PODCAST • Passion Design Project

064: My exact method of using EVENTS to attract NEW CUSTOMERS

by haleybadenhop | Oct 2, 2017 | 0 Comments

A few months back I started really focusing on doing more art. It’s always been a side-passion of mine, but as I had more and more people requesting my services, I realized it would be really easy to make money with art. Becoming a full-time artist meant I had to think about creative ways to bring in money, not only for surviving but because I was interested in seeing which methods could bring me the most consistent income.

Today I’m telling you about one of my favorite sources of income this summer: Watercolor class events!

Don’t worry if you aren’t an artist because events can be applied to a lot of industries to attract new customers and get current clients more engaged!

On this episode I cover:

How I started these events all by myself in 2 days.
How you can make sure you profit before even hosting an event.
The way I’ve gotten up to 40 people at one event (that meant almost a $1000! profit in one night)
The best way to contact a venue to collaborate.
How to keep in contact with people who come to the event for future projects.
The exact Facebook Ad strategy I use. (on my last 9 events I’ve spent approx $280 altogether and made $1000. About a $700 profit!)

I think events are one of the best ways to get to know your customers, plus since we do so much online it’s nice to actually do things in person!

I’d love to hear if you host events or you plan to after this!

Have the best day ever today!!!

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063: How this couple DROPPED THEIR JOBS and BUILT a Jungly Boutique Resort in Sri Lanka | MEL & SUPAN

by haleybadenhop | Sep 25, 2017 | 0 Comments

Recently, my boyfriend and I were throwing around beach vacation ideas. We wanted somewhere neither of us had been, and definitely somewhere exotic, preferably in Asia. After Palawan in the Philippines was knocked off our list because of sketchy activity there, we gave Sri Lanka some thought.

I didn’t know anything about Sri Lanka going into our trip research. I mean, our top requirement was that we wanted to stay in a beach bungalow. So, once we ran across Dreamtime Cabanas on Airbnb and saw the photos, we knew we HAD to stay there. Actually, we booked the place before booking any travel pieces for our trip!

And let me tell you: best decision EVER! Our stay at Dreamtime was seriously dreamy. Not in a resorty, 5 star way, but an authentic, welcoming, Sri Lankan way.

Our hosts, Supun and Mel, stayed on property and were the most wonderful and accommodating people. Aged 30 and 27, respectively, I HAD to know how they built this place from scratch in the last 2 years. Not to mention the fact that Mel is originally from Australia.

On this episode, I dive into these questions with them to see how they both left their jobs and built this jungle oasis from scratch!

If you find yourself in Sri Lanka, definitely stay at Dreamtime…or plan a trip just so you can!

LINKS:

Dreamtime Cabanas

Instagram: @dreamtime_srilanka

Have the best day ever today!!!

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062: My Art Question Answered LIVE | #ASKGARYVEE

by haleybadenhop | Sep 18, 2017 | 0 Comments

I’m a huge fan of Gary Vee. He was a gamechanger for me after I started listening to his podcast and he talked all about working hard while also being patient.

At the time I started listening, I was searching for every way to make it big as fast as a could…and it wasn’t really working out! Super discouraged and disappointed in myself that I wasn’t “killing it” in 2 seconds, his method was a sigh of relief AND made me realize I could be doing tons more to further myself along. Technically, I didn’t deserve to be doing amazing because I definitely wasn’t putting in all the time that requires!

Each week, Gary has a guest on his show and they take a few callers questions. Hundreds of people send questions in and on this particular day I decided to write one. By some miracle, about 5 minutes later my phone rang with a New York number. I moderately freaked. I hope you enjoy our conversation about art and entrepreneurship! If you want to hear the rest of his interview that day, here is the link.

**audio credit: #askGaryVee

Have the best day ever today!!!

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061: Standing on Top of MOUNT EVEREST | ELLEN GALLANT

by haleybadenhop | Sep 11, 2017 | 0 Comments

Ellen Gallant got a chocolate cake for her 51st birthday, which just so happened to be during her 3rd attempt of Mount Everest. After her previous two trips were stricken by tragedy, where instead of reaching the summit she found herself utilizing her medical skills on the injured, she was more determined than ever to stand atop Mount Everest this time around.

I interviewed Ellen only two weeks after she returned from Nepal and she tells her story in stunning and intriguing detail. Ellen brings so much wisdom around the idea of looking at the bigger picture vs. personal victories, and it was an absolute pleasure to talk about the experience with her.

I’ve never had any desire to climb Mount Everest, so hearing about what it meant to Ellen gave me a whole new view on the process, and I think it will for you too! Enjoy some photos from her excursion:

Have the best day ever today!!!

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060: How I Created my First 1K day as an Artist

by haleybadenhop | Sep 4, 2017 | 0 Comments

I don’t talk about my process of becoming an Artist very much or very in depth. I think the process of entrepreneurship is so messy and all over the place, that it’s hard to make sense of it in the moment, and doesn’t feel very inspiring enough to share.

I suppose most things are like that. Learning to ski, or the process of becoming a mom, or learning to cook better. They’re all tough processes and it’s more fun to show the finished product and make it look really good. However, I think a lot of the interesting stuff lies in the middle. In the hustle, and the grind.

I knew I wanted to be an artist since I was young. It always came easy to me and I really enjoyed it. But I don’t think I fully thought that “Artist” could be a career. And to be entirely honest, I still have some lingering doubts occasionally.

So, condensing the last 10 years, I mostly worked in Fashion Design, and dabbled with doing art here and there. It wasn’t until I moved here in Jackson Hole and didn’t have a job yet that I decided I would spend my free time creating an art show for a local cafe. I had my first real art sale there. I sold an acrylic on wood for, I think, $150. From then on, my art supplies stayed out and I continued exploring acrylics and some watercolors that I found packed in a box I brought.

It was around that time that all my friends in Ohio were getting married and so I decided to watercolor some of their wedding photos for fun. Word got around that I was doing that and I started getting some orders by email and social media. At the beginning, when your hobby brings in some cash occasionally, it’s incredibly exciting. You almost feel like you’re cheating the system because it’s so fun. And at that point, it’s good to remind yourself that talent is something that’s paid for in this world.

With that, I would add that I think that doing free projects are beneficial in certain circumstances. However, there should always be some type of tradeoff, because the energy exchange is more powerful that way. Something simple like a trade or that they’ll post on social media about it. Or, if you’re literally just starting and hardly know what you’re doing, free is okay for a while, until you get that first order.

Continuing on, I had two more art shows in Jackson and did commissions occasionally when people would ask me to while working at a Fashion Design job.

Six months ago, I decided that I wanted to step away from Fashion and put all of my energy into furthering this podcast and doing art. But it wasn’t just super simple. From there it took me a few months to realize that I actually wanted to make Art the first priority and that kind of turned my plans around in my head. What made me realize this was very simple; clients kept coming to me asking me to do work, even when I wasn’t offering anything. Sometimes we try to take a harder road that isn’t for us when what we’re meant to do is sitting right in front of us.

I have a really good time doing art. I painting and drawing fairly easy and love trying to methods. But having fun doing art and running a business with art are two very different things. I soon realized that enough money wasn’t just coming in by itself to cover my expenses. I’m not a very big fan of the money aspect, so ignoring this worked for a while until I distinctly remember a night I was driving and being really upset that my talent I was putting out wasn’t matching up with the funds coming in. I felt really sorry for myself.

Anyone with me here? When we think we’ve worked hard enough to deserve more than what’s coming to us? Well, I stayed in that place for about 20 minutes, And then changed my mindset around to I think one of the most beneficial things we can do for ourselves. First, I officially recognized that no one owes me anything and paired with that, I realized I need to go grab what I want.

So right then, I made a list of every person I could contact the next day that would help me get one step further along. Within 24 hours, I had gotten ahold of one of my favorite podcasters, Pat Flynn, and we had set up a plan to do a mural in his new office in San Diego. After that, I decided to make my art offerings much more specific. I was only going to take on projects I really loved, and let go of the ones that I wasn’t so good at and weren’t worth my time.

