“I won’t stay more than two years,” I told my boyfriend at the time. And here I am today, 10 years later, prouder than ever to be a part of the Atypic team.
Crap! Looks like I’m not a real Millennial after all …
It’s such a cliché, but time really does fly by.
It feels just like yesterday that I was learning the basics of relationship marketing from Suzanne, my at-work “mom”.
One of her fundamental fundraising 101 teachings was, “We won’t get what we don’t ask for.”
Is it a subconscious belief that guides us to accepting the short end of the stick? Or perhaps, a remnant of our Catholic culture and Catholic guilt? Whatever the origin, it’s true that we are too often embarrassed to ask for what we need, even when we are acting on behalf of one of the best causes in the world. It took real effort for me to break that habit. And, if I’m telling the truth, it was always easier to ask on behalf on my clients and my adored causes, than it was to ask for myself…
Until the moment, that I dared.
I asked to become more involved with strategy, without losing the link with the creation. I asked to try my hand at advertising, to take up the challenge of a pitch, or two, or three. I asked to try my hand at leading brainstorm meetings and exploring branding. And most recently, I asked to work from another time zone.
Did you catch that last one? Right now, I am writing from Greece where I have been teleworking for almost two months without anyone really noticing … except for the time that my neighbour’s chicken started clucking and you could hear it over Zoom. #truestory
Over the course of 10 years, I feel like I’ve never done the same thing twice; I feel like I’ve changed jobs 3 times. And that’s probably why I’ve stayed. And while the causes that motivate us quickly follow on the heels of each other, they are never alike, and neither are the mandates. It is always new. It is always exciting. Each time we must ask ourselves how and by what means we will communicate the essence of this cause to mobilize as many people around it as possible.
There is also pride, of course, in saying that we are helping to raise funds or raise public awareness on crucial issues, from health prevention to human rights. This is what guides us as we come together as a team and create on a daily basis. It is the motivator even as we move forward in a new, unknown direction. It is what asks us to be brave and explore.
But above all it is the freedom – to try, to explore, to evolve, even to fail – that has cemented my sense of belonging to Atypic. This safe space that allows us to push past our comfort zones. This place where boldness is more than a value written on a wall. Where responsible time management is more than a concept in the employee handbook. I feel like it’s rare for an employer to have that much trust and consistency, and I’m grateful for that.
It’s a powerful feeling knowing that as long as we work together for a common goal and that we work hard, there is nothing that’s impossible to achieve at Atypic. Both for its causes and for its employees.
It reminds me of a quote from a creator who inspires me to the highest degree: