I recently turned 34, and there is something about birthdays that invites moments of reflection – at least for me. I spent much of this year, and April onward in blog posts, mulling over what I want my career to look like. I’ve done a lot of work I have truly loved, with clients and partners that continue to do life-changing work in their spaces. However, you know when a change is afoot, and that change happened for me when my son was born.
Read MoreMy word of the year is “recalibration,” and I have been doing just that. If you remember the GPSes of yesteryear, you’ll remember that the AI voice always said, “recalculating” if you took another route. I’m currently on that other route. Here are some musings from this month that will carry over into Q3 and Q4:
Read MoreEP4 of The Wholeheartedly Podcast revealed something I am currently struggling with: purpose and change. I just don’t want my career to look the same way it has for the last 13 years. Realizing that is scary. It’s an internal crisis of the highest order, especially for someone like me, who has it “all figured out.” It’s hard to undo what you have been doing, to knock down the beautiful structure you constructed out of blood, sweat, tears, love, vision, and so much more. I know, deep in my heart (and even in the logical parts of my mind), that I have to pivot in my career.
Read MoreWhile I have had my fair share of successes, it hasn’t always been smooth sailing on the road less traveled. I cannot tell you the number of times I have told my husband I want to just give up, that I am not “good” at this, that it would be easier if I just got a “real” job. At the end of the day, I know that is not part of my narrative. I am not meant to give up a company that I have worked so hard to build. At the end of the day, there will be trials and tribulations, moments of success, and everything in between. Without this company and its kaleidoscope of moments, I wouldn’t be the person I am today. In my true reflective fashion, here are seven lessons I have learned in my seven years as CEO of Hourglass Media.
Read MoreWhile I do not have recalibration figured out in its most cohesive form, it is the major theme of 2022. Whether you have a “Word of the Year” or not, it can be helpful to think about your work or an overall feeling you would like to achieve this year. What are some ways you can incorporate recalibration into your everyday life?
Read MoreWhile the pandemic and other factors have impacted our lives in and out of the office, Hourglass Media continues to meet opportunities right where they are. 2021 was no different. While we had a banner year and have met nearly all of our goals and objectives, we have learned just as much from our missteps (if not more, as it usually goes).
Here are five takeaways as we wrap up another year and look toward 2022.
Read MoreOne year ago, my life completely changed forever. I do think my company was made for this moment. It’s the reason I created Hourglass Media: so I can live my own version of a successful life. What have I learned after a full year of being a new mom, the CEO of an always growing company, and a communicator (and human) in an ever-changing landscape? Here are three takeaways.
Read MoreIf you’re a newly minted graduate or are thisclose to graduating, I fully empathize with you! It’s hard to balance the workload, expectations, and fears of the unknown. It can be a windy road. Here is an answer to one of young professionals’ most pressing questions with the hope that it can alleviate at least some of the inner turmoil: How do I get experience when I’m first starting my career? This is the first in a series of (at least) three questions. Think of this as the Dear Abby of PR questions and answers!
Read MoreIt’s the beginning of a new quarter, and if you’re anything like me, you sit at your desk and wonder, “Where did Quarter 1 go?!” Each of us is busy trying to further our clients’ goals and objectives, grow our companies or careers in general, and attempting to achieve our own versions of work/life balance.
All in all, it can get relatively exhausting when you you’re grasping at straws with project management. This month, we’re focused on resources that will help you better plan for your goals at hand.
Read MoreNot to stress pandemic-induced cliché words and phrases, but most of us have been forced to pivot since March 2020. We have experienced lockdowns during a pandemic, social injustice conversations, the ups and downs of an election season, and more. I think I echo everyone’s sentiment when I say this: bring on 2021!
Read MoreAs another year is coming to a close, I’m sure most of us are ruminating about what we are thankful for on this Thanksgiving Day. While 2020 hasn’t panned out like most of us have hoped in myriad ways, you can still look for silver linings through all of the curveballs this year has thrown at us. Here is how you can add thankfulness to your brand’s personality and modus operandi.
Read MoreA few months ago, I came across this article about empathy mapping from Shopify. While I lead Hourglass Media with an empathetic heart and mind, I used empathy mapping to revamp my customer avatars. You may want to use an empathy map to learn more about a target audience and really get inside their minds and emotions. You may know about your audience, but perhaps an outside factor has influenced how they think and act now (just like the pandemic and racial injustices have done in 2020).
Read MoreIn March of this year, Hourglass Media turned five. Five years of blood, sweat, tears, sleepless nights, wins, losses -- and everything in between. Five years of this crazy ride I started as an official LLC side venture to protect myself as a communicator. To celebrate these five years (well, more like five-and-a-half at this point!) and to share more of my story with you, here are five insights I carry with me from each year of business.
Read MoreWelcome to our third and final case study for the month of September! This time around, I’ll be discussing the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA)-River Cities’ Chapter’s 2018 Tribus Awards Call for Entries. It’s no secret that I love mostly anything involving public-relations awards.
Read MoreWe’re on our second installment of our case studies series. This is a series that has been a long time coming, as I really have wanted to share our work and behind-the-scenes magic for award-winning Public Relations Society of America award entries and case studies. This one centers on Hourglass Media’s Storied Legacy Graphic, created in 2019 after my trip to New York City. This graphic earned a Tribus Award for a Billboard and Other Signage Tactic in 2019 for this graphic and its implementation in Hourglass Media’s overall use of the graphic.
Read MoreIn the hustle and bustle of everyday life, managing overwhelm can feel like the most daunting task in the known world. Trust me when I say this: I know what it’s like to feel overwhelmed. There are times in which I manage it like a pro, knocking down negative thoughts as they arise while plugging away at my growing to-do list. Other times, I feel as though I want to crawl into the fetal position underneath the covers and sleep away the problems. I can’t eradicate the negative thought processes growing exponentially in my brain. Here are three ways I tackle overwhelm.
Read MoreAs a business owner, you should always think about how you can scale your company and build wealth. Work smarter and not harder, right? Why should you think about diversifying your income in the first place? Here are some benefits of diversifying your income streams.
Read MoreWhile I don’t interview and write articles EVERY day, it’s still an integral part of Hourglass Media. I still enjoy sitting down and talking with people. This week, actually, I am writing an inspirational COVID-19 story for a local magazine, so I am already in the groove of this process. Here are five tips to employ, from the research to the completion phases.
Read MoreMLMs FASCINATE me. While this is purely my opinion, which I share with a growing community of others, I believe MLMs take advantage of people in more ways than one. This blog post will aim to shed light on the dangers of MLMs if you find yourself flirting with the idea of joining one or know someone who is part of one and want to give them ways to escape. Or it could begin to give you your own script to politely decline to support someone’s MLM “business.”
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