Central City Church

Stephanie Evans Today we're talking with Allyssa and Joe Graves, of Central City Church in Grandview Heights. Welcome to you guys and thanks for joining us today. Allysa Graves Yeah, thanks for having us. Stephanie Evans So starting a church is a little different than starting a business. But I would imagine that there are many aspects of it that you have to treat as a business in order to be successful. So those are the things I'd like to talk to you about today. Running a church as a business and how you guys got started with Central City Church. Stephanie Evans So to kick us off, we always ask the same question of everyone. And that is, what did you want to be when you're a child? And how does that tie into where you are today? Allysa Graves Yes. So when I was growing up, I, I think I just wanted to save the world. So I remember wanting to be a marine biologist, because I wanted to say all the animals and wanting to be a missionary because I want to save all the kids around the world. And I want to be a teacher because I want to save all the high schoolers that we're getting trouble. And so I just wanted to save the world. And now I am none of those. But I am a pastor. So you know, it works because I get to help people where they're at, and bring light into a neighborhood or into people's life. Joe Graves I would say that when I was, especially in high school, I was really kind of trying to wrestle, did I do I want to go into ministry? And specifically do I want to be a missionary. So I mean, we have that in common. There's something like romantic I think, in our Christian world at the time about being a missionary, and the adventure and sacrifice that went with that. So I think there's probably a lot of people who grew up in similar environments that felt that way. Then also kind of want to do something creative. I was really into art really enjoyed creativity. So I really wrestled a lot with, you know, should I go into art? Or should I go into ministry of some sort? And now I think as a pastor of a church, and especially a new church start, we got to do a lot both so really have fun doing the ministry, being a pastor, but then being able to do some of the creative stuff from marketing to other types of creative endeavors. Stephanie Evans So it does kind of come full circle and bring your passions all together. Allysa Graves Which is the, the good thing about being able to start your own, whatever, because we get to kind of shape and form how and what that looks like. Joe Graves We get to develop the culture and, and also our roles in working together as co pastors, we get to develop those roles, but then also just like, the roles of what we do as a church and and the work we get to accomplish and what it looks like. Stephanie Evans So one of the things on your website says that you're doing church differently. So can you tell us about that? What does that mean? Joe Graves This actually goes back to like, starting a business. We've really tried to figure out as a church who we are, we've been a community now for a year. And so part of that it's like the classic branding, marketing conversation that any businesses, especially a new business, you have clarity of vision, you want to make sure you can tell people exactly who you are. Joe Graves So when we started, we had a particular vision, and now we've been doing it for a year, we've been asking the question, why did the people who come, what do they love about it? And I think there's something that makes us unique, and I think some of those things are personality. We embrace mystery and questions. So when it comes to like, a faith perspective, you know, like, our sermons typically aren't the answer to a question there more often ending with a question. And so that's one of things, it makes us different. And actually, a lot of people come to our church, because they're like, we feel like, there's room for conversation, we feel like you're not telling us, we have to believe a certain thing, or we get kicked out. So we try to create that space for mystery. Joe Graves And, and for creativity. That's probably another thing that makes us different. But holding things, intention would be probably the thing that makes us the most different and being welcoming to people, regardless of where they're at in life, whether they have faith at all, those are probably some things that make us different. And another thing is, we tried to be intentional about living the church out in mission. So one of the things we say is we don't try to outsource our mission. So we are church in that's engaged in doing the hard work of ministry, especially with the vulnerable and creating space for people to volunteer and give back to that. And I think in some ways that makes us different as well. Allysa Graves We are doing church different than a lot of people have experienced previously. We want to be about relationships with each other, and not not being people that have it all together, but recognizing who we are, and being vulnerable in that, and being a place where no matter who you are, what you've done, where you're going, like you can be here, and we will be there on that journey with you. Joe Graves Are you contemporary, or traditional? Are you conservative or progressive? And, and a lot of those labels don't work well for us. Allysa Graves Because we're all of that. Stephanie Evans Would you say that is part of your business model? That was the plan to kind of come in and be different? intentionally? Allysa Graves Yes, yeah, we've had a lot of experience. And I think one of the reasons why we wanted to start something new is because we weren't seeing church done the way that we would like to be a part of a church. And so yeah, it was our business model to be different, to be something that people who have had a negative experience with church could come and be welcome and, and find what they're looking for in that. And so it kind of is, we want to be different. But we want to be what we think the church is supposed to be. And so it's not necessarily that we want to be different, just for the sake of being different. But we want to be different, because we feel like the churches, something is missing in churches. Joe Graves A very sincere, genuine place for like, this is what the church could be. And we really push that. From a business marketing standpoint, you can still approach the conversation come to a similar conclusion, say, look at market research. The vast majority of people who are unchurched were churched at one time, they were a part of a church community, and maybe even associate with the church community, even if they don't attend. Joe Graves So now, now, you're saying like the majority of people who might come to our church used to go to church, which means they stopped going, and as you get to know, the people who stopped going, you're hearing stories. Some people stop going because of in different reasons, you know, neutral reasons or stop going, got bored. But a lot of people were meeting at negative experiences with church, a lot of people have been really hurt by church. So some of the stuff we're trying to do different in the way we approach it is in response to the fact that Yeah, so if people are like, I love church, and I'm all about church and churches, the best thing in the world, we don't attract a lot of those people, you know, and that's one thing it probably makes us different as well. We're really connecting with people who've been have had a negative experience. Stephanie Evans One of the things that struck me early on because I met you guys how long ago? Allysa