Marketing & Mayhem
Two gals talking marketing, life, and all the mayhem in between.
Marketing & Mayhem
Opportunity, Getting Fired & Career Crossroads with Erica Strickland of Wave Digital Marketing
We’ve been waiting for snow - y’all know. But it finally snowed in Charleston. So we’re snowed in - with Erica Strickland - and we’re talking marketing today (and trauma bonds). All things digital marketing and … getting fired.
In fact - we record on Riverside because of Erica - fun fact! Nothing is coincidental - all three of us share a deep belief in this sentiment. Whether it’s a few snow days - at the exact moment you need slow days, or a firing that pivots you into being a business owner.
Are there ever enough “character building traits” ? Here’s a fun one - nothing like finding out you’re fired - from a subordinate. And when it comes to how each of us handled this moment when we faced it (because if you’re new here, we have) … we couldn’t help but ask her enneagram and sign. Erica is a Gemini and an 8 - and we’re feeling both of those full force today. What’s the difference between telling a Gemini - or a Libra - that they’re stupid? Give this one a listen. We’re human. We make mistakes. We work in an industry that’s ever changing and evolving. Permission to make a few yourself, granted.
It’s not all serious - we have a great laugh over the “moment” George Bush is having on social. And we talk about the plus of “personality” on social media. From cherry picking our clients, to embracing mistakes in pursuit of engagement - this one’s a deep dive into the human experience of being fired, and then learning to work for yourself. Like we said - character building … the best.
Erica Strickland
Wave Digital Marketing
Instagram @gowavedigital
www.gowavedigital.com
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Hosted by @raebecca.miller and @jennyfromthe843
I almost opened with singing. I was gonna be like the weather outside is frightful. It actually snowed it snowed you've been joking about this for like three weeks and like waiting and waiting and it actually it's been seven years and it snowed in charleston like five, like four to five inches. It kind of iced and snowed and so basically now we're stuck here until june. I hope you have enough popcorn and crap in your cabinets, but, um, we have a guest with us. Yay, morning Morning Jenny, hi Erica.
Speaker 3:Hello.
Speaker 2:Hi Erica, long time, no see it's been a while.
Speaker 1:I love this. So we have Erica Strickland, owner of Wave Digital Marketing, with us today. This is a conversation that we are so excited for. We tiptoed into this pool about a year ago and now we're going back. We're going back, baby, I'm excited. Okay, well, you give us the like elevator, not pitch, but like, who are you?
Speaker 3:Yes, so I am Erica, just like you said, I started my business Wave Digital Marketing in 2023. That was April of 2023. In 2023. That was April of 2023. And I am a digital marketing expert. I focus mostly on social media marketing, video editing, email marketing, and I dabble a little bit into graphic design as well. It's not my specialty, but it is something that I love to do on the side. But I've been doing digital marketing for many, many years and with all of the platforms evolving. As you guys probably heard about the TikTok ban, I'm sure we might get into that or you guys will get into that on a whole, nother episode. But I talk to my clients about updates with the social media apps and things like that and kind of help them navigate on where they need to be, to help strategize and make sure that they are being seen by the right people.
Speaker 1:I love it.
Speaker 2:Fun fact real quick, I just had the thought. So Erica actually taught me about Riverside, which is where we record all of our podcasts.
Speaker 1:Yeah, we're inside of Riverside.
Speaker 2:So I met Erica in my last role and her last role she was our I guess you are like our account rep, right, yeah, and she taught me really how to do this whole process. So Erica, marketing and Mayhem may not be here if it weren't for you.
Speaker 3:You're welcome, you're welcome. Yeah, that's awesome, yeah it really is a cool platform which you guys should sponsor. Marketing and Mayhem, by the way, Riverside, yeah, Riverside. This is not a sponsorship at all, but it totally should be.
Speaker 2:It should be. It's very user-friendly. But yeah, so Erica was our account rep. That's how I met her and we've kind of kept in touch over the years and we didn't really realize how much we had in common until you know probably within the past, I don't know year or so we had like a trauma bond a little bit should we talk about?
Speaker 1:let's just like we're gonna put it on the table right. So like let's talk about the trauma, because I tiptoed into this in the beginning and I was like we've been here before, but now we're ready to go a little bit further. So Erica has also been fired. Yes, there's something about it, folks. I mean like this isn't All sisters unite? Yeah, fired.
Speaker 3:I feel like everybody should have a good getting fired story and if you don't like, it's kind of like a character building trait.
Speaker 1:So I feel like, though, as women, a lot of things are really character building, which I sort of appreciate, and then also I'm like I kind of want to, like you know, act out a little bit sometimes over it. I do, I have a little bit of like ooh, thank you for that what?
Speaker 3:In a private message Jenny and I did talk about like how nothing is coincidental, like everything happens for a reason, and it's not just specifically about getting fired, like literally anything can happen for a reason, and it's not just specifically about getting fired, like literally anything can happen for a reason, even the recent snow that you guys had, like I'm sure a lot of people needed a slow down day, like they probably have a lot going on in their lives and I think everyone just needed that slow down day, the snow day, where you're locked in and you just can't go anywhere, can't do anything, and I'm sure a lot of people connected with their families.
Speaker 2:But I don't believe in coincidences at all we were literally just talking about that before you popped on. We were both like, thank god, we're not like packing lunches and like having to meet buses and like drive to school and getting car. It's like it's a much-needed break coming off still Christmas, right, I mean you know.
Speaker 1:Christmas is very and I just said this to Whitney yesterday I'm like I am that December chock-a-block, planned, chaos, intensity, like meet the expectations, wrap all the gifts, go and make sure you see the fake snow, get the hot chocolate at this place. And then finally, like and I actually get stressed sometimes when school is canceled, depending on how many things we're already, like committed to. But in this specific week, the only commitments I have are Saturday night, I'm going to a hockey game to see if anyone's single and change my hinge to a one mile radius, and the and I'm bringing my girls too, because I want everyone to know that I'm a mom. This is part of the package. But let me just tell you, as long as my hockey game doesn't get canceled, I can eat popcorn for the next three weeks Thriving over here.
