May 11, 2025 • 24 mins
This week I'm chatting with entrepreneur, actress, and wellness advocate Vanessa Simmons. Known for her role on Run's House and co-founding the successful footwear brand Pastry, Vanessa opens up about her entrepreneurial journey, sharing valuable insights on knowing when to pivot in business and the importance of mental health awareness.
In this episode, Vanessa discusses her new wellness platform U4IA, an educational hub focused on fact-based beauty tips and mental health resources. She reveals how her father Rev Run's self-care practices influenced her own wellness philosophy, and shares practical advice on breaking the cycle of hustle culture through intentional breathing, journaling, and rest.
Discover how motherhood has deepened her self-awareness and shaped her leadership style, while learning actionable strategies for handling rejection and transforming perceived failures into valuable lessons. Whether you're an entrepreneur looking to make your next business move, someone interested in wellness practices, or simply a fan of Vanessa's journey, this conversation offers authentic wisdom on balancing ambition with self-compassion in both business and life. #VanessaSimmons #Entrepreneurship #WellnessJourney #MentalHealthAwareness #BusinessPivot #SelfCare
Learn more about U4IA - https://www.instagram.com/u4ianow
Watch on YouTube - https://youtu.be/MDX7--NxeDs
Takeaways:
In this episode, Vanessa discusses her new wellness platform U4IA, an educational hub focused on fact-based beauty tips and mental health resources. She reveals how her father Rev Run's self-care practices influenced her own wellness philosophy, and shares practical advice on breaking the cycle of hustle culture through intentional breathing, journaling, and rest.
Discover how motherhood has deepened her self-awareness and shaped her leadership style, while learning actionable strategies for handling rejection and transforming perceived failures into valuable lessons. Whether you're an entrepreneur looking to make your next business move, someone interested in wellness practices, or simply a fan of Vanessa's journey, this conversation offers authentic wisdom on balancing ambition with self-compassion in both business and life. #VanessaSimmons #Entrepreneurship #WellnessJourney #MentalHealthAwareness #BusinessPivot #SelfCare
Learn more about U4IA - https://www.instagram.com/u4ianow
Watch on YouTube - https://youtu.be/MDX7--NxeDs
Takeaways:
- Pastry was the first business venture for Vanessa and her sister.
- Deciding to walk away from a business can be difficult but necessary.
- It's important to take breaks to refresh and gain new perspectives.
- Vetting new business ideas should be based on passion and impact.
- Mental health and self-care are crucial in today's world.
- Breathing exercises can significantly reduce stress.
- Self-awareness is key in both personal and professional life.
- Failure should be viewed as a lesson rather than a setback.
- Motherhood has deepened Vanessa's self-awareness and patience.
- Leadership involves accountability and original thought.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is amazing media production. Hello, good people, Welcome to
the Switch Pivotal Quick Podcast. I am your host, Ayana
Angel and I am excited for you to be here
because I'm excited for this conversation we're going to have today.
(00:21):
So today we have a guest with us. Her name
is Vanessa Simmons. She's a model, an actress, and an entrepreneur.
Vanessa is also dedicated to the beauty and wellness space.
She is an enthusiast and she is also the founder
of a new company, Euphoria. It's an online community built
around fact based beauty and wellness tips and mental health awareness. Vanessa.
(00:46):
You may also recognize her and know her from being
the eldest daughter of hip hop legend Revrun of Run DMC,
and she's best known for appearing on the iconic reality
series Runs House. I know she's probably surprised that we're
still mentioning these things, but sometimes we have to give
people context. We saw her journey on that show how
(01:08):
she built a business with her sister, Angela Simmons, and
the business was called Pastry. So Vanessa, welcome to the
Switch Pivotal Quick Podcast.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
Thank you for having me and for that great intro.
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
Does it surprise you when people still reference Run's House
in the journey you all had there?
Speaker 2 (01:25):
It does, but it's always good to have that refresher
and to go down memory lane. I love it.
Speaker 1 (01:31):
Yeah, so was pastry the very first business that you
ventured into.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
Starting pastry was the first business I ever did. I
was fresh out of college maybe two years, and I
was a communications and business major, so I really wanted
to put that degree to work, and we got into
the family business. My dad was doing my athletics at
the time, and me and my sister we had an
idea we crafted together. We took it to my dad
(01:57):
and he was like, okay, took it to his business
partners and they gave us a shot. We were shocked,
and our goal was to make a million dollars and
we surpassed that and still to this day is one
of the best memories and experiences that I've had.
Speaker 1 (02:12):
So when you all decided to walk away from that business,
close it down, what kind of decision making went into that?
Being that this is something that you wanted to do,
it exceeded your expectations. A lot of people that listen
to this podcast, they're trying to figure out what is
my next thing? And how do I know when to
walk away from something? How did you decide it was
(02:33):
time to walk away? What was that thought process like
for you?
Speaker 2 (02:35):
Well, it definitely was not something that was easy, and
sometimes looking back, I wish we would have stayed and
just grew with a company, but there were a lot
of things on the business side of it. The way
that I'll deal with structured that we just outgrew the
relationships that we had fostered building the company, and so
it was just best that we walk away. It was
(02:56):
really difficult, but sometimes you have to look at the
full picture and figure out if it's going to continue
to be beneficial for you or if the company's going
to continue to grow and evolve. That's always really important,
and in that case with Pastriet, it was time to
move on and grow up a little bit. Me and
my sister were ready to venture out and do different things.
I wanted to go into acting. My sister had other
(03:18):
ideas for what she wanted to do. We were so
young in that case, we were just ready to grow
a little bit. Looking back, sometimes I wish we continued
on that journey, but you know what, everything happens for
a reason, and you can't regret any decision.
