We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jessica Lester. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jessica below.

Jessica, appreciate you joining us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

I used to think risk was something loud and dramatic. It had to be a single leap that changed everything at once. But looking back, I see that my life has been shaped by not only the larger more impactful experiences, but also a series of quieter, braver decisions: moments where I chose movement over comfort, curiosity over certainty, and self-trust over fear and doubt.

One of the first ways I learned this was through place. Relocation has always been a lesson in leaving the familiar behind and embracing the belief that something exciting was waiting for me beyond what I already knew. Moving to new places has always offered a different kind of risk, starting over again, and proving to myself that I could build a life more than once. Each move stripped away the illusion of permanence and replaced it with confidence. I learned that I could land on my feet, even when I didn’t know exactly where I was going.

That confidence followed me into my creative work. As an artist, one of the biggest risks I’ve taken was starting my own freelance business, Sevenelle Creative, without a set path in mind, jumping all in on a path I didn’t already know. This afforded me opportunities to make meaningful connections with so many incredible people, eventually leading to my biggest project as an artist: committing to a 5’ x 5’ disco mirrored heart sculpture with over 6,500 handplaced mirrored tiles. It was ambitious, challenging, and deeply personal. There were moments when the scale of it felt overwhelming, when I questioned whether I was capable of pulling it off, especially without the support I was so deeply craving at the time. Completing this project was a personal accomplishment that demonstrated my own resilience and commitment to my work, even if I found myself in way over my head at times. Sometimes, things can feel daunting but we must always remember it’s because we are trying something new and unfamiliar, not because we are incapable.

Risk has also shown up in smaller, playful ways. Competitive karaoke started as a passive hobby, a way to meet new people and try something different without expectations. But stepping onstage, letting my voice be heard, and embracing performance taught me something important: bravery doesn’t always look serious. Sometimes it looks like fun. That same openness led me to join a rock band and embrace a leap into collaboration, vulnerability, and creative expression. Making music with others required me to be seen, to take up space, and to trust that my contribution mattered.

The most transformative risk, though, was learning to trust myself completely. I accepted an artist residency in France and took the opportunity to explore more of my bucket list. I quit my corporate job and took a leap of faith without clarity for the path forward. I remembered thinking “how can I fit this opportunity into my life?” and instead chose to deconstruct what wasn’t working anyway to rebuild a new life around the opportunity. I embarked on a solo travel adventure through parts of Europe and Asia, experiencing new people and their culture, languages I didn’t understand, and places I’d never been. Traveling solo stripped life down to its essentials and it was a great reminder of the strength and resilience I have within. There was no one else to rely on for decisions, direction, or reassurance. Every train ticket, unfamiliar street, and unexpected challenge reinforced the same lesson: I could handle uncertainty. I could adapt. I could listen to my instincts and be okay. In one of the most physically uprooted chapters of my life, I felt completely grounded in myself and trust in my intuition.

Taken together, these risks tell a single story not of recklessness, but of becoming. Each choice built on the last, quietly expanding the boundaries of who I believed I could be. I didn’t just move cities, make art, sing, play music, or travel alone. I practiced trusting myself. And that trust has become the greatest reward of all.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My name is Jessica Lester. I’m an artist, designer, entrepreneur, and mentor devoted to living with purpose through values that foster growth, healing, expansion, and authentic expression.

My journey was born from the ashes of deep loss, grief, change, and moments that shattered what I thought I knew and opened me to something far greater. Through my art, yoga, and spiritual practice, I’ve been piecing together a life that feels more true, more aligned, and more alive. My path has been shaped by curiosity, risk-taking, and a willingness to say yes before everything is fully figured out. Over the years, I’ve moved to new cities, experimented across mediums, and taken on ambitious projects that pushed me both technically and personally.

Through intuitive creation and intentional practice, I invite others to reconnect with their inner truth and step confidently into lives that feel aligned, meaningful, and fully their own.

Alongside my art practice, I offer mentorship and creative coaching, supporting artists and creatives in reconnecting with their intuition, clarifying their vision, and building aligned, sustainable practices. Whether I’m creating new work, immersive experiences, or one-on-one support, my intention is always the same: to help people feel more connected to themselves and more confident in their creative voice with the courage to embody the bolder path.

Embodying the bolder path is about embracing your experience through the lens of what feels most authentic to you, built on the values of curiosity, creativity, courage, connection, and compassion. It is within these values that I have rebuilt my life with more sustainable, authentic practices that have repositioned me into more alignment with my purpose. I aspire to help others do the same.

You can find more information about my mentorship opportunities, insights to my journey, and resources I’ve found along the way on my website www.jessthatsme.com.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

When I look back, I can see a clear pattern in my life. About every five years, something fundamentally shifts. It’s never been comfortable but it’s gotten familiar. I’ve learned of my own resilience and now see each shift as an invitation to build something new.

Moving back home was one of those moments. I couldn’t find a job, facing month after month of rejection, but what felt like a setback eventually became the catalyst for starting my own freelance business, Sevenelle Creative. That experience taught me how to trust myself, create my own opportunities, and build something from nothing.

Years later, I felt my entire world imploding. I had lost my job, my pets, my home, and important relationships within a short amount of time. It stripped away my sense of security and identity all at once. I found myself once in the ruins of what my life was with the only materials to rebuild in the demolition. It was difficult to reconstruct and it continues to be an intentional practice, even years later. But that collapse is what led me to the path I’m on today, one that’s more aligned, intentional, and rooted in who I actually am rather than who I thought I had to be.

I’ve learned that my life doesn’t move in a straight line. It moves in cycles of release, reinvention, and growth. And while I never seek out the upheaval, I’ve come to trust what emerges on the other side.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

Many people claim they’re “not creative” or that they could never be a “real artist.” But creativity isn’t limited to painting, writing, or music. It lives in each of us, in countless forms. The way we move, speak, style ourselves, problem-solve, or even imagine possibilities is an expression of our creativity.

Creativity doesn’t need to look like anyone else’s. Comparison is unnecessary. It’s our unique perspective, the personal lens through which we experience the world, that gives our expression its value, sometimes even in ways we don’t yet recognize.

Your hobbies, interests, and passions, anything that makes you feel alive or “lit up”, are creative expressions. There’s art in how we engage with ourselves, others, and the world around us. Recognizing this can transform the way we see ourselves: not as someone who might create, but as someone who already is creating, every day, in ways only we can.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.jessthatsme.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessthatsme.ig
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessica-lester-9abb6734
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@jessthatsme2
• Other: https://www.sevenellecreative.com

Image Credits

RGA Photography
Brenna Rose Photography