June 16th, 2025

This week I'll be at Cannes Lions, a creative festival and award show for the advertising industry held annually in the south of France.

I was invited to attend from some of the largest brands out there, had my flight and hotel covered, and will spend the week documenting my experience at exclusive panels, workshops, and a Jason Derulo concert.

Which is so crazy to type out loud, because I remember exactly where I was one year ago today.

Last June, I was sweating it out in the NYC summer heat, checking emails for brand deals with one hand while steering a CitiBike through Central Park with the other. I was running late to yet another networking event, trying my best to get my name out there after being laid off just a few weeks earlier, with no real plan for how I was going to make ends meet.

I was earning some money through content, but not enough, and I knew I had to move fast to make rent and provide for my newborn son. It was crunch time, and most days, I cycled through feelings of self-doubt, stress, anxiety, and uncertainty.

I heard a quote once that said "your survival rate for bad days is 100%". And I remind myself of that whenever life is feeling exceptionally difficult or I feel like I won't be able to figure something out.

So I wanted to share this story and lesson with you, in the hopes that the next time you have a bad day you can be reminded of it. You've survived everything thrown at you so far. And you'll get through whatever comes next too.

Welcome to First Things First. I'm so glad you're here.

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Colin Rocker Founder, @careercolin & For The Firsts ​Instagram | LinkedIn​

A formerly burned out social media manager shares her tips on managing burnout, and why she's still in the industry.

If you've ever been curious as to how I've built and monetized my LinkedIn following, I'm sharing all the details on growth and monetization in a free workshop on June 22nd.

My professional meetup club, For The Firsts, is meeting for one of our classic guided networking mixers on Wednesday, June 25th. If you're in NYC, I'd love to have you there!

Do you prefer your music playlists to be human-made? This "No AI Lofi" YouTube channel has been blowing up recently. And if you listen to them you'll see why.

My wife and I started The Studio on Apple TV recently. The way they shoot this show is insane, and it's a satirical look into how the movie industry works.

My friend Varun Rana recently wrote this excellent post on how he's built a large online following and career by not having his shit together. It's a really great take on the power of authenticity in the age of gurus and coaches coaching coaches.

One of my favorite emails to read each week is from Mihai, The Rooted Dad. His newsletters are well written essays on how to stay more present in parenthood each few days.

​Yesterday was Father's Day. Here are my reflections, as a father whose own father has now passed.

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It really means the world to me that you show up to explore these topics with me each week, so thank you for reading. If something above resonated with you, consider sharing it with someone else who might need it too.

If you have any feedback, you can always reply or email me at me@colinrocker.com

And remember that you’re not behind. You’re just building something different.

Chat soon,

Colin