Hello, I am Celeste. Welcome to all of you who are new here! Take a look at my December writing prompts and the newsletter directory to find what you need now.

I have been a fan of Amanda Natividad and her tweets for quite some time. Her wisdom, personality and knowledge in marketing have been an inspiration for me for a long time. I am so excited and grateful that she said yes when I asked for an interview. We talked about marketing, career, her favourite books and recipe.

1. How did your previous experience help you to land your current role in SparkToro?
I stumbled into marketing, worked really hard at it for 8 years, became proficient with content marketing, built a personal brand, and eventually got on the radar of one of the co-founders, Rand Fishkin. My unique experience with content marketing, serving as a head of marketing, working in B2B SaaS, and having brief stints as a product manager gave me the most relevant and necessary skills for the job.

2. What advice do you have for people who wants to do marketing in a creative way?
Build a personal brand. It's the best way to create serendipity for yourself and to allow yourself to test new channels or programs. Your personal brand becomes a flywheel for ideas as well as an extra distribution channel for your marketing efforts.

3. Do you have any career advice for those who are lost and want to find their path?
Try as many things as possible that interest you, and learn to quit quickly and move onto the next. Find that combination of what you are good at and what you are interested in.

4. What is your favourite fiction and nonfiction books? You can pick one each or have two fiction or nonfiction
Favourite fiction: The Neapolitan novels by Elene Ferrante. This collection is four books, but it's one story. It's about the lengths people go to to lift themselves out of poverty, to find better lives for themselves... and what happens when they have to settle for what they have. It's an unexpected lesson in understanding the disenfranchised lower class.

Favourite nonfiction: Nonviolent Communication by Marshall Rosenberg. Frameworks, worksheets, lessons, and stories of successful communication all wrapped into one book that's fairly quick to read. This book will teach you how to effectively communicate your needs, and how to parse through other people's emotions so that you can understand them with empathy. I find myself referring back to this a few times per year because it is just that useful.

5. What is your favourite recipe of all time?

This Linguine and Clams recipe by Bon Appetit. It is truly perfect. Savoury, a bit briny, and comforting. Just a beautiful dish for a dinner for 4.

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I want snow

I want it to snow,
to snow properly.
I want the sky white, milk heavy
and ready to drop.
I want the world muffled like a room stacked
over each inch with raw wool roving.
I want no echoes.
I want sound to hit as if through wax
and pillows.
I want to walk barefoot through it to the pool
and feel it land on my shoulders as I swim.
I want nothing half-attempted.
I want commitment.
I want doesn’t get
but I want I want I want

— Jenny Munrohunt

Read more of Jenny’s poems on her Instagram if you love reading this piece.

Please share your thoughts in a questionnaire as I want to make it better next year. It only takes 2 minutes. I am also open for freelance writing and book editing service for 2022. Hit reply or message me on Instagram if you want to work together or know someone who do. I reply much faster on Instagram.

Wish you a great 2022,

Celeste

Related:

Let your genius win to make an impact on your career

Life-changing books

Spending time offline to reset (and reading list)