Meet Jordan Porter-Woodruff! She is a FT life and culture Assistant Editor for Cheatsheet.com. Jordan is a writer, entrepreneur, and innovator. She is the creator of a new up and coming app called GIFSTR which uses the combination of gifs with voice coverage. Read more about how she landed on the idea of GIFSTR and the important lessons she has learned during this process. Check it out!
Follow the GIFSTR movement on IG at: gifts_llc
For the most part I would say people know me as a journalist, editor or writer. Certainly-- I would claim that as true. I started my career at the Chicago Tribune as an Advertising Representative, and the goal was to get to the coveted 3rd floor of the Tribune Tower. That’s where all the editors were – it was the floor that had the shiny front table that said “Editorial Department.” I loved being able to say I worked at the Chicago Tribune. To me, it sounded sexy. Everyone knows what the Tribune is – after all, it’s famous. To get to the 3rd floor would literally be beyond what I have ever imaged. I knew one day I would land a job on that floor. However, in the back of my mind, I knew I was kidding myself (more on that later).
A year into the Tribune and there I was, writing for the RedEye on a consistent basis AND doubling as their PT Copy-Editor – Jordan was on the 3rd floor and was on her way to being the next badass editor. At least a close version of my good friend, David Zivan, who is the Editor and Chief of Modern Luxury’s Chicago Social magazine. You see, here is the thing -- my family is in publishing. I had all of the mentors and accolades to become that badass editor, including writing for Chicago Social for every monthly issue.
Now we all know that working part time is all well and good, but what we really want is the title. I wanted to be the FT Copy-Editor at the RedEye or the Assistant Editor at Chicago Social. Not just someone who works for them on a consistent basis. But, that’s what I was doing. And if you know anyone in publishing they will tell you it is a hard business. Most people say “It’s not what you know, its who you know” in publishing, you have got to know both. And I did. The moment finally came where I had an interview to be the FT Copy Editor at the RedEye – I did my best (I knew these people), although I had a drink or two before I went in -- (which maybe I shouldn’t have, but we will never know now) I didn’t get the job. But that didn’t matter, because the very next week I was having an interview for the Assistant Editor position for Chicago Social. Although I didn’t have a drink before, I still didn’t get the job. And by this time I had been at the Tribune for 2 years and felt myself going nowhere fast.
I loathed my advertising job and nothing seemed to be working in my favor – so I quit. I had a side hustle at a website that paid the bills and I was set on finding what was next. And BOY did I have no idea what was coming.
Of course, right after I quit the Tribune the website went under (literally about 2 months later) and out of business. But what is even more incredible is the same day they let me go I accepted a job as an Administrative Assistant at Chicago Social Magazine. David knew I needed a job. Still writing for Chicago Social and now finally in their building, I figured it was only a matter of time, until it was my time. It was bad enough I felt like less than myself because I went from the 3rd floor of the Tribune Tower to filing invoices and expense reports. So I put my head down and did what I had to do. But shit! It is hard to do a job you know you are better than. As I sit here and type this, I am still at this job – but not for the same reasons, it’s not to become an editor. Every day that went by, that turned into weeks, and turned into months of feeling confused, anxious and desperate I was getting closer to my breakthrough. I found myself thinking, “I don’t like doing this.” And I don’t mean the administrative part -- I went in knowing that. I realized I had been lying to myself the entire time. I didn’t want to be an editor as bad as I thought – I think it was more about the glamour. I wanted to be an editor because everyone I knew, knew of me as one.
Then, it happened. I got bored enough to look up Evan Spiegel. Who is Evan Spiegel you ask? He is the guy who owns the app you are on all day – Snapchat, -- this guy is 26 years old and just proposed to a super model. Now if there is one thing I know about myself it’s that I do love to read. And Forbes can have some great articles. On that day I was looking at 30 under 30 and read about how Snapchat began. The whole time I am reading about this guy, I am thinking, “you have GOT to be kidding!” And I thought to myself, “I am severely unhappy and bored, what else can I do?” Reading about that guy made me realize that life is moving and I have got to move with it. I had finally got to the point where I was tired of waiting and not knowing what I was waiting for. So what happened? GIFSTR.
As I am reading about Evan Spiegel and how he basically revolutionized the video, in the same way Instagram revolutionized the photograph, I thought, “well the gif hasn’t been revolutionized, at least not yet.” But how does one do that?
Immediately I knew I was on to something. I started looking up everything I could find on gifs. It wasn’t until I was on the bus headed home that I thought of voice. Put a voice and a gif together, and you are suddenly narrating over a gif.
Now granted, I know absolutely NOTHING about technology. I know words.
But all of a sudden, with what seemed to be a grand idea, especially since there was no app offering it that I knew of – I had to figure out how to do it myself. And when I say that, I mean someone to do it for me. I told my mother about what I intended to do and how I had no idea how to go about it and she told me about 1871. Thank the heavens I am from and am living in Chicago! I find out 1871 basically gives entrepreneurs all of the resources they could ever need for their start-ups. Now of course, you have to be accepted and pay a monthly fee, which wasn’t ideal but I didn’t see another option. $150/month ain’t cheap on a $30k a year budget. Luckily for me, my special skill in editing and writing allows me to work from anywhere. And before I started working at Chicago Social I had been interviewing with another website, called The CheatSheet for a FT position as a remote Assistant Editor. Wouldn’t you know that as I decided to pursue GIFSTR I landed the FT job at the CheatSheet. I now was able to work two FT jobs, at the front desk of Chicago Social and double my income to pursue this new dream.
Suddenly, I am on this journey to building an app. I was accepted into 1871 on February 29th and had my orientation on the March 7th. I met my app’s development company on March 11th and the rest is history.
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