We recently connected with Tara Schafer and have shared our conversation below.

Tara, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Do you think your parents have had a meaningful impact on you and your journey?

My older sister and I are bickering in the backseat of the family car, as most four- and five-year-old’s do.
But this wasn’t your typical loud bickering. We were “whisper-fighting”, as I like to call it.

I imagine we were frustrated from the summer heat and were feeling very hungry at this point. We hadn’t eaten since breakfast that morning. It was now dinner time.

Our mother was busy counting change, looking stressed, even to a four-year-old. And I knew better than to bother her when she had that look. Hence our “whisper-fighting.”

My dad was trying his best to keep my sister and I occupied. You know, little games for kids and cars on long, very long car trips. Especially when that car trip, in reality, was us living in the car. Games like I Spy or the picnic game.

In between my sister poking me or me trying to steal the blanket we were sharing, my dad patiently kept distracting us with,
“I spy with my little eye.”

“We have $11.39”, my mom interrupted.

“Just enough”, my father replied with a smile while nodding.

My mother took a deep breath and reached out to grab my father’s hand. My sister and I got quiet.
Suddenly the games and the “whisper bickering” weren’t important to us anymore.

I stared out the window and just watched as the little town we just entered passed by us in the silence of the car. My father pulled into a little store and parked, got out, and went inside with a pocket full of change. My mom turned around to my sister and I and with a sweet voice and warm smile asked,

“Want to hear a story?”

We, of course, agreed.

She began telling us a tale of a princess that would only have magical powers when she ate bologna sandwiches.
Apparently, this princess discovered her magical powers one late night when she was very hungry and tired from fighting with her sister while on a long carriage ride. I gasped. The similarities were unmistakable, even to a four-year-old. My sister and I listened wide-eyed while my mother continued to weave the most interesting story I have ever heard about baloney to this day. She’s a great storyteller.

My father returned, almost startling me with the interior car light turning on, when he opened the door. He proceeded to pull from a brown paper bag (Yes, this was in the 70s. Brown paper bags were a thing.) A loaf of white bread and a package of bologna.

No condiments.

No lettuce.

Just white bread and bologna. The kind you had to peel the little casing off of. My mother began making my sister and I a quote-unquote “magical bologna sandwich” while my dad pulled the car around to the gas pumps.

I will never forget how amazing and even magical that plain white bread and bologna sandwich tasted. To this day, this is the only way I will eat a bologna sandwich. My parents taught me a very fundamental lesson in optimism and embracing every moment in life…regardless of anything.

My parents were, (rest in peace dad), and are two of the most optimistic individuals I am proud to say helped to shape my life.
We were living in a car, not due to drug usage or anything like that.

Just life.

My parents found themselves with two small children in a situation that life sometimes offers. They made the best of it. They didn’t let that situation get in the way of making sure we were safe, cared for and even had a great childhood.

My dad taught us to make kites from tissue paper. Taught me about geology while spending hours at parks. I’m still known as the rock lady. It’s a thing. I love rocks.

My mother read to me from the classics every night. Taught me all about astrology. And of course, my love of vinyl. Records, that is. Love me some LPs.

All while living in a car.

I just thought we were on a really long road trip.

I learned a valuable lesson by eating plain bologna sandwiches and sleeping under the stars. That is that no matter your situation, your circumstances, you can find you and your happiness. It’s about perspective and the willingness to focus on the things you love in the moment. The things that are positive.

You may not be exactly where you want or aspire to be.

However, you can find your happiness, optimism, and even inner peace.

One plain bologna sandwich at a time.

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’ve been an entrepreneur my whole life. My first “business” was selling “magical rocks” to the neighborhood kids when I was 8.

As I said earlier, I first learned astrology from my Mother. She had these old astrology books and I would read them and study them all the time. Astrology wasn’t even a thought at first for a business. But as I learned more about the business world, I kept going back to my astrology knowledge. At first just for my own curiosity.

