“It started as a dream: build a design studio whose sole focus, passion and specialty is the art and craft of storytelling. Now the dream is real…”
This is how Jessica Smith, designer at Storykraft Kreative, recounts the early months of SKK these days. It’s a kind of thank you, a gesture of gratitude, for the success that SKK has experienced since its inception in October of last year. “I have THE best job in the world, period, ” the dimimuitive redhead goes on to say. “My job lets me tap my skills, experience and creativity to develop solutions for some of the most awesome folks.”
Aside from running SKK, Jessica, a 31 year old freelance graphic designer, also serves as a fulltime live-in caregiver for her two parents, a role which she has been filling for the past two years and which isn’t all that uncommon amidst small business owners in the craft and indie small business community. “I’ve met a lot of folks in situations similar to mine, whether taking care of children and families while working to run their businesses or people who, like me, are taking care of older family members. It actually helps a great deal indeed to know that I am not even remotely alone in my pursuits. My priority is with my family, but I see absolutely no reason not to pursue my passions and my interests in a way that helps to keep that part of me alive, intact, healthy and constantly growing, and at the same time, provides another way for me to not only take care of myself, but help take care of them as well.”
Creativity and inspiration are both very quintessential cornerstones in Jessica’s life, whether she is creating design solutions for her clients, writing and refining articles, site content and press releases, helping develop businesses, products and services for other entrepreneurs, putting together experimental marketing campaigns for both herself and her clientelle or just stealing away with a camera to grab a few new snapshots of people, places and still life studies for the fun of it. “As I’ve gotten older, I’m come to realize that I cannot hide from my incessant need to create. I start to wilt, to lose myself. It doesn’t really matter in what capacity I’m creating. I’m just as happy with the more real-world practical projects; event planning, organization, marketing, scheduling; as I am with the most abstract, more artistic endeavors. I just can’t successfully thrive in a role that leaves no room for me to create something.
And where does she get her inspiration to create? “Oh, God. Everywhere. I go crazy about the smallest things. I love an artful turn of phrase, a rejuvenating color palette, a crazy, clever idea. The walls around my desk are starting to get covered with clippings of various designs, articles, phrases, patterns and, my very favorite inspiration in the world, little thank you notes I’ve gotten in the mail from clients. I love those so much it’s downright sappy.”
“I’m almost ashamed to admit it, but I’m a huge audiobook addict. I love being able to listen to books while working on projects. I don’t see it as a lazy, spoiled-rotten outcome of my lifestyle. I see it as my refusing to deprive myself of the hundreds of books I dearly want to “read” just because I don’t have enough time to spend all day curled up in a chair reading them. I have way too many things I want to read about to waste time fretting about not having enough time. Actually, maybe that does make me lazy,” Jessica adds with a slight grin.
And what books does she listen to? “Right now, I’m listening to Eat, Pray, Love for the fiftieth freaking time. I can’t help it. I love that book so much it’s shameful. I also like to listen to books by Guy Finley and Mike Dooley. Abraham-Hicks is also one of my favorite authors, as is Neale Donald Walsch.” And for fiction? “Oh, man. I have a guilty pleasure. I love Kim Harrison. My favorite book, though, is actually one that absolutely has to be read in order to be understood. Yes, go figure. My fav book is “House of Leaves” by Mark Z. Danielewski. I love his book, “Only Revolutions” as well. The former is a pure mindtrip. The latter is pure music.”
Storykraft Kreative is currently nesting quite comfortably in its rapidly growing online home. It offers a variety of business development, product and services research and development, web design, graphic design, copy writing and editing, branding, marketing and public relations development, social media campaign development, and a variety of consultative services related to creating and maintaining a truly successful “rockstar” business. “Sometimes small business owners don’t realize that the story behind their business, especially in an overly saturated market and in a high stimulus global environment, is every bit as important to their success as their products and services. Sometimes they may not even be aware that they have a story to tell. That’s where I come in. My job is to uncover their story, unleash the power of that story and make it accessible so they can actually build more than a way to make a living. They can have it all.
…They can have a life.“