A Time for Work, A Time for Rest

I’ve worked on websites for so long, but have never prioritized creating one for myself. In truth, I always intended to do so: I’ve owned this domain for the last 20 years. I also have plenty of ideas and things to write about in a blog – marketing, technology, society, life in general. But I’ve never purposely devoted the time to doing so. It was just too easy to put it off for another day and, quite candidly, I’ve been doing plenty of content creation and website work at my day job for many, many years. It wasn’t exactly an itch I needed to scratch.

Also, I was just plain tired.

Between work and family obligations, and the day-to-day of life as a CMO at a fast-growing tech startup, it’s been very good – but very, very busy. Behind the many highlights over the past 7+ years – top-tier press mentions, industry awards, client wins, and most recently, a merger – was a tremendous amount of hard work. Of course, there were setbacks, too, like budget cuts that challenged us to work more efficiently than ever. In a yoga class, you can always go to child’s pose when it gets to be too much. In fact, you’re encouraged to do so, because rest is what lets your body recover and keeps you from getting hurt. There is no child’s pose at a startup.

Now, having recently left that CMO job, I have the free time to create my own website and experiment with some new technology in the process. What’s new in WordPress? Is Canva now a viable alternative to Photoshop, maybe with a few limitations? How good are all of these new marketing AI tools, exactly? I had some success at my last company with content writing and AI (a jumpstart, still requiring heavy editing), but how well will AI tools work to create bespoke images or video? And, if the technology isn’t there quite yet, what will marketing AI be capable of within the next 6 months?

As a startup CMO, I’m generally the one establishing the vision, outlining campaign strategy, drafting corporate positioning, and responding to the latest outreach from a reporter. Occasionally I’d get to draft a major report or pull together data analysis to fuel the above. And I love doing all of these things. But also as a CMO, I’m used to relying on a team of experts to do the heavy lifting behind a website release or supporting a campaign launch. But, you know what? I still enjoy the details. The tactics. The know-how. Technology continues to change at breakneck speed and marketing, more than ever, is a technology-intensive job.

And, no matter how brilliant your strategy, a big idea will remain just that without the tactical skills to bring it to fruition. You can’t have one without the other. (This is a blog post for another day.)

So, this is a great opportunity to learn that new technology and to brush up on all of the marketing skills that I used along the way in less senior, digital marketing roles. I’m not doing it just to satiate my curiosity, but because it makes me a stronger CMO. For years, I was the specialist brought into help with a website (or app, landing page, online sweepstakes, the list goes on) but today, in 2024, digital is the cornerstone. It’s important to understand what it is that your team can now do, so that you can provide better guidance and push the technological envelope. You can even chip in to help your startup make that deadline! While I will not – and probably should not – be the real expert on the team, I still need to know what it takes to get the job done.

What’s more? I’m excited to learn. With a little rest, my creativity is coming back. It’s invigorating to think about the possibilities. My passion is working with emerging technologies, and I have lots of telecom, software, and big data experience to build on. Do I seek out a bigger, more mature startup? Do I take that fractional CMO role? Do I start something entirely new from scratch?

I’m exploring all of those options, too.

While I build this website and figure out what’s next in my career, I’m doing some other exploring, too. I’m day hiking throughout Northern Virginia, where I live, finishing up my (long-planned) yoga teacher training, learning the guitar, and visiting the many museums that Washington, D.C. has to offer. Maybe I’ll do part of the storied Appalachian Trail this spring, assuming I can convince my husband to join me, and visit my alma mater over the summer. I’m both excited and inspired by this once-every-7-years chance to recharge and reset. And, in the process, I’m getting plenty of rest ahead of what comes next.