Graves A year and a half. Stephanie Evans So you came to us pretty early on or came to the TriVillage Chamber pretty on early on when you when you first moved into Grandview. Your mobile unit, you carry a trailer. Allysa Graves Church in a Box. Stephanie Evans So you started out at the Grandview Theater, and now you're over at the CA Backspace, right. So but you you still have your trailer and you bring things with you so that you can kind of go wherever you need to go. Yeah, and I think that's kind of a unique aspect as well. Allysa Graves It is unique, it's hard, because we people ask us where we're located. And we tell them that we have like, five addresses. So at any given moment, we might be in a different location. We have our church at CA Backspace, where we bring the trailer and we set up all of our kids space, and our coffee, and our band and everything. And then we have office space at a couple different churches that we're partnering with. And we have a P.O. box. And so we have all these different addresses. And I think it does make us unique, that we're just ready to be where we need to be. Joe Graves Once again, thinking about, you're trying to connect with people who aren't going to church are ready. And one of the barriers for people is the church building itself, sometimes they a bad experience, the feeling of a church building can be a hindrance. And so being in a neutral place, like a theater or an event center, like you take away that barrier. And anytime you take a way, you know, a barrier from perspective, can you know, person who can be connected to your community, if you're thinking of it, like a business, someone who might be a client or whatever, that's a that's a huge win. So there's like, there's definitely, you know, long term, could we exist in a traditional building? Yeah, like, traditional church building? Absolutely. But to start, it's really, there's a lot of benefits to being a different place, Stephanie Evans I think some of the things that you're describing also do apply to other businesses, when we think about what others can learn from what you're doing in being flexible, being mobile, going to where people are, and just kind of being available. Thinking outside that box, I think, is really smart. Stephanie Evans So what would you say, is the best advice that someone gave you, when you said, you were going to start this business, or this church? Joe Graves For me, it would be the process of networking. And so this is just as nothing unique to the church experience. But I actually, I actually think, you know, our Jesus, which is our model for ministry, He was probably one of the best networkers in the sense that He was, when you look at the stories, Jesus, who's in the community, He's in the meeting people, and He talks about sending His disciples out to do similar stuff, He talks about this person of peace. Joe Graves And so He would send people out to these villages. He said, If you go to a house, and you meet someone, so basically, going network, we'll use modern language. And you run across somebody, and there's a positive experience, then invest in that. And if you run into somebody who doesn't like what you're doing, He says, shake off the dust. And don't worry about it. It's like this sense of like, don't let that stop you from keep going. Joe Graves Because in the process of networking, and trying to meet people who want to be a part of what you're doing, the majority of the people you meet in any business probably don't want anything to do with it, right? And so you can't on the one side, let that negativity drag you down, because that can be really hard discouraging. But then on the other hand, you have to keep going and finding those people who are interested and invest in there. Joe Graves And so the process that we've tried to do meeting new people on a regular basis and following up with them, and trying to just be in relationship without necessarily any strings attached, especially as a church like we're not trying to do any particular sale, but just be in relationship with people. And then if there's room in the community for them, then that's great. That's probably the one of the best process of just meeting new people. Allysa Graves Yeah, mine was along the same lines of just invest in the relationships that take hold, I think is is one of the things that I heard early on that, that he's been going. It's not about a large number of people. But it's investing in those relationships that are important to those people and to us. Stephanie Evans Well, one of the things that we always say at the TriVillage Chamber is, you know, we provide the networking opportunities, but you know, the more you show up, the more you get to know people, and people want to do business with people that they know. So it really kind of pays off in lots of respects. Allysa Graves It's actually been really fun for the last year and a half being a part of the TriVillage Chamber and just getting to like walk around Grandview and in the tri-village area, and just being able to, like, Oh, I know them, I've seen them at a TriVillage Chamber meeting or we've done this event together. And regardless of who's using what business it's just really fun to know more people. And so we go to restaurants that are TriVillage Chamber members, and we know that we shop at stores then and you services from the TriVillage Chamber just because we know the people. Stephanie Evans This is a nice segue too, to kind of bring up the fact that Alyssa, you have been really helpful here to our TriVillage Chamber members in stepping up to kind of organize opportunities for our members to volunteer their time. So we appreciate the work that you're doing, and look forward to having more of that coming our way too. Stephanie Evans So what would you guys say has been your biggest challenge? Allysa Graves I have a lot of answers. Stephanie Evans Well, you guys have a lot. I mean, you're, you're doing a lot you have a young child. Joe Graves He's the biggest "challenge." Allysa Graves The hardest thing we've done in the last two years is raise a child. Stephanie Evans Yeah, so I would imagine time is a struggle to manage your time between places. Allysa Graves Especially as a startup, like having to invest so much time and energy into something that's new, so that it can be successful has been a huge challenge for us. And as we work together, we're both trying to put in all of that energy. And so other things in our life, you know, it is challenging to, to make room for, for all of that. Allysa Graves I think the other thing too, there is a lot of pressure to succeed. And there's not really a lot of room in our culture for failure, at whatever scale. And so when we've most weeks or days, when we feel like we're failing, there's not really room for that for the experimentation. And so we have to keep reminding ourselves that we're still new at this. And we're still trying to figure out what this looks like, in this neighborhood. And with these people. And so yeah, I think the pressure is, is probably one of the biggest challenges. Allysa Graves Because the relationships for me are easy. I love meeting new people, and getting to know people and hearing their story. And doing church is easy for me. Coming to worship and doing seven missions and small groups is easy. But it is a lot of the pressure to succeed without room for failure. Joe Graves And the fear of failure can be really overwhelming. And I think it's as I've talked to other people who do, who started other things like this is just a common feeling. But one of the challenges also that adds to that feeling is it's abstract. I was talking to somebody who just left his job at a university to run his own business, and he's been doing on the side now is doing a full time he's like, you know, when I worked at an institution, they just like, I went in, and they told me what I need to do that day. Now, I'm my own boss, and I'm like, I'm not always sure what I'm supposed to be doing when you're your own boss. Joe Graves And I think that's really true to a start up, unless you're doing a startup that already has like a particular model that's like, this is what you do. And you've, you've bought it from some of the or someone given to you like, this is what the startup business looks like, which churches could be that, but we decided to do church differently. So we're not following a particular model struggled to find a model similar what we're doing. So in that case, when you're doing something that's truly something new, or something that's like a, like a new thing, figuring it out is this nebulous, abstract thing that you're like, all the way down to the very practical thing of how are we spending our time? And where should we be spending our time? Joe Graves That's something we talked about on a regular basis, the simple like, it plays down to that most basic thing of like, Where's our 40, probably 60 hours a week going, and should it be going there, should it be going somewhere else? And there's some models that we can get some wisdom from, but ultimately, we have to kind of figure it out as we wrestle through this new thing that exists. Stephanie Evans I think that what you mentioned about failure, and kind of no room for failure. And learning how to persevere is really, really important. I think, I know, as a parent myself, you know, none of us want to see our kids fail, right? But, and we try to protect them from that. But at the same time, you're almost giving them a gift when they do fail, so that they learn how to pick themselves up and pull themselves back together and move on. Allysa Graves And we learn from our failures. You know, like, when something doesn't work, we can do it differently next time. I think it's hard to see something fail. So, you know, we've put so much energy and time into something, we want to see it succeed. And so when it does fail, there's kind of a little heartbreak. But then also, you know, what's the perception on the outside of that failing? And even though it was experimental, does everyone understand that? And how can we communicate that in a way that like, this is okay, like, we're just learning how to do this better next time. Joe Graves And there's ways to fail well. I think it's the book Lean Startup that talks a lot about failing quicker. So you put off the failure you put off, like the potential value, you do all this pre work. And then, and then if it doesn't work, you've wasted a year of your life. Whereas if you just put out little things, and you start right away, you can learn much quicker from the failure. And so that's hard, you know, we want to, we want to, we want to put more work in at the front end, and then hope it just works a year later, after all the work we put into, instead of experimenting along the way to figure out what works so that a year later, where we've got a working product or working community or whatever. But yeah, failing quicker is something it's a good thing to do. Stephanie Evans Right, because nobody really wants to fail. Never set out that I'm going to fail today. You don't want that to happen. Joe Graves That's something I learned in my art teacher in high school is one of the biggest lessons I've ever learned. He was like, you're not going to get the drawing right the first time. So I want you guys to make three mistakes before you settle in on on your final product. So his like command, usually, when we started a project was like, All right, now go make some mistakes. And we'll get to the doing the finished product tomorrow. And I was like, it was like, really freeing. Stephanie Evans It's kind of along the same lines, as practice makes perfect. You know, when you think about like, a piano lesson. And, you know, just that like, allowing yourself for understanding that I'm going to mess up. But with practice, I get a lot better. So kind of learning from your mistakes, your failures, helps you to stick with it, right? So you're not just gonna walk away. Stephanie Evans My next question is how do you define success? And how will you know when you're there? Allysa Graves I have to remind myself on almost a daily basis, that the success for our particular business is that lives are changed. People are growing in their personal lives in their faith. And so success isn't necessarily numbers or anything like that. Allysa Graves But it's the relationships that are being built and people are finding community, and are finding hope. And so I have to remember that on a regular basis, because sometimes I get wrapped up in so much of did this program work, or did this event happen and what went well. Allysa Graves But when I hear stories of people who meet someone at our church, or in one of our volunteer opportunities, and they are ongoing friends, when they didn't have any friends in their life, they were new to Columbus, they didn't know anybody. But now they have this group of people that they can call when they need something that success for me. So no matter what our numbers are, what we do, knowing that that people are building those relationships is what's success for me. Joe Graves Along those lines, Christianity in America is a big business. Let me just if you don't know that, it's a big business. Lot of money in the whole market of Christianity from churches, the books to music, it's a weird phenomenon. We live in that business. And so it's really easy, a lot of pressure, we talk about pressure and failure and stuff, there's a lot of pressure around numbers. And, and there's a lot of pressure to treat, you know, church like a business, which it is, but at the same time for our own soul, it's really becomes unhealthy to think of it in that regard. So then we have to go back to what is success? We have to answer that question. Joe Graves And we we have to constantly remind ourselves that, you know, my answer would be similar. Alyssa, it's what does it look like to invest in one person who at the end of that relationship or down the road, and that relationship is able to now invest in someone else, and that lives are changed to these one on one relationships, what we would call discipleship, but it's really just this relationships where people lives are changed. They're moving into community with each other, they're supporting one another, and they're increasing in their ability to trust God. And that changes their life because now they're doing things they never would have done, taking a risk they never would have taken because of their their willingness in their ability to to trust God and and love each other. So I guess it was Jesus who said, you know, two great commandments love God and love others. If we see an increasing amount of people, loving God and loving others in our community, then I guess that's, that's what we would say is success. Stephanie Evans I agree, relationships are so important, I think, to any organization, no matter what you're doing those those it's really what it boils down to. So I want to thank you guys and congratulate you year and a half in and keep doing the great work that you're doing. And thank you again for the work that you do for the TriVillage Chamber. We appreciate your leadership and the part that you play here.