All of a sudden, all these amazing projects I enjoy started coming in. I, of course, am still learning in the process, about budgeting, checking my profit, seeing if things are actually worth my time, acting like a legit businesswoman, saying no, figuring out ways how to make things work, and following opportunities.

I’ve developed more of an immediate response habit to people and ideas, and most recently started hosting Wine + Paint nights to bring in a social aspect. My first Wine + Paint night, paired with 2 custom paintings brought in my first 1K day as an artist which really made me smile. And oddly enough, not because of the money, but because it showed a result from my attitude adjustment paired with hard work and putting myself out there.

So my biggest suggestions to any entrepreneurs are to get involved in your community either by hosting parties or pairing up with companies. Put yourself and your work, plus the progress, on social media. Make sure you have and keep a budget and don’t be beyond having a part-time job on the side. And always ask for people’s advice and help.

If you’re in Jackson Hole and interested in drinking wine and painting, go to my art website at HaleyBadenhop.com and the available dates are under Events.

Have the best day of your life today!!!

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059: Teaching English Abroad while in College | NIKKI AWAD

by haleybadenhop | Aug 28, 2017 | 0 Comments

On this day in Marrakech, I stopped by a co-operative and caught up with Nikki, who is a student doing a short stint abroad to teach English in Morocco. Nikki gives some practical advice on how easy it can be to travel the world and make an impact. My favorite quote:

“All you gotta do is pursue what you wanna do, it’s that simple.”

Take a listen if you’ve ever wanted to add a new experience in your life. Enjoy!!

Have the best day of your life today!!!

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058: How to constantly MOVE FORWARD & keep things EXCITING

by haleybadenhop | Aug 21, 2017 | 0 Comments

I find that when I come home after a long trip, I have mixed feelings. Coming home almost feels like coming back to a past life..

[In short, I find this is because when you allow for new experiences in your life you almost inevitably see the way you live in a new, fresh way.]

I’ve been thinking on this for the last few days as I’ve returned after business events in London, a solo birthday trip to Morocco & Portugal, an exciting art project in California, and a fun Memorial Day in NY with my bf.

All of these things are moving me in the direction that I want it to go, but at the same time, there’s that weird moment when you come down from the travel high…to…what was. Which might be perfectly fine, but also I think we tend to overlook that we usually create a life based on what our family and friends have always done. Nothing bad in that, but there’s so much diversity out there to take into account as well. Like, I love bringing back some little thing from my trips to begin implementing in my life. One of my new ones is a new type of bathing from Morocco!

The things I want you to remember is that we can always create the reality we want or change it into something we desire. Which, for me, means remembering the feelings, ideas, and visions of my future life I had during my time away.

During trips away from our busy day-to-day happenings, it’s so much easier to think that anything is possible. I’m sure you’ve experienced that: being on vacation and thinking “I bet we could live here” only to come back home and never give it one more thought. A lot of people attribute that to “coming back to reality” but remember what I said, we create the reality we want. You truly can. If you want to do something, you can. You break it up into smaller steps and do the first step within the next 5 minutes. It could be as small as creating a to-do list, or one of my favorite action steps: contacting one person who could be some type of connection to get you a step further.

After coming back from trips to my old habits too many times, I’m finding that it’s actually important to remember those new thoughts I had and begin to put them into play. Most often it’s not major things but instead, it’s simple things, like lighting a candle that smells like the beach or having deeper conversations with everyone or sitting in gratitude each day for 5 minutes. Things that make you feel genuinely happy at the end of the day.

The biggest idea from my past few weeks I’m putting into play is thinking on a bigger scale. There’s a lot of awesome people and so much opportunity out there and it’s really fun to be in the midst of it all. I’m also playing music while I work and getting more outdoors time. What are you doing to feel more alive?

Have the best day of your life today!!!

