We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Chris Elder. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Chris below.
Chris, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.
“You have to jump! Every successful person has jumped.” A quote from Steve Harvey that has always stuck with me. I decided to act on that in September of 2021 after 8 years of working for a company that I absolutely hated. One may ask, why did you stay so long? My reply would be, simply because I was afraid to jump. I was afraid to fail, so I wouldn’t take the necessary risk required to catapult me to the next level. In addition to my fear, not only was I responsible for my livelihood, I was also responsible for my mother’s livelihood who was disabled. Although my business was flourishing, I had a lot riding on the idea of taking the leap of faith. What I learned over the years is when the Divine is ready for you to make the move; you will be pushed. After years of blatant disregard and disrespect, I decided to choose me, my morals, and my business. On September 23rd, 2021, I set myself free.
“The only way to get your parachute open so you can soar, you gotta jump.” Another quote from Steve Harvey. I felt on top of the world! It was the best decision I could have ever made. Business was booming. More opportunities and partnerships were being developed. “I am really doing this.” I would say to myself on numerous occasions. In 2022 after a great run, I hit the wall. Business started to slow down, business deals and partnerships collapsed. I did everything right; I invested in the books, the courses, followed the steps, attended seminaries, you name it. I did everything right and everything went wrong.
“When you jump. I promise you; your parachute will not open right away. You’re going to hit the sides and the rocks. You’re going to tear your back out on the cliff. You’re going to get wounded.” It’s the middle of 2022, and I’m feeling like a complete failure because my expectations of soaring did not happen. Before completely hitting the ground, my parachute opened just enough for me to miss a few more jagged edges. Having to work for anyone else wasn’t anything I wanted to do, but I refused to allow myself to completely plummet, so with no other choice I had to re-enter the corporate space.
Present day, I am leading an entire HR and Payroll Department using skills from previous employers combined with my personal entrepreneurship experience. I have since launched a blog site titled CachetChris.com where I create content sharing stories of my life experiences & interest. My creative studio company, 1154 Studios has just signed a partnership deal with King Design Solutions providing a full-service business development experience.
“Eventually your parachute will open, and you’ll be soaring. If you do not jump, I promise you one thing; your parachute will never open, so you’re safe, but you’ll never soar.” That was the last quote from Steve Harvey’s two-minute clip on YouTube. My story is still being written, there are more risks for me to take, more opportunities coming my way, more amazing people to meet. My business success story hasn’t ended because I had to go back to a 9 to 5. It has just begun!
Chris, 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?
Born and raised in Atlanta, GA – I named my company 1154 Studios in honor of my grandparents who lived at 1154 Smith Street. They were two hard working souls, one loved music and the other would out cook the best of them, together they created magic. I tend to lead 1154 Studios with their attributes of being honest, flexible, and reliable. 1154 Studios is a creative studio that specializes in brand visibility solutions for businesses interested in growing their clientele. We carefully craft the perfect solution to expand our clients online presence resulting in the increase of online engagement and monthly sales. While 1154 Studios premier services includes photography & videography, we are partnered with King Design Solutions, a local design studio that specializes in brand and business development. Combined we offer full-service branding and marketing services with over 15 years of experience. I’ve been in business a month shy of 6 years now and I can say that I am most proud when I see my clients succeed. Those are my most valued moments.
How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?
While we may have many titles in life, what we are first is human. We must never forget that. With being human we value connectedness. I always engage with my clients’ content by commenting or simply sharing the post. If I’m not doing that I am checking in on them just to see how they are doing. Many of my clients have grown to be wonderful friends.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
The most rewarding aspect of being a creative is that I get to do what I love while leaving my mark. Be it a big mark or a small one. My art, my writing, my photography will forever be displayed online for all to stumble upon.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.cachetchris.com | www.1154studios.com
- Instagram: @cachetchris @1154studios
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@cachetchris
Image Credits
@1154Studios