There's a diverse class of disruptive madmen and madwomen who've taken their talents to the startup streets and Mary-'thee stallion'-Pryor is one of them. As the cofounder of Cannaclusive, Mary is using her skills sharpened in the music and ad industries to make sure the cannabis industry is as diverse and inclusive as those who partake in the plant. Listen in as she gives the BTS on her work in this special featured episode from Kai, Karinna, and Simeon of Mixed Company.

Chelsea St. Clair, Cultural Strategist at sparks & honey, helps us squeeze the most out of the opportunities in our careers. Hear about taking a year off to travel (and how she talked about it in interviews), the skillset of a cultural strategist, working in a small agency environment, how she networked her way to Cannes last summer, and the two questions we should ask ourselves before we start any job.

James Ramseur, Integrated Comms & Media Planner at Wieden + Kennedy, shares lessons from his career, including working on one of the most awarded campaigns in 2019. Hear about learning to manage his finances, slowing down and enjoying the process wherever you’re at, being in the room spitballing with creatives and strategists, finding community in Portland, and what it was like to work on Dream Crazy for Nike as his first project.

Ciara Gaffney, Strategist at Deutsch, shows us how to lean into our unique perspectives and passions when applying to jobs and working in advertising. Hear about her approach for making your application materials stand out, how being an immigrant has informed her strategic POV, what contributed to her promotion from a jr. to mid-level strategist in just 8 months, and how her own love of K-Pop played a role in Mattel’s BTS doll line launch.

Sara Porritt, Group Director of Planning and Diversity & Inclusion Lead at OMD US, first dove into marketing and media as a way to promote her own R&B music. Hear about creativity in media, transitioning from being a junior planner to a media strategist, taking a step back to find the meaning in your career, advice for those who are questioning leaving the agency world, and the inspiration for her new podcast, Hear Us Roar.

Julia Vanderput, Director of Strategy at The Marketing Arm, shares the textbook sexual harassment she experienced early in her career and how we can break down the environments that allowed it to happen. Hear about pivoting into strategy from project management, the effect of bystanders, what to do if you see something inappropriate happening, and why the environments we create in our workplaces are important to our role as culture makers.

Deb Ashley, Media Planner at The Wall Street Journal, gives us a glimpse of what it’s like to work in advertising on the publisher-side. Hear about starting out as an administrative assistant at a small agency, how she overcame her feelings of being under-qualified, what she does in her role as a Media Planner at the Wall Street Journal, and feeling the added pressure of being one of only a few black people on past teams.

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Cam Ferrin, Partner at TwentyFirstCenturyBrand, brings his experience working in brand strategy on the client side at some of the biggest brands out there—including Coca-Cola, Mars, Levi’s, and Airbnb—to the podcast. Hear about getting his big break into the industry, how brands and agencies can be better partners to one another, what it means to work in brand strategy, and what he thinks contributed to his rapid advancement in his career.

In this special Minisode, Natalie is joined by Leo Wong, who will be taking over We Are Next for a few months while she's on maternity leave! Hear about his experience in the industry, and what to expect from We Are Next while Natalie takes some time off to become a mom.

Troy Gary, Director of Brand Strategy at Playboy, wants us all to create the environments we want to work in. Hear about how his early experience in sales and account management has been valuable, making sure we’re not talking to ourselves, fostering better relationships with senior leadership, why it’s smart to ask about an agency’s new business strategy in your interview, and the reasons behind his decision to take on a new role at Playboy.