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057: How to have GREAT Stories | 30th Birthday

by haleybadenhop | Aug 14, 2017 | 0 Comments

I spent my 30th birthday in London. 6 months prior I had decided that I was going to be successful by 30, which at that point only meant that I wanted my bank account overflowing with extra funds by then. Not exactly the best foundation for success, by the way.

However, It seemed serendipitous that the graduation of the event was on the turn of decades for me, and I thought everything would pull together because it was so perfect.

I’ve never had a huge desire to go to London, it’s mainly due to the lackluster weather and cuisine they’re known for. For that reason, I should’ve realized my plan was flawed already, but we are good at talking ourselves into things that seem perfect, aren’t we? It’s like seeing the best shirt ever in a store, only to try it on and realize it really doesn’t suit you, yet it’s so hard to walk away from that perfect (but actually not perfect at all) shirt.

London as a city ended up being nicer than I thought, besides the exchange rate obviously. If I was a Brit, I would travel 90% of my time and get everything for 90% off.

I stayed with 2 different new-ish friends in London. If there’s any advice I’d give to people starting as early as possible, it’s to befriend people who have that travel itch, or who are from different countries. There’s nothing better than having a familiar face and a comfy homey bed in a foreign place.

Back to my birthday, I spent it at the Ritz, at the business event with 15 chicks. Old world glam, besides being impressive in itself, doesn’t interest me too much. Having all the tiny details attended to is fun, but I really just want to tell everyone to go up a bit on the relaxing and true smiles. Getting everything you want should be a happy experience filled with lots of laughs.

I did, however, get a delicious birthday cake brought out by the staff, which was crazy yum. So their cake bakers get an A+.

What the business event that day taught me about most of all is that everything is connections. Life is about relationships. What really matters is the people you interact with. I don’t get very emotional but the people who did, I noticed that all of their emotions traced back to people. It was never: “that $1000 didn’t make me happy” or “my Facebook ads have ruined my life;” it was “I was abandoned when I was younger and it’s affecting me. It was “my mom said something to me and it’s shaped my life negatively” or “my husband doesn’t quite agree with me and I need to please him first” or “I don’t want to outshine my sister” or “I don’t want others to not trust me because someone broke my trust and I don’t want people to feel the way I did.”

If we can realize that it’s actually our “people pleasing” that is holding us back in almost every scenario (test it for yourself), we could go crazy crazy further than we ever knew was possible.

It’s actually insane.

Please give some time to think about who you’re unnecessarily trying to please in your life. This can include your kids too. I recently reminded my mom that it’s more exciting for us kids to see her passionately pursuing her dreams rather than trying to please us by being there at every beckoning.

What’s this require? Boundaries. Knowing you deserve more. Making it non-negotiable. Quitting using old stories as a crutch. Moving past the fear. Giving way more time to yourself. Taking action immediately. And most importantly recognizing all of your excuses and stopping all complaining.

You’ll find it really empowering to hear all the “buts” you’re using and having to turn them into immediate possibilities.

My latest “but” sentence was simply in my head. Those are some of the worst, by the way, because they are the stories you tell yourself on repeat without realizing. Things like “I want to start posting on social media regularly but It’s a busy time right now and I don’t want to be inconsistent.” With one sentence, you’ve successfully rationalized an excuse to yourself. A really bad habit if you haven’t realized already.

Say more yesses, you’ll thank yourself & your biz will thank you too.

Upon completion of the day, we all decided to go have a drinky in the posh lobby. I figured it would probably be the most expensive drink of my life, and my 30s must have made me smarter quickly because I was right. $35 for one drink. It better have been made of gold right? Well, my lucky day, it was sprinkled with flakes of gold. Now that’s the way to start a decade off golden.

The Kiwi friend I was staying with unfortunately left on my birthday to go to Spain to hang with a man she’d met 2 weeks prior on a visit there. He better have been hot. My bf was on vacation when he met me too, so I’m actually all about this.

My friend’s roommate lovingly filled in and wanted to accompany me for some birthday dinner and drinks which was quite sweet. I had a cheeseboard in my mind and of course looked for a highly rated cute place we could get one.

