When to ignore the feedback and bet on yourself - with Asia Orangio (DemandMaven)
The Founder and CEO of DemandMaven talks about taking the leap, making bold decisions, and betting on yourself.
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Asia was crushed.
She was planning on launching her own growth agency, and had reached out to two trusted mentors to ask for advice.
The first told her she didn’t have enough experience. They advised her to wait — bust her ass in-house, make VP, and then go solo.
That wasn’t what Asia hoped (or expected) to hear.
The second mentor encouraged her to go for it. Asia still remembers their reasoning: “If you don’t think you’re gonna get your MBA, then starting your own business is about the same. Do your absolute damndest to run it for two years, and that will be your MBA.”
Asia took that advice and launched DemandMaven that year.
At the time, she took her first mentor’s judgment pretty personally. But she had enough perspective to take it with a grain of salt. “I remember feeling very, very strongly that even if I didn't have the experience of top performers in the SaaS industry, I had more marketing experience than most SaaS founders,” she says. “I knew they could use my skills.”
It’s hard to receive tough feedback from someone you really respect. But it’s important to remember that you don’t have to accept anyone’s feedback wholesale.
Asia’s story is a great example of what can happen when you ignore the feedback. bet on yourself, and follow your gut.
In addition to exploring how to navigate a career crossroads, we also talked about some of the other speed-bumps she encountered along the way, like:
The challenge of meeting impossible goals in a toxic work environment
What to do when your job is misaligned with your values
How to break old negative thought patterns
👇Watch or listen below:
Things to listen for:
[06:07] Taking on bigger problems
[13:03] Receiving tough feedback from a trusted mentor
[24:03] Does starting your own business make you unemployable?
[25:28] Unlocking new levels in your life
[26:36] Meeting impossible goals in a toxic work environment
[32:49] Advice for people working at roles misaligned to their values
[35:42] What to do when you don’t know what to do
[38:28] Breaking old thought patterns
Resources
Check out Asia’s SubStack newsletter
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