Phillippe Von Borries, founder of Refinery29, asks a group of people what their very first music concert was at a “Live in the Grey” event.
Loving your job just might be the oldest career objective out there. For the founders of the website “Live in the Grey,” it’s the idea they hope to make into a movement. Friends Maneesh Goyal and David Munczinski decided that the new crop of entrepreneurship-minded young people would benefit from a place to find out how people like them — with an idea and some passion — were able to merge what they love with what they do. We asked founder Maneesh Goyal for his advice for young professionals.
So, what is your advice for people just starting out?
We believe your first step has to be discovering and defining what moves you. For me, it was as simple as sitting down and writing out “what doesn’t feel like work”. I took these passions and eventually entered the event marketing industry.
People are making their own paths more frequently now. What’s your practical advice to them?
Before you can chart your own path – whether in a company, as a freelancer or as an entrepreneur – you need to have a clear vision for where you are going, while being open to unforeseen changes. You have to start by truly defining what is fulfilling to you. For us, fulfillment is the cross-section of personal and professional, and fulfillment is fundamentally necessary to sustain anyone in their career. We highlight the stories of people that are “grey” to inspire people to get there on their own.
What scared you most about taking the leap into a new venture?
The most intimidating aspect of starting Live in the Grey was overcoming the fear that our philosophy was only a personal outlook we share as co-founders. Was anyone going to appreciate and be inspired by these ideas? Fortunately, we have found an engaged audience through our site and events. This is always a risk for a person or a group starting a venture with a mission. Our message is “risk makes life remarkable” – and that means redefining risk from something to be scared of into something to embrace.
