“Don’t sell yourself short; don’t let imposter syndrome cause you to shrink yourself and settle. A year from now, you want to be able to look back and know in your heart and in your gut that you felt good about the partnership — that you felt seen, understood and known.” - Carolyn This episode, we talk about WORKING WITH BRANDS: what has been the industry norm? What would it look like for companies to consider athletes, whether professional or amateur, as multi-faceted, comprehensive humans, instead of just as marketing tools or performance stats? We also share about our own, personal experiences working with different running brands — what it looks like when a brand actually puts actions behind claims, vs how it feels when companies are merely performative — and we share advice to both athletes and brands on how to build relationships that are true partnerships. What have your experiences been like, working with brands? What kinds of working relationships made you feel the most supported? We hope you give this convo a listen, and let us know your thoughts! “These brands need to support athletes — both at the ambassador levels and at the pro levels — as whole people. It’s not just about throwing up the numbers. What are the athletes doing outside of their training, outside of their performances, outside of themselves? What are they bringing in terms of representation for themselves and for the brand? It’s an outdated model — solely focusing on an athletes’ performance. It’s important to understand the work that athletes are doing as a HUMAN, because it all adds up, and it is ALL a part of the industry.” - Stefanie