Speaker 1 (03:32):
Yeah. Absolutely. You know it's funny because I think a
lot of times when you spend time building something and
you're so close to it, and maybe even when you
need a break, it's easy to be like, let me
just walk away from this. Be hindsight, when you get
away from it, you're like, oh, I spent all that
time and that effort and energy building this. Maybe I
could have done XYZ with it if I had stayed
(03:55):
with it. But like you said, sometimes we have to
do what's best for us in the moment.
Speaker 2 (03:59):
Yeah, looking back and now being an older woman and
more developed entrepreneur, sometimes it's okay to take a break
from something, get some refreshing energy, and then go back
to it with a new perspective as an adult looking
back at that, I definitely suggest that too to entrepreneurs,
it's okay to take a break. It could be a
year break, it could be a couple of months. I'm
(04:20):
big on not quitting now that I'm older and I
have a daughter, and I want to convey that kind
of message to her.
Speaker 1 (04:27):
So how do you go about vetting new business ideas?
Because this business. Euphoria is a new venture for you,
how do you go about vetting new business ideas?
Speaker 2 (04:38):
I go with what I feel passionate about. Pastry was
more than just building sneakers. It was about inspiring a
generation of girls behind us and letting people know, you
know what, you could be young, you can look like us,
and you can do this too. So Pastry was also
a business that was meant to inspire. So all the businesses,
all the projects, everything I do is meant to inspire
(04:59):
and empower, And with Euphoria in particular, I want to
be able to be impactful in a way. That's why
I'm setting it around being an educational hub where it's
just giving people tips and tricks and education they need
to live their best life. I feel like now more
than ever, that's really important, and an emphasis on mental
(05:20):
health and how to really prioritize ourselves is important, and
I want to be able to put wellness in the
spotlight in that way. I have a lot of people
that follow me, a lot of people that say I
look up to you, so I want to give them
something to look up to. I want to be like, Okay,
how can I best utilize my platform and I feel
like wellness is the way right now. We all need
(05:40):
to be prioritizing our health. There's a lot going on
in the world, a lot of mental health awareness needs
to be had, and self care and all of that
falls into that category. I feel really good about that.
I feel really passionate about that, and I feel like
I'm making an important impact. And so that's how I
bet it starting euphoria.
Speaker 1 (05:59):
So when wellness and being really conscious of your mental
health and how you're pouring into yourself and all of
those aspects, when did that become a central focus for you?
Speaker 2 (06:09):
It's always been something I've been super passionate about. I've
always been a self care spa girly someone who knows
when to step away. We did a lot of work
with Pastry, and at times we would be in so
many different cities doing meet and greets and different business
ventures for the company. I would wake up and not
even know what city I was in. I think in
(06:30):
one year we had gone to almost forty eight states
something like that, traveling, and it was like consistent, and
so I really learned that sometimes I had to find
the pockets within those breaks of when to prioritize myself,
because you can't exist just filling up other ventures, filling
up other people, You have to fill up yourself. It's
(06:50):
always been something I've been super interested in, always something
that my friends and family have leaned on me for
advice because they see myself finding that time for myself,
and so it's always been something I've been interested in.
But in particular during the lockdown of twenty twenty, I
started archiving this information, sharing it with family and friends.
You know what teas to take, how to stay as
(07:12):
healthy as possible. I had friends that were locked down
by themselves how to find the pockets of joy and peace,
whether it be breathing exercises, different meditations. I'd send them herbs, tees,
you name it. I would be that person giving everyone advice.
And I started thinking with one of my friends in particular,
she was just like, you know, Vanasa, you should put
this information out there. Start curating your content to be
(07:35):
focused around this stuff because I find it really useful.
And I was like, you know what, I think that
would be a good idea. There are other websites that exist, goog, Poosh,
other platforms, but nothing that's Tailor two and giving back
to our community, letting it know that it's accessible also
to us, putting us in the narration as well. And
so I was like, you know what, let's do it.
(07:56):
And I started archiving information, writing blogs, and step by
step it just started to become more and more of
a business.
Speaker 1 (08:06):
I know you're locked in sight and suking up all
this goodness, but hold on for me just one minute
or maybe two while we hear from our sponsors. Talk
to us about the last thing that you shared with
somebody that you can remember that was like beneficial for them.
Like you just mentioned you were having this conversation with
(08:28):
his friend and pouring into people around you. What's the
last article you shared, tea, you shared, supplement, you shared,
meditation practice. I don't know something that you shared with
your people.
Speaker 2 (08:40):
Every day. I had a friend recently come to me
and she's just been feeling really down, and so I
just sent her some of the meditations that I do
in breathing exercises, and she was like thanked me after.
Because there's so much power in breathing that, like actual,
real intentional breathing that people just don't even realize could
(09:01):
switch your nervous system from being stressed to feeling a
little bit more at ease, and then you can think
a little bit more clearly. And it's not as bad
as you think it is. There's just the simple Like
I think it's like, breathe in five seconds, hold it
six seconds, release for four seconds, and do that over
and over again for about nine times in a row,
(09:21):
and you just it just helps to release so much stress.
And so that was the most recent, but I mean
it's every day with me with my beauty tools, with
my ice roller, with my led light wanes, like I
am just that person for my family and friend.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
Yeah, you're living it. It was funny that you mentioned
that about the breath work. I had never really heard
of breathwork until a friend of mine suggested it until
I did a whole session and it was amazing. And
now when I do meditations within a meditation app, I
realize now that most people start with you doing some
type of breathing, So I was like, there's something to this.
Speaker 2 (10:00):
So I love that it helps to just neutralize your
nervous system and overwork. Nervous system is the first step
to everything just being out of control and spiraling. So
we always need to keep out nervous system in check
and breathing is one of the easiest first ways I
can suggest to really start to bring it back into balance.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
What role does self awareness play for you in your
I guess you could say business life. I say business life,
but business life, personal life, professional life, it's all the same,
It's all one and the same. So what role does
self awareness play for you and just how you approach business?
