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.

Lindsay Bone.

An important lesson I learned from a previous job is to know your worth. I had been working in operations and marketing for a team for 2.5 years when I was suddenly let go. I was obviously in shock, angry, and worried what the future held for me professionally and personally. My husband and I had just purchased a new home so we were also stressed about the finances of the new house. After the initial reaction wore off, I came to realize that I knew in my head and heart that I did my best work for that previous team and leader. Read more>>

McKenna Joy

The most important lesson I learned was to be able to take criticism without making a face or allowing it to getting under your skin. Going into castings and having someone say ‘you are too thick, your eyebrows are uneven, you are too tall, your hands are too large’ can really take a toll on you and not only that, but it can be offensive. You have to learn to take that with stride and keep a smile on your face. This is something I learned that very fast. Reminding yourself that it isn’t about ‘you” helps me stay in the business and keep my mental state straight. Read more>>

Zack Neeld

I have been very fortunate to be a part of several start up businesses throughout my career. One that I look fondly on, albeit not a very successful venture, is a senior care software concept that I worked on with my brother in-law and close family friend. Our family friend was literally born into the senior care industry, taking over his family’s portfolio of senior communities and management company. Born was an idea of a software suite that focused on the residents’ well being and communicating that to their loved ones effectively. Read more>>

Tata Potesta

I’ve wanted to work at a very young age, I didn’t love school but I loved making money and I wanted to get out there as soon as possible to start working! I started my first job when I was 15 years old at Limited Too and prior to that I was already babysitting. I’ve had 60 plus jobs throughout my years working and it took me to move to California to figure out that I should start my own business and take all my learnings from my previous jobs and apply it my current agency, To The Moon Social. Read more>> 

Emily Quick

I got married in 2014. My mom’s best friend from college did professional calligraphy full-time in Memphis, TN. I was fascinated with her process and wanted to learn so badly. She was incredibly generous and sent me practice materials… I set to practicing. I took four years to hone my skills before I offered professional calligraphy services myself and opened Blue Hydrangeas Calligraphy in 2018. I now calligraph and paint custom artwork for the Missoula, MT area & surrounding Rocky mountain valleys. Talk about a dream come true. Read more>>

LeGenevieve Squires

The most important lesson that I learned from my previous experience at FOLK Detroit that has helped me as a business owner, is being an advocate for food and my community. Before beginning my culinary journey at FOLK in 2018, I was trying to find out how I could get involved in the Detroit community. I experienced a snippet of it while managing Starbucks from 2016-2018; however, it was not as food focused as I was hoping for.  Read more>>

Michol Bobb

Some of the most important lessons I’ve learned in a job that has helped me as a business owner is to always speak up – you have to advocate for yourself and sometimes be a voice for others on matters that are important. I was a union delegate and had to represent over 300 pharmacy technicians as a mediator and had a supervisor that told me not to use them as a reference after I was working there for some years. Read more>>

Angelica Maulucci

I started working at 10 years old. Already sounds like a “back in my day” story, and I’m going to make it worse by sharing the jobs I’ve had: newspaper delivery, babysitter, food service, janitorial, nightclub bouncer, landscaper, retail worker, preschool teacher, social worker, celebrity fashion stylist, therapist, operations manager, and business owner. The purpose of sharing this is because I have learned from it all, that every job is important. Read more>>

Grace Rogers.

In life we have pivotal moments, moments that feel as though time has stopped, and change us forever. It is how we react to these moments, thrust upon us, that create the fabric of who we become. We all have a choice, a fork in the road, as to how we will let that moment define our character. It has been through a moment like that, at the beginning of my career that is forever been emblazoned on my mind. Throughout my childhood my parents did an amazing job teaching my siblings and I how to put others first, give back to the community and have a serving mindset. I appreciate that mentality to this day. Read more>>

J. Drew Silvers.

When I was a child, someone once told me that if you spend your whole day talking, you won’t learn anything and will only know what you already know. However, if you spend your whole day listening and paying attention to what’s around you, you’ll then know what you already know, and what the other people in the room know. I had been working continually since I was fifteen years old (retail, real estate internship, restaurants) but got my first full-time job when was twenty-one. Read more>>

Kristina Smeriglio

It was my first day at grad school, during my first class as part of my master’s program. I arrived early and sat in one of the desk chairs around the conference table. Our professor arrived and asked that we get ready to take turns and share our take on the assigned reading. The classes I took for my bachelor’s degree did not require a lot of reading for each class, let alone on the first day. Read more>>

Kate Metsker.

The most important lesson I’ve learned while being employed with prior employers is one that is more of an affirmation of a way of being that is inherent to me, and that is to run my business ethically with people and their wellbeing at the forefront of mind always. I have forever been a people person. I adore people. I genuinely want to know how you are doing. I want to hear your story, your dreams, and what lights you up. Read more>>