We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Stevie Rozean a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Stevie, thanks for joining us today. How do you think about vacations as a business owner? Do you take them and if so, how? If you don’t, why not?
I really struggled with taking time off in the early years of starting Wildly Collective. A lack of work-life balance is very normalized in the wedding industry. When I was first getting started in the industry I was working everyday of the week at all hours of the day. I worked on vacations and was constantly checking my email from my phone during personal time.
It doesn’t help that weddings are typically on the weekends, HIGHLY personal to the couple getting married, and wedding planners tend to have people-pleasing tendencies. This creates layers of hidden expectations, relational dynamics, and people pleasing. It can be extremely difficult to untangle from all of this and take care of yourself.
These days, I take vacations quite often. This year in our off-season I took a 3 week vacation and a week off for each Thanksgiving and Christmas. I also work normal hours – rarely working past 6pm on a weekday, and I don’t work weekends unless it’s an event weekend.
My advice to other entrepreneurs who feel like they can’t take a short vacation or all their time is consumed by work, are a few things:
One, reflect on the purpose of your business from a birds eye view. We start these small businesses out of passion, creativity and a hopes to do something we love everyday. But what happens when that love turns into bitterness because you never have time for yourself, your life, your own hobbies? Your business is meant to create a life for you, not consume you. Is it really that impossible to step away for a week in the grand scheme of things?
Two, create streamlined systems for every aspect of your work. Write your systems down step-by-step in an SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) so that anyone could read them and know how to do your work. This will create a flow that you can operate from, making your work easier and less time consuming. Most importantly, it will allow you to teach someone else how to do it.
Three, hire a contract worker to take on administrative tasks that don’t require your expertise. Once you have an SOP, you can delegate tasks to others. Even if it’s just a few hours a week, this gives you time. This can also be a person that stands in when you are on vacation, making sure the business is operating without you.
Four, set expectations with your clients up front and stick to them. I let my clients know my working hours in our contract, in my email signature, and in a welcome guide. This holds me accountable to my own boundaries. When I’m planning a vacation, I let my clients know a few weeks in advance so they can expect my absence and ask what they need of me prior to me being unavailable.
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?
I plan and design nature-immersive micro-weddings, elopements, and weekend experiences all over the world, but primarily in Joshua Tree, Palm Springs and the American West. I’m a big rulebreaker – attracting couples who want to celebrate their love with 50 people or less, invest in quality experiences and design, be outdoors rather than inside, are emotionally intelligent, and are creative.
For example, one of our couples in the spring is getting married in Joshua Tree with 20 of their closest family and friends. The wedding weekend will incorporate a tea ceremony in the national park, hot air balloon rides, an aerialist performance, stargazing, skinny dipping, custom tiki drinks, a desert-inspired family style dining experience and more. I plan with couples who don’t resonate with traditional love stories and weddings. They are out-of-the-box, alternative, imaginative, and SO fun.
I consider our work with couples a collaboration and partnership. We take 90% of the load of planning off the couple through streamlined, values-oriented, and simple systems, but we do ask that couple be vulnerable with us so that we can craft a day that is meaningful to them. A meaningful day requires self-reflection and honesty. It’s such an honor to see couples in this way!
I have a background in journalism, the arts and hospitality. I planned and designed my own wedding with ease – it was a no brainer for me. I have always been an outdoorsy-gal. I love camping, hiking, and rock climbing. In contrast, I’ll pay an arm and a leg to attend a 5-course, seasonal meal on a secluded plot of land in the mountains with a night at a 5-star eco-luxe resort. Those professional and personal sides of me melded into a business that attracts similarly-minded people.
Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?
Building relationships with the vendors and clients we work with. Our primary form of gaining new clients is through word-of-mouth from photographers we’ve worked with and past clients. We pour a lot of energy into making sure every vendor, couple, and guest feels our care and attention through the planning process and on the wedding day.
If you have multiple revenue streams in your business, would you mind opening up about what those streams are and how they fit together?
Yes! We sell digital products for couples who may not be able to afford a full service planner. We have a digital wedding planning guide called “The Plan and The Partnership” which guides couples through planning their own wedding. We also have a guide called “Self Solemnization Ceremony Script Template” which guides couples through planning their own ceremony flow.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://wildlycollective.com/
- Instagram: @wildlycollective_
- Other: Pinterest: https://pin.it/I9qKI3n
Image Credits
Cedar and Pines Photography