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Stay Sparked #7 - "Conscious Entrepreneurship"
6 Plays2 years ago
The three of us have all found our ways to beautiful, non-traditional, non 9-5 career paths. How did we get here? What advice do we have? What are the risks? Why might you NOT want to leave your day job? All this and more in Episode 7 of "STAY SPARKED!"
HOSTS
JANUS REDMOON is a 10-time Burner, and has spent the last several years as an advocate for psychedelic medicine research and treatment. He is the founder and CEO of NuWorld Nutritionals, a nutritional supplement company providing mushroom-based, all-natural products to improve and maintain health for both body and mind.
http://www.nuworldnutritionals.com
BETSY FINKLEHOO is a healer of massage therapy, CranioSacral and Dharma Coaching. She is an 8 year burner and has spent the last several years seeped in the personal development world, cultivating her passion for transformation and growth. Her recent project, The Power Affirmation Journal and virtual group empowers women to cultivate self awareness and healthy habits so they can live in greater freedom, mind body and spirit.
HALCYON is full-time Love Ambassador. He is the founder of Hug Nation YouTube channel and daily zoom gratitude circles. He is co-founder of the Pink Heart Burning Man camp and the 1st Saturdays project for people experiencing homelessness. In his free time he coaches groups and individuals on how to live joyfully and authentically. His other podcast is "Gratuitous Boobs."
http://links.hugnation.com
MASSIVE Thank you to Dub Sutra for their beautiful opening music. Check out their incredible music catalogue online.
https://dubsutra.com
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction to Stay Sparked
00:00:03
Speaker
Welcome to Stay Sparked.
00:00:05
Speaker
On this show, we explore how to stay inspired in the modern world with the most profound lessons from Burning Man, psychedelics, relationships, entrepreneurship, spirituality, travel, and more.
Exploring Entrepreneurship
00:00:17
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On today's episode, we talked about entrepreneurship and finding our way off the beaten path and some of the risks and rewards of that journey.
00:00:28
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We shared about following our hearts and following the muse on our journey of becoming non-9to-5ers and shared some of our deep personal stories of how we got to be where we are.
00:00:39
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And we also get into recognizing opportunities that are always approaching us.
Pursuing Authentic Lifestyles
00:00:45
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And how do we go about being our authentic selves, following the sparks that lead us into living the lives that we are wanting to live for ourselves and how to be best of service to the world around us.
00:01:02
Speaker
Thank you Dub Sutra for that beautiful intro song.
00:01:05
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We are so grateful to be here sharing with you today on the topic of our non nine to five lifestyles, courageous entrepreneurship.
Expressions of Gratitude
00:01:15
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I'm Betsy Sinklehu and I'm here with John Halcyon and Janus Redmoon.
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We are here to spark you.
00:01:21
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So let's start off with some gratitude.
00:01:22
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Halcyon, what are you grateful for today?
00:01:26
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Oh, I am grateful for a beautiful first Saturday's experience this weekend.
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Every first Saturday of the month, I have a homeless outreach in San Diego.
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And there was a number of just beautiful things that happened.
00:01:37
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One was, it was a gentleman that was having a little bit of a struggle, put someone cut in front of him in line.
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And then later I found him, I go, Hey, how's it going?
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You know, how's the patients?
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And he kind of laughed.
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He goes,
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you know, you should check those purses before you put them out to donate.
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And I'm like, did you get something good?
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He goes, some French coins, some euros and over $150 in bills.
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And I was like, yes, it was like victory.
00:02:03
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I think there was a minute he was like, are you gonna take it back?
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And I was like, I was so excited for him.
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And it's like, so I am grateful for this unexpected awesomeness to a gentleman who certainly could use a break.
00:02:18
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Amazing.
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How about you, Yonis?
00:02:20
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What are you grateful for today?
Non-Traditional Career Paths
00:02:23
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I am grateful.
00:02:25
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I may have been grateful for my friends in the past, but I'm grateful for them again.
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Just because having a lot of good friends show up for me in some really good ways over the last several days to offer some things that I didn't know I needed, whether that's assistance or time or what have you.
00:02:48
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Things have been, yeah, I've been feeling very, very loved and supported by my friends and community.
00:02:53
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So that's been a really nice, similar to John's gratitude experience.
00:02:59
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But yeah, being on the receiving end of some real goodness this week has been nice.
00:03:05
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So yeah, definitely feeling grateful for that.
00:03:07
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Amazing.
00:03:08
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I will just piggyback off of that.
00:03:11
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I also am really grateful for friends, starting with you guys.
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How cool that we have been getting to come together and share in this wonderful exploration of conversation.
00:03:22
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So grateful for you guys and also really grateful for our listeners out there.
00:03:26
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We've been getting some really great feedback from you guys and it's just so wonderful for us to hear your reflections and your little messages.
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Just light me up and I'm just really grateful that we're
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getting to connect with you guys out there listening through this platform.
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So here we go.
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Thank you everyone who has also told a friend about it and a big kind of push.
00:03:48
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If you're up for it, leave us a review.
00:03:50
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It helps other people find us because I do think we're putting good stuff out there and it's helpful if you leave us a review and tell others.
00:03:57
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So thank you.
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Thank you.
00:03:58
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Thank you.
00:04:00
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Yes.
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So today our conversation is inspired by how the three of us really live non-traditional, non-9-to-5 lives.
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And many people out there have asked us, how did we get here?
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And it's our inspiration to share today on this topic around how we live our lives and how we got here.
00:04:24
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So how about we start with you, Halcyon?
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How long have you been a non-9 to 5-er?
00:04:29
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And have you always been this way?
00:04:31
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What insight can you share with us today?
00:04:34
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No, I actually, excuse me, I began post-
00:04:39
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college with a degree in psychology and went traditional work, nine to five type jobs, or at least set hours, set punching in, punching out.
00:04:52
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And then when the internet hit, I continued to be a nine to fiver or strict hours for tech companies
00:05:03
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Until eventually I realized that I had enough skills and awareness and that I could start, go out on my own and have become a consultant.
00:05:12
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So that was my first on my own was being a consultant and working with firms and then being able to set the times and pick the projects and the people that I wanted to work with.
00:05:24
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And then after a while of doing what I wanted and getting more and more free, I got an offer to join a startup and become their culture person.
00:05:39
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And actually what happened was a CEO had gone to Burning Man right after he got 10 million in funding.
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and had been watching my videos about Burning Man.
00:05:49
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And when he went to Burning Man, it changed his life.
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And so he said, I have to have this guy to help me build this company.
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So I got recruited as a co-founder of a startup
00:05:58
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And with the goal of bringing in some of this non-traditional concepts and ideas and gifting and, uh, into a corporate culture.
00:06:07
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And so I did that for two years, went back to wearing the clothes, going into the office on time.
00:06:14
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And it was, uh, it was an, I was an experiment because like, can you bridge these two worlds?
00:06:20
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Um,
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And I'll just say I was only there for two years and now I'm back to freedom.
00:06:25
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So maybe we can talk more about that later.
00:06:27
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But I've kind of gone back and forth right now.
00:06:29
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I've very much in a picking my schedule, picking my projects, deciding where my passions go.
00:06:36
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Amazing.
00:06:39
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Love hearing a little back history.
00:06:40
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I'd love to see some pictures of you from those days in your suits.
00:06:44
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Amazing.
00:06:46
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How about you, Yanis?
