Giving credit where credit is due

Last week I was very excited to find out I was on the Top 100 Social Media Power Influencers list. This was the list previously published on Forbes, but now hosted by StatSocial.

I’ll be honest, I hate these lists. I just wrote a post about it a few weeks ago. Why? It’s populated by the same people, some who deserve it, and some who don’t and some of the people who DO deserve it get left off.

So when I found out I made this list I was floored. Actually I was giddy as a schoolgirl. However at the same time I felt like a hypocrite – I had just written about why these things should be ignored and made my case only to now be on one.

Don’t get me wrong, I am honored be on this list with some of the people I have the utmost respect for. I am not discounting the hard work put into curating this list, but like all lists you have to take them with a grain of salt. No ranking system is perfect. This list was primarily focused on Twitter, which is my strongest platform. Had they taken into consideration all of the platforms and everyone’s blogs, the list would have turned out much different.

So instead of another rant against those lists or a post of reasons why I made it I thought I would time out to give credit where credit is due.

I get asked a lot about how I’ve gotten to where I am and I’ll be the first to say I didn’t do it alone. My business is almost 4 years old and I’ve been VERY fortunate to have success I honestly never thought I would have. If you had told me when I started that in 2015 I would have international clients, 4 interns and be interviewed by a company in Africa for a podcast, I would not have believed you. I’ve never actually publicly thanked the forces behind ME Marketing Services. Yes, I’m a solopreneur, but like most solopreneurs, it’s just a name. Rarely are we by ourselves. I always imagined whenever I thanked people it would be like giving an Oscar acceptance speech – gorgeous gown, diamonds, too-high heels and all.

So here we go…

Many people have had a hand in shaping my company. First and foremost, I have to give all credit to my Lord and Savior. I’m very involved in my faith and believe if you trust in the Lord and the plan He has for you, He won’t lead you astray. My favorite Bible verse is Jeremiah 29:11 – “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”” I trust and believe in every word that verse says.

Next I have to thank my husband. I couldn’t do this without his support and faith in me. Yes, there are nights I’m working until 11pm or typing away on the laptop as we try to watch one of our favorite shows, but he’s understanding and knows just when to tell me to turn it off – for my own good.

I have to thank my precious girls. It’s hard for a 6 and 10 year old to understand why mommy is always on the computer when they get home or why we can’t go to the pool just yet during those summer break days. They bear with me knowing that because of what I do, we can go and do fun stuff – like go shopping or get Chick-fil-A for lunch or take those trips to DisneyWorld for their birthdays. It will pay off one day – I hope that them seeing their mom own a business and put herself out there will inspire them to never take “no” for an answer and step outside their comfort zone to make a difference.

I have a lot of in-real-life and social media friends/peers who continually inspire me to be better and push me to fight through when I get burned out. Some even let me gripe to them over a Facebook message about the stupid stuff. I’m not going to list all the names, but you know who you are 🙂

Last but not least I have to thank my mom and dad. Without them, I wouldn’t be here.

Now it’s your turn – who do you want to thank and give credit where credit is due??