a bonfire with a group of executives and someone asked me to stand up and introduce myself. I found myself blurting, “I’m kind of like a Millennial Whisperer.” Saying this aloud gave cause for me to examine my steps. My love for relationships and marketing made working at 22squared a perfect fit. I had authentic connections with my clients and enjoyed serving them along with my amazing team. 

At my core, the power of connection is my superpower. My unique drive to really know my network—their passions, their pursuits, their families—provided success in bringing lucrative accounts for the agency, but it has never been about the money for me. It’s been about people. Building a culture of authenticity and genuine connection inside the agency has always been just as important (if not more important) - than those relationships I built outside the organization. This is what made my work fun. A fire was ignited.

This summer I went to Surf Ranch and met Grant Korgan. I saw this totally selfless mentality from a guy who’s paralyzed from the waist down and has the best energy and attitude of anyone I’ve ever met. He fanned my flame. He opened my eyes to see that my passion for people, their purpose, their work, their dreams were worth my focus. I began to acknowledge there was a reason for this tug on my soul. That reason is a calling.

 

A calling is never about what we receive from following it. A calling is about being brave enough to trade our own desires for a life using our gifts and talents to serve others. 

I’ve let Richard Ward, the Chairman and CEO of the agency, know that I am thankful for the launching pad of 22Squared. They’ve always given me a long enough lead to pursue my passions while also continually investing in me to become a better leader. Because of this investment, I was able to write The Millennial Whisperer and Save Your Asks. In the process of writing these, my passions slowly picked up momentum, reminding me of the crescendo in the waves at Surf Ranch. My passions became bigger than me.

Come December 31st at midnight, I will give the secure rope tied to the anchor lodged in the beautiful harbor of 22Squared its final tug. I will pull it up, flooded with excitement and fear. Excitement because I see the wide expanse of ocean ready to be explored. Excitement because I feel sure I have everything I need to change the world one culture at a time. 

And fear because this is all new —I’ll have two days of confidence, and then every third day I ask myself whether or not I’ll be able to pull this off. Yet, I set my fear aside because it isn’t about me pulling anything off. It’s about you. I want each of you to know the fulfillment of incorporating your passions into your work. I long for you to know the joy of doing business with those you have authentic and deep connections with. I want your team to experience a culture of belonging, where generational gaps are embraced well and people thrive together.

There is so much my team (Janelle, my amazing right-hand-woman and Keri, my speaking agent) has honed and perfected behind the scenes these last couple of months! I’m overwhelmed by the tools we have developed and the research we’ve completed, and I’m excited to tell you about them. Excited to head out to sea and execute. It’s time for open water. Those very impressionable 36 hours I spent with Grant Korgan gave me the vision for a new expedition. 

This is me beeping. This is me leaving the harbor with the purest of intentions. So please, stay in touch! Hit me up with your questions and comments! My team and I are here for you. Maybe your work culture is our next destination. Let’s do this!