The Road I Traveled: Meet Amanda

“Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I – I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.” – Robert Frost

This series highlights young professionals and their stories, because no matter our path we all have a little to share and a lot to learn. Read and learn from past feature posts HERE.

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Today’s guest gave me another chance to catch up on the life of someone from my hometown!  Amanda (hey name twin!) moved to our hometown in the 6th grade (or was it 7th?) and quickly became a part of my friend group through middle school and into high school. ( I swear we have pictures together somewhere but I couldn’t track any down for this post.) Because of social media, I’ve been able to catch up on Amanda’s life now and I am not the least bit surprised to see that she is still so passionate about her goals and keeping what is most important to her in the forefront. Reading Amanda’s guest blog was refreshing – she keeps it honest and shares a lot about persistence and the value of seeking out a wide variety of experiences. I think Amanda’s story will resonate with a lot of you. Enjoy!

-Amanda 

Name: Amanda Tuimalealiifano (Bevington)
Age: 26
Hometown: Hermiston, OR (born in Roseville, CA)
College: Whitworth University
Degree(s): BA in Marketing
Current Location: Colorado Springs, CO
Current Job: Marketing Manager with the Professional Bull Riders

College

How did you choose your college and your major?
Funny story… being the stubborn and independent woman I was, I wanted to go to college far from home. As I started looking at colleges, my parents made me look at Whitworth University in Spokane, WA. I told them I had never even heard of it and that I didn’t want to look at it. They stopped at the college during a road trip and even though I started the tour being grumpy, I instantly fell in love with it. I admired the campus, the culture, the incorporation of faith, and I had the opportunity to play softball. I ended up appreciating being just three hours from home. Attending a tiny, private, liberal arts Christian college was quite an interesting experience, but I met some of the best people in the world and loved the small class sizes and the ability to get to know my teachers well.

I went to college thinking I was going to major in Psychology since it was the most interesting class I took in high school. After two classes I decided it wasn’t for me. At a loss for what else I may be interested in, I decided that I should be an accountant because I was a stellar math student and my intro to accounting class in high school was a breeze. Once again, after the second accounting class, I decided it wasn’t for me. Since I was on the business tract, I had to take marketing as a prerequisite. I found the class to be so interesting: getting into the minds of consumers, why people act the way they do, buying patterns, physical factors in a store that either encourage or discourage consumers to purchase something. It was like psychology…for business! I decided to continue that path and ended up enjoying it, especially when I took a sports marketing class. I’ve always played a ton of sports, so I decided why not work in an environment that I loved. During my senior year I met with the managers of the local hockey team, job shadowed at the Spokane Arena, and had informative interviews with many sports marketing professionals in the field. I heard it was a competitive market and a tough profession with long hours, but I knew it would be something I truly enjoyed and had a passion for. Though I still had doubts if it was the right major for me a few years out of college, I am now confident that it set me up for the most success and joy in the long-run.

What were you involved with outside of class? Organizations? Internships?
I played softball my first year of college, then became a Resident Assistant for two semesters, was a bible study leader, involved in recreational sports, as well as dance. I studied abroad one semester and spent about six months attending the business school at Maastrict University in The Netherlands. I interned at Saint George’s School (a private school) where I was a marketing and communications intern. My college also provided incredible opportunities to be hands-on with marketing projects. I was fortunate to go to schools that allowed students to work with multiple businesses in the community. I, personally, worked with Zoom Industries, ULTA and McClain’s Pizzeria in which we created real-life recommendations and marketing plans to improve their businesses.

What were your biggest challenges or obstacles in college? Anything you would change?
The transition from High School to college coursework hit me like a train my freshman year. High School was so easy for me and I found it difficult to understand how each professor in college had different expectations and different testing styles. I also had a difficult time adjusting to life after studying abroad. Those two things aside, I think the one thing I wish I could go back and change would to be more confident in who I was and what I wanted. There were a lot of varying pressures to be or act a certain way and there was a lot of judgement. I wish I would have deepened more friendships and spent less time worrying and stressing out.

