Classifieds: ClassPass, Amazon, Spotify & More!
From client services to all things web.
We’re back a brand new list of C&C Classifieds. This week’s roundup includes big-time names, including Amazon and Spotify, along wth gigs in programming and client services.
There’s something in here for every type of gal, whether you’re a social media guru or are killing it in the marketing game.
Take a look, jot down some notes, and apply!
ClassPass - NY, NY
Salt & Straw - Portland, OR
Amazon - NY, NY
Spotify - LA, CA
AdWeek - NY, NY
Retail Me Not - Austin, TX
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How to Dress Like a Boss at Work This Fall
Business in the front and back.
With today’s office environments featuring a wide range of dress codes from suited up to business casual, selecting an outfit for work each morning can be downright stressful! You want to ensure you look professional but you also want to be able to add your own personal style to your work look—it doesn’t have to be as difficult as it sounds.
JCPenney offers an array of stylish career wear, with on-trend fashions for women of every shape and size, and for jobs of every kind. And if you find yourself heading out to a lot of evening events when the workday is over, JCPenney has you covered with day-to-night pieces to take the stress of switching outfits away.
JCPenney recently joined Create & Cultivate at our Chicago conference, where the retailer showcased trend-forward looks to our attendees from its collection of private brands including Liz Claiborne, Worthington, a.n.a. and Boutique+.
To bring this fashion inspiration to all our readers, we’ve teamed up with the JCPenney once again – this time to share five key looks to take with you to the office this fall. From bold colors, fashion jackets, wide leg pants and even menswear as well as athleisure inspired looks, these trends will work however—and wherever—you work:
Bold Color
Ditch the traditional pantsuit and add a vibrant hue to your closet. Pair a bold power pantsuit with a classic pair of black pumps and strut with confidence as you head to your desk.
The Fashion Jacket
For a casual, yet polished look, pair a patterned blazer with your favorite jeans and add kitten heels into the mix to complete the look.
Menswear
If you’re the type to experiment with your looks, try mixing and matching patterns, texture and color. Menswear-inspired textiles take on a whole new look when mixed with feminine details like a floral or animal-print blouse.
Don’t forget to complete your boss work look with a visit to Sephora inside JCPenney and the Salon by InStyle.
For more stylish work staples, head over to JCPenney.com and shop your favorites. What’s your go-to office look for fall? Let us know in the comments below!
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6 Books You Should Read This Month
Gather your book club!
Fall is right around the corner. Grab your cozy sweater, pumpkin spiced latte, and these great reads to get you through the season. Not only with the changing leaves comes new book releases, but it is also a time for us to make changes for ourselves to live better and more fulfilled lives. In turn, these books can give the ‘spice’ we need to inspire us to chase after our dreams. We hope you fall in love with these books full of advice and anecdotes as much as we have!
Money Diaries, Lindsey Stanberry
Featuring advice from a team of female financial advisers, the Refinery29 series-turned-book gives readers an inside look into personal finances, from spending to saving and everything in between. Learn how to save the most, while affording a comfortable everyday life at the same time. With the money challenges and easy steps to follow, take control of your finances today.
Under Fire, April Ryan
Ryan provides readers with an inside look into adjustment reporters on the frontlines made with the chaos and confusion of today’s political climate. From policy debates, to asking hard-hitting questions, we see her transition from being the one who writes the stories to the one who is written about.
She Would Be King, Wayetu Moore
In her debut novel, Moore takes readers through the journeys of three characters during Liberia’s formation. The use of history and magical realism showcases her vibrant storytelling of the African Diaspora, while highlighting ties to the United States. In addition to the three pivotal roles of Gbessa, June Dey, and Norman Aragon, the spirit of wind also adds an air of wisdom when speaking of Gbessa: “If she was not a woman, then she would be king.”
Transcription, Kate Atkinson
Atkinson explores the world of espionage during the WWII era through the lens of 18-year-old Juliet Armstrong. A decade after the war ended, Armstrong works for BBC as a radio producer, only to be confronted by her past. Through moments of wit, power, empathy, and betrayal, the bestselling author tells this story in best way she possibly can; victoriously.
Small Fry, Lisa Brennan-Jobs
With the recent Apple Special Event happening just days ago, founder Steve Jobs’ and artist Chrisann Brennan’s daughter, Lisa, depicts her life living on a farm while Silicon Valley was constantly changing, and the minimal role her father played in her life. Later on in life, her father began paying closer attention to her and showing her the luxuries life has to offer, which felt great, but at times he was cold and critical. This is a wise and funny story of childhood and the magic of growing up in the first family of technology during the seventies and eighties in California.
The Best Damn Answers to Life’s Hardest Questions, Tess Koman
This collection of flowcharts, pros and cons lists and rants is the book we needed to get us through our tough decisions. The advice is invaluable, but also relatable AF which makes this the perfect gift for the indecisive person in your group chats. We know who you are.
By: Ashley Banayan
Ashley is a senior at the University of Southern California pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Public Relations from the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism with a minor in Web Technologies and Applications from the Viterbi School of Engineering. Currently, she works as an editorial intern for Create and Cultivate. She has experience in traditional public relations, social media marketing, influencer relations, content creation, and web development. Furthermore, she is the founder of Geocasion, a company designing Snapchat Geofilters for both businesses and personal clients, garnering 4.5 million views. In turn, these experiences led her to focus on the convergence and disruption in media, communication and web technologies.
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How to Use Your Weekend Plans to Elevate Your Brand
Cheers!
Ahhh…the weekend. We’re trying to stay productive while enjoying our jam-packed social schedules, running errands, and more. It’s not easy to balance it all but, of course, you make it happen. But what if it could be easier? What if you could enjoy some dinner and drinks while making strides for the future of your company?
It’s possible, and you can get started today. Ahead, learn how you can leverage your weekend plans to help boost your brand.
Elevate Your Personal Brand
The quality of your network strengthens (or weakens) your personal brand. In turn, your personal brand impacts the brand of your business. So get out there. Meet new people and make new friends. Meet them without expectations and realize the benefits turn up in the long run. This isn’t the time for the hard sell and don’t try to close any deals.
Excellent summertime networking spots include professionally elevated social and co-working spaces, conferences and even Facebook groups dedicated to exciting events. For membership spots, I like Soho House, NeueHouse, WeWork, and The Wing. For conferences and events, check out Summit, and Create & Cultivate, of course. These are the kinds of places where it’s okay to talk business while having fun. Research for your best fit, and get ready to discover new like-minded people.
Relax and have fun. Sometimes you’ll find it’s best to keep the business talk to a minimum, but always at least share what you do and find out what industry others’ are in. And chances are you may even know some of the same people since you’re hanging out at the same place. This could serve to further strengthen these new connections while lending everyone greater credibility and trust.
Strengthen Your Network for Future Opportunities
Your network can lead you to significant opportunities in the future like partnerships and branded collaborations. Special deals like these can boost your sales and the visibility of your brand.
For instance, let’s say a particular company is in high demand for collaborations. You and the CEO are friends or share the same friends. This immediately gets you on the shortlist for who will most likely get the deal. That’s not all. The collaboration will be easier to plan and execute and could even cost significantly less than it would if you didn’t have a personal connection.
Introduce the Possibility of Potential Reduced Costs
The quality of your network can save you a great deal of money. If your network includes critical influencers, photographers, writers, and other industry talents, you can walk away with special pricing for photography, influencer campaigns, copywriting, PR, web development and more.
Finally, while I’ve mentioned a million benefits for you, don’t forget about everyone else. Relationships are always a two-way street, and as I said, your plan is to make friends. Friends help one another out!
Always be mindful of opportunities that show up on your radar that could interest others in your network. Think about how you can help the people you know. Could this buyer benefit from meeting this emerging handbag designer? Could this photographer benefit from meeting this magazine editor? Also be willing to share your expert know-how through the form of friendly solicited advice.
