Kristina's Media - Be curious, maximize digital tools, bring in humanity to business & marketing

How your Marketing can Stand Out and Survive during COVID19

We are all in a pandemic, and it blows. People are dying, the economy is volatile, people are worried about getting corona virus resulting in medical debt—or worse—making their preexisting health conditions worse. While it is difficult to address and discuss, it is important to acknowledge as business owners and marketers how we approach marketing during COVID19. We have to understand where humanity is and where their priorities are at this time.

How are you standing out—appropriately—during Covid-19?

Be Price Aware, but not Damaging

Based on the daily news, we are seeing record levels of unemployment. While that is a critical metric of consumer confidence, we also have to take into consideration how even those with money or jobs, while still financially secure, are looking at their funds and being more cautious with their money.

Discounts and special terms are in place for higher priced items like cars, but we aren’t seeing the traction. Usually luxury goods are a good indicator of how serious things are, and even luxury goods are seeing a drastic reduction in conversions.

I have seen many businesses focus heavily on the sale/discount message. It has been a tried and true message—especially in ecommerce—but will is last? For some ecommerce and businesses, it will continue to serve them well, mostly if that has been their go-to strategy and the discounts are already built into their P/L.

However, when you start to discount consistently and heavily over and over again and your business isn’t used to such drastic measures, it is incredibly difficult to get back to the real value of your product in the long-term.

So where does that leave you and your pricing model with discounts?

Do
- Look at value of product selling, what cost of goods and competitive set look like? Yes, run a P/L. Basic task that must be done.
- Review how long you can keep inventory. Can you sell some of this year’s new release while also keeping some inventory for next year? Some larger businesses may not have the space. Smaller businesses might be able to run a ‘limited edition’ or special promotion, and keep some inventory for a later season when paychecks rebound.

Coronavirus Puts Frankie Morello on Hold

Don’t
- Undercut your prices because of a competitor. While marketers are often active in the ‘price’ part of the 5 Marketing Ps (Product, Price, Promotion, Place, and People), remember bringing in a new customer solely based on a lower price point doesn’t mean you have a new brand loyalist. They might even become frustrated when you try to rebound your prices.
- Reduce your product’s quality. Sure, you might not be able to serve your weekly wine tasting at your bottle shop due to social distancing and other regulations. However, you can think about how you can empower your customers to stay connected with you be giving them a quality experience in other ways. Now more than ever, people want that comfort of normalcy, even if it’s in a not-so-normal way like a box they can order with information on how to have their own wine tasting, or a 1:1 zoom call with you to walk through the wines for 15 minutes. Everyone stays safe, and you continue your connection with your customers.

Pivot to needs of market

While consumer goods are still in demand, the demand for the type of products has shifted. We are seeing more consumables like wine/beer/alcohol, toilet paper are seeing incredible surges in sales, while higher end products like purses, and clothing are seeing a drastic drop resulting in a market shift.

We are seeing consumers flock to “staples”—paper products and food—and “affordable luxuries”—wine, coffee, in-home entertainment from on-demand shows to puzzles. These two main areas give consumers a sense of control as well as the opportunity to give themselves permission to enjoy their money and life in smaller, perceived micro doses of spending.

What does this mean for you? You have to pivot your products and services based on the consumer market.

Action to take: Identify your key audiences and what products they would identify as ‘staples’ and what would be their ‘affordable luxuries’.

From there, pivot your product offerings positioning to these two areas. This gives consumers permission to purchase.

Example: Say you manufacture luxury soap and shampoo products in small batches. The price might be higher than a $1 store bar of dial. So you position your soap as not only a necessity, but also an ‘affordable luxury’. Your customers still need soap products (especially during a pandemic) but why don’t they enjoy the lavender scent that will also help relax during this stressful time?

