Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Tori Mac. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Tori, appreciate you joining us today. What do you think it takes to be successful?

I think if “being successful” were a recipe, it would require the following steps/ingredients: (re)define what success is, create a plan, stay focused, surround yourself with a community that will support you through the journey, and go through life with a “what prevents me?” perspective.

There were a few points in my life where these “ingredients” were deeply illustrated, but it all started with redefining what success was. When I first applied for college, I chose to study human behavior because I knew I loved people. Naturally, like any “success-driven” father would, my dad told me there was no money in that industry. To appease my dad while also studying something I had some remnant of interest in, on the day of orientation, I changed my field of study to Computer Science. By the end of my first semester, I withdrew from my Calculus for Engineers class, and barely passed Java Programming. I thought to myself, “Okay, maybe if I incorporate my love for math with my love for people, I’ll do considerably better,” so I switched to Accountancy. By the end of my second semester, I barely passed Macroeconomics and felt unfulfilled. It finally dawned on me… I realized I was trusting in my own power to provide for myself by pursuing a career I wasn’t passionate about, rather than trusting that the God who placed this particular passion within me was going to provide. Being successful was no longer defined by having a financially lucrative career, but by living out my unique calling and passion. After this revelation, I ended up graduating Summa Cum Laude with a major in Family & Human Development and a minor in Psychology, and went on to earn my Master’s in Marriage & Family Therapy with a 3.9 GPA.

During my year of academic wandering (my first year of college), I took a class that first taught me about SMART goals: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-Sensitive. It was a lightbulb moment for me that I still refer to keep myself focused and active in various pursuits. Each year, I create a vision board with 5 goal categories: Personal, Relationship, Wealth, Personal Development, and Ministry. Within each goal category, I have a visual representation of those goals (and when appropriate, text). I keep this vision board close to my workspace at home to help keep my goals on my mind and constantly evaluate where I am, which is extremely helpful around certain times of the year as markers. This helps me to consistently create a plan and stay focused, and coincidentally incorporates my “why” to keep myself motivated. I’ve also recently started incorporating my vision board into my prayer life; I’ll look at my vision board as I pray, and ask the Lord to help me in these endeavors, and make it clear which ones need to be readjusted or removed entirely.

These next two anecdotes will illustrate the last two ingredients of my recipe for success. Remember how I said I earned my Master’s in Marriage and Family Therapy? What I didn’t mention is that I “quit” 6 months before I graduated. Even though I believe in creating a plan and staying focused, I also believe that as the dynamic people we are, it’s okay (and dare I say a good thing) to change your plans accordingly. Or, as 38 Special says, “Hold on Loosely.” One evening while working on a project for graduate school, I decided to take a break and catch up on Instagram. My favorite Christian Hip Hop artist were on tour at the time, and I was THAT girl – you know, the one who followed all the DJs, photographers, videographers, the artists AND their spouses? I thrived off of vicariously living through tour life as seen through the eyes of all these creatives and their loved ones. As I watched these snippets, I noticed my leg bouncing in place. I noticed how much energy my body had as I took in all the sights and sounds on my little screen. I was hit so hard by an epiphany, that I verbally said out loud, “Oh no.” I realized that what I was studying did not give me energy; I had a new passion of Christian Hip Hop tours and concert life.

At first, I kept this secret to myself. Well, not entirely. Like a typical millennial in 2018, I posted on Facebook, “I don’t think I want to be a therapist anymore.” But I did keep this from my cohort at school, until one night in particular, where I had to own up to it. We were in a Group Therapy class, and my classmate was leading our group this night. I don’t remember why, but he asked us if we felt like our school was preparing us for our careers. Naturally, everyone was nodding up and down, except me. He saw me shaking my head no and asked me why I was. I said, “I don’t want to be a therapist anymore.” My classmates nearly fell out of their chairs. “After almost three years of school?” After I told them I still planned on finishing my degree, they calmed down a bit more. My professor asked, “So what DO you want to do?” In that moment, I looked down at the floor, because I knew what I was about to say was going to be the first time my new passion was going to be stated. It felt more real in this moment than it ever did. I looked up and said, “I want to get into Christian Hip Hop promotion and tour production.”

