The Job That Wasn’t Supposed to Be a Career

What it looks like to lead, create, and grow in marketing without a perfect playbook.

Hey, I’m Christina. I’ve written a dozen introductions across different platforms, but somehow this one feels different. Maybe it’s the blogger in me, but Substack feels like the right space to write longer thoughts—less polished than LinkedIn, more personal than a tweet, and definitely less filtered than anything I’d send through slack.

So here I am. New platform, same me: a Head of Marketing who still thinks like a social media manager. Same voice, same radical candor, same habit of figuring things out in public.

This newsletter isn’t going to teach you how to go viral. It’s not filled with growth hacks or frameworks to optimize your morning routine (sozzz if that’s what you were hoping for). And I’m definitely not here to play guru, or rockstar, or whatever those job descriptions keeps pushing for.

What I am here to do is tell the truth—about what it looks like to build a career without a playbook. When you didn’t follow the traditional path, and still found a way forward.

Because if there was a one-size-fits-all path, we’d all be viral. Or we’d all be VPs, living the dream.

But that’s not how it works. Most of us are learning on the job. Writing our own chapters as we go.

How it started

These days, there are a dozen job titles in social: strategist, content creator, data analyst, community manager, social producer, etc. But when I first started? There was intern, coordinator, and manager—and most of the time, they all did the same job.

I got my start because I was the youngest person in the office. I applied to be a legislative aide intern, but the job quickly turned into posting on Facebook for a state representative. Why? Because I was the only one who actually used social media.

To give you a sense of how far behind everyone else was: they didn’t know you could access Facebook from a computer outside the office, let alone from a phone. Meanwhile, I was out there taking photos of the rep at events, writing captions about his schedule, and replying to constituents in the comments.

It worked. Not because I was some genius—but because no one else was publishing daily or treating social media like a two-way conversation. The bar was on the floor. I just showed up with curiosity and a camera roll.

We posted photos of him shaking hands with party leaders—and also grabbing McDonald’s at the drive-thru. Suddenly, people were paying attention. Other reps started hiring social interns. And just like that, I became a social media manager… without the title.

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The in-between years

After that came a leather goods company. I learned how to turn social into sales. I juggled FB and Instagram, ran ads, battled Facebook Business Suite (RIP), and became the govto “iPhoneographer”—writing copy, editing images, publishing content, and measuring what worked. All from my phone.

Then came a fuel company. Different industry, different goals. I ran larger campaigns focused on recruitment but it was also where I learned about team dynamics, managerial red flags, and why workplace happiness matters. I started wondering if I should stay in social, or pivot to a generalist marketing job. That question haunted me for a while.

I was burned out. I felt boxed in. And I had no one to vent to, so I started sharing more on LinkedIn—not to build a brand, just to feel less alone. (Spoiler: it worked.)

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Why I’m still here

I could give you the full play-by-play of every job I’ve had, but what I want to say is this:

There will be moments in your career where you feel untouchable. And moments where you’re crying in a bathroom stall wondering if you should quit altogether.

But every one of those moments taught me something I couldn’t have learned from a textbook. Because there is no textbook for this. No perfect path. No certification that prepares you for all the emotional labor, instinct, and ambiguity this job requires.

Social media changes constantly but one thing stays the same: it’s never boring. You get to be nimble. You get to build. And if you stick with it, you start to realize that it’s not just a job for interns anymore.

It’s a career. A complex, but valuable one.

And for a long time, I was embarrassed to say I worked in social. It felt unserious, and so easy to dismiss.

But now I’m the Head of Marketing at Plot, a company building tools for social teams.

Social got me here.

And if this newsletter helps shift someone else’s perspective—whether they’re doing the work, leading the team, or wondering if it’s all worth it—then that’s the dent I want to leave.

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What you can expect here

I want this newsletter to be useful. Personal, yes. But not just a journal. So here’s what you can expect:

• Lessons in real time from my experience leading marketing for a startup—the good, the messy, and the completely made up on the spot shit that I get to do.

• Honest reflections from over a decade in social: building from scratch, burning out, bouncing back, staying sharp

• Opinions on the industry that push back on trends and conventional wisdom (like why 'going viral' isn’t a strategy)

• And, of course, encouragement and reminders that this is a real job, a great job, and yes—you do deserve that raise

If even one post helps you feel less alone in this work, then it’s doing its job.

Thanks for being here.

If you want to follow along as I keep writing TheseChapters—subscribe. I'd love to have you.

-- Christina