Is there life after influencing?

AT HER first full-time job since leaving influencing, erstwhile smoothie bowl virtuoso Lee Tilghman stunned a new co-worker with her enthusiasm for the 9-to-5 grind.

She had once had what he wanted: flexible hours, no boss, a devoted audience so rabid for her recommendations that she could command as much as US$20,000 for a single branded Instagram post advertising alternative nut flours or frozen sweet potato fries on her 400,000-follower account, @LeeFromAmerica.

The co-worker pulled her aside that first morning, wanting to impress upon her the stakes of that decision. “This is terrible,” he told her. “Like, I’m at a desk.”