We were lucky to catch up with Ruby Angela recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Ruby, thanks for joining us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

My mission is to empower the creative mind. To think (a little) differently and lean into it without fear. This is how I landed on the slogan for the Killr creative brand: “For the weird and wonderful.” I believe so many great things emerge from embracing the “weird”– original ideas, bespoke identities, etc. You get to see the world through a whole different lens that is truly unique and interesting- and that’s beautiful.

Growing up, whenever I would go shopping with my mom or if my mom would buy something and bring it home, she would always say to me things like “Isn’t it cool? Isn’t it weird?!,” “yeah, I like it because it’s weird! No one has that” with a beaming smile and radiant aura. That was a repeating motif I grew up with and it stuck with me, and I enjoyed honoring and embracing it. My mom was teaching me there was so much charm in the weird. So I continued my life valuing that same idea. I loved the way my mom turned common beliefs and connotations on its head. It was empowering and helpful, especially in my journey as a creative.

I wanted to share that same feeling and connect with others who dare to also embrace or honor those parts in themselves or in others. Basically, giving people permission to be weird. I think that’s when people feel the liberty to experiment and explore, which helps breed innovative creation and growth.

Weird can look and feel different for everyone because that’s the point. You don’t necessarily need to be anything over the top or only equate creative with weird, but I think it’s more about the idea of embracing that part of you that acts and thinks a little differently and knowing that’s okay. That’s what makes it beautiful in its own weird and wonderful way.

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.

I am a creative director that has worked across music, fashion, and beauty industries. In my most recent years, I have been immersed in working within the music industry and clients. I was head of the creative services at Red Light Management and was there for about 7 years. I was working with an amazing team and talented artists to execute campaigns and projects. The work I was involved in expanded across design, photo, and video with design being my specialty.

Now, I am working on relaunching my own business, Killr, where I’ll first be offering design templates and graphic digital goods for people to use for their projects and businesses. There will also be a blog component where people can dive into my brain and my world– I’ll be covering topics around creative and travel. There’s more I have planned for Killr to emerge over time, but for now, something to look out for with the relaunch that’s planned to happen this year.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

Building trust and maintaining a good relationship. Talking to each other human-to-human looking for the win-win. Everyone talks so if you treat one person badly, people know. If you treat people well, people also know. You have to think in long-term retention versus short-term one-time gains.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

The 4-Hour Work Week. I have only read parts of it so far, but it does speak to how I want to approach my working entrepreneurial life. One takeaway is that- it’s not necessarily about working less, but working when you want to. When I was younger, I was about the grind and hustle to get to my goals, and rightfully so. There is an element of hustle and grind to achieve your goals if you really want it. I do believe that still carries on today, but I also believe we should be working smarter, not harder. Implementing efficient and effective systems is necessary and setting yourself and others up for success is what we should be aiming for if you really want to enable growth and real freedom to live life on your terms.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.rubyangela.com, www.killr.co
• Instagram: @ruby___angela, @killr.co

Image Credits
All work by me: Ruby Angela