What lead me here:
I came to Kelowna, BC, Canada from Vancouver for business school and never left. I completed 3 co-op semesters during my undergrad. I was so lit up and excited about marketing that I started my side hustle, doing marketing freelance work for companies, during my undergrad degree. Throughout my university education (and beforehand too) I faced issues with anxiety, depression, navigating life as a young woman and figuring out my place in the world.
Through different placements in my co-op work, I realized how sexist the workplace can be. The peak of it was when I was not only mistreated by men in the workplace but when my female employer called me ‘aggressive’ for asking for a raise. I was shaken at another woman saying this to me, I felt I was calm, collected, and confident, not aggressive. I called my mother after that conversation and my mom said, “Luan, that’s bullshit. If you were a man, she would have called you assertive.”
*Ok Google, play “Man” by Taylor Swift*
All of this led me into accomplishing an unofficial minor in Gender and Women's Studies. My university didn't let me declare it on my degree (not because I didn’t have enough credits, but because they were narrow-minded with business minor options), so I declared it myself.
After graduating, I worked four different jobs in two years (total would be 7 if you included my co-op semesters). I job hopped hard.
In my jobs, there was harassment, terrible bosses, bullying by other women and just horrible workplaces altogether, but I ended up learning so much. I build relationships, lost some of them, and sustained some of them. The people that were meant to be in my life to create positive change stayed.
At the end of 2020 I decided to become self-employed. I realized that where I was working was limiting what I could do professionally. So, I decided to jump the ship and quit my job. It ended up being more successful than I could have imagined. There have been A LOT of roadblocks as well, a lot of stress, but at the end of the day, I can whisper a little “fuck yes” because I have my dream job.
I work in Facebook Advertising because we need change in the world. When people think about advertising, their mind immediately goes to loss and profit. To me, it is so much more than that. I know what it felt like to work in workplaces that didn't support me as a woman. I want to support entrepreneurs in amplifying their message to create positive change in the workplace, in society, and in communities. Advertising is my skill set that I’m willing to serve you with so we can provoke thoughtful change with your message.
