Experience is often valued because of the lessons prior jobs have theoretically provided us with. While hearing about those lessons isn’t a replacement for actually experiencing it, we thought it would be very helpful to create a space where sharp and generous members of the community can come together to share stories and lessons learned at prior jobs for the benefit of others. 

Mercedes Gibson

One of the most important lessons I’ve learned – both working inside nonprofits and later coaching within them – is that workplace culture is revealed far more by policy than by values statements. Read More>>

Allie McSwain

Breathe. No, really, take a moment to pause and breathe. Somewhere early in my career, I started taking everything way too seriously. When I worked as a live sound engineer at bars and clubs in New York City, I would begin every gig in full panic mode. Read More>>

Patrick Tatten

When I first started my woodworking business, I really struggled with sales. In fact, I soon ran through my savings and needed to take a job in a restaurant, which I initially viewed as a failure. This particular restaurant specialized in catering to celebrities and offered wine and food that was much higher in value than any product I had ever sold. Read More>>

Nick Heyward

Years ago, when I first began my career in hospitality management, I worked at the front desk like many people do when starting out in the industry. One particularly busy arrival day, I noticed an elderly woman standing in the lobby who appeared visibly distressed. Read More>>

Taylor Radway

One of the most important lessons I learned before becoming a business owner came from one of the most unconventional jobs I’ve ever had: working as a bounty hunter. Most people think bounty hunting is like what they see in movies—kicking down doors, chasing fugitives, and making arrests. Read More>>

Karina Rosser

Prior to starting my own coaching business, I was working for a big nutrition coaching company. One of the fastest growing in this space. The owner Mike- preached a lot of things.. but the biggest being get people results and provide excellent customer service. Results- in the nutrition/fitness/health coaching business, people want to see results. They want to see HOW I can help them. Read More>>

Andrea Gianotti

So basically my creative career started with a mistake, which later turned into a fresh new start. It was in 2018 when i bought a basic costume in a halloween shop, which strangely had a mask from a famous anime. Read More>>

Lara Darwish

One of the most important lessons I learned early in my career was that if you do not create space for yourself, no one else will. Like many professionals, I initially believed that hard work alone would be enough, that if I consistently delivered quality results, people would naturally notice. While performance matters, I learned that visibility matters too. Read More>>

Lara Grosso

The biggest thing I have learned from prior job, don’t expect over night success. It takes time to fry a true result. If you rush perfection and expect the sult you’re looking for. Being patient is not easy in the service industry. There is always someone that pushes your buttons and wants a reaction iu of you. Read More>>

Andrew Allen

One of the most important lessons I learned before starting SD Microbes came from working with and around different soil companies throughout San Diego. At the time, I was already deep into growing, soil biology, composting, and trying to understand what actually made plants thrive. Read More>>

Catherine McKenzie

The Holiday Concert That Taught Me Everything About Delegation Early in my career as an executive producer, I was responsible for an annual holiday concert that featured Broadway talent. It was a big, high-stakes production — the kind of thing that had to be perfect, because it aired during the most competitive time of year and the audience expected magic. Read More>>

Detrich Swain

The most important lesson I’ve learned from a past job that has helped me as a business owner is…to invest time and money into your own-self the same as you would a 9-5.Read More>>

Carol Chenkin

The only other job I had before creating my own agency was working for the world’s largest Public Relations Firm, Burson Marsteller. There I learned that if we can fully understand our client’s business like it’s our own, we can better solve their problems and succeed in furthering their goals and objectives. Perhaps most importantly, I learned that relationships are everything. Read More>>