On Doing What Lights You Up
What lights you up?
For the purpose of this article, I’m actually not talking about the big things (although those are important too). I’m talking about the little things that create that spark of joy in your heart.
Maybe you love arranging flowers because there’s something about how the colors, smells, and textures come together in the most lovely way. Maybe you’re a coach and you love seeing that ‘ah-ha!’ moment on people’s faces when they have a break-through conversation with you. Perhaps it’s baking, and loving the puff of flour, the whirring of the mixer, and the smells wafting out of the oven shortly later.
For me, design lights me up. I call myself an extroverted introvert, because while I love being around people, my heart and soul need that peaceful space to just be still, and have the space to simply notice things. I like to notice the way light plays off shapes, and what sort of mood it creates. I love going for walks and noticing what color palettes nature puts together for us. I love taking the time to flip through magazines and notice how fonts, photos, and white space are arranged to create a certain feel.
Hi, I’m Elizabeth, Heipro’s CREATIVE DIRECTOR.
I think the best way I could describe my role as Creative Director of HeiPro is simply:
people + design
Which is perfect, because those are my two favorite things. 🥰
Our clients matter to me so much, because...I love people, and each story behind each business matters to me so very deeply. I love that we get to know each business, the goals they want to accomplish, and develop a relationship with each person we work with.
And then, of course, the design element. Mmmmm yes. This is what lights me up. I collaborate with our stellar design team to create beautiful brands, and strong websites that truly represent our clients, visually. So much of design is interpreting the descriptive words of a client (‘clean’, ‘modern’, ‘sleek’, ‘warm’, ‘moody’, etc.) and developing a visual representation of them. Can something be edgy, bold, and classic at the same time? Why yes, it can, but only through observing the differences between the shapes of font, the tones within a color, or how shapes can convey emotion. It’s truly magical to me, and our team is one of the very best.
Creative director for me = dream job. It lights me up.
HERE’S MY STORY (so far)
I started my own business in July 2017, and honestly went all in. I had a comfortable, actually kinda cool job in downtown Austin at the time, but felt incredibly stuck in a corporate grind. My biggest motivation to start my own business was...honestly? The ability to dictate my own life, time, and financial freedom. I wanted my life and my story to be so much more than it was - I wanted to live fully, and for me I knew that meant jumping - no, leaping out of my comfort zone, and taking a chance on myself. Long story short, I quit my job, gave up my apartment, put all my things in storage, and packed myself, my computer, and my dog into my tiny Honda Civic and...moved back in with my parents so I could afford to start my web design business.
For the following few years, I worked constantly, and most of all, I leaned into my intuition when it came to design, and leaned into learning as much as I could about design principles, web design, and business models.
Alex & I met through a very happy accident on Facebook, and fast forward many many website builds and zoom meetings later, and she invited me to become Co-Owner and Creative Director of HeiPro Digital, which was a huge honor. Now, we are both business partners and the closest of friends, and share many many cups of coffee (and pints of beer, when one of us isn’t expecting, hah!) as we build this company together.
I’m currently designing and directing from Dallas, TX, where I live with my husband and baby girl. We love to adventure to National Parks in our free time, and I can usually be found somewhere outdoors (including poolside, with a margarita when weather permits) dreaming up new designs and outlining new goals.
THE DESIGN SERIES
Below, you’ll find a series of articles by me, for you. It’s a mix of practical (like... ‘What font pairings look good together?’ Or ‘What dimensions do my photos need to be?) and inspirational (like…’The art of noticing’, or ‘The colors of this season’) with the hopes that it will help light you up as well. As of Dec 2020, this is the first installment, so if you don’t see any articles below - stay tuned!
Cheers!
