Happy Monday War & Peaceniks! Welcome to the middle of the year.
I don’t know about you, but I often find it hard to describe to people outside the Media community what the fuck I do for a living. It was easier when I worked in “proper TV," and could point to a channel or a show and say “I work on that.” But now? If you want to see confusion, just try to explain to an orthodontist from Cincinnati over cocktail weenies at a Bar Mitzvah why people call you a “Media Cartographer.”
But isn’t that the conundrum? I know a lot of people who work in show business. Very few of us have titles or job descriptions that specifically describe what we do. Our jobs are much more than a set of bullet points. More importantly, what we bring to those jobs is much more difficult to fit squarely into the About section of our LinkedIn profile.
Last week, a bunch of us got together to talk about taking the big, first steps to the next parts of our careers. I presented my personal first two steps on the pivot journey - a process I go through every summer regardless of where I am in my career - but much of the session was full of questions and examples from the community.
We discussed describing ourselves in ways that don’t sound like everyone else, about the great value of honest feedback from a trusted network, about the importance of being self-aware, and about the anxiety that comes before taking those first big steps towards the unknown of what’s next.
A whole bunch of folks showed up, which is always a wonderful feeling. But even better, the zoomful of Peaceniks felt like a true community - everyone listening and cheering each other on - and that was enormously gratifying. I hope the video is helpful. Please feel free to post your own questions or stories below.
My next zoominar is July 25. We’ll focus on harnessing chaos in CTV advertising and we will have a special guest! All the details are here.
If you’re here in America, I hope you enjoy the short week and the summer sun. If you’re outside America, you can expect the US to be a bit distracted this week by vacations and fireworks.
Either way, enjoy your week!
ESHAP