As we slide into the final days of the decade and try to reconcile ourselves with the fact that Y2K was 20 years ago, the Everywhere Agency team is feeling reflective. It’s been an extraordinary decade. We welcomed the rise of the age of social media, and the fall of Billy McFarland. The first iPad expanded our portable screen time, while Alexa and Siri became the new secretaries. Vine came and went. TikTok came and stayed. We cut ourselves some collective slack with finstas, dad bods, and self-care and vital movements rose to empower entire communities.

2020 also marks the start of our second decade as Everywhere Agency. For 10 years, we’ve been proudly amplifying the voices of real people to tell stories about the real brands they love.

It all amounts to a colorful tapestry of social evolution held together with one common thread: storytelling. From technological developments to social growth, every single happening has been, at its foundation, a new avenue for human connection through sharing. So, in celebration of our 10th birthday and a new year, we’re sharing our stories.

Here are our team’s biggest lessons from the past decade, shared together recently during a particularly contemplative Monday morning meeting.

1. We can withstand more than we think.

We’re navigating some weighty issues in our cultural moment — on top of the day-to-day challenges we all deal with as humans — and, we’ve weathered many evolutions of social media technology and functionality. Our team’s ability to connect, adapt, and persevere is what’s kept us leading the influencer marketing charge this past decade.

2. Be loud.

Being a citizen of social media can feel like you’re adrift in the buzzing small talk of a crowded room. Authenticity and vulnerability are rare gems in a digital landscape that demands coolness and quickness, and yet both are the active ingredient in true human connection. It’s why we believe in the power of influencer marketing, and why we’re deliberate with our voices — both in decibels and delivery — as an all-woman agency.

We ask loudly. We congratulate and celebrate one another loudly. We advocate for other women loudly. And we’re loud in the curiosity and connection we use to grow strong together.

3. Struggles are seasonal.

And if something doesn’t work out, the reason why will become clear soon enough. As the saying goes, if you’re going through hell, keep going. Anyone remember Cambridge Analytica? Case in point.

4. Everything important is finite. Enjoy accordingly.

The simple reminder that every single thing is temporary can be incredibly grounding. Your physical form, your car, that old pair of jeans that fit perfectly, like counts on Instagram posts — it’s all on a timer. And regularly remembering that fact will pull you right back into every moment, where you can be fully present with the things you love. Soak it up.

5. Be present, be still, be intentional.

Life is a series of moments and the more we can inhabit the current moment, the more we ultimately get from our life. So, put your phone down, listen before responding, disconnect, and be present. The magic is in the right now, and the right now is where you find the stories you’ll tell later.

6. Comparison is the thief of joy.

We do ourselves the ultimate disservice when we use the experiences of others as the barometer for our own success. At Everywhere Agency, we work every day with incredible influencers who maintain highly covetable online lives, and we’re susceptible to the same traps of comparison as anybody trying to thrive in this digital world. But, when we compare, we perpetuate the notion that someone else’s perspective is more important, more meaningful, or more worthy than our own — a purely impossible thing when you consider that we are each a complex and singular inventory of experiences, sights, interactions, and triumphs. There is, quite literally, no one like you.

7. Own and trust what you bring to every table and room.

That aforementioned inventory makes all of us a truly unique voice in every single conversation. We all bring something to every single situation that absolutely no one else can — and the myriad of unique influencers we work with every day are proof. Find your thing and own it.

8. Your comfort zone will kill you.

It’s easy to become complacent when our experience of the world is fragmented and distorted by social media — it makes us doubt our ability to excel beyond what we’re seeing online. But we can rise above it when we step out of the rat race and into a curious interaction with our lives. Courage is the new must-have accessory.

9. Boundaries are bae.

Both professionally and personally, knowing when to say no (and yes!) can be a gamechanger. Learning the nuances of boundaries is a long play — partly because it starts with needing to know yourself very well. But, when we figure out how to temper our exposure to stress and regret, we’re left with more energy to redirect to the areas of our lives we really want to nourish. Perhaps that starts with limiting your screen time in 2020?

10. Everything works out in the end. Let go, and let be.

Acceptance is the darling little sister of presence. One learns from the other, and when we can lean into the often mysterious ways of the world, we can spend less time mourning what could’ve been and more time celebrating what was and what will be. Where will social media take us in the next decade? Let go… and let’s go!

All this to say: isn’t it amazing what a decade can do? Our team agreed we’ve all come a long way in the past 10 years, both professionally and personally, and that, at the end of the day, it’s that growth that really matters the most.

From our team to you, happy new year. Here’s to more life, more stories, and whatever is next in this crazy industry we call home!