3. It’s not all about brand right now, it’s about service, availability

While people are loyal to certain brands, I don’t know many people that wouldn’t grab the available brand of toilet paper if that what was available in the store. This also goes for many consumable goods like soap, wine, ~~coffee~~ ok, I draw the line here, and even clothes (my child as grown through two different sizes in two months. You bet he is wearing whatever we can find at the store or online).

People will be venturing to the stores for their regular products—or staples— but with so many people still adhering to a version of a stay home order, they will also be looking for ways to stay home and still enjoy live—which goes back to affordable luxuries.

If you are able to offer a service that makes your product even more available than before, maybe through delivery or online ordering in areas or ways you haven’t before, than you should see people taking advantage of that.

Example: You could offer kids shoes, and instead of in-store shopping where trying on shoes is part of the shopping process, maybe you mail two sizes with a deposit from the customer instead. Then you pick up the shoes that don’t fit and charge the customer for what works. Now, you can sanitize the shoe that you bring back, and you sold a pair to a parent that desperately needs shoes and was having to let their child wear their parent’s old shoes with tape … seriously, where can I get this service?

With that, you have offered a service while increasing the availability of goods that are needed at this time.

What are you seeing in the marketplace that has transitioned marketing overnight because of COVID19?

How to Guide Your Marketing Team to Adopt Machine Learning Mindset

For marketers, it’s difficult to sell the concept of on boarding machine learning within your own team. You can feel the excitement for machine learning in the boardroom. The growth potential, the savings from staff time, the enhanced guest experience, just to name a few.
But what about the teams on the marketing and sales front line? The workers who implement customer journeys, map the stages, develop tactics, and are responsible for results. To them, it can feel intimidating.

There is fear and confusion about what machine learning does, how it works, and how jobs will change because of machine learning.

How to guide your team

You are a marketing leader, how do you capture the potential of and grow the excitement of machine learning within a team that knows the ins and outs of your industry? They’ve hit goals time and time again while you pushed them harder and harder and they came out the other side victorious. Why are you suddenly shifting their workflows, decision pyramids, and challenging the very systems you pushed them to put in place?

Their thoughts and feelings are valid, new systems and programs are risky, but you can turn that around.

Turn machine learning skeptics into champions

Empowerment: Give your team permission and space to think about the next phase of the business by asking them questions.

What would they do if they didn’t need to pull data manually and mine data from several systems for answers?

What areas of growth do they see in the company’s future?

What would need to be true to be able to get to that next phase in the business?

How do they envision the future of the decision making within the organization?

What would they need to stop doing in order to focus on improving a customer’s experience?

Questions and seeking to understand helps you—as a leader—gather information about how machine learning can get you to the next phase in your business on a strategic as well as tactical level and provide context to your staff on how implementing a machine learning tool can impact them on a daily basis.

2. Understanding opportunity: With these questions answered and the conversation with your team started, you can begin to capture how a machine learning tool can assist with forecasting opportunity.

Forecasting:With the daily changes in the world that impact your business (climate change impacting distribution for example) machine learning can adapt with the help of your human teams. By inserting weather events into revenue forecasting machine learning systems for example, the system can learn when weather events can directly impact the potential for disruption to the revenue stream, giving your teams the ability to forecast and respond in real time to customers
Proactive v. reactive: Teams are asked daily to react to changes in business needs. With machine learning, you can see where the challenges and opportunities are for the business through predictive analytics. This gives the team permission to be proactive in the areas that need attention. Which can lessen stress and give them permission to be more strategic versus reactive.

3. Allows to be nimble:Machine learning systems gives teams the opportunity to test new theories and respond in real-time.

Testing: Creative teams are always wanting to try new theories and push into new pastures. Machine learning tools allow the team to try new initiatives, test their theories, and best practices in an industry while measuring in real time. Something working? Extend the test! A tried and true tactic no longer moving the needle? You can shift the focus quickly. This saves in the long run and helps foster employee engagement.

