hot takes 🔥 after a decade of: - being on the brand side hiring influencers - being on the talent side managing influencers - and building Hermana!! 1. When a brand says they don’t have budget, they probably mean they don’t have budget FOR YOU. (Sorry this one can be hard to hear) 2. The industry is small. If you’re hard to work with, that word gets around. Creators that are hard to work with = missing deadlines, bad attitude, hard to get a hold of Brands that are hard to work with = exploitative contracts, no creative freedom, consistently late payments Managers that are hard to work with = no transparency, fumbling brand deals, no strategy 3. If you don’t ask, the answer is always no. (In negotiations, contract redlines, higher rates, concept ideas that don’t follow the brief... just ask). 4. If you’re only in it to make $$$ you’ll burn out fast. You have to love the work. (It’s like building any business, the entrepreneur has to be passionate because there’s wayyyy more up...