What one piece of advice would you give a student during their senior year?
Create meaningful relationships with your professors and make connections in the community. Go on informative interviews. I made great connections that would have led to amazing opportunities if I would have stayed in the area. Also, don’t stress about what will come. Everything will fall into place.

Post Grad

Tell us about your career so far?
After college I accepted a sports marketing internship with Youth Missions International. I spent the summer traveling around Northern California putting on sport camps for kids at churches. My internship ended up taking me to Colorado where I aided in the creation of a new division within the company called BASE Sports Ministry.

Once the internship ended I landed a job at the world headquarters of LearningRx as a Social Media and Marketing Coordinator. I spent over three years there, where my experience expanded to include public relations, basic HTML coding, running webinars, learning more about Google Analytics, managing email campaigns, and much more.

Next, I accepted a job with the Professional Bull Riders (PBR) as a Social Media and PR Manager. I had applied as a Marketing Manager countless times over a year, but it never seemed to work out. After a few months I received the opportunity to move over as a Marketing Manager, and the move couldn’t have been any more perfect. I now manage some of the events around the country start to finish. From putting the event on-sale, deciding price levels in the arena, placing media buys, and managing public relations for the event, to being there on-site to ensure things run smoothly, there has been a huge learning curve. It has been a whirlwind and crash course, but I am SO thankful for this opportunity. It’s an opportunity that I believe I will look back on as the huge stepping stone in my career. When told to sink or swim, you only have one option: to rise to the occasion and show them what you’re made of.

How have your experiences and involvement in college set you up for success in your career and life post grad?
As I mentioned before, I am extremely thankful that my college provided opportunities to gain real-world experience with local organizations. I am also thankful that I put myself out there and was able to gain leadership qualities and take advantage to learn from others who are successful and wise in their field. I believe that everyone should have a mentor and someone they strive to be like in their career.

On the flip side, what are the biggest challenges or differences you’ve experienced post grad that you didn’t expect or didn’t feel prepared for?
I, honestly, struggled with real-life problems and situations. At my school, I felt that we were a bit sheltered. Everyone was a Christian and most had the same core beliefs as you. It’s absolutely not like that in the real world. There is more conflict, suffering, personality clashes, and bigger things at stake if you mess up. I didn’t always believe in my ability because I felt so young compared to everyone else in the company. It took my supervisors telling me that I was capable and smart and had the freedom to make decisions on my own for me to believe in my own ability. I had to learn to stand up for myself and what I believed in and couldn’t let others walk all over me, just because I was younger.

What apps, technology and resources do you use regularly to stay organized and do your job?
Honestly, I’m kind of old-school when it comes to staying organized. My tactic is writing lists, lists, and more lists. I have a master list, a daily list, and a list for each event. For some reason, I just can’t do online organizers…there’s just something SO satisfying as crossing something off of a list with a pen and paper.

At this stage, what are a few of your strengths and weaknesses?
Some of my strengths are multi-tasking, my ability to learn quickly, and needing to understand the process. I pick things up quite quickly and I question the way things are being done if I don’t think it is the most effective or the most efficient. I also think one of my greatest strengths is my outgoing and positive personality. I enjoy creating relationships and a fun work environment.

Some of my weaknesses that I continue to work on is my confidence in my ability and my ability to work on one thing for a long period of time. It’s difficult for me to stay focused on one thing… I love having multiple things to do. Also, I am not really a reader and I think that is REALLY important in order to continue learning and growing. Because of this, I have started listening to podcasts and join webinars often.

How do you stay motivated when work gets really busy or difficult?
I make lists, take a breath, and focus on one thing at a time so I don’t get overwhelmed. Sometimes I’ll schedule my day in 30 minute to one-hour increments to keep the productivity up throughout the day.

