When you’re passionate about a lot of things, you might sometimes have the feeling that you should just pick something already. That you can’t have multiple passions, that you can’t pivot in your career, that it’s better to just pick a path than to be truly happy. But that’s the opposite of a growth mindset!

These limiting beliefs often keep you from fully embracing your passions and from having the confidence and growth mindset to take your passions and your business to new heights.

In today’s episode, I’m chatting with self-proclaimed multi-passionate entrepreneur, Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey. She’s sharing a lot of great advice on overcoming limiting beliefs, the power of growth mindset, and why you should pivot when you feel stuck.

Don’t let societal norms dictate how you live your life. The truth is that you can have everything you want and more, and you don’t have to choose one, straight path. Embrace the winding journey of your many passions and explore positivity and curiosity in your life and in your business.

What’s in this episode:

• Why Clarissa describes herself as a multi-passionate entrepreneur [02:18]
• Engaging the power of visualization and disrupting your judgy thoughts [05:07]
• How to uncover and move past your limiting beliefs [08:50]
• How to overcome limiting beliefs related to pricing your services [11:10]
• Clarissa’s Painting Your Path framework [12:59]
• Talking to yourself with a positive mindset [16:24]
• How Clarissa helps her coaching clients most past the stuck feeling in their business growth [18:10]
• Clarissa’s advice for avoiding burnout [20:03]
• Clarissa’s advice for pivoting when you feel stuck [22:52]
• How to handle time management when you’re multi-passionate [25:31]
• How to approach niches in your photography business [27:32]
• Why being done is better than being perfect [28:55]
• Clarissa’s advice for someone just starting out as an entrepreneur [30:28]
• A favorite successful story of one of Clarissa’s students [33:56]
• Questions you can ask yourself if you’re struggling to find your purpose [35:51]

If you want to get unstuck and embrace a growth mindset in your business, tune in to this episode.

SUBSCRIBE: iTunes | Spotify | Stitcher

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Resources Mentioned

Emilie Wapnick’s Multipotentialite TEDxTalk

Mel Robbins – The 5 Second Rule

Insight Timer app

Calm app

Finch self-care app

The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron

Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert

Steal Like An Artist by Austin Kleon

Meet Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey

Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey is a multi-passion entrepreneur (leadership & life coach, practicing abstract artist, author, and organizational psychologist). She’s been an artist since she was 5. Clarissa’s passion for coaching can be traced back to her childhood and young adult days. She was the friend people would go to for advice, counsel, and encouragement. Clarissa is also the author of the book Painting Your Path: 21 Interviews with Extraordinary Women and Painting Your Path Writing Journal. 

She incorporates her Painting Your Path framework with her clients, who seek to define or redefine their path in life, whether to branch out on their own or get back to their creative self. This framework is what she’s used in her life to achieve her visions, dreams, goals. Clarissa is also the creator of From Employee to Creative Entrepreneur, a free summit to help individuals create their roadmap to become their own boss. She’s been featured in VoyageLA and ShoutoutLA.

Connect with Clarissa

Clarissa’s website

Join From Employee to Creative Entrepreneur (Facebook group)

Follow Clarissa on Instagram

Connect with Clarissa on LinkedIn

Did you love hearing Clarissa’s tips for finding your passion and embracing a growth mindset? Check out another episode from Elisha Weger – Multi-Passionate Creativity & Finding Your Value as an Artist with Elisha Weger

Transcript

[00:00:00] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: People think the thing that I have to do, oh, it’s so scary. And then when you finally do it for 3 to 1, do it, you’ll realize. Chances are it was not nearly as scary as it was in your head. 

[00:00:13] Lisa DiGeso: Yeah. 

[00:00:13] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: And, you know, you build up all these emotions about it, but then when you do it, it’s it’s way easier. And then that just gives you fuel and evidence that, oh, I can do this. Yeah. Yes. It’s not so bad. 

[00:00:31] Lisa DiGeso: Welcome to the Art and Soul Show, where we dove into heart opening chats on photography, business, life and that messy in between. I’m your host, Lisa DiGeso, a mom, a photographer and entrepreneur. And I’ll be sharing honest conversations and advice for photographers with insight on mindset, entrepreneurship and creativity. The goal of this podcast is for you to be able to gain insights and strategies that will get you real results. Because, let’s face it, having a photography business can be lonely, but it doesn’t have to be. This is the place you can go when you need a boost of encouragement, a kick in the pants and inspiration to pick up your camera. This is the Art and Soul Show. 

