Join Ally and I in our final episode to hear about everything we learned, how we’ve changed in the last year, what’s next for us… and of course… To highlight some of our favorite memories from the stories we recorded. There were so many amazing moments we were lucky enough to share with guests and it made the last year, for us, SO much more enjoyable. The connection we had with others throughout the pandemic kept us sane and focused on our values.

Desiree is an artist who creates and manufactures plant-inspired goodies - including pins, keychains, tote bags, greeting cards, notepads and more. She is in over 800 shops throughout the United States, Canada and Internationally! 

Today, she’s joining us to talk about her journey and the dedication it took to get here - and celebrating the 5th anniversary of it being a true business entity. Shop her line at https://paper-anchor.com/

1. Desiree shares a glimpse into her childhood and how art played a role in her life – from relatives that were self-taught portrait artists to realizing she was always doodling in her notebook instead of doing classwork in school. She always enjoyed drawing and being artistic and is self-taught in watercolor paint.
2. When Desiree first started out, she mainly focused on card stock products - wedding invitations and floral art. She wanted to find a unique niche that was relevant to her – and while she didn’t have a cat or dog, she did have a lot of house plants. Bringing that little piece of herself into her work was a great decision, because her art seemed to take off from there.
3. Desiree has been working on the business for almost 10 years in some capacity, but business really started to pick up with wholesale requests from those who wanted her products in retail stores. In a matter of 6 months, it seemed like she needed to hire her first employee, find a studio space, hire a second employee, and manufacture more of her products for retail stores.
4. Desiree shares a laugh with Ally and Sam when they discuss the fact that she comes up with all the content for her cards and designs – including a strawberry card that says “I’ll always pick you”.
5. As the episode comes to a close, Desiree shares her grand vision for herself and her business. She is focusing on growth and scaling with other employees so she can ultimately have someone run it from the US while she lives in Paris for a few years, taking in more inspiration and coming up with new product ideas.

Sam and Ally have a candid conversation about how we can all get caught up in the hustle of life and the status of achievement whether we intend to or not. We wonder about things like if we’re being productive enough with our time, or savvy enough for our future selves. 

But at the end of the day, it’s important to ask - is all that energy feeding your soul or depleting it? In this episode, we explore the Hustle Culture that seems to surround us today and how that can lead to confusion, frustration, and burnout - plus some tips on  how you can use it to your advantage for what matters most to you.

1. We’re often taught to work hard as a way of proving success even when we have the option of doing something different. We cover the pressures of proving yourself and how that can be a productive energy or one that really drains you quite quickly. We discover how everyone (no surprise) is different! Some like to work towards a big mission and others want to create a legacy they’ve personally created … and yet still others want to build families or live slowly in the moment. The first step is knowing that what may be fulfilling for one person might not be for another, and the second is having the presence to know you can change your state at any time.
2. In order for you to truly believe you can have something you have to identify what kind of limiting beliefs you have already programmed in your mind. This means you have to find evidence to prove to yourself that whatever you desire or might want in the future is something that truly is available to you. Often these are referred to as scarcity and abundance mindsets and Sam and Ally discuss which mindsets they have pre-programmed and the new ones they have developed/are developing. The power of the subconscious and the way you talk to yourself matters and you’ll get so much further with self compassion than you will with self criticism.
3. If there's one thing that you can take away from this conversation and all the different factors that influence our day-to-day lives, please remember that there’s a culture available to you of slowness and ease just as much as there can be one of hustle and grind.
4. Mentioned Resources: I Will Teach You to Be Rich - Book Rec & Find your Human Design type