00:06:49
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I would say that entrepreneurship is something that came to me pretty early, although like Hal's saying, I would kind of dip in and out of it just because sometimes, you know, getting getting those nine to five jobs is interesting.
00:07:03
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in some ways easier, but it kind of like, it kind of gets you on the back end.
00:07:07
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At least that's my experience with it.
00:07:10
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But early on, like, you know, even in, even in college, like I got a job that required me to wear a tie to work and I lasted and it was a, it was a good job too, but a good job.
00:07:24
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And I lasted all of a week because every day that I was putting on that tie and not to be hyperbolic about it, but it just kind of felt like I was full
00:07:32
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fitting myself for a noose every morning.
00:07:35
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And I was just like, God, and the whole, like, so by Friday, I was just like, I was a mess.
00:07:39
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And I was like young too.
00:07:41
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It's like, you know, 20 or whatever.
00:07:42
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And I was just like, after that five days, I was like, I can't, I cannot do this.
00:07:46
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So over the course of the next few years, I found myself in California working as a fitness trainer, which was great.
00:07:55
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You know, shorts and a shorts and a t-shirt or tank top, go to the gym and like help people get in shape and all that.
00:08:01
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And
00:08:02
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uh, got to do that on my own time, you know, kind of have my own business doing that.
00:08:05
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So I was setting my own hours and that's when it really kind of got me in like just the idea of like, although I would do it later as well, just depending on how like life kind of unfolded, like the idea of like, okay, you know, any, any gig or employment where I don't have to come in a bunch of clock, uh, I'm able to set my own time that I realized was a real vital component of my happiness.
00:08:28
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Um,
00:08:29
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So even when I would have to do that on occasion, I was always an eye to be like, all right, this is a means to an end.
00:08:35
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I need to get back to that sense of creating my own schedule, my own, there's a large, sizable feeling of freedom that would come with that for me.
00:08:44
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So that's been my focus for a long time, just to kind of keep that, my eyes on that prize.
00:08:54
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um, and kind of just live a life of entrepreneurship, um, that way, which has led me to, you know, where I'm at, uh, these days, so, which we can, uh, get into later.
00:09:04
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Amazing.
00:09:07
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What a journey.
00:09:08
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Yeah, it's, uh, yeah, it's been a good one.
00:09:10
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So about you, Betsy.
00:09:11
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Yeah.
00:09:13
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Um, well, you know, thinking back,
00:09:16
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I remember when I was a teenager in high school and there was this path laid out for me that was laid out for pretty much everyone I knew that was, you know, going, growing up in Ohio.
00:09:28
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It's like, okay, you're going to graduate and then you're going to apply for college and you're going to go to college for four years.
00:09:35
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And then you're going to get a job and you're going to do this thing that everybody does.
00:09:39
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Right.
00:09:40
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And you have, you get married and you have your kids and you're going to do this, this American lifestyle.
00:09:45
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And I remember having this sort of skepticism about it and kind of staying curious around like, wait a second, is this the only thing that we get to do?
00:09:57
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Is this like we're supposed to do it?
00:09:58
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But I don't know how I feel about it.
00:10:01
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So I started going on that path.
00:10:04
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The situation I was in, my school was getting paid for by my dad.
00:10:08
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And so I went along with what he wanted for me.
00:10:11
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And while I was going to school, I was going to Kent State University in Ohio.
00:10:18
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And year three, I was going through the motions of what every young, early 20 year old was doing.
00:10:26
Speaker
And all of a sudden,
00:10:27
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Something shifted in the financial component of going to school and I started to have to pay for it myself.
00:10:35
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And in that moment, it seemed like a challenge.
00:10:37
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I was like, ah, I don't have to pay for school.
00:10:39
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How am I supposed to pay for school?
00:10:41
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And I realized, oh, wait a second.
00:10:43
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Wait, if I have to pay for it, then I can do whatever I want.
00:10:47
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I don't actually have to keep going to this school anymore.
00:10:50
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And so I saw it as an opportunity to try a different path.
00:10:55
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And so I decided to follow my heart and went to a massage school because I have always loved touch and I love massage therapy.
00:11:04
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My aunt was a massage therapist.
00:11:05
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I was always curious about it.
00:11:07
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I packed up my car in Ohio with everything that I owned and I drove across the country to Arizona to go to a school that I found for massage therapy.
00:11:18
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And that was, I think, the spark of it.
00:11:21
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And I really learned so much about following my own joy, my own freedom, and recognizing that there's always a choice.
00:11:31
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Throughout the years, I have found myself in certain positions where I have to clock in and clock out.
00:11:39
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And I have that similar feeling that you, Janusz, spoke to around, oh, like some contraction.
00:11:46
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Every time I would have to like punch in and punch out, there was just something that just, oh,
Re-evaluating Life Choices
00:11:50
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I don't know.
00:11:50
Speaker
I just, my nervous system or something just didn't feel right.
00:11:55
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And so over the years, I have found different ways to be able to share my passion for my art, for my healing work, and have had multiple businesses over the years and have created this lifestyle for myself too.
00:12:08
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not have to punch in, which feels really good.
00:12:11
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It feels really like a lot of freedom, a lot.
00:12:14
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It's scary because there's, you just never know.
00:12:17
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And there's, you know, a lot of responsibility, but there's also like I was speaking to my nervous system feels much more relaxed.
00:12:27
Speaker
And I don't have to do these things that are so structured.
00:12:32
Speaker
Yeah.
00:12:34
Speaker
I'd love to talk to what you said about that choice, that really courageous choice you made of following your heart and stepping away from the path that has been given to you and been kind of embedded into us, most of us through all sorts of socialization.
00:12:51
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I remember after visiting Burning Man for the first time, and I know everything I say at some point starts with, oh, yeah, I learned this at Burning Man, but that's just the way it is.
00:13:02
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And I remember witnessing all these different ways that people were living, all these different ways.
00:13:08
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types of making a living and career paths that just never occurred to me that you could do these things.
00:13:14
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Like there'd be like, oh yeah, I work for a few months and then I travel for a few months, you know, it's like, oh, well, I sell a few things here.
00:13:19
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And then I'm like, what?
00:13:21
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And I always thought that like life was like a freeway and you pick a lane, you know, you're either a white collar job or a blue collar job or stay at home, dad, like you pick one of the lanes that's assigned to you.
00:13:31
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And I realized that life is more like a lake,
00:13:35
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You know, you can go whatever direction that doesn't have to be a path that's ever been there before.
00:13:40
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And that was such a big awakening for me.
00:13:44
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And I think that I just want to,
00:13:45
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also add that we're all talking about this kind of specific entrepreneurship, no clocking in super freedom, but sometimes falling your heart can lead you to work with a team and a project that is very structured, but it is still super aligned with your heart.
00:14:01
Speaker
And I've had experiences like that as well, because there's all sorts of wonderful things about being in a structured environment where you have a team and you're like, day after day, you're like working with people that are inspiring you and you're learning from and pushing you.
00:14:15
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And yes, you give up freedom in that situation, but it is, there is much to be gained, I think as well.
00:14:21
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And ideally, one of the benefits of kind of trying out different office situations or work situations is you learn how things are done and you learn skills from people and you learn there's, there are ways the world of capitalism works that
00:14:41
Speaker
really helps if you get exposed to them and you get to witness them so that you have some experience and not so naive as you're trying to compete because that's what capitalism is you're competing in some way trying to get resources but if you can witness how things are done it really gives you an advantage when you start doing things for yourself yeah that's that's true and i think that's that's an important point is the you know the idea that
00:15:05
Speaker
One isn't necessarily better than the other.