Hello, my beautiful friends. Welcome back to the show. I am super excited to dove into today’s conversation. I am with Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey now. She’s a multi passionate entrepreneur, leadership and life coach, practicing abstract artist, author and organizational psychologist. She’s been an artist since she was five. Clarissa’s passion for coaching can be traced back to her childhood and young adult days. She was the friend people would go to for advice, counsel and encouragement. Clarissa is also the author of the book Painting Your Path 21 Interviews with Extraordinary Women and Painting Your Path Writing Journal. She incorporates her Painting Your Path framework with her clients who seek to define or redefine their path in life. Whether to branch out on their own or get back to their creative self. I am so excited to dove into today’s episode. So without further ado, here is Clarissa. Welcome. 

[00:02:10] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Hi, Lisa. Thanks so much for having me. 

[00:02:13] Lisa DiGeso: Thank you for being here. So tell us who you are and what you’re passionate about. 

[00:02:18] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Oh, my goodness. What a great question. And I never know what I’m going to say until I say it. So I just love so many different things. So I like to describe myself as a multi passionate person. I love to create art. I love facilitating workshops. I love coaching and helping people who want to leave their 9 to 5, who identify as creative as well as having many interests. So I’m passionate about helping them see new possibilities and putting together their corporate exit plan and starting their creative business. 

[00:02:56] Lisa DiGeso: I love that so much. And I think I think what is so fascinating is I love that you call yourself a multi passionate entrepreneur, because I think traditionally we’ve been taught as children that we have one path and we’re and we’re just supposed to focus on that one path. And then when you deviate from that, you’re not on the right path. So I love that you have created this support for women because I think traditionally, you know, we’re taught that we’re supposed to go to school, we’re supposed to focus on one thing. We’re supposed to just like put our head down and that’s our life path. And for me, I have so many different passions, like I am interested in aromatherapy and spirituality and photography and business, and I’ve always felt like maybe like, do I have ADHD or there’s something wrong with my brain because I don’t focus. But I love that you’re creating resources for women and people like me that just may not realize that may have been a good thing about themselves. 

[00:03:47] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yeah. And you know what? I think we can have so many different interests, and it doesn’t it also doesn’t mean we need to monetize on everything that we love. We can have so many different passions and so many interests. And I don’t know about you, Lisa, but I’m a lifelong learner and I love dabbling with different things. And I would love to share a resource for anybody out there who is a multi passionate person that maybe views it as a negative thing because it is not. There is this fantastic TEDx talk. Maybe you’ve heard of it. It is by Emily Wapner and it’s called Multi Potential eight. So if you are feeling that multi passion ism, if that’s a word, is not a good thing. I highly recommend you to watch this TEDx talk. It’s not that long and there are so many of us out there and we get to create the possibility of doing whatever we want to do. 

[00:04:44] Lisa DiGeso: I love that so much. This morning I just bought a certification course on Kundalini yoga and sound baths like yes, why not? 

[00:04:52] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Why not? 

[00:04:56] Lisa DiGeso: Now I love it meditation, but I’d love to hear your thoughts a little bit on the power of visualization and how to use it to create a life that people love and moving past their limiting beliefs. 

[00:05:07] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes, this is something that I have done for such a long time. And when I started on on the self development journey, it was one of the first things that I learned. And we’re so good at this as children were so good at using our imagination, making up stories. And that’s basically, you know, in a nutshell what it is. And so I think as adults, we. Don’t spend enough time dreaming. And so really the power visually, but I can say the power of visualization is just simply, you know, getting in a quiet space, closing your eyes and just dreaming what is what’s calling you? 

And if you’re not living it now, that’s okay, because you can. And it really starts with getting that picture of what does it look like? What next journey do I want to be on? And just taking time in the morning or even in the evening before you go to sleep. Those are the best times, in my opinion, to do it when we’re fresh or we’re about to wind down and go into dreamland and just and just see what shows up. And just take that time to create the picture. You know, I’ll share an example. I was getting kicked out of my apartment. Basically, everything was going to be renovated. And if I wanted to move back in and guess what? The price was going to double. And so it was at that moment that I received that letter telling me I’m going to get kicked out. They gave me at least 90 days to to figure it out. And from that point on, I just said, you know what, okay, universe, this is a sign for me to purchase a house. And I live in California where it’s over expensive. But this is like back in 2002. 

