Understanding the humanities and the various ways in which a text can be interpreted has helped me gain a motto of "What's the bigger picture?" Marketing is all about seeing the bigger picture.
When did you graduate from BYU?
2018
What is your job/position? And how would you describe what you do in that job/position?
I work for Tomorrow.io, the world's leading weather intelligence and climate adaption platform. We are launching satellites into space to improve global weather forecasting. My title is AI-Integrated Content Marketing Manager. In this role I am focused on leveraging AI tools to create content supporting all aspects of marketing. I am a social media manager, SEO writer, employee evangelism advocate, business development manager, and product marketer all in one.
Describe the path that you took from your BYU English degree to your current career, highlighting the important realizations and turning points that paved the path for you.
I graduated from BYU with a degree in English and a minor in editing. I was an editor for a marketing team right out of college. I quit that job after a year and a half and got a job for an AI tech startup as a foundational marketing team member. I got laid off in 2022 along with thousands of other tech workers in the big layoff boom. This year I took a job with Tomorrow.io and have been in my role for almost a year. I've been marketing now for 5 years and have likely learned more than someone who has been marketing for a decade—that's how fast the AI and startup world move.
What are the specific skills that you cultivated as an English major that you now use in your professional life? And how do you use those skills in ways that set you apart from your colleagues?
I write and edit for a living. You could say what I learned in my editing minor and English major were foundational to what I do now.
What do you wish you had known as an English major? Is there any advice you'd like to share with current students?
I wish I would have known how my degree could be applicable outside of writing. Students should ask how the skills they learn can be applied to the rest of the world and you should RUN if someone tells you, "You could go into teaching."