Speaker 2 (10:40):
I feel like being self aware is really important for
me because it's gonna allow me to really judge, not
judge because you don't want to judge yourself, but to
really put into perspective what it is I need to
be doing to reach my goals and being honest with
yourself about where you are are. You don't want to
(11:00):
be too hard on yourself and you want to put
your best foot forward. But being self aware is pretty
important and I take count of that with like my journaling,
putting down what my goals are and what I can
accomplish realistically and what I can't. You know, you put off.
But it definitely plays a part in my business and
(11:21):
especially in acting. You need to be self aware to
some sort of degree to be able to tap into
another character. So yeah, it does play a part in
my business and in my personal life because I'm a mother,
so it's important for me to be aware of my emotions,
how I'm reacting or not reacting to certain things. It's
important and something that's become more essential as I've gotten older,
(11:45):
and of course as I grew into motherhood, my patients,
my tolerance everything. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (11:50):
Yeah, yeah, I feel like that's one of those things
they don't talk to us about, is like self awareness.
But it's one of those things that as you get older,
you become aware of it and you're like, how is
I not leaning into this before? Because this really does
matter in my day to day life.
Speaker 2 (12:06):
Yeah. Yeah. You just can't let it bring you down though,
when you run into things that you feel you're lacking
in you just work on those things in small increments,
but don't let it get you too down, you know.
Speaker 1 (12:17):
Speaking of being hard on yourself. Procrastination has a negative connotation.
But I want to know from you. This is a question.
I feel like everyone's like, yeah, of course, but what
I want to know what does it look like for you?
Do you ever procrastinate?
Speaker 2 (12:33):
Yeah? There are days me saying I need to take
a mental wellness day, every time I feel little something
come up that I'm just like, I don't like the
way that feels. So procrastination comes up, and it's normal.
But I try to practice things that helped me to
not procrastinate. I have this rule where you know, you
start doing project, give yourself ten minutes, and then if
(12:56):
you feel like you absolutely cannot continue on, then take
a break if your mental is not there. But once
I find that once I start, I'm actually more motivated
to keep it going, and then that just keeps on flowing.
But at least give yourself ten minutes at what you're
doing before you throw in the towel. But procrastination, it
happens to the best of us. It's easy to procrastinate it.
(13:17):
Give yourself grace too.
Speaker 1 (13:18):
Yeah, absolutely, we.
Speaker 2 (13:19):
Don't always have to work so hard, working smarter.
Speaker 1 (13:23):
I feel like that's a big narrative for us right now,
is just moving away from the hustle nature of things
in that hustle culture and reprogramming ourselves to say, just
like you said, start doing something, hold yourself accountable. But
if you realize that in the midst of doing it,
you're not feeling it, okay, check in be self aware
and then reassessed should I keep going with this right now,
(13:45):
or should I give myself some grace and give myself
a break and I can come back to it.
Speaker 2 (13:50):
Sometimes your mind needs to break, your nervous system needs it,
just for you to rest. Rest is one of the
most healing things we can do for ourselves. So when
you're in a moment when you really feel you need
to take it, that is your body signaling that you
probably need to take a break and let your mind
come to a complete stop for a second.
Speaker 1 (14:11):
Yeah, when was the last time that something you wanted,
you really wanted did not work out in your favor
and how did you handle it.
Speaker 2 (14:20):
I'm an actress, dear. This happens all the time. When
I just put my heart and soul into an audition
and you think you killed it, and then you hear
Kelly Rowland got the part or something. But then you're like, Okay,
I could see how she got the part over me,
you know, or whatever it may be. Those type of
challenges come along within my business, and it's just the
(14:44):
nature of things, and you just keep it pushing and
keep it moving and put your all into the next
opportunity that comes up. But when I was younger, I
used to take those things really hard. But when I
first got out to Hollywood and I first started pursuing
being an actress and auditioned for things that didn't get it,
I would be really critical and hard on myself. But
now I just know, get back on the horse, pick
yourself up, go back to a class, read a book,
(15:06):
find out how you can be better, study what that
person did, perhaps, and see how you can elevate your
craft and your talent in some sort of way. So
I just use it as motivation now.
Speaker 1 (15:16):
Yeah, yeah, it sounds like I'm hearing you say, like
instead of being hard on yourself, lean into how you
can maybe nurture yourself and hear talents more so that
the nose maybe they come less. Who knows.
Speaker 2 (15:29):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's never really I always like to
say it's never really a failure. It's always just a
lesson in some sort of way. So anything that comes
about that someone else might call a failure, now I
just look at it as a lesson. How can I
learn it so I can move past it and get bigger, better,
stronger in some sort of way. Learn from it.
Speaker 1 (15:50):
Hold on to all that goodness you're feeling right now.
We will be right back after this quick break with
more switch favod or quick talk.
Speaker 2 (16:01):
Do you feel a pressure to be I've always had
this pressure. I come from a family of success and big,
big dreams made into reality, and so I've always felt
a pressure to add to that legacy. In some way,
I've taken it off in the last couple of years,
especially since I've been leaning more into wellness and being
(16:21):
more self aware and just giving myself the validation I
need that I've done good and I'm doing okay and
I am enough. Affirmations are a big part of that.
So you got to take that pressure off. On one end,
pressure definitely makes a diamond. But on the other end,
you don't want to be too hard in yourself. You
don't want to beat yourself up. That's not going to
(16:41):
lead to the goal any faster. I think what will
lead to the goal is just putting in the work,
being consistent, showing up for yourself. Those are the things
that matter, and staying sane at the end of the day. So,
like I said, it's always about giving yourself grace and
making sure that you're putting in one hundred percent working
as hard as you can, but you can't beat yourself up.
