The Wednesday Play: Volatility is an Opportunity

Hi Playmakers,

If you’ve been paying attention to the stock market lately, you know it’s been... a ride. One moment everything’s rallying, the next it’s in freefall. Uncertainty is everywhere, and the instinct is to retreat. To wait it out until things feel “stable” again.

But here’s the thing: volatility isn’t just noise. It’s a signal.

Whether it's the markets, your career, or life in general, moments of turbulence often mark a turning point. They shake us out of autopilot. They create cracks in the status quo. And in those cracks? That’s where the light gets in.

Volatility is uncomfortable, but it also makes space for reinvention. It invites bold moves, fresh thinking, and leaps that felt too risky just a few weeks ago.

I’ve found that the biggest shifts in my life didn’t come during calm, predictable seasons. They came in the messy, uncertain ones. The ones that felt like a breakdown... right before the breakthrough.

Early in our marriage, my husband and I gave up modest career trajectories to move to San Francisco, sight unseen. We didn’t have a plan or jobs, but we had a vision. Suddenly, we didn’t know how we would make money, what would happen with our careers, or if we would be able to succeed. Everything was changing rapidly, and volatility was at an all-time-high.

But it was this volatility that allowed for a chance encounter. I was able to put myself in front of the right people, and I became a lobbyist for Silicon Valley’s biggest companies. This put my entire career (and life) on a trajectory beyond my wildest dreams.

So if things feel a little wobbly right now, that’s okay. Maybe even good. This week’s newsletter is your reminder: volatility is an opportunity… if you’re willing to see it that way.

Let’s dive in.

Jenny

In 2024, Mira Murati made a decision that stunned the tech world. After helping to build OpenAI into one of the most valuable companies on the planet as a co-founder, she stepped away from her role as Chief Technology Officer to start over.

Her reason was clear: she believed the future of artificial intelligence needed more than profit motives.

Insights are only valuable if they’re acted on. Let’s turn this knowledge into impact with small but powerful action steps.

This week’s challenge: find a way to capitalize on big changes going on in your life.

Think about areas in your life where volatility is highest. Where do you feel like things are in flux the most? Try to reframe that part of your life and look for an opportunity to take a big leap in a new direction.

Call to Action:

1️⃣ Post on LinkedIn or your platform of choice about how you’re using volatility as an opportunity.

2️⃣ Report back! Drop a comment to share your post below. The best responses will be featured next week.

Every week, I spotlight somebody from the community who is making a big play in their career or industry. This week’s play is Annie-Mai Hodge, the founder of Girl Power Marketing. With over 100,000 followers on LinkedIn, Annie-Mai has made a name for herself in the social media marketing space.

The only catch? Other users keeps stealing her work — word for word.

So, Annie-Mai notoriously features fake updates every week in her trend reports to help catch the people copying her work as her own. Some of my favorites have included “Instagram launching the Touch Grass feature to tell influencers to go outside” and “Vine never actually went under, but has been secretly been around this entire time”.

Savage. And that’s why Annie-Mai is this week’s #Playmaker.

Want to be featured next?

Make sure to tag @jennystojkovic on your posts across LinkedIn, X, Instagram, or TikTok, and use the hashtag #Playmaker.

The Wednesday Play isn’t just a newsletter — it’s a community. I’ll be announcing much more in coming weeks and months! For now, let’s connect across social.

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