We were lucky to catch up with Nicole Ciaffone recently and have shared our conversation below.

Nicole, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about the things you feel your parents did right and how those things have impacted your career and life.

My parents taught me many things I am grateful for, but the best gift of all was teaching me to have a strong work ethic. While I dream of turning my blog into a full time career, I am and have been in Retail/Sales Management for the past 25 years. As things have shifted with Covid and other factors, what I can say with absolute certainty, is that it is very hard to find people with a strong work ethic. When I got my first job at 16, my parents made it clear that you commit to what you say your are going to do, unless you are sick. In my house there was no option to shirk responsibilities to go off with my friends, and that lesson has carried me through my entire career. As I am now managing a younger generation, many of them were not taught this valuable lesson and it hinders everyone at the workplace. As a mother, I am instilling this same expectation, as it is very important to me, and a true measure of character.

Nicole, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Hi! I’m Nicole Ciaffone and I am passionate about teaching others to unlock their inner creativity. This blog is an outlet to share recipes, craft projects and entertaining ideas. I want to give YOU the tricks of the trade so you can bring the drool worthy appetizer to the party. Let me show YOU how you can pull off a kids’ birthday party with panache and put an amazing dinner on the table. I started this blog as a way to share ideas with a broader audience than my friends and family. Having my own shop was never my vision. It’s always been about educating and cultivating a community, not about numbers. Connecting with others who also share a passion for what they do is what keeps me motivated, and wanting to continue blogging. I’ll always be rooting for those around me to grow and thrive, and if I can share my passion along the way-even better!

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

For me, the most rewarding aspect of being creative is sharing it with others. Creativity is a gift, and it’s one I want to touch anyone who is interested, not something to keep bottled up. If someone compliments something I have done, I love to teach the method, where I sourced the materials, etc. Creativity is meant to be spread around freely, like kindness, inspiring those who have an appreciation. All of us have been born with gifts, and they are meant to be shared.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

A lesson I had to unlearn is to focus on my own why, and that what I am doing brings me fulfillment. It is so easy to fall into a trap of comparison to others. As you have likely heard, Theodore Roosevelt said, “Comparison is the thief of joy.” As a creative, (or anyone really). there will always be someone with more (or less) talent, more time to hone their craft, or more money to invest. The trick is to remember why you started in the first place. For all of of that answer is unique as we are. For myself, I wanted to teach others how to plate a beautiful meal, throw a spectacular Birthday party, and how to cook with fresh, seasonal ingredients. Sharing information and elevating every day life is important to me, as is sharing the knowledge I do have. While I do look to others for inspiration, it is to spearhead or expand on an idea I already have; not to judge either of our work. This is a difficult lesson to unlearn, as we have all grown up being ranked by performance in school, on sports’ teams, maybe even at home. At the end of the day, remember why you started, and try to focus your energy there.      

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.sequinsstonesandscones.com/
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/sequinsstonesandscones?igshid=MjEwN2IyYWYwYw==

Image Credits
All pictures taken by me