(17:03):
Too much. Pressure is not good. Like you said, like
we're all trying to get out of that houseto mentality.
It's too harsh on us. We don't need all of that,
So just do your best and forget the rest. For
My dad always used to say to me, and I
think as an adult, I'm starting to get that even more.
What exactly that means?
Speaker 1 (17:21):
It hits different. When was the last like aha moment
you had? It could be something big, something small, but
you were just like, this all makes sense now, or
whatever it is, it clicks. It finally clicked.
Speaker 2 (17:37):
My mother was right always, you know, now that I'm
a mom and raising a kid, I have these moments
every day with my daughter. She's nine years old now,
so you can imagine. The conversations are a lot more elevated,
and she's just starting to grasp the world in a
different way, and I'm just always like, wow, my mom,
she had it right with everything she's ever told me.
So I have these aha moments probably every sinning because
(18:00):
I spend the time the most time in the morning
with my daughter, getting her ready for school, taking her
to school, and I'm just like, well, my mom was right.
My mom was right. She was always right. I call
her at least once a week to just say thank
you and I'm sorry for all the hard times I've
given you. She's like, Apra, Marie's over there again, you
isn't She like, yeah, she is. She is just a
(18:21):
little bit no. But it's a beautiful evolution to now
be a mother and be in the same position my
mom was in so many years ago, and I'm learning
from my daughter. So it's a beautiful circle of life.
Speaker 1 (18:33):
Yeah, that really is a beautiful thing. Okay, So what's
something that you learned from her that you're like, yeah,
I need to tell people this. She made me think about.
Speaker 2 (18:41):
That patience and that she is mirroring everything I do.
Sometimes i'd be like, girl, where'd you get that from?
She's like you and I'm like, oh, okay. So that's
what made me lean more into the self awareness of
it all, is just knowing that I have a little
person who's watching me, even when I think that she
(19:01):
is not. And it's a beautiful thing. But then it's
also kind of a scary thing too, because I want
to make sure that I'm putting forth the best example
that I can. But then again, without being too hard
on myself, I want to be authentic and I want
her to know it's okay to be yourself. You don't
got to put on no perfect front for anybody, be
who you are. So it's an interesting balance. But yeah,
(19:23):
she definitely makes me more self aware, like just making
sure I'm watching exactly what I'm portraying to her, but
then also pushing that you be yourself always no matter what.
I want her to be A leader.
Speaker 1 (19:34):
Yeah, yeah, ooh, a leader. I think there's a lot
there in that word leadership that I think we all
assume we know what it means and what it's supposed
to look like. What have you learned maybe about leadership
throughout your years of observing, going through things, being a
participant in all of that in life period?
Speaker 2 (19:58):
Well, Number one, holding yourself account and having original thought,
having your own thought, being able to be inspired by others,
of course, because I'm all about learning and making sure
that you have like mentors and people you can look
up to, people that you admire blueprints. But being original
and having original thought, to me is really important and
(20:20):
what really crafts and makes your character and makes you
who you are. That's how you'll be able to best
lead a team is if people can know that you're
leading them somewhere and that you have a vision.
Speaker 1 (20:32):
Yeah, you mentioned mentors who has been maybe a figure,
a mentor figure for you, someone that you really relied
on their leadership or mentorship.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
Believe it or not. I mean because he is, you know,
but my dad still to this day because he doesn't
judge as people assume. Because he's a reverend, we have
to act a certain type of way. But my dad
has led life as DJ run and then he's also
a reverend and vary into his Bible and all all
of that. But the way he is with us, he's
not judgmental at all, and we're able to go to
(21:05):
him with anything, and it's the best that we work
in the business that he's in also, so he's able
to give us real raw advice all the time. So
my dad is definitely one of my mentors and someone
I can go to and not feel any judgment and
who knows the business better. He's been all in and
(21:26):
out and through it, so he knows it exactly.
Speaker 1 (21:30):
Yeah, I feel like your dad maybe was one of
the first people in our culture of hip hop, blackness,
whatever you want to call it, to introduce black people,
especially black men, to like taking a set back, having
time for yourself and relaxing. When he would do his
bubble baths at the end ofvidual.
Speaker 2 (21:51):
See why I am into self care and so.
Speaker 1 (21:53):
This is what I was gonna say. So, now, what
does the conversation look like between you and him when
you're talking about euphoria and maybe even when you shared
with him, I'm gonna launch this business and it's gonna
be based on mental health and self care and all
of these good things that pour into us. What do
the conversations look like between you all now? Because I'm
sure that then you probably looked at your dad at
(22:16):
the end of each episode. You probably didn't even watch it,
But him taking these bubble bass You're like, here he go, Dad,
Like really but.
Speaker 2 (22:24):
That is authentically him, Like that was not for a
TV show. My dad to this day, that is his routine.
He's feeling any type of pressure, stress, like he's taking
his bath.
Speaker 1 (22:36):
But did you take it for granted when you were younger,
I don't know, or did it have the same impact
or the same feeling that it has now that you're
into the wellness space, don't.
Speaker 2 (22:46):
We always take up parents just a little bit for
trying when we're younger, because we don't realize what adulthood
actually entails. Of course I did. And sometimes he'd come
running in with a book or he'd be like, I
got something good for you, and I would always accept it,
always super receptive of what he was telling me. But
I miss that. I miss him just busting into my
(23:06):
room with the books and the tips and the things
that he knew I was going to need later on
in life. But those are some of my best memories
and the reason that I feel like I am going
down this path today. Like sometimes I feel like he
just has to lean to me and be like, take
your own advice when I call him and I'm not
and I'm breaking down and everything ain't going the way
(23:27):
that I planned, And I don't know. Aren't you telling
people go read.
