138: [INTERVIEW] How to Root Your Purpose Intentionally & Live Positively on the Daily with Jess Potgieter from The Rosy Redhead

How can you infuse joy and positivity into you daily life (& more specifically into your business?) Jess from The Rosy Redhead talks us through what it looks like to make your BRAND one rooted in joy and positivity. As a small business owner who illustrates cheery designs for people to find joy in, Jess is the perfect person to teach us how we can be more positive on the daily. 

If you are someone wanting to be more positive or chase a dream without fear, you need to tune into my conversation with Jess. She will leave you feeling motivated, inspired, and ready to take things head on in order to live a life you love! 

Find Jess here!

Website: https://rosyredhead.com

IG: @therosyredhead

TikTok: @therosyredhead

Sign up for her email list! https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/680262/105115060743964141/share

JOIN THE SUNSHINE SQUAD COMMUNITY!
https://livingnsunshine.podia.com/membership

DISCOVER YOUR SECRET SUPERPOWER!

https://livingnsunshine.com/survey/

FIND ME ON INSTAGRAM:
https://www.instagram.com/livingnsunshine/

FIND ME ON FACEBOOK:
https://www.facebook.com/livingnsunshine

Links on this page may contain affiliate links meaning I may receive commissions for purchases at no cost to you.

Transcript

Maddy: 0:01

Hey bestie, and welcome to the living in sunshine podcast. I'm your host, Maddie fry. And around here we are all about encouraging, inspiring, and giving you the tough love that you need to hear to get out there and live as your best self. Each and every Wednesday, you can expect to learn tangible tips to help you find your bigger purpose. be given simple action steps that you can take in order to make progress toward your biggest dreams. And hear how you can purposely pursue joy on the daily. So sit down, grab your favorite drink, and let's have a girl chat. This is the living in sunshine podcast. Good morning. Good morning, my dudes and welcome back to the living in sunshine podcast. I am so excited that you are tuning in for today's brand new podcast episode because I got to sit down with Jess from the rosy redhead and talk to her all about how to infuse your most authentic self into your business and your brand in order for it to feel really good and in alignment to you. Jess is an illustrator based in the United States and she cannot go without coffee enjoys traveling and playing with her little puppy Ruby. She's originally from Australia, which you'll hear her accent in our podcast episode today. And she started her small business the rosy redhead in 2019 After relocating to the US with her husband, she loves creating cute stationery and accessories that add a pop of joy into someone's day. And her style is so whimsical and colorful and often inspired by nature. If you haven't seen her page already go do so right now because it's literally so cute and so cozy. And I just I love everything about her. Jess has dealt with a lot of change in her life, though, which has had a profound impact on her outlook, and also how she runs her business. She's a super optimistic and cheerful person and loves to infuse those qualities into everything she designs. She believes that everyone deserves to live a life that is happy, full of kindness and love. And she's passionate about spreading positivity through her art and hopes that she can make people feel a little bit brighter with what she creates. If you are ready to learn how you can infuse positivity and joy into your everyday just like just us. Grab your favorite drink. And let's get into it. All right, hello. Hello and good morning. I want to give a warm welcome to Jess aka the rosy redhead on Instagram and in her website online store. Jess Hello, and welcome to the show.

Jess: 2:20

Ah, hi Maddie, thank you so much for having me. I'm excited.

Maddy: 2:25

Okay, so I don't know if you know this, but I have followed you on Instagram for years. Like literally 2019 2020 maybe even earlier than that if you've been on Instagram that long, but I feel like I have followed you for so long. And when I reached out to you to be on the show, I was like I have no idea if this girl is gonna say yes to me. And when you said yes, I was like

Jess: 2:47

no, of course I knew exactly who you were. I follow you back as well. I feel like we have a lot of things in common in the way that we think and I'm just really drawn to people who exude like positive energy like so as soon as I like saw you on IG I was like, Oh my gosh, these skills like needs to be like in my circle.

