Today we’d like to introduce you to Rebecca Villegas.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My name is Rebecca Villegas. I am a proud daughter of two immigrant parents. My dad (Jose, el perron) was born in Zacatecas, Mexico and mom (@rochicreates) in Lima, Peru which makes me and my younger sister (Mimis), a little blend of two cultures. I was born in Los Angeles and raised in the Inland Empire, and circled back to LA for my undergraduate degree at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). My time in undergrad was both the start of my career and a sneak peek into adulthood.
As is the case with several first generation children, my goal in life is to be able to try to repay my parents for everything they’ve done for me (huge debt). Leading up to undergrad, I had always been (not to toot my own horn) a really good student academically and I never really got into any trouble. I went in to school originally set to continue my nerdy track with the intentions of being pre-law and quickly switched to a math degree because I felt I enjoyed the classes more (initially). I was under the impression that these were the two pathways aside from medical school that would lead to the financial success needed to help out my parents but also felt it would lead to careers where I’d be able to make an impact and help others.
However, I quickly became quite miserable and felt completely stumped on what I wanted to do.
This is when I turned to internships (big advocate for internships to learn what you like and dislike) and started my career in the marketing space.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I wrote my personal statement for undergraduate admission on feeling similar to Goldilocks (but with slightly less of a positive meaning). I always felt that I sat right in the middle of several extremes. At times this made me feel super conflicted or guilty expressing the toll any hardships were taking on me because I also simultaneously felt extremely blessed. I didn’t realize that this meant I was invalidating literally any hardships or feelings I had instead of seeking out help or support when I needed it most.
I would say the biggest struggle I’ve had to encounter was to break free from my emotional hyper-independence (not sure if that’s even the proper term). Don’t get me wrong, I have ALWAYS had the support of my parents but I’ve had to navigate hardships that were completely uncharted territory for them. Because I knew that, and because I hate feeling like a burden to others, I kept a lot of what I went through to myself. This learned behavior oozed out of my personal life and seeped into to all aspects of my life including my career. I passed on opportunities to network or build community for support or guidance just because I had become so reserved.
I have undergone quite a few events that were quite traumatic (lol). However, one of the most impactful to me was discovering that my aunt had stage 4 cancer during undergrad. I have always been close to my dad’s side of the family as they have always loved and supported me unconditionally. My tia Aida was one of the first people to defend and support me without hesitation when I needed it most. She didn’t even know I needed it at the time because I was in my peek ‘don’t tell anyone how I feel’ era. Navigating this loss was extremely difficult (kickstarted my abandonment issues for sure).
Even so, she has continued to help me. Through asking me to do her makeup and fill in her brows as she underwent chemo, she showed me a glimpse of how pursuing my passions could still be impactful. Through her passing, she taught me that I needed to process my emotions or they’d consume me. This was one of those moments where I could not bury myself in busy to distract myself.
Life quickly taught me (and continues to remind me) that adversity definitely does not discriminate. I would go as far as to say that I JUST survived some of my toughest years so far. However, one of the reasons I feel I was able to able to survive them is because my breaking points have led me to finally seek out help from my support system. In recent years, I had the privilege to explore therapy to unpack some of my trauma which led to finding different outlets that better allowed me to heal from life and from myself. I also grew extremely close to my friends and family and their support has not just helped but has allowed me to learn cherish my life again (shoutout to them I love you so much).
Despite the hardships, I have grown to carry a deep gratitude for the experiences and relationships that have shaped me into who I am today. Although I’m not fully where I want to be I am immensely proud of the progress I’ve made so far and can finally say I’m looking forward to what’s to come both inside and outside my career.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I have been a marketer for over 5 years with the majority of my career being within the beauty and fashion industries. From college to now I’ve held several different roles in the marketing space which filled my day with tasks from physically building PR shipping boxes, to walking clients down red carpets. Through my internships and entry level roles I have now honed in on the specific field of marketing that I feel I thrive best in and that is in the Social and Influencer marketing space. My biggest struggle in shifting career paths to one that leans more into the creative space is that I wanted my work to still be impactful. Though the work I do now is not as dire as what I thought I’d be doing I think it’s still important.
This industry is one where performative activism thrives (which I hate). Through working in Social and Influencer marketing I do my best to truly uphold my values of diversity and inclusion. I’ve loved connecting with creators of all backgrounds not just professionally but also on a personal level. I do my best to extend opportunities to individuals based on their talent and not just based on platform size. There is so much talent that goes unrecognized simply because brands choose to continue to work with the same creators over taking a chance. Now from the business perspective, I unfortunately have to keep ROI in mind but I love being able to take a chance on people. I feel like for brands and creators alike it becomes easy to forget that there are actual people working behind the social accounts, brands or even orders (customers). Remembering that and leading with people in mind has helped my marketing approach because I move more genuinely and connect authentically with creators, consumers and brands (AI can’t replace that yet).
Working roles with no training or guidance at times, I’ve had to really figure things out and learn outside of my role. I had created an Instagram page which was private (a finsta if you will) where I shared my love for beauty with my 10 friends and suddenly decided to use this as a tool for my career. I started to build a community of fellow beauty enthusiasts and also connected with other latinas working in the beauty space. This page has allowed me to not only learn how to do my role early on but also to gain access to the other perspective of the creator. Through this page I’ve freelanced creating UGC for brands, received PR and gained access to what the experience was like for the creator which I felt truly helped me improve my approach working for brands in-house. I’ve also hosted live selling sessions on TikTok where I connect with consumers which again helps me humanize the numbers. In this industry you have to be adaptable because there are constant changes but this is the one approach that I don’t change, humanization is important.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
I actually don’t have a mentor but my peers are my inspiration.
My best advice is to put yourself out there and don’t let imposter syndrome hinder your growth! You’re meant to be in the spaces you’re in and want to stay in. Confidence in yourself can carry you far and can lead to wonderful connections (I wish I wasn’t a hypocrite and told myself in prior years but we live and learn lol). Make yourself accessible to help others as well the greatest experiences come from teaching and learning from your peers.
As far as actually making connections you just need to get used to rejections! Don’t be afraid to reach out to people (whether via email, socials or LinkedIn). There a lot of good people out there who’d love to help if you’re vulnerable enough to admit you’d love the help.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatdabecks
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebeccavillegas-
