Dreading Sundays

With her relationship having fallen apart, the pressure was building for single mum Crystal. Even though she had performed well at school, graduated and entered the workforce as a pharmacist, pharmacy wasn't her calling.

In this episode, hear how Crystal overcame her darkest period in her life to now clearing 6-figures in net profit. Hear how she describes the burden she carried and what it felt like every single day so that you too can achieve the same for yourself.

Kevin Indig was the Director of SEO at Shopify prior to their recent round of unexpected layoffs. In this episode of #DreadingSundays, Kevin reveals why he took a lower job on the job title ladder from VP "down" to Director level.

More importantly, in the later half of the episode, we discuss how an individual contributor (IC) can get promoted and earn more without necessarily taking on "management" responsibilities.

We dive into what hiring managers look for in candidates and in particular, Kevin answers a nagging question on who makes the final hiring decision at large enterprise organisations.

Kevin produces his very own podcast called Tech Bound and blogs regularly to keep sharp and grounded in the strategy and execution of SEO.

You can connect with Kevin on Twitter - https://twitter.com/Kevin_Indig

Read the full summary here - https://www.danielkcheung.com.au/dreading-sundays/kevin-indig/

Group Head of SEO, Mercy Janaki shares her SEO journey.

Based in India, she offers us some insight as to why there is a common conception that India has many low-quality link builders.

Not to be missed, I ask Mercy for advice on how you can ask for a promotion or a raise. More importantly, Mercy offers actionable advice on how you can consistently prove your achievements to your team and boss.

Mercy is a member of Women in Tech SEO, a free global group created by Areej AbuAli for women and women-identifying people in digital marketing. She encourages all women to join this free community to find support and mentorship.

You can connect with Mercy on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/mercylivingstone/?originalSubdomain=in

Read the full summary here - https://www.danielkcheung.com.au/dreading-sundays/mercy-janaki/

Jacky Chou studied electrical engineering but wanted to make money online. Fast forward 8 years later he has a net worth of in excess of $4 million (USD).

To put things into perspective, Jacky earns more money with his understanding and execution of SEO in a month than I do in an entire year.

Canadian-Taiwanese, Jacky shares his journey into how he ended up in SEO, how he has leveraged his knowledge into "passive income", and he explains his monthly income.

He runs a SEO agency called Indexsy, he buys websites, he earns income from his investment property, he makes a significant amount from Binance affiliate marketing and he sells websites.

FYI, Jacky shares monthly revenue breakdowns on his Twitter. You can follow him at https://twitter.com/indexsy.

Read the full summary here - https://www.danielkcheung.com.au/dreading-sundays/jacky-chou/

Samantha (Sam) Torres is the Chief Digital Officer at Gray Dot Company - a SEO consulting firm she co-owns and co-runs with Tory Gray. I have invited her to share her experience because she has worked in-house as an SEO, worked agency-side and owns her own SEO agency.

In this episode of #DreadingSundays:

You can connect with Sam on Twitter.

Read the full summary here - https://www.danielkcheung.com/dreading-sundays/samantha-torres/

This episode is a masterclass on how to further your career in SEO because Peter Macinkovic walks us through how he got started in SEO, how he was poached, and how his command of Shopify, coding, technical SEO and client communications got him recruited by EasyGo Gaming.

One of the main takeaways from Peter is how he approaches job interviews and his advice for you is not to be missed. So whether you are looking to apply for a job at a new company or thinking of moving up internally, Peter shares everything he has learned along the way to help him earn 6-figures.

You can connect with Peter on Twitter - https://twitter.com/inkovic and on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/inkovic/

Read the full summary here - https://www.danielkcheung.com/dreading-sundays/peter-macinkovic/

In this very first episode of Dreading Sundays, you will hear from Katherine Watier Ong.

Why have I asked her to headline the podcast? Is it because she has her own Google knowledge panel?

Well, Katherine has worked in-house, for not-for-profits, run her own consultancy (wostrategies.com) and earned the job title of VP at Ketchem - a PR and communications consultancy/agency, so she has plenty of experience in SEO and digital marketing.

More importantly, she has jumped from jobs in order to progress in her career and in order to earn more.

Tune into this episode to hear how she carved out her position in the industry and what her top tips are for those who are starting out in digital/SEO and for those who are wanting to be promoted but don't know how.

You can connect with Katherine via LinkedIn.

She produces and hosts her own podcast called Digital Marketing Victories.

Read the full summary here - https://www.danielkcheung.com/dreading-sundays/katherine-ong/

Committing to a new podcast series that isn’t true crime is a big investment.

“What if their story doesn’t resonate with me?”

“Does the host talk over the guest speaker?”

“Will there be a bunch of banter I won’t understand?”

“Will the guests cover topics that matter to me?”

“And if they do, will what they share be very high-level or will I be able to apply what they share?”

I get it. I really do.

These are all valid concerns and so over the next few minutes, allow me, your host and producer of Dreading Sundays to convince you why you should subscribe to my new podcast series.

Now, for those who don’t know me, my name is Daniel Cheung. I was born in Hong Kong, raised in Australia, and SEO is my third career - after speech pathology and wedding photography.

At the turn of 2022, I started putting out feelers for a new role. After 3 years at an SEO agency, my growth was stagnating and I wanted to see what options were available to me.

I made quite a few mistakes in my job applications and interviews and I discovered many frustrations with job seeking.

But my experience is just one single data point. And my perceptions, opinions and biases are mine alone.

This is one of the reasons why Dreading Sundays exists. My goal is to share stories of how other professionals in digital marketing, in particular, SEO, have progressed in their careers.

My hope is that by amplifying the stories of people who look like you and sound like you, you can find the motivation and inspiration to ask for that raise, to ask for that promotion, or to consider a career change.

Hello everyone, I’m your host Daniel Cheung and welcome to Dreading Sundays - a podcast dedicated to helping you further your career in SEO.

In this coming season, I have some banger guests lined up for you.

Whether you’re working or thinking of working in an agency, in-house, or an entrepreneur looking to make money online, you’re going to hear how others who look like you and sound like you have forged their career in organic growth.

For example, you’ll hear from Kristina Azarenko, Gisele Navarro, Jacky Chou, George Nguyen, Kevin Indig, and Sam Torres - all recognised SEO professionals who have a wealth of experience both as independent consultants, in-house SEOs, or agency-side.

From honest conversations about money, to how to ask for an internal promotion, or move from agency to in-house or vice versa, to understanding what a recruiter and hiring manager are looking for - be sure to tune in to Dreading Sundays.

You're probably tuning in because you have seen Carrie Rose build in public Rise at Seven, a creative SEO agency that she cofounds with Stephen Kenwright.

In this episode, we chat about:

So let's get started!

Also available on YouTube - https://youtu.be/Ch2ZGf5RB4k