What I found was beyond perfect. Now, I have a talent for finding cute places that are out of the way and gems so it’s good I still kept that talent in my new decade. La Beaujolais was the name. We would’ve simply enjoyed our bottle of Bordeaux and our old school plates of 8 cheeses and an array of cold cuts this American didn’t recognize, but it got better. Apparently, two young girls in this super old establishment isn’t the norm, and an old La Beaujolais regular, Robert, came over to chat with us. He eventually brought his friend, the chef and owner of one of the most famous French restaurants in London, over to join in the lively conversation.

You may have thought this post was a general post of my day, but it is actually only about the following 2 hours.

Robert was probably 70, a man who smiled when he talked, had a story for everything, and sprinkled in quotes and the authors of the quotes for every topic we touched on.

A common question I ask people when I hear the line of work they’re in is: do you enjoy it? I’ve come to recognize immediate how people feel about their work and when they are looking for more meaning. People want to be asked deep questions and I encourage you to get deeper with people as you’ll be pleasantly surprised how much more meaning the convo will have. More recently I’ve found that people actually respond to this question with a lot of enthusiasm which not only makes me excited but also shows me that I’m surrounding myself with a good bunch of people.

When I asked Robert if he liked being a Baroner (trial lawyer) and wearing a wig to work each day, he responded with the most sincere, “I don’t just like it, I adore it.” And continued with the quote about turning your passion into your work so that you never work a day in your life.

What line of work would make you have the same response?

We spent a long while chatting about Roughing It.

Roughing it: the art of getting by in life in less than ideal curcumstances by utilizing creative ideas.

He said the best stories come from either Roughing it or doing the opposite aka my day at the Ritz. How true is that?

Think about the best stories you tell people. Let me tell you one story I don’t tell: I took a workout class this morning. What do I tell? I got lost, started crying twice, and somehow summited a huge mountain that a few years ago I thought was only for extreme mountaineers. What else won’t you hear me telling: I went on the same beach vacation for the last 3 years and stayed at the Holiday Inn. What will I tell? My boyfriend and I flew to Amsterdam first class but yet didn’t book a hotel until we landed and ended up with the most adorable apartment right on the canal. Or maybe I’d talk about that time I was sleeping outside in a hut on stilts in Panama in the middle of nowhere rainforest when I saw a spider the size of my hand 5 feet away.

Which stories to you want to listen to?

I say do something bold whether it’s one way or the other, because there’s a lot more to life than taking the middle of the road, the safe, normal route.

Too many people think the normal way is the smart way or the safe way will get them the furthest. Actually, this couldn’t be further from the truth.

Or maybe you like that comfortable life. What you don’t know, is that you could be getting a lot more if you’d let go of what you think is your perfect life. Do something crazy, rough it, or treat yourself extravagantly. Make a story out of the experience.

On another note, oddly enough, if you google the French chef’s restaurant, Bellamy’s,’ an article titled “Why Bellamy’s is the Queen’s most visited Restaurant” pops up. I reminded him, as he talked about serving the queen and other prestigious persons with no emotion, to be proud of himself. We get in these places where we forget to be grateful for all we have and give ourselves the grace to be proud of all we’ve done. I know this from personal experience, where I dumb down big things I do, because, by the time I’ve achieved it, I’ve forgotten how much hard work it took to get to that point, and often don’t give myself enough credit. The more we acknowledge the amazing things we do, the more we will give space to enjoy the adventure of going for more because we won’t be so focused on striving for perfection in ourselves or others.

After another shared bottle of Merlot, chosen by Stephane, he decided we must go dance at Little Italy, and I spend the rest of the entire night (until 5am) having bubbles in Little Italy.

Have the best day of your life today!!!

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056: Is the Fastest Way to Success actually PATIENCE?

by haleybadenhop | Aug 7, 2017 | 0 Comments

Yes, as weird as this title sounds, this is actually something I’ve been pondering a lot lately.