I graduated in June of 2019. The following month, I saw one of my favorite Christian Hip Hop artists was on tour in a few states, but not Arizona. During one late night of insomnia, I tuned into this artist’s livestream on Instagram. I saw someone had commented “Come to AZ!” I thought I’d take a chance and directly message the artist, explaining that I would love to help bring them out here if they needed assistance with that. Two months later, with an incredible team of strangers, friends, and family, we were able to have an almost sold out show for an artist on the most well-known Christian Hip Hop label in history. If it weren’t for my incredible community or my attitude of “what prevents me from trying?”, I would not be where I am today, and I would not have the amazing experiences I had along the way.

Tori, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Today, I still help some local churches with Christian Hip Hop promotion, operate as the booking manager for a local Christian Hip Hop artist by the name of Shem Taylor, and also work primarily as a Realtor in the Phoenix Metropolitan area.

I earned my real estate license while I was in college in an endeavor to join my best friend in their real estate career, making this my 10th year in real estate. Some of my clients were connections I’ve made in the Christian Hip Hop scene, which is particularly meaningful to me, and I personally find it fun to produce marketing material that speaks to both niches.

While most would consider those worlds extremely different (quite a few realtors make rap parodies for their real estate marketing ironically, which beyond being cringe, isolates a demographic of people as if their interest or careers are something to be made fun of), I have been noticing a trend of many prolific Christian Hip Hop artists and producers becoming wise to the benefits of becoming homeowners or investors of real estate.

As such, I find excitement in helping this demographic achieve their real estate goals while embracing who they are and the industries that they’re in. While most realtors typically prioritize prospecting wealthy neighborhoods, I pride myself in standing in the gap for those who might feel overlooked and overwhelmed by the real estate industry at large.

So if you’re looking for a home, for promotion help, or for a Christian Hip Hop artist to book, let me know! I would be more than happy to help. You don’t even need to be an Arizona resident to utilize any of my resources.

For real estate: victoria@northandco.com
For promotion: iamtorimac@gmail.com
For booking Shem Taylor: ShemTaylorBooking@gmail.com

If you have multiple revenue streams in your business, would you mind opening up about what those streams are and how they fit together?

My multiple businesses have multiple revenue streams. While I’m predominantly the Office & Marketing Manager of a real estate firm (which provides stable, consistent income), I can help others with their real estate needs locally, and for anyone needing to buy or sell outside of the greater Phoenix area, I can refer clients to vetted Realtors across the United States and collect a referral fee from the Realtors in my network.

Helping various artists and churches with their promotion/event coordination needs means multiple streams of income as well. Sometimes opportunities are mutually beneficial without it providing a monetary revenue. For example, instead of being paid a fee or percentage, I’ll be given full VIP access to concerts which provides me with opportunities to build connections and continue growing my sphere, and at times I have provided a service to a church in order to obtain a slot for the artist I manage bookings for as an opener (which in turn provides more exposure and opportunities for the both of us).

There are even times where I’ll receive real estate referrals from those whom I’ve met through my Christian Hip Hop promotion business, or through my real estate connections will be connected to other artists/churches, so my activity in one business could very well lead to revenue in another business.

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

Both surprisingly and unsurprisingly, I would have to say the Bible has significantly impacted my management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy. The Bible is saturated with stories and parables surrounding stewardship, the company you keep, how you should treat others, how you should do business, and how to keep a healthy balance of being in the world but not of it. This world, especially the entrepreneurial world surrounded by consumers and the “noise” of social media, will absolutely destroy you if you give your entire self over to it. Aside from the life and way of Jesus, I am particularly inspired by the Proverbs 31 woman. She was the perfect depiction of a woman who was both empowered to engage in various entrepreneurial endeavors and proud to be of service to her husband and family. She was multifaceted; she invested in real estate (inspecting it first, of course!), she had connections all over (bringing food from afar), she made her own merchandise to sell, she is such a great planner that she does not fear what may come, and she was known for living generously, caring for the needy, teaching kindness, not being idle, and made sure to feed those whom she managed. Above all these attributes and “good things” she did both charitably and vocationally, she revered the Lord. This is how I aim to live my life and in all my endeavors, and why it has impacted me so significantly.

Contact Info:

• Website: tap.bio/@churchmafia
• Instagram: iamtorimac
• Facebook: facebook.com/churchmafia
• Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/victoria-bischoff-macaluso-a4613694
• Youtube: youtube.com/@vickymac15
• Other: Real Estate Website: gsfinehomes.com Shem Taylor’s IG: @shemtaylortmu

Image Credits
Stephanie Ringleb