20+ years
building global
brands & innovative
business models
while developing talent, teams & culture
as C-Suite leader.
K
T
40+ years
as neuro-divergent ideas junky;
obsessed with human potential, feelings,
local artists, & Jennifer Coolidge's book of work.
Work Experience
Brand Building & Advertising
New Product
Development & Launch
Innovative Organizational Design, New Model Development & Execution
Talent & Team Development
Strategic Partnerships
20+ years
building global
brands & innovative
business models
while developing talent, teams & culture
as C-Suite leader.
K
T
40+ years
as neuro-divergent ideas junky;
obsessed with human potential, feelings,
local artists, & Jennifer Coolidge's book of work.
Human Experience
ADHDer (inattentive type)
Literal & Figurative
Mama Bear
Enneagram 4, INFP,
Manifesting Generator,
Playlist Du Jour: LOVENOTES
Love Language: Sharing music (see above) & snacks
Brand/Business
Foundation
Brand/Business
Activation
Brand/Business
Momentum
Brand and business fundamentals (who are you, what will you do?):
Founders story, brand identity, strategic pillars and partnerhsips
Go-to-market planning & execution: Get all that good out in to the world.
A plan to help you pivot: Agile consumer engagement, programming and growth-focused evolution.
THE AUDACITY OF THAT GIRL
A love letter to my 17-year-old self.
I had the all-too-rare pleasure of enjoying dinner out with new friends a few weeks back. Over the
course of cocktails, apps and a dessert I probably wouldn’t recommend, we got to talking about the college application process. We twisted in and out of what’s ahead for our kids and our own experiences.
It was nice to share a little bit about 17-year-old Kel, and I’m so grateful for connections that
make that kind of sharing feel safe.
Through lots of laughter, I ended up recounting one of my most ever-present core memories of high school: My insanely audacious attempt to get a very coveted college scholarship.
At a time when NO ONE other than experts had any business making videos, I decided that, in lieu of the traditional application, I would piece together an INTERVIEW WITH MYSELF. Turns out all it took was a five-pack of VHS tapes, a little help from the AV club and some cutting-edge program that allowed
me to make marble back drops for my Century Gothic supers.
The pièce de resistance of this video was the music. The soundtrack, if you will, of my 17 years. At the time, the choice was easy and obvious: Whitney Houston’s “I’m Every Woman”. Zero hesitation. Zero embarrassment. Just an appropriate backdrop to the depth and breadth that was me… and the work I’d done over four years of high school. I was editor-in-chief of the yearbook, captain of the Drama Club,
co-creator of the Spirit Squad (a desperate reframe of the cheerleading program when we couldn’t get enough people to join). I’d done things. And was really feeling myself. The video practically made itself.
I did not, however, get the scholarship. I went off to this school regardless… with a tiny tail between
my legs and an acute awareness of the fear that was growing in my gut.
I’d lived most my life in one place. This place was small and familiar.
I was big (many would say loud) and different. I was also accepted… loved, even celebrated.
This big-loud-different-self started to slowly change the second I stepped foot on a college campus (which PS, was small). Everywhere I looked I saw what, at the time, I perceived as more.
More money. More talent. More beauty. More smarts. And by default, I felt like less. So I got to
work on getting small. I dwelled for months about that damn video. I hung out in deep puddles of shame, trying to figure out which professors (or god forbid students) had seen. Who was I to call myself EVERY WOMAN? Who was I to wrap that crap up in a bow and celebrate those silly things about me?
As the years passed, the ridiculousness of that video submission (and my editorial choices for the yearbook – another post all together) started to shift away from being a deep embarrassment into something I’d laugh about with friends. I was no longer that girl… thank goodness because now I could poke fun. Lots of eye rolling and WTFs. Laughing with a healthy dose of “who did I think I was?”
Turns out I was exactly who I was supposed to be. EXACTLY who I always was and will be. Audacious, creative, scrappy, brave. And ridiculous… so fucking ridiculous. A fan of Century Gothic and Whitney (RIP). Hi, I’m Kelli. Nice to meet you.
I’ve known for a while -- now with a clarity I didn’t know was possible -- that the work I’m doing is about getting back to this girl. So much of the learning is RELEARNING. Shedding, actually.
And I’m deep in the shed. If I’m honest, every post feels like that video. They come with all the
ugh and old muscle memories. Embarrassment, the need to self-deprecate or get small.
BUT I’M DOING IT ANYWAY. Because just often enough those moments are interrupted with
tiny sensations of self, of home, of knowing -- of audacity rising.
And THAT is nothing short of spectacular.
A final, yet important note…
While I’ve written this for me, here’s hoping maybe someone out there on the edge of transition (heading to college, a new job or just walking into Monday) will see this and spend a little less time resisting their own audacity. Because as it turns out, THE AUDACITY OF THAT GIRL is the end game.
audacity risiing.
Let's connect!
917-697-9001
kellituggleparness@gmail.com
@the__kellituggle