The concept of networking can be cold and very transactional. We prefer to think of it as making new friends- because that’s really what it should be like at the end of the day. So make a new friend (or two) with mutual interests, and help one another out.
We’ll let you get back to dinner now…
By: Syama Meagher, Chief Retail Strategist at Scaling Retail
Scaling Retail has launched brands around the world, through a combination of expert advice and creative marketing strategy. We believe in the power of hard work to grow and build your businesses. Discover Scaling Retail at www.ScalingRetail.com.
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Four Reasons You Should Hire a PR Agency for Your Business
DIY is great when it comes to Pinterest, but not so much when it comes to PR.
Public relations is one of the most alluring, fast-paced and competitive industries to work within. Whether you were drawn into the industry because you like writing, managing information, or garnering press - one thing is certain, it is not for the faint-hearted.
It is also not for D-I-Y doers.
Yes, it is okay to buy a press release template and craft a release if you intend to dock it on your website, under the press tab. No, It is not okay to assume that media outlets will reach out to you because you put the release on your website.
No, CNN will not call you for an interview. No, ELLE magazine will not put you on the cover. If you are serious about getting publicity, hiring a publicist or an agency is your best bet. At a minimum, speaking to a consultant can help you understand why cold calling a journalist who writes about fashion trends to write about your cook book is unacceptable.
PR pros know how journalists, editors, and writers prefer to be contacted, and how to negotiate exclusivity. We spend years (and a lot of money attending conferences) building our network, so when we need a story to go out quickly, we can go through our Twitter lists, roller-deck, business card binder, email addresses, and cell phone. Our contacts are scared. Asking us to share our contacts with you is not okay. Journalists are overloaded with people asking them for press coverage each day and usually by someone who is copying and pasting the same email to other people in the same newsroom as them. It is the publicists responsibility to decide and leverage newsworthy coverage that benefits the client, and it must be done in a way that is respectful of journalists.
To help you better understand, if you’re revealing a new logo, as your publicist, I would share that news on social media, Facebook first, because it’s community-based. If you are changing the name of your company, as your publicist, I would write a press release and have it go through a newswire. A newswire can be costly, but it’s worth it because it improves the visibility of your news and helps you connect with your target audience. You would not want consumers still referring to your company by its old name because you never put out a statement to newswires. You know who did this wrong? Rally’s. The company formerly known as Rally’s is…Checkers! It has been more than a decade, but I remember it because I never really heard a bell to unring the name across a mass campaign. Smh.
I confess I am a snob when it comes to the public relations industry because we have a bad rep. There are a lot of party-promoters and event planners who use PR tactics but self-identify as a publicist when a job or pay calls for PR professionals skills. This brings me to four reasons why you should hire a public relations agency and not someone who knows a few PR tactics.
Crisis Communications
When things go wrong, you will always immediately fill with worry. Publicists are trained to begin researching and strategizing around formulas such as C.A.C. We handle the situation with care, action, and context. If there is a rumor, we research the rumor, take control of the rumor and address the rumor through the RIA formula. Publicists break down the reach, importance, and level of ambiguity of the rumor. We center the truth and take a position that is comfortable for the client and enough for the public. Don’t handle a crisis on your own. Even large companies are handling crises poorly. If something goes word, the last thing you should do is spin it. Spin is propaganda; it is used to deceive people and convince them to buy-in to what is being said or sold. Always be honest about your business, it’s successes and failures. The public is forgiving when you apologize for a mistake, not when you lie to cover it up. Get your PR team to serve as the first and last line of defense.
Reputation Management
The way you introduce yourself to the world is often the way the world will see you for years to come. Whether it is adversity towards a product or tragedy, reputation is the key elements of your business being successful or failing. Customers value trust above all else. For example, if you are a skincare company and you attend a conference where the founder is speaking on regulations of the beauty industry, and you cannot answer honestly that animals were not tested and harmed to produce your product, as a consumer, I would not trust you as a beauty lead, or businessperson. A publicist would can prep you for situations like that. You cannot respond, “oh, email me and I’ll ask the company that supplies my product.” Hire a publicist to help you craft the three things your business does exceptionally well, what your company is working on and what’s to come. If I were a consumer, I would believe you and continue to support you because you know your brand and where you plan to take it next. The more long-time consumers you have that trust you, the more of them will support you on social media, write reviews and video testimonials.
Return On Investment
Katie Bouwkamp said it best when she said, “the public relations industry has a big PR problem when it comes to communicating how it directly impacts the bottom-line.” Today, PR pros rely on several systems to be able to tell if your press plan is bringing in money or wasting money. The most popular way to know if your PR plan is thriving is website traffic generated after people read your earned media articles. PR pros use metrics such as website visitors generated, leads created through form submissions, and transactions completed (for e-commerce companies). To put it simply, web analytics track goal conversions and assign a dollar value to those conversions. Public relations firms are managing campaigns, writing news releases, producing content for social media and arranging interviews, preparing clients for press conferences, so that you can gain and retain loyal consumers. PR pros take your stakeholders seriously and have a deep understanding of what it means when those stakeholders are happy or unhappy.
Social Media
No matter how much you want to save money by running your social media account on your own, you will never be able to do it better than someone who knows how to do it practically and most importantly, theoretically. You will miss out on consumers every day who would have gladly paid $14 for a vegan lip balm - I know because I am one of those people. Believe it or not, there is a science and psychology behind levering your social media, and PR pros have mastered it. When you entrust a PR pro with your social media assets, we goal set between social capabilities to increase your brand awareness, get you a higher quality of sales, create a loyal fan base and get you a better pulse in your industry. We know how to find your competitors, not to necessarily to take them out but to make sure you are setting the standard, leading the way and bringing in just as much, of nor more revenue. We know what strategies to use to drive engagement and sales (for those of us who are hybrid-mass communications professionals) because we do a lot of social listening to find out what your consumers are saying about the brand and product. Let a PR pro manage your social media, not only so you can serve as the face, voice, and brand of your company, but so you can continue to grow your business.
In the vast skillsets of PR pros, there are a few things you should never D-I-Y, the four are mentioned are the ones I do not waiver on. Trust me it’s worth it, hire a PR firm.
By: Danyelle R. Carter
_______________________________________________________________________________
Danyelle R. Carter is the President of Her Communications Agency, the first communications and public affairs firm committed to delivering high impact strategy to organizations, companies, and candidates that center on advancing women and girls. She formerly served as a U.S. Digital and Press Congressional Staffer and legislative support for women and girls. While serving in the House of Representatives, Danyelle helped launched the Congressional Caucus on Black Women and Girls and Multicultural Media Caucus. Most notably, she conceptualized and wrote the bill to get a statue representative of Shirley Chisholm in the U.S. Capitol that is now being championed by Rep. Yvette Clarke (NY) and Senator Kamala Harris (CA). Connect with Danyelle on Twitter.
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How One Brand is Making the Fashion Industry More Inclusive
Making a statement one look at a time.
From the clothing, to hair and makeup, and all the way to the venue, fashion week is all about pushing boundaries. Yes, people are wondering if top models will be gracing the runway, and if they can get their photos snapped by street style photographers, but fashion week has a much deeper meaning now. For years, the fashion industry has been called out on not being diverse enough and not promoting enough inclusivity throughout the media and campaigns, and especially at fashion shows. Whether it’s editors of color who’ve shared that street style photographers ignore their looks on the street, or models who’ve stated they haven’t been cast based solely on the color of their skin, voices are louder than ever. The LGBTQ+ community doesn’t get much love as fashion month takes off, especially on the catwalk, but now change is coming for that too.
DapperQ’s catwalk is defying the stereotype of what a model “should” look like with models from all walks of the LGBTQ+ community to showcase their gender non-conforming pieces.