Speaker 3:Thriving Popcorn is probably in my top five snacks of choice.
Speaker 1:I have even gone to the movie theater a couple times just to get the popcorn, and then I bounced.
Speaker 2:Oh my god, that's amazing so tell us your, tell us your fired story. Erica, you don't have to get into company specifics, but talk about, like, what you did in your role and how it got you to where you are today.
Speaker 3:Sure, yeah, I mean, overall I see my termination as a blessing in disguise, because without it I wouldn't have a lot of the experience that I have under my belt, I wouldn't have met a lot of the people that I connected with, including you, jenny. I just really felt like there was a lot more good in that experience than bad, and ultimately that's what fueled me to be where I'm at today, where I turned my, my frustration into fuel and even a little bit of anger, to be honest, of like okay, like it was kind of like they put the ball in my court, of like all right, well, I could wallow in my own self-pity and be upset at this whole situation. Or I can turn it into a business that I'm really proud of and I can connect with a lot of other business owners and work with them and help them in their business and teach them about something that I'm really good at, rather than feeling fear of getting fired every single day. Or do I have to say something? Or is there something that I'm going to say that will set somebody off that will then cause my termination? I don't have to worry about that anymore.
Speaker 3:And for the listeners here, it's in season one of Marketing and Mayhem. It's the episode Eagle Eyes and Getting Fired and Living your Purpose Highly recommend listening to it. Getting fired and living your purpose Highly recommend listening to it. It's this episode is kind of a piggyback on that. But Jenny had said I I feel like I'm never going to work for anyone ever again because just that pain of the fear of am I going to lose my job, like I can lose it at any time, and you have a family or you guys. I'm not sure. Rebecca, do you have any kids?
Speaker 1:I have two kids and I'm a mom.
Speaker 3:So you guys have a family that you're having to put food on the table for, which, at the time of me getting fired, I thankfully didn't have to worry about that. Um, it's just my husband and I, but still, it's just like I. I I hated the fact that I had to watch what I said or watch what I did, like at every second of every day, and it wouldn't matter if I went above and beyond the. Ultimately, what was going to happen was going to happen. So I was around 22 when I started working at this job and it was my first big girl job right outside of college. I was so excited and I kid you I kid you not I was making $10 an hour and I was just like I needed to start something. I needed to start, like I just I knew eventually I was going to get a pay raise, but I was just like dang $10 an hour. Well, I got to get my foot in the door somehow. So I started at 22 and I worked there for two and a half years and I, I really, truly did love it. I, like I said, I met a lot of amazing people and I, I learned a lot, like there's only so much that you can learn in college or in if you're getting a certification or things like that, but that getting that real world experience really was eye opening of like, oh, facebook will change like every three months, or Facebook Instagram will change every six months, or whatever it may be. So getting that real world experience was was really eye opening and I feel like I loved my coworkers a lot more than I did, like the-ups, the managers and all of that and, like I said earlier, the trauma bonding. I feel like we all connected in that way and a lot of them I still do talk to all the time. But yeah, it just really sucked Towards the end there.
Speaker 3:There I skipped from when I first started all the way towards the end of it all. I got promoted to like the second highest position, or maybe like second and a half highest position. I was in charge of a lot of really important things in the company and I was scared not going to lie because I knew that the highest paying people you guys mentioned in that episode I mentioned you're one of the highest paid people. You're most at risk for being dropped at any time. You have a lot of responsibility that you're in charge of. I was in charge of, um, maybe 50 people, um, wow, so it was a lot to juggle Like.
Speaker 3:I was thankful that I moved from client facing to internal because I had a lot more clients to deal with than employees, believe it or not. But I was just worried of like, wow, this is so great, this is the highest income I have ever had at 24 years old, and I was making the same amount as people that were 30, 34, 37. They were a lot older than me, but I was still making the same income and I was very proud of that. Like that was a really big accomplishment for me. And for the longest time I tried or not tried I for the longest time I thought that my career and my occupation equated to my value or my self-worth as a person, and getting terminated from this job really put into perspective that that is not the case at all.
Speaker 2:Absolutely.
Speaker 3:And I didn't want to fail my husband either. I didn't want to fail my husband either, like I didn't want to fail as a partner. So I just there was a lot on the line as far as that went, like I knew I there was no failing at this, because I knew I had to do a good job, but I got this promotion. I was so excited. I was so excited and it wasn't even six weeks later that, um, they were like, hey, so, um, we're going to put you on leave of absence. And I'm just like, okay, um, and then they were like there's just some things that have been going on and we need to do some investigating to see what happened. And I'm like, okay, like you guys are giving me the benefit of the doubt rather than placing blame on me, thank you for investigating and looking into what happened, and I'm not going to say what happened or what was suspected. So I take this leave of absence. It was a Wednesday when it started and Friday, coincidentally, was the end of the pay period.
Speaker 3:Um, that next day, thursday, I get a text from one of my um, one of the people that I was in charge of previously. I was the direct supervisor to this person. Okay, she texts me. I was the direct supervisor to this person. Okay, she texts me. Hey, oh my gosh, I'm so sorry, I had no idea. I. I'm so sorry that that happened to you. Like, I, I didn't even think getting fired, like that was. You were so far from getting terminated and I'm like what, oh my gosh? And I'm like this is not happening, like, and then kind of that mental spiral of like what? Like I found out that I got fired from a person that was still working there. Oh my gosh, I texted her back, which her and I were good friends and still we keep up with each other. But I like, oh, this is noose to me. Um, wow, well, thanks for the heads up, I guess. Um, oh my god. And she's like oh my god, I, I am so sorry I had, I what like she didn't know that, I didn't know.
Speaker 1:So but obviously they had a net set or something. They had cascaded it to the TV.
Speaker 3:And so I'm like, wow, this is really. Can I cuss on here? Yeah okay, this is really shitty. Like how is it that someone far down the totem pole or the however you want to call?
Speaker 2:it, the chain of command? I don't know. Oh my God, I have no idea.
Speaker 3:I know, how is it that someone so far down found out before me? And so then I started doing a little bit of digging. Yeah, I'll give a little bit of tea, but not too much.