Business Inspires Episode 3 - Vital Companies

Jason Clayton, CMO / Partner of Vital Companies is Michelle's guest.

Vital Companies is an award winning video production company based in Columbus, Ohio. Their services include video & audio production, concept development, digital marketing strategy, and more. They specialize in creating dynamic content for their clients through an efficient, creative, and collaborative process.

There's a story in everyone and every business that can be told across many different mediums. That's the reason the company was started started - tell those stories in an engaging and entertaining way.

The work closely with their clients in order to accurately identify their needs and their vision. They then use their skills in video production, music production, animation, photography, and digital marketing to create engaging content for their clients to use meet their goals.

Vital Companies believes strongly in giving back to our community. They partner with like minded non profit organizations in Central Ohio to provide the needed support to help our community: Columbus Metropolitan Library, Dress for Success, Komen Columbus, The United Way, The Columbus Foundation and many others in Central Ohio.

They have marketed and raised funds for non profits, created film schools for teenagers and founded The Film Festival of Columbus, a film festival to support the visual arts in Columbus, to name a few.

Jason's inspiration - a passion for creativity.  The ability to take music and video and make a living.

Jason's advice for adversity - have confidence in your vision, and understand you will have failures. Your vision will help you through the tough times, and create ways to overcome adversity.

"Living out of fear rather than living out of opportunity can get really stressful."

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With more than 60 years as an integral part of the Grandview, Upper Arlington and Marble Cliff communities, the TriVillage Chamber Partnership is dedicated to a singular purpose - the success of the business community.

To schedule a guest appearance, or find out more about sponsoring Business Inspires, send an email to michelle@chamberpartnership.org

Please take a moment to rate and review our podcast in iTunes.  That helps us spread the word about Business Inspires!

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Business Inspires Episode 2 - Wright Patt Credit Union

This Business Inspires podcast features a conversation with Scott Everett, General Counsel, and VP of Business Services at Wright Patt Credit Union (WPCU).

Wright Patt Credit Union (WPCU) is back in Columbus, with 5 branches in the Columbus metro market. TriVillage Chamber Partnership’s Executive Director Michele Wilson’s guest is Scott Everett, General Counsel, and VP of Business Services.

The move back into Columbus was decided upon by the WPCU members living in the Columbus market.  From a poll of WPCU members, it was overwhelmingly agreed upon that WPCU should open branches in the Columbus area.

To enter back into the Columbus more effectively, a market leader was hired.  Tammy Jones is a Columbus native, and provides WPCU that local presence and insight to stay connected in the community.

To address the fast-paced growth of Columbus, WPCU had to establish a “footprint” in the market, what WPCU calls a “hub and spoke” model.  This model started with one large traditional branch location and then build four around it, establishing a network effect.

In the last 12-18 months, WPCU has modified its approach to serving a younger, technological savvy demographic. Their focus has turned to

1. Mortgage lending, primarily first-time home buyers
2. Business lending

WPCU is a financial cooperative, in fact Ohio’s largest, with over $3.4 billion in assets.  As a financial cooperative, anything WPCU makes above and beyond what is needed to operate business and have adequate capital is given back to the WPCU membership.  In 2016, $8 million was distributed to WPCU members.

What makes WPCU a great place to work?  WPCU offers its employees one of the richest benefit packages, with strong healthcare incentives and retirement programs; an emphasis on promoting from within; educational benefits to help with career advancement; and a philosophy of “work to live,” where family and work are both important for the success of employees.

Giving back to community is important for WPCU.  Every year during the Employee Day celebration, two charities are highlighted and supported during the upcoming year.  $150K to $200k per year is raised through employee fundraising events.  WPCU is always looking for more opportunities in the Columbus market from community partners.

WPCU has been undergoing a re-focus on Small Business lending, called Member Business Services.  In the past these loans have been outsourced.  With larger banks becoming more fickle with the loans they originate, WPCU has seen an opportunity to work with smaller businesses, building a relationship approach; not only lending, but also engaging is full financial relationship.  

WPCU has a system in place, similar to what you see on the internet with marketplace lenders.  If you have a business loan request up to $250k, WPCU has an automated scoring tool that is used, making the application simple, and funding as quick as three days.

WPCU will never revoke their commitment to lend to a small business simply because the whims of the market. It’s about helping businesses grow and promote job growth.

WPCU has over 300,000 members and 760 employees. 31 branches in Ohio, with five in Columbus metro area.

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With more than 60 years as an integral part of the Grandview, Upper Arlington and Marble Cliff communities, the TriVillage Chamber Partnership is dedicated to a singular purpose - the success of the business community.

To schedule a guest appearance, or find out more about sponsoring Business Inspires, send an email to michelle@chamberpartnership.org

Please take a moment to rate and review our podcast in iTunes.  That helps us spread the word about Business Inspires!

TriVillage Chamber Partnership
Destination Grandview
Wright Patt Credit Union

Podcast affiliate of Circle270Media Network

Business Inspires Episode 1 – Starburst Media

We are excited to share the premier of our new monthly podcast, Business Inspires, from the Tri-Village Chamber Partnership.

To run a successful business, you need resources, valuable connections and community recognition. Business Inspires will provide you with the tools you need and do exactly that, inspire you to create the business you are envisioning.

Our first podcast features a conversation with Laura Oldham, owner of Starburst Media and current president of the TVCP. Starburst Media is a digital marketing company that specializes in working with small businesses on their website, copywriting and social media needs.

Laura discusses topics including:

The business of digital marketing:

There’s really not any predictability, which is something that I thrive on, the constant stress of what might pop up day to day. That’s something that I really like about having my own small business.

The changing nature of a small business:

When I started I thought it was just going to be copywriting and social media because that’s what I had all the experience in. But every single business that came to me and that I talked to, they all wanted help with their websites. Every small business needed even the simplest website.

Helping other small businesses:

At the very beginning the whole goal was to be able to help people like my parents, both of whom own their own small businesses. The big issue that they had was they would want a website but developers would charge them a ton and not be willing to help them when they needed to make small changes. So what I wanted to do was come up with a way to basically empower these small business owners to make changes themselves.

