YOUR STORY: Kathleen from Braid Creative

You guys should know that the Braid Creative team has done so much for my blog and business. I whole-heartedly recommend them to all of my entrepreneur friends! (YES YOU!)  Liz, (on Braid staff) designed my branding and Kathleen and Tara's classes have helped shaped my focus to be around "stories". So fun to see this come full circle by interviewing Kathleen for YOUR STORY today! Enjoy this fun interview I had with this special lady...


How did Braid Creative get started and how did you come up with the name?

My sister and I both have a background in advertising. We actually worked together at the same ad agency! I was there for 5 years as a senior art director and Tara was creative director (yup, she was my boss). I followed my heart and quit to freelance. A year later my sister decided to join forces with me – she quit her job and Braid Creative was born.

 We always advise to our clients that they use their name but Shannon & Street sounded like a law firm (and who's name would go first!?) Tara is the copy writing genius of the two of us and she came up with Braid Creative. A lot of people think it has to do with our hair styles but it's really about taking the threads of a creative entrepreneur and weaving them together to create a cohesive brand story – like a Braid. 

Your consulting business is incredible with a proven method of success... what made you decide to start offering E-courses as well? 

1 word: scalability. I wanted to be a resource for creatives who couldn't afford working with us one-on-one. Branding about so much more than graphic design – the logo is really just the icing on the cake.  

Who would you recommend Braid E-Courses to?

Our Braid ECourses are great for anyone who is (or is aspiring to be) a creative entrepreneur and needs help getting focused, finding their dream customer, and blending who they are with what they do. We've found that creatives like designers, photographers, and coaches who offer services really benefit from the exercises and worksheets in our ECourses. Even other graphic designers who do branding for a living benefit from our ECourses! Crafters and makers, people who sell product, benefit from our courses too but selling a service (and why you deserve to get paid) isn't always as cut and dry.  

Do you mind sharing just a taste of what each E-Course is about?

Personal Branding is for creative entrepreneurs and bloggers (especially those of you who are both) who don’t entirely draw the line between work and life – and like it that way. We’ll help you identify and shape your personal brand, blend it with the professional and provide you with tips and tools for sharing it both online and off. You’ll be surprised at how much bringing your personality into your business (and vice versa) can attract your dream customer and make your dream job actually feel that way.

Dream Customer Catching helps creative entrepreneurs and small indie businesses figure out how to work with / sell to the people they like, the people that pay, and the people they can actually have the most impact for. But we're also going to be sharing insights into the deeper outcome of this "finding your people" approach. It's the "Embrace Your Expertise" part of dream customer catching. Because every time you work with your specific dream customer, you're actually building upon your own expertise – rather than reinventing the wheel every time with your creative services or product. 

Shape Up Your Content is for the creative entrepreneur who struggles with an overabundance of ideas, messages, and content (visual or verbal) on their site, their blog, their materials and even in their conversations – not to mention, analysis paralysis of what to do with them. We help you chunk down your ideas, recognize the ones with the most potential, and the ones that are just distractions in disguise. You’ll be surprised at how quickly you can go from content chaos to a concise (yet still creative) message.

Why are you so passionate about seeing creative entrepreneurs succeed?

The bleeding heart in my chest just wants everyone to do what they want and live what they love. Let's work from our hearts, blaze new trails, and leave The Man eating our dust! But the more practical side of me believes the rise of the creative entrepreneur is the direction our economy is taking. I read recently that by 2014 half the work force is going to be made up of freelancers. The world is starting to work smarter and smaller. Creatives have a lot of talent but not necessarily a lot of business vision – I feel like my purpose and the work I'm doing at Braid helps bridge that gap. 

If you could share one bit of advice to my readers who are looking for their dream job, what would it be?

Stop looking for your dream job and start making it. Even if you're working for someone else or are your own boss, you have the power to define your role. I think the most important question you can ask yourself is "what do I actually want to be doing all day?" If it's more sketching, drawing, brainstorming, or coaching then DO more of that. Start now. 

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Thanks Kathleen! It was so great to catch your excitement for new and growing businesses! Braid Creative is offering a special discount that lowers the ECourse cost from $75 to $50!..... Just visit their E-Courses page and use the code: BRAIDECOURSE50 

Happy Day!

(*As an affiliate partner with Braid Creative, if you click through my links to purchase an E-Course will receive compensation for my referral. All opinions are my own. Thanks for supporting my affiliate partners!*)