When a part of your life becomes synonymous with your name it can be scary to consider a…

When a part of your life becomes synonymous with your name it can be scary to consider a change.

I wrote about this change last week and the impact it can have on relationships. Shout out to the real ones!

Today I want to dive into the tough decision that faces people when you become synonymous with your career. (I also discovered this is the same with a marriage, but I will focus on careers for LinkedIn) When I was a DJ, everywhere I went I was “DJ Wayne”. Then I worked at the WEEI in Boston for almost a decade and at some point along the way my last name switched from Partello to “from WEEI”. My last name soon became “from the Dolphins” and eventually “the CMO of the Padres”. With each new “last name” came a level of validation that honestly felt amazing, but I also realized that it was only surface level acceptance and it was mostly BS. Sure, I got a seat at the table a lot quicker as the CMO of the Padres than the DJ from Boston, but the relationships I created and the work that was done in both scenarios is what truly mattered.

Since stepping away to create CUENTO Marketing (opens the CUENTO site in a new tab) I have had countless conversations with people who are struggling with making that type of change and most have a hard time admitting that it has anything to do with their adopted “last name”. Beyond that validation feeling good, it also creates a level comfort for them. It’s instant credibility in an introduction whether in business or in your personal life, after saying what I did to people it was usually followed with an “oh wow!!” or an “oh really?!?” and that feels great! There are always lots of questions and interest in what you do and how you got there. I’d be lying if I said that I didn’t enjoy it, but was it making me better?

I know it’s hard to imagine life with a different “last name”, but if you believe that is major reason you are still doing what you are doing, it’s time to really take a step back and evaluate if you are too comfortable. Comfort creates complacency and complacency usually doesn’t keep you around too long.

#WhatsYourCUENTO

#marketing #business #people #career #careers #change