We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Stacy Neal. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Stacy below.

Stacy, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Before we get into specifics, let’s talk about success more generally. What do you think it takes to be successful?

Being a successful business owner takes nothing less than everything you’ve got, and then a little more. It means working harder than you think you can, and pushing through when you feel like giving up.

Owning a business is harder than I ever imagined, but more rewarding than I knew it could be. Because of what I’ve worked so hard to build, my husband and son (1 1/2 years old) get to spend every day together helping other people. For us, doing life together as a family was more important than how we felt when it got hard. Because we knew WHY we needed to make it work, we were willing to do whatever it took to figure it out.

To be successful, you have to push through all of the times you feel like quitting. You’re going to experience highs and lows. That’s just part of business (and part of life). Knowing how to recognize and navigate those times is how you get through them instead of letting the hard times beat you. You can’t beat someone who won’t give up. Never make a big decision while you’re going through a low point (or a high point). It’s about getting up every time you’re knocked down, and never EVER giving up.

On days when you’re discouraged (and you WILL get discouraged), take a break and rest. Then reset. Then do SOMETHING, no matter how small, that moves you in the right direction. If you say you’re going to be somewhere, but you feel like you just want to give up, GO ANYWAY. Show up and good things will happen.

When you show up somewhere, look to see what value you can bring. Don’t show up to take. Don’t try to sell. Just add value however you can, to as many people as you can, and you will start to build the right relationships with people who will make all the difference in your success.

To be successful you have to get creative. When it feels like nothing is working, and you’ve given all you have to give, get creative. Start looking for little wins. Opportunity is everywhere, and sometimes it takes you getting desperate to get you out of your comfort zone and just go figure it out.

To be successful, you can’t do it without the 3 P’s: People, People, and People. Building a successful business is all about the relationships that you form along the way. Find someone who is further along than you, who has what you want in life, and find out how they did it. You can learn from others, or you can learn the hard way. You’re going to make plenty of your own mistakes, but if you can eliminate pitfalls, you can reach your goals faster.

Find cheerleaders. There are people who believe in you (more than you believe in yourself at times), and you need that encouragement of like-minded people who can cheer you on.

Limit your exposure to anyone who tries to belittle what you’re trying to accomplish or who isn’t also taking their life in a positive direction. You can love people from a distance, but you’re going to be just like the people you surround yourself with. It’s better to be an example and be able to help them later if needed than to stay stuck right there with them.

Find people who are better than you and bring them along with you! Growing your business isn’t just about finding a way to duplicate yourself- it’s about finding right people who share your vision who are smarter, faster, and more creative than you. I don’t want duplicates of me, I want upgrades of me. Who can you find that balances you out and can do things better than you?

Be strategic in your relationships. What other industry knowledge would you benefit from having access to? Build a circle of experts and you can go exponentially farther than by yourself.

Be realistic. Set goals and timeframes. Define what you’re trying to accomplish, and be real with yourself about how long it should take you to get there.

Don’t be realistic. Dream big! Once you have goals and processes set, dream even bigger. Always have the next big idea and dream on the horizon. This creates the high energy momentum that keeps you from staying stuck and stagnant. You can always adjust goals when the time comes to attack. Hope is one of the biggest things we have.

Success is a journey, and if you do it right, you never arrive. Being an entrepreneur is one of the most rewarding things you can do with your life. It’s about how you can use your talents and abilities to help others, and the only limit is yourself. It’s about how you can give back to those around you. It’s about the relationships with the people you meet along the way. And It’s about who you become throughout the journey.

Stacy, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I started Brand And Go to help other businesses and entrepreneurs who were adding so much value but losing professionalism because of their lack of branding. It quickly developed into a full service marketing agency that now is able to bring in other marketing experts (ranging from other agencies to freelancers) who are the best fit for each client and their specific style and needs. We’ve done everything from logo and brand building, to print marketing, commercials, event marketing, websites and online marketing campaigns. We work with hobby businesses, start ups, and medium sized companies who have outgrown their existing marketing strategy and are ready to take it to the next level. Authenticity is the most important aspect of a company’s marketing, so everything we do has to be in alignment with the values of the client and showcase their expertise and what makes them unique.

Have you ever had to pivot?

When I started, it was just me, doing as much design as I could to support businesses. As I started reaching the capacity of my time, I had to pivot, and I started to find and rely on others to help. What I found was that we could all accomplish exponentially more together than I ever do by myself.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

I think there are very different types of people. As a creative, I’m always pushing the boundaries of what’s possible and dreaming bigger than probably makes sense. I have found that I can use my talents and skills to give so much more value to the community and business owners with my creativity than I ever could working for another company.

My sister is a great example of someone who probably thinks I’m crazy watching my journey as a creative. I always joke that we’re 2 different sides of the same coin. We have the same sense of humor and a lot of the same mannerisms, but we’re also very opposite. Not that she isn’t creative, because she is, but we do things very differently. She is extremely smart, was always a straight A student, Valedictorian in high school, president of the medical society in college, had her pick of what medical school she wanted to attend, and is now a doctor well on her way to becoming one of the top doctors in the entire country. I can only imagine what she thinks about my crazy “make it happen”, “we’ll figure it out” creative powered lifestyle. But she has her own adventure and I have mine, and I don’t think either of us would want to trade places with the other. I’m so thankful we have different types of people in the world with different callings who can fill different roles. I don’t need to be understood, I just need to add value where I can, love people for who they are, and appreciate their unique talents and abilities.

Contact Info:

• Website: brandandgokc.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/brandandgokc
• Facebook: facebook.com/brandandgo
• Linkedin: linkedin.com/company/brandandgo
• Twitter: twitter.com/brandandgo