This was not my plan.
The truth?
Entrepreneur
Podcaster
Delusional optimist
Margarita snob
Mama to a million boys
(okay, four)
(in the best way possible)
As one of the only graduating students in my MBA program who forewent the traditional career route in lieu of staying home with my kids, I’d be lying if I didn’t say my ego took a major hit. After all, I’d been chasing high-achieving pursuits all my life – both academically and as a fast-rising employee at a Fortune 100 real estate firm. But I was chasing someone else’s dream and not my own.
Deep down I knew I had more than two choices: babies or business.
I knew there was a better life for me and my family. One where I was the mother to my children and someone who could build a successful entrepreneurial business from home. But despite all the signs and lessons from my past, it took me a darn while to figure out the path to a more fulfilled, more purposeful life lay in digital entrepreneurship.
When graduation arrived I was faced with a choice:
Found my own startup or join corporate America.
“this is what I was made for” moment.
I decided to make the “safe” choice and join the corporate world because, hello, guaranteed money and guaranteed prestige, or so I thought….
I went to the University of Southern California for undergrad as a business major and hated my business school classes.
I even flunked out of one (sorry dad)! That is until I was forced to choose a concentration and sat in on an Entrepreneurship class.
At that moment, my high achieving, creative self had a star-spangled-eyed
I didn’t always have the 350,00 followers, the family and the big entrepreneurial dreams. Things were not picture-perfect.
Let's start at the beginning.
How I ended up in business school.
I had it all figured out…
but the joke was on me!
This was not where I belonged.
Ryan had committed to a job in DC, so naturally, I applied to Georgetown and was admitted on partial scholarship with the hope of running a startup through the entrepreneurship program. We got married and I started school with a new plan for my life and big dreams ahead.
Everything was going according to plan…except, once again, I could feel myself being tempted by “shiny corporate job syndrome.” Some of the opportunities seemed too good to pass up and it would have taken a miracle to sway me away from the money and the prestige, back to the reason I came to business school in the first place: Entrepreneurship.
So I took the plunge, quit my job, booked a solo flight to Texas to visit business schools, and ironically, met my husband, Ryan, at a Starbucks between campus visits. (The universe works in mysterious ways!)
Working in real estate, I couldn’t help but think I was making someone else’s dream come true rather than my own.
I kept printing out business school applications and leaving them blank. I’d shove them in a drawer, promising myself that “one day” I’d have the courage to go after what I really wanted.
That’s when my company hired a business coach (in the name of employee development) who brought me to tears in that big corporate corner office. That coach revealed my truth:
And then the miracle happened…I got pregnant (surprise!) in the opening term of school.
Entrepreneurship was no longer a choice, it was my destiny.
The road to digital entrepreneurship.
I’m an…influencer?
When I made my first hundred thousand dollars as a stay-at-home mom (who knew that was even possible?!?) I realized my second calling was to help other women create a life where you can be everything you need to be for your kids, your career, and most importantly, for yourself.
With no money to invest in a tangible startup and an inclination to be home with my kids, I turned to the internet – specifically Instagram because it’s free and accessible to all.
As I grew my platform, I noticed that my 250,000 followers were less interested in pretty pictures and more interested in how I manage motherhood and build a successful business.
So, I started sharing my playbook, offering content that empowers women to strategically manage their day and start the business of their dreams with their families strongly rooted at the center.
The Mama Quiz
1. MY FAVORITE PART OF MY BODY IS:
The parts my kids gave me.
a. My legs.
b. My abs.
c. My butt.
d. My abs.
e. Other:
2. I FEEL MOST POWERFUL WHEN:
5. ON MY FIRST DATE WITH RYAN I WAS MOST IMPRESSED BY:
NAME:
Brooke Raybould
I show myself that I can do what I believe I can!
3. THE UPSIDES TO BEING AN INFLUENCER IS:
a. I get free stuff.
b. It reminds me to behave in public.
c. I get to laugh at trolls.
d. I make money sharing my story.
e. Other:
I get to do business alongside my babies.
a. His smile.
b. Him taking care of the bill.
c. The way he dressed.
d. His interest in me.
e. Other:
His dreams (+ his puppy dog eyes).
6. MY DRINK OF CHOICE:
a. Craft beer.
b. Rose all day.
c. Margarita.
d. Dirty Martini.
with salt!
4. I CREDIT A LOT OF MY SUCCESS TO:
a. Raw talent.
b. Timing.
c. Personality.
d. Looks.
e. Other:
My parents.
7. YOU'LL NEVER SEE ME:
without a smile + go a day without espresso. They go hand in hand
8. THE BEST WAY TO DESCRIBE MOTHERHOOD:
a. Not like I expected.
b. Utter chaos.
c. Dreamlike bliss.
d. Harder than business school.
e. Other:
A profound experience.
9. BEST ADVICE FOR NEW MOMS?
Motherhood is just as much a discovery of Self as it is a discovery of your children. Work on you.
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