Full name?: AdaPia d’Errico
Position / Job title?: Chief Marketing Officer of Patch of Land
When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
When I was five, I remember wanting to be a paleontologist because I wanted to dig up dinosaurs. Then I wanted to be a marine biologist because sea animals enamored me. At 10, I thought I wanted to be a lawyer.
Fast-forward several years/decades. How did you land (or create) your current position? I met the founders of Patch of Land at a real estate crowdfunding conference. At the time I was a marketing and branding consultant, working with start-ups in LA. I was researching the industry because I had worked on crowdfunding campaigns for clients in the arts and entertainment industries, and with my background in finance and banking, I was intrigued by the opportunity of opening up capital formation through this socio-cultural revolution. The position of CMO at Patch of Land melds all my various experience together in a way I never imagined possible.
Did you have to take on internships to get there? How important in general, do you think, are internships?
No, I didn’t have to take on internships to get here. Internships are very important, especially at startups like Patch of Land. They are a great way to understand a company and interact with almost every part of that company instead of being relegated to one specific function or department. Internships are also great for personal and professional development. Also, if you aren’t sure about a career choice internships help you test the waters and see what you truly love to do, and what you are good at! One of our interns started in marketing, then realized she loved the finance side, and now she is a junior full time analyst.
Tell us what a typical workday looks like for you. What is your job REALLY like, both the glamorous and not-so-glamorous parts?
There’s a lot of travel involved in my role, which isn’t as glamorous as people think, but when I’m not traveling, my day begins with personal time in the morning, checking emails and handling any inbox emergencies or taking east coast calls before coming into the office. When I get in the first thing I do is connect with my team. I communicate with them and find out what everyone’s working on and their priorities for the day and we build our activities from there. I feel like I spend at least half my day on the phone too. I am always talking to people such as vendors, potential partners, clients, media, etc. as well as having lots of interaction with the rest of the executive team on strategic decisions and rolling out processes and operations. Business development and relationship management are main parts of my role at Patch of Land. We have a dog-friendly office, which makes it fun and even more social than it already is. I have lots of visitors to my office to see Barrington!
What is the biggest career mistake you’ve ever made?
The biggest career mistake I’ve ever made was that I didn’t believe in myself enough when I was younger, which led me to not take enough credit for my abilities. I didn’t understand the value I was bringing to the position and had negative thoughts of other people being better than me. I completely undervalued myself, and didn’t allow myself to completely shine or be as brash in asking for what I wanted, or what I was worth.
What is the single most important piece of advice you would give to other career-minded women?
Be yourself and value what you have to offer in skills and qualities. Highlight the assets and traits that make you who you are. Don’t compare yourself to others. Don’t even give gender a second thought. Are you the best person for the job? Of course you are. Go claim it.
Let’s talk about work/life balance. What does that mean to you? Is it important?
Work/life balance is less about balance and more about integration of the two. Work and life should work in tandem and work should help you achieve what you want and a lot of that is going to be outside of work. If you love what you do, you’ll feel a sense of purpose, accomplishment and satisfaction for yourself – not for others. Work shouldn’t be for the sake of work and it’s important to love what you are doing so don’t have a separation of the two, but each compliments and enhances the other.
On that note, do you think women can have it all? Both the baller career, and the happy family?
Yes, we can have it all. We have the power to design what our life looks like. And it’s about how you define the question. What’s important to you and what’s baller to you? What’s success? What’s your definition of a happy family? We can create our own framework within which we can always feel we have it all.
If you could look into a crystal ball and see 20 years into your future, what would you want to see?
I’d like to see myself striving and working on creative projects that help others succeed. I see myself having built more startups and having a strong network of friends and colleagues. Ultimately I want to see that the work I’ve done, and continue to do, is for the benefit of others in some way. I want to make a positive impact on others’ lives.
Do you have any career role models? Who are they?
Women like Oprah Winfrey are driven by heart and doing good things, and who have really defined their own lives and created success by never giving up, and always moving forward.
What is the best piece of advice that you have ever received – career-related or otherwise?
There’s no need to try and do everything yourself. If you know your own strengths and weaknesses, then you should focus on getting better at your strengths because you’ll have exponential return on the work. Instead of trying or even struggling to shore up weaknesses, find those who excel at your weaknesses and join forces. I’d still be trying to prove to everyone that I am great at finance, when in fact, it’s not my strength. But here I am in a finance-driven field doing very well – because I have other strengths that make me excellent at my job, and I don’t need to do complicated math all day!
Parents love to say, “Just wait ’til you have to face the real world…” When you were in college or high school, what did you think the “real world” looked like? What is the difference between what you thought and reality?
I thought the real world looked like a corporation where everyone had a pre-determined type of role or linear career path. I thought it was all laid out and once you started on a path you couldn’t get off or you’d be left behind. I even thought that work was where everyone wore a suit and people were cutthroat in business. The reality is that people can be like that, but the real world is more collaborative and creative. There is way more room to be yourself and move laterally; to have experiences and sabbaticals and as long as you are happy and satisfied with yourself, you are striving to have the life you want, you can have that life. The real world isn’t linear at all.
Should you work for the money, or do what you love?
You should do both, because they’re not mutually exclusive. You need to make enough to be able to have your basic needs met and to be comfortable. Everyone has different levels of comfort, different aspirations and different wants and needs. Money can provide a lot of that, so you need to embrace that. Your career should be something you love and that makes you a comfortable income. Work hard and ask for a fair wage and try to find a way to make money doing what you love. The two go very well together.
How important is money to you when considering a job?
As I get older money is more important, because life gets more complex. Fifteen years ago my answer would’ve been different. Now that I’m older, it’s important to make sure that I am not going to worry about the future and retirement and sweat equity becomes unsustainable for me. Money is also important when you consider a job because it needs to reflect a fair value for the role and responsibilities of a position, the time and effort and expertise that goes into it, and what a person brings to that role. I’m not talking about money for the sake of money or going for the highest paying job, but you should be paid what you’re worth.
What is the single most important factor of a job?
The most important factor is the team and people. The team should have a shared vision and you should all work towards it together. If you don’t love whom you work with, you won’t love your job, and that will bleed into how you feel, and into your personal life. I’ve learned that the quality of the people you surround yourself with will determine a huge amount of how you feel, behave, think and live.
If you married a millionaire husband and didn’t have to work, would you? (Be honest.)
I wouldn’t necessarily work a traditional career with a salary, but I’d switch my energy from making a paycheck to making a difference. I’d be working with a charity, doing philanthropic work, advising or mentoring entrepreneurs. I’m a very active person and need to put energy in personal growth – my own or that of others.
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