Throughout my life I’ve always struggled with my inability to fit neatly into boxes. The need to adapt my behavior—whether with parents, in the classroom, among friends, or on the soccer field—left me uncertain about my core identity. I didn’t know how to act or who I was when nobody was watching.

When entering the professional world, I’ve been told it is important to embody certain characteristics. You’re supposed to know how to be a leader, but not to the extent where you can’t work with others. These unspoken rules only perpetuated my feelings of not belonging.

Eventually I realized the importance of developing my own sense of self, independent of external influences. I realized the futility of altering my disposition to please others without understanding my true identity in solitude. It was okay if I didn’t fit neatly into one box or another, I could be partially in both; the space in between is something that I can make my own.

Embracing the concept of bothing allowed me to construct my identity, liberating myself from being confined by partial labels. Bothing grants me the freedom to embrace constant evolution, not for the sake of improvement, but to unfold into my authentic self. Who I am is enough for any situation, as it's not about how others see me, but rather how I perceive and value myself.

Bothing has shaped me into a marketer who infuses a piece of myself into every project I create. Like my work, I am constantly evolving and my progress is not always linear. Mistakes are often made, but the creative solutions implemented are what promotes growth—both in my personal development and the refinement of my work. Explore what makes me who I am through what I create, as one cannot exist without the other.