We recently connected with Jessica Langley and have shared our conversation below.

Jessica, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. If you’re open to it, can you talk to us about the best (or worst) investment you’ve made. What’s the backstory and the relevant context behind why you made the investment

I invested in life and business coaching back in 2020 after feeling so numb and burnt out. I had made $120K in revenue the year prior through my design and mural studio, but I took on too many projects and overworked myself. I was exhausted.

Right before the pandemic really hit full force, I found a masterclass online that was $300 on how to go from artist to coach. I had been having really fun coffee dates with creatives and everyone wanted to know how I was running a business and charging as much as I was and managing it all. I was repeating the same story over and over again, and I thought maybe it’s time I get paid for sharing all of this knowledge.

While taking the online weekend class, I had several breakthroughs. I realized a lot of personal things about myself that had been impacting my business — like perfectionism and not feeling enough. In being introduced to those, I realized I needed a bit more support to move through that (and not hit burnout again!).

I felt a connection with that coach and ended up investing $12,000 into an 8-month program. I ended up spending an additional $7,000 that year with this coach for more one-on-one support. It genuinely was the best money I have ever spent. I don’t regret a dime of it!

I learned so much — about myself, about coaching, about healing. It was the catalyst to my healing journey, and I wouldn’t be where I am today without it. I created my first online course and dipped my own toe into business coaching as a result. I realized I love helping others work through their pricing and mindset when it comes to their creative business. I became the person I needed years prior when I was struggling with burnout and overwhelm.

Sometimes, the investment is so much more than the money you spent.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’m a designer, muralist, and mindset + pricing coach. I run two distinct businesses focused on bringing color, celebration, and business strategy to brands, entrepreneurs, and nonprofits so they can make a bigger impact.

After being laid off from a design firm in June 2017, I decided I was done with the typical 9-5 culture and went out on my own. I started my design and mural studio, White Coffee Creative, and haven’t looked back since! My services, style, branding, and who I like to work with have changed drastically since then but I’m so grateful for the journey. White Coffee Creative is a community-oriented studio for visionary brands who are looking for bold, colorful, and purposeful designs that make their personality shine. I have collaborated with many awesome clients — from clothing makers to environmental non-profits to co-working spaces — on murals, branding, and print design that helps them stand out.

After connecting with many other creative entrepreneurs, I started to see the cracks in the industry — such as perfectionism, imposter syndrome, and lack of boundaries. That lead me to becoming a mindset and pricing coach as The Colorful Jess. I help creative entrepreneurs build systems so they can work less and make more. I’m here to guide them towards a business that they f*cking love where you feel confident af and get paid their value. My coaching style combines mindset work, pricing strategy, and intuitive tools. Everything I offer comes back to my signature Holy F*ck Pricing method, which is all about empowering creatives to believe in and charge their value so we can ditch the starving artist mentality, together.

I also have a podcast with a good friend called The Badass Roadmap. It’s a guide for running your business, being a creative, & living a kick ass life and to help you write your own unique roadmap for success in business and in life. We share our experiences and tips along the way while being vulnerable, laughing, and cussing lol.

All in all, I absolutely love what I do, and that’s why I’m still in business after 5+ years. Along the way, I’ve run into many learning lessons but I always remember to celebrate — and I think that has made all the difference.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

Outside of connections with other business owners and coaches, books have been a huge part of expanding my entrepreneurial mindset.

Freelance, Business, and Stuff: A Guide for Creatives by Amy and Jen Hood of Hoodzpah Design is a phenomenal resource and book. It helped me understand the ins and outs of how to run my creative business. It covers budgeting, pricing, marketing, client communication, business set up, and more. It’s one of my top recommendations for all business owners in the creative industry.

Profit First, a book by Mike Michalowicz, dives into being smart with your income and ALWAYS paying yourself first. It helped me organize my bank account more efficiently and choose a better bank for my business needs.

Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear is a wonderful, eye-opening book by Elizabeth Gilbert. The biggest lesson I learned from reading this book was to not hold on to every single idea I have, and that it’s okay to let these ideas go if they don’t pan out or you lose motivation for them. It was a great read that really helped my mindset around fear and competition as a creative and business owner.

Lastly, You are a Badass at Making Money by Jen Sincero is a fantastic book that challenges the way you think about money. Pricing is a huge part of my coaching business and something I frequently discuss with other creatives. Everyone has a unique way of looking at money (aka their “money story”) based on their experiences and upbringing. Through this book, I was able to expand how I saw money and earning income. It was pivotal for my growth as a business owner.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

The biggest lesson I’ve had to unlearn is that I have to be perfect in my business.

Perfectionism boils down to expecting everything to be within your control. But of course, there’s not much within our control in life or in business. I believe that most perfectionists gravitate towards careers like design, which naturally fuels our “pixel perfect” tendencies. That in turn breeds this mindset that you have to overwork and go above and beyond, always, for every client and project. This quickly leads to burnout.

As you read earlier, I took on way too many projects in 2019, hit $120K in revenue, and slammed into the wall of burnout, hard. I was focused on the money and hitting that “perfect” six-figure goal while ignoring my health and mental capacity. That’s when I ended up hiring a coach and starting the journey of unlearning my perfectionist habits and establishing boundaries in my business.

All of this has helped me realize that good is good enough. The more human I can be in business, the happier I am as a business owner. It’s been proven as well that people trust those who mess up and can fix a mistake MORE than if they never made a mistake in the first place. It shows resiliency and builds growth. I’m proud of creating a business that encourages imperfection over perfection for both myself and my clients.

Contact Info:

• Website: thecolorfuljess.com | whitecoffeecreative.com | thebadassroadmap.com
• Instagram: @thecolorfuljess | @whitecoffeecreativeco | @thebadassroadmap
• Facebook: The Holy Fuck Pricing FB Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2982045305355841
• Other: pinterest.com/thecolorfuljess/

Image Credits
Madison Short Peter Hoblitzell