[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/www.faulkner.edu\/news\/from-graduation-to-entrepreneurship-madelyn-furlongs-share-the-art-of-building-a-business\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/www.faulkner.edu\/news\/from-graduation-to-entrepreneurship-madelyn-furlongs-share-the-art-of-building-a-business\/","headline":"From Graduation to Entrepreneurship: Madelyn Furlong Shares the Art of Building a Business","name":"From Graduation to Entrepreneurship: Madelyn Furlong Shares the Art of Building a Business","description":"Madelyn Furlong \u201cMy goal is to help my clients show up online with confidence, transform their customers into cheerleaders, and take their business to the next level,\u201d said Faulkner Alumna Madelyn Furlong. Furlong is self-employed, currently working as a marketing…","datePublished":"2025-04-02","dateModified":"2025-04-11","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.faulkner.edu\/author\/jklose\/#Person","name":"Jade Klose","url":"https:\/\/www.faulkner.edu\/author\/jklose\/","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/602c91958b83d1415e80687c93f84a69?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/602c91958b83d1415e80687c93f84a69?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Faulkner University","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.faulkner.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/Official-Horizontal-480x128.png","url":"https:\/\/www.faulkner.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/Official-Horizontal-480x128.png","width":480,"height":128}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.faulkner.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/Madelyn_Victoria_Headshot-1-scaled.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.faulkner.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/Madelyn_Victoria_Headshot-1-scaled.jpg","height":2560,"width":2290},"url":"https:\/\/www.faulkner.edu\/news\/from-graduation-to-entrepreneurship-madelyn-furlongs-share-the-art-of-building-a-business\/","about":["Alumni","Highlights","News"],"wordCount":496,"articleBody":"Madelyn Furlong\u201cMy goal is to help my clients show up online with confidence, transform their customers into cheerleaders, and take their business to the next level,\u201d said Faulkner Alumna Madelyn Furlong. Furlong is self-employed, currently working as a marketing strategist and website designer in Wetumpka, Alabama. Through her company, Madelyn Victoria Co., she helps small businesses create ShowIt websites and engaging social media content so they can turn their leads into sales. Furlong graduated from Faulkner in 2022 with a Bachelor of Arts in English.  During her time at Faulkner, she participated in the Great Books Honors College, graduated Summa Cum Laude, and received the President\u2019s Award. She also completed her internship with Faulkner\u2019s Marketing Department. Furlong highlighted how Faulkner benefited her in embracing discomfort. She said, \u201cI was constantly encouraged to step outside of my comfort zone, and in doing so, I realized that growth comes from pushing past stagnation and complacency. This mindset has especially served me well because I have to do things outside of my comfort zone all the time for work now!\u201d  Furlong continued to praise Faulkner and the Great Books Program. She noted how her professors encouraged her to not shy away from the hard questions when it came to faith. She continued, \u201cThey instilled in me the importance of lifelong learning\u2014not just in academics, but in faith and personal development as well. They gave me the space and tools to explore my interests, not only in my field of study, but also in guiding my future career.\u201d  Post-graduation, Furlong worked part-time jobs at Sweet Home Books, an independent bookstore in Wetumpka, and as the administrative assistant for Faulkner\u2019s president, Mitch Henry. However, Furlong\u2019s dream since high school was to own a business, and she was still determined to start her corporate career right after graduating from college. While working these two jobs, Furlong decided to continue to test out her social media management \u201cside-hustle.\u201d Though very different in nature, both jobs were instrumental in her personal and professional growth. Eventually, her side-hustle turned into a full-time entrepreneurship.  While she works more than the traditional eight-to-five job, Furlong loves meeting new people and working with clients to help them bring their business goals to life. Furlong said, \u201cNot only do I love the creative side of my job\u2014the design, strategy, and client projects\u2014but I’ve found that I really enjoy the business side as well.\u201d When she has some downtime (which can sometimes be hard to come by as an entrepreneur!), she enjoys hiking, reading, and spending time with family. Madelyn leaves readers with this encouragement on embracing the discomfort: \u201cWhether it\u2019s public speaking or interacting with business leads or learning how to balance work with my personal life\u2014or even just starting my business in the first place\u2014discomfort is such a great opportunity to lean on God and develop resilience.\u201d "},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"News","item":"https:\/\/www.faulkner.edu\/news\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"From Graduation to Entrepreneurship: Madelyn Furlong Shares the Art of Building a Business","item":"https:\/\/www.faulkner.edu\/news\/from-graduation-to-entrepreneurship-madelyn-furlongs-share-the-art-of-building-a-business\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]