Alright, let me walk you through how I actually tried out what I learned from digging into Tony Guzzo’s career. I’m no big shot, but seeing how he climbed up got me thinking about my own grind.
Starting Point: Feeling Stuck
Honestly? I was kinda drifting last year. Had skills, worked hard, but felt like I was running in place. Heard Tony talked a lot about “planting seeds even when you ain’t hungry”. Didn’t get it at first, but decided to just… try stuff.
What I Actually Did
First thing Monday morning, I grabbed my notebook – not digital, actual paper – and scribbled down three rough areas I kept messing up or avoiding:
- Networking sucked. Hated small talk at events, always felt fake.
- Feedback? Nah. Took criticism personal, hid from it.
- My “brand”? Basically my job title on LinkedIn. That’s it.
Tony mentioned “acting before feeling ready”. So I started stupid small:
- Networking: Skipped the big mixer. Instead, found ONE person online whose work I genuinely admired in my field. Sent a short, specific email: “Hey Sarah, saw your project on [specific thing]. Loved how you handled [detail]. Mind if I ask where you learned about [related technique]?”
Just one email. Sent it. Ignored the voice saying “Why would she reply?”. She did. It wasn’t a job offer, just a real chat. Did this once a week.
- Feedback: Asked a coworker I trusted for one piece of advice on a report I’d done. Just one. My stomach churned waiting. He said the intro was muddy. Used it to rewrite just that part. Felt less like getting stabbed afterwards.
- Personal Brand: Not flashy stuff. Took an hour every Friday afternoon. Did one thing: Fixed my LinkedIn headline from “Account Manager” to “Helping SaaS Companies Simplify Client Onboarding”. Added a small project I’d actually finished to my profile. That’s it. No big reveal.
The Messy Middle
Oh, it wasn’t smooth. Got ghosted after some emails. Took feedback once that felt totally wrong – argued back (felt awful later). Wasted a Friday trying to design a fancy logo for myself before realizing “This ain’t me, and it ain’t Tony’s point.” Tony’s thing seemed to be consistency over time, not overnight wins. Kept going, even when it felt pointless. Made it routine: Email Tuesday, Feedback Thursday, LinkedIn tweak Friday.
What Actually Happened (Months Later)
Forget magic rocketships. But slowly:
- Two of those weekly email contacts turned into actual coffee chats when they visited town. Learned practical stuff, not just theory.
- Stopped dreading feedback so much. Found myself asking for it on smaller things first. Became less scary. Reports actually got sharper.
- That dumb little LinkedIn tweak? Someone doing a Google search for “[Industry] client onboarding” actually found my profile. Led to a freelance gig fixing onboarding for a small startup. Used that gig as my next “small win” story.
The Real Takeaway for Me
Tony’s magic isn’t secret tactics. It’s that successful habits feel boring while you’re doing them. Planting those seeds meant doing small, sometimes awkward things consistently, even when I saw zero payoff. No big motivational speech needed, just grinding it out Tuesday, Thursday, Friday. That compound interest – the emails, the slightly thicker skin, the tiny portfolio bits – started quietly opening doors I used to slam my head against. It ain’t glamorous, but damn, it works.