Goodbye Google, Hello #Brightsiding

Hey Brightsiding Fam, 

I’ve been DREAMING of the day I’d be able to send this newsletter, and it’s honestly hard to believe the time has come (!!!!!!).

I write to you with the supreme pleasure of announcing my transition out of Google and fresh off my first week as full-time Brightsiding FOUNDER & CEO. 

My final day at Google was last Friday, so today marks my first full week of self-employment and independence. 

I have a lot to say about my time at Google, the decision to leave, and what’s ahead - all of which I’ll be expounding on further on the podcast soon, but as I’ve been sharing the news, I’ve noticed some similar questions and themes come up. So today I’ve put together a Q&A roundup.

Hope you enjoy.

First things first - why now?

Let me start by saying, I’ve had my resignation letter written for a year. No joke. Last year around this time, I was doing a round of coaching with Imari, seeking clarity on the direction I wanted to take my career. I realized that I didn’t actually want to pursue another corporate job … what I wanted to do was to leave Google and take Brightsiding full-time. I found that I was spending most of my free time writing, or thinking about my brand, and taking walks on the beach and manically writing down ideas in my notes app — and THIS was the thing that brought me alive, and gave me that “full body yes” feeling.

So I’ve been thinking about this for a while. There was an incredible amount of fear and imposter syndrome and stories that weren’t mine that I had to untangle though, and when I was on my retreat in Guatemala, all of that work came to a head and I realized it was time to stop holding my dream at a distance and go for it. So I came back from my trip and put my two weeks in on April 1st. 

Was there an inflection point or specific moment that pushed me to make the leap? 

Like I said, this decision has been a long time coming. But as I mentioned in my last newsletter, my trip to Guatemala ended on a poignant note with my grandfather’s funeral. It was a true “life is short” moment, although he lived a very full and long 87 years. My grandmother, on the other hand, passed away quite suddenly 8 years ago - and I couldn’t help but reflect on her life while celebrating my grandfather. She started her career in banking later in life, after raising my mom & her five siblings. She died only a few years after she retired, and as I was in Chicago reflecting on my roots, my purpose, and what I want to do in this life, I tried to imagine what my grandmother would have said if she was still alive. And maybe I just projected what I wanted to hear, but I like to imagine she would have told me to go for it. 

Making it to Google 5+ years ago completely changed the way I saw myself, and during my time there I grew so tremendously as a person. I proved to myself that I am truly capable of doing what I set my mind to, and at this moment in time, the thing I want to set my mind to is building my own business. 

So, what’s next? What does “full time Brightsiding” look like?

Great question! There’s a lot on the horizon. But in the short term, I’m focusing on two areas:

One: booking clients for my corporate workshops, where I lead teams through exercises on mindset. I was just back at Google yesterday running a session for Women @ YouTube, which was really, really special.

Two: scaling the newsletter and my podcast (very excited about this part!!!) 

I have a business plan, but I fully expect this to evolve beyond what I can truly imagine right now. As my man Rob Bell once said, “There’s just the work and keeping at it”. I’m extremely grateful to have this work to show up to right now.

I’m also enrolled in a 10-week intensive course for founders called IndeCollective, which is providing some great structure as I get off the ground. Big shoutout to my friend Shereen for recommending the course to me. 

Did you have … savings? 

Well, kind of. I had some cash savings and also cashed out a percentage of my Google stock as my “seed money”. I’ll be talking more about how I’m supporting myself & budgeting (god help me) on the podcast soon. 

Are you going to take a trip or buy something to commemorate this transition? 

Ya’ll know me TOO WELL.

Well, I’m coming off a string of burnout-vacations (lol), so, I’m not like, going to hang out on a beach for a week or anything. I am going to take the next week off and treat it like any other transition into a new job, and I have a bunch of daytime NYC bucket list items I’m excited about (Bach at Noon at the Ladybird Church?? Count me TF in), but I’ll just be gradually ramping up with Brightsiding as my full-time project.

As far as commemorating the transition with a symbolic gift to myself, I have my eyes on a Lightning Bolt necklace from Phoenix Rose (keep reading for this week’s Don’t Let Me Buy This). This feels appropriate, considering my motto for the year is “strike lightning”.

What are you most excited about? 

LEARNING. And specifically, learning about things I’m fired up about. A few weeks before my last day, my friend Meaghan and I went to an AdTech industry conference on the “cookieless future”, and it was, let’s just say, extremely affirming that Ad Tech was not where I belonged. I found myself struggling to engage with the industry towards the end of my time there, and I’m excited to go follow my curiosity and learn about topics I’m passionate about.

I studied business in college and have always had a pretty entrepreneurial spirit, and I’m just SO fired up about fanning that flame. I get to figure out things like trademarking, productization & scale, etc., and to me, that’s thrilling. 

What’s the first thing you’re going to do now that you’re self-employed? 

SLEEP! EAT! Take care of myself! Go to yoga in the middle of the day! By the end of my time at Google, I wasn’t exactly prioritizing my health (to put it lightly) and I’m committed to getting back to a good mental, physical, and spiritual place. I know finding a routine that works for me is going to take time, but I’m just really looking forward to napping whenever I want, lol. 

I did book a facial at Christine Chin to excavate the corporate toxins from my pores, though, and next week I’m going to the New York Botanical Gardens to see the orchid show again (since the last time I went it was on a Saturday and kids were everywhere). I’ll be sharing more about my daytime NYC bucket list soon, so look out for that! 

How can we help?

Can I just say how overwhelmed and surprised I was by the amount of people who asked “How can I help?” as soon as I shared the news? I shouldn’t be surprised, of course — the Brightsiding community is one of the most generous and kind conglomerations of people I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing - but truly, THANK YOU to everyone who has been so excited for me and asked this question. And YES, you can so help!!!

1) Book a Brightsiding session or lightning talk for an upcoming team meeting / offsite! If you want to learn more, send me a note or reach out on LinkedIn.

2) Spread the word! If you love this newsletter, recommend it to a friend (or a few)! Post about it on IG or LinkedIn, and encourage your friends to sign up. Word-of-mouth referrals mean so much to me.

3) Hype me UP!!! If you have words of wisdom, encouragement, advice, things you’d like to see, collaboration ideas, or anything at all, please please reach out.

I am truly SO excited about this next chapter, and I’m so grateful to this community for following the journey from the beginning (this has come so far!!!), cheering me on, and encouraging me to follow this dream.

Away we go!!!