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.

Cecilia Garcia

I served eight years in the Army. I joined when I was 17, and the Army shaped me into the adult I am today. Probably the most important lesson I learned during those eight years was how important it is serving others. I initially joined to earn college money, but quickly realized that serving with my brothers and sisters in arms was more important. Keeping them safe and alive in combat was the main reason I stayed in. The Army also taught me that everything is a mindset. If I focus, and have discipline, any goal can be accomplished. I am constantly trying new ideas and skills for this reason. Read more>>

Ashley Bradley

I was going through the work materials from a past job recently. The job was technical, non-creative, and required following predetermined guides for all things. It was toxic workplace in that you were notified when doing wrong, and not made aware that you had done well, so you worked in fear. When digging stuff out of the boxes, all of the lengthy notes that I took for the job were decorated and highly illustrated. Cheat sheets I made up for me, also given to my colleagues, were likewise written in happy typographies, with tiny artworks to help make the technical fun and more easily understood. Read more>>

Margaret Larabel

I used to work in the fine art reproduction field, where I was digitizing and printing a lot of original artwork for painters and photographers, and that was extremely eye opening to work very closely with other creative professionals. The biggest takeaway from that job, in terms of an artistic career path, is that the majority of people out there doing this for a living know just as little or less than you do about the business. Whether it be about technical aspects of putting together a website, how to price prints, or more existential artistic questions- we really are all out here finding things out as we go along. Before that job I had a binary way of thinking which was, you either had it figured out or you didn’t. Those that did were the people selling and getting in galleries. And the people who didn’t needed to figure out how to get there. Well turns out, there is no “there”, you just have to start somewhere and keep forging the path with each step you take. Read more>>

Maya Ratcliff

I was a corporate banker for years. I learned so many lessons in the banking industry. I wanted to do things differently and take great care of my customers. Big Banks tend to be all about profits and what they can get from a customer. I didn’t like that, I genuinely cared about my customers best interests. When starting HFA, I took a hard look at what I wanted the culture to be and not to be. I believe in servant leadership and always taking care of the customer. I also believe that a team of professionals making decisions as group leads to better decisions. We have a leadership team at HFA that includes corporate staff, franchisees and vendors, allowing us to make better decisions as a whole. Read more>>

Chloe Marrazzo

Anticipating a person’s needs and being prepared for anything is something I learned in hospitality. Let your clients have fun and relax and offer ways to elevate the experience. Read more>>

KC Carmichael

Looking back at all the lessons I’ve learned in life, it was my experience as a nationally competitive figure skater in my adolescence that prepared me for the trials of getting my book published the most. At the time, and even years after, my opinion of my skating days was different than it is now. I looked at my experience on the ice as a failure. I had dreams that never came into fruition, and that failure manifested itself in me as bitterness towards the sport. But the process of getting my book published has changed my view. It’s clear now. I was never supposed to be an Olympian. Those years I spent on the ice, training daily and giving up a regular childhood, taught me how to be tough. How to hone and perfect my craft. How to pick myself up after failure and rejection. And most importantly, how to never give up. Read more>>

Tara Carsner

Previous projects have taught me the importance of accountability. No matter what, there’s always something you yourself could have done better to avoid any errors or mishaps that happen on a project. Did you get content back from a creative that missed the mark? Tighten up your brief. Allow for more edits in a work-back calendar. Did your staff show up late? Schedule call times earlier so it physically cannot happen. Staff better support–be more thorough in your hiring. Did plan B not work out? Maybe I should always think through a plan c or have a clear enough mind to be able to think on my feet and execute a plan c. Once I learned to stop pointing fingers at others and saying things were other peoples fault, my projects were more successful and oddly enough my mental state was more stable despite the added pressure and responsibilities. Read more>>

Emma Nduku

When I first graduated college I was struggling to find a job that I like and felt I could grow in. So I started working at this one appraisal company and when I tell you I hated that job, I HATED that job. I was basically the middle man between the appraisers and the realtors/soon to be home owners/sellers. Anyways, that place was sooo strict and you always dealt with all types of personalites. I remembering crying either in the bathroom or in my car during my lunch break. I remember that was a tough time for me mentally and financially. Read more>>

Kenisha Darden

A pivotal lesson I gleaned from my previous role at the Atlanta City Detention Center was the significance of thorough documentation. Precise report writing was integral to our operations. It was essential to chronicle events accurately, ensuring that we provided a detailed timeline and recounted events precisely as they transpired, without omitting any particulars. Read more>>

Kira McCarthy

Have you ever heard that quote from Steve Jobs? “You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something – your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.” He said this, I believe, at a commencement speech. He explained that he had taken Calligraphy in college simply because it interested him. Not knowing at the time that this experience would inspire the distinctive fonts that set Apple apart from all the rest. Back when I was struggling to see how all of my varied and seemingly disconnected creative endeavors would align, these words were a beacon. Read more>>