Speaker 1 (23:31):
Jablogs, listen to yourself.
Speaker 2 (23:35):
Yeah, balance and pull it together. It's a beautiful relationship.
And I love the relationship that I have with my dad,
and I love the inspiration I can gather from him
and how I can go to him and know that
there's no judgment.
Speaker 1 (23:48):
Yeah, that's beautiful. It's like full circle. As full circle,
like he introduced, I feel like the community to being
self aware and needing your own space and wellness, and
now you're carrying on that legacy, so you're doing exactly
what you're supposed to do.
Speaker 2 (24:05):
Words of wisdom reference words of wisdom.
Speaker 1 (24:08):
Yes, yes, absolutely. Thank you so much, Vanessa for spending
this time with us, for sharing your career journey and
your ins and outs and just letting us a little
bit inside of how you're approaching life. We appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (24:23):
Thank you, I appreciate you having me, and I'm happy
you were finally able to do this.
Speaker 1 (24:28):
Yes, yes, and all of you be well and until
next time. This podcast is produced by Mazie Media. Maze
Media as a woman led podcast production company that works
with small businesses and corporations. Visit mazimedia dot com for
more details on how you and your organization can go
(24:48):
from ideation to podcasting
This is amazing media production. Hello, good people, Welcome to
the Switch Pivotal Quick Podcast. I am your host, Ayana
Angel and I am excited for you to be here
because I'm excited for this conversation we're going to have today.
(00:21):
So today we have a guest with us. Her name
is Vanessa Simmons. She's a model, an actress, and an entrepreneur.
Vanessa is also dedicated to the beauty and wellness space.
She is an enthusiast and she is also the founder
of a new company, Euphoria. It's an online community built
around fact based beauty and wellness tips and mental health awareness. Vanessa.
(00:46):
You may also recognize her and know her from being
the eldest daughter of hip hop legend Revrun of Run DMC,
and she's best known for appearing on the iconic reality
series Runs House. I know she's probably surprised that we're
still mentioning these things, but sometimes we have to give
people context. We saw her journey on that show how
(01:08):
she built a business with her sister, Angela Simmons, and
the business was called Pastry. So Vanessa, welcome to the
Switch Pivotal Quick Podcast.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
Thank you for having me and for that great intro.
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
Does it surprise you when people still reference Run's House
in the journey you all had there?
Speaker 2 (01:25):
It does, but it's always good to have that refresher
and to go down memory lane. I love it.
Speaker 1 (01:31):
Yeah, so was pastry the very first business that you
ventured into.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
Starting pastry was the first business I ever did. I
was fresh out of college maybe two years, and I
was a communications and business major, so I really wanted
to put that degree to work, and we got into
the family business. My dad was doing my athletics at
the time, and me and my sister we had an
idea we crafted together. We took it to my dad
(01:57):
and he was like, okay, took it to his business
partners and they gave us a shot. We were shocked,
and our goal was to make a million dollars and
we surpassed that and still to this day is one
of the best memories and experiences that I've had.
Speaker 1 (02:12):
So when you all decided to walk away from that business,
close it down, what kind of decision making went into that?
Being that this is something that you wanted to do,
it exceeded your expectations. A lot of people that listen
to this podcast, they're trying to figure out what is
my next thing? And how do I know when to
walk away from something? How did you decide it was
(02:33):
time to walk away? What was that thought process like
for you?
Speaker 2 (02:35):
Well, it definitely was not something that was easy, and
sometimes looking back, I wish we would have stayed and
just grew with a company, but there were a lot
of things on the business side of it. The way
that I'll deal with structured that we just outgrew the
relationships that we had fostered building the company, and so
it was just best that we walk away. It was
(02:56):
really difficult, but sometimes you have to look at the
full picture and figure out if it's going to continue
to be beneficial for you or if the company's going
to continue to grow and evolve. That's always really important,
and in that case with Pastriet, it was time to
move on and grow up a little bit. Me and
my sister were ready to venture out and do different things.
I wanted to go into acting. My sister had other
(03:18):
ideas for what she wanted to do. We were so
young in that case, we were just ready to grow
a little bit. Looking back, sometimes I wish we continued
on that journey, but you know what, everything happens for
a reason, and you can't regret any decision.
Speaker 1 (03:32):
Yeah. Absolutely. You know it's funny because I think a
lot of times when you spend time building something and
you're so close to it, and maybe even when you
need a break, it's easy to be like, let me
just walk away from this. Be hindsight, when you get
away from it, you're like, oh, I spent all that
time and that effort and energy building this. Maybe I
could have done XYZ with it if I had stayed
(03:55):
with it. But like you said, sometimes we have to
do what's best for us in the moment.
Speaker 2 (03:59):
Yeah, looking back and now being an older woman and
more developed entrepreneur, sometimes it's okay to take a break
from something, get some refreshing energy, and then go back
to it with a new perspective as an adult looking
back at that, I definitely suggest that too to entrepreneurs,
it's okay to take a break. It could be a
year break, it could be a couple of months. I'm
(04:20):
big on not quitting now that I'm older and I
have a daughter, and I want to convey that kind
of message to her.
Speaker 1 (04:27):
So how do you go about vetting new business ideas?
Because this business. Euphoria is a new venture for you,
how do you go about vetting new business ideas?
