On Friday I had the pleasure of visiting Joan, a fairly new advertising agency. Joan was the agency I was most excited to see, and anticipated Friday afternoon from the moment I knew I would have the opportunity to visit. The work, environment, and positivity were everything I had hoped for and more, and I absorbed everything they shared with us. One of the most valuable phrases I took home with me came from Lisa Clunie, founder and CEO, when she said, “Nothing is worse than scaring yourself from starting.” I quickly scribbled the phrase down in my notes the moment the words left her mouth, feeling an immediate understanding and connection to this sentence. I knew this phrase would stick with me for a while, and here I am, days later, writing a blog post about it. Those eight words are so important to take into account in all aspects of our lives. I feel like so many people, myself included, don’t start things— whether it is a project, job, or experience, because we are afraid of the outcome or afraid of failure. We scare ourselves out of opportunities before we even give ourselves the chance to experience them. From now on, I am going to take this phrase with me wherever I go. If I doubt my ability to create a project, to build a relationship, to begin a new job or start a new experience, I’ll stop and ask myself— is this worth scaring yourself from starting? Imagine the things we could accomplish if we just tried and let ourselves figure out if failure was an option instead of letting the fear of failure stop us. Visiting Joan was an opportunity I am so thankful for, and Lisa Clunie’s wise words will stay with me forever. Hopefully, they’ll stick with you, too.

Jamie Rolston - 05/14/2018