Who is the maven?
For those who love a long story, read my journey below to learn more about how I became THE MAVEN of ALL MAVEN, my struggles, conflicts, and how no matter how long it takes, to never give up on your dream.
For those who love a long story, read my journey below to learn more about how I became THE MAVEN of ALL MAVEN, my struggles, conflicts, and how no matter how long it takes, to never give up on your dream.
I grew up in North County San Diego (Oceanside, Vista, Carlsbad). I was always into the creative things like art, design, and technology. I remember life before the internet. I was a star student through and through and graduated from Vista High School as an IB Candidate with a passion for serving, creating and innovating. My mom raised me and my siblings as a single mother, sometimes working 4 jobs to make sure we always had what we needed (and wanted... my mom's THE BEST). She very much instilled a killer work ethic in me (literally, work until it kills you...lol), but I made it through and she helped me become who I am today. I always remember her saying, "be so good they can't deny you," and that's been a long time motivation for me to reach new heights. The only problem was, I didn't always know what mountain to climb.
So after attending, not one, two, but three colleges (thank you ADHD) I sort of found myself in a downward spiral in trying to figure out what the heck I wanted to do with my life. I had a lot of skills after all - I studied liberal arts art Mira Costa College, International Communications, Public Relations, Business, and Criminal Justice at Texas Christian University, and Graphic Design, Photography, Visual Journalism and Film and Video Production at Brooks Institute. So what's a girl with a 130k education to do with all that knowledge and talent?
Get pregnant and move back home of course :)
Sometimes just cutting the noise of life out can do wonders for a little self reflection. My little boy drew me back to ground zero, God, and my purpose in life. I took all those wonderful skills and started my very own creative agency in 2013, ALL MAVEN, where I could help business grow from start to finish through branding, marketing, design, and digital media. I felt I'd finally found my passion and we all lived happily ever after...
NOPE. Well, not yet at least...
You know, no one really tells you how hard it is to run a business. When I first began my entrepreneurial journey, I joined the Carlsbad Chamber and doubled by business every year. Though I was growing, I was still struggling so much to truly hone in on what I wanted to do. I ended up spreading myself too thin, in too many places. On top of that, I was suffering from chronic headaches and migraines for several years and I was out of clinical trials with the good drugs. Every time I thought I had myself together, I found myself messing stuff up. I needed to start over again. And I did. But this time I didn't have to do it alone.
While I was a little nervous about uprooting my entire life from sunny San Diego County, when things are burning I like to leave it alone and start anew. So we took ourselves to Colorado where Joe's family lived, started the business over, joined the Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce and began doing the thang...once more...
And just when I finally thought I had it all together (after doing this dance for like the 70 millionth time) 2020 rolled around and was like, "Hey, mind if I cut in?"
I think this was the universal good that came out of such a devastating and heartbreaking situation. We learned a little bit more about ourselves, what we want, what we’re willing to accept and what we desire for our lives. I’m a Romans 8:28 girl, so I looked for the silver lining.
Like most businesses, when COVID struck ALL MAVEN took a hard hit. As I was cycling through another year of business just trying to get by, I could see that my company was not heading down its true path and I was tired. At the end of the day, I was serving everyone else but myself, giving from an empty cup, with almost no one pouring back into mine. It was exhausting and that stress manifested itself throughout my body physically, and those migraines came with a vengeance. Everyone was always asking me for something but never returning real value in the end. Still, while I’d like to blame others, the reality of the situation was I was allowing it to happen. Each one of us has so much power over our life and our choices, we don’t even realize it. We worry about things we don’t need to worry about, care about people we don’t need to care about, and do what we do not need to do. While there is valor and honor in being a selfless person, it’s hard to continue serving people from the grave. You have to make yourself a priority. I always worried about being considered selfish. Worried about the one time I said ‘no’ to giving the shirt off my back to another needy individual and being judged for it; concerned about those disapproving eyes not having witnessed all the previous shirts I had given; failing to understand God called me to keep my top on. I had much to reconcile within, and finally came to a place of peace that allowed me to move forward in a way that was aligned with my shape, my passion and God’s vision for my life and business.”
At the end of 2020 and even 2021, I said, screw it. I let go of all of my staff, retooled myself and my business and began really focusing in. I was in no physical shape to continue and dedicated 2022 to completely restructuring my organization, focusing on my health, and creating the life and business I dreamed of. That journey now continues.
What began as a full service digital agency, is now a small and mighty enterprise housing a number of brands I created that I am ready to have leave a mark on the industry. ALL MAVEN now umbrellas some amazing brands, including, but not limited to, HINS & Co. Consulting, men’s lifestyle brand Jackhammer, and Solopreneur Central.
I became the Director of the of Colorado Springs and Carlsbad Chapters of Google for Entrepreneurs Startup Initiative, Startup Grind. I also joined the Board of Directors at the Chamber, and after one year moved to the Executive Board.
I've learned a lot of lessons on this journey, other than the trivial, "success is not so easily obtained." But the most important thing I learned was to keep going - and not to be afraid to change direction along the way. Even when things get hard, if you can keep the faith, this too shall pass. You'll be better the next time around, as long as you promise to get up for the next round.
In this presentation I'll be covering:
Walk away with a set of questions, insights, and actionable steps you can take to improve your brand and your bottom line that makes people go "heck yes!"
As the brands under ALL MAVEN continue to grow, I'll keep my focus on doing what I do well, taking care of myself, and never stop innovating. We'll continue to build bold brands, help businesses grow, and stand out in the market.
Download my speaker insights and place a booking inquiry to have me join you for your next event!
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