"What do you do for work?"

If you’re?over the age of 22, “What do you do for work?” might be the question you hear the most after “How are you?” and “What’s up?” Personally, I have avoided this question at all costs in recent years- more on that later. But if you’re an adult who leaves their house, you probably ask this question at least once a day- whether you’re meeting another parent at your child’s school, playing golf with new acquaintances, or flirting with a would-be mate at a bar after work. We’re all out here trying to earn a living to support our lifestyle, be that jet-setting around the globe or just hoping to be able to afford enough fruit to satiate a toddler.?

I’ve been avoiding writing something like this for several months because, quite frankly, I believe LinkedIn has become a minefield of self righteousness and people “faking it til they make it” while scrambling frantically behind the scenes to turn their lies into truth and I have been afraid of being just another faker. I was very quick to tell LinkedIn what I did for work in early 2023 as I had the opportunity to attempt to bring an amazing SaaS product to market with a brilliant technical co-founder. I shouted from the mountaintops that after a year and a half in the professional wilderness, I was Co-Founder and Chief Customer Officer of a startup and we had an amazing product that was going to solve all your most painful legal process problems! And then, a few months later, I got very quiet on Linkedin and silently ended my tenure in that job and created a new entry on my CV which now includes 8 stops in the 15 years since I graduated from UCLA. This is just a sampling of the wide array of not-so-happy thoughts that have gone through my head since last summer: “What am I going to say the next time someone asks ‘What do you do for work?’ ‘Should I just apply for another boring remote tech sales job?’ ‘Do I really know enough to start a consulting business from scratch?’ ‘Who’s gonna pay to learn what I have to say?’ ‘Can I call myself something other than a consultant? Consulting was literally my least favorite type of job ever, why am I voluntarily trying to do it again?’ ‘Maybe my Dad was right in 2011, this startup sh*t was too risky.’” The truth is, I had a great opportunity to bring an excellent product to market and, for a variety of reasons, it didn’t work and we gave our investors back some of their money and moved on. In the months that followed, I did the only thing I knew would make an impact- I worked. Many days I got to my desk not knowing what the hell I was working on (still happens occasionally), but I knew if I kept moving I’d eventually figure out what I was working on. What has materialized is a business that I’m proud to be building slowly but surely, my way.?

Now, let’s get back to that often-asked question “What do you do for work?” I said at the beginning that I don’t like asking or answering this question, so I should probably share the two wildly different reasons why I don’t like it:?

1. From 2015-2020, I LOVED my answer to this question and if you came within 20 feet of me during that time period, chances are you were going to get an earful about it. My co-founders and I started in a temperature-confused attic above a Jiffy Lube in San Mateo and built an amazing team that created a $15m+ ARR business with locations around the globe. And then, in March 2020, the?global pandemic devastated our business model. In the grand scheme of the tragedies that occurred as a result of the pandemic, a VC-funded experiential retailer running out of money is not among the Top 1000. However, to me, losing the ability to talk about what was once a booming startup made me loathe being asked “What do you do for work?” and subsequently I have been doing my best to stop asking it as well.
2. According to a 2023 study, 49% of people are dissatisfied with their job, and this doesn’t account for people who are out of work for one reason or another. If I just met a new acquaintance, why would I flip a coin to potentially start our relationship off talking about?a sore subject? I’d much rather learn what their favorite restaurant is or a movie they recently enjoyed.

Okay, John, quit stalling bro - it’s probably time to wrap this up and talk about what you ACTUALLY do for work now. After a lot of time with my trusty whiteboard, pictured above with a note from my two-year-old daughter Jo that definitely was not written by my wife Amy, I think I have an answer to my least-favorite question. I am a Storyteller who helps businesses refine how they tell their stories to supercharge their impact. I’ve spent 13 years working in the startup world on just about every aspect of Go-To-Market strategy, meeting with well over 1000 founders in the process. In all of that experience, there has been one consistent thread- a good story is the universal cheat code to getting what you want in business, and oftentimes, in life. Want a promotion at work? You better have a damn good story to tell in that annual review meeting. Looking for new funding for your business? Better tighten that story up, or you might struggle to raise a dime. Used a compelling?story to get funding from the investors of your dreams? Congrats, now you have to write a completely new story in order to attract early customers. Did a friend at a silent disco introduce you to a magical woman way out of your league? Better tell a good story if you plan to ask her to marry you in a few months (ok this one might be a bit niche to me specifically, but you get the point!).?

The point of this story about storytelling is to say, more officially than I have at any point to date, that F3 Collective is open for business. I am helping a variety of types of businesses from pre-seed to Series B stages tell their story doing things including, but not limited to:?

• Pitch creation/refinement
• Fundraising Support
• Ideal Customer Profile definition
• Public Speaking training
• Early Customer Outreach Strategy
• Sales Coaching
• Partnerships/Channel Strategy
• Fractional CRO support

I am eternally grateful to everyone in my network that has served as a sounding board and given me the mental space to build a business my way. Most importantly, thanks to Amy who is the type of amazing copilot who allows her dreamer husband to endlessly tinker with ideas while keeping the household afloat in every way imaginable!?

P.S. If you know anyone who might need a little help telling their story, tell them to email [email protected] and I’ll be happy to help. And if you hate asking “What do you do for work?” as much as I do, try an old staple from my Dad- ask someone “So what’s your story?!” and see where they take you!