Founded by Anita Dolce Vita, dapperQ’s theme this NYFW was ‘dress code’, with the goal of unifying 10 designers whose intention was to strip the gender conformity associated with fashion, in their words, ‘queering’ it and exhibiting the talents of LGBTQ+ designers.
The theme was there to challenge designers to decode clothing and to take down stereotypes that are associated with certain garments. More than 65 models strutted their stuff on the catwalk at the Brooklyn Museum this year, contributing to what Dolce Vita calls the “queer fashion revolution, one of the most stylish forms of protest of our generation.” The models were all-encompassing in terms of race, gender, sexuality, and body type and featured athleisure, suiting, intimates and more, making it the most inclusive NYFW show to date.
For the fifth year in a row, dapperQ broke down the barriers and stereotypes in the fashion and LGBTQ+ communities alike. Dolce Vita shines a rainbow lens onto a world that leans so thin and white when it comes to both designers and models for her shows. Can we get an amen?
DapperQ is the premier queer style and empowerment website specifically for masculine presenting women and trans-identified individuals. Dubbed GQ for the “unconventionally masculine,” dapperQ was among the first digital spaces to champion “menswear” for those traditionally under-served by mainstream menswear media and designers.
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How Your Office Can Be More Environmentally Conscious
Starting with carpooling.
If we look at the world around us today, plenty of us are making more efforts to be conscious towards our Mother Earth. Whether it’s making an effort to recycle in your home or switching plastic straws for paper ones, being more conscious of our everyday decisions can have such a great impact on the way we function and the place we call our home.
Electric & Hybrid Vehicles
One thing we’ve all noticed is the abundance of electric or hybrid cars hitting our roads today, and it’s important to note that businesses can benefit from hopping on the bandwagon. Car manufacturers have picked up on the importance of this too; a great example is Volvo. All new Volvo models introduced from 2019 will have an electric motor, marking the end of cars that only have one internal combustion engine. That’s huge. Why is this important? Well, let us give you the full rundown.
This may be the biggest fact to point out. Using fuel-efficient vehicles such as electric, hybrid, or mild hybrids, will improve fuel economy and CO2 emissions. If that sounds confusing, think of it this way: the more fuel-efficient cars on the road, the less pollution. And trust us, we have enough pollution as it is. If businesses used these cars for company events, deliveries, etc. then they’re reducing their car footprint and encouraging cleaner, less-polluted roads.
Carpooling
Depending on where you live, carpooling can become an office tradition. If you look near colleagues and drive an electric or hybrid vehicle, why not give them a lift? Think about it; you’re encouraging fewer fuel emissions into the air, meaning that you’re contributing to promoting less pollution in your area. Your team can alternate on who gets to drive when and divide up rides into different groups every week or month. This method also works if your team has to head to any offsite meetings or events during the day. It’s a simple way to avoid having more cars on the road and helps save each other’s time.
Providing Charging Points
The US government has already agreed to invest in more car charging points across the country. As of 2017, it was reported that over 50,000 charging outlets for cars were available nationwide, and the number is only expected to increase. If companies make it a point to provide more charging points for their employees at an office’s parking structure, then it’s likely that more employees will get encouraged to go the electric or hybrid route. A full list of charging points across the country is available here, courtesy of the US Department of Energy.
Educating Yourselves
The topic of energy-saving vehicles can still be very complex and confusing, but it’s one worth learning more about. A team initiative for taking more steps to be more eco-friendly can be an educational workshop. Have an energy expert come in and talk with your team about all of the benefits of going electric or hybrid as a company. Highlighting the impacts that these vehicles can have on the environment is a great way to get started, but naturally, we’re all encouraged to make a change if we know what’s coming from it.
To learn more about Volvo and electric motors, check out the Volvo website for more information.
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How This SoCal Mom & Influencer Stays Healthy from the Inside Out
We all know how important it is to have a consistent beauty routine, while also practicing self-care. While the two can mean very different things for all of us, it’s important to take care of ourselves from the inside out. We all love massages (yes, please), baths, and some overall “me” time, but what we’re putting into our body matters too. We’ve partnered with HUM Nutrition and some of our favorite influencers in the wellness space, to chat a little bit about self-care and the importance of getting those proper nutrients. Gotta live long and strong, ladies!
Finding the right balance for anything is tough and especially so with supplements - it can take trial and error or hours of tunneling through research and reviews to figure out exactly which ones will best support you.
Luckily, HUM Nutrition, the all-natural line of mind, body and beauty supplements, takes all the time and guess work out of finding the perfect vitamin match. Just take their 3-minute online evaluation and their team of RD Nutritionists will provide you a foolproof plan of personalized recommendations with exactly what you need to deliver results now and help protect against future concerns. Their targeted and innovative formulas support everything from clear glowing skin to reduced under-eye circles, boosted energy, improved digestion, and an overall healthy body.
Below, we caught up with Andee Layne of The Honeybee to discuss how she unplugs, stays healthy, and everything in between.
Create & Cultivate: The digital world never sleeps. How do you unplug?
Andee Lane: It's really hard given that it is a crucial part of my business, but I take a mandatory day out of the week to completely unplug and focus on self-care. Whether it's a workout or pampering myself with a mask that "me time" is imperative.
C&C: While we love a good face mask, it’s important that we focus on prevention + long-term self-care vs. damage control + quick fixes. What are some ways you invest in your inner-health?
AL: Investing in your inner health is a MUST and the earlier you start, the better! I invest in my inner health by being super mindful of what I put into my body, exercising consistently and also taking vitamins religiously. HUM gummy vitamins are so tasty and effective its been easy to stay consistent– and I love the convenience of their money-saving monthly plan options.
C&C: How do you find the time to make “me” time?
AL: It's extremely difficult at this stage in life chasing after two little ones, running a business and building a new house but my motto is "do what you can when you can." It's hard but... make it happen! Carve out that hour a day to detox and take for yourself.
C&C: Walk us through your ideal self-care Sunday.
AL: My ideal self-care Sunday would start off being technology free. I'm glued to my phone and computer so shutting everything off is the first step! Spending one on one quality time with my kiddos followed by doing something active for myself (usually a workout or yoga class that I like) and ending the day with a healthy meal and some sort of beauty/pampering treatment would be the perfect self-care Sunday for me.
C&C: If you could only pick one self-care hack, what would it be and why?
AL: Honestly taking vitamins and supplements would be my top self-care hack. It's quick, easy, convenient, beneficial and takes two mins! I’m all for a good sheet mask but find vitamins go beyond the surface and provide longer-lasting results with less effort.
C&C: When you don’t have time for your normal self-care routine, what do you do to keep stress and anxiety at bay?
AL: For me exercise is key! Whenever I am feeling stressed or overwhelmed If I sneak in a quick 30-minute workout (even if it's just at home) that always helps tremendously!
C&C: Is there anyone you look to for self-care inspiration?
AL: My kids actually! I see these little guys watching everything I do so I definitely want to set a good example for them so that they know the importance of self-care!
Curious to try HUM Nutrition? Well you’re in luck! Once you’ve taken the quiz and received your recommendations C&C readers get 20% off their purchase with the promo code ‘CULTIVATE’. Get your health on with HUM, today!
This is a paid partnership with HUM Nutrition.
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How This Fitness Star & Activewear Designer Practices Self-Care
We all know how important it is to have a consistent beauty routine, while also practicing self-care. While the two can mean very different things for all of us, it’s important to take care of ourselves from the inside out. We all love massages (yes, please), baths, and some overall “me” time, but what we’re putting into our body matters too. We’ve partnered with HUM Nutrition and some of our favorite influencers in the wellness space, to chat a little bit about self-care and the importance of getting those proper nutrients. Gotta live long and strong, ladies!
