We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sandra Mack a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Sandra, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today One of our favorite things to brainstorm about with friends who’ve built something entrepreneurial is what they would do differently if they were to start over today. Surely, there are things you’ve learned that would allow you to do it over faster, more efficiently. We’d love to hear how you would go about setting things up if you were starting over today, knowing everything that you already know.

That’s a great question. I think the approach to life and business overall is changing as we start to notice how essential well-being is, not only for our personal but also for the business performance. As someone who went through burnout but also loves to create and work non-stop on her business, I would choose to “slow down the pace” in which I’m building that business. I learned it’s not that much about speed or being fast, but rather focusing on the right direction.

We live in the age of distraction and we are constantly overloaded with impressions, social media, our focus and attention is constantly stolen which led me to being not so present with my business and not having my vision always fully clear on my radar. I think in the end it might have taken me longer. It took me to “crash” from time to time to realize how important it is for me to reclaim my focus, implement some well-being routines (going on walks during calls, intentional breaks away from my laptop, etc.) and lead my life and business better to be able to create the best results and finally, stay clear on my vision.

Also, I’ve started to realize that I’m not fully embracing the sweetest moments and memories on that business journey, and isn’t it about the journey in the end? Isn’t every day the endgame? Looking back I wish I would have given myself more time, to stop from time to time to see “the sparkle of what I’ve accomplished” and enjoy the moments with the people who helped me create and built.

I’m actually glad, that I started to already implement these changes as I’m working on a second brand. In addition I feel the difference in pace goes well with working in creative sprints. So I’ve been experimenting a lot with being more efficient through blending well-being and business routines for greater creativity and flow and ultimately greater results.

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.

Hi, I’m Sandra, a European (born in Poland, grew up in Germany) in LA, founder, creator, mentor and advocate for intentional living that views life and business through the lens of creativity.

On my professional journey I went from 10 years in a corporate job, to being a flight attendant while starting my business journey as business coach / designer / digital creator including all the ups and downs plus life’s adventures.

Things changed for me when I came to LA in 2019 shortly before the pandemic hit. I was supposed to start working on a project with Jules Hough. The pandemic changed the trajectory of my path and instead of working with Jules I started a new brand while remaining in the design & mentoring business.

I created Women of the Galaxy which is an apparel brand serving as inspiration and a reminder for women to simply remember their greatness as a woman with all her magic. A part of the funds will be used to support other female founders and creatives on their business and creative ventures. Originally I had bigger plans for the brand but I created the brand when I was figuring out who I wanted to be, as a leader, a founder, a creative, a woman… this creation process of WG served me well but I had to make changes in how I wanted to proceed. To keep things clear, simple and lean I started working on a new brand which is kind of the evolution of Women of the Galaxy and more focused on business mentoring and self-leadership for aspiring founders, leaders and creatives. It is not launched yet but will be soon ;)

Once you know who you want to be and you’re ready to take the next step, the new brand / business offers a mix of resources to optimize their early stage business and creative strategy while also helping them to set the foundation from within. Meaning offering resources for greater Self-Leadership for them to establish personal excellence where well-being, creativity and business blend and thrive. Times are changing and I feel wellness / well-being is becoming more and more a lifestyle and is being integrated actively into business more and more. In times of burnout culture and mental health I want to support the approach of finding ways how to create and build from a “well” state of being.

I think it’s clear that my passion lies in helping others start their businesses, from branding, website design, business model and all internal structures, including their own personal operating system. I want to make sure these founders set the right foundation to build on, WITHIN and without. Foundations are essential and many miss that part, they build on unstable ground.

I also believe that building your business is such a beautiful thing as it is an extension of who you are and what you want to contribute to this world. We all deserve that freedom to shape, paint and move the world with what we have to offer. It isn’t an easy ride but my goal is to build with joy, a healthy mind and body.

To wrap this up I’m combining coaching with creative work and business mentoring.

This would probably also be what sets me apart. My corporate background in a huge international company taught me business on a greater scale. On my own journey I learned to simplify the business model for myself. Creativity lies in the family and my personal business journey taught me all skills in terms of digital creation, design, systems and business tools and lastly, the human and well-being side I owe to my own life experience which was a wild ride, but life remains the greatest teacher. It led me to wanting to learn about myself so I started a coaching certification training plus working as a flight attendant also taught me a lot about people and different cultures all over the world.

All this led me to be able to demystify the complex structures into simple blueprints for others to execute towards success, in life and business. My business and brands serve to pass this on and are at the same time my way of creatively expressing myself and sharing my mission in helping others.

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

When I started my business the first time it was a total crash landing. I had to sell everything and I moved back in with my mom in my early thirties. You can image the shame cycle I went through when I found myself in her basement with a couch and a desk only. But it was enough to start with square one. It was my laptop and me until I made a new plan.

6 months later I came to LA for an event and I felt I wanted to move here. I started to work as flight attendant as a side-job at that time to have at least some fixed income as I said to myself “there is no way I’m going back to a corp 9-5 job”. Flight attendants get benefits as employees — this is why I was able to travel to LA from Europe on a super low budget. In times likes these you learn how to “maximize your outcome” with “minimum effort” / or with what you have.

Another 3 months later, I was back in LA. This time with a clear vision and I said “If I’m meant to be here, something will come up.” While scrolling Instagram one night I found Kinrgy, a newly founded business by Jules Hough. I saw their 6 Insta posts only and thought that they might need some content creation. So I messaged them and pitched my services.

I forgot about the text the coming days and then 3 days later someone messaged me and said “Jules gave me your contact”. I got invited to an interview, had a call with her and then Kinrgy offered me a job. It was September 21. I just said “yes”, flew home for 2 weeks and came back one way October 5. Moving to the US broke me in so many ways. I wasn’t prepared. The visa process, immigration lawyer costs, LA can be a lot :) But I’ve made my way through, I found friends that turned into family, I learned how to utilize and work with what I have and I got my visa in the most incredible way. No regrets.

Then the pandemic hit and I had all the reasons to go back home. But I couldn’t. My desire to build something that will set me free was too big. My visa took 2 years until I got all my papers. All this time I was holding my breath, not knowing what will happen. Times were uncertain. Now it all just feels like the blink of an eye and almost 4 years have passed since I arrived in LA. I’m glad I’ve never left.

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

I’m not sure if there is really a specific backstory, but the lesson I had to unlearn was that someone will save you. No one will save you.

There is no doubt you have friends who support and help, maybe you have investors on your business journey. But in the end when you’re in a storm and there is no way out it all comes down to how much you can bet on yourself.

On my journey I had to learn the hard way how essential a rock-solid inner foundation is. When life shakes you, there isn’t much on the outside that you need but trust and faith in yourself. You need to have your own back. The ability to regulate your mind, emotions and responses to the events in your life are so key. If you master yourself, you can master anything.

This became my daily practice to lead myself and my business well.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://womenofthegalaxy.com/  https://iamsandramack.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iamsandramack/
• Other: https://iamsandramack.com/

Image Credits
Farrah Aviva / Studio Aviva