You’ve Got the Right Schtick, Baby.

So, for this weeks installment of the Trust Your Blackbird series, I decided to interview Leslie Pierson, owner of Retrofitted Designs, a product design house out of Seattle’s Ballard neighborhood. Among her many fantastic creations is a line of laptop skins which are offered under the name Schtickers. But Leslie isn’t just a savvy business owner with an interesting story to tell, she has also been my mentor throughout the development of Blackbird Tees. For that reason, this will be less of a formal Q & A, and more a personal toast of sorts.

As we’ve worked together over the last year and a half, Leslie has been kind enough to share some tales from her unique, and somewhat adventurous road to fulfillment. Not only did she travel the world teaching English for 8 years, taking time out for a casual trek up Mt. Everest, she also worked for a dot-com company and later for a group of consultants here in Seattle. Despite making a decent living and enjoying the luxury of a flexible schedule, the corporate world grew to be an increasingly stifling environment, and it would be a casual cup of coffee with a friend that would eventually offer an exit strategy. Continue reading »

Creativity in Blume.

One of the best things about putting yourself out there is that like minds can finally find you. Call it the law of attraction, the universe’s way of rewarding you for your courage, karma, what have you. In the ten months since Blackbird Tees launched, so many interesting people doing so many interesting things have managed to make their way here. Back in May, a woman by the name of Stacey Blume left a comment on my blog after reading about my shirts. I decided to indulge my curiosity by clicking on the link to her website, and was so thrilled to discover a fellow adventurer in the world of customized clothing.

Stacey’s company, Blume Girl, features personalized lingerie and apparel for all you daring boys and girls out there wanting to infuse your unmentionables with a little sass. And as I learned, it was Stacey who actually infused the clothing line itself with a personality all her own. Turns out, the early exposure to her family’s uniform manufacturing plant, combined with her passion for style, provided the unique perspective that would eventually lead to the creation of Blume Girl. And so, after exchanging a couple of emails with Stacey, I thought it would be great to feature her in our latest Trust Your Blackbird installment. She is such a perfect example of drawing from what you know, adding dashes of inspiration and creativity, and going with your gut. Our Q&A follows below.

JD: I always start by asking why individuals felt compelled to leave their previous jobs and take the risk of starting a small business. Was something missing from your existing professional life at the time?

SB: Umm… yes- I didn’t have one! I was studying acting and working as a waitress, a legal assistant, a personal assistant, a nanny, all different kinds of jobs to pay the rent. My fashion ideas hit me as I was in this ‘figuring it out’ phase. Continue reading »

Like Getting a Cow’s Rear End Through Customs.

Uh, yeah, I know what you’re thinking. But allow me to backtrack a bit before explaining my heading choice for today’s post. Several months ago, I was scouring the internet for interesting, soul-searchy, creative, random bits, and I happened upon a little site entitled Your Life Crisis. Immediately, I knew something promising had to be around the corner, and I’m happy to report that it did not disappoint. The site, brainchild of Aussie, Jarrod Pickford, is an exploration of the quarter-life crisis phenomenon told through video clips and interviews with twenty-somethings from around the world. It was like water to my dry, overworked root system, and after soaking in a bit of nourishment, I wrote Jarrod a letter, praising his efforts and thanking him for the inspirational oasis, making sure to note that if he should ever make it to Seattle, I’d certainly be ripe for a chat.

Well, this past Spring, Jarrod and I met face to face, and following friendly introductions, our chat began, and it would continue for four solid hours. It makes sense that, in times of uncertainty and struggle, camaraderie becomes increasingly important, but I had been charging forth by myself for so long that this fact somehow escaped me. Certainly, friends, neighbors and co-workers have rallied around my business effort, but being at the helm is inherently lonely, and at the end of the day, you feel the weight of that loneliness. And while the solitude is not a bad thing, it’s nice to occasionally look up and see your fears, frustrations and realizations reflected in the eyes of a fellow traveler. Continue reading »

The Alchemist

Several definitions exist, but alchemy in its earliest forms centered around the transformation of energy, specifically the transmutation of common metals into gold. And while this original interpretation changed and expanded over the centuries, the conceptual focus of alchemy continues to carry a relevant message. The process of turning something worthless into something of great value, and as a consequence, prolonging its life, resonates with new meaning today.

As I have interviewed more small business owners, this lesson of alchemy has surfaced in an interesting way. The individuals behind the businesses I’ve featured were all confronting some sort of loss when their idea came to them. At a moment when most would see themselves as victims of an unfortunate situation, these people instead saw an opportunity, perhaps sensing the hidden value. And so began the transmutation.

This is particularly true in the case of Eli Reich, creator and owner of Alchemy Goods, a Seattle based company that manufactures bags and accessories out of recycled materials. Back in 2004, Eli’s messenger bag was stolen, and rather than buy a new one, he decided to give a pile of used bicycle tires a new lease on life, transforming them into a replacement bag…and then into a business. For this week’s Trust Your Blackbird installment, I’m sharing my brief Q&A with Eli. Thoughtful and inspiring, his answers illuminate the very real value that can be found in a simple idea, a refreshing business model, and a choice to do the right thing. Continue reading »

When the Moon Hits Your Eye

This weeks installment of Trust Your Blackbird takes us to Naples. Naples, Seattle that is. For those of you that aren’t already loyal customers of Tutta Bella, Seattle’s only VPN (Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana) certified pizzaria, prepare to become one. You need only a healthy appetite, an hour to spare, and all of your senses intact. And while it easily could be, this is not actually intended to be a review. Instead, it is a brief trip into the heart of a successful restaurant and, perhaps it’s all of the lycopene circulating through this one, but the prognosis is off the charts.