00:15:07
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There's a lot of people I know, and I've actually had some jobs back in the day that required me to clock in, so to speak, that really weren't that bad.
00:15:18
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They were actually inspiring and I actually enjoyed that time.
00:15:22
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there.
00:15:23
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What works for me best I found is being my own boss and following that track.
00:15:30
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But one is that inherently better than the other.
00:15:33
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The important thing is to find what works for you and go with that and follow that and follow that muse, follow your heart in that way like you did, Betsy.
00:15:42
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That felt good for you and I'm sure there's a lot of an aspect of that that was unknown at the time and kind of scary but
00:15:50
Speaker
You know, I feel like I kind of say this almost every episode, but like you're never going to go wrong following your heart.
00:15:56
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And if your heart is leading you in that direction and even to, you know, to steady 40 hour a week, nine to five, that feels good to me.
00:16:06
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By all means, do that.
00:16:08
Speaker
But sometimes that means you got to load up the car and drive to Arizona.
00:16:11
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So, yeah.
00:16:13
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So true.
00:16:14
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And, you know, just to kind of like echo what our last call was about was continuous evolution, right?
00:16:20
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Becoming new and evolving ourselves, right?
00:16:23
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It's like, this is something that I'm getting to do right now.
00:16:27
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And who knows, maybe in some years from now, I'm going to feel my heart is calling me to a nine to five.
00:16:33
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you know, there's always changing.
00:16:35
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Yeah.
00:16:35
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And I love what you shared too.
00:16:36
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It's like, one is not better than the other.
00:16:38
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It's really about, yeah, what feels right for each of us.
00:16:42
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And one of the, um, one of the things that has really helped me on my journey is asking the question to myself, to my higher self, what is the next phase of my creative evolution or my service in the world?
00:16:56
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right?
00:16:56
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The concept of service.
00:16:57
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That's, that's what really fuels me.
00:16:59
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It's like, where can I share my gifts with the world in the highest and best ways?
00:17:03
Speaker
And sometimes that might be through a clothing line, right?
00:17:07
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I had a clothing line for a long time, or that might be through massage therapy, or maybe one day I'm going to be guided to, you know, we're going to a lab somewhere.
00:17:16
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I don't know, but just continue to listen to the guidance that I'm feeling from my heart by asking that question.
00:17:25
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So you're right.
00:17:26
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That is the theme of this show over and over and over again, listening to your heart and having the courage to listen to it.
00:17:32
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And I think that, you know, that is one of the things that draws us together.
00:17:36
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And I think is that we've all followed paths that involve taking some risks and following our hearts and then get to see the rewards of that and also see the struggles that sometimes that takes.
00:17:47
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You know, it's not an effortless flow.
00:17:51
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It is listening to the call and then
00:17:54
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or finding the direction the current is pulling you and then paddling really hard in that direction.
00:18:01
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You can get places just like going with the flow, but I think that to get to a place where you're like, I am being of service and bringing my gifts in a way that is fully,
00:18:17
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satisfying, giving me peace.
00:18:19
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You know, you, you gotta, you gotta put your effort behind your passions and, and follow your heart.
00:18:24
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And that's a, that can put you in a really inspiring place, which I think is another thing that, that is, can be fuel is when you recognize that you following your truth has an impact of inspiring others to do so too.
00:18:40
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regardless of the income you're bringing in.
00:18:43
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It is really powerful to be around people and witness people who are having the courage to drive to Arizona.
00:18:51
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I think an important part of the process, if not the very first part of that process, and it kind of applies to so many areas of life, is realizing that, or making sure that the choices you're making
00:19:07
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are your choices.
00:19:08
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There is a lot of socialization, indoctrination, for want of a better term, programming that we undergo as children through school and even in young adulthood, like that's what you're saying, like, okay, this is your track, this is what you do.
00:19:24
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School, work, marriage, kids, you know, the whole bit.
00:19:28
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And we get to think, oh, yeah, this is what I want.
00:19:30
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But I think we have to wake up to a certain point of our adulthood.
00:19:35
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And there's no there's no like perfect time to do this.
00:19:37
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But I think it's important that we do do it is really sit back and be like, OK, is this my choice?
00:19:42
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Like, am I just following somebody's?
00:19:44
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track or some idea that was instilled in me to the point that I actually feels like it's my idea.
00:19:49
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Like, what is my idea really?
00:19:52
Speaker
What would I really choose for myself?
00:19:54
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And oftentimes, you know, that initial like, you know, realization is a mystery.
00:19:59
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Like, we don't know because we don't really know ourselves yet.
00:20:02
Speaker
But again, this applies in so many directions like this.
00:20:05
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The ideas of like what what our preferences are like in all realms and then coming to answers and living your life, discovering what those answers are for yourself, which might be like, you know, I like where I'm at.
00:20:18
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This is a good this is a good gig or I need more.
00:20:22
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I need different.
00:20:23
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I need.
00:20:24
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something else.
00:20:26
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And that might prompt you to make a big move.
00:20:30
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That might prompt you to really be like, no, I'm going to root down here, really create a life in this spot where I just happen to be born and grow up in.
00:20:37
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That's fine as long as it's your choice.
00:20:40
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So I think that is an essential process and it's got to come pretty early in whatever, when we start to formulate a plan for ourselves, making sure that our choices are our own is key.
00:20:53
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And I would even say that it is not a juncture in your life when you do it.
00:20:59
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There's a time in your life when you begin and then you continue the process of checking in over and over and over again of like, wait, is this desire coming from inside me or is this something that has come from the outside?
00:21:12
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And it is not simple.
00:21:15
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I mean, you might be following and doing something for years and then go, wait a minute,
00:21:20
Speaker
this is what I witnessed my dad do.
00:21:23
Speaker
And so I assume that's what people who are earned respect do, but it's not what I want to do.
00:21:29
Speaker
Or it isn't like that kind of awareness of, Oh, this is external.
00:21:34
Speaker
I think is something that you work on and chip away for, for the rest of your life.
00:21:38
Speaker
Yes, absolutely.
00:21:40
Speaker
Yeah.
00:21:41
Speaker
I'd love to speak on that.
00:21:42
Speaker
And I love where this conversation is going, right?
00:21:44
Speaker
How do we pivot?
00:21:45
Speaker
right?
00:21:46
Speaker
If you have been living a life for many years, that is not in alignment to what you truly want.
00:21:52
Speaker
I think I can relate to that.
00:21:54
Speaker
I've been in that situation before where I have felt stuck and I'm like, Whoa, how did I get here?
00:21:58
Speaker
All of a sudden I'm like living this identity that doesn't feel true for who I am.
00:22:03
Speaker
How do I pivot?
00:22:04
Speaker
And I think you spoke so beautifully to that halcyon.
00:22:06
Speaker
It's not always taking a huge leap, one big leap, but a series of small shifts, right?
00:22:13
Speaker
I think I spoke to this, um,
00:22:15
Speaker
this book last week, atomic habits, right.
00:22:18
Speaker
These tiny little micro shifts that we can make within ourselves and our lives to be able to, um, yeah, pivot right into the next phase of who we are becoming.
00:22:30
Speaker
Right.
00:22:30
Speaker
And if that has to do with your work in the world, then slowly starting to make shifts and adjustments, starting to open up perspective around other options.
00:22:39
Speaker
Right.