Speaker 2:Okay, I love tea.
Speaker 3:But I was like, okay, so if this, if my friend knows this person, then she probably heard from her, and then they probably heard from him. And then I was like, oh, my, I know how it happened. And then I finally got to that person that probably heard from the person who fired me, and they were like, yeah, they just told me that you were no longer in charge of so-and-so. And so then Friday morning comes and I get that little blip calendar invite on my calendar. Um, and it was sent to my personal email rather than my work email.
Speaker 1:I was like oh interesting.
Speaker 3:Let me see if my work email still works.
Speaker 1:Nope, disabled Done.
Speaker 3:Completely done. I'm like oh, all right. So I was thankful for the heads up because, jenny, like you said, you went into like a complete, like emotional wreck. That would have been me, that would have been me. But I was so like. I was so like I was like all right, let's go. I was rubbing my hands together like all right, let's go, let's do this. I'm so ready, like I'm ready to throw down, like I am a confrontational person. I am not scared of being you know, you're a neogram eight, just like you.
Speaker 1:I was like hold on, I just need to make sure. It's like that is funny how people like you. You're like that is so funny.
Speaker 1:I only say this also because and I thought of this earlier I was going to mention it when we were talking about, um, like how people process things and like how long it took you to be thankful. But I heard this thing the other day that was talking about like there's two kinds of people Well, not two kinds, but in this specific situation and actually it was about Libras and Gemini. So that's why I listened to it. I'm a Gemini, so am I. Oh, my God, get ready. Jenny's a Libra. So it was. So I pay attention.
Speaker 1:A lot of my romantic relationships are Libras also, which is funny, oh, interesting. But so, like it was saying both, if you call a Gemini stupid, right, we're going to get real mad, like we get insanely mad because we're like, how do you not know? But a Libra is different. A Libra is like oh, that's fun and so. So, like it's a very different reaction where, like it's just, gemini's tend to be like that's like one thing that you can't get away with with us, like we're gonna go for it, we're just gonna rage like bull in a china shop and we're like, oh, I'll show you, uh-huh, but like lever has the same thing, but they're more amused by it where we're amused, but I also do like petty stuff, that's like quiet.
Speaker 2:You know what I mean.
Speaker 1:Yeah, but that's my response but it's definitely like both have very different responses to specifically that and I was like but we're like, the minute it happens, we're 180, like we might have been friends. We might have maybe thought you were up to something, because the Gemini has that deep intuition, but the minute you show us, we're like let's have some fun, yep. So did you like let him have it.
Speaker 3:Oh, I absolutely did. I came into that meeting or I was just bouncing my foot, my knee. I was like I'm so ready, I am so ready, hit, hit, start, hit, start the meeting. I'm so ready, I am so ready, hit, hit, start, hit, start the meeting. I'm so ready for this.
Speaker 1:You've already thought of everything that they might say.
Speaker 3:Girl. I came with receipts. I was so ready. I had like this whole long paper of like I'm going to address all of this. I'm going to let them sit in that because they were not ready for me.
Speaker 1:Oh, a hundred percent. Like, go ahead, sit in the dirty diaper, swish around. Oh, my gosh, I'm loving this. I use my notes app for everything. So, like Jenny and I will be like at a lunch and I've pulled it out before and I'm like, let me tell you something. I use my notes app so I can talk to it and like, have this like weird scary recollection of text. And I'm like ready Cause. Like, have this like weird scary recollection, talk to text. And I'm like ready Cause. I'm like, ooh, if that comes up again, cause I'm trying to be more intuitive too, I'm like, ooh, I don't know if I like that, I think that might be a something.
Speaker 3:So I'm like I did that same exact thing, and I put dates on everything of like here's the whole timeline. You want to hear it Like I got it ready? Of like here's the whole timeline.
Speaker 2:You want to hear it like I got it ready. But let me just be clear. I was a client of erica's and I am a tough customer like I am not easy, oh please you were literally the easiest person I am a perfectionist when it comes to things, especially work stuff.
Speaker 2:This was an expectation, it's an expectation, but but Erica far surpassed any expectation I have, so she did such a good job. So that's why it just and I love this word it flabbergasts me that you were fired because you were so good at what you did, like I was fired.
Speaker 1:You were fired, she said in the beginning of the episode. She was like you know, it's like I knew that if I worked harder it wouldn't have. I can tell you right now I was fired from. I worked so hard I would end up at three, 30. The minute the fresh reports would print, I would have them, I would Excel spreadsheet the whole thing I could tell you about, like every single one of my stores, every single one of their businesses, inside of apparel, t-shirts, short sleeve, the whole brands out of control. By the time I was in my car at seven o'clock to drop my kids to childcare, I was already on the road and I was ready to go.
Speaker 2:It doesn't make a damn it doesn't make a damn.
Speaker 3:It just makes you feel like how replaceable you really are.
Speaker 1:Oh, it really makes you mad, that part. I'm like I understand if I should. How many people do we know that show up and blatantly underperform?
Speaker 3:Oh, my gosh.
Speaker 1:Years, years.
Speaker 3:Like, why me? And I'm sure your position is probably filled in the next couple of weeks or the next day.
Speaker 1:I mean, they picked me off first cause I was partially the highest paid and because I was like the local, and then they picked off two more people and then they just spread the remaining three people super thin, and one of them still. She texted me two days ago about a person that used to work for me and whether or not I was like girl, they worked for me 12 years ago. I could not possibly tell you who they are as a person from 12 years ago.
Speaker 3:Were they asking for, like a reference or something, or?
Speaker 1:They were like would you rehire this person?
Speaker 3:You're like I don't even who is this New phone? Who is this?
Speaker 1:Under what context? They were 30 something, but I don't even who is this New phone, who is this? Under one context they were 30 something, but I don't even know.
Speaker 3:A lot can happen in 12 years. A lot can happen in three, five years.
Speaker 1:Six months. I'm like what in the world, how are you? I was like how are you still working there?
Speaker 3:For real. Yeah, I could ask the same with all my coworkers.
