VAL LOW - Map It Master

Hi, I'm Tammy Gross, the Scriptprenuer. Welcome to Reel Life Stories where difference makers come to share their Hollywood worthy transformation stories. I love interviewing people who faced a mountain, overcome it the hard way, and figured out a solution to help the rest of us conquer that same mountain. Because when we share our stories, we change lives.

All right, so we have a really special guest who's with us today. I love talking to her the very first time we talked, we decided we've got to be friends. And, and you know how time kind of sets in and everything so I have some catching up to do. And while I catch up with her, I thought I'd let you kind of listen. So this is Val Low, she is the Mapit master. And she's a brand strategist as well, she takes entrepreneurs to their next level of growth and impact through visual business mapping. Val works with entrepreneurs to take their business ideas out of their head, and put them on paper in colorful icons, and images to bring their plans to life. Love the visual of that. And they'll also provide strategy on creating a message and brand to stand out in a noisy marketplace. And who does that mean that I think we all need that. So welcome, Val, I'm so glad you could join us.

Oh, Tammy, I'm so excited to be here. Thank you for inviting me.

Oh that so excellent. Well, you know, you have a lot of things that kind of got you started, I think and from From what I recall that you had small children in the house. And you had to do a lot of a lot of organizing of things. And somehow that popped into something bigger. But I want to let you take us to wherever you feel like is kind of your starting point of where you realized it was kind of a problem that needed a solution. And I have a feeling there was probably a mountain somewhere in there to climb as I talk about a lot on this podcast, and take us to wherever you were they can be a dark place or a light place. It doesn't matter. It's your story. So Where Where were you in your life when you realize that there was a problem that kind of needed some some solving? If not for yourself than maybe for others?

Well, you know, that story goes right back to where I started into business. Because I like getting getting said I have small children small place all this stuff, how do I keep it organized. And I found that people were actually doing organizing as a professional. Wow, really. And then I found out, I'm really good at the organizing piece like taking stuff and push up pulling it and putting it into a great place. I call it my superpower now because it's just what I do. And so when I started a business about that I found out I like business. I was organizing entrepreneurs in their offices, I go into place up to disaster and I go, Oh my goodness, look what we can do here. And here. By the end of the day, they'd be standing up tall or smiling, going, huh? Because their office was now a serene, calm, organized place they can work in, which is fantastic. I love that. But they didn't often stay there. I went down that path of how do I keep entrepreneurs organized? How do I help them to you know, navigate through business. And so I went down the path of productivity efficiency mindset, got some coaching certifications, financial background, and just all these pieces that came together when I was coaching entrepreneurs in that realm a little bit. But the next mountain came when I found myself raising teenage boys.

Oh, I'm sure that that was a nice challenge.

Oh my goodness, I can go on and on and on about stories about that. Yes, totally. And so I found myself in this place with these beings that were bigger than me now and all that happened. And I'm just a little story here. They love to throw me over their shoulder carry me around it was just come on you guys like a break. Love that. Yeah, but so when that happened that I really needed to really dive into being an entrepreneur because I needed to be flexible for them and they you know, all this stuff going on driving boys and dogs and bikes and four wheelers and everything all over the place. So I needed that flexibility. So really dived into business then and yeah, I was doing the organizing and then the coaching. I've got a long way down the road. I felt like there was something a little bit missing with this piece of the puzzle and you know doing okay, but I heard this bring your creativity and your business because I'm so creative like I can go anywhere with my creativity. You know, when crafting or woodwork or music or whatever, I'm really creative. And so I did, I brought doodling into my business, I laughed. When I took this doodling class, I laughed a lot that it was doing it for business because you know, really doesn't fit, right. But it totally fit for me, I love it. It gives me that, that creativity. And it helps me to bring in a place of strategy for entrepreneurs, because that's a piece that I really like to go to, let's get clear on what you want to do. And then we can help you get out there and make a bigger impact of bigger revenue. So that's the piece that really has just been very eye opening for me very exciting, because now I'm doing stuff that exciting, I can bring all that coaching in, and the actual, I call it visual business mapping. I like that that's Yep. So we're, you've mentioned already that I take the ideas of entrepreneurs on the head, because we have lots of tons of them, bring those ideas into one piece of paper, get focused on that one or two things and then move forward in your business so that you can make that impact. And that is just really where I've gone lately is there. And it's just so exciting, because now the whole map it is taking me in a new direction I can can take people through their strategy, their clarity, their mapping, and then we can get into the messaging and the branding and getting them online, if they need to be online as well. That whole package is really exciting. And I think one of the other pieces you and I were just talking about is bringing more of that creativity into my life, I kind of veered off a couple days a week, I'm really loaded out here. I'm working on a construction site.

I love that I do want to know a little bit more about that. Because you know, creativity is so important. But what is so cool about you is that you found a way to marry creativity and productivity in a way that a lot of us creatives, because I'm creative. Believe me, I'm i I'm off the charts that way. And and I've always struggled with, you know, being organized, planning things out and sticking to it and that kind of thing. And it sounds like you've also found this as an outlet for yourself. But I want to know more, just tell me more about about what you're doing with this construction site, because

you had mentioned that in addition to a building, and it's just everything, like from sign to hammer to hauling big, we just put in five, six, about eight windows like great big windows just this last couple days. So it's a lot of heavy lifting, and, you know, finessing and putting things in. But it's beating, I'm going to call it feeding my soul because it's the stuff that I'm just really meant to do. Right? And then I get home at night and I go, Oh, I gotta get into my Mapit gets I got this other piece with a map and the map book that I'm that I'm writing. And it's just giving me fuel. Like, I mean, oh, it's just so nice to have that fuel. When you hear people say I love what I do, I used to go, what's that? Like? What do you eat? What's that like, and now I know, because it just feels you just gives you that feeling of your soul, you're doing what you're meant to do. And then you get out there and do it. And it's just, it's exciting, you get more energy and more inspiration. And that's what's happening.

