How I Started to Freelance Social Media Marketing

So, you have a job that you’re not really digging and you’re interested in doing something completely different, but you have no idea where to start?

I get you. And I have been there.

I also didn’t know how I change jobs, industries, and my career in the direction that I wanted it to go. But I eventually found my way. Step by step…

Where I Started

My first job out of college was an admin assistant at a pharma company. I never planned to work in the industry. It just kind of happened. (My degree was in Nutrition.) A friend that I had graduated with who worked at the company told me about an opening. I had been living with my parents and my time limit for being an unemployed collage grad was quickly expiring… So… I applied.

6 years later, I was still working in pharma, QC’ing R&D process documents, and hating every second of it.
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Don’t get me wrong, I worked with some pretty awesome people over those 6 years. But I wasn’t fulfilled by the work that I was doing. I was a creative in a non-creative environment. I wasted a lot of time. And I really didn’t have anyone to blame but myself for doing it for six years.
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I was lazy. I didn’t look for other opportunities. I didn’t make an attempt to get another job, switch industries, or throw myself into finding something else. Until one day it hit me.

The Turning Point

I looked at the people in the positions above me and asked myself if I would want to be in their shoes. My answer was no. So, if I had no interest in moving up, what the hell was I still doing there?! ????
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I also asked myself how I would feel if I was doing the same thing a year from then, or 5 years from then. And that was the answer lit me up inside. I had to make some moves.
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In a movie, I would have gotten up and walked out at this point. But it wasn’t a movie and I had bills to pay. So instead, I started trying other things on the side in my free time….

How I Changed Career Paths

I created a fashion blog, and then a vegan food blog, and then started a T-shirt eCom store with my boyfriend. I started getting interested in social and did it for free for a local spin studio. I poked around at things until something sparked. ⭐️
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Something did spark when I was working with the spin studio. I fell in love with social media marketing. Something about the sense of community, the creativity, the inifinite possibilities to grow and build on social did it for me.

So I strategized and marketed the spin studio for free for a year, gaining experience, going to spin classes and creating a brand on social for their business. And then I left my corporate job.
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Poking around, trying things and working for free got my feet wet. It gave me experience which allowed me to eventually get paid to do social when I left pharma.
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If you’re interested in trying something new- DO IT! Get your feet wet. Work for free. Get experience. LEARN.
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You’re giving yourself a serious gift by doing this- a chance to do something you love.????

If you’re interested in a more flexible freelance lifestyle, check out how I left my job and started freelancing.