come on baby light your fire
By annemarie on January 13, 2010 | Filed Under faces & places
Here’s the full q&a of our conversation with Danielle LaPorte of whitehottruth.com from a recent Mamas Rock profile. Danielle has such a way with words we just had to reprint it in full!
What inspired White Hot Truth?
A burning, almost obsessive desire to inspire self realization – in myself and others, and to have a great lifestyle as part of that.
What gave you the confidence to take it from idea to reality?
It was a combination of: lived experience and acumen (read; I’ve been around the block a few times, have a few feathers in my media cap, kissed a few frogs…) survival – not being a Trust-fund baby or a kept woman, earning a living is a very good thing; and sheer creative desire – must make stuff that matters. Must.
What did you do before you had kids, and what of that did you bring to White Hot Truth?
When I had my son, who is just about to turn six, I had one of those fierce-but-tender epiphanic moments while I was staring at him in my arms (I think it was before the sleep deprivation kicked in.) If I was going to teach him to live his live in integrity, in full colour, I needed to up my own game. I needed to be a shining example of artful living. Because of my kid, I devoted myself to my art – fully and finally. All the noise and distractions were tuned out. And there’s been no looking back from that. No shrinking.
Do you run your business from home, or do you have an office?
I’m sitting in my home office right now, (which I prefer to call my “studio” because it sounds more artsy and free,) in my Uggs, with a honey beeswax candle burning and some Madam Butterfly cranked. And lot’s of white space. I have a Virtual Assistant in a small town in Ontario, am just about to hook up with some VAs in India, and most of my clients are in the US. It’s my own little global hive from East Van. Batman toys included – reluctantly.
Do you miss anything about office life?
Yes! I miss being able to yell down the hall to my tech guy, “Help! I broke it!” I miss my assistant who answered the phone, went to get burritos, and opened the mail. But…working at home is a hundred times better, on the whole. Being an introverted, controlling, Lone Ranger, Creative-type, it’s really the only way to go.
How do you organize your workday? What kind of childcare arrangements do you have in place?
The monkey boy is in full time Kindergarten. I bike with him to school in the morning, (file this under “Things I’d never thought I’d do until I had a kid”: cycle in the rain before 9am.) And if I can get my ass motivated, I do a few laps around the lake before I come home and kick it into gear. I take my first client, or start writing, by 9:30am. And I am FOCUSED. I’m a fan of the 4 Hour Work Week, and The Entrepreneurial Time Management System.
Some days I pick up monkey boy at 3pm and we just party on ’til bed time. Other days, my hunky hubby gets him. On those days, I stay locked in my studio until about 6pm and come out when I smell dinner cooking. Fortunately, that happens often.
What are the rewards?
The rewards? Of Creative Sovereignty? Of living on my own terms, calling the shots, making great money while making a difference in people’s lives? Collaborating with amazing people who want to do good stuff? Infinite. Freedom is priceless. (And guess what? Everyone is free. Freedom is not something you need to earn. Just claim it, be it.)
Do you have a tip for other entrepreneurial mamas?
I tell my Fire Starter clients this all of the time: keep it pointed to where you want it to go. Make sure today is leading to your ideal tomorrow, not away from it. I could write for days about entrepreneurial power. Oh wait – I DO write for days about entrepreneurial empowerment. Here’s some wisdom to go:
- the psychedelics of strategic planning
- 3 keys to un-branding…and why I changed my twitter name
- hot advice for anyone with a website, blog, business, career or j-o-b. yep, I’m talkin’ to you
- 4 questions to shine light on your vocation
- stop doing list: part 2 whereby i dictate what to stop
photo credit: Anastasia Chomlack Photography
I’m glad you printed the whole interview. I’ve just ‘discovered’ Danielle myself, and she is fabulous and so, so inspiring.
so glad to see this. i too have recently found danielle and thinks she is so wonderfully inspiring. thanks!
Thanks so much for sharing this. I have had the honor of working with Danielle all the way back in the Carrie & Danielle days and I’ve loved her ever since. These reminders are wonderful. Your dedication to living for real is such a gift, Danielle.
[...] a full q&a of our conversation with Danielle visit our yoyo diaries blog, she’s one wordsmith of a [...]
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LaPorte’s words and energy sometimes leave me thinking on a subconscious level, opening up ideas that didn’t exactly make it round the bend,,, at times speechless because its overwhelmingly profound. She is truly a beacon of light in dark economic times.