And so I spent I spent time every day, like, okay, what is it? Where do I want to live? What kind of house do I want? And just really focused on that. And for me, there was a Spanish style house that I drove by every day on my way to work. And I was like, That’s it, house like that. That is what I desire. That’s where I’m moving it to. And guess what? And of course, I had to take the action steps to get there. But it really just started off by being quiet in the home that I still live in. Now, the home that I’m in is what I saw. Yeah, it really, truly is. And that’s the power of visualization. 

[00:07:30] Lisa DiGeso: I love that so much. Now I’m going to ask the question on this because it’s something I love visualization. But then I have this little chatter in my head that judges me on materialism and like, especially if it’s like something I want to manifest or something I really want. And I’m like, Oh, that’s so silly. Like, and I just get this judgy chatter. So when I’m visualizing, how do I block out that chatter? 

[00:07:53] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes, such a great question. And you know what the truth is? That little chatterbox, that little monkey mind, as they say, sometimes that little saboteur or gremlin is not going to go away. But what you can do and this is a method that I use, it might sound silly. Whenever that thought pops in my head, I literally say out loud, cancel, cancel, cancel, cancel. And it’s just a way to help disrupt that pesky thought, you know? And if verbally cancel, cancel doesn’t work for you, maybe you can just imagine this, whatever that voice sounds like and literally flick it away. Yeah, like flick it away. Thanks for sharing it. Just thinking it for sharing. And you get to go away now. Yeah. 

[00:08:39] Lisa DiGeso: I love that. I think that’s helpful. So talk a little bit about limiting beliefs a little bit. Now, if someone doesn’t even know what their limiting beliefs are, what advice do you have for maybe figuring out how to uncover and find them? 

[00:08:50] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yeah. So I would say this. If you have like a repeating thought, that is not helpful. How about if we just start there? If you have a repeating thought that is not helpful for you like. I can’t do this. I’m not good enough. I don’t know how. And it just doesn’t. It just doesn’t feel good. It’s not empowering. Chances are that is how you can identify a limiting belief. 

[00:09:17] Lisa DiGeso: I love that. You know, I went for a walk this morning and for some reason what popped into my Spotify playlist was Joe Dispenza, who I’m really been diving into a lot of his stuff recently and he was talking about how. If you have the same thoughts and you have the same experience and you have the same environment, why do you expect anything to change? And I just thought that was so fascinating that we don’t even realize some of our limiting beliefs are the things that we create and we do on autopilot. And so what I did this morning, so this is so funny today I wear a dress. I never wear a dress, ever. And today I drove a different path to work because I always take the same path. And today I’m going to go have lunch with a friend at a winery because I’ve never been there. Right. 

[00:10:05] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: So good. 

[00:10:06] Lisa Digeso: I was like, okay, like, if you’re going to change your life, you got to shake things up a little bit. Oh, isn’t that fun. 

[00:10:12] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yeah, I love Dr. Joe Dispenza, too. And I. I can’t I don’t remember exactly what his research says, but it’s basically like, you know, we’re living 95, 90, 95% of the same day over and over and over. And you really hit the nail on the head on how to shift that. It is just doing something different. And guess what? I have to share this too. Yeah, I’m wearing a dress too, and I normally do not wear a dress like for work. 

[00:10:39] Lisa DiGeso: I love that. 

[00:10:40] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: And so yeah. And I was like I want to do something different. 

[00:10:43] Lisa DiGeso: Yeah, different. 

[00:10:44] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Mm. Yeah. Shake it up, try something different. Like if you’re right handed, do something with your left hand and vice versa just to create a new pathway in your brain. 

[00:10:56] Lisa DiGeso: I love that. So going back a little bit to limiting beliefs, I know that the photographers I know that there is a fear of if I raise my prices, my clients aren’t going to pay that. So what advice do you have for like busting through that little thought to. 

[00:11:10] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes, oh, my gosh, that is such a challenge. And I even remember for myself charging anything for for my art, for my coaching service is like, Oh my God, would I do so? I’ll share a couple of things that might be helpful. So whatever your price is to start is your price. It has to feel good. You have to be able to say it with confidence. And so just start there, don’t overthink it. And this is a system that that I use. This is a system that I share with my clients. So let’s say you get and you get to decide. So let’s say you get one client. You get one client at this price. And so maybe a little challenge that you can tell yourself is, okay, I’m going to charge 20% more. And so you can slowly increase and the more client you get, the more that’s going to build your confidence. And that is kind of like more of a systematic way to do it in case you’re feeling like, okay, well, I can’t go from 500 a session to 2000, that feels like too much of a jump. Then do something incremental in between. 