Finding the right balance for anything is tough and especially so with supplements - it can take trial and error or hours of tunneling through research and reviews to figure out exactly which ones will best support you.
Luckily, HUM Nutrition, the all-natural line of mind, body and beauty supplements, takes all the time and guess work out of finding the perfect vitamin match. Just take their 3-minute online evaluation and their team of RD Nutritionists will provide you a foolproof plan of personalized recommendations with exactly what you need to deliver results now and help protect against future concerns. Their targeted and innovative formulas support everything from clear glowing skin to reduced under-eye circles, boosted energy, improved digestion, and an overall healthy body.
Below, we caught up with Katie Austin, founder of Austin Active and fitness influencer, to discuss how she unplugs, stays healthy, and everything in between.
Create & Cultivate: The digital world never sleeps. How do you unplug?
Katie Austin: In the world of social media, it’s hard to realize when is a good time to disconnect. There’s new content to be made every hour, new things to see, post, engage with, and 100 more things on top of that. First, to unplug you must do the obvious- get off social media and your emails for a bit. Yet, for me, I know even when I’m not on my phone or computer I still am thinking about everythingggg I need to do. So I’m physically “unplugged” but not mentally unplugged. For me, my unplugging comes mostly from working out. A good workout makes me not think about the outside world, or all my stress going on. It lets be at peace with my anxiety. Also, engage in REAL life conversation (not just comments), listen to your friends' situations (not just seeing their posts), asking your loved ones how they are (not just thinking they’re doing amazing bc of social media). Being present in whatever you’re doing will help you mentally unplug.
C&C: While we love a good face mask, it’s important that we focus on prevention + long-term self-care vs. damage control + quick fixes. What are some ways you invest in your inner-health?
KA: I’ve learned this recently actually because my career has always been something I LOVE so I have never seen it as a job. But lately, I’ve been overworking like crazy, and my love has not really been there. My inner health is usually damaged by my stress levels and anxiousness. The past few weeks, I realized that I am taking away the side that I love- helping and motivating others because I’ve been burning myself to the ground with work. I have come back to my priorities and realized patience is everything to growing a business. Self-talk always helps me stay positive. And realizing the quote “Rome wasn’t built in a day” may be lame but it’s SO TRUE. Quality work over quantity work. Meaning, don’t spread yourself too thin, because it will take a toll on your inner health. You CAN say no to some things, and you don’t owe anyone an explanation for it.
C&C: How do you find the time to make me-time?
KA: Actually, my “me” time isn’t what you think it would be! It's not spent alone in my room, or meditating, etc. In my me-time, I love doing anything that takes away my stress, and that would mostly be spending time with my friends, family, and doing things I love with them. Especially because I work at home and alone, I have a lotttt of that time alone haha. So to take away time from my business, and worries, my friends always make me feel so content. Find a group of girls that support you through everything, that care, and that lift you up. My loved ones help me block out all outer voices that could be tearing me down.
C&C: Walk us through your ideal self-care Sunday.
KA: I’m usually SO lazy every Sunday, and I absolutely LOVE it. I don’t put any pressure on myself to workout hard, eat that clean, or do anything productive. And this helps me unwind from a hard week, and to re-group for the hard work I’m about to do all week. For me, I need these days because I tend to overwork. To make a day for myself with no high expectations is so needed.
C&C: If you could only pick one self-care hack, what would it be and why?
KA: Definitely a workout!! Makes me feel more confident, healthy, productive, and stress- free! Another hack I love is to wake up, and for the first 20 minutes to start your day, don’t look at your phone or emails. Enjoy a cup of coffee, write down with a pen and paper what you need to accomplish that day. You won’t be bombarded with all your emails yet, and it’s a great way to prioritize.
C&C: When you don’t have time for your normal self-care routine, what do you do to keep stress and anxiety at bay?
KA: Go for a walk, and listen to great music. Music, a podcast, talking on the phone to a friend. All of those things help ease my mind.
C&C: Is there anyone you look to for self-care inspiration?
KA: My boyfriend. He is so good about taking the time out of every day to put yourself first. When he first met me, I was all over the place (I still am but have gotten a lot better!!). I’d wake up at 7 am and work until 1 a.m. Granted, I still do that sometimes, but now I have more of the mentality of, if I don’t get it done today, there’s always tomorrow! Not the end of the world! Always set aside a bit of time for yourself each day.
Curious to try HUM Nutrition? Well you’re in luck! C&C readers can receive 20% off their next purchase with the promo code ‘CULTIVATE’. Get your health on with HUM, today!
This is a paid partnership with HUM Nutrition.
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How One Busy Blogger Unplugs and Finds Some 'Me' Time
It’s all about investing in your inner health.
@visualbychristina
We all know how important it is to have a consistent beauty routine, while also practicing self-care. While the two can mean very different things for all of us, it’s important to take care of ourselves from the inside out. We all love massages (yes, please), baths, and some overall “me” time, but what we’re putting into our body matters too. We’ve partnered with HUM Nutrition and some of our favorite influencers in the wellness space, to chat a little bit about self-care and the importance of getting those proper nutrients. Gotta live long and strong, ladies!
Finding the right balance for anything is tough and especially so with supplements - it can take trial and error or hours of tunneling through research and reviews to figure out exactly which ones will best support you.
Luckily, HUM Nutrition, the all-natural line of mind, body and beauty supplements, takes all the time and guess work out of finding the perfect vitamin match. Just take their 3-minute online evaluation and their team of RD Nutritionists will provide you a foolproof plan of personalized recommendations with exactly what you need to deliver results now and help protect against future concerns. Their targeted and innovative formulas support everything from clear glowing skin to reduced under-eye circles, boosted energy, improved digestion, and an overall healthy body.
Below, we caught up with Niké of Specs & Blazers to discuss how she unplugs, stays healthy, and everything in between.
Create & Cultivate: The digital world never sleeps. How do you unplug?
Niké: Unplug? What is that? Kidding. I unplug by practicing mindfulness and practicing meditation. Meditating has been key to my success. It is like working out your mind. It brings peace and mental clarity like I've never experienced before in my life. I turn off my phone between 4-5pm 4 times a week.
C&C: While we love a good face mask, it’s important that we focus on prevention + long-term self-care vs. damage control + quick fixes. What are some ways you invest in your inner-health?
N: I invest in my inner health by eating well, detoxing regularly. I do a cleanse with my favorite smoothie once a week and take my HUM Glow Sweet Glow vegan gummies on the daily.
@visualbychristina
C&C: How do you find the time to make me-time?
N: Well, realizing you can't help others until you help yourself is so important. I know that I can't be my best self with my friends or family unless I feel centered within myself and I can only do that when I practice taking “me” time. I always joke that I am a professional napper. No matter what I am doing or how busy my day is, I can easily find a corner, pull out a chair and fall into a deep sleep for about 10 minutes. I am also a voracious reader. I read two books a month. I found reading to be cathartic and an escape. I can get lost in a book for the night. During the time I am reading my book, I tend to turn my phone off and play music.
C&C: Walk us through your ideal self-care Sunday.
N: On Sundays, I make an effort to look after myself. My biggest self-care routine is making breakfast and watching the news in the morning. It’s something that I have found calming and sets the tone for my fay. I then proceed to go to Yoga. Yoga has just been incorporated into my life recently, and I am loving it. Sometimes I grab lunch with friends or dinner. More importantly, before going to bed, I grab my gratitude journal and write down one or two good things that happened to me that day. I finish my day making a bath with Epsom salt with a glass of wine and a good book. When I feel good, I look good and vice versa.
C&C: If you could only pick one self-care hack, what would it be and why?
N: Gratitude. Practicing gratitude is my favorite self-care hack.
C&C: When you don’t have time for your normal self-care routine, what do you do to keep stress and anxiety at bay?
