How I went from a wetlands biologist to helping women create vibrant businesses through digital and content marketing.
How I went from a wetlands biologist to helping women create vibrant businesses through digital and content marketing.
The road less traveled is my signature for sure. I never knew what I wanted to be when I grew up. I just knew that I loved exploring…everything.
I’m a biologist because the career counselor suggested I graduate and most of the units I had completed were in environmental biology.
I ended up in Florida by throwing a dart at a map!
Yes, true stories.
But the one thing that guides me is my insatiable appetite for knowing how things work and why. And it is that quest that makes me successful today — and gives me the tools to help women succeed in their businesses.
Busted and broke.
Almost.
I left Florida a year to the day that I arrived.
I’m not sure if I felt like a failure for running back home or if Florida really just wasn’t for me.
One night, over martinis with the girls, I told them, “I’m going to put all my houseplants in my car, drive around, and rent them out.” Maybe that was all the liquid courage I needed. Over the next few weeks, I did just that. A Place for Plants was open for business.
I remember talking to a Lake Tahoe lake-front restaurant about my business and telling the owner all the ways my plants will add to the ambiance of the restaurant. It will make people want to stick around and spend more money. I also remember him looking at me and smiling. He said, “A Place for Plants? Cute.” And then he said no thank you.
I learned right then a hard lesson about branding. If I wanted high-end restaurants to take me seriously, I had to step up my game. I also had to learn that restaurants make more money the more tables they turn over. It wasn’t effective marketing for me to tell the owner his diners would stick around — he wanted them to come in, spend money, leave, and sit the next guests. I rebranded under Botanika and created a new marketing message. I went back to that same restaurant and sold a $500 monthly recurring plant rental contract. That restaurant later became my biggest client ranging in monthly totals of several thousand dollars over their busy season.
My
BIG
break x 2...and one mighty fall.
Two years later I sold Botanika for Big Sky country. A year later I opened White Glove Property Management and a year after that Vertical Realty. I got my first big break — real estate was BOOMING! Vertical Realty quickly grew, providing me with a cushy 6-figure salary. I had one sales associate, and one full-time and one part-time assistant.
That was 2007.
In 2008 my world turned upside down. By August 2008 all of my savings — and it was a lot of savings — was gone. I lost my house. I lost my business (later I sold my client list to a dear friend who I believe wanted to help as much as she wanted my client list). And what was left, I sold.
I loaded my clothes, an exercise ball, and my dog, Sampson, into my Subaru and went to find somewhere that would take me. That turned out to be Colorado.
And that is where I had my one mighty fall. On April 24, 2009, I was diagnosed with cancer.
Until 2009, I was 110 MPH all the time. Cancer was my abrupt halt. It was the universe’s way of saying: “Hey! Slow down!”
And I did. During treatment, I got my very first a massage. In that massage room, my life changed. For that hour, I didn’t have cancer. I was just a girl getting pampered. My therapist was Nicola. She’s a mentor and friend to this day. I finished cancer treatment in December 2009. In 2010, I became a certified yoga instructor and massage therapist.
I got my second big break meeting Julie in February 2011. Since then, I’ve worked with Julie to create an online and in-person massage and yoga training program to teach therapists how to work with people touched by cancer. Our mission was to train therapists so that no one would be turned away from receiving a massage due to a cancer diagnosis. When I think of my legacy — the one thing I will leave behind in this world — it is my work with Wellness for Cancer. Our program has been taught in more than 50 countries. We’ve taught over 7,000 students in person and countless more online.
My work with Wellness for Cancer was not only to create a world-class training program, but to shift conventional belief that massage spread cancer. It was about crafting a message. And we did that in every possible way.
How I can help you
What I’ve learned is that I am where I am now through the help of mentors and coaches. And that is what I offer you.
I work with women who have been in business for 6 months to 2 years that feel like their business has gone flat — they are not getting the sales they want or need to stay in business. They’re close to throwing in the towel. BUT maybe it’s just about pivoting or creating a targeted message.
My background in successfully marketing a business spans almost two decades. I have been successful through trial and error and being meticulous in finding what works. I’ve developed a niche in building laser focused and targeted marketing systems to create that “sticky factor” and grow your business.
I invite you to explore my website, learn from my blog posts, follow me on Instagram and Facebook, and ask questions. And if it makes sense for you, consider taking my digital course: From Open to Thriving (offered quarterly).
Business experience
You're in good hands!
2002 – 2004: Botanika fna A Place For Plants. Sold in 2004
2005-2008: White Glove Property Management & Vertical Realty. Sold client list in 2009
2011-2014: Summit Massage & Wellness Studio. Never operated in the red. Sold in 2015
2015 – present: Tahoe Floats
2011 – present: Wellness for Cancer