[00:12:28] Lisa DiGeso: I love that because I think also when we when we originally raise our prices and we like do a double every triple it, you know, and no one book said it’s like this panic attack of like, what have I done to my business? Oh, my, my worth it. Nobody loves me. So it’s all these things that kind of combined onto that. So I really love that tip toeing your way into that instead of just jumping right into it. 

[00:12:50] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yeah, might be might be helpful. 

[00:12:53] Lisa DiGeso: So I would love if you would share your framework a little bit that you use with your own clients to achieve their dreams and goals. 

[00:12:59] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes, I call this my Painting Your Path framework and we talked about the step, first step a little bit, which is to dream. And again, we don’t spend enough time dreaming, especially if you are someone who, you know, wants to change careers or shift out of the 9 to 5. It’s so good to really just see yourself as already doing it. See yourself is already selling your photography, selling whatever it is you have. So start there with that dream and just let yourself be. The next step is to decide. So once we have created this beautiful vision, this beautiful dream, it is time to decide. I’m going all in. I’m going in 100%. So that helps, you know, solidify what you’re up to next. And then the third step is to create your plan. I just want to remind people that no step is too small, no step is too big, and it’s all about putting together. What is it that I want to accomplish this month, this quarter, monetarily, so you have something to shoot for. And, and, you know, whatever it is that you’re doing, maybe you’re a photographer and you want to put your portfolio together, setting those smart goals, specific, measurable, action oriented, relevant and resonant and time bound. So setting that plan together. And then step four. Is where the rubber meets the road. It’s all about being brave. It’s all about taking 2 seconds of courage to do the thing that you said you were going to do. And then step five is all about taking a step back. So let’s say you launched something. It’s so imperative to take time to really ask yourself, okay, what went? What was easy? What was effortless? What worked really well? And what is something I can do differently to make it even better? And so that is the framework that I have used to accomplish, what I have accomplished and help my clients as well. 

[00:15:13] Lisa DiGeso: I love the brave one and I love to tell them that. Have you read Mel Robbins The 5 Seconds rule? 

[00:15:19] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: I know her 5 seconds rule. I haven’t read it, but it is so powerful to me. Yes. 

[00:15:24] Lisa DiGeso: It’s basically you take whatever you want to do and you count backwards. Five, four, three, two, one. And you do it. And there’s something, I guess. I don’t know. I’ll butcher it. But apparently just the way that your brain works, if you count backwards, you actually help think about talking yourself out of it. You just go do it. So I love that because being brave is totally scary. And I think that’s where a lot of people like you have your plan and everything, but you don’t take that action. And I think that’s that’s I love that. 

[00:15:53] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes, I love that 5 second rule. And then also, you know, I think people think the thing that I have to do, oh, it’s so scary. And then when you finally do it for 3 to 1, do it, you’ll realize chances are it was not nearly as scary as it was in your head. Yeah. And, you know, you build up all these emotions about it, but then when you do it, it’s it’s way easier. And then that just gives you fuel and evidence that, oh, I can do this. Yeah. Yes. It’s not so bad. 

[00:16:24] Lisa DiGeso: Yeah. I’m the queen of building things up in my head, making them feel like they’re, like, just insurmountable, these massive tasks and projects. And it. And then I just procrastinate and I think about it for, like, three weeks, and I finally sit down. I do, I mean, like 40 minutes and I’m like, oh, my gosh, all that mental energy that I have spent on that. 

[00:16:44] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes. Oh, I can relate. I can relate. 

[00:16:52] Lisa DiGeso I mean. It is what it is. 

[00:16:53] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Right. I think we all do it to a degree, right? 

[00:16:58] Lisa DiGeso: I think so, too, you know, and it’s and sometimes we overcomplicate things and we get ourselves overwhelmed when we’re actually, you know what? And this is something I’ve been saying to myself, if ever I get in that frame of mind, like, this is difficult, this is hard, I try to switch it and I tell myself, actually, this is easy. I can do this. This is easy. 

[00:17:17] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes. 

[00:17:17] Lisa DiGeso: It’s easy. I can do this. And then it kind of just cuts that light pressure of making it so big. 

[00:17:24] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Oh, I love that. Yeah, I like to say, what if this were fun? 

[00:17:28] Lisa DiGeso: Oh. That’s a good one. 

