Today we’d like to introduce you to Molly Dickinson.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Molly. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
When I went to college (which feels like a pretty huge, intentional kind of “beginning”), I knew I wanted to study Theatre, Creative Writing, or Psychology. I chose writing, because I’d loved it the longest, figured I could make a living at it, and because it meant I only had to take one more math class in my entire life. Today, my work is actually a combination of those three. I use language—written, spoken, felt—to help brands become more meaningful to their audiences. I also share that knowledge and experience through my workshops (on copywriting, presentation skills, personal branding—and I’m currently exploring opportunities to add naming to the mix).
My first job out of college was as a magazine publishing intern turned staff-writer (slash server at a fine dining restaurant, since the writing work was only part-time). From there, I went from communications coordinator at a university, to freelance copywriter and journalist, to leading messaging for a creative agency. The whole time I worked for an employer, I also worked for myself. I wrote articles, websites, and marketing campaigns for hire, helped start an all-volunteer literary magazine, and built up my reputation as a creative professional who could connect people, companies, and causes through writing.
I was instinctively into branding from the start, which is how “mdash” was born. I wanted a standout banner to fly over all of my freelance writing services when I started offering them in 2009, so I came up with the name—a twist on my favorite punctuation mark and my initials—and designed my first logo, website, and business cards myself. (I’ve clearly upgraded since then. Thanks to Staci Janik for the visual design!)
Has it been a smooth road?
When I decided to work for myself full-time, I knew I was choosing the road less traveled and that it wasn’t the smoothest path. Being mentally prepared for that, and making sure I was financially prepared to hit a few bumps, was like putting my business in four-wheel-drive. So, as much as I don’t like math, knowing how to manage my finances, and making that a part of my business from the very beginning, helped me push through some early challenges—like needing to spend so much time on unbillable admin, operations, and business development work, versus the billable client work.
I can say my biggest obstacle, so far, by far, has also been my biggest asset. Me! As a textbook (recovering? I hope?) overachiever, I am constantly critiquing the way I run my business. Should I be hustling harder? Going after bigger clients? Offering more or specializing more? Building an agency or becoming an influencer? I’m working on being more grateful and content with where I am, while still setting goals that inspire and challenge me. It’s important to remind myself that these kinds of obstacles—doubts, fears, and insecurities—are just the flipsides of opportunities. I’m privileged and lucky to live a life and have a career in which I can even ask these questions, let alone chase the answers.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with mdash – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
Well, thank you! mdash has always been about helping brands become more meaningful through spot-on messaging. And while that can take a lot of forms, recently, I’ve been really tuning into the market’s need for strategic, standout names that “click” and carry their brand forward, and for foundational brand identity writing—articulating a brand’s position, promise, and personality in ways that are real, simple, and compelling. It’s challenging work that makes such a difference in how my clients (many of them fellow entrepreneurs) understand and build their brands.
A lot of branding and marketing offerings can feel abstract, overblown, or complicated. When I show a client how I’ve taken all the insights and information and conversations we’ve had about their brand and turned it into a single paragraph, or line, or word, that captures everything and instantly means something—something real and specific and uniquely theirs—that’s when I’m proudest of what I do.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I love the attitude of Atlanta. It’s a city that’s open about figuring itself out, about needing to change and being willing to change; to make mistakes while pursuing progress. People here are kind and interesting and scrappy. I meet so many entrepreneurs and folks who are working hard in all their jobs, all their roles, to better themselves, their families, and communities. We hustle in Atlanta! I’m also forever thrilled to be a 15-minute drive from the world’s busiest airport, and a direct flight to almost anyplace I want to go.
Least? There are some entrenched ideas, and systems built on those ideas, that are still being upheld, even though they’re holding most of Atlanta back. Like those that keep us from expanding public transit and affordable housing offerings, and building up the vulnerable, but valuable, communities that make this city who we are. I’d like to see Atlanta lead the South in turning those systems around.
Contact Info:
- Website: mdashcreative.com
- Email: molly@mdashcreative.com
- Other: linkedin.com/in/mollydickinson
Image Credit:
Damon Sgrignoli
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