Speaker 2:You said, erica, too, about you know that it affected your value, that you put on yourself and I mean I was somebody who I mean I was programmed. That's like I'm a good worker, this is my thing, like that's what I do, this is who I am. And now I'm like nah, nah, man, that's how I get paid. Like it's just, it does not define who I am as a person and I feel like that's such a journey, but it is a badge of honor when you get fired, because I do feel like it teaches you that. I'm trying to teach my husband that I'm like fucking call in sick, like who gives a shit, like they don't care. I know they don't care, I know they don't care about you. You could go in tomorrow and get fired. It does not matter. None of it matters, none of it.
Speaker 3:I mean, it's a journey, putting it into perspective. We are a tiny speck on a ball of rock that is orbiting in space. Like what even matters. Our family does, of course.
Speaker 1:Yeah, what even matters Our family does, of course, yeah, we have a lot of personal pride, but taking somebody else's business and working so hard for it and having personal pride in that is so skewed where the other things that the two of us do together I'm a lot more likely. So I'm in the dating world and people are like what do you do for work? And I'm like, well, be like, what do you do for work? And I'm like, well, it's like you first, because nine out of ten men actually won't circle back. So I don't even have to say like, sometimes I'm on a podcast that makes no money but we spend money on it. And sometimes I talk about how I almost shit my pants the other night. I have like this marketing company and then people are like I want to talk about this because you also are in a similar space, and they're like does that mean you TikTok? And I'm like, oh my God, we don't TikTok and we don't talk. I'm like how do I explain any one of my journeys to an average 45-year-old?
Speaker 3:male with almost no concept of even how to take care of himself, much less the world that the three of us live in. I, my husband, is off of social media completely, like he has accounts, but he, he maybe just goes on to check everyone's like he just does, like a um temperature check vibe well, I guess, guess proof of existence, like he'll post maybe once every couple of years, christmas, so like I'm still alive, y'all, like I'm still here.
Speaker 3:but I think that's how, like him, and I balance so well where that's like my entire everything. I'm obsessed with TikTok, everything, all the social media platforms and then he's just like, yeah, like all right, yeah, that's cool. So maybe it's better if the people you find Rebecca are just not. They don't even know what's happening.
Speaker 1:I agree we go through my Tinder and my Hinge and it'll be like a grown man. The picture will be like from here to like down here. I'm like they couldn't even get a picture of their. They couldn couldn't even see. Yeah, there was one yesterday. It was clearly a screenshot of his screen and then he uploaded the photo. I was like you can see, like the icon, sir. Sir, that's also one of my favorite things. Wait, when is your actual birthday? What day?
Speaker 3:June 19th.
Speaker 1:Okay, I have a daughter who's June 17th, so you're a June. Okay, yeah, just a couple of days. That's funny. Whitney is June 20th. But I, sir, saying sir is one of my all time favorite things. I like to say it lowercase and then upper mic sir, sir.
Speaker 3:Excuse me? Um, we're going to have to. I don't think we're going to circle back to that, sir.
Speaker 1:Oh good, okay, so tell us about what you do.
Speaker 3:Oh good, okay, so tell us about what you do. Work with people that I actually vibe, with, people that actually respect me, people that understand that I'm a human being and I'm not a machine, which, sadly, a lot of my past clients did not treat me. The best Mistakes happen and some of the things are completely out of my control.
Speaker 1:In marketing, the name of the game is mistakes Literally. Is it a beer ad or a Pepsi ad, one of the most famous? I'll have to look it up. Isn't it in a football stadium or a baseball stadium? And then the ball goes out and it oh it must be baseball knocks out a chip of the digital marketing board and I think it might have been a beer company. But they literally started printing cans that night with a piece of their logo missing. Because that's what happened. They're collector's items now. I'm like these things are going to happen. It's a completely reactionary world that we live in, so you can't always be exactly on.
Speaker 3:You're right, and I think that's the best part about, or my favorite part about, the internet is that people will take clips of things and turn it into memes and then all they're doing is just marketing for whatever that was. So it's like accidents are sometimes the best things and mistakes are the best things that we can all laugh at together, and it's still getting the marketing across for free.
Speaker 1:No, my favorite is like right now in the football land, people are taking the commentary out and using it in like book talk, right. I was watching the football game on Saturday with somebody and I was like you have to pay attention how easy this is, like I'm sure you don't understand how messed up football is. But then the commentator goes this game is drunk, what is happening? And I was like this could be somebody's ad, right?
Speaker 3:people are like turning the pages to the book, like oh my god, like reading the book or you could apply it to like a board game or something.
Speaker 1:But I'm like this man literally said it was the chief's game, like this game is or no. Yeah, this game is drunk. What's happening?
Speaker 3:I was like this is the stuff that people use and apply to marketing and it's incredible right there, two seconds later those are my favorite, kinds like the memeable, where you could take a completely different thing and attach it to something on the way other side of the spectrum and combine it and it still makes sense.
Speaker 1:Everyone's doing that right now with George Bush, right.
Speaker 2:Oh my gosh, oh, it's so funny.
Speaker 1:And so Jenna went on social media and talked about it yesterday, because she was like you know, we're teasing the crap out of my dad yesterday because she was, like you know, we're teasing the crap out of my dad.
Speaker 3:He looked like the little kid in the choir, like just like watching, waiting for his parents to see him, or something but his daughter is like a public figure and she went.
Speaker 2:She was like, guys, this is tripping me out, this is so good, but like that's the creativity, like I feel like that's a lot of it, though I feel like eric and I specifically well, you too be came from industries where there wasn't a whole lot of personality. Yes, and I feel like that's where we've done better establishing our own clients, because we want to work with people who let you have a little fun with it, oh yeah, and it's not so freaking serious.
Speaker 3:Yes, that's why I liked working with you, jenny, because you gave me that like creative freedom of like, let's try, let's try this. Like, if we hate it, let's scrap it, but like, hey, we could try anything. It can, like you said, things can be taken out or clipped out or to make it looked, or piece it together to make it a good final project. But that is what I love most About what I'm doing now Is because the people that I work with I get to vet them first and see if they are a good match For what I do, because I am going to make mistakes.