[00:17:29] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: What if this is just an experiment? 

[00:17:31] Lisa DiGeso: Yeah. Let’s just see what happens. 

[00:17:34] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yeah, let’s just see what happens. 

[00:17:37] Lisa DiGeso: I love it, I do that with dinner and sometimes I throw it away. 

[00:17:40] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yeah, all right, I tried it.

[00:17:49] Lisa DiGeso: Now can you share your approach and how you coach photographers to get out of your own way? Because I think a lot of the time we can experience this sort of place of feeling stuck, not serving the clients we want to serve, not charging enough, and maybe just a little bit embarrassed about that and really not happy or just sure how to change things. So how do you work with your own coaching clients to move past this stuck feeling? 

[00:18:10] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes, I think it’s it’s so easy to get caught up in that. And so what I like telling my clients to create and I think I’m going to have to give credit to Marie for Leo for this one. She talks about a hype file and that is basically where you are putting positive feedback. It doesn’t even matter who it’s from. It could be from your mom, your dad, your brother, your sister, your spouse, clients, coworkers. If you’re in a 9 to 5 and it’s basically an email, a text or whatever it is, just to remind you that you can do you can do difficult things. You have made an impact to someone. I know you have. I know everybody who’s listening to this show has made a positive impact to somebody more than somebody. So keep that with you, because I think that is just a great reminder and celebrate your wins. Something else that I do with my clients every month and I and I say, you’re going to get sick of me doing this exercise, but it’s so important, trust me. Okay. Let’s do a reflection on the month that just passed and I want you to list all your wins from doesn’t have to be just about business, but all your wins in your life. And circle those top three. And what did it take from you to achieve that? And that’s your secret sauce to help keeping you go. 

[00:19:42] Lisa DiGeso: Yeah, it’s so true. Now, I want to talk a little bit about burnout, because this is really real in our industry, too. And, you know, truth be told, I have I also have learned over periods I’m a bit of a workaholic and I don’t really know when to stop. And it gets to that point where the last thing I really want to work on is my business. So what advice do you have for avoiding even getting to burnout? 

[00:20:03] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes. Oh, my goodness. And so this is something that I also talk to my clients about. And what I forgot to say was that the foundation of my framework are two things mindset and self-care. And so we literally devised a self-care plan. So what is that? And it’s so different for everybody. And it doesn’t mean that you need to spend, you know, half a day at the spa, but what are things that you can do to recharge throughout the day, whether that’s, you know, starting off your day in meditation using apps like com or Insight Timer or even just to like set your day. Yeah. And if this is helpful for people, I like to if I don’t calendar it, it doesn’t get done. Yeah. So this is just going to be unsexy, but maybe you calendar time in your day to go out for a walk or even just phone a friend. And I have friends that I talk to for a long time and I tell them I only have 20 minutes. I’m putting a timer on, but I just need to, like, talk to another human being. And so you’re setting up those systems ahead of time so that as the day rolls, you can continue to replenish yourself. 

[00:21:25] Lisa DiGeso: I love that. I’ve been trying to stick to my Sunday night self-care routine that includes like a hair mask and a face mask and like just doing like. Yes, a little bit. But have you heard I was actually scrolling on Facebook earlier and I saw something called Finch, and I think it’s a new self-care app and I don’t… 

[00:21:45] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Oh, I’ve never heard of that. 

[00:21:45] Lisa DiGeso: Yes. But I was like, I meant I was going to go look at it this morning. But it’s called Finch, I think. 

[00:21:51] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Okay. 

[00:21:52] Lisa DiGeso: So I really don’t know anything about it, but apparently it’s a self-care app and apparently it’s amazing. So I don’t know. I can’t say anything about it yet, but I’m going to check it out. 

[00:22:01] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Oh, for sure. Thank you for sharing. 

[00:22:03] Lisa DiGeso: Yeah with self-care. So because I think that’s so important and it’s a lot of the time, you know, we think that the base minimum is actually self-care when it’s actually not like that’s just what you should just be doing, like having a shower and like doing things that’s just a normal living human being. But sometimes as like busy moms or business people like you just kind of goes to the wayside and then you’re like, Oh, that’s my self. And you’re like, Actually, no, honey, that’s not self-care. 

[00:22:31] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes. Right. Oh, 100%. 100%. 

[00:22:37] Lisa DiGeso: So I have a very dear friend that is incredible at pivoting, but for many people it’s so easy to feel stuck and like you have to continue it even if it’s not making you happy. Now, can you share your advice on the power inhibiting? 