Speaker 2 (04:38):
I go with what I feel passionate about. Pastry was
more than just building sneakers. It was about inspiring a
generation of girls behind us and letting people know, you
know what, you could be young, you can look like us,
and you can do this too. So Pastry was also
a business that was meant to inspire. So all the businesses,
all the projects, everything I do is meant to inspire
(04:59):
and empower, And with Euphoria in particular, I want to
be able to be impactful in a way. That's why
I'm setting it around being an educational hub where it's
just giving people tips and tricks and education they need
to live their best life. I feel like now more
than ever, that's really important, and an emphasis on mental
(05:20):
health and how to really prioritize ourselves is important, and
I want to be able to put wellness in the
spotlight in that way. I have a lot of people
that follow me, a lot of people that say I
look up to you, so I want to give them
something to look up to. I want to be like, Okay,
how can I best utilize my platform and I feel
like wellness is the way right now. We all need
(05:40):
to be prioritizing our health. There's a lot going on
in the world, a lot of mental health awareness needs
to be had, and self care and all of that
falls into that category. I feel really good about that.
I feel really passionate about that, and I feel like
I'm making an important impact. And so that's how I
bet it starting euphoria.
Speaker 1 (05:59):
So when wellness and being really conscious of your mental
health and how you're pouring into yourself and all of
those aspects, when did that become a central focus for you?
Speaker 2 (06:09):
It's always been something I've been super passionate about. I've
always been a self care spa girly someone who knows
when to step away. We did a lot of work
with Pastry, and at times we would be in so
many different cities doing meet and greets and different business
ventures for the company. I would wake up and not
even know what city I was in. I think in
(06:30):
one year we had gone to almost forty eight states
something like that, traveling, and it was like consistent, and
so I really learned that sometimes I had to find
the pockets within those breaks of when to prioritize myself,
because you can't exist just filling up other ventures, filling
up other people, You have to fill up yourself. It's
(06:50):
always been something I've been super interested in, always something
that my friends and family have leaned on me for
advice because they see myself finding that time for myself,
and so it's always been something I've been interested in.
But in particular during the lockdown of twenty twenty, I
started archiving this information, sharing it with family and friends.
You know what teas to take, how to stay as
(07:12):
healthy as possible. I had friends that were locked down
by themselves how to find the pockets of joy and peace,
whether it be breathing exercises, different meditations. I'd send them herbs, tees,
you name it. I would be that person giving everyone advice.
And I started thinking with one of my friends in particular,
she was just like, you know, Vanasa, you should put
this information out there. Start curating your content to be
(07:35):
focused around this stuff because I find it really useful.
And I was like, you know what, I think that
would be a good idea. There are other websites that exist, goog, Poosh,
other platforms, but nothing that's Tailor two and giving back
to our community, letting it know that it's accessible also
to us, putting us in the narration as well. And
so I was like, you know what, let's do it.
(07:56):
And I started archiving information, writing blogs, and step by
step it just started to become more and more of
a business.
Speaker 1 (08:06):
I know you're locked in sight and suking up all
this goodness, but hold on for me just one minute
or maybe two while we hear from our sponsors. Talk
to us about the last thing that you shared with
somebody that you can remember that was like beneficial for them.
Like you just mentioned you were having this conversation with
(08:28):
his friend and pouring into people around you. What's the
last article you shared, tea, you shared, supplement, you shared,
meditation practice. I don't know something that you shared with
your people.
Speaker 2 (08:40):
Every day. I had a friend recently come to me
and she's just been feeling really down, and so I
just sent her some of the meditations that I do
in breathing exercises, and she was like thanked me after.
Because there's so much power in breathing that, like actual,
real intentional breathing that people just don't even realize could
(09:01):
switch your nervous system from being stressed to feeling a
little bit more at ease, and then you can think
a little bit more clearly. And it's not as bad
as you think it is. There's just the simple Like
I think it's like, breathe in five seconds, hold it
six seconds, release for four seconds, and do that over
and over again for about nine times in a row,
(09:21):
and you just it just helps to release so much stress.
And so that was the most recent, but I mean
it's every day with me with my beauty tools, with
my ice roller, with my led light wanes, like I
am just that person for my family and friend.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
Yeah, you're living it. It was funny that you mentioned
that about the breath work. I had never really heard
of breathwork until a friend of mine suggested it until
I did a whole session and it was amazing. And
now when I do meditations within a meditation app, I
realize now that most people start with you doing some
type of breathing, So I was like, there's something to this.
Speaker 2 (10:00):
So I love that it helps to just neutralize your
nervous system and overwork. Nervous system is the first step
to everything just being out of control and spiraling. So
we always need to keep out nervous system in check
and breathing is one of the easiest first ways I
can suggest to really start to bring it back into balance.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
What role does self awareness play for you in your
I guess you could say business life. I say business life,
but business life, personal life, professional life, it's all the same,
It's all one and the same. So what role does
self awareness play for you and just how you approach business?
Speaker 2 (10:40):
I feel like being self aware is really important for
me because it's gonna allow me to really judge, not
judge because you don't want to judge yourself, but to
really put into perspective what it is I need to
be doing to reach my goals and being honest with
yourself about where you are are. You don't want to
(11:00):
be too hard on yourself and you want to put
your best foot forward. But being self aware is pretty
important and I take count of that with like my journaling,
putting down what my goals are and what I can
accomplish realistically and what I can't. You know, you put off.
But it definitely plays a part in my business and
(11:21):
especially in acting. You need to be self aware to
some sort of degree to be able to tap into
another character. So yeah, it does play a part in
my business and in my personal life because I'm a mother,
so it's important for me to be aware of my emotions,
how I'm reacting or not reacting to certain things. It's
important and something that's become more essential as I've gotten older,
(11:45):
and of course as I grew into motherhood, my patients,
my tolerance everything. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (11:50):
Yeah, yeah, I feel like that's one of those things
they don't talk to us about, is like self awareness.
But it's one of those things that as you get older,
you become aware of it and you're like, how is
I not leaning into this before? Because this really does
matter in my day to day life.
