vol 23 | April 28th, 2025

Mentors, grad school, and loafers

This past week on IG I put up an ama in my stories, and I got some really good questions! So I wanted to answer a few of them here:

Q: How do I find a mentor?

A: Rather than mentorship, which can seem daunting to the mentor, I like the idea of seeking out experts instead, who can teach you one specific thing, really well. For example, the person you admire for how they communicate doesn't have to also be the expert you lean on for how to be more analytical at work.

Q: Is there an app that notifies you about nearby networking events?

A: There are several! The most common ones I use are Luma and Partiful, though EventBrite and Meetup have networking events as well. My events for my professional meetup club are hosted on Luma.

Q: How did you figure out what you wanted to do with your career?

A: I tried to find the midpoint of what I was good at, what I enjoyed doing, and what paid the most money (honestly). When I was 22, this was consulting. But as I got older, the thing that's helped me the most is constantly exposing myself to other career paths and people (by going to events and living in NYC) and continuing to ask myself "what could I become in the top 1% in?". Exploration and curiosity are excellent skills, but in the long run, a deep skillset will get you paid.

Q: How to pivot careers (without going to grad school)

A: In short, networking. In order to pivot into a new career, that means you'll have to compete against people already in that field for jobs. And without a solid recommendation or referral, it'll be hard to be competitive. Every time I chose to pivot in my career, I had people in my network vouching for me.

Q: Where are your loafers from (in the image above)

A: I got this question a few times, lol. These are the dark brown penny loafers from suitsupply!

If you don't want to miss the next Ask Me Anything, make sure you're following me on Instagram.

My camera roll

Some favorites from my camera roll recently:

Career Creator Corner

What I learned in my first year making content

I put up an IG story this week, inviting y'all to ask me anything, and some of the questions I got were content and creator-related. So I thought I'd answer one of them here:

Q: What are some key takeaways you gained from year one of growing your platform to now?

A: Year one of content for me was learning how to be consistent and how to properly price myself for opportunities. A key takeaway was that I had to create a habit of making content instead of just whenever I felt like it if I wanted to grow, and I had to constantly increase my price as my following went up, and create a community of other creators in my niche so I knew what my market rate should be.

What I'm reading, watching, and listening to:

Wearing gym shorts to work, Modern Family, and the soundtrack to a Slow Morning

The latest Gen Z work rage bait is wearing athletic wear to work, it seems. In case you didn't already know, I'm highly against wearing anything you'd wear to the gym to the office. You don't need to be in a suit or a dress every day, either. Once you figure out the average outfit in your office or industry, find ways to level it up, like investing in a nice watch, a new pair of shoes, and always make sure your grooming is on point. But leave the dri-fit in your gym bag.

Everyone needs a comfort show. For my wife and I, this is Modern Family. I've probably seen the entire series three or four times at this point, but it's a funny, heartwarming show to decompress over while eating dinner. I stream it on Peacock!

I found an awesome "Slow Morning" playlist on YouTube that's become my go-to for getting ready in the mornings. I added it to my work playlist if you want to give it a listen!

That's all for this week! I hope you enjoyed this edition, and if you have any feedback, questions, or just want to say hey, just respond to this message!

See you soon,

Colin