Listen to find out about the first website Laura made, for which she got paid in bacon, and how she and her husband fell in love with Columbus during a visit on ComFest weekend. Hear all of that and more on our first episode of Business Inspires!

How to listen

• Stream Business Inspires via Spreaker
• Subscribe to the Business Inspires podcast on iTunes
• Find us on Google Play
• Listen via YouTube
• Stream on SoundCloud
• Stitcher
• And look for us on your favorite podcast services. We should be there. If we aren’t, let us know!

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Business Inspires Podcast Premier on 1/23/17

The TriVillage Chamber Partnership will premier a new podcast, Business Inspires, on Monday, February 13th. Their first podcast features a conversation with Laura Oldham, Starburst Media. Laura is serving as the current Chairwoman for the TVCP Board of Directors.

To run a successful business, you need resources, valuable connections and community recognition. Business Inspires will provide you with the tools, resources and examples to inspire you to create the business you are envisioning.

With more than 60 years as an integral part of the Grandview, Upper Arlington and Marble Cliff communities, the TriVillage Chamber Partnership is dedicated to a singular purpose — the success of the business community.

We'll also talk with Columbus Food Adventures, thanks to Destination Grandview.

Mark your calendar for next Monday, February 13th and listen in on your iPhone Podcast app, GooglePlay or your favorite podcast player! A promo for the podcast is available now. Subscribe on your smartphone today!

To schedule a guest appearance, or find out more about sponsoring Business Inspires, send an email to michelle@chamberpartnership.org Please take a moment to rate and review our podcast in iTunes. That helps us spread the word about Business Inspires!

Our partnership with North American Broadcasting has made the podcast possible!

Starburst Media

This is business inspires a monthly podcast of the tri Village Chamber partnership to run a successful business you need resources valuable connections and community recognition. Business inspires will provide you with the tools resources and examples to inspire you to create the business you are envisioning. Here's Michelle Wilson executive director of the tri Village Chamber partnership.

Welcome to our first of many. Business inspires podcasts. In this episode we're speaking with Laura Oldham of Starburst media. Laura thank you so much for being our first guest on business inspirers thank you for having me. We want to talk to you today about your decision to start a business move to Columbus all those things that you did a few years back and just be candid. And we just want to hear your real story. So let's start out with a fun question which was what did Laura want to be when she grew up.

That is a funny question because I wanted to be so many different things. I would say probably top 10. I wanted to be a writer an actress a restaurant owner a scientist.

I wanted to be in math. I really enjoyed history and considered psychology. So it's really that's very right brain left brain. It was kind of all over the place it switched every week. So one week I'd be writing 20 page novels next week I would be cooking gourmet grilled cheese for my siblings so it was kind of all over the place.

That's awesome. So how how does some of your childhood dreams tie into what you do today.

Well I was kind of thinking about that a few weeks ago actually. Where did I land. Where I am now which is on the Internet. It's funny because every day I kind of do a little bit of all the things I wanted to do. I write every day not necessarily for Saturday Night Live like I want to do. I get to write sometimes funny for some clients sometimes very serious law firm content but it's all over the place which kind of I mean when I was a kid what I wanted to be was all over the place. So from day to day everything is different. There's really not any predictability which is something that I thrive on as is the constant stress of what might pop up day to day. And that's something that I really like about just having my own small business because I do accounting which I like I was in an accounting club in high school and won statewide Titus's.

So I mean there's the math there's the words there's acting like I like to network because it's such a hard thing for me. It's just a little bit of all the things I always wanted to do.

And Laura you serve as our chamber president so networking is a big part of what the Chamber does when we connect businesses and you do you do do that. And that's great that you can act that way but also that you do. You do a very good job of that and you do help us connect businesses each day. So you touch a little bit on what you do with business. But tell us about Starbursts media.

Sure. So I started starburst media almost seven years ago. I was living in Chicago without any financial responsibilities so it was very easy for me to quit. At the time I was working at two different bars as well as a Internet startup. So it wasn't. It wasn't difficult to kind of throw everything to the side because I didn't have a mortgage or a child or all the things that I have as commitments today and I was very fortunate where my then boyfriend now husband encouraged me to do it and said he would be willing to financially support me during the inevitably hard first few years. But my background was in journalism and advertising copywriting was kind of the jump I took after college and then Digital Marketing working with some Internet startups so I kind of wanted to roll up all of the skills basically that I'd come up with and try to come up with a way to do it for myself that wasn't having to work 80 hour weeks so that I could actually pay my rent in Chicago. So what I started I thought I was going to be just copywriting and social media because that's what I had all the experience in. But every single business that came to me and that I talked to they all wanted help with their websites. Every small business needed even the simplest Web site. So when this was you know seven years ago I started taking classes on Linda and Skillshare and whatever other free or very inexpensive services I could find to learn to e-mail and see is sent a little bit about you know Page P and JavaScript and I'm not an expert necessarily in coding but I know enough that I can get a simple website for small business together pretty quickly and it's evolved a lot since then where I work with a lot you know bigger businesses and more complicated Web sites.

