A few days ago, I was preparing to be a guest on someone else’s podcast.

It had been a while since I was in that seat, so I took extra time polishing my story, distilling my key talking points, deciding how I wanted to introduce myself.

And I realized something:

When was the last time I reintroduced myself here?

Not the polished version.
Not the LinkedIn headline.
Not the résumé.

But the real, layered, nonlinear version.

So here we are.

Hi. I’m Molly.

And if you strip away the titles — former teacher, marketer, Managing Director, mom, wife, farmer — at my core, I am two things:

I am a founder.
And I am a learner.

I love beginning things. I love gathering people around an idea and watching it take shape. Whether that’s founding a business in 2017, founding traditions like our wildly over-the-top themed scavenger hunts, or helping steward the mission of The Restoration Project — there is energy in starting something that lights me up.

And learner?
That one used to feel boring.

When I took Strengths Finder and “Learner” came back as my top strength, I thought: That’s it? Give me something flashy.

But over time, I’ve realized it explains everything.

The stacks of books.
The personality assessments.
The constant reflection.
The willingness to pivot.

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The Career That Didn’t Go According to Plan

My path wasn’t linear.

I worked in manufacturing.
I waited tables.
I became a middle school and high school English teacher.
I stayed home with babies.
I accidentally started a marketing agency.

Molly Knuth Media grew quickly. Too quickly.

By 2021–2022, I had built what looked like a “real” agency. Team members. Clients. Services. Even a building renovation underway for our headquarters.

And on the outside, it looked impressive.

On the inside?

I was drowning.

Revenue wasn’t aligned with growth.
Leadership systems weren’t in place.
Every decision bottlenecked at me.
I wasn’t paying myself consistently.

And in the middle of renovating a building, my husband asked me a simple question:

“What do you want?”

I couldn’t answer.

That was the inflection point.

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The Public Pivot

Admitting it wasn’t working felt like failure.

It felt public.
It felt embarrassing.
It felt like undoing something I had made a big deal about.

But 2023 and 2024 became years of peeling back.

Shedding clients.
Shedding services.
Rebuilding systems.
Learning financial stewardship the hard way.

And simultaneously, I began working more deeply with The Restoration Project.

What started as social media consulting became marketing leadership.
Which became strategic leadership.
Which became Managing Director.

And what I realized was this:

I had never just loved marketing.

I loved people.

I loved the person behind the business.
The confidence building.
The imposter syndrome conversations.
The identity work.
The meaning.

Leadership development wasn’t a departure. It was a return.

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Your Passion Doesn’t Have to Pay the Bills

Here’s something I need you to hear.

Not everyone’s calling is their career.

Sometimes your work is your work — and your passion is what you do after dinner.

And that counts.

You don’t need to monetize what brings you joy for it to matter.
You don’t need a perfectly aligned job title to live a meaningful life.
You don’t need a linear path to be successful.

Your journey — with all its detours — is building you.

There is no blueprint.

There is only reflection.
Growth.
Course correction.
And the courage to evolve.

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You are the greatest project you will ever work on.

Keep learning.
Keep founding.
Keep becoming.