When I was growing up, my mother enjoyed taking the typical “first day of school” photo. Even after all her kids graduated, she still took a picture of herself since she worked at a high school (she’s going into 30th grade this fall).

I remember my first day at my last job; I was living at home, and Mom insisted the customary photo be taken. With years of tradition comes change, so as my first day at 9 Clouds commenced, I took the infamous selfie.

With every career opportunity comes a first day of “school,” when you get to learn the stuff you actually want to learn. Coming from a more traditional marketing career in tourism, I knew I was in for lots of knowledge at 9 Clouds (with few papers and books to be found).

Taking a chance to learn the digital way can become overwhelming. Yes, the Internet is just an icon on someone’s computer, but it’s so much more than that! It’s a school to many.

Here are a few things I learned about my new school — err, job — during my first week at 9 Clouds.

Day 1 {Tuesday}

I learned that the hill from my house is really steep. I was tempted to ask if my face was red when I was met in the fourth-floor hallway by three coworkers.

I learned there is a love and appreciation for animals and Bob Ross in this office. And pizza. Lots of pizza.

Day 2 {Wednesday}

I learned that everyone here is super dedicated to what’s best for the client. They tend to put in 110% of their energy and time to make sure the client not only understands what we’re doing for them, but also is kept in the loop on current projects.

While learning about the clients I will work with, Jenny and Mary showed a great deal of passion for helping their clients succeed. 

Day 3 {Thursday}

I learned that the support of the team is what makes 9 Clouds an amazing place to work.

I previously came from a one-woman graphic design band, where you couldn’t bounce the nitty-gritty design aspects off a non-designer without getting blank stares back. It’s refreshing to say, “Can you come look at this?” and get great constructive suggestions.

Day 4 {Friday}

I learned that the basics of a company can build employees up and help them shoot for the stars. When I started on Tuesday, I was given a book called Rework by authors Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson. Within the first few chapters, they expressed all the things people said they should or shouldn’t have done in running their business.

Sometimes it’s difficult to swallow when people say you are making the wrong decision for your company. It feels adverse — until you prove that what you are doing actually works. No two companies will be the same, so knowing what works for your business is the formula for success.

I think that especially rings true for me, coming from my last job. People constantly critiqued what we did, from sales to marketing, which lowered the employees’ self-esteem. We tried to keep our spirits up and show that what we were doing worked, but in the end, every battle couldn’t be won.

So as I’ve moved to 9 Clouds, it’s refreshing to see that what works in one place but is critiqued as wrong is highly coveted, praised, and successful in another. Just like a young student excited for their first day of school, I’m ready to start learning and diving into digital marketing.