Speaker 3:I am a human being and Some things are completely in my control. Some are not. But it could be something as like a typo in a Facebook post and I would get these long like essay emails of oh my gosh, how dare you? You put a typo on my Facebook posts and I have 10,000, 20,000 followers that are looking at this and I'm like I can just hit edit, fix it, repost, and I'm just like it is not that serious, it's not the end of the world.
Speaker 1:We also happen to know now that sometimes typos actually are one of the reasons that you get something to trend.
Speaker 3:Yes, the engagement.
Speaker 1:Right, and so I just I will say one thing, though. I love that each of us, because I was going to ask you earlier, cause you were like oh well, I'm now at this part of the journey where I understand that things happen for a reason. I want to say cause I think this is important. None of us woke up 24 hours after being fired and we were like you know what? That's something your mom says to you right after you get fired and you're like are you joking?
Speaker 3:right now, that is not what I want to hear right now.
Speaker 1:You do realize down the road that things do happen for a reason, but the fact that each of us have gotten to a place where we're like life is funny Some of this stuff is actually funny when other people have gotten so wrapped in it and so microscopic and so twisted and like almost paralyzed by this pursuit of perfection. I think the thing that levels the playing field for all of us the three of us is the fact that we've taken that and been like actually, while I love perfect, it doesn't exactly suit me in my goals for being like healthy and mentally well and whatever. So like that shit's kind of funny. Oh yeah, I love that part the most. So when you were saying, like some of this is funny, I'm like it is funny.
Speaker 3:I think, honestly, when I got that text from my friend of like, oh my God, I'm so sorry, the first thing I did was laugh Like I was going to like manically, like this shit is hilarious, like I can, like. That was the first thing I thought of I'm like I cannot wait for that meeting on Friday morning, like it cannot come any sooner.
Speaker 1:This is, that's a part of me. That is like a little bit psycho though, where I'm like there you go, boys. I said it on the air. I'm a little bit psycho, but there's something small, like dropping my coffee might make me cry. I'm just like Any minor inconvenience, I'm going to give a little laugh. I'm like the switch has been flicked on. Yes, the real life things. I'm like oh, here we go. Yep, let's have some fun.
Speaker 3:But yeah, I just well, I'll finish off my getting fired story and then I'll finish talking about that story. But so I come to that meeting and there was the person that was going to be firing me. That was the internal person. But then there was a third party person I guess the owner of the business hired like a third party HR person. I'm not sure why, but I knew that the owner did that Like he. He hired this, he had this person under him for a while, but they weren't affiliated with the company at all. They were just a third person, third party HR person, even though we had our own HR department.
Speaker 2:That's weird.
Speaker 3:I wonder why I don't know what like the HR department. That's weird. I wonder why I don't know.
Speaker 1:Like the whole time. What's up? Legal, legal, yeah, I mean all verse and how to walk through this and doesn't give two shits how you got there Right Really, just there as a pillar, probably, it would be my guess.
Speaker 3:Right, and it's it. It didn't ever make any sense to me, but that was just how he ran his operations. So, whatever, it wasn't any of my choice. But so I come onto this meeting and it's me and those two other people and, um, I couldn't help but explain the entire story to this third party, third party person because she actually did seem to care. So I was like, all right, well, I'll go into it and I'll explain everything that I just told you guys. And she was actually her jaw was on the floor actually, and I think she loved the tea. I think she loved like. She was like oh, this is good. She grabbed her popcorn and her snacks and everything.
Speaker 1:That's how the girls that are therapists are. When they come on here too, they send us the memes like oh, I have been waiting all week to tell you this. And they're like, yes, they do love the tea.
Speaker 3:Like I'm so glad you guys invited me to be on this podcast because I really needed to spill it and I needed to just it's very therapeutic, it really is.
Speaker 2:You'll get up, we'll get finished and you'll be like is really something though about like I.
Speaker 1:That's what people will write to us, like when I said I almost shit my pants almost shit their pants, though I know I, we were like, I was like this is, but I feel the need now to just like, if something like that happens, like I should just tell everyone that was anything that has anything to do with shame, including firing. It's not for me. I don't want. I'm not trying to hold a secret in, I'm not trying to like uh-uh.
Speaker 3:It's like our confessional. Yes, like you said, any minor inconvenience I need to preach it to the masses, I need to tell everybody. But like I, don't know.
Speaker 1:I'm so curious. Now my mind is turning where. I'm like chicken egg, chicken egg. Is it because we live on social media and we're so conditioned to be like you know what? Actually, people are putting quesadillas inside of their toaster oven. Sorry, we're going to tell everybody that we got on before Jenny left for a trip and she was like, okay, let's play the game called we listen and we don't judge. And I was like is it because we're on social so we're like, let it fly, Let it fly.
Speaker 3:And the idea that everyone has free will, like if I wanted to go outside in the snow right now in a bikini, like I could totally do that, totally Like. Would anyone any normal person do that? Probably not. But we have the ability to take an opportunity and do with it what we will or whatever opportunity comes to us, like we can do whatever we want. Or if I have a bunch of laundry that I need to do, I could do my laundry. But I also have the free will and opportunity and idea to just lounge on the couch if that's what I want to do.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:We just need to listen to our bodies and ourselves. But so I came to that meeting and I had the whole receipt, the whole list of everything that happened, the internal person I was actually friends with. I had just gone to her birthday party, not even two or three months ago. She hosted it at her house and I just thought to myself like I thought we were friends, like maybe you could have texted me like girl, they're firing you like a heads up something. But I'm like damn, like, all right, that's a read.
Speaker 1:That's a, a heads up something, but I'm like, damn Alright, that's a read.
Speaker 3:I was just like I know we weren't super close or anything but a little text of like hey, they're in the talks of letting you go. I would have loved that. But the person that was way, way down in the totem pole told me. So that just told me who my real friends are. First off, well, of course, but I, I even said it to her. Well, it was remotely, but I said it to her face. I'm like good for you.
