The Inevitable, Perpetual Pivot

How my work and career have changed, and what I’m doing now.

An Origin Story

I’ve been self-employed since 2016. It started out with me teaching yoga, bouncing around between local studios and hosting my own pop-up classes. That then evolved to going all in on opening a brick-and-mortar yoga studio with my husband. We became full-time small business owner operators, which took us on a beautiful, wild ride for 4 years.

After closing that business and that chapter courtesy of The Pandemic, I took a brief stint at a marketing agency. I had an 18-month-old at home, was used to being my own boss for years, had no reliable childcare, nobody else on the team had children and it was still The Pandemic. Needless to say that did not work out. I didn’t even make it 90 days.

I knew I could do my own thing again. It couldn’t be at the same scale as before, but it was possible to build what I needed for myself: creativity, flexibility, connection. And that’s what I’ve been doing since 2021, helping other solopreneurs and small business owners tell their brand stories and bring their ideas into the world.

What I’ve come to realize over the last five years is that I’m really good at supporting other people. And as much as I want to have main character energy, I’m actually best suited as a go-to, high-level partner. After being in that role with two incredible clients over the last year plus, I’ve officially made a pivot to reposition my work.

Insert Ross with the Couch Gif

Work pivots are an increasing norm in today’s day and age, especially for women and even more so in the entrepreneurial space. The internet passed this stat around recently:

Average age of female career pivot: 39
Average age of female entrepreneur start: 42
Women’s creative peak age: 45-55
You’re not behind.
You were programmed to peak at 25.
You’re just beginning.

As someone who, occasionally when looking back and I’m having a thumbs-down day, can feel like I peaked at 28… That little viral blip on Pinterest did make me feel a bit better about myself.

I know the stability and security of having the same job for 35 years with a pension sounds appealing but I really don’t think Millennials and younger have it in us to do the exact same thing for half of a lifetime.

When the majority of my generation began our job journeys, it was a recession. That whole Your College Degree is Your Ticket to a Career spiel really fell flat. Tale as old as time at this point. We’ve been bobbing and weaving since 2010 and we’re still here, in a market that is constantly changing, a world that is unstable, an economy where money feels feeble, and then there is AI.¹ Pivoting is kind of our calling card.

This New Chapter

Thanks for staying through that 5-paragraph segue to get to the official word… I’m moving away from branding and marketing and stepping into the ops and admin space.

I work with founders of small businesses to complete tasks and manage projects so they can focus on growth. I now refer to myself as a Special Projects Manager, bridging the gap between big-idea dreaming and daily execution. Aka I’m the embedded partner who works alongside small biz CEOs to get stuff done.

My current clients refer to our work as idea wrangling, efficient and thoughtful execution, pace setting, and bringing projects to fruition in manageable steps. I make operations low-touch so they can show up high-touch.

And in this time of AI, you know what’s still in and essential? Direct support with other humans. Working 1:1 to brain dump, ideate, and then pass off projects to actually bring them to completion. Ideas becoming reality is what skillful, collaborative, and intelligent humans do.

Phoebe > Ross

I’ve resisted this official change for a bit because marketing and branding is who I’ve been for the last 15 years. I’m a sentimental freak and letting go of pretty much anything (ask me about the box in my attic that is filled with notes and cards) is hard for me. It feels like I’m abandoning a part of me that created some really wonderful things. I don’t think I’ll ever fully get over closing Inner Light Yoga Nashville, but being stuck in 2017 is not helpful for anyone.

I have long-standing experience and success in helping businesses grow. And one thing that always remains the same is that I am a collaborator through and through. This new chapter means collaborating with small biz founders to complete tasks, implement systems, and bring ideas to life. Together we are doing work that creates meaningful growth and supports communities.

My refreshed website is live with all the deets on my work moving forward. Two things about that:

1. Jamie Cox is my long-time internet pal, self-employed sister in arms, and trusted collaborator. My new messaging would not be as sharp and clear if it weren’t for the 1:1 work I did with her.

2. My one-woman show is built on referrals. Direct connection and word of mouth are my jam. So LOL I’m sharing via Substack but this is about as online promotional as I get. Connecting via my website is the direct way to me!

In a world of inevitable pivots and pirouettes on precarious ground, I’m grateful to have landed here. And according to the internet I’m 8 years away from my creative peak, so LFG until then and beyond.

Catch up on my other thoughts about millennial relevance, being mediocre, boobs, the internet, and finding meaning in it all <3

1. Listen, both Gemini and Claude (which Claude was by far superior) helped me redesign my website. It was such a resource for all the tech stuff and the instructions they provided had me creatively jazzed to bring my vision to life.