Giving your team space to ask questions, apply a machine learning mindset, and empowering them to think deeper gives them the buy-in on how machine learning can positively engage them in their work and the customer experience, resulting in fostering a team of machine learning champions!

It’s not a matter of if you adopt machine learning with your team, it’s a matter of when. It’s always better to take a team with you and engage them early resulting in empowered and engaged employees.

5 Reasons Why I Choose to Live in Canton, NC.

Sorrells Street Park-Canton, NC

I have lived in Canton, NC since May 2013. Before that? Hickory, NC, Minnesota, Alaska, and born and raised in The Lone Star State—TEXAS. I’m proud.

I have been immensely blessed to have lived in amazing places where I’ve found friends that turned into family. Now, with a husband and a young child, we knew we needed to make a move that put us close to family for support. More importantly, we were ready to put down roots, buy a house, get careers. Our stereotypical millennial ‘follow your dreams’ had faded into, ‘let’s find a home, community, and purpose where I can feel settled and calm’. Dreams change (I used to dream about pulling a ‘Promised Land‘, I really dodged a bullet there!).
Our family’s unlikely path lead us back to my husband’s hometown of Canton, NC, where people from outside of town—for some reason—are always asking why we live here. With a paper mill in the center of town, the stigma is high. Over 100 years ago, the paper mill was built and has been a staple of the town since. Besides employment, the paper mill also (and still does) the water treatment. The result, roughly 3/7 days a week there is a smell from the mill. I still smell it, but knowing that the town is actively addressing the water challenges is encouraging, and the smell is part of that.

Regardless of stigma, smell, or small town size, I have fallen in love with this place. Why?

Location, location, location. Positioned right off I-40, the Town of Canton is only 20-25 minutes to downtown Asheville (where I work), only minutes away from amazing hiking, and the tourist friendly Town of Waynesville. Canton also has some great amenities, like a Japanese, Southern, and Mexican restaurants, several grocery stores–including Food Lion and a great Ingles (with a Starbucks! I have a problem). For us, we also have family close by (see BONUS below).

Affordability. Canton has a much lower median house price than several areas of Buncombe County (especially Asheville) and even some parts of Haywood County. Rent in Asheville/Buncombe county is painfully high and in short supply. Right now, rent in the area we live in (according to an unscientific poll) ranges from $600-$850/mo for a 2-bedroom 1-bathroom house. I have some colleagues paying double that in the Asheville Metro.

Canton Rec park

Walk-ability to recreation. We live in town, so that means sidewalks that lead to the Recreation Park! While several towns and cities in the region have this as well, it is typically coupled with higher priced housing. Basically, you pay to have access and the views. Here, we have affordable housing that is located in a place where we can take a walk by the Pigeon River, and enjoy the local pool and playground. There are also basketball courts, a small skateboard zone, sand volleyball, and river access.

On a walk around Canton

Scenery. This place is beautiful. That is all.

Family Friendly. The affordability, the recreation, access to healthcare, the rec park… did I say that one already? The town’s recreational programming team and community works dilligently on family friendly activities and events. From the Labor Day Festival (the oldest Labor Day celebration in the Southeast), National Nights Outs, Shining Rock Riverfest, Christmas Parades, Fourth of July celebrations (fireworks on the 5th, always, because why not?), and so much more.

Grit. I don’t use this term lightly, especially after reading Grit by Angela Duckworth, a book about passion and perseverance. This town was built on the backs of the American worker. It values community and it knows that the paper mill is part of the community because Canton was built around it. When other mills were being closed and outsourced, this paper mill stayed open, Fun Fact: The Canton papermill makes your Starbucks cups!

This community perseveres and fights. They are proud and focused on preserving Canton for the next generation. That could mean ensuring future work training for future generations through pulp and paper vocational training, encouraging chemistry for students in local high schools, and developing and sustaining family owned and small businesses. Count me in.

