I often feel like a fraud.

This is a mirror of battling impostor syndrome – something I’ve now come to realize is part of being a high-output and high-ambition individual. But it’s especially pronounced when I talk to students or mentees. They’d often gush out some superlative about how I have it all together and how they want to reach a point in their career similar to where they see me now.

And this, invariably, makes me super uncomfortable.

I don’t think that I’ve achieved enough to justify being anyone’s role-model.

So in the spirit of some unseen cosmic balance, I decided I should tell you about my role models. I hope you’ll follow these great ladies and I hope you find tons of value in doing that.

Ann Handley

Ann is a great professional and her approach to content, writing, newsletters, and brand communications has shaped my understanding of how to create content that matters. Whenever I get the new edition of Total Annarchy in my inbox, it’s the first newsletter I’ll read. She is also an amazing leader and sitting at the helm of MarketingProfs she has formed how marketing is done in a ton of companies.

But the thing I really admire about Ann is that she doesn’t stifle her fun side. She’s not just the most smiling speaker, she has the best suits and she is not afraid to tell personal stories.

The takeaway from Ann: Always provide value, be kind, and show your fun side.

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Joanna Wiebe

Joanna created Copyhackers and she has led countless trainings and presentations. Listening to her talk or write about copywriting is a delight. Everything is clear and to the point, backed up with the right examples. It shows that she’s not just teaching – she’s gone through countless hands-on projects and she’s speaking from experience.

The takeaway from Joanna: If you really care about the work you do, you’re in the right job.

Melanie Deziel

She hit a nerve with me right away because she works on creating social media content at scale. Her Content Matrix is the proof she knows her way around content idea generation. I am a big fan of structured content creation and this is why I use the Matrix in my content marketing classes.

On the human side, Melanie is also not scared to let us all in. She also posts about her family or personal stories from her travels. I find it really cool for professionals to show another side of their life and I appreciate the closeness. I also love the color palette she uses with the red accent color and I want to have a similar Instagram feed!

The takeaway from Melanie: Create structure for your audience, but always be personable.