I love that. I mean, I really do. Because again, you're you're kind of practicing what you're preaching now, by by adding something into your world that is different, but you're not letting it completely remove you. Because this is what this is what I as a creative and a lot of other people end up doing, you know, writers really have this problem where it's like, we want to focus on our one thing, and we want to just like put the rest of the world aside so that we can just, you know, go with our creative binges that we want to do. And and that's when we get disorganized, that's when we you know, lose sight of of important things. And like in my case, or anybody's case, who's doing a business, you know, when you're doing a business, you want to stay on brand. And yet you have these creative impulses that take you into other places. And here you are, you're not only doing that, but you're doing it under control. It sounds like you know, I mean, have you had challenges with that a little bit Have you been able to? I mean, I assume that you're kind of using your own methods in order to kind of stay on track.

Today, right. And it's interesting too, that because I'm doing more of what I call my soul work. It's falling into place like it's just automatic. I go, Okay, I need to get this done. And I get it done. This is amazing. Because back in the olden days when I was going, oh my what's missing here? I was dragging myself through but no, like, you know, you're getting in that flow when I just really encourage anyone that's listening, just get in the boat. You really create it to do and do that. I mean, that might have to be a side thing because you're, you know, you have to take care of business or your family. But do what you need to, to pull in those pieces that just feel you and fire you because it's, it's so important, and it's so rewarding.

Well, you know, I think that is, is so important. Because I do have a lot of listeners who are on the creative side, I mean, I have a lot of listeners who are that we, we run the gamut, there's no, there's no doubt. But for those of us who are in that, it just sounds like you're the kind of person that we would want to work with. Because now you get you totally get us, you get the fact that we're creative. And we we, it feeds our soul to do these things. And yet, it's very hard. For many of us, not all of us, some of us, you know, found a balance somewhere along the line. But I think the majority struggle with finding balance, even if you're not like somebody that would consider yourself all that creative, if you're running a business you are, you're creative. And you are and you are having to sometimes you create things out of thin air, right as a product, you know, it happens all the time. And, and having somebody like you kind of help to guide us and to stay on track. I think that's really cool. And, and I love that that's how you're showing up in the world for others as well as for yourself. So kudos to you, because a lot of kids can't always claim that. And I don't want to rip up too quickly. Because I also want to make sure that the people know that there is a way that they can work with you. And that you even have something that kind of speaks to exactly what we've been talking about your planner page, can you tell us something about that?

Yeah, my whole methodology is wrapped around a planner that I created for myself a calendar, planner, actual physical book. And I created that for myself and my, some of my clients are using it as well. But what I've done is I've distilled all of that into one page, so that you're looking at your big goal over the year, the few things you can do that day is going to get you that goal. And it's got, you know, quite a few pieces, I think key pieces to keep you on track for the day. So it's just one page planner. And more than willing to

one page is such a you know, it's like because we we just, you know, we fill our lives so full sometimes these days that it's like, yeah, one page, I can handle one page, don't send me a whole huge book right now, you know, right now, I just want to get into your world and figure out how you think and how you can help me and everything. So I love the idea of this planner page, we will put a link to it in the show notes, we'll make sure that everybody can get it who's listening. And I know you're also working on a workbook on the app at workbook that you know that that you know, by the time this airs, you may have already finished that. And people can always inquire about that as well. So I love that you have these things for everybody. So we will put all that information into the show notes. And, and we're pretty much running out of time. But before we go I you know, you've kind of already been sort of talking about it a little bit. But I'm really curious to know if you have kind of a twist on the answer. But up to you. But I have my final question that I always ask everybody. And that is if money were not an issue, how would you live out your legacy?

Yes, oh, my goodness. I mean, I could go on for an hour and this, I have such huge, huge, huge ideas of a legacy that I want to live, which would involves a whole lot of money. And just getting out there and making impact in the world like just, you know, working with people like I do already, but in a bigger scale. And leaving that for my family that, you know, I got out there and I played and I played well.

Yes, you did. That's perfect. Because we do want to make sure that we're living out the legacy that we're not just saving it for the future only that it's happening now. So I don't know do you have to I have all sorts of things that are distracting me here today, I have everything on silent. And yet it's finding a way to make itself heard. My electronics are out of control. I think I need a planner. I think I think I've just shown what a creative life can be like when it's out of control. I have a ding here and then everything there and then I have an alarm over there. Oh my goodness, it's crazy. But I want to give you a chance to you know, leave us with a final word. I want you to have the last word and let us know you know, like what final thoughts that we might have, as we continue in our day or a monitor that you have anything you want to leave us with. It's all up to you.

Well from today, yes, definitely map out. Go ahead and map out or connect with me about mapping out your vision, your ideas, your funnels, whatever it happens to be, but go out there and make an impact on the world with the way you create it to be like get out there and do that and bring yourselves bigger into the world because we need we need you we need you to be out there working with us and and sharing with us and being bigger presence in the world because our world except so please do that.

Oh, I love it. Thank you so much, Val.