Work-life balance? How do you stay afloat and refreshed?
This has been a new learning experience since I now travel for work. The first few months of training, when I was traveling a ton, I would mostly just plan nights at home with my husband so we could have quality time together. Now, we make sure to schedule date nights out, weekend trips whenever possible, etc. I found that I also needed to schedule more time with my friends: Schedule Skype dates with my friends who live out of town and plan ‘Bachelor’ (and wine) nights, etc. I’ve become much more introverted than I used to be and a lot of the time I just want to cuddle with my Morkie, Smore’s, have a beer or glass of wine and binge watch Netflix. Balancing healthy habits like working out, praying, and getting enough sleep also keep me refreshed and energized.

What in your #PostGradLife are you most proud of so far?
Working for the PBR is definitely something I am extremely proud of. The growth and strides this company has made in the past few years (including being nominated as Sports League of the Year with the MLB, NBA, NHL, and US Olympic Committee) is tremendous and I am so excited to see what is to come and how I am able to grow as a marketing professional.

What does life look like right now? Hobbies and interests? What outside of work are you passionate about?
Oh man… one word: busy. Typically, I travel once every three weeks for four days at a time to an event, which has been a blast! I play recreational volleyball once per week, am starting competitive softball again, try and get to the gym a few days per week, and hangout with friends. My husband has a huge family and we have created a great network of friends through softball. At least once per month there is a big gathering or celebration, which is always a ton of fun. I squeeze in grocery shopping on the weekends, down time, playing with my pup, dates with my husband, cooking, and attempt to keep our house clean. But, if I’m honest, that’s our biggest weakness. I’d rather spend my time making memories and go exploring than spending the day cleaning the house. Everyone has something, right? Just being honest… I can’t do it all, I’m not Wonder Woman. My husband and I are both passionate about traveling, so we try and take weekend trips as much as possible, as well.

What path are you looking to take next? Any long-term goals?
I can see myself staying in the sports industry for a long while, I am truly enjoying it and I am continuing to be challenged. There is a lot of opportunity to grow and take on more responsibility. Sometimes I think it would be really cool to work for national sports team.

Anyhow, right before I received the offer with the PBR I started my own wedding planning business. I was able to do one wedding, but unfortunately had to put that on pause. In the future our dream is to start a wedding venue. We want to invest in some land, build a barn, dressing rooms, etc. and provide a place where couples can have the best day of their lives. I’ve always been an event planner as well as a romantic, dream wedding type of girl, and I think this is something I would never get tired of.

Just for Fun

What is essential to your morning routine to start the day off right?
Actually, thanks to Amanda Spoo, I now receive the daily Shine texts which are motivating and inspiring… as long as I don’t wake up too late to read them. I’ve also been trying to incorporate more spiritual habits right off the bat in the AM and listen to podcasts or audio books on the way to work. So far, I have enjoyed the ‘This Is Your Life’ podcast by Michael Hyatt and marriage books by Jefferson and Alyssa Bethke to help me continue to grow in my new role as a wife.

Do you have a must-have vice like caffeine or item you can’t live without in your workspace?
I do enjoy a post-lunch diet Dr. Pepper to keep me going after that lunch time lull hits, but it hasn’t become a daily habit.

If you were to have another career, all limitations aside, what would it be?
Anything where I could travel the world. I love what I am doing at the moment, so if I could put on events around the world and had some time to explore, that would be incredible. I also have a passion for mission work. I would LOVE to live in a country for a few years and serve the community or help teach them about business to grow their economy and create jobs to help people earn money and thrive. I would also start non-profits to help provide kids the resources they need to attend school, to help the homeless, as well as an organization to fight against sex trafficking.

Moment of truth, what do you really miss about college?
I miss not having to “adult.” I miss having the freedom to do what you want, when you want without a ton of responsibilities. But, most of all, I miss my friends. The memories I created and the relationships I built are irreplaceable. I don’t live near anyone I went to college with, which can be extremely hard and lonely sometimes. I’ve made some great friends here in Colorado now that I’ve been here a few years, but I wish I could just go to lunch or have a movie night with some of my close friends.

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Thank you for participating in this series Amanda! Now I’ll go back to vicariously living through your Snapchat at PBR events and clicking through your gorgeous wedding photos! Safe travels!

Cheers!