Speaker 2 (12:06):
Yeah. Yeah. You just can't let it bring you down though,
when you run into things that you feel you're lacking
in you just work on those things in small increments,
but don't let it get you too down, you know.
Speaker 1 (12:17):
Speaking of being hard on yourself. Procrastination has a negative connotation.
But I want to know from you. This is a question.
I feel like everyone's like, yeah, of course, but what
I want to know what does it look like for you?
Do you ever procrastinate?
Speaker 2 (12:33):
Yeah? There are days me saying I need to take
a mental wellness day, every time I feel little something
come up that I'm just like, I don't like the
way that feels. So procrastination comes up, and it's normal.
But I try to practice things that helped me to
not procrastinate. I have this rule where you know, you
start doing project, give yourself ten minutes, and then if
(12:56):
you feel like you absolutely cannot continue on, then take
a break if your mental is not there. But once
I find that once I start, I'm actually more motivated
to keep it going, and then that just keeps on flowing.
But at least give yourself ten minutes at what you're
doing before you throw in the towel. But procrastination, it
happens to the best of us. It's easy to procrastinate it.
(13:17):
Give yourself grace too.
Speaker 1 (13:18):
Yeah, absolutely, we.
Speaker 2 (13:19):
Don't always have to work so hard, working smarter.
Speaker 1 (13:23):
I feel like that's a big narrative for us right now,
is just moving away from the hustle nature of things
in that hustle culture and reprogramming ourselves to say, just
like you said, start doing something, hold yourself accountable. But
if you realize that in the midst of doing it,
you're not feeling it, okay, check in be self aware
and then reassessed should I keep going with this right now,
(13:45):
or should I give myself some grace and give myself
a break and I can come back to it.
Speaker 2 (13:50):
Sometimes your mind needs to break, your nervous system needs it,
just for you to rest. Rest is one of the
most healing things we can do for ourselves. So when
you're in a moment when you really feel you need
to take it, that is your body signaling that you
probably need to take a break and let your mind
come to a complete stop for a second.
Speaker 1 (14:11):
Yeah, when was the last time that something you wanted,
you really wanted did not work out in your favor
and how did you handle it.
Speaker 2 (14:20):
I'm an actress, dear. This happens all the time. When
I just put my heart and soul into an audition
and you think you killed it, and then you hear
Kelly Rowland got the part or something. But then you're like, Okay,
I could see how she got the part over me,
you know, or whatever it may be. Those type of
challenges come along within my business, and it's just the
(14:44):
nature of things, and you just keep it pushing and
keep it moving and put your all into the next
opportunity that comes up. But when I was younger, I
used to take those things really hard. But when I
first got out to Hollywood and I first started pursuing
being an actress and auditioned for things that didn't get it,
I would be really critical and hard on myself. But
now I just know, get back on the horse, pick
yourself up, go back to a class, read a book,
(15:06):
find out how you can be better, study what that
person did, perhaps, and see how you can elevate your
craft and your talent in some sort of way. So
I just use it as motivation now.
Speaker 1 (15:16):
Yeah, yeah, it sounds like I'm hearing you say, like
instead of being hard on yourself, lean into how you
can maybe nurture yourself and hear talents more so that
the nose maybe they come less. Who knows.
Speaker 2 (15:29):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's never really I always like to
say it's never really a failure. It's always just a
lesson in some sort of way. So anything that comes
about that someone else might call a failure, now I
just look at it as a lesson. How can I
learn it so I can move past it and get bigger, better,
stronger in some sort of way. Learn from it.
Speaker 1 (15:50):
Hold on to all that goodness you're feeling right now.
We will be right back after this quick break with
more switch favod or quick talk.
Speaker 2 (16:01):
Do you feel a pressure to be I've always had
this pressure. I come from a family of success and big,
big dreams made into reality, and so I've always felt
a pressure to add to that legacy. In some way,
I've taken it off in the last couple of years,
especially since I've been leaning more into wellness and being
(16:21):
more self aware and just giving myself the validation I
need that I've done good and I'm doing okay and
I am enough. Affirmations are a big part of that.
So you got to take that pressure off. On one end,
pressure definitely makes a diamond. But on the other end,
you don't want to be too hard in yourself. You
don't want to beat yourself up. That's not going to
(16:41):
lead to the goal any faster. I think what will
lead to the goal is just putting in the work,
being consistent, showing up for yourself. Those are the things
that matter, and staying sane at the end of the day. So,
like I said, it's always about giving yourself grace and
making sure that you're putting in one hundred percent working
as hard as you can, but you can't beat yourself up.
(17:03):
Too much. Pressure is not good. Like you said, like
we're all trying to get out of that houseto mentality.
It's too harsh on us. We don't need all of that,
So just do your best and forget the rest. For
My dad always used to say to me, and I
think as an adult, I'm starting to get that even more.
What exactly that means?
Speaker 1 (17:21):
It hits different. When was the last like aha moment
you had? It could be something big, something small, but
you were just like, this all makes sense now, or
whatever it is, it clicks. It finally clicked.
Speaker 2 (17:37):
My mother was right always, you know, now that I'm
a mom and raising a kid, I have these moments
every day with my daughter. She's nine years old now,
so you can imagine. The conversations are a lot more elevated,
and she's just starting to grasp the world in a
different way, and I'm just always like, wow, my mom,
she had it right with everything she's ever told me.
So I have these aha moments probably every sinning because
(18:00):
I spend the time the most time in the morning
with my daughter, getting her ready for school, taking her
to school, and I'm just like, well, my mom was right.
My mom was right. She was always right. I call
her at least once a week to just say thank
you and I'm sorry for all the hard times I've
given you. She's like, Apra, Marie's over there again, you
isn't She like, yeah, she is. She is just a
(18:21):
little bit no. But it's a beautiful evolution to now
be a mother and be in the same position my
mom was in so many years ago, and I'm learning
from my daughter. So it's a beautiful circle of life.