[00:22:52] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes. You know, and I if it doesn’t feel good, that is a sign. And I have I was a serial pivot earlier in my career. And the the thing with me was I always knew I wanted to do something creative. I always knew I wanted to help people. And yet I thought I had to, you know, be very practical and listen to what my parents and my teacher said. So I just went down a different like I just went down a path of what I thought I should be doing. And so I would take these jobs. But then every so many years, I would just have that empty feeling. And so that is a sign that, okay, it is time to regroup. It’s time to do a little bit of soul searching and and pivot out into the next the next best thing. And the good news is you can do that as much as you need to. Yeah. There’s no rule on how many times you can pivot. And really, I think it’s all about, you know, asking yourself, are you having more bad days in a row than good days? That was some advice one of my mentors said. And she was like, If you’re having more than, let’s say, in a work in a workweek, let’s just say Monday to Friday, if you’re having more than two days out of the week where it’s just you can’t take it. That might be time to really think about what’s next. 

[00:24:18] Lisa DiGeso: Yeah, I love that. And I think that there have been times in my life where I’ve pivoted and have had almost pivot shames, like our pivot embarrassment, like, oh man, like here she is off going to do something else again. And like feeling like I am flaky or flighty or just 90 minute where it actually had a friend say to me, she’s like, you know. I just wanted to tell you, I really admire you because you are able to change what you’re doing and you’re just like, Hey, I’m not doing that anymore. I’m doing this and I love it. And you’re always happy. 

[00:24:48] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes. And I think it’s brave. And I think you and I think you’re setting an example for for people, because we can get so just tunnel vision in whatever we’re doing that it’s we we don’t even ask. Am I still loving this? Am I happy right now? I don’t know. So I think that is a your you know by pivoting and doing what is calling you, you’re enabling that for other people. 

[00:25:15] Lisa DiGeso: Oh, thank you. It’s fun. 

[00:25:17] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes. 

[00:25:18] Lisa DiGeso: Being a photographer And I’m running an online photography school. I’ve been doing it for ten years and it’s actually the longest I’ve ever done anything. And I’m like, I sometimes I’m like, am I still happy? I’m like, Yeah, still happy. 

[00:25:29] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes. That’s awesome. 

[00:25:31] Lisa DiGeso: So good. So I’d love to dove a little bit back into multi passionate creativity and just maybe looking at some time management when you’re multi passionate and maybe even if you have multiple businesses. So what advice do you have on that? 

[00:25:46] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes, I think for the person who’s multi passionate, I always like to say you can do it all, just not all at once, because then nothing will get done. And so what I like to share with people is just start with one thing, take it to completion. And if you if you’re really good and you know yourself, maybe you can do two things to start and kind of go back and forth because I know I’m that way and I like I’ll start a project and then I’m like, You know what? I feel like doing something else. So I will start another project. And if you can just give yourself grace and not be so tied to a timeline, that might also be helpful for you too. So you can do it all just. Not all at once. 

[00:26:36] Lisa DiGeso: I just actually realized something and I was like, I actually think I have like an adrenaline or dopamine or multi project addiction. And I actually used to be a corporate event planner and I work for the university. So on any given day I would have like re conferences and maybe two weddings all happening on the same day and having to organize and plan them all. And I’m like, Oh my gosh. So I think I just realized this is why I have so many little projects going on all at once is I have conditioned my brain to do that. 

[00:27:05] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: This is normal!

[00:27:16] Lisa DiGeso: So funny. So in our industry, we often hear that you can only be successful if you are in a niche. But many of us are so multi passionate about the genres of photography we love to do. So what advice do you have when you want to go against the grain and not be in a niche? 

[00:27:32] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: This is what I like to tell people at the end, especially at the beginning. You may want to work with so many different types of people. So you know what? Permission granted. Just start there. And really, it’s by doing the projects, doing doing the work that you may find. You know what? In actuality, I really prefer working more with this type of person. But really, you’re not going to, at least for me and so many people that I know and for many of of my clients, they don’t know at the beginning who am I going to work with? And so I just say, well, have fun. Work with an array of people and and give it your all. And then really take that time to reflect. Yeah. And just ask, you know, is, is there somebody who I really prefer working with and then I feel like you probably will whittle it down over time. 

