How Strategic Networking Landed Her The at HubSpot – with ZERO Online Applications

Sage Nathan x Katy Culver

When we first met, Sage Nathan had a stellar track record. She was the second hire at a pre-seed startup, and helped grow the company from two to a hundred people.

But despite all that success, she felt… stuck.

She wasn’t looking for just another job. She wanted a career. A path forward that actually made sense.

Fast forward a few months, and Sage landed an Account Executive role at HubSpot. 

This is the exact title and level she wanted, without having to start over or take a step back.

Here’s how it happened.

The Challenge: “I just wasn't really sure where my career was going”

Sage was responsible for building the revenue engine from scratch at her startup. She led sales and partnerships for nearly five years. 

She was proud of everything she’d built, but she couldn’t see the next step clearly. 

Should she double down on partnerships? Pivot fully into sales? Or take a totally different route?

She hadn’t updated her resume in 6 years, and hadn’t been in the job market since college.
 

Sage had never really invested in herself with coaching before, so signing up for The Purposeful Path Accelerator felt like a big leap. 

However, she knew she needed structure, support, and someone to help her stop overthinking and start moving. 

That’s where PPA comes in.

The Shift: From figuring out her clarity to coffee chat expert

Inside PPA, Sage leaned all the way in.
 

Every week she showed up with goals, progress, and questions.

Her first phase was about clarity: filling her cup, slowing down, and really figuring out what she wanted. 

Then came what we call Coffee Chat Mode.

With a little nudge, Sage went from planning 5-10 chats to scheduling nearly 30 conversations in a month and a half. 

She wasn’t asking for jobs: she was asking for the insights from people whose career trajectory interested her. 

One phrase from PPA became her go-to line: “I’d really value your perspective”.

All the difference came from Sage’s commitment: she invested real time and energy into learning and refining a tailored cold outreach approach.

Her network was built through authentic relationships and by presenting herself with confidence.

Those were the keys to making her job-hunt timeline really short.

That simple shift helped her stand out, have authentic connections, and even sparked interviews she didn’t see coming.

Where is Sage now?

Today, Sage is at her new role as an Account Executive at HubSpot. 

Exactly the role she was aiming for.

Along the way, she not only found clarity, but also became a go-to resource inside The PPA community: helping other members master their outreach with her natural sales superpowers.

She’s walking away with a new job, yes. 

But also with skills, friendships, and a whole new level of certainty she’ll carry through every future pivot.

Thank you, Sage, for sharing your journey!