But at the very beginning the whole goal was to be able to help people like my parents both of them own their own small businesses and the big issue that they had was they would want a web site but developers would charge them a ton and not be willing to help them when they need to make small changes. So what I wanted to do was come up with a way to basically empower these small business owners to make changes themselves. So my philosophy has always been to provide tutorials at the end when a website launched so that the small business owner doesn't necessarily need to depend upon someone like me when they have a new employee join their team. So that was kind of how I evolved into doing websites and now day to day. Probably about 80 percent of my time is doing websites and the social media and copywriting is done by my assistant who does a fantastic job of keeping up with that whereas I am really enjoying doing the website work now. So that's what you prefer. It's what too. Yeah exactly. But I still like helping with the social media. But the older and more tired I get a social media posting is a little tough. So what was the very first website you designed it was actually at the bar.

I was working at the time it was for Patti Long's beer and bacon pub in Chicago was a 300 dollar bar trade show. The first website I built I got a lot of bacon and some beer out of it.

Ok great. God bless Pat the owner be willing to let me try and having faith in me. But he was. That was my first big quote unquote big website. And my first ongoing social media client and it was really fun to watch them. They landed on the Travel Channel and the Food Network and all these other places while I was doing the social media and it felt it felt like hey this is you know this is actually helping their business. It was a really cool way to start. And what brought you to Columbus. Well we dug and I realized was we could we had gotten what we wanted to get out of Chicago Basically we weren't going to the museums we weren't going to the beach to play volleyball we were going to the same bar and restaurant down the street ordering in the same Chinese takeout. But we were paying a lot more for a very very small place. And when we got serious about you know we're going to want to fambly at some point. We want to house and if we want to do that in Chicago we're going to need to make millions of dollars more because we weren't we weren't interested necessarily and moving to the Chicago suburbs where it takes two hours to get into the city.

So we did a tour of the Midwest basically and consider different cities like Pittsburgh Louisville since Cincinnati and Cleveland and we came to visit Columbus. It was the first time I'd been here since college which I had in my head what Columbus was and it was you know being drunk and I other streets on campus and we came to Columbus to visit just to see what it was like. And it happened to be Kompass weekend and we fell in love. And we we just what a great energy young city but not necessarily in age but more so.

And the way that the city felt like it's on the verge of really growing into something even more awesome than it already is. So another very irresponsible but gut reaction we got on Craigslist and we found an apartment and we didn't see it before we got it. But it's in the Grand View area. And we rolled up with a U-Haul at about 10:00 on a Tuesday night.

My gosh look at this adorable neighborhood. There's this cute little theater. There is all these restaurants and bars and it was just kind of by dumb luck that we landed in the area after doing some research on LinkedIn and Yelp and we just love the tri Village area.

We moved five and a half years ago and now we have a house in Upper Arlington and we have a yard and a dog and a child and all the things that we knew you know almost a decade ago that we're not going to happen within the city limits of Chicago.

Great. So how did you start your business here. How did you reach out to potential clients and establish yourself.

You know this is going to be the greatest endorsement for the chamber but the first thing I did before I even move indoors away to move to Columbus was I reached out to Michelle and I said I'm a small business owner looking to grow my business and I'm going to be moving. Actually I said I'm going to be moving to Grandview. And we set up our meeting at stops and that was a day or two after we had moved to Columbus. And Michelle told me that we were actually in fifth by Northwest not in Granby. So the Craigslist listing wasn't necessarily completely truthful but that's totally fine where in the grand view area and I met with you and joined the chamber I think the next day started coming to all the luncheons and being very nervous about it but it was honestly the best move I could make as far as. I met so many people who immediately were like oh my gosh you know I've been looking for someone who could help me with my website. You know I have a local restaurant or travel agency or whatever. And it's been wonderful where I've had a chance to work with all these small businesses especially in the tri Village area and I feel like I get to make great connections with these people and actually hopefully make a difference in their business in their day to day lives.

Well I definitely think you do and I think that's the beauty of our area is that. And working with other small business owners is that you get to make these connections and they become friends down the road or they come back to you for more business. And if it's for instance coding or something that is something you might need to farm out then you know we refer these businesses on to other people and we keep all these connections going and it's very beneficial to everybody involved. So tell me what some of the challenges you have been through or faced as a small business owner whether it was just starting out or even currently what are some challenges that you're facing.

