A Piece of Rachel's Story
Meet Rachel! Rachel is a young professional who is taking Chicago, Illinois by storm! Aside from her full time job at a media networking agency, Rachel has designed and created the ideal planner for college students! She is a creative entrepreneur with big dreams. Thank you Rachel for sharing your wisdom with us!
WHAT ARE YOU UP TO RIGHT NOW? ARE YOU IN SCHOOL, WORKING?
During the day, I work for Starcom, a media network agency in Chicago, specifically on the team that handles the media for KraftHeinz Foods. I started here 8 months ago and I absolutely love everything about it.
When I’m not at my “day job,” I’m working on content or products for my online paper goods boutique & blog, Rachel Rosalie Design along with my brother! This is really where I get to let my creative ideas flow. In 2015 I designed a planner that later came to be known as The Collegiate Daybook that organizes activities and classes in college. Today, my brother and I are just about to launch our 3rd edition of The Collegiate Daybook!
YOU ARE CURRENTLY IN CHICAGO - TELL US ALL OF YOUR FAVORITE PARTS OF LIVING THERE! WHERE ARE THE BEST PLACES TO GO?
I’m coming up on my 7th month anniversary of moving to Chicago and I feel like I haven’t even scratched the surface on everything there is to do here! Every week there’s something new to do or explore. One of my favorite things to do is find great views of the Chicago skyline. Whether that be at North Avenue Beach or from the SkyDeck in the Willis Tower. Coming in at a close second are all the fantastic restaurants around every corner, but more specifically the donut shops! Top 3 in the city are: 1. The Doughnut Vault 2. Stan’s Donuts 3. Glazed and Infused. Get them all in one day. Life’s too short. You really can’t go wrong with things to do or run out of places to go! Its fantastic.
IF YOU COULD PLAN YOUR PERFECT DAY FROM MORNING UNTIL NIGHT WHAT WOULD IT ENTAIL?
I’d wake up well rested and enjoy a big cup of coffee on my balcony. (I don’t have a balcony now, but in my perfect day I definitely have one!) After coffee, I’d head out to grab brunch with friends at Zia’s Lago Vista. (Hello $12 unlimited mimosas!) Afterwards, we’d skip on over to take a walk in Lincoln Park and take in that gorgeous skyline! We’d then shoot back downtown where we’d do some window shopping along Oak Street and maybe even pop in Christian Louboutin and see if they’ll let us try on some red-bottoms. At this point we’d probably be hungry again, so we’ll head over to Cindy’s overlooking Millennium Park for a quick bite. We’d finish the day by catching a play at the theatre or a concert in the park, maybe even both!
WHAT ENCOURAGED YOU TO BEGIN THE DEVELOPMENT AND PRODUCTION OF THE COLLEGIATE DAYBOOK?
It was right before my sophomore year of college. I was scouring the web for a new agenda for the upcoming school year and I couldn’t find anything I liked. Planners were either too simple and didn’t have enough room or dedicated towards mothers and sold for $60-$70. So, with only a basic knowledge of design software, I designed a planner! After a lot of trial and error, I had an entire book printed and ready to use for my upcoming school year. Turns out, other students were missing a planner that fit their needs too! I started getting asked about my agenda in classes, passing on campus, and the library and knew that there was a need for my planner. So, with a whole lot of guts and optimism, I went to my brother and together we launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund the first edition of The Collegiate Daybook!
WHAT ARE YOUR TOP FOUR PERSONALITY TRAITS AND WHY
DRIVEN: I think this is what separates me most from others. I didn’t need to make a business. I didn’t have to create a planner. But I did it anyways. I never waited for someone to tell me to do it, I decided I was going to and I did. Simple as that. Sometimes we complicate things that really don’t need to be. You want something? Go and get it.
RESPONSIBLE: I was always the girl in grade school that the teacher would put in charge of things. I held the attendance sheet. I made sure to give the secretary the note from my teacher. I was the reliable one. And thank goodness I learned that trait early on, because without it I couldn’t survive.
EASY GOING: I think there’s a fine line between being easy-going and being a pushover. I will always have an opinion on things, that will never change. But my willingness to alter what I want to do so that I put other’s happiness above mine is rooted in the fact that “Its okay.” That’s literally it. Whatever you wanted to do but now can’t? Its okay. That project that was supposed to end last week that was extended? Its okay. Life will go on. You’ll get to eat at the restaurant you wanted at another time, you’ll be the thimble in Monopoly the next round, you’ll get shotgun the next car ride. Its okay.
ENCOURAGING: This is the trait I’m most proud of and more often than not, the most difficult one to exemplify. I will always be your number one fan. Regardless of if you are about to go skydiving or giving a presentation in front of your boss. I will pump you up, motivate, and inspire you beforehand and be there to congratulate or encourage you afterwards. Life can be pretty scary at times. So I do my best to make it a little less frightening.
HOW HAS YOUR EASY-GOING AND ENCOURAGING PERSONALITY HELPED SHAPE YOU INTO WHO YOU ARE TODAY?
These two traits have really been the foundation of my personality. My optimism and flexibility have enabled me to further myself within my career, create lifelong friendships, and deal with life’s everyday challenges with acceptance, patience, and understanding.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PART OF YOUR WORK WITH RACHEL ROSALIE DESIGN? WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED THE MOST FROM IT?
My favorite aspect is knowing that I’m fulfilling a need for my customers. I think there is a lot of “stuff” in our world and making sure that my planner isn’t just another thing to do, but rather a tool to help accomplish your goals, is a priority of mine. That’s also the outlook I have on the rest of the things I produce within Rachel Rosalie Design. Each product has a purpose and each blog post answers a question or solves a problem. I don’t like to create things just for the sake of creating things. You must be intentional with what you are doing and the rewards will follow.
IT APPEARS THAT YOU DID NOT MISS A SINGLE DETAIL, SO CAN YOU WALK US THROUGH YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE DESIGN OF THE COLLEGIATE DAYBOOK?I
When initially designing The Collegiate Daybook, I asked myself “What do I want in a planner?” Because at that point, it was just me I was designing for! I crafted the perfect page. Its dominated by the hourly breakdown of the day and has ample space to write down all your to-dos. The rest of the page provides the day’s date, an inspirational quote, and a place for extra notes, meetings, and just doodles. Its simple, its sophisticated, and its smart. It just works.
WHAT KEEPS YOU MOTIVATED AND INSPIRED? IS THERE A CERTAIN THING OR PLACE THAT KEEPS YOU GOING?
Do one thing every day that you look forward to. Its that simple. Go shopping. Read a book. Take a walk. Eat a donut. By authentically creating happiness each and every day, you automatically create inspiration within yourself.
WHAT IS ONE PIECE OF ADVICE THAT YOU LIVE BY, OR THAT YOU HAVE GIVEN TO OTHERS?
My hope is to inspire people to live a wide life instead of just a long one; filling it with challenges, passions, and guilty pleasures all along the way.
CHECK OUT MORE FROM RACHEL BELOW!
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