Hometown band, Balsam Range describes Canton’s history in their award-winning album, Papertown:

BONUS: Last but not least, proximity to family. We live close to family that has been a great support system for us. We can’t do this alone, and don’t want to! You can’t put a price tag on free babysitting… but I have. We’ve saved at least $4,500 in past 3 years living close to ~~free babysitting~~ family. They have picked up my son when he’s sick at preschool when my husband and I didn’t see the calls come through, we’ve enjoy dinners made by someone else when we were too tired to cook, and we get to watch our son grow up knowing family.

So, if you still want to know if it smells, I’d say you are asking the wrong question. Is Canton improving this family’s quality of life? Yes.

I like my question better.

My TV ignorance and what I’m going to do.

Before I graduated college, moved back to the lower 48 from the great white north, married, and had a child, I didn’t watch much television. Many conversations at work, school, and later in church, would go over my head since they would be discussing the latest show developments.

My personality type radiates toward more biographies, historical, and sometimes, if I really wanted to live on the edge, historical fiction. As a result, I did often miss out on bonding moments when television was discussed. However, thanks to Hulu, Netflix, and other online streaming services, I am able to see why Grey’s, Pacey, and Olivia Pope are so important to people.

First came the stream, then came the binge.

When I was on maternity leave with my son 3.5 years ago, and was nursing every two hours, I started getting stir crazy. Did I say I was in Minnesota at the time? Yes, nothing like a Minnesota winter while on maternity to feel cabin fever. When late night feedings happen, sometimes you have to stop sitting in the dark at 1:30am. You wonder how the world is going on around you, however, reading the newspaper becomes frightening, at least it was for me. I had a small life in the world that I was suddenly incredibly responsible for. I couldn’t handle thinking about another recession, the Middle East, and famines while only getting 2 hours of sleep at a time and eating only ‘quiet’ food that could be consumed while nursing (nothing hot, crunchy, drippy, snoozy, doopey… I digress)

After my reading options were exhausted, I would reach for the computer, specifcally Netflix. At the time Grey’s Anatomy was featured, so I pressed play. Previously, a colleague had called me April Kepner. Now, I get the joke.

My sorority sisters would talk about McDreamy and something recalled ‘er’ from years prior. Whenever I was invited to an ‘Oscars Night’, I was pretty ignorant as to what was happening. It’s really confusing to a former TV outsider why people would get so invested in fictitious characters. Now? I get it.

It’s not just about the story, but the shared stories.

About how you see yourself in others.
About how stories ripped from the headlines are presented for an audience (sometimes for better or for worse).
About how special it is when you see how dreams can come true.
About hope.
About sadness.

People are all about stories, and sharing them is critical to our social and societal survival. That maternity leave left me thinking about not only my story, but the stories I would tell my son about the things he would never see. Like how his great-great-grandmother would keep Cokes and chocolate chip cookies in her kitchen for our visits while we played with her antique Lincoln Logs. Or how while living in Alaska, I was able to go snowshoeing all winter just by walking a few blocks out of Nome. Or How I couldn’t really read until I was 8, and at three he can read 3 words already. Or where I was when 9/11 happened.

Thanks to the Internet, I can now catch up on stories, for better or worse, for laughs or tears, for fun or torture.

Since in recent years I have realized and accepted television ignorance, I am making a resolution.

My TV resolution: watch all of an infamous NBC show called Parks and Recreation.

With who: husband (big fan) and a work colleague (big fan)
When: at least an episode a week
Why: because I love Amy Poehler, and have already read her biography (proof from the statement in paragraph two)
How: Netflix!

I recognize that I could enhance my mind by learning a new language, reading a new book, or doing something for the home during that time versus watching television, but really, this is for me. I now know that I need some ridiculous entertainment to loosen up and recognize when I am just plain overly stressed. I need to take a break.

I couldn’t do this completely without the internet.

Retailer Price Management: Leaving Customers Behind?