Maddy: 3:06

I love I love it so much. Okay, so can you please share with us who you are what you do? And can you also just share because I know people are gonna be curious where the accent is from and where you're currently based. Because I know that that's part of your story. And I know people are gonna be like, wait a second, what's happening here? So just give us a rundown. Yeah, that is true. Give us the rundown on all things you and the rosy redhead?

Jess: 3:35

Sure. Okay. So I'm an illustrator. And I'm also a small business owner that you've already said. My business name is the rosy redhead. And Rosie a lot of people think My name is Rosie, but it's not it's just but Rosie actually means to be optimistic and cheerful. So that's where that part of the name comes from. And those are a lot of the qualities that I infuse into my business and redhead because I have great hair right now. Yes, um, I draw everything so as an illustrator I draw everything digitally on procreate. My style is like really playful and it's kind of cute. And the things that are in my online store that you mentioned are things like stationery and stickers and accessories, and everything has been made to add more joy into someone's day. Everything is like really bright and includes messages of like positivity. I wholesale some of those items. I also do commission work, like custom illustrations, or sometimes people ask me to do tattoo designs for them, which is like really nerve wracking, but I'm so honored at the same line to do that. Yes, I know to think of like my art on somebody's body permanently.

Maddy: 4:56

I love that. That's so cool.

Jess: 4:58

Yeah. Um, I'm on third party platforms as well like RedBubble. And stuff where people can buy my designs on other items that aren't in my shop, like apparel, and really crazy things like dog bowls. But the main part of my business is that online shop that you're familiar with, where I sell all the cute things that is largely my focus. I am an Australian living in the United States. I am currently in Chicago. I have lived in nine countries and 12 cities. Yeah, that's crazy. I knew that that's crazy. But so cool. I know, I have a very transient life. And honestly, that life, what has what led me to be a very optimistic person, it's just had this like, really crazy impact on the way that I think in the best way. And I started the rosy redhead, after I moved from Australia to Houston, Texas. So in the US, I've lived in three places. I've lived in Houston, in DC, and now I'm in Chicago. I was working a corporate job in Australia. And I loved it a lot. And I had every intention of going back into an office job. When I moved to America, I had no idea that I would end up running my own small business. So maybe it was just on it. I like destiny, or something like that to be I'm probably meant to be. And I'm so glad that it ended up working out that way. My work permit. When I arrived in the US just took stellar many months to get approved. I had my resume ready to go. And I was looking at like, you know, prospective jobs and things just were moving really slowly with that permit. So in the meantime, I started like, why called doodling like, you know, straighting? Yeah, it's just a hobby. And I was browsing Instagram, and I was getting really inspired by what all these other small businesses were doing. And honestly, it felt really great to just be creative and artistic. Again, in my corporate job, I was in communications. And that was when I was planning on going back into again, but I have a degree in graphic design. And I'm naturally a very like Adi person. So it just felt really nice to be like, using my hands again to like, yes, things that made me feel happy. And so I was like, You know what, I'm going to go back into a corporate job, I'm going to start my own small business, I'm going to sell all of my art, and it's going to be really fun and really easy.

Maddy: 7:38

The literal thought of every single baby entrepreneur, this is gonna be so fun, and it's gonna be so easy. And then you get like 612 months down the line, and you're like, dragging yourself down the street.

Jess: 7:53

And the irony is, I work more hours now than if I had a corporate job anyway, said

Maddy: 8:00

100% cannot agree more. Okay, so I have so many questions. Okay. So now that I know a little bit more about your story, I have to know, if you went to school for graphic design, what led you to going the standard nine to five route? How did you land in a corporate job with a degree that is generally from my, you know, very limited knowledge is something that you would use in a more freelance entrepreneurial kind of space? How did you? How did you end up where you were when you were working a corporate nine to five job?