Speaker 1 (18:33):
Yeah, that really is a beautiful thing. Okay, So what's
something that you learned from her that you're like, yeah,
I need to tell people this. She made me think about.
Speaker 2 (18:41):
That patience and that she is mirroring everything I do.
Sometimes i'd be like, girl, where'd you get that from?
She's like you and I'm like, oh, okay. So that's
what made me lean more into the self awareness of
it all, is just knowing that I have a little
person who's watching me, even when I think that she
(19:01):
is not. And it's a beautiful thing. But then it's
also kind of a scary thing too, because I want
to make sure that I'm putting forth the best example
that I can. But then again, without being too hard
on myself, I want to be authentic and I want
her to know it's okay to be yourself. You don't
got to put on no perfect front for anybody, be
who you are. So it's an interesting balance. But yeah,
(19:23):
she definitely makes me more self aware, like just making
sure I'm watching exactly what I'm portraying to her, but
then also pushing that you be yourself always no matter what.
I want her to be A leader.
Speaker 1 (19:34):
Yeah, yeah, ooh, a leader. I think there's a lot
there in that word leadership that I think we all
assume we know what it means and what it's supposed
to look like. What have you learned maybe about leadership
throughout your years of observing, going through things, being a
participant in all of that in life period?
Speaker 2 (19:58):
Well, Number one, holding yourself account and having original thought,
having your own thought, being able to be inspired by others,
of course, because I'm all about learning and making sure
that you have like mentors and people you can look
up to, people that you admire blueprints. But being original
and having original thought, to me is really important and
(20:20):
what really crafts and makes your character and makes you
who you are. That's how you'll be able to best
lead a team is if people can know that you're
leading them somewhere and that you have a vision.
Speaker 1 (20:32):
Yeah, you mentioned mentors who has been maybe a figure,
a mentor figure for you, someone that you really relied
on their leadership or mentorship.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
Believe it or not. I mean because he is, you know,
but my dad still to this day because he doesn't
judge as people assume. Because he's a reverend, we have
to act a certain type of way. But my dad
has led life as DJ run and then he's also
a reverend and vary into his Bible and all all
of that. But the way he is with us, he's
not judgmental at all, and we're able to go to
(21:05):
him with anything, and it's the best that we work
in the business that he's in also, so he's able
to give us real raw advice all the time. So
my dad is definitely one of my mentors and someone
I can go to and not feel any judgment and
who knows the business better. He's been all in and
(21:26):
out and through it, so he knows it exactly.
Speaker 1 (21:30):
Yeah, I feel like your dad maybe was one of
the first people in our culture of hip hop, blackness,
whatever you want to call it, to introduce black people,
especially black men, to like taking a set back, having
time for yourself and relaxing. When he would do his
bubble baths at the end ofvidual.
Speaker 2 (21:51):
See why I am into self care and so.
Speaker 1 (21:53):
This is what I was gonna say. So, now, what
does the conversation look like between you and him when
you're talking about euphoria and maybe even when you shared
with him, I'm gonna launch this business and it's gonna
be based on mental health and self care and all
of these good things that pour into us. What do
the conversations look like between you all now? Because I'm
sure that then you probably looked at your dad at
(22:16):
the end of each episode. You probably didn't even watch it,
But him taking these bubble bass You're like, here he go, Dad,
Like really but.
Speaker 2 (22:24):
That is authentically him, Like that was not for a
TV show. My dad to this day, that is his routine.
He's feeling any type of pressure, stress, like he's taking
his bath.
Speaker 1 (22:36):
But did you take it for granted when you were younger,
I don't know, or did it have the same impact
or the same feeling that it has now that you're
into the wellness space, don't.
Speaker 2 (22:46):
We always take up parents just a little bit for
trying when we're younger, because we don't realize what adulthood
actually entails. Of course I did. And sometimes he'd come
running in with a book or he'd be like, I
got something good for you, and I would always accept it,
always super receptive of what he was telling me. But
I miss that. I miss him just busting into my
(23:06):
room with the books and the tips and the things
that he knew I was going to need later on
in life. But those are some of my best memories
and the reason that I feel like I am going
down this path today. Like sometimes I feel like he
just has to lean to me and be like, take
your own advice when I call him and I'm not
and I'm breaking down and everything ain't going the way
(23:27):
that I planned, And I don't know. Aren't you telling
people go read.
Speaker 1 (23:31):
Jablogs, listen to yourself.
Speaker 2 (23:35):
Yeah, balance and pull it together. It's a beautiful relationship.
And I love the relationship that I have with my dad,
and I love the inspiration I can gather from him
and how I can go to him and know that
there's no judgment.
Speaker 1 (23:48):
Yeah, that's beautiful. It's like full circle. As full circle,
like he introduced, I feel like the community to being
self aware and needing your own space and wellness, and
now you're carrying on that legacy, so you're doing exactly
what you're supposed to do.
Speaker 2 (24:05):
Words of wisdom reference words of wisdom.
Speaker 1 (24:08):
Yes, yes, absolutely. Thank you so much, Vanessa for spending
this time with us, for sharing your career journey and
your ins and outs and just letting us a little
bit inside of how you're approaching life. We appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (24:23):
Thank you, I appreciate you having me, and I'm happy
you were finally able to do this.
Speaker 1 (24:28):
Yes, yes, and all of you be well and until
next time. This podcast is produced by Mazie Media. Maze
Media as a woman led podcast production company that works
with small businesses and corporations. Visit mazimedia dot com for
more details on how you and your organization can go
(24:48):
from ideation to podcasting
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