Recently, there was an article from the AP in the Ashville Citizen-Times that stopped me in my tracks. It was a retail focused piece that described how e-commerce sites have been working on and implementing price monitoring systems for the past few years. This isn’t anything new, considering that retail has secret shoppers (humans) that search out competitors, visit stores, and report on prices, displays, selection, and more. Now, they are going into hyper-speed online. How? By using systems that will change prices online based on a competitors online price, current inventory, and the company’s bottom line.

Some people have said ‘What’s the big deal, Kristina? Isn’t that what businesses have been doing for as long as retail can remember?’ To that, I say ‘Of course’. However, last time I checked my Aunt didn’t search and purchase at stock exchange speed. Ok, maybe the sites aren’t that fast, but they are getting closer.

The pricing systems, according to this article, for many large corporations, like Amazon and Wal-Mart, now have the pricing structure so they are able to change prices in minutes. For customers, that means that you can check a price, comeback an hour later, and it’s changed. From a business perspective, to change prices based on the market, bottom line, and several other factors, that can seem like a dream come true. But I have to ask, what about customers? I believe that some companies do factor in the customer’s need for consistent, yet competitve pricing. But from a customer’s perspective, competitive means lowering prices, not yo-yo-ing them up and down.

The airline industry has been doing this for ages. We are used to price fluctuation now for airlines and think we have it figured it all out. However, we all know that it’s still a gamble with those airline tickets to go see Grandma for her birthday or mom and dad for Christmas break from college.

When it comes to retail, customers like to do their homework, but will that even be possible to do that with a minute-by-minute price changes?

Perhaps, with tools that compare online retail pricing. They aren’t as well known as their airfare counterparts like Kayak and Expedia for example, but they are out there.

Enter Pricegrabber.

Pricegrabber.com compares prices for retail products from toys to TVs. This is wonderful when you consider all of the purchase options that are out there and how exhausting it can be to surf all the major retailers for the Christmas toys, for example— not that I have a 2 year-old to shop for.

One thing I noticed while being on Pricegrabber, was that there is definitely a time delay on price changes. I looked for a big ticket toy (a play kitchen) and Pricegrabber said it was $129.99 at Target, but when I searched on Target.com, I saw it was $125.99.

Now, that’s not a huge difference, and in about 1.5 hours, Pricegrabber was updated, but I’m not sure how often these competitors websites are crawled and updated.

I am hoping that retail doesn’t 100% go the way of airfare online. It’s one thing to be competitive, but it is another to constantly change prices so often that by the time you get your credit card out of your wallet to make a purchase, the price has gone up.

Finally, me purchasing a $50 is NOT the same as making a$1,230 investment in a first-class plane ticket. If we don’t have consistency in pricing, I think we could easily see more skeptical customers that already doubt pricing anywhere they go. Big box stores say there is room for no negotiation on prices, but with these online systems changing by the hour (or minute), customers will be calling BS very soon.

Oh, and don’t even get me started on how this could RUIN brand loyalty.

Why I Adore The Mindy Project

You’re probably familiar with Mindy Kaling, aka Kelly Kapoor from The Office, and her latest and greatest show, The Mindy Project. As the show’s creator, co-producer, and main star, Kaling hits an absolute home-run not only with the overall rom-comedy of the show, but with her character—also named Mindy—and her antics of living, working, and finding love in New York City.

When The Mindy Project first aired in September 2012, I was ready. I not only loved her character on The Office, but her twitter account KILLED me. Her whit, humor, and ability to poke fun at herself was refreshing, honest, and hilarious. As a millennial, I find her highly relatable.

Anyone on @etsy make a pillow yet that says “Boobs look good, skin is clear, wrangled my house key off my massive keychain, let’s do this.”

— Mindy Kaling (@mindykaling) May 22, 2014

In The Mindy Project, Kaling doesn’t disappoint and her brilliance is apparent throughout the show. Her lifestyle makes me thankful for what I have… basically, I am happy that I am out of the dating scene.

