Today we’d like to introduce you to Amanda Kocefas Russo.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Amanda. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Coming from a family full of entrepreneurs, I grew up in Kalamazoo, MI surrounded by hard-working and generous people – two values I hold in high regard to this day. I had both strong male and female role models of what it meant to create your own success or surmount any obstacle. I once used a “personality tool” that hit the nail on the head: “Amanda is persuasive, independent, loves to take calculated risks, and sometimes disregards existing structures entirely.” This is true – I craved independence and carved my own path (with my own rules) to Michigan State University, and then onto Chicago for work.
Throughout high school and college, I took summer classes at the local community college to get ahead in credits. In a summer career course, our main project was mapping out a career/life plan. Mine featured Atlanta. I was going to move to a nearby suburb, live near a dog park, and work at Kimberly Clark. Unfortunately, the hard drive with this presentation on it is long gone, but it would be fun to dig it it up and compare it to how I really ended up here.
I spent five years in Chicago working as an international marketing manager for a recruitment firm being the end-to-end manager for all things strategy, web, social media, design, reporting, etc. I learned so much during this time and grew close to my colleagues even though they were scattered around London, Sydney, Singapore, and Sao Paulo. I often freelanced for agencies, small businesses, and friends/family. It was also in Chicago that I met my husband through mutual friends. He also came from a long line of entrepreneurs, and we eventually made the decision to move out of the city and back to Grand Rapids, MI for him to pursue work with the family business.
During our time in Grand Rapids, I took the opportunity to move from in-house marketing to the agency side and fell in love with it. I pitched myself to an agency and when I walked in the door the first time, I knew that was it. Our inner circle of friends became like family to us. It was a perfectly nice to place to live, raise a family, and “settle down.” However, we couldn’t ignore a call back to city life and it was on a road trip to Petoskey, MI, for a friend’s wedding that we set a timeline – if by a certain time we still felt this way, we’d start visiting other cities we might like to call home.
In the end, we decided on Atlanta. It presented the best mix of city life, culture, travel, job opportunities, food scene, and affordability that we were looking for. The weather was an added bonus. We didn’t know anyone here. We just decided to go for it and trust that it would all work out. In a serendipitous way, it was a connection from my time at Michigan State that led me to Swarm Agency. A friend of a friend referred me in and it all came together. Swarm is full of smart, friendly digital marketing experts that are both hard-working and generous. It’s been a great compliment to my background and upbringing, and has definitely taught me a ton in the first year of our Atlanta chapter!
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Oh, of course not – nothing ever goes perfectly! Leaving Chicago for Grand Rapids was a huge adjustment for us both personally and professionally (and culturally). Almost nothing went the way we planned, but the outcome has been the best in the long run. Eventually, that road led us to Atlanta, where we are thriving personally and professionally! So far, it’s been a really positive experience overall.
One of the things I have worked on the most in the past year or two is letting go of the planning and embracing the flow of life. I was using “being a planner” as a crutch to deal with anxiety about the unknown, so I’d over-plan and over-extend myself on a regular basis. It’s okay to be a helper and it’s also okay to say no. “No is a complete sentence” is something I have learned to embrace! Boundaries are so important.
Swarm Agency – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Swarm Agency is a strategic digital agency based in Atlanta. You can read the official description “about us” on the website. I can speak to my experience with Swarm and say that it’s a truly data-driven agency. We get incredibly close with our clients and take their success personally. Our capabilities in design, web, analytics, and media are intrinsically linked with one another and provide incredible value to our clients. We treat clients’ budgets as our own. Everyone is a hard worker and willing to help each other out. We refer to the Swarm office as “the Hive” and I’d say my experience reflects that so far. We are definitely busy bees!
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
I used to be fixated on titles or “rungs on the ladder” as measures of success, but the older I get, the quality of my life is a true measure of success. Am I happy? Am I spending time with people or in places that fill my cup? I’m looking for quality over quantity in everything that I do.
Contact Info:
- Website: swarmagency.com
- Instagram: @swarmagency or @mandyresh to follow me personally!
- Twitter: twitter.com/swarmagency
Image Credit:
Samantha Ruth Photography (personal photos only)
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