00:22:39
Speaker
I think that's a really, um, beautiful way to do it.
00:22:42
Speaker
And I feel like, um,
00:22:44
Speaker
there is something also to be said around having the courage, you know, to be able to look within, right.
00:22:53
Speaker
As you were saying, Janus, right.
00:22:54
Speaker
Where are these beliefs coming from?
00:22:56
Speaker
Where is this, you know, these thoughts coming from, is this my own or is this coming from somewhere else?
00:23:02
Speaker
I think that really is a very courageous path to go deep inside yourself to inquire around who you are and what, what is the life that we're living.
Career Reevaluation and Growth
00:23:13
Speaker
I'd love to share a little more details of what a big shift for me early.
00:23:18
Speaker
I graduated in psychology, honors, all ready to head to grad school.
00:23:24
Speaker
So then I went to go work as a counselor at a group home with emotionally disturbed boys for a couple of years to get experience before I went to grad school, because of course I got to go up the ladder, up the ladder, up the ladder.
00:23:35
Speaker
You got to get as high as possible.
00:23:38
Speaker
And while working at the group home, I was...
00:23:42
Speaker
miserable.
00:23:43
Speaker
It was so difficult.
00:23:44
Speaker
It was so soul crushing.
00:23:46
Speaker
It broke my heart.
00:23:47
Speaker
I cried every morning before work on my way to work.
00:23:51
Speaker
And eventually, you know, my parents were supportive and they gave me as a gift, a trip to a career counselor and where they asked me what, what,
00:23:59
Speaker
brings you joy.
00:24:00
Speaker
And the only thing I was enjoying at the time was I was making a zine, a little like Xeroxed magazine.
00:24:05
Speaker
This is before the internet, so aging myself.
00:24:08
Speaker
So I would write stories and comics and then mail it to people who requested it.
00:24:12
Speaker
And I was loving the creative output.
00:24:15
Speaker
And I said, that's the only thing that I'm enjoying.
00:24:17
Speaker
And so through this like exercises of like, well, what if, what if I end up quitting my job, leaving this path that I'd been on my whole life,
00:24:28
Speaker
of better, better, more.
00:24:29
Speaker
And I went back to junior college to take design classes and how to use a Macintosh for page layout and stuff like that.
00:24:37
Speaker
And then while there, you know, and this was a huge thing, like not to, my dad is a, you know, you, you have opportunity, you take it, you know, there's no way you would go backwards and going to junior college was a step backwards.
00:24:49
Speaker
And I, while I was in junior college, I was at a, I worked at a call center
00:24:55
Speaker
One day I got called into the office, they found my zine, because I passed it around the call center, like, is this yours?
00:25:00
Speaker
And I'm like, yes.
00:25:01
Speaker
And they go, do you want to answer phones for a living?
00:25:04
Speaker
You seem like a really creative person.
00:25:06
Speaker
And I'm like, no, is it because we keep hearing about this thing called the internet?
00:25:12
Speaker
And we were thinking that maybe you could figure out what it is, put your little magazine on the internet, and then once you know what it is, you can make us a company homepage.
00:25:20
Speaker
And I was like, I have no fucking idea what you're talking about, but that sounds awesome.
00:25:24
Speaker
Totally changed my life.
00:25:26
Speaker
I ended up being in the internet space way early, which allowed me then to become a consultant later and become an entrepreneur.
00:25:32
Speaker
But if I didn't let go of the path I was on, I never would have found my way to my place and my purpose and what has lit me up for the rest of my life.
00:25:42
Speaker
I love that so much.
00:25:44
Speaker
That's fantastic.
00:25:46
Speaker
And that moves me to want to push back against the idea of a step back.
00:25:54
Speaker
It's like when you're going, it's like, okay, so do I have to go back to school?
00:25:59
Speaker
I already did that.
00:26:00
Speaker
What am I doing with my life?
00:26:02
Speaker
No, no, no, no, no.
00:26:04
Speaker
We are, it's, it is all a means to an end.
00:26:06
Speaker
Like if that feels like, okay, I need to do this thing that I already did in order for me to then bounce from that.
00:26:14
Speaker
Like there's a, there's a, there's a bounce from a lot of these things that we do in our life to like, you know, if I do, do I need to move back to Ohio to like to do something, but if that's going to lead you to the next thing and that feels like a proper step,
00:26:26
Speaker
That's that is a move forward.
00:26:28
Speaker
So I understand the idea of like seizing opportunity.
00:26:31
Speaker
Absolutely.
00:26:31
Speaker
But opportunity comes in where's a lot of different costumes, where's a lot of different outfits.
00:26:36
Speaker
So it's important to to frame to frame it and be like, OK, so this is this is a step in a direction, not backwards.
00:26:45
Speaker
It's going to allow me to get to where I want to get to.
00:26:48
Speaker
Like a labyrinth.
00:26:49
Speaker
Well, and what you just did is you helped me to do what we just talked about of re-evaluating was this from the outset or the inside?
00:26:57
Speaker
That narrative that I just retold, which I've told before many times is that I took a step back.
00:27:03
Speaker
That is based on an external story that I had ingested and never really kind of questioned in the way that you just did.
00:27:10
Speaker
So yeah.
00:27:11
Speaker
We just live helped me break through something.
00:27:14
Speaker
Thank you.
00:27:15
Speaker
All right.
00:27:16
Speaker
Beautiful.
00:27:17
Speaker
It's like a labyrinth.
00:27:18
Speaker
Have you guys ever walked a labyrinth?
00:27:20
Speaker
Yes.
00:27:20
Speaker
Yes.
00:27:21
Speaker
It looks like a maze, but there's only one way, right?
00:27:25
Speaker
And when you're, you're getting closer to closer to the center.
00:27:28
Speaker
And then all of a sudden the path takes you back out to the edges and it feels like you're going in the wrong way because you're trying to get to the center, but really that is the pathway to the center.
00:27:39
Speaker
And so sometimes on our path, it might feel like we're lost or going the wrong way, but really there's only one way.
00:27:45
Speaker
And I love that.
00:27:46
Speaker
And I also want to highlight something you said, Halcyon, around that zine.
00:27:50
Speaker
right?
00:27:51
Speaker
When that counselor asked you, well, what, what is bringing you joy?
00:27:54
Speaker
And at that moment, it might've just seemed like a small thing, right?
00:27:58
Speaker
But it was, that was the spark.
00:28:00
Speaker
That was a spark that was lighting you up.
00:28:02
Speaker
And it might've been your own little small thing, but it turned into something that really led you on your path.
00:28:07
Speaker
Right.
00:28:07
Speaker
And I love that so much.
00:28:09
Speaker
So when we follow our joy and really keep following our joy, then we can watch it start to blossom and to grow in these different ways.
00:28:21
Speaker
The thing is that like, I was at the time I was evaluating, this zine seemed like something silly because I was measuring it against what the culture had value for.
00:28:36
Speaker
But if you're really ever going to find the thing that allows you to successfully be you in the world, you're gonna have to have faith that the thing that lights you up
00:28:49
Speaker
is has value, whether the culture and your family has told you so or not.
00:28:53
Speaker
And I think that there's, if you can dive in and become awesome at the thing that lights you up, you will find your market and you will find the people that will support you to do it.
Balancing Passion and Practicality
00:29:03
Speaker
Yep.
00:29:03
Speaker
Yeah.
00:29:04
Speaker
I'd love to share a little story on how that sparked for me.