N: I know this might sound silly but drinking lots of water. They always say anxiety is staying in the future. So, learning to shut my mind off an staying present is so imperative.
C&C: Is there anyone you look to for self-care inspiration?
N: Yes. My Mother. She has an ability to balance work and life in a very admirable way.
Curious to try HUM Nutrition? Well you’re in luck! ! Once you’ve taken the quiz and received your recommendations C&C readers get 20% off their purchase with promo code ‘CULTIVATE’. Get your health on with HUM, today!
This is a paid partnership with HUM Nutrition.
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Classifieds: Digital Brand Architects, J Public Relations, The Shelf, & More!
Happy Wednesday!
Happy Wednesday!
Or should we say Happy C&C Classifieds Day at this point? Anyway, we’re presenting you with yet another round of amazing gigs to consider if you’re in search of a new job. This week’s batch of roles hit different areas including talent, PR, social media, and more. As we always say, get those resumes ready!
Good luck.
DBA - NY, NY
The Shelf - Remote (need ig story)
Worn - NY, NY
J Public Relations (CA + NY)
Content + Community Manager - SD, CA
Create & Cultivate - LA, CA
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5 Lessons We Learned from This Beauty Exec at C&C Chicago
Starting with analytics.
As women, we tend to think that we must follow the path that someone set before us, especially when it comes to our careers. This wasn’t the case for Mary Kay Ash, the founder of global beauty empire Mary Kay. When she came face to face with glass ceilings, she went and created her own company so she could structure the ceiling however high she wanted it to be. This is a woman who built her brand in 1963, in her 40s, and turned it into a global empire. Her story is all about being disruptive before the term was so commonly used, and being an innovator who thought ahead of their time. Mary Kay’s Chief Legal Officer & Corporate Secretary, Julia Simon, joined us at C&C Chicago and dished on how the brand maintains its boss status today, after 55 years in the biz. Ahead, we’ve compiled five impactful takeaways from the conversation that all entrepreneurs and women in business can learn from and kick into gear today.
Use Data to Your Advantage
“The heart of our business for its entirety has been the salesforce. Our independent beauty consultants gain customers, service them, and have been doing so for 55 years. That one-on-one contact brings us analytics. When you get to add the digital tools and technology to that sort of a personal relationship, it just enhances it even more. We get real face to face data and can back that up with the digital analytics.”
Authenticity Is Everything
“Two things that are very important are building trust and building authenticity. Who are you? And do you match what you say with what you do? Do your actions and your words all match? In the world of social media, it’s easy for one thing to take you off on a tangent. If you can stay true to who you are and show that authenticity through everything you do - whether it’s how your beauty consultants treat people or the fabulous products you can present. All of those things come back to the real truth that helps us connect with our customer and form long-standing relationships.”
Disruption is Reconstruction
“I like to call the concept of disruption, reconstruction. There isn't any established brand that wants to stick around that doesn’t constantly evaluate and reevaluate who they are. Figure out what your core values are and stay true to them, but then constantly reconstruct and reevaluate. Ask yourselves, are we on the right path? Have we added the right tools? Are we talking to the right people? Are we engaging people in the way we need to engage them? I love to be around millennials because it makes me constantly educate myself about what’s new and what’s different. I don’t want to be stuck where I was - that won’t get me any further to where I want to be.”
Constantly Evaluate & Reevaluate
“Giving women around the world the opportunity to make money selling these products is really our goal. You can’t do that unless you have products that people really want. How you engage with people differs from market to market, but the one thing that is constant is mobile, digital, social media—all growing globally. We stay relevant because we’re constantly evaluating and reevaluating to ensure that what we’re giving to the marketplace results in a great opportunity for people to make money and great products for people to use.”
Mentors Are Everywhere
“There are mentors all around you. Whenever I go to meet someone, I ask questions. I’ve never really had anyone reject me. Some people are quick about their answers, but for the most part, they are happy to talk to you. There are real mentors all around you, so just have no fear and go out and talk to people.”
Brow Tips and Tricks from Mary Kay
Mary Kay was present on site at C&C Chicago and taught us the must-know tips and tricks for show-stopping brows all day. With brow expert and Mary Kay Global Beauty Ambassador Luis Casco on site, our attendees got tips from the best of the best on how to get a flawless set of arches. Check out some of the key pointers they learned:
For brow products, you always want to start with a color that's one shade lighter than your hair color.
If you have red, silver or gray hair, your brows will look best with an ashy tone. Try a blonde or dark blonde shade to start.
Before applying any product, use the Mary Kay Eyebrow/Eyeliner Brush to brush brows upward, then out toward the tails.
Always make sure that you're applying your brow products onto clean brows for the best results.
When using the Mary Kay Precision Brow Liner, using light, feathery strokes will make your brows look more natural.
When using the Mary Kay Volumizing Brow Tint, apply to the inner sections of the brows last - this is where you want the lightest application.
What’s the best piece of career advice you’ve ever received? Let us know in the comments below!
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Serena Williams, Standing Your Ground & The State of Emotions at Work
“This is outrageous.”
You've all heard about, read about it, and definitely need to continue talking about it. This past Saturday, Serena Williams was issued point deductions and had an entire game cut during the women's singles final of this year's U.S. Open. She voiced her opinion about it, as she should, and it didn't end there.
Serena was then hit with a $17,000 fine for code violations. Tournament referee, Brian Earley, ruled that she would be fined $10,000 for verbal abuse, $4,000 for a coaching violation, and $3,000 for racket abuse. The "verbal abuse" that we speak of here is when Serena addressed the referee, stood her ground, and defended both her longstanding tennis career and work ethic. She's Serena Williams, she doesn't have to cheat.
The rest of us may not be killing it on the tennis court, but we face the same struggle of showing our emotions at work. Why is it that when a woman voices her frustrations, it's quick to be labeled as a meltdown or tantrum? Why are we labeled as hysterical for voicing our opinion when something is wrong? As a result of Saturday's events, the tennis sport has been targeted for sexism and handling violations between male and female players differently. A good example comes from early last month when French tennis player Benoit Paire smashed three rackets on the court, and was charged a fine of $16,500 as a result.
The issue here isn't hidden by any means; it's loud and clear as a matter of fact. Serena Williams was punished for voicing her opinion while doing her job, and it's something that every woman faces every day. Sure, we're not getting hit with fines for thousands of dollars, but we can face penalties, ridicule, and even termination for simply stating what's on our minds.
This is something that all women are all too familiar with, but for black women especially, it's nothing new. The way Serena Williams was treated during another huge moment of her career, just proves how hard it is to be a black woman at work. Black women often internally police themselves in the workplace in every way from their appearance, to the way they approach the situations brought in front of them. And you know what? It's not okay. Neither are the descriptions of Williams' behavior on the court. She's been labeled as angry, having an outburst, a furious rant, and everything in between because she defended herself. As she put it, having to go through this experience just sets a terrible example for the next person who wants to express their emotions. We highly recommend watching her post-event press conference here.
The bottom line is that none of us should be punished for stating the facts, saying them loudly, and with whatever emotion is instilled in our voices. The conversation hasn't stopped yet, and it shouldn't stop until we all stop punishing women for saying what they need to say.
We also can't fail to note that her opponent, Naomi Osaka, did not get to properly enjoy her big moment among the chaos. She's the first Japanese citizen (editor’s note: her father is Haitian) to win a Grand Slam singles tournament, and that's a milestone that should be celebrated, and not overshadowed by what others are describing as a tirade or a meltdown. Just as the New York Times put it, it was memorable but for all of the wrong reasons.
By: Andrea Navarro
Here are some of our favorite pieces that hit the matter right on its head.
Mashable provided a breakdown of how the entire situation went down on the court.
Refinery29 called it what it is: sexism.
