What made you want to do the work you do? Please share the full story.
I have been going to events for years, looking for connection, and looking for events that weren’t centered around alcohol or loud music (as a non-drinker, and person with hearing issues). I would get glimpses of it here and there, but it was never the focus, or the priority. Well, I decided it was time someone MADE it a priority, and that someone could be me. I had to build my own confidence as a host/facilitator, but I got there and I’m really excited to be creating the kinds of events I want to go to!
Tell us 3 surprisingly easy and 3 surprisingly difficult things about your business.
Easy 1 – I am creating and running events that allow me to do what I love and be my best self, and it turns out that leading with your passion and a genuine smile is a really great marketing strategy!
Easy 2 – Running an event does take a lot of different skills, but fortunately as a multi-passionate person, I already have most of those skills. So while the average person might struggle to wear 2 or more different hats at once, I seem to be wired to wear 5 as a baseline. It certainly helps!
Easy 3 – Running a business takes work, but it’s true what they say – if you do what you love, it doesn’t feel as much like work, because you get energy back from it, unlike a day job where you’re just giving and not really getting anything back besides a paycheck.
Hard 1 – Running a business is often very lonely, especially depending on the kind of business. I haven’t always liked my coworkers at 9-5 jobs, but building something on your own can feel really isolating and like you have no one to talk to who ‘gets’ it.
Hard 2 – I’m an extrovert, creating, organizing, and hosting events, but even so, I don’t always get to have *quality* connections as much as quantity. And if I put all this energy into an event, and then the weather sucks and not many people come, that can be really deflating and disappointing, but I still have to do my best to put on a happy/brave face and pretend it’s a great day.
Hard 3 – Not owning a car really sucks sometimes. I’ve made a LOT of progress in my life from bootstrapping things, but at a certain point, you get tired of lugging gear/supplies on public transit, especially in crappy weather.
What are the 3 things you like best about your work and why?
1. I get to bring my full self to ‘work’, and I help other people find their shine.
2. Even after some of the longest, hardest days, knowing that 100% of my effort went towards MY dreams/goals, and not someone else’s, I do not take that for granted.
3. I think anyone who runs their own business appreciates getting to call the shots. We spend so much of our lives being told no, ‘not like that’, ‘wait your turn’, so getting to say ‘this is how I think this is best done’ and not having to argue or convince anyone, that’s a wonderful freedom.
What are your greatest 3 skills and how have they helped you succeed?
1. being multi-passionate, if you’d call that a skill. Just being wired to love learning and growing and actualizing ideas. I am always moving ‘forward’, I am always iterating, and the more things I learn the more capable I become.
2. empathy and genuine desire to connect and help people. some people think of business as just ‘this is my way to make a bunch of money that I get to keep’, but i’m trilled to know that I can do the work I’m passionate about and also help make people’s lives better. when you put yourself out there, you meet genuinely amazing people!
3. determination (sometimes stubbornness). a lot of people quit when the going gets tough, but a rare few will refuse to take no for an answer, and find an alternative path. and being that sort of person, you can become a role model for others, if they see you kicking ass even when it’s hard, they want to try harder as well.
Tell us about a time you were dead wrong about something.
When I hired a speaker agent (after slugging it out on my own for years), I genuinely thought I would start getting booked for paid gigs immediately, because obviously I was talented, well-spoken, versatile, and confident. My brand and message wasn’t well enough refined yet. I also got a rude awakening when I started applying for grant funding, expecting that to come within a matter of weeks, let alone months.
How do you get yourself out of a funk? Please share the details.
I am fortunate that art is my hobby, and art is a great way to let out/express feelings whether positive or negative. Sometimes I will just do some graphic design for fun, sometimes I will say ‘I need to edit a new promo video’ and I can just lock myself into the editing bay for the afternoon and no matter what, I will come out with something that will remind me why I’m doing this. Alternatively, I’ll text a friend or send them voice-memo. 95% of the time, I’m in a funk because I’ve been working too hard and not getting to be a human enough, so doing things that remind me of my humanity really help!
What do you value most and why?
I have really come to value my belief in myself, and my self determination. It took me many many years to convince myself I truly was as talented and capable as I am, to the point that I don’t get shaken by weak/small responses, I know I’m just posting at a bad time or not reaching ‘my people’. I know it’s really hard to believe in yourself sometimes when it feels like literally not another soul on earth does, but you owe it to yourself to say ‘I AM good enough and even if they don’t see it today, they will see it one of these days’
What are you doing that is difficult? Please explain.
I made the ‘mistake’ for a few years of grinding it out on my own. I knew I needed help, but couldn’t really afford it so I kept just trying to do everything myself out of necessity. But I reached a point where it was painfully clear to me that I was never going to get fully airborne without help. So I bit the bullet and invested in professional help, and while it has not been cheap, it has absolutely made a world of difference! I am still doing too much by myself, but I basically hired people to help me market myself ‘top level’ to maximize getting compensated for the value I can bring in what I do. That will make it easier in time to hire for smaller help. The other difficult thing is that, as much as being multi-passionate has made lots of things possible for me that aren’t for others, it means I am not happy unless I am doing multiple things, so I am technically running 2 different businesses that have overlap. It’s challenging, but I wouldn’t be happy if I had to drop either one, so it’s a juggling act I’m willing to do.
Who is your favorite motivational speaker and why?
Adam Savage from the Mythbusters is up there. He’s super smart, very humble, has great self awareness and empathy, he’s funny, and he wants to make the world a better place. Those are all things I would want to be said about me, and I’m grateful to have great role models like Adam.
What advice would you give to your younger self and why?
I’m honestly a bit torn on this. I want to say ‘get a proper mentor/coach sooner!’, but just about every coach or guidance person I’ve ever talked to has told me I ‘can’t do all these different things’, and they were wrong. What they needed to say was ‘okay, clearly you’re driven to do all these things, if you are going to continue that, then you need to figure out how to make them work *together* instead of juggling 5 totally separate projects’. I also would have greatly benefitted from someone who understood multi-passion, and could explain to me/give examples of types of jobs/work that were well suited to people like me. You CAN succeed as a Jack of all trades, but you have to be creative and resourceful. No one is just going to hand you a job that works well for you that way. But as I said with a previous question, never finding the right mentor for myself led me to become my own mentor. The guidance I was being given was not working for me, and I had to truly, deeply understand why. And figured out ‘okay, it HAS to be like this for me, so how do I make *this* work? I won’t be happy any other way’. But going through all that, as much as I wish I could get the time back, it really firmly solidified my belief in myself and gave me the confidence to push back when I needed to.
Who has been your biggest mentor in life (personal or professional) and how have they helped you?
A bunch of different people have been indirect mentors to me. I don’t really feel like any one person has taken me under their wing as a dedicated thing, which has been frustrating, but also forced me to grow. I feel like a rare breed with how intensely passionate and driven I am, and at least more recently I’ve finally found some community around that. But friends, family, very few people in my life understand flying this close to the sun.
Just for fun, what is your favorite food?
It depends on the time of year and my mood, but I do always look forward to fresh, cold watermelon on a hot summer day.