Jess: 8:40

That is a great question. Um, when I was at uni, or college, you guys I was at uni. The options for graphic designers were quite limited. And you were kind of we were kind of told back then that really one of the options for us was to go and work in an agency. So to be one of many graphic designers working nine to five on different client work. And so it was kind of Yeah, like a, like an ad agency. Yeah, design agency or branding agency. Um, and I ended up actually going to work client side. So that meant that I was like, in house, like designer communications and like marketing and communications. So I did a little bit of graphic design because you have to be able to like, design newsletters, or flyers or ads and things like that, but it really was a much broader scope of work. Sure. And so you tend to get more experience in the other communication side of things and slowly that just morphed into Yeah, marketing and communications. So yeah, it was really fun because I got to like dabble in a little bit of everything. But it wasn't that pure like, freelance graphic design, dream job. Over the graphic designers do dream up. But I guess I preferred working client side it would mean that I could really understand who my client was, what the brand was, and really be able to formulate the messages and the copywriting. Well, that as well as do the design side of it. So that's, I guess how I kind of got into the more Yeah, corporate side of graphic design. But yeah, you kind of are either given an option of like going freelance, which is very difficult. Well, I guess now, like, easier back when I started my career, like, I don't want to age myself too much. But like, social media nowadays, especially in the last three, four years has played a huge part in really being able to be freelance. Yeah. Yeah. So I wonder by then, it wasn't so big.

Maddy: 10:50

Yeah, yeah. So then what happened? I am so curious about this journey. So what happened then when you came to the US, and you said that getting your work permit was really challenging? Because Nothing's easy here ever. We don't make anything easy or simple And I feel like I can say that because I you know, born and raised American, but yeah,

Jess: 11:14

you said it not me. Okay. I love it. Nothing is easy here. So was there making that switch from corporate nine to five? Going from that to? I'm going to go out and kind of do my own thing? How did you manage that? How did that feel to you? What kind of fears or excitement because for me, and I talked to a lot of entrepreneurs on this show, because that's, I am a core entrepreneur. But for me, I'm the kind of person who like links herself off the cliff before she has her parachute ready to go. And I just figure it out along the way. But I know that's not true for everyone. So can you share with us how that process was for you. And when you decided to make that decision? I literally remember the moment I sat down with my husband at dinner, and it made sure that we did it in like a public restaurant place where I told him I wasn't going to go back into corporate work anymore. Yeah, he moved to America for his role, like for his job.

Maddy: 12:15

Got it.

Jess: 12:16

So I'm here because of my husband, he is also Australian. So yeah, so we've traveled around the world a lot because of him. And I remember being so nervous telling him I don't know why I was nervous, because he's been really supportive, supportive guy ever, but I told him, I was like, you know, I thinking about maybe like starting my own business and like doing my own thing. And he was like, well, that's a great idea. Because that means that the transient life that we're living, it just makes sense. You can pick up your business and take it wherever you want to go. And I don't have to then look for another job in another place. And again, and again, knowing that this life we're, we've chosen is going to be like, transient. So that was a very big reason as well for me. Because not only the whole like, so fun, but like, Yeah, fun, and I can take it with me when I move again. Yeah. And that has proved like so successful moving from Houston to DC and DC to Chicago. I've been able to kind of carry on working consistently. So yeah, but boy, did I make so many mistakes when I first started. Oh my gosh, I one of the things that I wish I had done before was maybe start up my Instagram page and start gathering a community of people before I even had launched any product. Yeah, everyone was telling me to do that. You hear it all the time. Like never be ready, stop now. Blah, blah, blah. And I was like come from this corporate background. So I know I'm gonna start when I have like all my ducks in a row. I'm gonna start when I have like my style guide set up and when I know what I'm going to be writing about when I know what my vision is and my mission statement and all of that. This is very corporate mindset.

Maddy: 14:05

Yes, yeah.

