Carla Vernon, the CEO of The Honest Company, described our career journey in four different segments - your freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior year. So, in our approximately 40 year careers, that makes your first ten years…. your freshman year.
When I think about being a freshman in both high school and college, I realize that the many things I worried about, I don’t actually remember anymore. I remember the highlights - but often times, not decisions that I long debated and never tried. Not the opportunities I didn’t give the chance to shape and surprise me. Not the aspects of my identity and interests that I never tapped into.
In fact, a scary thought that crosses my mind is "what if I would have never signed up for the speech team?" Who would I have been? What would I have done?
Well here we are again. For your freshman - and even sophomore year of your career, you have another chance. A chance to tap into versions of yourself that you maybe didn’t expect to find, to reaffirm your passions by doing what you love, to fail at something and then start again. Above all else, it’s time to be willing to take risks, and see how it all plays out. To me, there’s three areas our lives that require at least a little bit of risk taking.
You don’t have to quit, but you can’t stay here.
You know all those memes you send to your work bestie about absolutely hating your life in your corporate job? Aha, yeah me too.
But seriously, I need to get real for a second. I’ve had so many conversations lately with women in my network who are not just burnt out, but really reevaluating the life they’ve created for themselves. For our entire lives, we’ve been told to go to college, get the internship, work the 9-5 and retire happily. Some people are really happy doing that and I love that for you. But women are pulling back the curtain and reminding other women that the life of a 9-5 wasn’t actually built for most of us. And what’s more interesting, is it actually also wasn’t built for our cycle (s/o to @socialsqueeze.co for recommending The Menstrual Mogul Podcast).
What I’m trying to say, is if the #corporategrind lifestyle isn’t feeling totally aligned, it’s not you… it’s them.
Luckily, there are a lot of great companies that see this and are doing something about it. But it’s not without women taking a risk, and speaking up. If you are seeing signs of burnout approaching, consider anything about your current situation that you could potentially speak up and change.
It is a risk to have a conversation with your boss 6 months after you get a raise and ask for more money - but if you deserve it and it would help them retain a great employee, take the risk.
If you have one part of your job that you hate but feel like no one else could or would do it so you have just been dealing with it - bring it up in your 1:1 and tell your boss how impactful reallocating an element of your workload would be.
Have you been wanting to work in a different city and your company has multiple offices - ask to relocate!
Some things are unchangeable but I think in today's working environment - companies can be more malleable than we assume. Taking little risks to create a working environment that is better for you is just practice for when moments come and you KNOW you have to make a career changing decision - you will be ready for it and better for it.
But that also leads me to the next area to take risks….
Just go for it, girl
As I sit here waiting to switch laptops for my 9-5, I realize I’m being a bit of a hypocrite - but hey, I gotta good thing going right now…. Or maybe this is a pump up letter to myself? Not sure.
That same network of women I’ve been chatting with all have a passion outside of their 9-5. From baking, to interior design, to social media, to yoga … all of these women are incredibly talented and passionate about the things in their life that for some reason, currently take up the smallest amount of time. Many even take PTO from a corporate job to work on their passion.
I’ll tell you my own story.
I started Stephanie Butler Consulting in 2019, not out of thin air, but because someone asked me to. I had always coached public speaking as a volunteer, until someone raised their hand and said, “I would pay you to coach me.” Since then, I’ve had a consistently full schedule for six years. Sometimes I’d even coach an additional twenty hours per week in addition to my 9-5. Often, I'd take PTO to support my clients. And all of my new clients were solely based on referrals - no marketing.
I’m sure some people are looking at me like “then why the heck do you still have a corporate job?” Well, for me, a lot of it was I love to learn and I feel like I’m still learning. But if we’re being honest, I also just haven’t had the courage to take a risk.
And I’ve thought through everything… right? The finances, the insurance, the schedule, the opportunities. Yet here I stay?
There’s a lot more to it - but here’s what I’ll say:
If I didn’t take the risk to take on my first client, I wouldn’t have the clients I do today.
If I didn’t push through my twenty hour coaching weeks during my 9-5, I wouldn’t have a six year old business.
If I didn’t have a six year old business, I wouldn’t have the option for a full time, self employed career.
If I don’t take the risk of going full-time, self employed… well, that’s to be continued.
But underpinning all of this - truly, why I am where I am - is building relationships. Which sometimes takes a risk or two, too.
Hey, Hi, It’s me.
This is a real life problem I used to have at my very first corporate job: I don’t have enough money to pay for all the informational coffees that I have on my calendar.
No seriously, I networked SO hard that I would sometimes have 3-4 “coffee dates” in one working day. Therefore, I’d need to spend almost $20 on coffee per day, especially if I was purchasing the other persons'. Don't tell me what that added up to be in a month.
Luckily, I started proposing walks… (my bank account thanked me) but the point is, I met so many incredible people my first few years of corporate and it continues to pay off in dividends today.
I think we all know that networking is important, but as we get older, it’s really easy to think “we’re good.” “I’ve networked enough.” Or “I’m stable in my career and just don’t need to anymore.”
But can I tell you something? We always need networking.
People exist in this world who are smarter than you. Even if you are eighty years old and have lived a full life, people exist in this world who are smarter than you at something. And it’s collectively our job to lift each other up by knowing one another, supporting one another, and learning from one another.
A few communities I want you Minneapolis/St. Paul folks to consider networking with:
The Dot Twin Cities
TeamWomen MN
Social Wellness Exchange
You’ll thank me for it.
In Conclusion…
There is so much goodness in the world to be had. Seriously. This past year I’ve taken risks, said yes, and done so much that has made my life richer and more open to opportunities. At times it’s tough - but it’s always worth it.
Happy August 1st, my fellow swifties. Here's to taking risks.
Supporting you always,
@stephanielaurenbutler
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