Speaker 3:I did not appreciate how this whole situation was handled and I even said it. I was like I thought like you, I thought we were like, and I even said I'm like I'm not taking this personally, but I thought we were friends. Like I thought maybe you would have texted me or something. Like I was just so like sly about it. Like like no, chill, I'm like girl, like I thought you were a girl's girl. I guess you aren't. But yeah, the HR person was just like grabbing handfuls of popcorn, like oh my gosh, this is such a good story. But I'm sure she could have cared. Couldn't care less, honestly, but at least I appreciated her humoring me.
Speaker 1:This is why they show up to work.
Speaker 2:So you were the only one who got fired.
Speaker 3:Of the higher up people, yeah, and so it was the owner, and then there was me and two other people below him. So we were like us three were the same position but handling different parts of the company.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:Like we were all in charge of different things but we still had the same level of authority, I guess, if we want to call it that. So, um, yeah, I was just shocked, I was dumbfounded, I was cracking up of like how I was like this is so unprofessional. I was like I have been fired before and I have been fired before, even before this, and I was like that was handled so much like, so much better than how this whole situation was handled. And this is an entire like professional, like corporate team of people and the company maybe has I can't even remember it's between 50 and a hundred people or something.
Speaker 3:It's like a large organization and my last job there was maybe five or six people that worked on the team. So I guess maybe I got a little bit of a more personal experience from being on that smaller team where they were like, hey, so we're letting you go. It was a whole different experience with. I thought I was going to have a more professional, like hey, here's what's going to happen, here's what we found, and the whole investigation thing. There was no investigation, they just wanted to fire me. It doesn't sound like it included you. I'm like why did you guys bullshit me? No, it did, but there was no reason for that term.
Speaker 1:Like there was no reason you weren't giving your, like you weren't able to even give your boyfriend until you were already at the crossroads of. This has been taken care of.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I had no trial. If you will to plead my case of like, hey, here's what happened or here's what you think might have happened, I had no opportunity for that, which I understand. It's an at-will company. I can get fired at any time, but it's like they had no reason to fire me, which I know they don't need to. But I would rather have them just said like hey, we're letting you go, Like, rather than give me a reason that didn't make any sense at all.
Speaker 2:That's the part that I mean. If you're going to do it, do it, but freaking, say it.
Speaker 3:I know. I even told them straight up, like if you wanted to fire me, you could have just said that, rather than come up with this lame excuse.
Speaker 1:That's the Gemini-Libra thing, though, because Libra's all about like fairness and balance and Gemini is the two anyway, so we're the same. So I'm just like Just tell me how it is Right. The cross between also like being really angry and then laughing maniacally. You're like okay, but then you're also like also rude, yeah that was not cool, so yeah.
Speaker 3:I told them off professionally, good for you. So, yeah, I told them off professionally, good for you. Do you guys have you guys seen the trend where it's like, how do you say fuck off, but in a professional tone, and then they say, oh well, actually I followed that girl on Instagram. She's hilarious. I was like, oh, I need to take some notes Like I'm coming ready for this.
Speaker 1:I love, just like the email sign offs, any of this stuff, like I was, like I just want to write back. I have no idea what the fuck you're saying.
Speaker 3:I did not find this email.
Speaker 1:Well, sincerely, Erica found me favorite because of the lifestyle I'm in is like and you probably see this because you're also a female business owner, but it's like women in male fields is my other favorite trend right now. I like lift. Have you seen this?
Speaker 3:No, not yet.
Speaker 1:I'll have to send you some, but it's like women in male dominated fields, and so some of the ones I get are like he wrote me a whole paragraph about his feelings and I was like, okay, what do you want me to say? Like some of it will be like a girl goes out to a bar, right, and they're like I let him explain football to me the entire night and then the next day she's like a commentary on like the college game, like the side of the field, and I'm like you guys have no idea, I just like live for it. I'm like the girls are really out there doing everything and we're like just out there doing everything and we're like just give us a chance, let us explain our side, make room at the table, exactly.
Speaker 3:Let us laugh a little crazy when you do something wild or we'll just let them do what they think they're doing a good job at, and then we'll just do it 10 times better and get a lot more attention for it or hate. But hey, it's getting more comments and engagement, so it's getting more views.
Speaker 1:So I do think that's the thing that maybe social media like taught all of us. We're like well, I mean negative attention and also marketing, right, right, exactly. Like PR is PR. So like hey, yeah, might as well, just be yourself and the people who love you love you, people who won't like you can't be a product for everyone. We all know this. In marketing, there's no product that serves everyone. Otherwise you will serve no one.
Speaker 3:Well, and there's a market for everything and I think I knew that, going in of like why should I change when I know what's already doing really well? But I'll get paid double, almost double for it and people will actually gladly pay the money to do it and I will do a better job at it.
Speaker 2:It's your money. You're not making money for anybody else.
Speaker 3:Exactly.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I've all learned that, like we're much better leaning into our strengths than trying to be someone we're not or trying to be super well-rounded. Like there's people in that can kind of like learning the lesson of saying no and yes to clients and you mentioned this earlier that is one of the most challenging things, especially and this might not be a girl-related thing, but I feel like we all grew up kind of like learning to be pleasers or have everyone like us and so learning to sit down at a meeting and then walk away and be like, eh, we have had meetings where we were really really really excited about the client and after we left we're like, oh dang, like that is not the client we thought it was going to be.
Speaker 2:Like I mean it just comes at a cost, right? It's like am I going to, are we going to sacrifice our mental health? You're going to be working with somebody who's probably going to be unable to be pleased. So it was like you feel that we pick up on that pretty quickly.
Speaker 3:Oh, I kid you not, Jenny. When you came up on my screen, I was like oh, thank goodness I have someone that I vibe with. That is going to be an amazing client.
Speaker 2:Well, thank you, but you know how it is. I mean and that's Beck always says the line from Pretty Woman you know we choose who, we choose when.
Speaker 1:or I say, when I say who, I say where. Those are all my like. I love Pretty Woman, so anything.
Speaker 3:Huge mistake, A big mistake. I was like where.