I mean I'd say month to month the challenge is change. Obviously the biggest stress is whether I will be able to pay my bills because month month you don't know how much work is going to come in and how many you know computers are going to crash which last year I had two computers that needed to be completely replaced which was no thank goodness I could. But you just don't know what's going to pop up day to day. And be able to pay for child care is real as a real stress when you don't know every two weeks you're going to get this dollar amount check.

I mean that's been a stress from the beginning and I can't imagine any day when it's going to be completely out of the picture. I always have a fear that maybe I just I want my clients to always be happy I want them to feel like they are getting value from my work and that's something that I will probably always second guess myself on. But you know so what I in my office I've surrounded myself with. Thank you cards from clients from the last seven years to try to remind myself that people do appreciate what I'm doing and the time and effort that goes into the work we do for them even if they don't always often think it's been fortunate to have a lot who are very kind and said I was going to ask you how how you persevere when you when you face a challenge and if it sounds like one of your big challenges is self-assurance and so you know you're surrounding yourself with those those notes.

And I'm sure that gets you through moments but was there one really great piece of advice that somebody gave you along the way that really made you want to stick with what you were doing and not to throw in the towel and go find a corporate job that does guarantee a every two week paycheck with benefits.

So when I said I was going to start this.

Everyone said it was a foolish decision and it by all means it was. But Doug stuck by me and said you know this is your best bet because I don't really fit into a perfect job.

From a corporate job. I don't. There's nothing that would be my dream to do day to day. So for me being able to have all these crazy things that pop up is actually something that's good for me. As far as good advice. Just sticking with it and believing in myself is a thing that I strive to do everyday. My office has all these inspirational quotes that I've put up on the wall and some banners and pennants and I just try to keep it as the most positive. I literally switch to a standing desk so I'm always up physically but I would say just trying to stick with it. But you know being realistic. Sure.

How about talking about some of the sacrifices it takes to be a business owner or a small business owner.

So when I first started out and I did not have tons of clients it was a picnic. For me it's like literally living in Chicago. We would going I would say you want to go to the Cubs game today. Sure it's Wednesday afternoon. Why not. Let's walk to Wrigley and that is not my reality anymore. But you know first someone said to you when you work for yourself you can work whatever 16 hours a day you want. And at first I was like oh yeah ha ha. But more and more that is the reality that it's unfortunate that I really like what I do because I'm working most nights and weekends to try to make sure that I'm staying on top of all the requests. But I'd say work life balance is probably the biggest thing that you kind of have to accept you're never going to get exactly right especially once you have kids because there's all these wonderful ideas in your head of how things will look when you have children and you work for yourself. You say oh I'm going to be around so much more and I can work from home instead of having daycare. And the last year and a half of my life has definitely taught me a lot of lessons where there's not going to be a perfect balance but you know except whatever it is at that time and just kind of love it as much as you can.

That's great. So what if anything would you perhaps do differently if you were starting your business today already established in Columbus Ohio and with family and I would have maybe a hundred thousand dollars to back up when it started so I could feel a little bit smarter with the way things went but I don't know.

It's hard to say if I started my business now I'm a very different person in a very different time in my life than I was almost a decade ago where things would have to be a lot more calculated. I would probably be going to classes to make sure that I'm making a well thought out business plan instead of just kind of shooting from the hip. I'm fortunate that things have worked out how they have because on paper things probably shouldn't have because a lot of reckless decisions were made based entirely upon my gut such as moving to Columbus Ohio just because we thought it had a nice vibe like that is a ridiculous but I mean it did work out great.

Yeah yeah. That's fantastic. So I'd like to kind of wrap this up with. How does Laura Oldham define success.

For me I would say success is being able to comfortably pay my bills and feel like I'm making a difference in people's lives that I talk to every day. It means a lot to me when the general tone of emails texts facebook messages and calls from clients because I get all of them constantly when they're positive. I feel like OK this is I'm doing the right thing. This is this good I would say. Just being able to pay my bills and keep clients happy. That's what I would say is my success and you know day to day. Did you define.

Well congratulations and we're so happy to have you. And starburst here in our area and certainly helping a lot of clients and if people wanted to find Starbursts how would they do that.

You can visit my website Starbursts Colombus dot com. It's got a lot of clients on the portfolio from the tri Village area things too. Honestly my involvement with the chamber then Granby Area Chamber now tri Village Chamber has been fantastic for me to be able to find people to work with.

Great thank you so much. We appreciate you joining us on Business inspirers. Thank you.

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