Meaningful work is really important to me.
I took a
little trip.
In 2020 I walked away from a job I really loved, where I worked with people I really loved. At the time this decision didn’t make much sense, but I knew that something was missing and I had to figure out what it was. So I’ve spent the last 5 years away from social media and the grind to solve the mystery and explore the possibilities. This rich experience has had a profound effect on me. I am more insightful, more imaginative, more creative and more compassionate.
I’m coming out of it with real excitement to use what I have learned on this adventure and all of the adventures that came before it.
A little more about my career past and present, below.
25 + years of Creative Experience
I started my creative career in the art department on film sets, but quickly fell in love with the slower, more artful pace of still photography. I spent several years working as a food and prop stylist, art director, and eventually an editorial photographer. Along the way, I worked with many brands like Target, Nordstrom and Starbucks. Just as my photography career was picking up, ban.do, a small hair accessory business I had started with a friend began to take off. Eventually I had to choose between the two, so I decided to focus my energy on ban.do.
After selling it in its fourth year, I stayed on as Creative Director and later as Chief Creative Officer. Over the next 8 years, we grew it into a beloved multi-million dollar lifestyle brand, giving me a chance to use all of the skills I had picked up along the way.
Mental Health Advocacy
After decades of navigating my own mental health challenges and witnessing friends, loved ones, and co-workers struggle as well, I began to direct my energy toward advocating for greater awareness and understanding of the subject.
At ban.do, we used our social platforms to start these conversations, and I began taking on speaking opportunities both online and in person. I’m most proud of the work we did with Bring Change to Mind, an organization dedicated to ending the stigma around mental illness. Among other things, we partnered with them on a line of necklaces promoting mental health and raised over $150,000 for the cause. In 2019, I launched Jen Gotch is OK... Sometimes, an autobiographical podcast dedicated to humanizing mental health struggles. The following year, my book on the subject, The Upside of Being Down, was published by Simon & Schuster and became a New York Times bestseller.
Hype Calls
As a highly sensitive, creative person, I’ve come to deeply understand the power of having someone outside your circle believe in you. That kind of encouragement can be everything, and Hype Calls are just that. In these one-on-one conversations, I offer support and clarity while hyping you up in the process. Part pep talk, part strategy session, I bring real experience and genuine enthusiasm.
These calls are especially great for Artists, Creatives, and Entrepreneurs launching something new, reshaping something old, or simply ready to shake things up. If you’re feeling stuck, stressed out, or sitting on an idea you haven’t said out loud yet, let’s catch up.
More information over this way.
Creative Consulting
I love to work as much as I love to play, and the best projects have a mix of both. With over two decades of creative experience, including founding and growing ban.do into a multi-million dollar lifestyle brand, I bring deep knowledge in ideation, strategy and storytelling. I’ve led creative direction, developed product lines and connected meaning to aesthetics and marketing in ways that move people. I bring my heart and mind to everything I do.
Now I love partnering with others who are creating something of their own, whether it’s building a brand, shaping a story or dreaming up something new. I especially enjoy working with small groups and individuals to help unlock imagination and expand creative freedom.
Feel free to send me an email for more info.
I’d be genuinely excited to connect.
The Islands
The Islands is an art project, a science project, and a collaborative concept of infinite possibility.
Bri Emery and I created it to guide others back to what they may have lost: wonder, safety, regulation, and freedom. It is a map of our minds, our dreams, our visions and most importantly, our imagination.
It reflects a world we have built over years through daily personal exploration, using somatic experiencing, process-driven art, and modern tools like VR and AI. It’s a place we hope to grow and share with aligned partners. Especially those who are passionate and curious about how creativity and imagination can positively influence the brain and body.
You can learn a bit more about our partnership, Spider Spider, right here.