What's up with JSAND4MAYOR
I often get inquiries about my unique domain and email address, 'jsand4mayor.com'.
When/Where are you going to run for mayor?
Are you for real?
Sit back, grab your popcorn, this is the origin story of @JSAND4MAYOR, JSAND4MAYOR.com, and joke that has been running for 16 years.
The Origin Story of JSAND4MAYOR
It all started during my junior year of high school, kids from the community would create a "receiving line" prior to getting on the bus to travel to football games. Instead of following the stereotypical path of giving high fives while running through the tunnel and taking my seat on the bus. I decided to slow down and shake hands of each person and say "Jeff Sanders for Mayor". This quickly developed into a joke about my running for mayor throughout that period after football days were through.
@JSAND4MAYOR is born
When I went to college, the joke kind of went away until the spring of 2008. That's until spring break of 2008 when my best friend Matt encouraged me to get on Twitter. I was resistant to the idea initially, with the justification of "I already had a Facebook account, what it the difference."
During my spring break in my hometown, boredom had taken over and I created my Twitter account. I was racking my brain, trying to come up with a unique handle.
As I sat there pondering, it struck me. I chose "JSAND4MAYOR" as my Twitter handle, symbolizing Matt and I’s shared high school football memories, and the lighthearted joke that started it all. Little did I know, this seemingly random decision would change my life, at least my career path.
Twitter-induced career changes
As I delved into Twitter, I grew captivated by the power and potential of social media. It was more than just a platform for personal updates; it rapidly shaped businesses, trends, and public opinion. This interest soon extended beyond personal hobbies and influenced my professional life.
During my first year at KPMG, I connected with a director who shared a similar curiosity about the impact of social media on businesses. Together, we established a practice focused on understanding and mitigating the risks associated with social media.
5 years along my journey into the social media world sparked a new interest, diverging from my original career path in accounting and IT risk. I was drawn to the creative, strategic, and impactful field of marketing. Switching into marketing felt like a natural progression at this point.
JSAND the marketer
Venturing into my first job as a marketer, I found myself working closely with our IT team. Our project at the time was setting up an email domain server and configuring the SSL certificate for a project site. I was amazed by the intricacy that appeared to envelop these tasks. It seemed as though the process was unnecessarily convoluted, adding more complexity than necessary.
Motivated by this belief, I took matters into my own hands. One weekend, I established my own site, and email server with the SSL certificate configured. I learned that the process was not as simple as I perceived but at this point, I am sure you can guess what, I chose as my domain name. jsand4mayor.com obviously.
Jokes in high school can impact the rest of your life
Today, this domain redirects to the site where you're reading this story. 'jsand4mayor.com' stands as a testament to my learning, persistence, and a word of caution against the jokes your teenagers make in high school. They truly can impact the rest of your life.
