101010 Project: Me, Stephanie Guimond, on Business Mentors

Today is the last answer post for the 101010 Project (or in this particular case, 8-8-8) and I'm featuring yours truly! Mais oui, today I answer my own question on business mentors. Read on...

Business name: Stephanie Guimond - Artist, visionary, avid left-brainer

Etsy shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/strawbalestudio

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StephanieGuimond.Artist.Visionary.LeftBrainer

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/s_guimond

Artist profile: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTUIcky8uOU

Years in business: less than 1

Bio:

I'm Stephanie Guimond, artist, visionary and avid left-brainer. I paint, I dream big and I love spreadsheets.

In 2008 I picked up a paint brush for the first time since kindergarten and haven't put it down since. My art, like myself, varies in style and personality; the most common theme is visibly the feminine, but I'm always exploring...

Working with materials like acrylics, paper, pastels and ink, I'm drawn to an intuitive and fluid approach to painting where images appear organically before being polished into a finished product. Because of this intuitive nature, pieces are heavily influenced by what I'm living the week, the day or the moment they are created. They reflect a personal story that in an odd way infuses them with a universal quality.

I share my home with hubby and Cassie, our Golden Retriever. I left my 9-5 job last fall to try something different, and spend most of my days creating art and other paid work that supports the life I want to create overall. I am grateful for the opportunity.

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QUESTION: Do you have a business mentor? What value does that offer to your experiences as a business owner?

My ANSWER:

I don't have a business mentor in the traditional sense where two people have a formal mentor/mentee relationship. I have identified individuals I admire for either their creative or business endeavours or both, who serve as role models and show me what's possible. I call them my possibility tracks. I guess you could say it's mentorship via observation and study.

In addition to my possibility tracks I converse with other businesswomen regularly either online or in person to exchange goals, ideas, challenges and support. I am tremendously grateful for these circles of kindred spirits. I guess you could say it's mentorship via group sharing.

I think I would enjoy the connection that comes by apprenticing with someone who's been through many of the joys and challenges I'm currently navigating, but in the absence of that relationship, there is no lack of ways to learn and be inspired. Learning and inspiration are always of value no matter what form they take.

Current projects: a new Website, growing my business with a new left-brain offering called Get Clear, Get Moving (coming soon!), learning to balance it all in my own way

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For more information on the 101010 Project, the complete list of questions and the women hosting them, check out the 101010 Website. 

(Note: Due to life's unexpected twists & turns, this session of the 101010 Project features eight participants instead of the intended 10.)