Speaker 1:Where's the salad? Because that's the fork, I know. I also don't feel the need to be everybody's silverware. I'm like that's not the point I know and then my other favorite is like what leave all this not in a million?
Speaker 2:no, never. So you just decided at that point you were like like fuck, I'm going to go do this on my own.
Speaker 3:I probably. It took me maybe three or four weeks to get my business going up and go. Good for you. I was just like this is great, like I cannot wait to start. I got my website up. I established my social media handles. I got professional photos taken Like I, I, I got my hair did. I was like let's go, like I'm getting this website up and running, paid for all the you know annoying little fees like website fees, domain.
Speaker 3:You have to get the SSL like the security thing for your website like all of those things and because of my last job, I wouldn't have known that I needed all of that, so I was like so thankful that I did have that experience.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:And working with all of the different departments on the team, like because we had, like a dev team, the website developers team and I would talk with them a lot and so they would tell me a lot of things that I thought would be helpful. And for the longest time I was thinking to myself I will. I don't think I'll ever be a business owner, because I loved the praise of working for someone else and getting that satisfaction of oh my gosh, you're doing such a great job, let's give you a pay raise, or you're doing such a great job, you do so well with these people. I loved that. Now it's just like I would rather love or I would rather have the satisfaction and praise from me being able to take the entire week off if I want to, because I can or I can plan ahead and get a whole bunch of stuff done beforehand.
Speaker 3:I don't have to ask for time off, I don't have to tell anybody I'm taking time off, other than my clients. Like I'll tell them um, here's your stuff ahead of time, but I'm going to be like kind of off and on. Like if you really really need me, text me. But, um, but I'm kind of going to take some time away and they're like cool, please, you deserve it. And I'm like wow, like what, I've been missing this this whole time. What?
Speaker 1:Yeah, the freedom of it. I mean, I think once somebody takes your freedom or gives you the illusion that it could be taken, then you're like, no, actually I'm the boss of that. But that illusion for sure is like a very real thing. You're like it feels so offensive at first and then, for sure, for the three of us it's a 180. I'm like, no, that will never happen again. That's not for me.
Speaker 3:I don't think I ever really grieved um the whole situation, because I don't think I ever saw it as a grieving opportunity. Um, I saw it only as a oh my gosh, like this is so cool, Like I am so excited, kind of thing. I did, of course, lose out on that really high income that I was getting, but I'm already almost at that point to where I was. So I'm just like wow, like who would have known? Like I could have done all of that on my own. Of course I knew it was going to take time to get to that point, but I only saw it as a big opportunity. And I was still so shocked when I heard both of your guys' stories on that episode.
Speaker 3:I'm just like I knew I wasn't alone, but it just felt so good hearing it from other people of like oh wow, there are other really good getting fired stories out there.
Speaker 1:Doesn't it change your perspective too? Because I feel like if I had heard that a younger me, like a 25 year old me, would have been like oh geez, and, like you know, like I would have been like oh damn. But now I'm like, ooh, I wonder what happened, cause it's like I don't wonder what you did. Yeah, more like I wonder how every one of the players showed up, because, like I know, in my situation I was completely blindsided. I didn't, I had no idea when I got ready for work that morning that I was going to be handing over my computer. And then the idea of, like everyone around me, having known kind of right.
Speaker 1:I was like this is an interesting place to put me, Like huh, and I couldn't help but just sit back and I was pretty offended and I definitely had some grief for sure. But then I loved like the master disassociator, so I did a lot of what you you know, like. Oh no, this is not happening to me.
Speaker 3:You're just like how am I going to retaliate? No, it's not happening to me.
Speaker 1:You're just like. How am I going to retaliate? Part A, part B? Yeah, I know Well, like how you said.
Speaker 3:They straight up were just like, basically, because you're a mom, we're letting you go. We kind of had the same inkling at the company that I got fired from. I was told by a previous higher up I basically took this person's job and they moved on to another company. They, they, um, willingly left. They weren't fired.
Speaker 3:But I was kind of good friends with this person and I met up with her for coffee and I told her this whole story and she was like, well, I don't want you to take this the wrong way, which I don't think you will but you and those other two people in the same position as you, the company owner is likely going to keep those other two people because they have a lot more to lose than you do, because they're moms and they have kids and they need insurance and you don't. And so, um, they were he, uh, the. The person was just like so maybe just think of it that way. And I was like that makes so much sense, like I am the easier one to drop of of the choices that I could have. That could have been dropped. But that's just. I hate to even think of it that way because you're a mom or you know you don't have the. You're not going to give us your all like that. I hate. I hated that hearing that.
Speaker 1:But people that are not born or bred or however you want to think of that, to be that straightforward are always going to find the thing that makes them the most comfortable in a situation that they're not able to be fully honest in. In mine, I knew that I was doing a much bigger role than what they asked me to and I had come with a lot more resources and knowledge because of where I was recruited from, which is why I was making more. But I'm like I brought like they literally still use a marketing tactic that I gave them on my first week inside their buildings and I'm like sir, sir, and that wasn't even my job, because I wasn't in their marketing specifically Like I was in their people's people division and I'm like you can say it however you want, so that you can sleep at night, but I brought you an awful lot. So, yeah, whatever you're comfortable with, that's a you story, not a me story. I know exactly what I did.
Speaker 2:See, I just like this subtle vindication, because there's not been any social media or marketing at the company that I got fired from since I left the day I got fired.
Speaker 3:You're like sipping your tea.
Speaker 2:Interesting. I'm like, oh good, post from June of 2023. Good job. That's when I got fired.
Speaker 1:Nailed it guys All right Looks great guys.
Speaker 3:Hope it's going well. Great job with keeping that up.
Speaker 1:Well, great, great job with keeping that up. I just it's so. It is easy to look back on it, though, especially when you've moved far enough forward and be like okay.
Speaker 2:Well, and you don't realize how toxic it is when you're living in it, because it's like I need the money and like this is my job and I'm just if I'm in.
