By Patricia Rogers | Posted Tuesday, July 12, 2022

Intro

Six months ago, I was sick with COVID. Six months ago was my 32nd birthday.

I was always one of the people that have looked at the pandemic as a blessing and a curse because there are times where you need to pause. And as an ambitious New Yorker, that did not seem possible.

I, thank God, came out on the other side of COVID because it really set things off. I was on the fence about going to Dallas for Wrestlemania, but when I could not celebrate my birthday I made the decision to go. I told myself, this is going to be my celebration. And if you follow me, the blog, and/or my podcast Those Wrestling Girls you know that that trip to Texas was a life-changing experience for me.

And now it’s July 2022, I am now 32 and a half. So many amazing things have happened in the last 6 months. Now, I can not help but think… where will I be 6 monts from now?

The start of the next year, 2023.

Where do I want to be? Where do you want to be?

I can’t help but think about my professional life. Let’s talk about “shoot job.” That is wrestling speak for my real life job. I’ve worked at the US Sun for over 2 years and it has been a pleasure, watching it grow from a small team of under 25, to now being the fastest growing US-based site for over a year. I watched firsthand how hard the team has worked to get to this point. The long hours and dedication from each and every person who joined our company has brought us to the point we are at now.

For some reason, I have always gravitated toward working with brands/start-up companies/non-profit organizations. I love being there from the ground up, watching people, relationships and communities grow. Years of working in community organizing and being a self-starter has led me to where I am now. It is hard to express into words what I offer teams, but I will say that a warm smile can go a long way.

My siser Nakia taught me early on that the success of a team is about valuing people. She is a master in Human Resources and always talked about how most of her job is managing personalities. Being able to see how people are different and setting them up for success is the best way possible. Who would have thought caring about people might be the key to success?

Even in a seemingly cut-throat world of 24/7 news/media service, there is room for kindness, empathy, and consideration. And I think the culture at my company has set the tone for the start of careers to thrive. One of the joys has been seeing recent grads living their dream, moving to New York for new challenges, and adventures. I have been able to meet and work with people from all over the world, finding things in common with media professionals from all walks of life. And guess what, we are all just trying to figure this life thing out.

And when it comes to life, sometimes everything feels like a mess, and then other times everything feels beautiful. Shoutout to the sunny days, and all the choices that go towards the greater good.

And I will end this very long intro with this: you can’t break my soul.

I HAVE LEARNED THAT…

the challenge of opening up the team when you are a control freak

No secret, I am a control freak. Always have been. I come from a long line of alpha females. All of my sisters are business owners, and just overall badass bitches. But, we have all learned over the years that there is a value in loosening up and letting someone else lead, delegating and trusting others with handling decisions, deals, etc.

When I was working on Masconsumption Media all those years ago, I worked alone for the most part. And for a reason. I did not want to have to deal or rely on anyone and waste my energy being upset and resentful. Also, there was a fear of being held accountable because there are times when I am not inspired and can procrastinate. But I am much harder on myself than anyone else. I learned, I can not do everything. It is time to open things up.

Thankfully, I have been able to work with a partner over the last 4 years. And recently expanding the team even more, because you can not take over the world alone. Shout out to Letty, SZN CEO, Seindole, Krista B., Brian H. Waters, Blue, and everyone on this spaceship. ‘Cause shit is about to take off.

SHOUTOUT TO (podcast/brand)

Mr. Perry, KIPP Brooklyn and Wrestling Club founder, has started a fundraiser for his students to attend WWE Wrestlemania 39 in Hollywood, California. This is close to my heart because I am someone whose life was changed because of wrestling. And I love that Mr. Perry is now doing the same for these kids.

He’s already raised over $6,000 as of July 11, 2022. The video clips of their reactions, fun promos, and more have gone viral. WWE superstars such as Bianca Belair, Carmelo Hayes, Becky Lynch, Ricochet, Bayley and more have shown their support. Mercedes “Sasha Banks” Varnado famously surprised the class and came to Brooklyn. I was lucky enough to be there. Shout out to the best Mom ever who happens to work at KIPP Brooklyn.

Share and support The Wrestling Club’s Road to Wrestling fundraiser on GoFundMe!

SOCIAL MEDIA/MARKETING TIPS

This past weekend I had my first brand marketing strategy meeting with my new business partner and it was a real eye-opener for me. First of all, I do not like being questioned. Especially about my brand. However, I learned that that is actually a really good thing. This goes back to the learning about letting go of some control.

I was forced to answer some of the basics about my company like, who is your target audience? What is missing from your brand? And for some reason, I had to get over the initial feeling of defensiveness, and just…answer the question. I realized I had so much in my head, that I know I wanted out of the brand. But it felt really good to share this with someone who had never heard it before. But also, I really wanted to know for constructive purposes.

Myself, and the person I was having the business meeting with, have one major thing in common: We don’t have time to waste. So I would not normally have spent over an hour of my time on a Saturday being grilled about the strategy of my brand, but I knew that this was necessary, and it is so important to go back to square one and evaluate why you do what you do in the first place.

So my piece of social media/marketing advice is to go back to the basics. Why did you start your brand? What do you want to ultimately accomplish? What does it really take and how can we tangibly get there? Like, answer these questions as if you are telling a complete stranger that has never heard of you or your company. You’d be surprised how the motivation and inspiration will hit you again like a thunderbolt. I think I am going to make the habit of doing this every quarter with all of my brands.