[00:28:29] Lisa DiGeso: Yeah, it’s so true. It’s like going to the buffet, going to like a photography based buffet where you get, like, Jell-O and all the things, like chicken salad and cheese and then deciding you’re like, Oh, actually, maybe they don’t want jello. Maybe I’ll just have, you know, but you have to go in there and see what there is and taste. 

[00:28:46] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes. 

[00:28:47] Lisa DiGeso: Decide what you like. 

[00:28:48] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Mm hmm. 

[00:28:49] Lisa DiGeso: So what has been the best piece of business advice you’ve ever been given? 

[00:28:55] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Oh, for me, because I tend to be a little perfectionistic, which slows me down, is done, is better than perfect. 

[00:29:04] Lisa DiGeso: Oh good one. 

[00:29:04] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: That was a tough one. But I found out when I would really shorten my timelines to to execute on things that that really just helped me build momentum and build success because I wasn’t so in my head trying to make everything perfect and just to accept done is better than perfect because you’re you’re either going to get the result that you wanted or you’re going to get the feedback that you need for the next time. 

[00:29:36] Lisa DiGeso: So true. I love that. When I was in school, I was never an A student or a student. I was always a C plus student. And so I decided a couple of years ago because I remember I’m like, when it comes to a thing, I’m really excited or passionate about. I am a perfectionist and I will polish and polish and polish and then never release it because it’s never quite good enough. So I kind of grew up with this theory. I was like, What if I just did like a C plus? Like, I just have to get a C plus, that’s all. Everything get C plus effort. Like even if I’m like doing a workout downstairs, as long as I get through, like close to 75% of the workout that’s done. 

[00:30:14] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes, I love that. I think that is a great way to look at it. And you know what? I bet your C plus is a plus for other people. So I’m just going to put that out there, too. 

[00:30:28] Lisa DiGeso: So what advice would you have for someone who is just starting out as an entrepreneur? 

[00:30:33] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: I would say dove in and that’s probably annoying. Just start. But whatever you’re interested in, I feel like there are groups that you can easily find on Facebook. We’ve got YouTube, you could YouTube, Google, whatever it is that you’re interested in. There are so many resources out there, so just begin. 

[00:30:56] Lisa DiGeso: Yeah, it’s so true. Okay. So you ready for our lightning round? 

[00:31:00] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: I’m ready. 

[00:31:01] Lisa DiGeso: So your go to karaoke jam. 

[00:31:04] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Anything by Journey or Blondie. 

[00:31:06] Lisa DiGeso: Yeah, good ones. Most luxurious vacation you’ve ever been on. 

[00:31:12] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: I would say my honeymoon. I got married in Costa Rica. And so after the wedding, we just did a two week tour and we did not spare any expenses on where we stayed. And it was just so, so beautiful. 

[00:31:27] Lisa DiGeso: So funny because I just had literally written I wrote down I said to my husband about Costa Rica, like the past three days, and I said, I want to go to Costa Rica. 

[00:31:34] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Oh, is this a sign? I think you’ll love it. Yes.

[00:31:42] Lisa DiGeso: What was your favorite TV show as a kid? 

[00:31:45] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Oh, my gosh. My favorite cartoon was The Jetsons. I’m of that era. And and I loved Diff’rent Strokes. 

[00:31:54] Lisa DiGeso: Yes. So good. Do you remember Silver Spoons? 

[00:31:57] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes. With Ricky Schroder? Of course. 

[00:32:03] Lisa DiGeso: So your favorite book? 

[00:32:05] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: My favorite book. Oh, that’s a hard one. I have a couple. I love The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron just to help me like get back to that creativity and Big Magic by Liz Gilbert. Again, more on a creative bias, but those two books are ones that I find myself going back to over and over again. 

[00:32:26] Lisa DiGeso: Have you read Steal Like an artist? 

[00:32:28] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes. By Kleon. Austin. Austin Kleon. Yeah. That’s a good one. Yes. 

[00:32:34] Lisa DiGeso: So last thing you did for yourself as an indulgence. 

[00:32:38] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: The last thing I did was I turned 50 this year. Last. In May. And so my husband and I did an eight day stay in Maui. So it was literally just beaches every day, being in nature every day. And I even brought my my iPad to do some work just in case. And nope, didn’t do it, like, nope, completely disconnected and just was beachside or mountainside for the whole time. 

[00:33:07] Lisa DiGeso: The best. I’m turning 45 in November and I’m trying to talk. My girlfriend into going to Paris. 

[00:33:12] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Oh, yes. Oh, that sounds. That sounds luxurious. Yes. 