The HuffingtonPost, highlighted Serena's poise once her opponent, Naomi Osaka became visibly upset at the crowd's reaction to her big win.
Male tennis players came to Williams' defense, including James Blake, who admitted to saying a lot worse on the court and never being penalized for it.
Forbes explained the power of speaking up, in honor of Saturday's events.
The HuffingtonPost also highlighted what some of tennis's meltdowns actually looked like.
Brit+Co. called out the fact that Williams' treatment was both racist and sexist.
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How One Blogger Discovered the Value in Her Work, and How You Can Too
Know your worth because you are worthy.
You don't need to write a novel to tell a story.
Paola Mathé is the embodiment of this. A storyteller at heart, the blogger and Creative Director was born a dreamer from a small town in Haiti. Paola moved to the United States during her teenage years, where she lived in a one bedroom apartment with her family in Newark, NJ. Of her mother, the creative shares, “She’s had a very tough life and over the years I’ve seen her get stronger and smarter." It's certainly helped shaped the woman Paola has become.
A driven individual, Paola was the first in her family to graduate from college, receiving her dual bachelor's degree in Economics and French Literature at Drew University. Post-grad she went on to launch a career in hospitality. As is the narrative with many bloggers, she started Finding Paola as a creative outlet during a time when her career was soaring. She recalls getting “four promotions over the course of about six months--I was dominating and living that life," she says. "But I got really into it [the blog] and made time. I was working 50-60 hours a week, managing all of these different people but really wanting to be creative. So that’s what I started doing. And I remember thinking, I don’t have much, but how can I create this? How can I show people that they can live without having much?”
This was during 2009 when the blog in its infancy was called Finding Paola: Lost in New York. What was she searching for? Was she truly lost? Not exactly. “I was writing about things I was not familiar with but were intriguing and exciting. I was really trying to find who I was. I started seeing this girl," she says self-referentially, "who, whether she had someone to go to an event with or not, she would still show up, she would meet people, network, and then I started seeing me changing in front of me-- doing all these things I was never comfortable with, really trying to get stronger.”
She was busy documenting different events, but the content evolved over time to include her personal style. "I tried to keep up with that, while also being as honest as possible." She says that having a blog, especially before the dawn/explosion of social media was really hard. “I felt like everyone was studying a manual I didn’t have and everything looked the same. I didn’t want my blog to be that because my life is full of color and I felt like my story was so different from the blogs I was reading. I remember subscribing to a lot of them, trying to follow and keep up and then unsubscribing because I didn’t relate. But then I’d wonder why they were getting so popular. I didn’t realize that at the time my blog was also getting popular. I thought it would just be friends and family.”
“I felt like everyone was studying a manual I didn’t have."
Tweet this.
Occasionally she'll read her old posts to see how much she’s grown, although many have been lost as she’s transitioned platforms over the years. “A lot of posts don’t migrate," she laughs recalling the days when twenty views would get her really excited. “I thought the only person reading it was my mom because she was terrified of me being in New York and wanted to keep tabs on me.”
Describing herself as a shy child surrounded by strong women in Haiti, including her mother, Paola says, “I remember always trying to be in charge of her money. I would always try to calculate everything. How much does sugar cost and how much does rice cost? I was shy, but I was very observant. I had very strong opinions and I knew when I was older I wanted to be treated a certain way. I remember being in this house full of women. My mom didn’t like to be alone so when we lived in our family house in Haiti she surrounded herself with friends-- people who weren’t relatives but I would call them cousin. I saw how all these women lived. As a little girl I saw their love lives, how they cried, how they handled things, and I remember sitting there-- because in Haiti it’s very strict you can’t just get into grown folks business-- and thinking about what I liked and didn’t like. That’s why Fanm Djanm is important. They were all strong in their own way, but I didn’t want to be treated how they were treated. As I got older and older I found myself solving problems. And I realized that I could solve problems and be creative.”
She is referring to her company, Fanm Djanm, a head wrap collection and popular lifestyle brand launched in 2014 that celebrates the strength of women while empowering them to live boldly. It means “strong woman" in Haitian Creole.
She keeps the two brands separate.
Fresh looks from Fanm Djanm
At first she was running both, going back and forth between Instagrams, but now employs “a team of talented young women who work with me. A very small team." Paying members of that small team is incredibly important to her, noting that she knows really talented women who work for much bigger brands for free. “I really believe in them and I know they will go far,” she says of her team, wisely knowing young women need champions. "I lived in Newark and you kind of feel like there’s no world outside of Newark and the whole world wants you to fail. It’s not true. You have to leap. You have to seize life and see it from different perspectives.”
She further explains why it was necessary to separate the two brands. "Fanm Djanm," she says, is “about celebrating strong women, so I shouldn’t be the only strong woman." It's rather sensible. "I am surrounded by strong women all the time and they’re what inspires me. There are days when I don’t want to get out of bed and I have think about someone who inspires me. Then I have that extra something to get up and try.”
Try and do. Both are happening in her world, which includes a recent move with her husband from NYC to Austin, TX, a transition she openly shared as hard in a recent blog post. In short: She hasn’t made complete peace with the move yet. Her office remains there, as does her small team.
In New York Paola says she walked everywhere. In Harlem she would see strangers and approach them, asking about their life, their stories and if she might photograph them. She hasn't found this yet in Austin.
“I would go up to a stranger in the street if I thought they had a story or they’d be an amazing person to have a conversation with. I love talking to older women a lot. I started photographing older women in Harlem and I would approach them and tell them how beautiful and amazing they are. They would look at me like I was crazy-- that’s how you know you live in an ageist society," she adds. "When you tell an older woman she’s beautiful often they think you’re making fun of them or it surprises them.”
She also digs in on another known vestige of an ageist society: the list. “People think you’re failing at life because you’re not doing something before you’re 30. I know so many amazing people who didn’t start to find themselves until later. When I meet a woman who says, ‘I’ve been doing this for a while, but it wasn’t until I was 45 that I really found my voice,’ to me that’s really inspiring. These aren’t just women breaking the rules but those who are doing something positive and impactful for their communities. I want to showcase stories like that."
It's her spirit, willingness to move forward and try her hand at something new is what makes her voice unique. She also happens to have a badass vision, knowing her way around color and a camera. “I go to bed dreaming about it because I know it’s potential," she says excitedly about the company. And I still can’t believe that I’ve accomplished what I have from nothing.”
"I think I used to say ‘I’m living my dream’ before I actually was. I think now I am living my dream because I can wake up and turn something down or say, I’m not into that I’m sorry-- or say, I do think I can do this, but for more money.”
“I can do this, but for more money.”
Tweet this.
The combined result of saying no and knowing your worth, two things that Paola has developed over the years, is Fanm Djanm. The blogger does feel like she’s struggling to ensure that sponsored content remains true to her voice. “Everything that I do I have to be passionate about," pausing to note, "I’m privileged enough to do this, right?” She says that when sponsorship opportunities do arise, most brands want to tie her story to it.
While she's priming herself for greatness and Paola is still getting used to people telling her story. “There was a video recently of me and I started crying because I was like WHO is this woman, WHY are they using these words to describe her-- oh it’s me and...” She's in awe. As she should be, sharing one last story.
“I painted the floors in my office in Harlem myself. I was tired and I wanted to get it done, because customers don’t care if you’re painting the floors, they want what they’ve ordered. But I was tired and I sat down and was looking around. And I remember thinking, “Oh my God, this is me. This is mine."
She laughs. "The woman who wrote the piece about me in the New York Times described it as a matchbox and I was like 'damn, not even a shoebox?' But still, its my colorful matchbox."
photos courtesy of: Finding Paola
Arianna Schioldager is Editor-in-Chief at Create & Cultivate. You can follow her @ariannawrotethis.
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Everything You Missed at Our Roxy Pop-Up
It was a night for the books.
