Brooke Hart is an entrepreneur, strategist and digital marketer. She has owned and worked with a digital agency for the past 12 years, assisting businesses from launch to growth phases. She is also founder of Angel Guard Fashion, designed to empower and protect the global community.
Where did the idea for Angel Guard Fashion come from?
I travel frequently, spending a large amount of time abroad. In one country, I was exposed to a “gang rape culture,” where acts of violence were a daily incident.
While traveling, I was performing music 3xs a week and 5xs a day.
During each performance, the same individual would sit in the front row and listen to the music – all compositions inspired about angels. During the last performance, he began to tell me that the music was transformative – it was helping him to heal from a trauma that happened 20 years ago.
He was engaged to a woman and to prepare for their marriage, he was overseas to work. While he was gone, she went to a Christmas party with friends. She was drugged, brutally raped and killed. He blamed himself for not being available and for no one being informed.
That day, I made a promise to myself and also challenged myself – to use what I could with my gifts to not only assist with healing the traumas of others, but also to find a way in which we could begin to prevent incidents from happening.
What does your typical day look like and how do you make it productive?
I always work in my business first, looking at how to upgrade, finding new opportunities and making sure that everything is in working order. I then go into a set of networking, connecting and making sure all productions are working to deliver Angel Guard Fashion items.
I also think my breaks are as important. I live by an ocean and go there every afternoon, making it a time to gather thoughts, be inspired with creativity and to stay on track. My evenings are filled with creativity for “what’s next” and assessing what I need to do the next day.
How do you bring ideas to life?
I let go. The best way to allow ideas to come into fruition is to allow the creativity to take over and to follow it. It always feels like it goes from a blank canvas to a mess, but in the end, the ideas are irreplaceable.
What’s one trend that excites you?
Women’s empowerment. We are realising more and more how important it is to be treated fairly and to be in our power.
What is one habit of yours that makes you more productive as an entrepreneur?
I listen to myself. When I’m doing too much and start to burn out, I allow myself to stop. When I am creative and inspired, I allow myself to follow those unaccepted roads. Discipline is so important, but it has to be balanced with our needs.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Believe that this is the right path, even if it doesn’t make sense right now.
When I became an entrepreneur, it was opposite of what everyone expected. I jumped in with both feet and didn’t know what I was setting up… but I followed my heart and intuition. The only thing that slowed me down was my own doubt. I didn’t know then that it would lead to all the abundance and joy that it brings to my life everyday and that 10 + years later, I’m living the life that I always dreamed of.
Tell us something that’s true that almost nobody agrees with you on.
It would most likely be related to the expansive nature of the universe. 🙂
As an entrepreneur, what is the one thing you do over and over and recommend everyone else do?
Be disciplined in your goals. When I progress the most, I set 90 day goals, I break them up into daily tasks and at the end of both 45 and 90 days, I assess what worked and what didn’t. If I didn’t follow this process, I could not have launched and grown.
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business?
Adjusting and changing. I believe assessment is essential and it is designed to help us to grow. When I first started Angel Guard Fashion, I received a lot of negative feedback. So I took it, transmuted it and identified what I could do to stop that response. Every time I see that there is a different wave / trend or that I need to change something, I open the doorway to do that. It doesn’t change my business or what it stands for, but allows me to reach more individuals who are looking for this product.
What is one failure you had as an entrepreneur, and how did you overcome it?
My initial Angel Guard Fashion launch was a failure. I was going to work with an advisor / investor and was pitching to raise money to launch. Everyone backed out – changing conditions to “we’ll help you after you have $1 million.” I put so much energy into investment that I didn’t launch the business.
I learned that the best person to believe in what I was doing was myself. I turned around and re-built what I was creating, finding a way to work independently and make sure that what I did launched and grew without the external attachments.
What is one business idea that you’re willing to give away to our readers?
I’ve always wanted to start an online TV show based solely on positive inspiration.
What is the best $100 you recently spent? What and why?
I recently spent $100 + on giveaway prizes to Cosmopolitan readers.
What is one piece of software or a web service that helps you be productive?
Spotify is excellent for motivational music to get me going and to place me in a zone of creative productivity.
What is the one book that you recommend our community should read and why?
Never Split the Difference: How to Negotiate Like Your Life Depended on It. I’m recently reading the book so it is on my mind. I also think that the tough negotiators are the ones that build faster. We can all use this as a skill set to at least understand what works when it comes to negotiation.
What is your favorite quote?
There is no path to peace. The path is peace. Thich Nhat Hanh
Key Learnings:
- Allow yourself to be creative and to let go. The best ideas transmute from a blank canvas.
- Discipline is important, but so is letting go. You come first and burn out never serves.
- Be disciplined with your goals. Set short and long term goals and hold yourself accountable for reaching them.
- Know when and how to adjust and change your business so you can reach more individuals.
- Believe in yourself, your vision and your journey. It is the only way you will truly achieve your goals.
Connect:
www.angelguardfashion.com
www.brookehartconsulting.com
www.instagram.com/angelguardfashion
www.linkedin.com/in/brookehart
Steve (Stefan) Junge hails from Germany and helps with the day-to-day publishing of interviews on IdeaMensch. While he and Mario don’t share a favorite soccer club, their enthusiasm to help entrepreneurs is a shared passion.