Jess: 14:08

Um, I started and I ordered before even even started my Instagram before I even opened my shop, I ordered so much inventory of my designs and prints. And then when I eventually did start up everything those prints in those initial designs didn't do that well, and I just basically taken money and like, burned it. It wasn't put in the garbage because I really didn't have an understanding. Yeah. Okay, my audience was on what they wanted. And so I guess that was like one of the biggest mistakes that I made the other mistake that I made I know you've been following me for a while.

Maddy: 14:45

Yes, I have.

Jess: 14:46

I don't know if you follow me like, way back when but my art and my aesthetic used to look like a lot different when I first started out. Everything is like colorful now. Yeah. rainbows and sparkles.

Maddy: 15:00

Yeah,

Jess: 15:01

yeah, that's me like it's it's full of like little smiley faces. Yeah, I know that that's what works now because and it makes other people happy because that's what they tell me. But when I first started out, the designs that I made were mostly black and white. Yeah. So I created a style guide for myself. And I didn't design outside of the colors that I had set for myself. Again, this is like very corporate. Yeah. And I wanted to stick to my style guide, which had like four colors in it because style guide is the king. Yes. And the reason I wanted to stick to like this more neutral color palette was I wanted my work to be able to fit into most people's homes, like, be everyone's homes. And slowly over time, I found that really limiting and boring. I started adding color. And I found that that made me feel happier. And it made me more excited to create because I was creating more authentically. Yeah. And the interesting thing is, when I started doing that, I started finding people who liked the same things as me. And they started like buying things from my shop and, like telling me that they they like the same thing. And so all of a sudden, I was like, I guess creating for the masses isn't the thing to do. Um, so yeah, creating, for everyone didn't work and creating work that really felt more like me that looked more like me. And yeah, that was just that authenticity that I had to learn. That was so important. I mean, those are kind of the more like, we were philosophical things that I learned about business. But other things I didn't know. In America, you guys have, like two forms of taxes. Yeah, sales tax. And I didn't even know that Maddie was even like, little things. I remember spending like two weeks reading about your tax system and trying to wrap my head around it and learn about it. Yep. Everyone's like, why didn't you just hire an accountant? I couldn't afford to hire an accountant. Yeah, stage. Yeah, I have to understand what you mean. Because state tax and wouldn't mean like I have to charge people. Oh, it was just, yeah, that was really hard to understand. And then the other thing was like, coming from a graphic design background, I understand things like paper size and paperweight. But it's all in like, millimeters.

Maddy: 17:42

I mentioned the metric system. Yep. Yeah. The more logical system for like, weighing and measuring things. Yep.

Jess: 17:50

So even little things that you just don't even realize, for me that was so hard was like now is having to work in like, inches and pounds or like weights and things like that. So yeah, I got it down, though. You know, like, you just got to keep going keep swimming through it. Yeah, each day, you just get a little bit better out you learn a little bit more. Yeah. And I'm still learning in my Yeah. Now. So yeah.

Maddy: 18:14

So I am curious. What would you say? Because Because essentially, what I'm hearing is, you you said, I have this dream of owning my own business. I have no idea what I'm doing. But I'm going to do it anyway. We'll figure it out. And so but my question is, is, so many people have their own individual dreams that they want to chase. But that figuring it out process seems really daunting and really challenging. And whether it is a business based dream or a personal based dream, or whatever, it can feel really overwhelming and kind of defeating when you continue to hit roadblock after roadblock after roadblock. So how did you keep your headspace and your mindset in a positive space to just say, I'm just gonna keep swimming. I'm just gonna keep figuring this out, like, what did you do? And how did you manage to continue to like, get over those roadblocks because again, whether it's business related or not, we all hit roadblocks in life. And sometimes it's hard to say, in that positive mindset. So what do you do to just keep moving forward?

Jess: 19:22

Um, I have a purpose. So and I'm really passionate about positivity and spreading joy. And so I think like one of the most important things like anyone starting out Let's be like, have a solid, why, why you're doing it. And that why needs to be like so much bigger than you. And so I knew when I started my business, I was like, Oh, I really want to like, add positivity and people say and like really cute things. It wasn't until the pandemic that I realized not everybody has this like positive outlook on life that

Maddy: 19:56

Yeah.

