20 Random Things About Me
I thought it would be fun to share a few random things you might not know about me. When it comes to sharing advice on my business, I am an open book...but tend to be more private about my personal life. I love reading random fact blogs, so thought I would give it a go as part of my New Year's resolution to share more of my personal story. Here we go...
20 Random Things About Me:
1. It seems like I am laser focused, but my career path was not always clear to me. In elementary school, I wanted to be a teacher. In high school, I fell in love with writing and photography. In college, I thought I would be a photo journalist...then switched to Strategic Communications with a focus on public relations. Out of college, I worked at a few PR agencies. Then started consulting and doing a variety of random jobs...like being the PR Director for an event and hosted a conference series for bloggers & creatives. In 2015, I decided to go off on my own and launched my business. While I still do a bit of PR (and did work in the field right out of college), I now mostly focus on marketing and social media. I am sure I will continue to evolve because I like trying new things and having different experiences.
2. Speaking of PR...my PR Writing professor once told me, "I would never be good enough to work in PR." Jokes on her because I've handled press for local to international brands and have gotten them published on all different platforms from national magazines, blogs, and TV segments.
3. When I was three, I cracked my head open on our coffee table. I still have a slight scar. Watching my mom cry was my first real memory. I still get queasy around blood and have been known to faint when I have to get blood drawn.
4. I've never fit into one group in my life... In high school, I played varsity soccer, but was also in the band (playing the flute), and was on the Newspaper Committee. I also managed to be a 'party girl.' And I had a close friend or two in each group, but always bounced around. To this day, I still like doing all the things, connecting with many different people and I refuse to put myself into a box.
5. I was also all over the place in college. I was super involved in my sorority...always on an event committee of some type. At one point, I was the Costume Director for my sorority during Greek Week (meaning, I had to physically make the costumes with very little sewing experience). This is actually how I met my husband - he was the Props Director at the time. We didn't have a good first impression of one another at first. It took a few cocktails at the final party for us to really notice our better qualities!
6. I love the idea of cooking (researching recipes and buying the groceries are fun) but hate spending the time to do it. There are just so many other things I would rather be doing! I also have a weird thing with leftovers. If they are leftover from a meal that day, I might eat it...but most of the time it just sits in my fridge until my husband throws it away. Thank god I married a man that loves to cook or else we would Postmates everyday!
7. I have a few bad habits. One is breaking off my split ends. I do it when I am anxious, stressed or nervous. Another is waiting until it's a true emergency to do laundry...or put gas in my car. But my worst is how I feel about my body. I have never felt confident in my own skin, especially groiwng up, which is b-a-n-a-n-a-s to think about since I've always been petite. I've just always been very insecure, but hide it well. It's taken many years of self-love and growth to get to a healthy mindset about my body and how amazing it is (flaws and all!)
8. I use to be TERRIFIED of public speaking. My public speaking classes made me so nervous... I would sweat so bad and my hands and voice would shake. A few years ago, I tacked this fear by forcing myself to speak at different schools. I started by hosting presentations on PR/Social Media at a local high school and eventually worked myself up to presentations at a community college. Now, I actually love teaching and speaking to groups. I still get nervous right before...but have come a long way.
9. When I was a kid (age 6 or so), my favorite playtime activity was to use my parent's clunky 90s video camera to record myself selling products. I literally thought I was creating commercials. I would even record over my parent's home videos of my little sister! It's funny to think that now I host monthly lifestyle segments on a local TV station doing just that...promoting local businesses. We still have the tapes somewhere.
10. I was a runner my entire life. I was naturally good at it. I ran Cross Country for a bit in high school and played midfield soccer. At one point in high school, I held a record for the fastest female from our 5K tests in gym class! Running is my stress relief, but my knees now crack when I walk up and down the stairs, so I focus more on low-impact cardio - like rowing.
11. I have one tattoo. It's a very tiny, very much faded heart on my left hand. I did it with my two close friends at the time around when one of their sisters passed away..as a memorial of sorts. I thought about having it removed from my wedding, but it's so little that I often forget about.
12. I don't think I was born to be a mom. I also don't think my mom was born to be a mom...like some people I know that you can just tell are meant to have kids and that will be their life. Not that my mom isn't the most amazing parent, she truly is. But what I've learned most from her is that you can have it all...a family and a career. She had me when she was finishing her MBA, which she completed and continued to work successful jobs while raising all three of her kids. She even started her own consulting business at one point, when I was in high school. I know that I'll have a family one day that I will love with all my heart, but don't plan to give up my career either.
13. I have started many blogs at many different points in my life. The first in high school on Livejournal (throwback!) to share my photography and personal writing stories. Then in college when I was obsessed with the idea of working in fashion. Then I tried again when I was living in New York in 2009 while taking college classes in the summer. And again when I started my first job at a PR agency to share my everyday style and interests. It was literally called 'Everyday Chic Style' - so cheesy. None of these blogs ever took off because I would get too busy with work and life. And I was too embarrassed to tell anyone about them. But sometimes I think about what could have happened if I had stuck with it.
14. I started coloring my hair in 7th grade. It's been everything from super blonde highlighted to almost black. I can't remember what my true natural color is. The worst was when it got it highlighted at the mall before my junior prom and it turned orange. I went home and cried, my friend came over to box dye it and I went to prom with slightly orange with blonde streaked hair. Paired with MAC turquoise eyeshadow that matched my prom dress...I cringe thinking about it.
15. One of my biggest fears in life is being in debt. I am terrible at anything accounting related and think the fear stems from not feeling in control. I've only been in debt once and that was when I was living in NYC. Being 21 with a new credit card in an expensive city was not a good combination. Let's just say, I regretted that decision. Luckily, I paid it off quickly. I also paid off all my student loans within the first two years of graduating from college. One of my prouder achievements. Now, I only use a credit card for business purchases I know I can pay off.
16. Speaking of fears, I am also irrationally terrified of spiders. I have been known to call my husband or dad home to kill a spider for me. The thought of a spider being in my bed could send me to a psych ward. I know they are tiny and mostly harmless...but there is something so terrifying about them. Must be scarred from those summers at girl scout camp when we had to use outdoor restrooms and sleep in wooden tents that had black widows in the ceiling!
17. My husband proposed to me in the basement of our house. I often tease him that it was the most unexciting proposal ever, but it totally makes sense for us. It was personal and honest. Nothing staged or extravagant. I know that he wouldn't have been as heartfelt if he did something grand in public. Plus, I was completely shocked! We were engaged for a year and a half before getting married.
18. I am a quarter Hispanic. My grandmother (dad's side) is originally from Mexico. She grew up very poor but was able to work hard and build a wonderful life. It's interesting to hear her stories and to be around someone that truly came from nothing. My only regret was never learning her family recipes for tamales, which is our Christmas Eve tradition.
19. I am loyal to a fault. I am fiercely loyal to my friends and even my clients. When I am betrayed, it hurts me deep and I have a hard time forgiving. Being so loyal, I give my all to my relationships, Which isn't always a positive thing. I do better having a handful of really close friends that I can trust vs. having lots of random people in my life.
20. I may be super organized in my business, but my personal life is questionable. Keeping my car and closet tidy is a challenge for me that I have to actively work on. When my work life is chaos it will show...with multiple cups of coffee in my car or clothes on the floor of my office. I am also really bad about clearing notifications from my phone. Not sure why, but at times I have had 50,000 unread emails or 200+ unread texts. Such a bad habit that drives some crazy, I know!