You don’t have to be a business expert to know that opening a restaurant is a terribly risky venture. Nine out of ten fail. With that in mind, I sat down with Tutta Bella’s owner, Joe Fugere, to get a better idea of how one navigates such treacherous waters, and learned that the compass you follow is sometimes the last one you’d expect. Continue reading »

Let’s Get Physical.

For those of you that don’t already know about google alerts, they are available to everyone (for free), and provide you with convenient little e-mails anytime people in cyberspace write about your topics of interest. So for instance, I set up google alerts for “blackbird tees” and “resume tees,” so anytime those keywords find their way into an article or blog post, I get a heads up. And as I’ve discovered in the last several months, these fabulously efficient notifications can serve another purpose as well.

A while back, one of my alerts revealed that a personal trainer and lifestyle educator by the name of Carla Birnberg had given my tees a nod. And so, I decided to log onto her site, Mizfit Online, and leave a thank you in the comments section. In reading her full post, I discovered that not only was this woman a fan of my tees, she had done some creative marketing of her own in her early days, using iron-on letters to spell out ‘Personal Trainer’ across the leg of her sweatpants. I was instantly curious about this like-minded soul and wanted to learn more.

Well, in the days since, we’ve exchanged several emails, and after looking through her blog and reading a brief bio, I thought it only fitting that she be part of the Trust Your Blackbird series. After all, one good deed deserves another, and as her site tagline states, “at the core, we’re all the same.” Below is our brief Q&A, and perhaps like me, you will see that often times, not fitting in actually fits just fine. Continue reading »

The Commencement Speech That Keeps On Giving

I first read the below speech a year ago, and it had a lasting effect, so I though it might be worth passing on.

This is the text of the Commencement address by Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple Computer and of Pixar Animation Studios, delivered on June 12, 2005.

I am honored to be with you today at your commencement from one of the finest universities in the world. I never graduated from college. Truth be told, this is the closest I’ve ever gotten to a college graduation. Today I want to tell you three stories from my life. That’s it. No big deal. Just three stories.

The first story is about connecting the dots.

I dropped out of Reed College after the first 6 months, but then stayed around as a drop-in for another 18 months or so before I really quit. So why did I drop out?

It started before I was born. My biological mother was a young, unwed college graduate student, and she decided to put me up for adoption. She felt very strongly that I should be adopted by college graduates, so everything was all set for me to be adopted at birth by a lawyer and his wife. Except that when I popped out they decided at the last minute that they really wanted a girl. So my parents, who were on a waiting list, got a call in the middle of the night asking: “We have an unexpected baby boy; do you want him?” They said: “Of course.” My biological mother later found out that my mother had never graduated from college and that my father had never graduated from high school. She refused to sign the final adoption papers. She only relented a few months later when my parents promised that I would someday go to college. Continue reading »

A True Urban Oasis

I’m so proud to announce the launch of our Trust Your Blackbird Series, featuring interviews with individuals from all walks of life who have put themselves out there to create something new. I recently visited Oasis Art Gallery in Seattle’s Wallingford neigborhood. A truly unique space, Oasis makes the world of art approachable by providing an inviting, unpretentious environment for visitors. Their diverse collection of affordable paintings, photography, jewelry and crafts reminds us all that art and inspiration can and should be a part of everyday life. As is the case for many small business owners, the journey for Oasis owners Alex and Jeannie Strazzanti was full of twists and turns. Below is my brief Q & A with Alex about how he and his wife found the courage to take that leap into the great unknown.

JD: What were you doing prior to your work as a photographer and small business owner?

AS: My focus in college was psychology, and I focused on non-profit management in graduate school. I worked for 10 years with people with mental-health issues, developmental disabilities, and physical disabilities. My last job was at a non-profit organization, as a manager of a team of Employment Specialists assisting people with developmental disabilities to find employment in the Seattle community.

JD: Why did you feel compelled to take this step? Was it a gut instinct or something that unfolded slowly over time?

AS: It was a matter of timing and a lot of self-reflection, but getting there was a long, gradual process.

My passion for photography gradually increased over the previous 10 years while the joy I received from working in social services gradually decreased. I suddenly found myself at that virtual point on the chart where the two lines crossed; where my joy from photography fulfilled me more than any experience I was having in my current job. I’m sure there were hundreds of events that affected those feelings, but I think one of the most important was that I got married in 2003. My wife and I went to Italy for a month for our honeymoon, and the trip enlightened my perspective on the priorities of our culture.

Life in Italy incorporates a strong appreciation for the arts, and Italians enjoy a more laid-back lifestyle of focusing on the things they are passionate about-namely art, food, and family. This profoundly contrasted with the “rat race” and overall greed that I often see in the U.S. Returning from Italy, I knew that I wanted to focus on my passion for photography in order to share art with others and not continue to climb the non-profit corporate ladder that I had always believed was my path. I have always strongly believed in following my instinct and my passion. When I acknowledged what I was experiencing, I knew I had to make a change. Continue reading »

The Trust Your Blackbird Series

Here at Blackbird, we don’t think anything exists in isolation. The seemingly small decisions you make in one area of your life can have an enormous impact on how you move through the world. Often times, the most significant shifts come when you put yourself out there and let the chips fall where they may. Sometimes it works out beautifully and sometimes you have find satisfaction in the attempt. Either way, these are moments worth sharing. In the Trust Your Blackbird Series, we will be featuring interviews and submissions from small business owners and everyday people about their struggle to transform an idea from dream into reality. Taken together, these stories will remind us each of the possibilities that exist. Our hope is that you will see yourself in their respective stories, and thus be able to envision a wider spectrum of choices available to you. Far too many of us sell ourselves short when it comes to career, and Trust Your Blackbird will be working tirelessly to counteract that tendency.