Jess: 19:58

So I decided to really, I guess, Mitch down on that. And that really solidified my messaging and that purpose, and I have created so much joy for myself, knowing that other people are getting the joy out of that. So at the end of the day, having that reason why is what keeps me going, because whilst the sales and the flexibility of owning your own business are just an amazing reward, yes, that's not, is not what is going to drive you to keep creating or to keep going. And there will be days where it's so hard, there'll be days where you feel like giving up days, when you're like, in a complete creative ruts, like when you just don't know what you want to design or draw. There'll be days when sales are low. And so that's when you need to be able to come back to that reason why you're doing it in the first place and who you're doing it for. That's why the reason has to be bigger than you. Because if you're like, Well, I'm doing this for flexibility, then it's so easy to be able to say, Ah, my weekends could be flexible, I'll just go and get an, you know, nine to five job. Yeah, that's why you got to think of like, the people that you're doing it for the community that you're doing it for. And at the beginning of my business, I met someone who had had very little kindness and very little love shown to them during their life. And they were incredibly unhappy. Yeah, I showed up in their lie, go glowing with my rainbow

Maddy: 21:36

tossing little daisies around as you go.

Jess: 21:38

The faculty throwing sparkle, they did not know how to react when I showed them. Goodness. And when I showed them love and when I accepted them for who they were. And it was because they had never had that they didn't know how to receive it. So it was then in there that I realized that wow, people like really need to hear these things, they really need to hear like positive affirmation, they really need to like be reminded that they're worthy of happiness and that they are enough. And they just need to be shown how to open their hearts and minds and like look for the light. And that is why I do what I do and why I infuse so much positivity and like joy and happiness into my work because I want to give people that remind us that they need to hear Yeah, so yeah, I guess having that reason. Why is kind of what spurs me on. Yeah, you're right. Maddie like there are there are days where you're like, oh,

Maddy: 22:37

burned to the ground. I quit I'm burning it onto the ground. I've done I'm gonna go eat Cheerios on my couch and cry.

Jess: 22:46

Oh my gosh, have Cheerios on my couch. Yeah.

Maddy: 22:50

We all have those days. So I I love that answer. So so much and having a why in a deeply rooted why right? Is something I talked about all the time on this show and in my membership, and in my coaching calls. I'm so glad you brought that up. i I wonder though, was meeting that person kind of the thing that helped to set your why it was there anything else that kind of contributed to making it about what your purpose is? Right? Like, I just wonder, how did you come up with? If anything beyond meeting this person and having this person make this impact on your life? Did anything else contribute to the development of that? Why?

Jess: 23:35

Yeah, that person was I was already kind of dabbling in the whole positivity thing. But that person really validated my why. So the other thing was I started kind of right before the pandemic hits. So I guess that was also a really big thing as to like, oh, people need like, light in their life. Yeah, um, I guess. I guess. For me, uprooting your life is not easy. Despite how many times you do it. I've done it a number of times, say, Oh, yeah. Adapting to like new routines can be exhausting. Culture Shock. is draining, living away from your family and friends, is really hard. So I choose to look at the good. And I appreciate and embrace change. Otherwise, I would constantly struggle with my mental health. Yes, I would focus on the negatives I wouldn't make the most of every day. And that just to me, doesn't sound like a really fulfilling way to live. Yeah. It's a lot easier to think negatively. Instinctively, we used to think like back in a very long time ago. Yeah. So think of all the bad things that could happen, because that meant that we were like ready for danger. That was our survival. Yes, yeah. We had to like expect bad things and it takes a lot more strength for us as humans to think positively and to have like a positive outlook. And so that's why I wanted to make things like having something positive to focus on is like really helpful. And that's why I designed all of these things with the intention of reminding people to look for the good. Yeah, otherwise you're not gonna live a life. I'm gonna get one shot at it. You're not good. Yeah, life that's like, you know, joyful and happy. And I'd rather live a life like that than live a life that's full of like, fear and sadness. Yeah. And I think it also comes down to like, choosing day how to live.

