Let It Burn So You Can Rise

Courtney Stanley made a bold shift in her career at the end of 2019 and early 2020. She decided to pursue the path of entrepreneurship. She is a keynote speaker, event emcee, podcaster, and coach. Her humility is personable, and her approach is empowering. “It’s important to remember that you’re really only seeing the tip of the iceberg when you see people on stage, hear them on a podcast. You’ve missed the struggle to get there,” said Stanley.

Stanley didn’t experience her success without pulling herself out of a few ruts and difficult days. “A few things really helped me, understanding what the purpose of my work was. If all the shiny things were stripped away, what actually motivates me to do this work? And when I thought about it, it really boiled down to my desire to spark meaningful conversations. I couldn’t put a dollar amount on that,” said Stanley. For any event marketers, coordinators, or directors who are struggling or feeling burnout, she recommends “get back to your mission, dig deeper to what you love about the job specifically.”

Mental health is a significant component of getting through those difficult times. “You can’t pour from an empty cup,” said Holly Criswell, episode host. “I had to recognize that if I wasn’t in a great state mentally and emotionally, I was not going to be able to pursue that mission,” said Stanley. She shifted her to-do list to joy-focused things and found that joy brought momentum. It included things like interacting with people who energized her and her mental health, like journaling and working out.

“It’s difficult to find work-life balance if you aren’t in the right environment,” said Stanley. Some environments are not supportive of striking that balance. If that’s the situation, Stanley recommends being open to alternative settings and points out that the current job market favors candidates.

Later in the episode, Criswell and Stanley discuss techniques to shift away from imposter syndrome. Stanley offers straightforward practices to combat imposter syndrome.