We recently connected with Isabella Blake Thomas and have shared our conversation below.

Isabella, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Looking back on your career, have you ever worked with a great leader or boss? We’d love to hear about the experience and what you think made them such a great leader.

At the age of 21, just like most people, I have had many jobs. Combinations of professional positions and odd jobs to subsidize income. I worked as a host in a restaurant, I’ve worked as an assistant for a few people; a personal assistant, an assistant for an architect, assistant for a film producer, and assistant for a CEO of a production company, and as an actor, I have worked for a lot of producers and directors.

All of these jobs gave me so much experience, in life and in my career. Important life lessons I’ve learnt include; setting boundaries and following through with them, advocating for myself, knowing my worth (emotionally and fiscally), listening to my mind and body, and knowing when to speak up. These lessons have “hit me over the head” a few times until I got the hang of them, but they are priceless pieces of knowledge that help me with current jobs.

All of these positions have led me to the best boss I’ve ever had. She listens to me, she respects my boundaries, she advocates for me, she speaks up when I’m afraid to, she knows my worth…she is me.

This doesn’t just apply to work situations, this applies to everyday life as well. Ask yourself, why should anyone else get to choose what’s good for me? Why should I leave it to somebody else to decide my boundaries? Why does someone else get to decide my worth? Sometimes, putting yourself first means being your best self so that you can be there for others in need.

In order for you to find your “best boss ever” you have to start by looking inward and asking yourself, am I prioritizing myself?

Isabella, 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 have been in the industry for over 15 years. I started out at the age of 4 as an actor on a kids TV show in the UK. This created a domino affect that led me to work on many TV shows and feature films before I moved over to the U.S aged 10. since living in the U.S, I have worked on projects like Once Upon a Time (abc), Shameless (Showtime), Secret Society of Second Born Royals (Disney Plus), and more. In 2016, I started a production company with my mum called Mother Daughter Entertainment (MDE). We have produced projects for Pluto, Tubi, Amazon, and more. I started producing because I wanted to find another way to create content outside of my acting. Our ethos is “Making content that matters”, and that’s what we strive to do with every project. I am the most proud of the film I wrote, produced, and starred in called “Karma: Death at Latigo Springs”. This film was put together by an amazing cast and crew that I am lucky to call my friends. Not only do I work in film, but I am also an ambassador for Suicide Awareness for a non-profit called AwareNow that raises awareness for important causes. My passion project is writing music, and I have a couple of EPs and singles available on all musical platforms.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

As a child I was given opportunities that not everyone gets. I’m not talking about flying around the world on private jets, or staying in 5 star hotels, I’m talking about being given the space to discover who I was creatively from a young age. Today, the space for young creatives to figure out who they want to be is diminishing. Many schools around the world are losing arts programs because they are underfunded. This means that creative kids are losing the ability to figure out who they are. School is supposed to be a place of learning, and this includes learning about yourself, no matter what you want your path to be. If I hadn’t been given the ability to explore my creativity, I wouldn’t be who I am today. Every child deserves the room to explore who they are and what they want to be. We can support budding artists and creatives by teaching them about the multitude of creative careers, and giving them the space to grow and learn outside of traditional subjects. This might be through afterschool programs, or classes within school hours. Parents, family members, and community leaders are also responsible for a child’s creative wellbeing. Whoever it is and wherever it comes from, artists, from a young age, need to be nurtured. I recommend watching Ken Robinson’s Ted Talk called “Do Schools Kill Creativity?”.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

I have been an avid reader since I could pick up a book. I would get lost in worlds for hours on end. As much as I love books about psychology and well-being now, these are not the books that impacted me or shaped me. The books I read as a kid were the ones that made all the difference. Reading books by Enid Blyton about strong women and children going on adventures opened my mind up to so many possibilities. My favorite authors are; Roald Dahl, Enid Blyton, Liz Kessler, David Walliams, and Jaqueline Wilson. I have heard multiple stories of kids not being allowed to read certain books because they weren’t assigned by their school, and that is crazy to me. If I hadn’t been allowed to read what I wanted, I wouldn’t have had those same fictional role models. Other resources that have impacted me are things that I have made myself. I created a podcast with my mum called “Living with Intention” which talks about just that. We cover everything from self love, to boundaries, and everything in between.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.motheranddaughterent.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/isabella_b_t/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/isabellablakethomas/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/Isabella_B_T
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBqtv5OTbOngR1g6ar_oOGw

Image Credits
Angelika Reyn, Devin Alpanian, Dean Foreman, Luca Rivetti