Be who you are.

It is not all sunshine and creatively styled outfits for Mindy. Not only do many of her relationships fail—falling in love with a rich sports agent who turns out to be an addict—but Mindy goes onto show how a person can do a job well AND with passion (not wanting to drop her non-insured patients when a new career opportunity arises. Can I get a hell yeah?), all without ignoring who she is as a person (pop obsessed, awkward, rom-com addict). That is no easy task. Sometimes her personality is her greatest strength and her greatest flaw. But she is always herself, regardless of the result. You have to give her props for that.

Knowing what you want and need.

In Season 2, Mindy is engaged to a hip-hop style mainline pastor, Casey, who has a ‘what-is-my-true-calling?’ crisis. When Casey can’t decide what his true calling in life should be, their relationship gets complicated. Should he be a Pastor? Missionary? DJ? …. Spoiler alert… he ends up being a shoe designer in LA… Mindy realizes what she wants and NEEDS. She needed someone stable. Someone that wasn’t still looking to find themselves. She knew her limits, and the engagement was over.

This was a highly relatable moment. A human moment. People fall in love all the time and realize that it’s not 100% about happiness, but what you need. I don’t believe this is selfish, I believe it is honest. It takes strength to stop a relationship, but The Mindy Project goes there with a laugh along the way.

Mindy is honest.

She is honest with herself and with others. She may compare her life, and those around her, to celebrity crushes, but she tells others how she feels. It may not feel that way when she’s dishing out her long-winded weekend plans or talking about how she reads Bridget Jones’ Diary when she’s sick, but she will tell you anything you ask, and if she believes you are being rude or invasive, she’ll tell you that too.

This strong female character makes me excited about the future of television.

Thanks Mindy Kaling.

The Mindy Project airs Tuesday nights on FOX.

Surface RT Review

I’ve had my Surface RT since November 31, 2013 (It was an early Christmas/Birthday present), that’s a little over two months now and I’m really impressed with this tablet.

I had been wanting to get a tablet for entertainment, but couldn’t rationalize dropping hundreds of dollars to add another screen ‘for fun’ in our household. However, the more I learned about the Surface, the more I realized that this tablet might be the investment I’d been waiting on.

The Surface RT really seemed to fit the bill.

How I’ve used the tablet:

Work:

Downloading spreadsheets and word docs for presentations
Splitting the screen to do an internet search or check analytics to insert onto the spreadsheet
Reading up on current events and industry news
Editing docs on-the-go

Entertainment:

NETFLIX! This was amazing when I was ill in bed.
Twitter. I have tried to give up this social media outlet, but I am addicted to the 140-character format.

What are some pieces of technology that you can’t seem to live without? How did you choose them?

5 items I appreciate

As I approach 30, I’m noticing that there are items and places that make my life easier. The past few years, our family has been focusing on making life simpler instead of accumulating ‘things’. From clothes for work to the tech we buy, I now know that less, is indeed, more.

Below I have a list of items and places that have helped with the ‘less is more’ mentality when it comes to self-care, finances, and productivity.

1. The Happiness Advantage.

Self-care, Finances, Productivity

A book. And, no, it’s not all fairies and rainbows. If you’ve ever wondered about the science behind happiness, read this book and learn how happiness is the start, not the end result of success. This book reminds me that happiness is a choice, not a perk of completing something, and how ‘things’ (including degrees and recognition) won‘t fill you up.

2. Trader Joe’s.

Finances, Self-care

Now, I know that this place isn’t perfect. But we watch sodium, saturated fat, preservatives, and food dyes in our house, and TJ’s makes it easier. There are limited options at each store compared to a regular grocery store which prevents me from getting too distracted in the sweets aisle. Also, with their budget friendly prices, we can afford to try new things and not brake the bank.

