Raise your hands if you think becoming an entrepreneur, own creative director or founder means quitting your day / full time job?
If you are, don't worry, I am guilty of it too!
This post would give you an idea on how you can manage a primary job and side interest together, especially if the things you love doing doesn't translate to money, or require capital to do so.
Life is too short to have one title under your belt.
Let's start with:
- Modelling
Cara Mcilroy
Social Media: @caragmcilroy | @geniejuicery
Cara Mcilroy - scouted at the age of seventeen while working as a PA in the film industry - started off as a model doing catwalks, magazine covers, commercials and TV hosting.
After 10 years of modelling, she is a founder of her own company, Genie Juicery.
Her other unofficial titles include being a mom, wife and blogger at catwalkstocradles.com
Hack #1: Nature of job must be flexible to do other things
Models have a lot of spare time, Cara said attributing that she is very lucky and added that if it wasn't for her modelling career, she don't think she could have started her company.
What's very unique about both of my careers is that I don't work regular hours, continues Cara as she finds a balance between two or more work commitments.
Careful planning is necessary when you have other responsibilities. Cara adjusted her modeling career to fit with her hours at the juice bar by doing most of her modeling jobs at night. Most of my clients are accommodating, she stated.
Setting a priority and being super organized helps you to manage bits of everything at a time.
Coping would be the word! I'm doing my best to do it all, expressed Cara who, nonetheless, has someone who works with her for the blog and India and the Pirates so she can focus elsewhere. Likewise, she's also lucky to have an amazing helper who, she says, watch India and help around the house while I go to work appointments or other business commitments.
Hack #2: A glamorous job won't last forever
Mcilroy is thrilled to have her own business, as she knows modeling is not forever and harder to transit to a different career.
Models start working at a very young age and when we retire we don't have a lot of experience outside the industry, explains Cara as she felt she needed to do more such as creating her own business to take care of herself afterwards. I've never thought that modeling was the only thing I was good at. There are plenty of things that I can pursue outside of modeling, she answers.
Hack #3: Business idea can arise from your main job
Modeling definitely shaped my active living lifestyle, reveals Cara who said she wasn't into health and nutrition growing up until she got into modeling when she begin to take care of her health. That's when I started to do a lot of juicing and I added more raw food to my diet, she disclosed. As modeling also requires her to travel the world, it increase her awareness on the concept of juicing. When I was travelling, I always found that there were a lot of companies doing this sort of thing, claims Cara.
Mcilroy also credits her modeling career to her setting up a lifestyle blog. Thanks to modeling who make her a celebrity face, Mcilroy cited that she's happy to be able to build a following across Asia. Whenever she post about food on social media, or when she was pregnant, people would ask her where she got her clothes from. That's when I realized what a great resource I could be, she exclaims. I also travel for work, so I have a lot of tips, she ended.
Hack #4: Business opportunity depends on availability in local market
The opportunity pops up when Cara travel to New York to work and saw many juice companies. When she came back to Hong Kong and looked into it there weren't any so she thought it was a good opportunity to start a business.
The concept of juice fasting is obviously not our brilliant idea, she confessed. The concept is very popular around the world and we thought it was kinda crazy that it had not been introduced to Hong Kong, she continues. And seeing the results from juice fasting are amazing, she wanted to share that with Hong Kongers.
As Genie Juicery was the first to set up an actual shop in the city, it gives them a lot of clout over other places. We have over 30 juices, so in terms of range, we have the widest, said Cara.
Hack #5: Starting a business is easy as 123
The first thing that Cara did to start her own business was sign the lease! Next step was to get a consultant, hire a Cantonese speaker and go for gold!
With that said, prepare to make sacrifices. We did everything at the start, including cleaning and deliveries, warned Cara. Although she knew... Genie will come to a point where she could be less involved daily.
Mcilroy's ambition for Genie Juicery is to build a strong brand and franchise it. That, she say, has always been a part of her business plan from the very beginning.
Hack #6: Philosophy or life motto
The philosophy according to Cara is to dream big and live life with open eyes, to see everything and be empathetic towards people and animals.
Her favorite ways to Move, Nourish and Believe is:
1. Exercise via Muay Thai,
2. Diet via Eat clean, natural food,
3. Confidence via Believe in yourself.
Cara thinks the most important lesson that she learnt is don't give up. Do something that you are passionate about, because you won't give up easily and you'll constantly be driven by the passion.
Starting every morning with good habits help set the day right, highlights Cara. She woke up early every day, do something that is non work related and get to the shop before the work hours starts. In her own words, I wake up at seven, walk my dog and I get here before the work kicks in. She also divides her day into morning, evening and night where she will be in the kitchen in the day, glam up for modeling jobs in the evening, and do a fashion shoot at night.
Although Cara admits that her schedule is all over the place and impossible to maintain a daily routine, there are however some weekly routines she keeps up, I go to the gym every Tuesday and Thursday and we hike to the waterfall with my daughter and my dog on Saturday.
As a workaholic, Cara claims she is always stressed and working late, but happiest when she's with her little family. I try to enjoy weekends with the family. When I'm with them, time kind of stands still and all my stress goes away. All of these precious things, like having dinner together, bath time and walking our dog, are all special times that we spend together outside of work, she reflected.
When it comes to motherhood, Cara advice to other mothers is to make friends. I have found that it really helps me to reach out to other mothers and have someone to talk to, to get advice, to know you're not crazy! There are always times you feel exhausted but you're not alone. As a mum, you need mum friends around you, she reiterate.
Opportunities knock at the door when you show or expose yourself in places, Cara voiced from experiences. As a frequent goers to all music events in Hong Kong, she was a familiar face to the crew, because it's a small place the people from Fox kept seeing me at these music events and asked me if I would come in and try out to be a host. I went in and got the job in the end, she responded.
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