Maddy: 25:33

Gosh, yes, thank you say it louder. It's a choice.

Jess: 25:40

Every day, I choose where I'm going to put my energy. And I choose how I'm going to feel about something, and I choose how to look at something. And so that is how I'd naturally have trained my brain to be, like I said before, I realize not everybody thinks that way. But that's also why I wanted to design things, and give people things that could help them sort of train their brain to start thinking in that manner. It's like a little muscle that you train every day, you've got to flex that muscle. Yes, yes. And the more you do it, the better. You'll get at it. And I've been doing it throughout my entire life, which is why I'm maybe it comes more naturally to me. Yes. Yeah. Yeah. So I guess I just wanted to like, help people feel more uplifted, and give them those reminders, through my products, but also through my Instagram feed, I do find really little illustrations that I post on there. Yeah. Like quotes and things for people. So it's in every aspect of my work, what I do.

Maddy: 26:47

So I want to ask you, what do you do to flex that muscle? Daily? How do you because this is, again, it's one of those things that sometimes people can hear us, because I say the same thing. And people are like, cool, cool, cool. But how, like, how do you do that? So what do you do? Do you have any habits or rituals or routines, things that you do throughout your day that help you to flex that kind of joyful living positivity muscle that you have to exercise daily to be able to live in the way that you do?

Jess: 27:22

Yeah, it's called Being kind to yourself. I show myself a lot of self kindness every day, I think and a lot of grace every day. So that's one of the things that helps alleviate the heaviness, us just telling myself like it's okay. It's okay. If you're not feeling good. It's okay, if things haven't gone your way. And you know, one of the biggest misconceptions that people have about me is that I am happy all the time. Yeah, that I feel happy all the time. And I'm sure maybe it's the same for you because like bubbly people, yep. Yeah, and our work is all about like, happy vibes. But we know the reality. No one's happy all the time. No, and I'm very open with my audience about and my like, IG followers about acknowledging your emotions and feeling your emotion and processing them. So that is something I also do each day is like I don't ignore than the non joyful moment, because that makes sense. Like, I do process, the sadness and the frustration and yeah, disappointment. And I think that's really important to be able to sit with those emotions, and then let them pass when you feel like you're ready for them to pass. Um, this isn't really like a routine or anything, but I do practice gratitude every day. Yeah, so

Maddy: 28:57

I was hoping you were gonna say that. I know.

Jess: 29:00

Like, we're on the same page on the same wavelength. Yeah, why we like, follow each other Instagram and get along so well. I am. I feel like gratitude can heal so much.

Maddy: 29:14

Nowadays, like yes, yes. 1000 It's happening right now. Yup.

Jess: 29:21

And it doesn't always have to look like writing things down in a gratitude journal. It can be like this morning, for example, when I was walking my dog, I was like, Oh my gosh, look how blue the sky is like I'm so thankful for such a nice day today. Really basic things like that. Yeah. And then then of course, we got the bigger things like I'm thankful for my family and I'm thankful for my job and things like that, but even just thanked yourself in that five second in the morning. I'm so thankful for like, the fresh air that I'm breathing. Yeah, be as simple as that and that could totally.to kick off this like, mentality of me. More being more positive during the day.

Maddy: 30:01

Yeah, yeah, I tell people all the time to look for what I like to call the small joys of life, the small moments of joy, and then practice gratitude for them. So I always give the example of like, when you're going for a walk, and you see a dog who's like, show happy to be outside playing or like on a walk, like, that's a small moment of joy. If you see, like kids playing at the park at school, they are experiencing joy, you are noticing that you can practice gratitude for that. And it does so much. And I love how you said that gratitude doesn't have to be those big huge things, right? We should not only be practicing gratitude, when we hit a certain milestone in our business, or we get to pay for a vacation for our family or whatever it Like, I literally wrote in because I am a big right of, like, writer of my gratitude, that I am grateful for good friends, because I have two very close friends who are very amazing. And a new start with a new day with a fresh start a new day with a fresh start. Like that's not huge. It's not a huge thing, right? We all hopefully, right? No guarantees or whatever, get a fresh a fresh start each new day. And I you know what I mean? So like very small things. But man, oh, man, the impact that comes from acknowledging those things is so huge, so huge.