00:29:08
Speaker
So, so as you guys know, and many of you guys that listening out there that might know me for over the last decade, I had a clothing line that was focused on upcycled clothing, transforming clothing.
00:29:18
Speaker
And it started because I had moved to California and I was a little bit lost.
00:29:25
Speaker
I wasn't really sure if I was meant to be here, what I was doing.
00:29:30
Speaker
I was doing massage, but I was struggling.
00:29:33
Speaker
And I met this woman who was a clothing designer and I would go sit with her and watch her sew.
00:29:39
Speaker
I didn't know how to sew and tiny little bit of sewing skills that my mom taught me at a younger age, but not really.
00:29:45
Speaker
And I would sit with her and watch her sew.
00:29:47
Speaker
And she always had these little bits of extra fabric that she would cut off from the, her, her pieces.
00:29:54
Speaker
And so I, as she was using her machine, I would hand stitch these little fabric flowers.
00:30:00
Speaker
And then I started giving them away.
00:30:03
Speaker
And I was calling them Finkelhooflowers, my last name.
00:30:05
Speaker
And then I started making more of them and more of them.
00:30:07
Speaker
And people were wearing them and enjoying them and getting really excited about them.
00:30:12
Speaker
And it was lighting me up.
00:30:13
Speaker
And I kept doing that.
00:30:14
Speaker
And then eventually I was like, well, I need to follow this.
00:30:18
Speaker
And that was like the little sparkle on the pathway of building a line.
00:30:25
Speaker
I ended up getting to travel the world and
00:30:28
Speaker
sell clothing and teach people how to upcycle clothing and eco fashion.
00:30:32
Speaker
And it's been, it was a really beautiful journey.
00:30:35
Speaker
And it started with that one little spark of inspiration to, to stitch some fabric together.
00:30:42
Speaker
Right.
00:30:43
Speaker
And I would have never guessed that in that moment, it would have led me somewhere so far and wide.
00:30:49
Speaker
And I would guess that you, well, maybe I'll ask, but when you started making the flowers, were you thinking, Ooh, I'm going to sell these.
00:30:55
Speaker
And I'm guessing it's like, this is fun.
00:31:00
Speaker
And then people like it.
00:31:01
Speaker
And then that lights you up.
00:31:02
Speaker
And then it leads to places where it becomes, you know, potential work and stuff.
00:31:06
Speaker
But it's, I think it's a, it's a, I caution people about making the, your, your decisions about your passion, um,
00:31:18
Speaker
at the same time that you're making your business plan.
00:31:20
Speaker
Like you, if you're listening to your landlord and your muse at the same time, often the landlord will win and you won't be following, you won't be creating what you truly wanna create.
00:31:32
Speaker
To take that a step back, like people often ask me, like they say, I want to quit my job and, you know, make wire jewelry full time.
00:31:37
Speaker
And I caution people about that.
00:31:39
Speaker
You know, I think that there is a place of having a traditional job that doesn't take all your energy away, that allows you to have the time and the space and
00:31:50
Speaker
the energy really to continue making things exactly as you want to.
00:31:54
Speaker
Because if you need money from your art to pay your bills, you will create art that people want to buy.
00:32:02
Speaker
You will go to, like, let's say you go to a street art thing and the person next to you has a bunch of Disney mice in their paintings.
00:32:11
Speaker
And so everyone's buying them.
00:32:12
Speaker
No one's buying your paintings.
00:32:13
Speaker
Next month you're like, God, if I added a few characters, someone might buy it.
00:32:18
Speaker
And when you get into that trap, you might pay your bills, but then you're just, you've lost the magic that is your potential, I think.
00:32:27
Speaker
So I tell people to try to find, before you quit your job, see if there's things in your work that allow you to
00:32:39
Speaker
be you.
00:32:40
Speaker
So if you are having to pretend who you are all day long, that's way too much, way too much time of your life that you are that are not able to be yourself.
00:32:47
Speaker
But if you can be yourself in your office, if you work with people that you enjoy, and if there's something in your work environment that you can hold on to, like the purpose of what they're doing, you believe in,
00:32:58
Speaker
Even if it's like we're making spreadsheets more productive so that accountants can get home sooner.
00:33:04
Speaker
If you believe in that, awesome.
00:33:06
Speaker
If you don't, then you got to find another job where there's something about what you're doing that you feel good about.
00:33:12
Speaker
And then if that situation gives you the time and energy to after work, do your wire wrapping, and then you start to sell more of them and more of them, more of them.
00:33:19
Speaker
And then you are in a position to tell your boss, hey, I only want to work three days a week.
00:33:24
Speaker
you know, it's kind of, it's not always a matter of pack up everything and drive to Hollywood to be an actor, in my opinion.
00:33:31
Speaker
And, you know, that's the guidance I give people.
00:33:33
Speaker
Absolutely.
00:33:34
Speaker
I went through that actually, you know, after I had been making clothing for a little while and I stopped doing massage because,
00:33:41
Speaker
My massage was my main income.
00:33:43
Speaker
And then the clothing started to take off.
00:33:45
Speaker
Then all of a sudden I caught myself in a very specific moment.
00:33:49
Speaker
I was sitting down to look at all my expenses and all of everything.
00:33:52
Speaker
And I was like, all right, I need to make this many pocket belts and this, I need to sell this many dresses.
00:33:57
Speaker
And I need to do this many things in order to make my rent next month.
00:34:01
Speaker
And I was like, cringe.
00:34:02
Speaker
And I'm like, oh, okay.
00:34:04
Speaker
I guess I'm going to make these things for these people from that place of scarcity.
00:34:09
Speaker
And it wasn't bringing me joy.
00:34:11
Speaker
like the joy started to like fade because I was having to do it.
00:34:15
Speaker
I had this pressure that I was putting on myself.
00:34:17
Speaker
And so I realized I had to find a balance and to be able to come back to that, that place of joyful creation to create, not because I needed to do it.
00:34:26
Speaker
Yeah.
00:34:28
Speaker
I think that's a, that's a story.
00:34:29
Speaker
I think a lot of people can relate to and, you know,
00:34:32
Speaker
even if you make the choice to like follow your passion, you know, you still gotta put food in the fridge.
00:34:37
Speaker
You still gotta like, you still gotta make a, make your, you know, make your rent payments or mortgage payments and such.
00:34:42
Speaker
So a lot of times our passion turns into a chore if we're not careful.
00:34:48
Speaker
So it's, so it's important to, you can instead like before you, you know,
00:34:53
Speaker
quit everything and pack up a car and like move to California to become an actor or whatever, whatever that is.
00:34:59
Speaker
Try the reframing.
00:35:00
Speaker
I think Hal's getting touched on this.
00:35:01
Speaker
Like try to reframe it.
00:35:03
Speaker
Okay.
00:35:03
Speaker
Like this, this nine to five or this job I have is a means is, can be a means to an end.
00:35:08
Speaker
So maybe I can scale back my time doing it, which would allow me to focus on my passion and my art as opposed to needing to like make some wire, wire wrapped jewelry, you know, X amount of these pieces in order for me to make my rent.
00:35:22
Speaker
I can maybe keep the job that I'm doing, maybe scale back my hours, which is going to give me more time to do that.
00:35:27
Speaker
And I don't have to worry about
00:35:29
Speaker
you know, my bills so much.
00:35:31
Speaker
It allows me to focus on my art, my passion.
