Some of you have arrived here and are wondering what I would know about the hardships experienced by global leaders, because when you look at these three bullet points, it looks like my career has been pretty easy, successful and straightforward:
- I was the youngest marketer to be selected to manage an Apple sales channel, because of my success on marketing projects that I did for Porsche, Whole Foods, Target & Disney.
- At Apple I broke a marketing record held only by Steve Jobs (doubling sales for an entire Apple sales channel in one year without increasing the marketing budget by even $1)
- I’m currently the only marketer to grow an international fashion company’s sales by 4200% in 9 weeks AND grow a bootstrapped luxury real estate company’s sales from $0 to $108,000,000 in less than 5 years.
…and that would be a totally fair assumption because I don’t openly discuss all of the bullying, smear campaigns, harassment, and other hardships I experienced when, I step on stages around the world.
When I speak publicly, my goal is typically to make those listening, feel empowered, which is the goal of this entire email series as well.
But I wrote this email series when I was at the lowest points in my life and my career. I knew that if these pep-talks could help me through what I was facing, they could help others too.
The advice that I got from these global leaders was given to me during the hardest trials that I faced with very few (if any) in my corner.
My software company has faced more than five attempted hostile takeovers, and some of those were led by people I had made countless sacrifices for and trusted for years.
One particular pep-talk that you will read in this series was given to me by one of the most powerful women in the world, when she swooped in and expertly saved me the evening that two people (I had trusted and looked up to) tried to set me up to be gang raped at a prestigious, professional, weekend conference.
One of the mentors that I will introduce you to in the series is the one who helped me when a petty and jealous woman (who wishes she could be called a competitor) tried to start an international smear campaign alleging a sex scandal featuring me & a past male mentor. Fortunately, her allegations were so absurd that few believed her, but the friends lost amidst the chaos, left me in a deep state of depression for months.
While, I do not talk about these experiences often, I know what it is like to have absolutely disgusting and unethical people attacking you, I know the patience that it takes to hold the ethical course when unethical enemies are trying to destroy you.
I wrote this email series so that it may get you through your darkest and hardest of times.