Jess: 31:21

And I, I totally get it, it can even just be the same thing every day. Like for me, I living abroad is really hard living working really hard. But I am so lucky, and so grateful to be in a position where I do get to feed different parts of the world and make friends all over the place. And I am so thankful for those opportunities. And that to me, I have to remind myself that daily because especially on things like, you know, my mom got really sick during the pandemic, she went through cancer treatment and stuff like that. So it was like, those moments that you really want to be home. Yeah, those are the moments where gratitude is going to come into play in a big way. Because you still have to, like look really hard for those things that you're grateful for and really acknowledge your place. And I'm like, feel so privileged to like, be in a place where I'm like living in like, different parts of the world. That's so cool. And where I'm traveling and stuff like that. So it can be the same thing every day. I don't know. Yes, it was a kid, or different thing.

Maddy: 32:28

Yeah, yeah. I think every like three or four days I write. I'm grateful for like my morning cup of coffee, because I'm always grateful for my morning cup of coffee. And that's like such a small thing. And I say it every day. But that's it because it it makes me happy. It brings me joy. And again, acknowledging that brings so much more to my day because I acknowledged it.

Jess: 32:49

Yeah, and the other things I do that, like, bring me so much joy during the day are things that I don't I'm gonna sound like a basic dog mom right now. But like, I love playing with like my puppy. So Oh, yes. And like, by like five minutes a day like playing ball with her at lunchtime or taking her for a walk multiple walks during the day like, yeah, that brings me joy. I do things that make me feel good. Yeah, but I totally understand that there's not always time to do things that make you feel good. Yes. That's why it's so important to have those like, as you say, There's moments of joy during the day that are just kind of like this spark and yeah, yeah, but you can see, and then when you do have time, then you can go and do the like, the self care spa treat. Yes, that's what is gonna make you feel joy. Yeah, I've been meaning to get a pedicure for six months. I finally went yesterday, I finally went yesterday, but it had taken me six months to like, do that thing that I know is going to make me feel really good. In those six months. I still did like little little things. Yeah. And rewarded myself with the big thing that was gonna make Yeah, Joy. And yeah, yeah.

Maddy: 34:08

Well, the thing is, is like, we can't wait for big things, or big gestures to happen to be grateful or to be positive or to be happy. Because then you're either not going to be very positive or be very thankful very often. And the other thing that happens is and this is like something that psychologists have studied not to get, like super sciency but like, the the joy in the benefits, I guess, of only being happy when big things happen wears off very quickly. Right? Perfect example, if you are only going to be happy or content when you buy a new car, the the you know, vibe of getting the new car, it's not gonna last very long because you're hoping that that's going to sustain you and it's not going to, which is why the new car Right, exactly. It's like the the there's a word for it that I'm blanking on right now, but Like the mistake of getting that is not going to be very beneficial. Versus if you just have these small moments every single day, that helps you to be more positive. And I love that you are speaking that out, you're saying it, I always say these things, but hearing it from a new person, always is very helpful. Everything Yeah, it's like, I'm not gonna get up.

Jess: 35:23

And that's why all of the little things that I have in my online shop, whether it's a notepad or a sticker, or a thumb catcher, are meant to be those little moments of joy in your day, they are meant to be the little glimmers that you see a sticker on its own, it's not going to make you suddenly feel right 10,000 times better than what you're feeling if you're having a bad day. But it's going to give you a little reminder that like things could get better. Like event, you know, tomorrow. So yeah. And that's why I make things that I do. I want people to have items with them that they're going to see each day like a keychain or a notepad or a sun catch or things, you know, it's not things that are going to be shoved in the back of your closet that you're never going to see things that people want to use all the time.

