Dear Claire,
It is with great excitement that I write to you, aged 37, with knowledge of all the experiences that the next two decades will bring. Aged 18, you will be in your second year of university in Canada. How are you enjoying psychology? Would I be right in saying that you are unsure of where your degree will take you?
What I now know is that the courses you choose (or don't) will matter very little. You have already begun to find your path - and you are probably not even aware of it. The events you organise as head of student affairs, and your part-time work as a campus rep, will see your love of marketing and events blossom.
Learning to juggle part-time jobs, volunteer positions and sports commitments will be a grounding for what you will have to manage in the years to come. The lesson here is to find a passion for what you do, and you will always find a way to squeeze it all in.
That first job in banking, however desirable it may seem to your bank balance, will never make you happy. So when the opportunity to manage a tour bus across Canada for Molson and MTV presents itself, take a leap of faith and go for it. There will be a few hairy months where you won't be able to pay your mortgage, but this will not be the last time you need to sweet-talk your bank manager.
In the next few years you will learn to manage many successful experiential campaigns for the likes of Pepsi and Xbox, and you will decide that a move to the UK seems like a brilliant idea. Your decision to start your own agency will be born out of sheer stubbornness: you have a vision for what you believe great experiential should be.
Missteps will teach you your most poignant business lessons. Always share those lessons with others, even when you would rather forget them. Ultimately, you will learn that providing guidance and opportunities becomes the thing that drives you most.
Finally, take every day as it comes. There will be times when juggling being a mother of two gorgeous children and running a successful business seem incongruous. You may even have to prioritise, but in the end you can be successful at both. And I cannot tell you how rewarding that will be.
Work hard: great things will happen for you.
Claire Stokes
Stokes founded Circle in 2004, having relocated from Canada to London and recognising the opportunity that experiential would have within the UK market. Ten years later, Circle works for the likes of PlayStation, O2, EA and H&M. She was named best female leader in marketing at the Chartered Institute of Marketing's WIM Awards and currently chairs the Institute of Promotional Marketing's Experiential Council.
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