Last night we took over LA's Fig House for a night to remember with our friends at Roxy. The brand stopped in SoCal for their Make Waves, Move Mountains tour and brought some of their athletes along for the night, plus an IRL shop. If you were in our audience, you witnessed us make waves and move mountains with our amazing roster of panelists, and Roxy pop-up shop. As always, the space was filled with a ton of Instagrammable moments to snap away. Our guests also mixed and mingled with cocktails, light bites, and left with long-standing connections to build their network. If you weren't able to make it, don't worry we've got a full recap for you.
The Panelists
Lisa Andersen: Four-time world surfing champion, all around badass. Lisa was named one of the top female athletes of the century by Sports Illustrated and was inducted into the Surfing Hall of Fame. Today, she is the worldwide ambassador for Roxy and has her own collection with the brand.
Bruna Schmitz: This professional surfer left her native Brazil at a very young age once she realized she could make a career out of the sport. Bruna became the youngest to win a Brazilian pro event, and at the age of 14, she signed with Roxy.
Deddeh Howard: Founder of the Black Mirror project and all-around influencer. Deddeh wanted to challenge the modeling industry after facing rejection, and understanding the lack of diversity. The Black Mirror Project started by recreating big campaigns with models of color, and it went entirely viral. Deddeh wants all women to be represented in all industries.
Katie Austin: You likely know her as a wellness expert, but Katie now has her own activewear line, Austin Active, and an app that's inspiring women to live their healthiest lives. As the daughter of fitness guru, Denise Austin, Katie naturally stepped into the wellness space and has garnered an audience of her own.
Jordan Younger: AKA the Balanced Blonde, runs a successful blog, podcast, and is also a published author. She's been open about her struggles with an eating disorder and pushing through it to create the best life for her. She now serves as an inspiration for other women who are looking to understand wellness and practice self-care on the regular.
Mic-Drop Moments
“Once you get the fear out of the way, you’ll be able to achieve your dreams.”- Deddeh Howard
“If you can walk away from certain facets of your business, it’s not a failure.”- Jordan Younger
“I always tried to keep an open mind and understand why my life was going in the direction it was going.”- Bruna Schmitz
“I took all of my savings and put it into a clothing line & app in college and they failed. But looking back now, I know that HAD to happen.”- Katie Austin
The Space
We transformed the Fig House into a Roxy-lover's dream. There was an airstream on site, where guests can handpick Roxy clothing items as well as accessories. For the surfing fans, there was a trio of boards set up to take all the Instagram photos you can imagine. During the panel we had the audience sit in the main section of the venue, while they enjoyed cocktails, wine, beer, and light bites. Everyone also received their own Roxy gift bag to store all of their new items from the pop-up shop, and custom illustrations by Chloe White were made upon request.
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How Designer and Entrepreneur Erin Condren Stays Motivated
A step-by-step guide for you to try.
By: Erin Condren
Motivation is always the first step towards reaching any goal. To me, motivation is about deciding and believing that I can accomplish what I set my mind to. It’s something that’s always been important to me; you’ll see the phrase “create.motivate.inspire” across my entire collection. I design products to be agents of motivation and inspiration. Whether it’s an uplifting quote posted on my Instagram on Monday morning as part of our #motivationalmonday series, a pop of an unexpected, happy color or a structured product design that helps add function to daily life, I seek to motivate others.
But how do I motivate myself, and furthermore stay motivated, which is often half the battle? I’ve identified several tips and tricks thatI’ve noticed work for me and keep me energized and excited!
Make a List of Action Steps
Does it surprise anyone that make a list is my number one tip!? It’s no secret I’m a lover of lists, and it’s so important to make one that will continue to motivate you. Set actionable & reachable “action steps” that you can work towards to reach your goal!
Celebrate the Small Milestones
Part of why it’s important to make these action steps is so you can celebrate it! It’s important to take the time to recognize how hard you’re working and acknowledge those little victories.
Visualize your goal
I’m a visual person, so I’ve found that it’s important to actually create or find visual representations of the goal I’m envisioning. This can be anything, from the house you’re saving up to buy or the children you’re working hard to support. It always helps to see a reminder of why you’re hustling.
Don’t Be Afraid to Make an Adjustment
One of my dad’s favorite sayings growing up was “make an adjustment!” This phrase has turned into a personal mantra for me as I navigate the many different curveballs life has thrown at me. While sticking to your goal and staying motivated and on track is important, don’t be afraid to make an adjustment and rearrange your priorities if you have to!
Schedule “Pick-Me-Ups” as Needed
It’s important to recognize that you will have down days and moments where you feel discouraged or like staying motivated is just not feasible. Plan ahead for these moments so you can cut them off at the pass. I like to pre-schedule things like a mother-daughter movie date or catching up with a friend to help ground me and remind me of what’s important. Hiding little notes of encouragement is also a fun tip!
Stay Organized
This one seems obvious, but make sure that you’re properly organized and set up to make your goals a reality. I like adding weekly check-in times in my LifePlanner™ so that each Monday I already have some time set aside to focus in on my goals and motivate myself by looking back at how far I’ve come.
Consistency is Key!
Don’t vacillate week to week! Keep on the same pace and stay consistent with the steps you’re taking. Soon, you’ll develop habits and staying motivated will be second nature!
I’m so dedicated to staying motivated that I’ve recently been working on an upcoming product launch that’s all about setting goals (more on that soon!) I can’t wait to release it and hopefully help others like me stay on track to becoming their best selves!
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C&C Classifieds: Ace Hotel, Sister City, Rare Global & More!
This week’s lineup includes social media, marketing, and administrative roles.
Happy Wednesday aka official C&C Classifieds day! We hope you all enjoyed the long weekend and are refreshed and ready to get back to business.
Got a new gig on the mind? Might as well let the new season ahead, the time to get your applications rolling. This week's lineup includes gigs all the way from NYC to London, and of course our home base of LA. Check them out, get your resumes ready & good luck!
Sister City - NYC
Ace Hotel - London
Atelier Ace - LA
Create & Cultivate - West Hollywood
Rare Global
Join us in Dallas to Celebrate Kate Spade New York's 25th Anniversary at Nordstrom NorthPark Center!
This list will fill up fast!
We're throwing an intimate party with Kate Spade New York and Nordstrom NorthPark Center to celebrate their 25th anniversary and the launch of their amazing Fall Yesssssss Gift Guide, meant for ladies like you. You who acknowledges your own awesomeness, treats yourself and celebrates your own accomplishments!
The Breakdown
Saturday, September 22nd, 2018 | 1:45-4PM
1:45 PM | Doors open! Network with your fellow Create & Cultivators over flutes of bubbly
2:00 PM | Panel: From Success to Self-care, A Conversation On Why We've Earned It
3:00 PM | Shop the new Kate Spade New York collection and enjoy light bites, sips and a floral takeaway
The Panel:
From Success to Self-care
A Conversation On Why We've Earned It
The Panelists:
The RSVP for this event is now closed!
Top LA Recruiters Dish 8 Interview Mistakes to Avoid
A coffee is too casual and other pro tips.
"Grandma Dawn is turning 89 this year and still comes to the office every day," says Natalie Levine over coffee (mine) and mint lemonade (hers). She can't drink caffeine after 2pm, "or she'll be up all night," explains her sister Emily.
The referenced "office" is Century City-based Career Group Companies, a staffing firm specializing in full-time and temporary placement of administrative staff for today's leading companies. Founded in 1981 by the sisters' then 25-year-old mother, Susan Levine, it remains a family run business.
Emily serves as Vice President, Natalie as Senior Account Manager, and dad, Michael Levine is CEO. Grandma Dawn, "in her Chanel and Etro," is an office staple.
"Our mom was a pioneer of the boutique staffing firm," says Natalie, "when staffing was all about making the deal, instead of the people side of the business."