When I shared this with my friends, more and more of them started asking me questions about looking at a business through the lens of astrology. This lead to friends of friends asking questions. This is when I realized that business astrology is something the fellow entrepreneurs are interested in.

I decided to blend my knowledge of entrepreneurship and my astrology knowledge and offer this as a service. It’s a strategic, systematic and also holistic way of looking at entrepreneurship. And I absolutely love it!

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

So, my older sister and I are bickering in the backseat of the family car, as most four- and five-year-old’s do. But this wasn’t your typical loud bickering. We were “whisper-fighting”, as I like to call it. I imagine we were frustrated from the summer heat and were feeling very hungry at this point. We hadn’t eaten since breakfast that morning.

Our mother was busy counting change, looking stressed, even to a four-year-old. And I knew better than to bother her when she had that look. Hence our “whisper-fighting.”

My dad was trying his best to keep my sister and I occupied. You know, little games for kids and cars on long, very long car trips. Especially when that car trip, in reality, was us living in the car. Games like I Spy or the picnic game. In between my sister poking me or me trying to steal the blanket we were sharing, my dad patiently kept distracting us with,
I spy with my little eye.

“We have $11.39”, my Mom interrupted.

“Just enough”, my father replied with a smile while nodding.

My mother took a deep breath and reached out to grab my father’s hand. My sister and I got quiet. Suddenly the games and the whisper bickering weren’t important to us anymore. I stared out the window and just watched as the little town we just entered passed by us in the silence of the car. My father pulled into a little store and parked, got out, and went inside with a pocket full of change.

My mom turned around to my sister and I and with a sweet voice and warm smile asked,

“Want to hear a story?”

We, of course, agreed.

She began telling us a tale of a princess that would only have magical powers when she ate bologna sandwiches. Apparently, this princess discovered her magical powers one late night when she was very hungry and tired from fighting with her sister while on a long carriage ride.

I gasped!

The similarities were unmistakable, even to a four-year-old. My sister and I listened wide-eyed while my mother continued to weave the most interesting story I have ever heard about baloney to this day.

She’s a great storyteller.

My father returned, almost startling me with the interior car light turning on, when he opened the door. He proceeded to pull from a brown paper bag, (Yes, this was in the 70s. Brown paper bags were a thing.) a loaf of plain white bread and a package of bologna.

No condiments.

No lettuce.

Just white bread and bologna. (The kind you had to peel the little casing off.)

My mother began making my sister and I a quote-unquote magical bologna sandwich while my dad pulled the car around to the gas pumps. I will never forget how amazing and even magical that plain white bread and bologna sandwich tasted. To this day, this is the only way I will eat a bologna sandwich.

So how does this equate to my resilience?

My parents were,( rest in peace dad), and are two of the most optimistic individuals I am proud to say helped to shape my life.
We were living in a car, not due to drug usage or anything like that.

Just life.

My parents found themselves with two small children in a situation that was life. They chose to use make the best of thae situation. And I am forever grateful that they did.

My dad taught us to make kites from tissue paper. Taught me about geology while spending hours at parks. I’m still known as the rock lady. It’s a thing.

My mother read to me from the classics every night. Taught me all about astrology. And of course, my love of vinyl. Records, that is. (Love me some LPs.)

All while living in a car.

I just thought we were on a really long road trip.

I learned a valuable lesson by eating plain bologna sandwiches and sleeping under the stars.

That is that no matter your situation, your circumstances, you can find you and your happiness. It’s about perspective and the willingness to focus on the things you love in the moment. The things that are positive. You may not be exactly where you want or aspire to be. However, you can find your happiness, optimism, inner peace and even your resilience.

One plain bologna sandwich at a time.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

The main goal (and mission) that drives me to this day, is to learn as much as I can to be able to pass these lessons onto my children. I want them to know that they can forge their own way and go after their dreams. Regardless of any situation they may find themselves in.

Of course, it takes work and dedication. But, if it’s a heart-felt goal, nothing will stop you. Resilience.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://theoddwitch.com