We were lucky to catch up with MICHELLE CUSTER recently and have shared our conversation below.

MICHELLE, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

My very best friend and Pillar of Light, Leisa was the inspiration behind my company, Northern Star. My life changing moment was March 12, 2015, when my best friend, who was like a mother to me, died unexpectedly. She was the first person who saw me for who I truly was and the potential within me. She loved me as if I was her own and she didn’t have to. She was there every moment that mattered, and I knew I could count on her for absolutely anything. Losing Leisa was God’s way of helping to teach me just how bright I should and could shine, with the light that had always been within me since I was born. Leisa was just the person who ignited it and made it shine When she died, my light went very dim, until my healing journey activated it again. I have created a business to honor her legacy and a group on Facebook, Watch Me Shine Brighter which is teaching others to realize the light within them and to shine bright in everything they do. It all starts with loving yourself, healing your traumas and limiting beliefs. The page has lots of information to share on what steps to take to start living your best life. I get to send daily messages out to over 400 people each day, it truly fills my soul. It all started because of Leisa, my Pillar of Light in what seemed like a never ending darkness prior to meeting her.

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.

Event Planning is my first love. There is nothing better than live, in person events. I appreciate the attention to details, the elegance, the celebration, the chaos, the confusion and bringing it all together There is nothing more fulfilling than watching an event unfold before your eyes and everyone is enjoying themselves. Not everyone appreciates the stress of planning an event, I thrive on it because I know that the outcome will be amazing and it will impact lives in a positive way. I love that each event is different and uniquely designed for that client. I love taking the stress from my clients and handling all the vendors, the venue, the decorations, the catering, every intricate piece that goes into their event. I am open to consulting, full or partial service, even educating what goes into to planning an event. I also believe it is imperative to build relationships with the clients and all the vendors. I want to be the one they always call when they need something planned because they know I will put my heart into it. I truly enjoy getting to know people and their stories.

Most of my event planning has been corporate and restaurants. I accidentally discovered it was my life purpose to plan events. I took a job as the first Catering Director at a company in downtown Kansas City. I created the entire catering department from scratch by trial and error. It was amazing to realize how much I loved the meticulous details that went into each event. I often had multiple events going on simultaneously. I built relationships with wonderful business professionals and loved my career even on the most difficult days. I am the most proud of the time I spent at this company because it helped educate me by creating the opportunity to build something spectacular. I also had the privilege of running the catering events at their location in Denver, CO.

What sets me apart from others is my genuine passion for what I do and the inspiration behind why I am doing it. To have a business that is built on a foundation of honoring the most Remarkable Woman of my life is everything to me. It is about making a positive, profound impact on lives, bringing joy to as many people as possible and giving back to the world with genuine love. I am me, simply, wonderfully, uniquely me. There is only one me but I am not above or below anyone else, we all count, we all are somebody, somebody with a story to share.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

I decided in February 2022 I wanted to move away from Kansas City and start completely over. June 2022 I moved to Houston, TX and started working as an Event Planner again, full force. My first day the person that hired me quit and we had the biggest event of the year for the company 7 weeks later. I had to jump in and figure it out. I got employee of the month in August and realized my hard work had paid off. Now I have since left that job, started on my own and I am rebuilding my own business after only being here a little over 100 days. I believe that events are part of my purpose and that God brought me here because of the opportunity Houston offers. My skills go beyond event planning. I love connecting people, I am good at anything administrative because of my attention to details and I want to help others grow and expand their businesses. Watch Me Shine Brighter is a priority for me along with my event planning business because I believe soon I will be having Healing Retreats around the theme of letting your inner light shine. I also believe there is an opportunity for speaking engagements to share my authentic truth. I am excited to see what is next.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

I always thought I wasn’t good enough, that I was unlovable and nobody wanted to be bothered by me. I was born into circumstances that created a life of sadness, neglect and sexual abuse. I stayed to myself and just existed, until I met Leisa when I was 17 years old. She started building my confidence and loving me like no one else ever had before. My parents didn’t know any better, they were very unhealed. My world crumbled when I lost my best friend. I had never felt more alone in my life. I started my healing journey that has forever changed me, I took that pain and made it part of my purpose. I now pride myself in being unique, different, loud, proud, shining my light always, never letting anyone dim my light within me. It frustrates a lot of people that I put myself first, but that is the only way to heal your life. I had to unlearn that I wasn’t loveable or good enough and realized I am AMAZING. I am surrounded by incredible people who love and support me. I am meant for greatness, God has a plan for my life, I trust Him completely and I can’t wait to see where He leads me.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://northernstarjournewixsite.com/northernstar53
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/northernstar53/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1182284495631403
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michellecuster/