Maddy: 36:10

Yeah. I love that. Okay, so can you please share of your best little pieces of business advice when it comes to running a business that feels authentic and joyful to you? Because that is a big part of what you do. And a big thing that you do, and I would love to just hear like little nuggets of advice that you would give to someone who wants to do the same thing. How do you run a business that feels authentic and feels joyful to you.

Jess: 36:44

So it can be really scary number one, starting things out. But if you don't do things that are outside of your comfort zone, you don't learn and grow as a person. So if you're feeling nervous about maybe starting a business or doing something new, reach out to someone who's been doing that before, I know that I was terrified of reaching out to people in my business, because, you know, you don't want to carry reaching out. And I'm pretty extroverted. So for me to say like fracking, reaching out to people. So I just want to say here and now if anyone listening ever wants to like chat to me in the DMS like I'm more than happy to like, talk to you

Maddy: 37:28

literally slide into justice DMS right now.

Jess: 37:34

Um, but also, I find that creating authentically so important so you whilst you can get inspiration from the people that you've been following, what's going to work for them isn't necessarily going to work for you. The platforms that they're on may not work for you the style that they work in may not work for you. So it's really important that you find your own vibe and you design straight from your hands in your heart. Authenticity is so important in your business and in your brand. Especially if you're going to be the spokesperson for your own business. Because how are you meant to stand behind something? And tell people to spend their hard earned money? If you don't love it? Yeah, your customers should not be your biggest fan of your work. You should be the biggest fan of your work. Yeah, and I am now like I said, you know, earlier in the podcast, when I first started designing, I wasn't designing authentically and I found it really difficult. And I didn't connect with anyone. And now that I am creating what you know what feels more joyful to me and what is me like I do love rainbows, and sparkles and glitter. And all these like fun things. Suddenly, I've met this amazing community have so many like minded people who also like a lot of these things. Yes. And it's those connections that you're going to make that will also help drive you in your business as well. I cannot tell you how much. Having a supportive community around you is so helpful. Whether it's small business, friends, or supportive family and friends like that also really helped me when I started, I reached out to a bunch of small business owners and connected with them and we're still friends now. So you know, a few years now and it's amazing to have somebody who truly understands when you're having a bad small business day.

Maddy: 39:35

Yeah.

Jess: 39:37

Who totally gets it?

Maddy: 39:39

Yeah, yep, yep. 100% I love that. Well Jack of All Things joy, positivity all the things can you please tell people where they can find you where they can shop from you at sea or anything apparel product, all the things?

Jess: 39:49

Yeah, so my website is just rosy. redhead.com/rls Why redhead.com on Instagram and Tiktok I am the rosy redhead and so many other things because I only just started my email newsletter. There's a link in my bio to get on my email list. I email things out like I'm coloring pages, and I'll get you hooked up every now and then. But also the best way to find out if any, like deals or failed or things happening in the shop because now doesn't really rely on the old algorithm to show people so yes, yeah, you wanna join my mailing list? My insert bio as well. I love all the places I never post are hanging out.

Maddy: 40:22

I love it. I love it. I just thank you so much for being the show. I'm so thankful for you. And I hope everyone else I'd love to shout you did. It's just me talking to them talking with what's happening in Sunshine was my head. Let's just repeat your eyes over to your girlfriend. Thank you so much for listening to today's new episode. If you loved it, please send it to a friend share it on Instagram and tag me so I can see and consider leaving the show a rating or a review. Ratings and reviews are kind of like sharing or liking a post on Instagram, and they really help the show grow and reach new women just like you. Be sure to subscribe to the podcast so you never miss a new episode. And until next week, I am sending you all the sunshine, good vibes and I hope you make it a great day.