It's this hands-on people-centric approach that propels Career Groups clients' businesses forward and makes a difference in applicant's lives. The company now employs approximately 150 people with offices in LA, New York, Redwood Shores, San Francisco, and Connecticut.
Candidates come to Career Group Companies by appointment only and leading companies rely on the CGC to deliver top notch direct hire and freelance/temp candidates for their open jobs. "We are essentially job match makers," they explain. "We grant candidates access to exclusive companies, and we serve as their counselors along the way. We are there for every step of the process, from assisting with their resumes, interview tips, delivering the offer, and more."
Jobs are their job. And we make jobs are our business.
So for the graduating class of 2018, who better to ask the the do's and don'ts of the interviewing process? According to Emily and Natalie here are 8 common mistakes you should avoid:
1. NOT WRITING A THANK YOU NOTE
Or not proofreading a thank you note. This is a chance to show off your writing skills, so a typo in a follow-up letter is most definitely a red flag. It’s important to thank the interviewer for their time. Hiring managers want to move forward with candidates who leave a positive impression and have good manners!
2. NOT ASKING QUESTIONS AT THE END OF AN INTERVIEW
Even if an interviewer is extremely thorough during the meeting, it’s always important to convey interest and come prepared with questions. A lot of applicants don’t realize that they should ask questions.
3. NOT BLOCKING YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA
Most companies are checking Instagram, Facebook, Google searches, IMDB, and more. You shouldn't have anything (public) on the internet that you wouldn’t want HR at a company to see before even meeting you. First impressions cannot be taken back and it’s important to remember that companies are concerned with their own reputation, and want to bring people into their companies that are aware of their presence.
4. DON'T LIE ON YOUR RESUME
If you didn’t receive a college degree, do not put that you graduated! Fact check your GPA. Triple check your dates of employment. Candidates will lose offers at the end of an interview process if a background check exposes falsifications on the resume or application. Honesty is the best policy here, always.
5. DON'T INFLATE YOUR PREVIOUS SALARY
Be accurate about your previous salary. Don’t inflate your previous salary to get a higher offer. Companies will pull w2s to verify earnings more often than not. If you didn't make the dollars, it doesn't make sense to pretend you did.
Job Application Tip: "Don’t inflate your previous salary to get a higher offer."
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6. NEVER BE LATE. EVER.
Being on time means being 10 minutes early. You need to allot time for parking problems, traffic, and any to other unforeseen circumstances. There is no excuse to be late to an interview because it shows a lack of foresight and consideration that you will likewise bring to the position.
7. LEAVE THE COFFEE IN THE CAR
Don’t bring a beverage to the meeting (it's too casual), don’t chew gum, don’t have your cell phone out or on, and make sure you aren’t wearing a lot of cologne or perfume.
8. DON'T FORGET TO DO YOUR RESEARCH
Do your homework on the company you are interviewing for! That goes for the person you are interviewing with as well.
To be considered by Career Group send your resume to their website directly! You can apply to jobs on: www.careergroupinc.com, www.fourthfloorfashion.com, or www.syndicatebleu.com, and your resume will be routed directly to a recruiter.
And be sure to check back for more from Natalie, Emily, and to hear about their soon-to-be launched startup, Work Grades, that's set to deliver "unparalleled transparency to the employment sector by taking the guesswork out of references."
MORE FROM THE BLOG
5 Ways to Prepare for Self-Employment
But first, do the homework.
Photo credit: Sarah Natasha Photography
Nowadays the term “entrepreneur” is part of our normal vocabulary, but no one striking out on their own becomes an overnight success. If you’re thinking about pursuing self-employment and running your own company, here are five ways to properly prepare yourself for setting out on your own.
DO YOUR HOMEWORK
Self-employment is not for the faint of heart. If you are committed to pursuing the pros of working for yourself, you also have to be hyper-aware of the cons. As you contemplate leaving the financial stability of your corporate job, begin to evaluate the added stresses that come with being a company that is a party of one. For example, I thought critically about having to pay a very expensive health insurance bill every month where previously health insurance had somewhat silently been deducted from every paycheck.
"Self-employment is not for the faint of heart."
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I determined that the stress of that monthly payment would be more worthwhile than the stress I was feeling from my corporate gig where I was feeling unchallenged and unfulfilled. I also looked at what I would be doing from a day-to-day basis that couldn’t be covered by a team. I’d be offering clients my services from the ground up and they’d all be handled by me - no delegating up or down on a team. By thoroughly researching what your new normal will look like, you’ll be in for less of a shock when you become accountable only to yourself.
NETWORK
By far the most valuable thing I did in preparing for self-employment was tapping into my network. I began seeding to my friends, family and acquaintances that I was planning to leave my job to consult and one by one my network grew.
Everyone wanted to put me in touch with someone who’d had the courage to do what I was planning to do. I began speaking to loads of other freelancers and consultants and I came prepared to every meeting with a list of questions. Every encounter held a powerful and helpful takeaway and the more people I spoke with, the more my network expanded and the more business leads I started to pull in. Those I spoke with also were incredibly valuable when it came to setting the costs for my services, determining what tools I’d need to invest in and helping to provide guidance on how to successfully manage my business.
GET ORGANIZED OPERATIONALLY
There’s a lot that goes into operating your own business and some of the things may even surprise you. Before you leave your job for the land of self-employment, I recommend starting to get the pieces of the operational puzzle in place. One of the first steps I took was finding a lawyer who could incorporate my business. Then I set up a business banking account so I had a checking and a savings account for the company and also a credit card for all expenses. I got set up on Quickbooks to run the financial side of my business and also built a forecast so I was setting goals for myself to meet from a revenue standpoint.
"Before you leave your job for the land of self-employment get the pieces of the operational puzzle in place."
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Next came working with my lawyer to draft contracts and other necessary paperwork I would need to run my business from a client services perspective. I also developed a capabilities deck I could send to prospective clients, built a website, ordered business cards and developed a list of companies I was interested in speaking with. Once everything was done prior to leaving my job, it was easy to hit the ground running pursuing business because I had prepared all of my operational to-dos.
PLAN FINANCIALLY
Before you commence self-employment, you have to first accept that you won’t know from where your next paycheck is coming. Which translates to having to prepare financially for those inevitable times that you won’t have steady pay coming in. Knowing I lived in the most expensive city in the world, I put pen to paper to determine what living in New York was really costing me every month in regards to expenses. I signed up for a Mint.com account to build out a budget and for two months tracked my expenses. Once I had an idea of averages in particular categories, I built out an expense worksheet for myself that included rent, health insurance, groceries, travel, utilities, etc. I knew I wanted to have whatever that number was per month times six saved before I pulled the plug on my corporate job so that when the time came to dip into savings, I felt OK doing so.
"Do the math and start saving accordingly before you up and leave your job."
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Do the math and start saving accordingly before you up and leave your job. You’ll be far better off down the line for having done so.
THINK LONG TERM
When you begin working for yourself you’ll feel like you need to say yes to whatever initial projects come your way because you fear the unknown. But when you accept projects or clients that you don’t feel passionate about, you’re defeating one of the best perks of being your own boss: the ability to say no. While you certainly need to pay your bills, you shouldn’t take on work that you don’t feel capable of delivering on or for people or brands that don’t make you feel invested in the work. If you begin to take on projects you’re not jazzed about, you are limiting the hours you have a month to pursue and accept jobs that will not only give you income but also fulfillment.
Meghan Donovan is the founder of mmd communications, a public relations and influencer marketing agency in New York City helping to elevate lifestyle brands with dynamic, meaningful ideas. In addition to her decade of experience in the marketing industry for major brands like Procter & Gamble and Virgin America, she also pens the popular life + style site, wit & whimsy. You can read more about her journey to self-employment here.