Trading laps for lines: How swimming shaped my career in copywriting

When I moved from Wisconsin to Phoenix, Arizona welcomed me with open arms—and 120-degree heat. It was August when I began my freshman year at Arizona State University and my first season as a Sun Devil on the swim team. Training outside every day in the sunshine was the complete opposite of my indoor, chlorine-infested club swimming days in the Midwest, but that’s exactly what I was looking for: something entirely new.

If you know anything about swimming, you understand the intensity and dedication required to be anything more than average. If you’re unfamiliar with the demands of the sport personally, you’re probably more familiar with the constant disappointment of friends who can never hang out because they have an endless amount of practices.

Besides sacrifice, swimming taught me lessons and standards that apply to all aspects of life. Long before I ever applied for a job, it was laying the foundation for how to succeed in the professional world.

"Interwoven into every grueling practice were discipline, work ethic, and accountability. It taught me the art of multitasking and how to succeed both academically and athletically. I learned how to take feedback and apply it directly to my work. And beyond all of that, it taught me to keep striving to be better, even when you think you’ve reached your peak."

The beauty of swimming is how it’s both an individual and a team sport. The effort you put in each day affects not only yourself but also a team of other overachievers. Success depends on inner drive as well as commitment to your team. Of everything swimming taught me, that lesson stayed with me the most.

Fast-forward to my final collegiate season, where I was fortunate to close that chapter of my life with a few PRs and the lessons the sport had taught me. After 15 years of competitive swimming, I turned to what I loved second only to swimming: writing.

When I wasn’t in the pool or a classroom, writing consumed my free time. During my undergrad, I decided to pursue this passion and turn it into a career. I was accepted into an exclusive Creative Writing Concentration and began applying everything I had learned from swimming to my writing. Along with my literature major, I minored in business, where I learned the fundamentals of other forms of writing, including marketing and business copy/content development.

After graduating with my Master’s, I scoured LinkedIn and other job websites in search of a career in writing. One day, I received an email from FabCom, an elite Scottsdale marketing agency, offering me an interview for a Creative Copywriting position. It was the perfect blend of my background in business and creative writing. After a few rounds of interviews, I was offered the position, and I realized my dream of pursuing a career in writing had suddenly become a reality.

On my first day at FabCom, I came prepared with all the life skills swimming had instilled in me, and they did not let me down. From day one, it was clear that FabCom is a marketing team dedicated to producing the best work possible. The creatives, developers, and client services teams all work seamlessly together, pursuing excellence in everything they do. It felt like walking back onto the pool deck, surrounded by people just as driven and committed to success.

As a Creative Copywriter at FabCom, my role involves marketing content development for a wide range of marketing initiatives, including email campaigns, digital and print ads, billboards, audio scripts, website content, video ads, and much more. Beyond writing, I also edit and proofread to ensure clarity, consistency, and quality across all client deliverables and internal agency work. Every day I’m working on something new and different. One of the most valuable lessons I’ve learned is the importance of truly understanding each client’s unique voice and brand, and how to communicate it in a way that resonates with their audience.

FabCom’s approach to marketing goes deeper than surface-level messaging. It’s rooted in Neuromarketology, focused on understanding the behavioral, psychographic, demographic, and sociographic aspects of customers, as well as the psychology behind their decisions. This proprietary method helps me craft copy that engages audiences and inspires action.

One aspect of FabCom’s approach that stood out to me early on is how its comprehensive marketing strategy process helped me quickly understand each client’s brand. Detailed target audience profiles gave me a clear picture of who we’re speaking to and how to tailor messaging accordingly. Through SWOT analyses of each client’s offerings and competitive analysis references, I was able to grasp their unique selling points, market positioning, and competitive landscape early on. This foundation allowed me to step into client work with confidence and ensure that every piece of copy I write is informed, intentional, and aligned with the brand’s goals.

What sets FabCom apart is how it operates as an integrated marketing agency, really partnering with clients versus acting like just a vendor, and ensuring that marketing strategy, creative messaging, and technical execution are all aligned with the client’s goals.

"Much like swimming, success here isn’t accidental; it’s the result of strategy, adaptability, and collaboration."

Working at a full-service marketing agency means no project exists in isolation. I’ve had the opportunity to work alongside designers, programmers, videographers, client services, and more, each bringing a different perspective and expertise to the table. Seeing how each department approaches problem-solving has expanded the way I think about my own work and how my role fits into the bigger picture. Learning from other team members has pushed me to become a stronger copywriter, with every conversation feeling like a chance to improve both the work and my own skill set.

In many ways, my transition from competitive swimming to copywriting feels less like a change and more like a continuation. Swimming taught me discipline, resilience, accountability, and how to thrive in a high-performance team environment. FabCom has given me the opportunity to apply those same lessons in a new arena, one where words replace laps, but the pursuit of excellence remains the same.

As I continue to grow as a marketing copywriter, I’m excited to learn from some of the best in the industry and to discover new skills that swimming alone could never teach me.