[00:33:17] Lisa DiGeso: My husband and son will stay home. 

[00:33:19] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yeah. Good. Have you time. Yes. With your girlfriends. I love it. 

[00:33:24] Lisa DiGeso: So what did you want to be when you grew up? 

[00:33:26] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: An artist. 

[00:33:27] Lisa DiGeso: Love that. I wanted to have my own show. 

[00:33:30] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: And here you are. Here it is. 

[00:33:35] Lisa DiGeso: So, favorite movie? 

[00:33:37] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Favorite? My favorite movie is Dazed and Confused. I’m from Texas as well. And my best friend was in a class with Matthew McConaughey. And so, you know, I just love him and so many of those actors. And it’s just a fun and light movie that I could watch over and over again. 

[00:33:55] Lisa DiGeso: I love it. Now, can you share maybe a favorite success story from one of your students? 

[00:34:00] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes. So I worked with a designer. She was a web designer. And when she came to me, she she didn’t have a self-care plan. She didn’t have really any systems for herself to be successful. And so after working together, she it was just like night and day. Like she people weren’t annoying her. She also wanted to leave her day job. And so at the beginning, she, you know, she knew I was an organizational psychologist. And so that’s another thing that I love helping people with is just communication and teamwork and all that good stuff. And so by the end of our time together, she had quit her day job, which is what she wanted. She was just so at ease, single mom and just had her day schedule to where she how she wanted it and really just left work knowing that less is more a lot of times and just, you know, taking care of yourself first can also help propel your business. And then after after we worked together, she said, Oh, my God, Clarissa, you’re never going to believe this. The client that I had been wanting to work with for so long were finally working together. And that just made me so happy because I knew that was something that was so important to her. And then recently I just saw her post on Instagram. She got a small business grant and I just feel like she’s so on fire. 

[00:35:30] Lisa DiGeso: I love that. It’s a great story. I actually have a question for you, too. I had a conversation with a friend of mine and she’s like, No, I’m I’m a little low energy today. I’m kind of struggling a little bit. I’m like, well, what? What like, what is the issue? She’s like, I just don’t know what I can’t. I mean, having a hard time finding my purpose. And so what is it like? Would you have to someone who’s struggling with that? 

[00:35:51] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: That is such a great question. And I think there there are questions you can ask yourself. And I would also say this, like throw out whatever advice people are giving you because this is really an inside job. And I would just say, you know, start with what are you okay? What lights you up? And if you don’t have any thoughts around that, like if you’re not really sure, what are you curious about? What are you interested in? And another question is a book. Where do you where do you lose time? Like what? Is there an activity or something that you do where you just lose time? And I would start with with some of those questions to just do a little bit of an inside inquiry. And I think that will lead to so many other things. 

[00:36:46] Lisa DiGeso: That’s that’s great. That’s great advice. So where can our listeners learn more from you? 

[00:36:52] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes. So I think one of the best places is in my private Facebook group, and that is called From Employee to entrepreneur mindset. And I do all kinds of things in that group. And it’s it’s really a collaborative space. So you can find me there often. You can also connect with me on Instagram, and my handle is @ccr_sunshine. 

[00:37:19] Lisa DiGeso: Love it. Awesome. And we’ll make sure we link that in our show notes, too. So what makes your soul light up? 

[00:37:26] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Oh, just laughing with friends and my hubby. Just laughter. That is something that’s on my to do list every day. 

[00:37:33] Lisa DiGeso: I love it. 

[00:37:34] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: I have to laugh at least once a day. 

[00:37:37] Lisa DiGeso: That’s a good one. So I love to end my interviews with this last question. And it is what are you currently curious about or artistically curious about? 

[00:37:47] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Yes, that’s a great question. And for me, it’s licensing. That is something I recently had a speaker series which I do twice a year, and one of the speakers was talking about licensing and and how to do it. And that really, truly piqued my interest. And so I think not this year, but maybe next year, that is that’s something I’m going to dove into. 

[00:38:13] Lisa DiGeso: I love that. Well, thank you so much for joining me today. It’s been a treat chatting with you. 

[00:38:19] Dr. Clarissa Castillo-Ramsey: Thank you so much for having me. 

[00:38:22] Lisa DiGeso: All my friends, what a great conversation. So thank you so much for joining me today. I appreciate you listening and tuning in each and every single week. I am sending you so much of my light and my love today and every single day. We’ll see you next time.