00:35:33
Speaker
Um, so a lot of, you know, jobs, jobby jobs, quote unquote, will allow you to do that, uh, will allow you the freedom to be able to focus on, you know, to follow your passion for creation.
00:35:46
Speaker
So, uh, sometimes you gotta just pack it all up and make the move, but sometimes, you know, you can, you can do both sometimes and that works out.
00:35:53
Speaker
So, uh, definitely weigh that as an option.
00:35:56
Speaker
Um,
00:35:57
Speaker
If you're looking to transition into a life of entrepreneurship, it's a step-by-step process.
00:36:04
Speaker
It doesn't have to all happen at once.
00:36:07
Speaker
So yeah, so just again, thinking outside the box is the way to go about that.
00:36:16
Speaker
Currently, I have a few projects that I make money doing that allows me to have a whole bunch of other projects that I do whatever I want with.
00:36:24
Speaker
And I love that personally, that for me is the balance that I feel good about because then when I'm doing the whatever I want projects, I'm purely guided by what the muse is asking me to do.
00:36:41
Speaker
I don't have to do it.
00:36:43
Speaker
And that just, it's, that makes it fun.
00:36:45
Speaker
You know, whereas if I, if I have to do it, even if it's, even if it's, I mean, talk to a porn star, if you have to do it, it's not as fun.
00:36:54
Speaker
Okay, we'll edit that out.
00:36:55
Speaker
We'll edit that out.
00:36:57
Speaker
But I mean, even like we were, we were, before we started recording, we were talking about another podcast and that has been very successful.
00:37:05
Speaker
And the hosts of that show decided to keep their day jobs because they liked the freedom of being able to do what they want and, and, uh, uh, and didn't want the pressure of, of making their, paying their bills with this thing that they enjoy doing.
00:37:23
Speaker
Mm-hmm.
00:37:23
Speaker
It's a way to stay inspired and, yeah, motivated.
00:37:26
Speaker
And I feel like that there's also something about staying curious with it, right?
00:37:30
Speaker
Because here we are, we're following our hearts by sharing here, right?
00:37:35
Speaker
And we don't know where this might take us, but we know that we are staying inspired and listening.
00:37:41
Speaker
And it comes right back to our conversation last episode around
00:37:45
Speaker
evolution of who we are and listening, staying present.
00:37:49
Speaker
And I'll just keep sharing this question that has been so supportive to me.
00:37:53
Speaker
So how can I share my gifts with the world in a way that is fun, that is prosperous, that is impactful, that is joyful each day, every day, what steps can I take today that I can share my life, share my gifts with the world in a way that is all of those things and more.
00:38:13
Speaker
And I feel it's what leads from that is, you know, the idea, like if you look at a lot of stories of entrepreneurship, for example, or people who are kind of doing their own thing.
00:38:26
Speaker
It's a lot of times that is born from something happening in their world that could have gone any different, any multiple different directions, but a lot of making this choice for yourself and leading this sort of life comes down to what you do with it.
00:38:43
Speaker
You know, the idea that big things have small beginnings.
00:38:46
Speaker
So, you know, from...
00:38:49
Speaker
you know, from someone giving Betsy like shards of pieces of fabric to do well with whatever you want to do with them, fine.
00:38:56
Speaker
So, you know, with no idea that that's going to lead to, you know,
00:39:00
Speaker
what it led to.
00:39:02
Speaker
But there's an opportunity there.
00:39:04
Speaker
There's the opportunities that there's, there's, we're surrounded by opportunities every, you know, every day really.
00:39:10
Speaker
And so it's kind of recognizing like, okay, this is an opportunity.
00:39:14
Speaker
Even if it feels like something that's happened to you, there's an opportunity in there.
00:39:19
Speaker
So what, so it all really comes down to what you do with it, what you choose to do with it, making sure that it's your choice and then following that.
00:39:27
Speaker
Um,
00:39:29
Speaker
almost inevitably leads to something good.
00:39:32
Speaker
So really kind of being open to following, you know, following that news and following what's wanting to be created now.
00:39:39
Speaker
What can be created now?
00:39:41
Speaker
And, you know, figuring out what feels good and then doing that thing.
Entrepreneurship Challenges and Support
00:39:45
Speaker
I think there's, another thing that I think is helpful is to really check in and figure out what's important to you because the beginning of this path is gonna require sacrifice of some sort.
00:40:00
Speaker
When I, one of my early internet projects, I had a webcam based community and the bubble of 2000 collapsed and so our funding dropped.
00:40:11
Speaker
And so to keep the project going,
00:40:13
Speaker
I moved into the webcam house that was a part of the project and I allowed people to watch me shower and live my life for a couple of years.
00:40:22
Speaker
Now, it was also an artistic choice and I wanted to do it, but like I made no money.
00:40:27
Speaker
You know, I had to live off my savings.
00:40:29
Speaker
I got free rent because I let people watch me shower.
00:40:32
Speaker
And but to me, like that was an easy choice to continue to follow a dream project.
00:40:40
Speaker
that had me lit up.
00:40:42
Speaker
I didn't need money.
00:40:43
Speaker
I would find other ways to cut costs.
00:40:45
Speaker
I would find other ways to survive in hopes that, you know, we would find a way for the project to work.
00:40:51
Speaker
But, you know, you really got to check in, like, what is, what can I live without?
00:41:00
Speaker
What, how am I, am I willing to push myself in ways that maybe I couldn't?
00:41:05
Speaker
That's one thing that I think is a real benefit of entrepreneurship is
00:41:09
Speaker
you
00:41:11
Speaker
If you are someone who is afraid to pick up the phone, you're gonna get this decision like, I have to fucking pick up the phone.
00:41:17
Speaker
Like I gotta call, I gotta make this happen, you know?
00:41:19
Speaker
And I think that there's a, but you gotta be ready and maybe have a support network and group of people that can help you to deal with the challenges, the sacrifices and the difficult stuff that is part of it.
00:41:33
Speaker
And it's part of why you choose it.
00:41:34
Speaker
Like what kind of life do I wanna live?
00:41:36
Speaker
I wanna look back and go, all right, I was a hero of this awesome epic myth.
00:41:41
Speaker
And that takes making a lot of choices and having a lot of courage.
00:41:45
Speaker
Absolutely.
00:41:46
Speaker
Well said.
00:41:46
Speaker
It requires a bit of support as well.
00:41:49
Speaker
It's really easy.
00:41:50
Speaker
And it took me a while to kind of get my head around.
00:41:53
Speaker
I'm still actually working on it.
00:41:55
Speaker
The saying that if you want to go fast, go alone.
00:41:58
Speaker
If you want to go far, go together.
00:41:59
Speaker
If you have a...
00:42:05
Speaker
It's exponentially easier for you to get to this idea of where you're going if you have a team, if you have some support going on, like people who are aligned with what you are doing or at least resonate with what you're doing and are, okay, how can I support that?
00:42:22
Speaker
Or maybe we can do this together.
00:42:24
Speaker
being open to the idea of collaboration, like, okay, I've got my idea of what I'm trying to do.
00:42:30
Speaker
But some input from somebody else who I know or trust or what have you can not, it might take it in a different direction, but that different direction could be better.
00:42:39
Speaker
It could be better for you, could be better for the world.
00:42:41
Speaker
So being, being open to collaboration, allow, allow the world to, you know, bestow upon you some, you know, what you need in order to, you know,
00:42:52
Speaker
Somebody, a friend of mine said to me once that the universe has a better imagination than we do.
