OC: TELL US ABOUT SEEKER LOVER DREAMER AND WHAT YOU DO
ZW: Holy cow that’s a good question! I’ve been trying to define Seekerloverdreamer since I started it. Basically I’m about authentic communication. Bring a brand into that mix, throw in consistency, hit it with a twist of innovation and make it about people and now we’re talking. Branding, creative direction and social media are a constant in my back pocket to propel brands and businesses to amazing places.
OC: HOW DO YOU DEFINE SUCCESS?
ZW: Success for me isn’t about how much money I have in the bank or the kind of car I’m driving, it’s more a feeling and it comes from a sense of freedom. Free to choose the kind of clients I want to work with, free to start my day swimming ocean laps and drinking coffee barefoot, free to choose the voice of my business and how I communicate that, free to organize the layout of my day and when I knock off work. Therefore, I define success as the freedom of choice and that is quietly and perfectly powerful for me.
OC: WHAT KICK ASS DAILY HABITS DO YOU HAVE IN PLACE?
ZW: Swimming laps at sunrise followed by yoga by the side of the pool.
10-30 minute daily meditation focusing on intentions and/or future projections.
Midday ocean timeouts.
Creating a schedule with time blocks so that I keep myself to task throughout the day. This includes breaks and social media timeouts to respond to comments but to also just let myself play.
OC: WHAT MAKES YOU HAPPY?
ZW: Playing in the waves at sunrise and sunset. The light shining through the water is electric + golden and when I look up at the surface it comes through like 70’s globes of light. I may or may not wish I could Instagram it every time! Also adventuring. Getting out of the city, switching off my phone and disappearing into nature. Just breathing in the goodness of the outdoors and remembering how small I am and how mighty Mother Nature is.
OC: TELL US ABOUT A HIGH POINT IN YOUR CAREER
ZW: When I stepped out of my comfort zone of working with small teams to leading workshops. It was like a light went on inside of me and it felt like this perfect next step. It was no easy feat to get to that point either. I went through every level of I’m not good enough, I’m not worthy and why would anyone come to listen to what I have to say?! So to challenge all of that and just trust in it, in ME, was huge because I found a whole new capability and, therefore, a new direction for my business.
And just to add, and this might sound a bit wanky, but every time a client “gets” the humble, self-less, giving side of community it gives me the biggest heart-rushed thrill. I want to jump up with a band of cheerleaders and throw up “YOU GOT IT!” signs. Not everyone can get there so when they do, it calls for celebration.
OC: CAN WE ASK FOR A LOW POINT? WHAT DID YOU NEED TO KNOW TO GET OUT OF THERE?
ZW: Late last year I decided to take my workshop, Pimp My Online, national with three workshops in each city. The drive to do it came from wanting to help more people understand the power of social media for their business. But in the lead up to them, I felt like all I was doing was posting about and talking about my workshops. I felt like I was beginning to push when my ethos is “go in the direction that feels easy + good”.
In the middle of it I went to a workshop by US copywriter, Alexandra Franzen, who spoke repeatedly about “giving your best work” and working from a place of generosity. It highlighted to me that in doing so many workshops and needing to get the word out there I had stopped coming from a place of generosity. As soon as I got that I knew that I needed to make some changes.
I then grappled with feelings of failure and had two days worth of worry. I kept checking in with how it felt to push through it as opposed to paring back my workshops and coming from a place of – “if it speaks to you, come along and if it doesn’t, I wish you all the best” and the latter feeling kept winning.
I decided to strip back my workshops to one in each city and even cancelled one of the cities. I posted a heartfelt explanation on social media about my experience and why I was doing it. I also emailed all the businesses I was working with to explain the situation. I was blown away by the incredible responses I received and felt appreciated, even respected, for making a decision that was heart based and not dollar driven.
OC: TEA OR COFFEE?
ZW: Coffee! Cold drip, cold brew. Cold and coffee with a slice of lime. Did I mention coffee?
OC: HOW DO YOU GENERATE NEW IDEAS?
ZW: Get in the ocean. Read magazines. Watch LOTS of YouTube videos. Talk to inspiring people and just jam on ideas – amazing things come from talking to amazing people. Write morning pages from The Artist’s Way to clear the clutter in my head and actually give my mind space for ideas. Sivassana – some of my best ideas have popped in my head at this time.
OC: IF YOU HAD TO START YOUR CAREER OVER AGAIN, WHAT WOULD YOU DO DIFFERENTLY?
ZW: Nothing. Every misstep and screw up came with a valuable lesson. It was a challenging start but it’s exactly perfect because it got me here.
OC: IF YOU COULD SHARE ONE PIECE OF BUSINESS ADVICE WITH OTHERS WHAT WOULD IT BE?
ZW: Fake it till you make it baby! Don’t wait for it all to be perfect till you start, till you have the business plan, till you know your company mission, till you know your 5-year goals, to start. Embrace your imperfections, stand at the edge of the cliff and just jump! You’ll learn along the way and those lessons will be the best teachers ever. You’ll learn to trust your gut and trust what you’re capable of and along the way you’ll define your business from a practical place of knowing. Make it an adventure!
OC: GIVE US 3 WORDS OTHER PEOPLE WOULD USE TO DESCRIBE YOU
ZW: Energetic, creative and fun.