Speaker 1:I'm committed. Yeah, we're workers. When you're outside of it, it's like, oh my God, like what? Yeah, we're big fans of like taking you time also. So sometimes I'm like at the pool on a Wednesday morning and I'm like, but I also know that I will work all weekend late at night. I'm a worker bee and I'm proud of that. But I've also very much learned that like that's on my time, my decision. I say who, I say where, I say when I say how much, but like I am proud of being a hard worker. Like I grew up blue collar, Like I don't, that doesn't scare me. But if it scares you as a client or as a person that fired me, that's a you problem.
Speaker 3:I think it's the content creator in all of us, where it's just like, oh my gosh, I could totally do this and I could take a picture of that and I can have it with this sound and this like caption over the top of it, where our minds just never stop working, where they're just constantly thinking. There will be so many times where my husband will start to tell me a story, will start to tell me a story, and it's it's almost like that, um, where I think it's like a Homer Simpson clip, where it's like the monkey with the symbols and in their brain and they're not even listening Cause there there's something else happening in my mind currently, and it's not like I let him get through the whole story, but I'm just like, sorry, what Like I was? My my mind was completely somewhere else. I'm. I'm here now, um, please tell me that story again.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's like a common thing around my house. Nate's like are you even listening to me? I'm like no, but you said this one word and I'm like thought about a blog. That would be really good about that. Oh, my God, like enough already.
Speaker 3:We go off into a thought tangent.
Speaker 1:It's a really busy mind, though the creator into a thought tangent. It's a really busy mind, though the real content creator mind is a very busy mind. People will say it even now when they walk into my home, because they're like whoa, what's happening here here? Because it is like the cleanest but most chaotic place you've ever been.
Speaker 2:No, no, I don't think it's chaotic at all, I think it's very peaceful. Oh, okay, I do.
Speaker 1:There are, like it's also my safe space okay, but it is like very type a right like. But then there are things like I don't even know if I can get a picture of this like an organized mess yeah my kitchen table has like the middle of it is like beautiful by the way.
Speaker 1:Are you not obsessed? I'm like this happened on a conference call the other day. I was like Ooh, this went from markers high and then it just became Roy G Biv. I don't even know how that happened. There are like five kinds of wallpaper inside of the main area. There are like five kinds of wallpaper inside of the main area. There's like new lamps. The other day we lost power. I was like not me, battery powered.
Speaker 3:We're always prepared, and we're just those type of people. It doesn't matter what it is, we're always prepared for any situation. Our brains never turn off.
Speaker 1:They don't. I need people around me who understand. Not even I want to live like this all the time, but it is what it is make creative space for me. We can go all day right.
Speaker 2:So, eric, where can everybody find you? I want to have you back and let's talk digital marketing, but we had to tee you up with how you got to where you are.
Speaker 3:Absolutely yeah. So you can find me on Instagram and YouTube and LinkedIn. They're all the same. Well, actually just kidding, linkedin and YouTube is Go Wave, or, sorry. Linkedin and YouTube is Wave Digital Marketing. And then my handle for Instagram is Go Wave Digital. I'm also on Facebook as well Wave digital marketing.
Speaker 2:Perfect. Yeah, I want to talk. Have you back and talk about all of the platforms and YouTube specifically.
Speaker 3:That would be amazing, I love that Absolutely Cause.
Speaker 1:That's one of the ones that we've like cause, we cause.
Speaker 2:I don't like to put a face on, so I have not. We are not YouTubing just yet.
Speaker 1:I don't like to put a face on, so I have not. We are not YouTubing just yet. Jenny threatened it, though like five times and then for like three weeks, cause I don't know if it is. I like, show up, I'm like, but I like to joke that half the time I look like Gary Busey, like I slept outside.
Speaker 3:Even if you guys did short form content like that would be cool, I know.
Speaker 2:And we're good at it. Just it's the band-aid. It's the band-aid, we got to rip it.
Speaker 1:That's right. We need you back, because one of the things that I really love about myself is like I'm a great leader, but I also love to be led. So if you walk us through the door of short form YouTube, I think we probably could do it.
Speaker 3:Or give me a checklist, give me a to-do list and I will make sure it's done.
Speaker 2:Oh same God.
Speaker 3:I love a to-do list that satisfaction of putting that line through something, oh my gosh, it is my fave.
Speaker 2:I'm teaching my daughter the same thing right now. Actually, she's like well, I just get so overwhelmed with all the things.
Speaker 1:I'm like, girl, you got to make your list and cross it through. She was like I really like doing that. I'm like, yes, you do, that's my daughter. But it was overwhelming, though. That's why my paper calendar can only go week to week. I can't look at the whole month.
Speaker 3:I'm like and whatever you can't get done, you carry it over to the next day or the next week.
Speaker 1:Yeah, like the little things. One of my favorite things about myself is there are things that will take 10 minutes, but I'll avoid them for three weeks.
Speaker 2:Exactly, See I did this first because I hate it hanging over my head.
Speaker 1:I know, and so I'll like go for like three literal weeks. So I'm like today's gonna be the day.
Speaker 3:Like my air filter. I probably need to change that out because it's probably been over the recommended amount of time. It would probably take me a good five minutes or less to change it out, but because it's so easy, it's like my brain's like no, I can do other stuff, yeah.
Speaker 1:I just did this with my. I shouldn't say this, but I've been so good about my truck this year but like the light went on the other day, I was like ugh, the to-do list is too long, and I just zeroed it out because I learned how to do it the other day. Oh no, because the guy didn't. He didn't zero it out for me. So I went on YouTube and learned how to do it and the first thing I did, when I saw it go on, I was like ta-da, my husband has lost two vehicles over not changing his oil.
Speaker 3:So it will never happen again. Yeah, don't do that.
Speaker 1:It's not terrible. It's right around the corner. But I was like I just don't have time for this right now.
Speaker 2:Erica, thank you so much, it was so good to see you.
Speaker 3:It was so good to see you too, and thank you so much for inviting me on.
Speaker 2:I had a really fun time, yes, inviting me on. I had a really fun time.
Speaker 3:Yes, I would love to. That would be great. Give me the time and day Perfect.
Speaker 1:Digital marketing next time. Well, thanks so much guys for tuning in and we will see you next week.