00:42:59
Speaker
So allow us to be led and be shown a direction to be like, no, you can do this.
00:43:05
Speaker
And that's awesome if you're going to do that on your own, but bring some people into that.
00:43:09
Speaker
And then like,
00:43:10
Speaker
watch what can happen, watch what unfolds.
00:43:12
Speaker
So yeah, the idea of the spirit of collaboration is going to be highly beneficial to almost all of us with whatever path towards entrepreneurship or moving away from the nine to five lifestyle can bring to us, so.
00:43:31
Speaker
Yes.
00:43:31
Speaker
Masterminding to get a team.
00:43:34
Speaker
Yeah.
00:43:34
Speaker
Right.
00:43:35
Speaker
Having a team or just being in the conversation with other people who are also on the path.
00:43:40
Speaker
The masterminding I know has been a huge catalyst to my, the belief in myself, right?
00:43:45
Speaker
Having other people around me to fan my flames and for me to fan their flames has been such an important part of the journey.
00:43:55
Speaker
right?
00:43:55
Speaker
Because you're right, we don't have to do it alone.
00:43:57
Speaker
Whether we're building our own personal team with our own business or just having a team of people around us to support is so valuable.
00:44:07
Speaker
You're so right on.
00:44:08
Speaker
That's a huge spark right there, Yonuz.
00:44:10
Speaker
Thank you for bringing that forward.
00:44:12
Speaker
Yeah.
00:44:13
Speaker
And the idea real quick, it kind of goes back to the notion of things that
00:44:22
Speaker
you know, might be interpreted as happening to us, you know, can kind of happen for us.
00:44:27
Speaker
And it kind of all depends on how you, you know, what you do with it.
00:44:31
Speaker
My own, my personal, the company that I got right now,
00:44:34
Speaker
is a nutritional supplement company.
00:44:36
Speaker
And that was born out of me having some, you know, some issues with like executive function, executive dysfunction or executive function disorder, however you want to phrase it.
00:44:47
Speaker
And not wanting to get on any meds for that, but like, okay, how can I, how can I deal with this or treat this like, you know, holistically or nutritionally and finding ways to do that.
00:44:56
Speaker
We have mushrooms and, you know, herbs and amino acids and really doing diving into that research for like three years,
00:45:03
Speaker
and coming up with a concoction of a blend of nutrients that really worked for me.
00:45:07
Speaker
And I had some friends who were like, wow, you seem like you're doing better.
00:45:10
Speaker
And I'm like, I am because I'm doing this thing.
00:45:11
Speaker
It's like, oh, that sounds like that could be good for my dad or good for my wife.
00:45:17
Speaker
Could I try some of those or whatever?
00:45:19
Speaker
I'm like, sure, sure.
00:45:20
Speaker
Cause I'm just making these capsules.
00:45:21
Speaker
And so I would do that.
00:45:23
Speaker
And then I eventually started after doing that for a few friends, I eventually started getting feedback from like people I didn't even know, but who were friends or friends being like, Hey, so someone still told me about this thing.
00:45:31
Speaker
And that started happening enough that I was like, maybe, and I'd be, I'd be happy to buy those from you.
00:45:36
Speaker
And I was like,
00:45:37
Speaker
maybe this is like a business that could be formed around this.
00:45:41
Speaker
And sure enough, it was.
00:45:43
Speaker
So for me, from being born of like wanting to take care of myself, you know, nutritionally, that led pretty quickly to, you know, a business being formed around that.
00:45:55
Speaker
So I'm, you know, that I'm able to, and it feels good to not just have a business where I'm making a widget and like offering that for sales.
00:46:01
Speaker
Like, this is the thing that's really helping people.
00:46:04
Speaker
Like it was helping myself and it was born from the idea of just wanting to be healthier and then realizing that this is something that could help other people be healthier as well.
00:46:14
Speaker
And that was supported, like just following that, following that, that muse, following, you know, following my heart and that kind of led to, you know, my life changing substantially.
00:46:24
Speaker
for the better.
00:46:25
Speaker
So it's, it's not what, you know, again, it goes back to, it's not what, not what happens to you.
00:46:30
Speaker
It's what you do with it.
00:46:32
Speaker
That is, that is key in this, in this world of entrepreneurship.
00:46:35
Speaker
There's, you know, opportunities abound.
00:46:37
Speaker
So just recognizing opportunity, trying to get on for size, see how it fits.
00:46:41
Speaker
I feel this parallel as you're describing your product line.
00:46:44
Speaker
For most of my life, I have been the product.
00:46:47
Speaker
And so, you know, but it required me to be myself loudly in corporate settings initially.
00:46:58
Speaker
And so I've had pink hair in the offices that I've worked.
00:47:01
Speaker
I've been this person that I am now.
00:47:04
Speaker
And I had to, I guess, have the courage and believe in this product enough that I wasn't right for a lot of jobs.
00:47:12
Speaker
But
00:47:13
Speaker
If people figured out who I was, they would go, ooh, like often we'll make a job for you.
00:47:19
Speaker
You know, like, well, they'll find, and that's, I think if you're gonna be in office, that's the, or in a nine to five or clocking in, best case scenario is you,
00:47:28
Speaker
You show who you really are and you're seen, and then they find and create a job for you.
00:47:35
Speaker
That's how you succeed the most.
00:47:36
Speaker
That's how you bring the most value.
00:47:38
Speaker
But that's not going to happen if you try to figure out what they want and then be that.
00:47:42
Speaker
You have to be you.
00:47:45
Speaker
And that means you're closing some doors, but the ones that will be opened, you're going to rock.
00:47:51
Speaker
And that's been my experience.
00:47:53
Speaker
How did you get to where you got?
00:47:54
Speaker
Well, by letting people see me.
00:47:57
Speaker
and making sure that they knew exactly who I was.
00:48:02
Speaker
And then when the position opened for someone that there was my early jobs, the internet was like, this has never been done.
00:48:12
Speaker
We know that you do exploratory things.
00:48:15
Speaker
Would you give this a try?
00:48:16
Speaker
I'm like, sure, sure, sure.
00:48:18
Speaker
And so that just led to more and more things.
00:48:20
Speaker
But if I tried to
00:48:22
Speaker
you know, become the expert that, you know, a online training told me to be, I would be exactly like a thousand other people and I would never have the ability to kind of forge my own way.
00:48:35
Speaker
Absolutely.
00:48:38
Speaker
Yes.
00:48:38
Speaker
So beautiful.
00:48:39
Speaker
Thank you for that.
00:48:41
Speaker
And I'll, I'll also just echo some of what you shared too around following what really works for you to be able to share that with the world.
00:48:49
Speaker
I also have those
00:48:52
Speaker
getting to share something that has really helped me to rise in my level of confidence, which is affirmations, journaling, and gratitude and meditation.
00:49:01
Speaker
And so I feel so inspired to get to share what has worked for me with people that I love, with my clients, and yet continuing to really harness the power of what is our passion?
00:49:16
Speaker
How can we keep following what works for us and serve others?
00:49:20
Speaker
And so as we come to a close, maybe we can close it up with, um, some of, some of the sparks that have really helped you guys helped all of us on our journey of
Key Sparks in Entrepreneurship
00:49:30
Speaker
entrepreneurship.
00:49:30
Speaker
I think we've, we've spoken to many, but if you could just close us out with, uh, some of the juiciest, most sparkly sparks.
