Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Abby Kuenzi. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Abby thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Do you think your parents have had a meaningful impact on you and your journey?

I was born and raised on a farm in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains in the beautiful state of Oregon and had an idyllic childhood spending the summer days outdoors with my five younger siblings. My dad had his own construction company doing directional drilling and worked hard to provide for our family, allowing my mom to stay home and raise us kids. Conversations around the dinner table ranged anywhere from the total calf count for the day, the new litter of puppies, to stories from dad’s work day. He was intentional to share the highs and lows of self employment as well as the challenges and opportunities that it presented. At a young age I was curious about entrepreneurship and dreamt of someday having my own business – whatever that looked like. It started at a young age for me. At age 8, my cousins, siblings, and I would sell friendship bracelets at their home in our small town in the summer. We learned the beginnings of expense and profitability. Before I could drive, I helped our elderly neighbors with yard work & our younger neighborhood families with babysitting. I started a baking business freshman year of high school that provided me with ample opportunities to brand myself, create business cards, network, and fine tune the art of a perfect cupcake. My largest order was 16 dozen cupcakes and my goodness a lot of was learned!! I continued to work various jobs throughout high school, making observations along the way as to how I would implement the good of these businesses into my own someday and learning from their business mistakes. Others started to recognize my creative eye and hired me to do window art, design flyers, and help coordinate events. I paired my love for travel with my developing artistic eye and started an Instagram travel account called Farm Girl Big World. This allowed me to dabble in content creation and social media and was the perfect opportunity to learn by trial and error. My efforts landed me my first career job in Marketing as a Marketing Manager for a local Construction company last October – overseeing the marketing for their seven businesses. The lessons I learned on the farm at a young age have even invaluable to my success today. My parents were a driving force behind all of this. I learned the value of work ethic on the farm as I bucked hay in the summer working alongside my family, cut cords of wood in the cold fall mornings, and checked for new calves as the snow fell. No matter the weather, the animals needed cared for. This developed a work ethic in me that has served me well as I’ve navigated my professional career. My parents cultivated an environment of opportunity allowing my siblings and I to participate in local 4h program showing pigs. In addition to the money we earned by selling our pigs at the county fair auction, we learned the importance and value of putting in the work. We were disciplined: training our pigs daily so it would perform well in the show ring, earning me a good place in the auction and feeding it the right ratios to maximize its structure. My dad helped my siblings and I invest in the stock market and we learned at a young age how to make our money work for us. Integrity was of utmost importance to my parents and has served my dad and his reputation in his business well! The impact that my parents have had on me is invaluable and I am thankful for their example and wisdom that they willingly share.

Abby, 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’m young, energetic, and excited to capitalize on the countless opportunities out there. I am working towards a life that allows me time and location freedom. I want to be my own boss. I want to help others market their businesses. My dream is to have airbnbs with interactive farm experiences, allowing others to get a taste of what I experienced as a dreamy childhood! My dreams motivate me to work hard and take chances. I’m inspired by those who have gone before me and paved the way!

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

Self employment, opportunity for growth, something different, time and location freedom, diversity, creativity

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

I have a history of Lyme Disease & other chronic illnesses diagnosed at age 6. During a stint of poor health in high school, I capitalized on my time in bed by researching, learning, & dreaming about opportunities in the entrepreneurship realm. This in turn gave my hope and something to fight towards and I’m so thankful to be in better health and actively working towards working to make these dreams a reality!