When your dream job turns into a nightmare with Joseph Fitzgibbons (founder of Growth and Company)
When your dream job turns into a nightmare with Joseph Fitzgibbons (founder of Growth and Company)
The Founder of Growth and Company shares what happens after the company that hired you realizes you're not the right fit.
Hey - it's Andrew
I just got back from an amazing long weekend on Cape Cod with my fam. The weather was perfect so we rode our bikes, hung at the beach, and got ice cream.
Below you'll find deets from my convo with Joseph Fitzgibbons (a 16 year SaaS vet and founder of Growth & Company - a growth specific hiring firm) about the realities of landing your dream job and evaluating your future employers.
Before all that, here's a (sweaty) pic of Cam and I after biking to the coffee shop.
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You finally landed your dream job.
Director of growth at a cool tech company that’s scaling quickly. You’ve got the freedom to build your own team, run your own playbook, and have a game-changing impact on the company’s future success.
It’s everything you thought you wanted.
But then, after only a few weeks or months, the reality sets in: This isn’t quite what you expected. In fact, it’s not at all what you expected.
The company genuinely thought they needed your skillset. You thought they needed your skillset. But now that you’re in the thick of it, you’re starting to realize that they need something else.
Maybe your background is in growth marketing – and this company needs an experienced growth product manager to help with activation challenges. Maybe you’re an experienced growth product manager realizing this company needs a performance marketing expert. Or, maybe you’re an accomplished growth team leader coming to the conclusion this company needs a more junior “builder.”
You keep pushing through — trying to convince yourself that you’re living your dream, but you can’t avoid the truth: on the inside you’re confused, frustrated, and unfulfilled.
What now?
After sixteen years in SaaS (including two head of growth gigs), my latest pod guest, Joseph Fitzgibbon, knows this story all too well, “I got this job, and I was like, ‘This is amazing!’ And then very, very quickly it turned out not to be amazing; and I thought, ‘Oh my god, this is bad.’”
It’s not unusual: company hits its stride, hires growth lead, and then both sides realize this is the wrong fit.
The good news: there are ways to avoid getting stuck in the wrong role. In our convo, Joseph shares his real-life tips for vetting future opportunities.
We also talked about:
The importance of setting expectations with your manager early
The value of clear feedback and performance reviews
Preventing repeat employment history mistakes
How to move on from roles that aren’t a fit
👇 Watch it below, or catch the show on Apple, Spotify, or YouTube 📺
Things to listen for:
[4:17] An average week at a growth consultancy
[12:06] Joseph’s path to the growth industry
[16:34] Identifying a mismatch in your role
[19:51] The value of clear feedback and performance reviews
[28:58] Setting expectations with your manager
[36:26] Managing the reality of business
[40:37] Advice for growth jobseekers
Resources: