In Flow: From Corporate Wisdom to Creative Freedom
After spending two decades inside some of the world’s most respected organizations, I’ve learned a lot—about business, about people, and about what really works. I’ve had the privilege of working with incredibly smart teams, building brands across cultures and markets, and learning from leaders who shaped the way I think.
But stepping out and building Everything Now has also taught me what I want to do differently. Not because the old way was wrong, but because this is a new chapter, with a new mindset, a new energy, and a new sense of purpose.
Here’s what I’m taking with me; and what I’m choosing to reimagine:
What I’m Taking With Me
1. Legal and Risk Awareness
There’s a difference between being bold and being reckless. Working in large organizations taught me to look around corners, understand implications, and protect what matters: your team, your work, and your business. At Everything Now, we still take risks, but we take them consciously. Boundaries exist for a reason, and respecting them gives you the freedom to play smart.
2. Business Dynamics
The world runs on structure. Understanding how business actually works—from financial pressure to market cycles to internal politics—is a major asset. You can’t challenge the system unless you first understand it. This knowledge now helps me guide clients with clarity, anticipate their needs, and speak their language, because real creativity solves real business problems.
3. Adding Value to All Stakeholders
In big companies, you quickly learn that you’re part of a much larger ecosystem. There are layers—internal teams, owners, partners, agencies, customers—and each one deserves attention. That stays with me. At Everything Now, I still see marketing as a connector of people, needs, and goals. It’s never a solo journey, and the ability to add value across the board is what makes a strategy work.
4. The People
Most importantly, I carry with me the relationships. The people I worked with, learned from, and was inspired by every day. Many of them are now supporting me on this new path, and I’ll always be grateful. The network, the friendships, the lessons; that’s what lasts. That’s what builds character.
“I’m not trying to reinvent the wheel, but I am driving in a new direction. Building Everything Now is about taking the best of what I’ve learned, leaving behind what no longer serves me, and staying obsessed with delivering work that actually makes a difference.”
What I’m Doing Differently
1. Rules vs. Reason
Not all rules are sacred. In big structures, there are often ways of working, templates, and policies that exist more out of tradition than logic. I’ve learned that great work often means letting go of the rulebook and asking “why?” more often. At Everything Now, we work lean, stay agile, and build new ways of doing things—because not everything needs to be done just because it always has been.
2. Freedom to Work Differently
The methods, the meetings, the layers: they’re not always necessary. I’ve met brilliant creatives who do their best work asynchronously, remotely, or outside the typical process. I’ve learned to embrace new ways of working, to design workflows around people, not systems. Everything Now doesn’t operate in a bubble, we meet people where they are, and we make it work.
3. Purpose Over Performance
In big systems, it’s easy to get caught up in the noise; doing things to check a box, align with an agenda, or maintain visibility. Over time, you can lose sight of what really matters. With Everything Now, I’m choosing to focus on value for my clients—real, tangible, strategic value. Every project, every meeting, every deliverable is driven only by purpose. No politics, just clarity and impact.
4. Unfiltered Creative Thinking
For too long, I shaped my ideas to fit the structure: brand standards, playbooks, stakeholder expectations. But creativity is my most valuable asset, and I think its time to stop toning it down. In this new chapter, I’m thinking freely, dreaming bigger, and saying what I think will help my clients move forward. That freedom is where the best work lives, and I’m enjoying leaning all the way into it.
To all those I’ve worked with, learned from, and continue to be inspired by: thank you. You’re part of this story too. Let’s keep building, evolving, and creating marketing that’s not just seen, but felt.
– Yamil
