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

Renee, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

Renee Washington has always had ambitions to use her platform to help create a voice for the voiceless. She wanted to use the insight that she had as a reporter to help provide resources and opportunities for others. In many interviews and conversations, Renee kept finding that people would come to her with seeking guidance, support, and resources but not sure where to go to get them.

For years, Renee had ideas of ways to create a platform connecting others in person, but it was through the pandemic and all that COVID-19 brought that she realized in person would limit the opportunity. Planted, not Buried was born as a way to connect people around the world and have a larger reach. It was created to provide opportunities, resources, motivation, empowerment, and a safe space for all to be able to connect regardless of background, age, or any thing else. Planted, not Buried is a vision brought into fruition to help make positive change in various communities around the world.

The biggest areas that we focus on are access, resources, and collaboration. Finding what we need in life should not come at a major expense. It should be affordable to be able to connect with the right people, products, and businesses to get the help and guidance that we need in life. Although there are aspects of Planted, not Buried that come at a cost, everybody has a wide variety of free resources at their fingertips.

We hope that through our vision we are able to help you in some way to grow and learn through different challenges people are facing in each season of life. We are all a work in progress. None of us have life figured out so together we can navigate the different chapters and adversity together.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Coined after a popularly used sermon and message of faith, Planted not Buried embodies the idea that we are all working through our own challenges. Like a planted seed in the ground, we are blossoming into something far greater than even know. So at this tough time where things feel “dark”, know that you have not been rejected or denied of your goals. Instead, you are being redirected towards something even better. Be patient, have faith, and continue learning and growing each day. Most importantly, at PNB we embrace this season of growth together.

We provide professional development opportunities, coaching, expertise, networking, events, and more at Planted, not Buried. We’re here to assist you in learning more by providing you with a supportive village of other like-minded, ambitious professionals of all ages and backgrounds.

Planted, not Buried is here to inspire everyone and show them that we are all a work in progress. We will assist you in figuring out what to do next and how to become a better version of yourself

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

Creating a business requires nonstop pivots. You have a plan and vision, but the blueprint is not usually there. You are trying to figure out how to best create it. I first launched Planted, not Buried in December of 2020. However as we know a lot has changed since then. I first launched it strictly as a platform for motivation and inspiration. After building the foundation on digital and social platforms. The first pivot came when PnB began to include and promote what other businesses are doing in their communities to make an impact. However, it became apparent that business partnerships and promoting others, was not enough to make a big impact.

The major pivot came with a major overhaul and rebrand. it required changing our mission, brand, programming, services, and bringing in new talented professionals to grow the team. We had meetings and open discussions to game plan best next steps. I realize I cannot grow PnB alone, but it is tough to share the vision, ideas, and expect the same commitment for others. Balancing tasks was tough. However the pivot allowed me to learn a lot about myself, growing a business, and the future of Planted, not Buried.

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

I always wanted to use my platform to help make a difference in the world, but I did not know what that looked like.

For years, I had ideas of ways to create a platform connecting others in person. I wanted to host events or pop ups, but it was through the pandemic and all that COVID-19 brought that I realized in person would limit the opportunity. My passion of speaking, mentoring, and providing guidance to others was turned into the vision of Planted, not Buried. It is not my full time business, but has been turned into aa business and is also one of the many hats that I wear today.

PnB was born as a way to connect people around the world and have a larger reach. It was created to provide opportunities, resources, motivation, empowerment, and a safe space for all to be able to connect regardless of background, age, or any thing else. Planted, not Buried is a vision brought into fruition to help make positive change in various communities around the world.    

Contact Info:

• Website: www.plantednb.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/plantednb
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/plantednotburied
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/plantednb
• Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/plantednb
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2u82wr2Jm02y5Z5SZCUTCw
• Other: https://linktr.ee/plantednb

Image Credits
@Plantednb Renee Washington