Whats Up Creative Hustlers! Steven & Melissa Here.
Today we’ll be talking with Zoë Björnson, product marketing manager for about.me — she’s a world traveler, side hustle evangelist, and a badass global networker.
—
[00:00] Want the secret to a great brand? Click here!
[01:53] Why Zoë is a badass #CreativeHustler!
[02:23] Zoë just completed a RemoteYear.
[02:50]”] Zoë wants to introduce you to the world of cheese!
[03:23] What about.me is all about!
[04:47] Steven has been an about.me user since 2012.
[05:40] Melissa didn’t really use about.me until recently, but it took her only 2 minutes!
[06:45] about.me is the beginning of a “Choose Your Own Adventure” book.
[07:07] Goldfish’s Choose Your Own Adventure
[07:54] How RemoteYear works & why Zoë chose it!
[10:50] Getting accepted to RemoteYear
[11:35] Traveling gives Marketers empathy.
[11:55] The locations Zoë went to, and the top city she went to.
[12:40] Sometimes it’s about the month, not the location.
[13:55] Croatia was a great month and a great trip.
[14:47] 12 different cities allows you to know what cities you may want to LIVE in.
[15:00] Sometimes it is better to immerse yourself in a place, instead of visiting many places quickly.
[16:00] Teddy Roosevelt believed in slow travel.
[17:05] Traveling & RemoteYear helped Zoë develop a stronger sense of self-confidence.
[19:00] You can introduce yourself how you WANT during RemoteYear.
[19:49] Getting the opportunity to make a new first impression!
[20:00] Your 20s is spent figuring out who you are, what you want, and your purpose. Zoë is ahead of the game.
[21:00] You don’t have to figure out what it is you’re gonna do, but that you CAN do it!
[21:30] RemoteYear is three pieces: the travel, the relationships, and the work.
[22:00] The work was the one of the hardest issues for Zoë.
[22:50] A challenge to form such close relationships so quickly in a very unpredictable program.
[23:55] People leave in life, people come and go and sometimes shit still happens.
[24:15] Saying goodbye to people you love is tough.
[25:36] Zoë is excited by products that talk to people, and user experience in products.
[26:30] Zoë wants to create things that are a joy to use.
[27:15] Even pop-ups on websites should tell you, “Hell yeah!”
[27:45] The customer wants to know your thought process, and be more personal.
[28:15] Brands who look at it from a transactional perspective will not be successful.
[29:00] We want to buy from people we trust.
[30:10] Seth Godin comes up again – gotta read The Tribes
[30:50] You would think at this point in life we’d come up with a better system then putting a sticker on fruit with a number on it.
[31:23] Zoë is a generalist – she likes to have all the pieces of the pie.
[32:30] Zoë is ready to move into specialized realm, User Experience design!
[33:13] UEx design is where Zoë is meant to go next.
[33:35] All the levels of UEx design.
[35:00] Zoë didn’t have an interested in UEx until after her RemoteYear.
[35:45] Going from Social Media to Product Development showed Zoë about the experience.
[36:25] Zoë created a “Mad Lib” tool for helping people write their about.me bio.
[37:50] Getting to work with diverse people helps you recognize new interests.
[39:12] Mobile is where it is at for user experience.
[40:13] For about.me, they have users, but their users ALSO have users!
[40:55] Freelancers today don’t need a fancy website anymore.
[41:40] People are going to quit you if it’s too much
[42:05] Zoë would grab a drink with her grandmother.
[43:05] Zoë’s grandmother made her own “lazy susan” to use her kitchen space.
[44:30] Zoë has the unique answer in #CreativeHustler history.
[42:34] When you see & use more of services in different places, you can relate to it more.
[46:45] Traveling and experiences enrich your social library.
[47:24] BBQ are very big is Argentina – how many cultures have a BBQ culture?
[48:00] You are able to see so much with travel. You can compare themes in all cultures.
[48:45] You are never too young to write your eulogy.
[49:05] Enrich your own personal library. So many indexes to pull from in your brain & experiences.
[49:44] Having extra resources from travel gives you the stuff to draw from in creating new things.
[50:26] Where to find Zoë on the internet.
[51:20] Leave us a review!
[51:33] Melissa’s Moment of Hustle
Contact Zoë Björnson: