At the start of Q2, I set one clear intention: slow down.
Q1 nearly broke me- in the best possible way. I was juggling more than I ever thought I could handle, personally and professionally, at the same time. I came out the other side genuinely shocked by how much I’m capable of. I learned that I have an immense amount of capacity. But I also came out knowing that capacity without direction is just chaos with a to-do list. So this quarter, I made a conscious decision to unfold with purpose instead of sprinting with panic- even if that meant some things moved slower than I wanted them to.
The two themes for Q2 were brand promotion and stability. Here’s how that actually went.
Showing Up With Intention, not expectation.
This quarter was my first quarter with a website, so it was time to start properly promoting what we do! I still can’t believe so many clients trusted me with merely a 15 page slide deck and no other assets.
To start off, I got the chance to speak on the Vanex panel, an association of business executives- on how to brand yourself in 2026. I was invited to speak at this event from a speed networking round at Buildex. I met someone for 2 minutes, we hit it off, and I got the email the next morning. This goes to show that you are one connection away from your next big break! Standing in front of that room, four months into running my own company, owning that conversation? I didn’t take that lightly for a single second.
On the event & media side, we collaborated with Edit Studios, Fusion Projects and NAIOP to co-produce an AI media piece for the NAIOP/CREA Gala. It was a comedic take on the very real, very painful hardships hitting the development industry right now. I also had the honour of passing on the NAIOP Developing Leaders Award to two deserving winners on stage, representing Spaces Uncovered for the first time. That one genuinely hit different. I received that award years ago and passing it on, under my own company name, felt like a full circle I didn’t see coming.
We partnered with Colliers, Serein Properties and the VGH Gala to produce another AI video- this time for a room of 400 guests, made by our very talented AI Media Producer (and my brother!!). The brief was to transport the entire room to Barcelona and tell the story of a Michelin star chef who flies to Vancouver to cook for the gala. It opened the night-he absolutely crushed it. And with VGH’s fundraising focused on AI automation, it tied together in a way that felt intentional from every angle. This is exactly the kind of unconventional, story-first work that our collective loves to take on.
I also finally launched my monthly newsletter through HubSpot, built out four new services pages — Uncover, Build, Amplify, Automate — and created the first version of our brand swag. That last one might sound like a small vanity project, but I’ve genuinely always dreamed of building a brand people actually want to wear. Not as a logo flex. As an identity. I think about brands like Lululemon and Arc’teryx — B2C companies that turned clothing into belonging. I want to do that in B2B. The swag is for the people in our industry who refuse ordinary. The ones quietly pushing boundaries and looking for others doing the same. If it repels the wrong people, honestly- good. That’s the point.
The Work That Reminded Me Why I Burned the Comfortable Life Down
The client work this quarter reminded me what we’re actually here to do. We believe every company already has a great story inside them. Our job is to pull it out and help them say it with confidence.
We uncovered and crafted brand stories for Hudson Sales, KEL Lighting and Procurement, and Matra Construction. After the story, comes the design… the documents and digital presence that carry it into the world. We rebranded Matra’s collateral and I’m told it’s already contributed to some meaningful project wins. That’s the part that makes this feel real.
We’re now deep in brand positioning and awareness work for Mirage Floors across the BC market — AI media production, on-site videography, website development and sales strategy all at once. Their journey is just getting started and I think you’re going to want to follow it.
And then there’s North Development — a luxury developer out of Miami that came together organically through existing relationships, quickly and naturally the way the best ones always do. We’re building AI promotional videos for their newest wellness building launch. Stunning project and inspiring company. More on that soon.
