Robyn Henke, Founder, Robyn Henke Consulting Inc.
After working in a career she didn't love, Robyn Henke took bold action and decided to follow her passion. Now, as the Founder of her own digital marketing consulting, she talks to The Industry Leaders about pushing through feelings of failure and tells us what lights her up about her industry.
How did you end up sitting where you are today?
I was tired of jobs that paid me to sit at a desk for 8 hours a day regardless of how much work I actually had to do. My ambition was always capped within the confines of my role, and I HATED IT. I could have taken a high-paying job at a mining company, but instead, I took some time off and started to teach myself digital marketing. Immediately I was taken by the vastness and creativity of the industry: I felt like I could literally do anything I wanted. The rest is history!
What kind of work does your role involve?
I help brands discover their voice and use that identity to generate leads with social ads! Social ads are one of the most misunderstood components of digital marketing. It takes creativity and empathy AND a robust understanding of the technical components. In other words, you really need both the right and left brain to get results!
I help my clients get clarity on who they are, their online identity, and how to use social ads to create meaningful connections and sales!
I also help anxious entrepreneurs (like myself) work with their anxiety to grow their businesses. This venture is near and dear to my heart and very new, so lots more to come there!
What gets you excited about your industry?
In digital marketing, there is never a dull moment. Things are constantly changing, and it can be stressful at times (not another algorithm update...), but I am always being challenged in the best way possible. I weirdly like that!
I also love marketing because of the human connection. I find human behaviour fascinating! We're such complex creatures on an individual level, but we are all connected, too, and marketing really taps into those shared sentiments.
What's the best advice anyone ever gave you?
I left the interview in tears, but it was the best shot of radical candour I'd ever been given.
SPECIALIZE.
Being new to any industry, specializing in one thing makes it a whole lot easier to open doors for yourself. I chose to dive in on Facebook Ads after that conversation, which led me to my own successful business!
What, or who inspires you?
I'm inspired by the human condition; all of its pain, suffering, and beauty combined.
I'm inspired by meaningful work and having a tangible impact on the world, even if that's making a difference in one person's life. That's why I started The Anxious Entrepreneur!
How do you keep up to speed with what's happening in your industry?
And speedy it is! Facebook ads (and all the other social ad platforms) change at a mile a minute. Over time, I've stuck with a select few industry experts like Depesh Mandalia, Ezra Firestone, Molly Pittman, and Ryan Deiss to keep me current.
I've also got a daily Google Alert set up to capture news headlines for Facebook and Instagram that can be quite titillating!
Lastly, I subscribe to the Morning Brew email newsletter for higher-level marketing insight because it's AWESOMEEEEE.
What was the most challenging project or situation you've overcome?
Last summer, I decided to quit working for an agency and dedicate myself 100% to my own business. I didn't have clients lined up, I didn't have a solid plan; I just knew I was capable of so much more on my own. It was NOT easy. I doubted myself a million times, felt like a failure when I couldn't turn it around right away. I faced so many self-limiting beliefs for so long, but believing in myself never seemed to waver. After 8 months of working with a business coach (shoutout to Anna Forbes), I've grown a team of four, and we just closed a $20k month!
You finish work today and step outside the office to find a lottery ticket that ends up winning $10 million. What would you do?
I would donate SO. MUCH. MONEY. I would donate to Sea Shepard, David Suzuki, and other critically important organizations fighting for the survival of our planet. I'd probably go into analysis paralysis about which organizations to donate to, but what a GREAT problem to have. 👏
How do you switch off after a day at work?
This is such an important question, especially when work and life have become so intertwined during COVID.
I find, for me, physical movement is essential to moving residual stress and anxiety through the body. Dancing, stretching, going for a walk, yoga, or all of the above, get me OUT of my head and INTO my body.
After a really draining day, I'll throw on the noise-cancelling headphones and meditate using Insight Timer.
If you had one wish for the future of your industry, what would it be?
Less focus on greed and possessions! So many "get rich quick" vibes floating around that mislead people into thinking it's easy, feeling like a failure if they don't have it, whilst placing all of the benefits on material things. I'd like to see more focus on giving back and caring about others.
What book or podcast should everyone know about?
One book that radically changed my perspective on what it means to be human: The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle. As a self-proclaimed anxious entrepreneur, the simplistic clarity of being present and using mindfulness was incredibly powerful to discover.
A couple other must-reads for every human being: So You Want to Take About Race by Ijeoma Oluo & The Inconvenient Indian by Thomas King.
How should people connect with you?
You can find out more about me at www.robynhenke.com
👉 On Instagram @the.anxiousentrepreneur
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