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

Calynn, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Almost every entrepreneur we know has considered donating a portion of their sales to an organization or cause – how did you make the decision of whether to donate? We’d love to hear the backstory if you’re open to sharing the details.

Yes! The Calynn Communications & Creative corporation actually self funds my nonprofit initiative, The Fresh Faces Project, and all its charitable endeavors. On paper, we pledge at least 10% of all gross sales, but in reality it’s closer to about 35%. I do this because I really enjoy being able to offer free or heavily discounted opportunities for networking, exposure and recognition among up and coming creatives, entrepreneurs, public figures etc. So, things like offering free press on one of our publications or our podcast , “Chicago Talent TV,” hosting our annual awards ceremony with no ticket fees/entry fees/nomination fees etc., or making annual donations to causes and small businesses we support are all very important to me. I know that I’ve received so much support and love throughout my career and I believe that “each one should reach one” to spread those blessings and positivity, especially for people of marginalized populations.

Calynn, 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?

I am a seasoned marketer, media personality and humanitarian who has a knack for the art of communication through social media and online publications. Over my decade+ in the industry, I’ve been blessed to win 20 national and international awards, most recently being 2 Person of the Year Awards (2023 Media Member and Entrepreneur of the Year) and the global Influencer Magazine Award for 2023 Social Impact Champion.

I get very excited at the opportunity to tell stories that matter through my platform. Whether that’s bringing people together to be interviewed on my video podcast and blog or assigning and curating content from my contributing writers for the publications I own (The World Times, What’s Good Weekly, Millionaires in the Making, and Icons in the Now). Over the years through my time as a blogger, former live cable TV host and contributing writer and editor for tens of publications, I’ve come to appreciate the importance of BIPOC representation in media to bring light to important issues that face marginalized society in a way that’s authentic and generate awareness for those causes.

While we serve people if all demographics, I get a special joy in helping people of marginalized populations get the recognition they deserve. That is the most fulfilling for me and why I do the work that I do with The Fresh Faces Project and the Calynn Communications & Creative corporation in general.

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?

I am someone who’s completely self funded and bootstrapped all of my business endeavors and I’m happy I did. I feel like me investing my own money made me work twice as hard, make much more strategic decisions and value the ROI twice as much. I leveraged credit cards and personal savings that I’ve earned from always keeping a day job/9-5 within my field. Some people don’t prefer it, but I actually love being able to build my resume, portfolio and financial security by keeping a fulltime job and running my businesses on nights and weekends. I’ve tried it the other way in my teens and early 20s, being completely freelance, and I learned that the peace of mind of a steady paycheck and benefits like PTO, 401k and health insurance is worth the sacrifice for me. Now that I’ve built up seniority in my career as a marketing executive, I have a lot more flexibility in schedule and remote work ability to where I can balance everything well while making a good steady salary to fund my passions and dreams.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

I built up a following by always generating conversation and keeping a constant pulse on pop culture and industry trends. As a media personality and marketer who specializes in the arts & entertainment field, this was very necessary. So, staying on top of the latest trends, news, opportunities, and hot topics that were relevant to my following and creating consistent content around those things led people to regularly engage with me online. Also, having a community oriented mentality where I was always looking to collaborate with my industry peers has helped me grow a solid network of like-minded professionals both on and offline. Lastly, sharing a lot of myself and my personal life through my blog, social media and press has helped me build a strong personal brand and a relatability that draws followers because they know that I keep it real. People appreciate authenticity in a digital age where most influencers are so heavily curated in their content that you’d never know they had periods where they struggled financially or had insecurities or suffered a burdensome health condition or had bad luck with men etc. All of these things I openly talk about and I think people, especially women, love to see me share stories they can resonate with. So, my advice is to be yourself, build meaningful connections and keep up to date with the latest happenings in your industry so that you can become a valued source for commentary.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.caycomcreate.com
• Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/calynnmlawrence
• Facebook: “Calynn M. Lawrence”
• Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/calynnmlawrence
• Other: BLOG: www.calynnmlawrence.com

Image Credits
Image Credits: Pour Into It Media, ATOC Photography, Fresh Faces Project