The Power Of Having The Right Partner In Your Life

A love story to remember 

Last week I celebrated with you Hollywood Branded's 16 years of success stories, along with some failures and hurdles along the way.  This week, I have another personal celebration to share that means the world to me...

A decade of marriage to the incomparable and wonderful Ian Drummond! He is one of the most intelligent, nicest, and kindest of men. A man well worth what was a very long wait of singledom, where I put Bridget Jones to shame. In this blog, Hollywood Branded shares the remarkable love story between Ian and Stacy. 

TO my love, Ian Drummond 

I met Ian through a good old-fashioned dating app - OK Cupid in fact.  I, for one of the first times in my life, did something a little differently. It's somewhat surprising in hindsight that it took me so long to do. 

In this case, for the first time since high school sophomore year when I asked an upperclassman to a Sadie Hawkins dance and was seemingly crushed for decades by his 'no' response, I was the one who reached out first. These were the days before Bumble, or any other swipe-right app. Up until that moment, I had lived in the belief that the love of my life would just magically find me. I put myself out there and had a super active life where I was able to do things many only dream of - but at age 37, I had to admit that maybe I needed to give it a little help beyond just being reactive and saying yes to those who asked me out.

I just knew 

A brief flurry of emails, a single call, and a breakfast date a weekend later, I told my mother, a friend, and one of my team that I had just met the man I was going to marry.

They all thought I was absolutely insane. 

This wasn't puppy love or infatuation. I just knew. It wasn't anything I gave thought about. I just knew to my core that he was the one. I had absolute faith that it was going to work out and we would be married. It felt the same 'right' as when I decided to start Hollywood Branded. It was intuitively in my gut the next step to take.

Now, that didn't keep me from keeping a lunch date I had with someone else that same day, but it was the first time in my life that deep inside there was a sense of acknowledgment that I had met the right person for me.

Follow your gut 

After a second date to a Jackson Brown concert two days later with Ian, where I slept pretty much through the whole thing, snuggled into his arm as a pillow, there was no looking back. And no more other dates with anyone else. Despite the fact that I'm a horrible date for movies or anything melodic (thank narcolepsy for that) nine weeks later Ian proposed in Rotterdam on Easter Monday with a ring hidden in a decorated egg. After a two-week engagement moon driving across Europe, seven months later we got married in Monterey Bay thanks to a last-minute wedding venue availability, with the ocean as a backdrop in front of 80-odd friends and family.  

Then, four years ago, the summer before COVID and the morning after a late-night conversation about where I wanted to take Hollywood Branded,  Ian woke me up to share something that would change our lives and make us truly partners in every sense of the word.  He had decided overnight to retire from 26 years of school administration, where he was then a middle school principal. His new plan was to join the agency and run operations, to use his business admin skills to support and help me better be able to achieve my dream and goals for Hollywood Branded. Which have in the years since, become our shared vision and dream.

I admit, at first, I wasn't immediately sold in. That is a very big responsibility to think that the little agency you founded is going to truly, 100% support your entire family, with no backup in place.  But his gut told him it was the right thing to do.

So we did. And it was.

It's a rollercoaster of a ride 

Between the highs and lows of agency ownership and some personal really sucky experiences in life, we've had our share of both great and very very hard, times. To this day, there is no one I would rather have by my side through it all. 

My only wish is that I could go back and reassure my younger self that all would be well one day in the future.  It's something I often share when listening to brokenhearted team members in their 20s or 30s who wonder what is wrong with them and why they haven't found that elusive perfect partner. Life just does not play out how we expect it to in most cases, and it often serves us learning lessons so that we can make the right choices later on. 

In hindsight, if I had the reassurance - and faith - that one day, even one day far far off in the future, I would find my person, it would have been a game changer. I would have had a lot more fun along the way, far fewer tears, and not tried to make so many clearly Mr. Not-Right fits work.  Because they never do, no matter how you try to push that square peg into a round hole.  But that's what hindsight is all about. It's easy to look back and say "I wish", and without those good - and bad - experiences along the way, I would not have recognized Ian so easily as being the right one for me.

Ian likes to say "We dated a long time.  Just not each other." And while that's funny, it's also true.  We both dated a lot of people over a lot of years and it helped us understand what we did and did not want in a partner. There is a lot of value to knowing what you don't want so that you can better identify what you do.

I certainly have never, not once, had a moment of regret.

To Ian, my true hero and my partner in all ways, I give you my love. Together, we've weathered storms that we thought would crush us and celebrated successes side by side. Through it all, you have been my anchor, my guiding star. Thank you for being a testament to the beauty of listening to your gut - and taking chances. Here's to many more years of love, growth, and shared dreams.

Follow your gut 

For everyone reading, this is my message: In love or business, seizing the initiative is often key. Follow your gut, stand by your choices, and commit with all your heart. Then, await the bountiful rewards that are sure to follow. If you put your passion and drive into making it work - and your faith, it will. 

In many aspects of life, be it your career or personal affairs, sometimes the magic lies in taking that first step. Embracing risks, stepping out of your comfort zone, and having faith in the potential payoff. I did that with Hollywood Branded, and I did that with Ian Drummond. And in doing so, discovered a universe teeming with marvels.

To those still searching for the partner of their dreams, my deepest wish for you is to find the happiness I've been blessed with, and am grateful for every day. I now live in a world of calm despite what storm may be raging around me.

Eager To Learn More?

Do you want to learn more behind the scenes of Hollywood Branded? Read these 5 additional blogs below.

• A Day In The Life of Hollywood Branded
• Celebrating 16 Years of Hollywood Branded
• Product Placement's Effectiveness in Video Games 
• James Bond Product Placement: The Definite Timeline Of Brands In Bond
• Case Study: Product placement In 5 Music Videos

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