The 4 People Who Will Change The World (Which One Are You?)

This episode was originally published as an essay on my blog on April 26, 2022. Read the full text transcript of "The 4 People Who Will Change The World."

This episode of Marketing Muckraking is not our usual fare of shit talking, but a dip into what it looks like to make shit happen in a world that needs change.

Most people have a clear picture of what change looks like to them:

• For some, it's fixing the broken systems we're living in.
• For others, it's calling shit out and shining a light on injustice.
• Others want to dream bigger beyond the solutions we see before us today.
• And still others are passionate about building bridges to the future without ignoring the people existing within the reality we know now.

Each is convinced their way is the best way.

And they're all wrong. (And they're all right!)

I believe there are four types of people who will change the world. And we need all of them.

Fire starters like me often want to dismiss the important work of reform. Until I started looking at change through the lens of what I discuss on today's show, I struggled with my own anger and frustration at what I saw as an incomplete approach to change.

And that was my privilege talking.

Oh, I still believe we need a revolution.

But to suggest that nothing other than burning it all down will suffice is to ignore that our world needs change now, not later. Yet, I tried the reform route — that’s why I went to law school — and it nearly crushed my spirit. 

As a hopeful public interest lawyer, I saw a future of heartbreak that was too much for me to bear. During law school, I worked in an immigration clinic and even successfully helped win a case to reunite a mother and her son. But, despite that accomplishment, and the joy of bringing a family together again, the process of cutting through bureaucracy and red tape — the work of lawyers — was hard on my soul.

I spoke with many working attorneys fighting against injustice from within a broken legal system and knew that, if I took that road, it would not end well for me.

So I quit law school and started...a marketing company? WHAT?!

Over the years, I wondered aloud many times how a radical anticapitalist ended up in branding and advertising — the industry that fuels the engine of capitalism. 

It wasn't until I burned it all down last year that I realized, this was the place I was meant to make change. At least for now.

See, for all the soul crushing aspects of working in marketing, there is so much that feeds my spirit and gives me the energy to keep muckraking.

My business has created a playground for my creativity to run wild and free. Before law school, I went to theater school, and realized the life of a working actor wasn't for me, either. But, in my business, I can be much more than an actor — while still folding that in, too. I'm a writer, speaker, comedian, video editor, producer, strategist,  designer, researcher, saleswoman, coach, collaborator, cheerleader, GIFluencer, and the woman of 1,000 wigs.

Within capitalism, we all have to make compromises.

The career question then becomes less about finding your "dream job" — because it likely doesn't exist. At least, not without its drawbacks.

Instead, it's about, finding the career path that hurts the least while fueling your soul the most.

And, for me, it was about finding — creating — a job that allowed me to make change while also making space for my spirit. 

For you, your career might not be where you're making change. Maybe your job makes it possible for you to make change "off the clock." That's your compromise.

We all have to make them.

And that's what this episode is all about.

How to find your way in the world as a changemaker, whether it's in your job or in your community.

I outline the four types of changemakers to help you understand how to best position yourself in the world to make the maximum impact, while staying true to yourself. But the reality is, we each have all four types of changemakers inside of us. We just harness them at different times.

I know many people who may reformers at their day jobs, innovators in their businesses, bridge builders with their friends, and fire starters when it comes to politics.

You may express the changemaker within differently in different contexts...that's the rainbow of it all 😉 Listen now to learn about all four changemaking types and figure out which one best defines you.

Want some help? I created a quiz to help you determine which of the four changemakers you are!