LOCATION: Baltimore, MD

HOMETOWN: N. Kingstown, RI

PETS: Paul McCartney, terrier mix

(Does any of this mumbo-jumbo even mean anything?)

SIGN: Sagittarius ♐

MYERS-BRIGGS: ENTJ

The whole story ⤵

I know, I know. Nobody likes reading the “About Me” section. I won’t be offended if you skip it. But just in case you’re wondering how someone with a degree in Wildlife Conservation ended up looking for a director-level marketing role, here’s the 3-minute version.

I grew up in North Kingstown, Rhode Island, then attended the University of Delaware. I double majored in Wildlife Conservation and Agriculture & Natural Resources, and double minored in Entomology and Journalism.

After college, I spent five years working as a field ornithologist. I studied Northern Spotted Owls in California, Cape Sable Seaside Sparrows in the Everglades, migratory shorebirds in Delaware, and Piping Plovers in Rhode Island; ran a food availability study for Northern Bobwhite in the Pine Barrens; and spent a season at a songbird banding station on Cape Cod.

Then, in January 2017, a new president took office and slashed funding for endangered species conservation. Almost overnight, my career path was plunged into uncertainty. Even as an employee of the federal government, it was clear that job security was no longer on the menu for conservation biologists.

I knew I needed to make a strategic pivot. And while I had some experience freelancing in PR, for the most part, my skill set consisted of capturing and banding wild birds. I’m a great writer, but let’s face it: my CV was a head-scratcher for most hiring managers.

I was living in Baltimore at the time, and went to the annual monument lighting downtown—a Christmas tradition in historic Mount Vernon. There are food vendors, musicians, and fireworks, and many of the offices in the neighborhood host cocktail parties you can pop in and out of.

At the first party, I happened to meet the CEO of a global publishing company. We had a great chat, but I didn’t think too much of it… until I ran into him at the second party, too. When I saw him at the third party, he said: “All right—this is a sign. Give me your contact info. We’re gonna get you a job.”

Two interviews later, I was officially employee #2 at Angels + Entrepreneurs, a not-yet-built online community for angel investors that would go on to become the biggest platform of its kind during my tenure.

My first day on the job, I learned that I already had a nickname: Bird Girl. But despite my unconventional background, I moved up the ranks from editor, to managing editor, to editorial coordinator, to Director of Content. After three incredible years at A+E, I made the difficult but exciting decision to accept a role at Republic as their Director of Content Marketing.

Unfortunately, on December 6, 2022, just 11 months after I joined Republic, my role was one of 120,000+ impacted by the sweeping tech layoffs that have hit so many companies—and more importantly, employees—this year.

I honestly didn’t know what to do; I’d never lost a job before. I didn’t have much time to figure out my next step, so I did what most people in my situation do: I headed to LinkedIn to announce that I was back on the market.

I tried to write something professional and positive, to channel that “onward and upward” attitude we’re all so used to seeing on LinkedIn lately… but it just felt so phony to me. It simply wasn’t the way I felt at the time—and I knew that many of my former colleagues didn’t feel that way either.

Losing a job unexpectedly is a searingly painful experience, especially during the holiday season. All of us were (and are) grappling with the news and the emotions that come with it. Grief. Anxiety. Confusion. Stress. All are perfectly normal things to feel after a loss—and for career-driven people like me and my team, that loss was devastating.

So why didn’t we feel comfortable enough to just admit it?

The way I see it, if someone doesn’t want to hire me because I show the full range of human emotions, that is just fine with me. So I told the truth.

The outpouring of support that post received blew me away. People weren’t just accepting me for being honest and admitting how crappy I felt… they were telling me they felt the exact same way, but didn’t think they were allowed to admit it.

The simple decision to lead with honesty nearly doubled my professional network in a matter of days. I’m still working my way through dozens of leads for my next career move (but don’t let that stop you from reaching out 😉). I’ve made connections with countless people who are going through the same thing as me. We continue to support each other however we can—making introductions, reviewing resumes, and giving each other permission to just talk about the thing… not as a personal brand, but as a person.

As I charge onward in search of my next role, I’ve decided to keep showing up as my true self. Before this learning experience, I probably wouldn’t have chosen a photo of myself in ripped jeans, with a seltzer in my hand, as the first thing you see on my professional site. But you know what? It’s a great photo, with real personality (and a cute dog). And it’s me, so it stays.

Nice to meet you. 👋

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