From Inc Magazine - By Kimberly Weisul | Nov 17, 2011
Dear 38% of 18-34 year old American would-be entrepreneurs who are letting the recession get in the way of your start-up plans, I hear you! It’s scary to take your superficially safe day job and chuck it out the window in favor of your dream. If you’re dream fails, does that mean you fail? And if that happens, does that mean you will never get another job? Ever? Better to stick it out in a place that isn’t ideal, but could be good enough if we closed our eyes, ears, and hearts to our true calling, right? Think again.
You’ve heard about these statistics: how many great companies started in the wake of a recessions: FedEx, Microsoft, CNN, and the modern days of Apple. But here’s a stat that surprised even me – an eternal optimist about the potential of entrepreneurs: 54% of all Americans 18 – 34 want to start their own businesses. They don’t want to buy into an existing business or climb the ladder to a high position within an existing company. More people in that demographic are interested in working for themselves than are interested in working for someone else. It’s a remarkable statement and it’s cause for great enthusiasm and consumer confidence!
Now is the time to dream bigger than ever. 18 – 34-year-old entrepreneurs at heart, you’ve got loans to repay, retirement accounts to fund, and experience to build. Fine. I do, too. 38% of you aren’t beginning your entrepreneurial journey because of the bad economy. The lack of reasoning there is that the state of the economy has had very little to do with the success of the overall economy. You have no substantial reason to delay your dream.
Here’s what I really don’t want you to do: please don’t focus so much on climbing the ladder in the place you happen to be due to the Great Recession and place your entrepreneurial desires on hold. Find a way to make small steps forward:
Freelance in your spare time
Begin to lay the foundations for your own future as defined by you and you alone
Don’t use the recession as an excuse; use it as fuel to get going
Our illusion of safety inside another company exists only in our minds. You’ve got what it takes to at least give your entrepreneurial dream a shot. You owe it to yourself to try with everything you’ve got. I’ve been giving this idea a spin in my mind since seeing my friend, Rodrigo, a great pal from business school.
Rodrigo asked me how my yoga was going, what the business model is, and why I’m so passionate about Compass Yoga’s mission to help people with physical and mental health challenges. He could easily see my dedication to the idea.
And then I told him how much I care about our healthcare system and why I feel such an allegiance to his company, GE Healthcare. You see, GE Healthcare saved my mother’s life. Their imaging machines detected her breast cancer when it was smaller than a grain of sand. Her scans have been clean for 5 years. I’ll be forever grateful for the extra time they’ve given my mom and I. There’s no way to put a price tag on that kind of gratitude.
“If yoga doesn’t work out, give me a call, Christa,” Rodrigo said. “GE will want you.” I laughed and then he said, “I’m serious. Call me.”
And I knew in that moment that even if I jump tomorrow, out of corporate life with two feet into Compass Yoga, I’ll be just fine. The whole idea could go bust and I’ll still be okay because I’m skilled and I can tell an authentic story.
Rodrigo showed up with just the right message, at just the right time: now’s the time to give my dream a whirl and see what I can do. The worst that will happen is failure and I’d rather fail trying than wonder what I could have done if I’d had more guts.
IN BRIEF
Author, journalist, digital product manager, and licensed New York City tour guide. Creator and host of NYC's Secrets and Lies. Alumna of the University of Pennsylvania (BA), the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia (MBA), Arizona State University (Biomimicry), and the University of Cambridge (MSt in Sustainability Leadership).
I build digital media platforms, report on urban climate resilience and biodiversity, and produce live narrative experiences that connect communities to history, nature, and place.
THE DEEP DIVE
My work centers on a single thread: building systems and stories that foster deep connection to our shared world. Across digital streaming, environmental reporting, and live civic storytelling, I design experiences that help people understand complex ideas and the environments around them.
DIGITAL PRODUCT STRATEGY & MEDIA LEADERSHIP
At Carnegie Hall, I serve as Digital Product Manager, leading product strategy, operations, and technical delivery for the video streaming platform Carnegie Hall+. I translate artistic mission into scalable, high-performance streaming architecture that reaches audiences globally. Previously, I led agile product and delivery teams across operations and compliance at American Express, managed Broadway theatrical productions and national tours, and guided strategic initiatives across cultural institutions.
ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALISM & AUTHORSHIP
As a freelance journalist, I investigate how living systems, urban infrastructure, and human culture intersect. My reported features on urban decarbonization, biodiversity, coastal resilience, and biomimicry appear in publications including Smithsonian Magazine, The Washington Post, Mongabay, Natural History Magazine, and Foreign Policy Magazine. In fiction, I write the Emerson Page young adult novel series, alongside upcoming historical fiction and nonfiction works on New York history, mythology, and human resilience. I also write Togetherhood, a LinkedIn newsletter focused on urban ecology and community restoration, and co-host the podcast Frameworks in the Wild.
LIVE EXPERIENCE & CIVIC STORYTELLING
As a licensed New York City tour guide and live event producer, I transform urban landscapes into shared narrative encounters. I created, produce, and host NYC's Secrets and Lies, an interactive live storytelling series staged across cultural landmarks including the New York Transit Museum, the South Street Seaport Museum, and the historic tall ship Wavertree. I also design and lead site-specific walking tours exploring coastal ecology, food history, and neighborhood evolution, often with partners at Climate Week NYC and the Natural Areas Conservancy.
DOUBLE OR NOTHING MEDIA
Through my independent production studio, Double or Nothing Media, I develop ventures across media, ecology, and public history:
Digital Products & Strategy: Architecting scalable digital platforms, streaming experiences, and operational models for mission-driven institutions.
Environmental Reporting & Publications: Delivering long-form reporting, books, and newsletters grounded in climate resilience and regenerative design.
Site-Specific Live Storytelling: Producing immersive live shows and educational walking tours that engage public audiences in community history.
CONNECT
Website & Production Hub: doubleornothingmedia.com and christaavampato.com
Newsletter: Togetherhood on LinkedIn - linkedin.com/newsletters/togetherhood-7273771832221089792/
Instagram & Threads: @christarosenyc
Emerson Page Novels: emersonpagebook.wordpress.com/
View all posts by Christa Avampato
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