As the internet speeds things up, I’ve realized that a lot of people feel like their success needs to happen ASAP! Today, or at the very latest, tomorrow.

I’ll be honest, I was part of this group of people for a long time, and I’m still working on transitioning my mindset around it. Maybe you’re similar and think that nothing happens fast enough, too?

For instance, are you constantly feeling like you’re behind because you see a lot of people having your dream life already on Instagram? Even though a lot of that is fake, ya still want it right, ha, I hear ya. Or are you always reading those ads and articles that pop up that tell you a list of things that are holding you back and how you can get past them to live your dream life?

Back in November, I joined a high-end course with a coach teaching business and coaching strategies. Looking back, I didn’t really know what I was getting into, but I did know that I wanted everything I was doing to take off way faster than it was. I thought I deserved to have things come together perfectly for me. And when I read about this course, it seemed like it was my recipe for 6 months to success.

Spoiler alert, it didn’t. Yes, I now know more than I did, but I think more-so I actually learned the opposite of what I went into it for. I learned that a lot of people on the internet right now are starting things there because the entry is so easy. I noticed that people who think they want to be entrepreneurs don’t exactly know how difficult it is or maybe more so, the stamina it takes, to start, run, maintain, grow, and be profitable. I saw that people think they deserve the world after they’ve only worked for a few months.

Yes, I now know more than I did, but I think more-so I actually learned the opposite of what I went into it for. I learned that a lot of people on the internet right now are starting things there because the entry is so easy. I noticed that people who think they want to be entrepreneurs don’t exactly know how difficult it is or maybe more so, the stamina it takes, to start, run, maintain, grow, and be profitable. I saw that people think they deserve the world after they’ve only worked for a few months.

And you know what, I get it. Because some people we see are overnight successes, but 99% of those overnight successes were working behind the scenes for years and years and years.

One of the most common themes to the impatience I’ve noticed seems to be complaining. People who feel entitled that just because they built a website and put out an offer, they deserve to have buyers, and a lot of them. I often wonder where this stems from and how someone comes to the conclusion that they deserve to be successful just for putting something out there whether it’s good or bad, whether they’re an expert or not, etc.. I can tell you one thing, if it was that easy, everyone would do it.

But that’s the catch. It is that easy to put something out now AND everyone is doing it. EXCEPT, that’s where the knowledge ends. As hard as you may have thought the starting was, the start is the easy part! The everyday grind is where the real winners start to appear. And that hustle is what’s hard because results don’t come like magic or at the speed of Superman. Results come from taking crazy action every single day while also being really patient.

And listen, some impatience is fine with me because I get it. I want to grow my lists quickly (ps. go join my Instagram @haleybhop:), I want to be on top Podcasts lists, I want my art to be sold out, but no matter how many coaches or magic fairies I get, I’m the one who has to make things happen, step by step by setback by step. And I truly think that the victory is finding enjoyment in that process.

Because if you’re really passionate about something, you should be okay with and excited about working and grinding and hustling your heart out around what you want to do and achieve.

So today, don’t let others’ seemingly quick victories get to you. You’re running your own race. Be okay with the fact that it is going to require a lot of creativity and hours and strength and so on, because if you want it that much, it’ll all be worth it, and then, give your best every single day.

Have the best day of your life today!!!

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055: How a 25 year old made her VISION come to LIFE and built a school in Africa | Kelsey Bradley

by haleybadenhop | Jul 31, 2017 | 0 Comments

If you have ever had the longing or heart to help out people around the world who could use a hand, this is the episode for you! Earlier this year, Kelsey oversaw her school design being built in Cameroon, Africa.

In our conversation, she teaches us how to go ALL-IN after a dream, brings us total grassroots fundraising strategies, and talks how taking action on things you believe in is what’s important. I hope this episode helps you realize that when it comes to making your goals happen and going after things that seem crazy, there is no perfect time. Go for it!

Find Kelsey on her website HERE and check out her charity HERE.

Show me how to live a life I'm passionate about!

Success!