3. Surface RT.

Productivity

Purchased on sale for $200, it was a Christmas/ Birthday gift. This was a splurge, but it has been awesome (it was on sale for Black Friday and we called a few stores the following weekend to check availability, and some of the Best Buy’s in more rural areas still had some)! Since I’m able to use Windows on this tablet, I can pull up spreadsheets and reports in meetings for reference instead of shuffling papers. It’s been a great tool for testing email templates too (part of my job as an Email Marketing Manager) since we don’t have smartphones anymore.

4. Library Card.

Finances, Self-care

When I was little, my mother took us to the library on Saturdays when she wasn’t working. We spent time reading books, checking out videos on dolphins, and reading Highlights. Over time, I have come to appreciate the library again (since I’ve been out of college for a few years). Now, I can check out an e-magazine on my Surface, books that I otherwise would have bought for professional development, and even audio books for my long(-ish) daily commute. Also, my son really enjoys going to the children’s room at the library to color and play with puzzles- win for winter!

5. Real Things.

Self-care, Finances, Productivity

I know, this seems ridiculous. But when I was in college, I—like so many others—I consumed poorly. From ramen noodles to lots of cheap products all around. I didn’t think about what I was buying and consuming, I just knew that I could or couldn’t afford the item. Now? Well, we’re still on a tight budget, but we know that spending extra money on food or decent chemical free products is more beneficial to us in the long run. Yes, it’s more expensive, but we’re making choices with our money.

We also learned that when we buy ‘cheaper’ items, we spend more money in the long run replacing the item. It’s true, you get what you pay for.

What about you? What do you appreciate more now that you didn’t think about before?

Turning 30

I have been thinking about the future lately. I suppose it has to do with the new year that arrived and the fact that I’m turning 30(!) this year. The big 3-0 is something that I’m welcoming with open arms. My twenties were crazy. From college graduation to Alaska to getting married and moving (again and again)…Oh, yeah, and having this adorable kiddo!

I welcome the thoughts of settling down and making some tough choices. Choices about money, where we live, work, play… the list goes on. The choices I make now, are not only for me, but for my family.

Things I think about as I turn 30:

My choices are my own, only I can make them, and they impact people around me.
My choices are exactly that. Choices. I may make the wrong one, but I’ll learn.
It’s alright to try new things… and it’s alright not to like them, no matter how ‘cool’ they are.

When I was in my early 20s, I would read countless articles from women that said that they were more comfortable in their own skin in their 30s than they were in their 20s. I never understood that. In my 20s, I could do anything, be anything, and move anywhere. And, for the most part, I did.

What is more comfortable than all that freedom? Man I was naive.

Today, I’m still shocked that seasoned professionals grabbed me and kept me focused. From awesome managers to tremendous mentors that still check on me from time to time.

Now I am more confident and sure of my choices than I have been in my entire life. Yes, all 29 years. I enjoy the work I do and the people I work with. I make choices on who I work with and for. That is liberating.

Another thing I never new would bring so much freedom is security.

Yes, I said it, security.

20s are not as glamorous as everyone makes them out to be. Seriously, my idea of a fun weekend was taking the bus to Borders (yes, it’s now closed), getting a magazine, and going home to cook dinner. Glamorous? Glam cost dinero. I had none.

Knowing I have a job, a family to come home to, a car that works, or money to try some new recipes is the best I’ve felt since… ever. They are simple things. But I love simple.

Sure, the days I didn’t have a car and rode the bus all over the Twin Cities was… humbling. But now? I’d rather have a car to run errands with a toddler.

Today, I know what I need, what I like, and what I can do to keep me and my family happy and healthy. I know and trust God to guide us, and if I truly desire to be successful in my life’s relationships, work, and health, I need the help of others. I need community. People better than I am. Friends and family that love me. In my 30s, I want to nurture that.

Bring on my 30s!

20s- I know you’ll always be there because Facebook will always remind me.