00:49:39
Speaker
I would, uh, I would go into kind of reiterating, um,
00:49:45
Speaker
paying attention to it in your life, like what's wanting to come through, what's wanting to be created.
00:49:51
Speaker
And the idea of, you know, letting it be easy, like, it's like, there's a lot of things that will fall into your lap that just like, oh, this is just like some fabric.
00:49:59
Speaker
Cool.
00:50:00
Speaker
Like, no, what do you do with that thing?
00:50:03
Speaker
So there's always like an opportunity for, you know,
00:50:07
Speaker
to create something.
00:50:08
Speaker
And to what Halstyn's talking about, the idea that we touch on a lot about authenticity.
00:50:15
Speaker
What's authentic to you?
00:50:17
Speaker
Like being yourself and doing what you want to do, because that's what you want to do, as opposed to trying to fit into some mold, is, in my experience, rewarded.
00:50:27
Speaker
You don't do it for the reward.
00:50:29
Speaker
Doing it is its own reward.
00:50:31
Speaker
But the fringe benefits of following, of being authentic to who you are, listening to your own voice and making your own choices, the rewards for that are ginormous.
00:50:41
Speaker
So it's definitely behooves us to, you know, be authentic to ourselves, let our lives be easy and, you know, follow your heart.
00:50:51
Speaker
Hey, I want to close with a story of, um,
00:50:56
Speaker
a corporate story of authenticity being rewarded.
00:51:00
Speaker
When I was at the startup, we had a huge meeting with a company, a massive billion dollar company, and
00:51:11
Speaker
I guess to take a step back, one of the things that I introduced to our corporate culture when we were forming the company is we had gratitude circles every Friday morning, all company gratitude circles.
00:51:19
Speaker
Everybody would share something they're grateful for professionally and something privately.
00:51:23
Speaker
And it was transformative what it did to our connections.
00:51:27
Speaker
So,
00:51:28
Speaker
We happened to be at this meeting with this billion dollar company on the top floor of this East Coast stuffy place on a Friday.
00:51:36
Speaker
And so as we were breaking for lunch, my CEO said, why don't you ask if they want to do a gratitude circle?
00:51:44
Speaker
We did.
00:51:45
Speaker
We started it off and we role modeled and we shared really personal things about our families and one another.
00:51:52
Speaker
And these people, they started sharing things about each other that were so deep and they shared things about their families that I bet they never heard about from each other, even after working together for years.
00:52:04
Speaker
We flew back home to San Diego after a venture after a full day of meetings, and then they gave us the contract.
00:52:12
Speaker
We were brand new.
00:52:13
Speaker
We had never done anything.
00:52:14
Speaker
And I am absolutely convinced that the reason why they wanted to work with us is because they were human beings that wanted to have
00:52:21
Speaker
human connection and wanted to interact with people that were willing to be authentic and genuine in a, in a, what we work quote unquote environment, but that people were so hungry for it that they wanted to do business with us.
00:52:33
Speaker
So I share that as like, that was one of my corporate highlights of my life is like, wow, you can spread your light and it still lead to good things in a world that you kind of, maybe you're uncertain if, if there's value there.
00:52:48
Speaker
So have faith.
00:52:50
Speaker
Yes.
00:52:51
Speaker
And always stay grateful.
00:52:53
Speaker
Yes.
00:52:53
Speaker
Power of gratitude.
00:52:55
Speaker
I love that so much.
00:52:57
Speaker
Yes.
00:52:57
Speaker
And I'll share my biggest spark has been surrounding myself with people who support me and believe in me and are there for me.
00:53:07
Speaker
That has been a major, major component to my growth and my evolution and my service in the world.
00:53:15
Speaker
Having sisters, soul sisters and blood sisters as well that believe in me and
00:53:20
Speaker
really making sure to be mindful around, you know, taking in other people's opinions and yeah, being discerning around the types of people that I choose to share some of my visions with.
00:53:33
Speaker
Right.
00:53:34
Speaker
I really like to share my creative visions with people that I know are supportive.
Conclusion and Gratitude
00:53:40
Speaker
And yeah, that's been a really important part of the journey of staying inspired.
00:53:46
Speaker
Beautiful.
00:53:47
Speaker
Yeah.
00:53:48
Speaker
Amazing.
00:53:48
Speaker
Thanks, guys.
00:53:49
Speaker
What a great call.
00:53:50
Speaker
Yay.
00:53:51
Speaker
Yeah, good one.
00:53:52
Speaker
Thanks.
00:53:53
Speaker
And I know you talked both about a little bit about your offerings, but real quick, when I give the names of the companies, how you can find them.
00:54:02
Speaker
I know it's in the show notes.
00:54:03
Speaker
We have links to all of your stuff, but tell us again the name of your company.
00:54:07
Speaker
Um, company is called new world nutritionals.
00:54:09
Speaker
That's N U world nutritionals.
00:54:12
Speaker
Uh, we have a line of nutritional supplements, all geared for improving, improving your brain, getting your mind, getting your mind, right.
00:54:19
Speaker
Getting your, uh, you know, the power of positive thinking actually contained in a supplement.
00:54:25
Speaker
So it's, uh, nice.
00:54:26
Speaker
Yeah.
00:54:27
Speaker
So it's, uh, it's, it's good stuff.
00:54:28
Speaker
Check it out in the show notes.
00:54:30
Speaker
Um, and feel free to use the code spark for, uh, discounts on any product we have.
00:54:35
Speaker
Awesome.
00:54:37
Speaker
Betsy, where do we find your journal?
00:54:39
Speaker
I love that so much.
00:54:40
Speaker
The power of positive thinking in different forms, right?
00:54:44
Speaker
So my company is called Power Affirmation.
00:54:46
Speaker
You can find it at poweraffirmation.com.
00:54:49
Speaker
And it is a system and a process that takes us through journaling prompts and also through virtual training to be able to reprogram our belief systems about who we are, who we're choosing to become, using affirmations, gratitude, self-inquiry, and
00:55:07
Speaker
in the virtual groups, many different practices of meditation and breath work and movement and group work to be able to really live our best lives.
00:55:16
Speaker
And of course, check it out.
00:55:17
Speaker
I also have a discount code on there as well for a journal 10% off used SPARKED for the discount code.
00:55:25
Speaker
Yay.
00:55:26
Speaker
And I will share my YouTube channel.
00:55:29
Speaker
It's called Hug Nation.
00:55:30
Speaker
All sorts of topics that overlap with some of the things we talk about today.
00:55:35
Speaker
And occasionally I do some coaching.
00:55:37
Speaker
So if you are resonating with the Hug Nation vibe, reach out to me and we will have a talk.
00:55:44
Speaker
Betsy, would you close us out with an affirmation?
00:55:48
Speaker
Yes.
00:55:50
Speaker
I'm going to close us out with an affirmation that is in the form of a question.
00:55:55
Speaker
So oftentimes we think it's just a blanket statement, but affirmations can also be in the form of a question.
00:56:00
Speaker
So inspired by today's topic, the affirmation is how can I share my gifts with the world in a way that will bring a positive impact that is fun, that is joyful, that is prosperous.
00:56:14
Speaker
How may I share my gifts with the world today and every day in a way that is joyful, that is fun, that is impactful, that is prosperous?
00:56:24
Speaker
How may I share my gifts with the world today and every day in a way that is joyful, that is fun, that is prosperous, that is impactful?
00:56:35
Speaker
And so it is.
00:56:37
Speaker
Keep listening, keep being guided, keep following our hearts, and keep staying sparked.