What I Gained—Reflecting on My Time with Evocati
Lindsey Barchent is a communications consultant at Evocati who recently found an exciting new opportunity. Before she leaves, she wanted to reflect on her journey after losing her job during the pandemic and working at Evocati.
Like many others, you lost your job because of the pandemic, but then you made the bold decision to venture out on your own as a consultant. What was that journey like and what did you learn about yourself?
As soon as I found out that the agency I was working with would be shut down, I had many conversations with family, friends, and mentors which typically ended in what I found to be an extremely frustrating question: “You’re in a position where you can go in a variety of directions. What do you most want to do?”
I’m a planner by nature and, as long as I can remember, I’ve always had my next steps planned out – or I at least had a general idea. I started to continue on the same path I had set out on, but the question of “What do you most want to do?” was always in the back of my mind. I knew that when people asked me this, it was likely intended to create a response about what industry I wanted to work in or where I wanted to live (I was staying with family during the pandemic), but it really got me thinking about what I wanted out of my career.
At this point, I started to write out what I wanted from a job, not necessarily work-related, but personally, as well. The items on my list looked like:
Be in control of my own hours
Travel when and where I want
Spend time with family
Have the ability to choose who I work with
With the world remote during the pandemic, it seemed like the perfect time to see if I could work with clients across the country while being located wherever I wanted to. I told myself I’d give it six months, and if it wasn’t going well, I could always change course. Luckily, it did work out and I learned the value in taking a chance.
What did you enjoy the most about working independently?
I’d encourage anyone to spend some time working independently if it’s feasible. I enjoy the flexibility that comes with it and having more control in the organizations and people I work with.
“Evocati has pulled together an incredible group of professionals who show up each day to help clients make an impact. ”
Given your extensive experience communicating to the military-connected community, what should professionals know about marketing to this unique audience?
In the years I’ve spent working with the military-connected community, the biggest misunderstanding I see being made is generalizing communications to this audience. The military-connected community is extremely diverse, and I think communications professionals would benefit from taking the time to really get to know the audience and learn the different formats and messages that work best to communicate to each audience segment.
What’s one special thing about our clients that you wish more people knew about and why?
The clients at Evocati are incredible to work with because they are all very mission-driven. It’s easy to see how much they enjoy the work they do, and it’s amazing to partner with people who are passionate about helping the military-connected community.
What was your favorite part of working with Evocati?
This is an easy question – my favorite part of working with Evocati is the people! Evocati has pulled together an incredible group of professionals who show up each day to help clients make an impact.
What would you like people to know about working at Evocati?
I highly recommend Evocati to anyone who is looking for a flexible job and is passionate about helping the military-connected community! Driven by values, Evocati provides an encouraging and fun work environment.
About Lindsey
Lindsey specializes in strategic communications, content development and social media strategy. Through communications and marketing efforts, she helps organizations create purposeful and impactful messages to bring audiences together and further their business goals. Lindsey currently lives in Ohio with her mischievous golden retriever, Loki. She was a valued member of the team and will be missed. Good luck, Lindsey!