I’ll be honest, I’ve also been spending a lot of time meeting with developers across the board, (one of my 4 customer segments) trying to expand into investment sales and real estate project launches. One of my offerings is to help companies uncover their story and make it sell. The other offering is helping developers uncover the story behind their buildings and make it sell before breaking ground. Everyone keeps pointing me toward where the traction already is and advising to run with those segments and they’re not wrong — companies outside of development are responding quicker. With developers I have to have some luck with the timing of their projects, especially since many projects are currently on pause or cancelled due to this downturn. But real estate marketing and repositioning is where my passion is.. and I also believe its the area of the industry that needs the most disruption because all project marketing companies market projects in the exact same way. I also have the benefit that I can truly leverage my interior design experience for this type of work. Even with the downturn making timing tricky, I’m not ready to walk away from that segment. I’m giving it a few more quarters. Call it stubborn. I call it knowing what I’m building toward and knowing what I can uniquely offer. Thankfully, I am patient and passionate.
Building a Team I’d Actually Want to Work For
I’ve been growing the team intentionally, not reactively. Right now we have the following:
- SEO/GEO lead
- AI media producer
- On-site videographer
- Web developer
- Brand and creative lead
- Bookkeeper
More Here: https://spacesuncovered.com/about-us/
All are based in Canada, half of them right here in Vancouver, because I like to actually see the people I work with, and I want to contribute to the local economy while I’m at it.
The brand and creative hire was the most recent one. I received over 30 remote applications and turned them all down. Branding is too personal, too close to the identity of this company, to get wrong. I needed someone whose values and energy fit authentically. So I went to the Kwantlen grad show in full scout mode. Interviewed five of the strongest designers. Ran a paid design competition as the final round. And hired Marina. She challenges me every single day, pushes back when she disagrees, and brings a point of view that’s genuinely hard to find. Exactly what I needed.
The bookkeeper hire was long overdue by everyone else’s standards. Not mine. I made myself learn the books for five months first- bookkeeping was completely foreign to me, something I’d never had to touch in any company I’d worked at before. I needed to understand it before I handed it off, so I could actually oversee it and catch mistakes. Now I know enough. And I’ve bought back 2-3 hours a week I can put toward the work I’m actually built for.
Having this team on my side, I’m able to start thinking about expanding regionally. I only want to expand to areas that of course can receive value from my offering, but that are also fun to travel to. I have always loved travelling for business. My first stop is Kelowna since I have a some prior connections there, I love how the city is shaping and I have some amazing friendships based there. I’ve been manifesting what my first business trip will look like at end of July. Check out my manifestation video HERE
I Paid Myself for the First Time. It Felt Bizarre and Beautiful.
Oh yeah. Another exciting thing happened this quarter. I paid myself for the first time. I went into savings to get this company off the ground and quietly adjusted my lifestyle to match my new reality. I’m not at my old employee salary yet- but based on where the pipeline sits, I will be by the end of the fiscal year. Every business book I’ve read says that usually takes much longer. I’ll take it.
The Hobby That Became the Most Important Part of My Week
I haven’t watched TV or a movie in four months. Not because I’m performing productivity- I genuinely find work more interesting than anything on a screen right now. But I knew I needed something that would force me to fully stop. Not just close the laptop. Actually stop the brain from ideating.
So I found salsa dancing. I had been introduced to it while living in Mexico and then was convinced to join a class thanks to my brother’s girlfriend.
Here’s what I love about it: in salsa, the man leads and the woman follows- and if a woman tries to take control, the lead actually gets frustrated. As a solo business owner who makes every single decision, for every part of this company, every single day- relinquishing control is not something I ever get to do. But in salsa, I have no choice. And something in my brain just lets go completely. I forget about work. I forget about time. I don’t check my phone for hours. I have one million laugh attacks. My record is a five-hour night with only a two-song break. No alcohol at these events- just strangers, rhythm, and an embarrassing amount of sweat. I’ve been dancing around 10-15 hours a week, usually by myself, without a second thought about it. I call it meditation. The kind that leaves you drenched and laughing.
I haven’t been this addicted to something since I was living and skiing in Austria two years ago. It’s that feeling of being so locked into a single moment that nothing else exists. I didn’t know I could get that from dancing. I’ve never danced before and I’m 0% musical, but its brings me so much joy that I can’t ignore it.
On Being Forced to Stop and What I Found When I Did
At the very end of the quarter, I went away for one of my best friend’s birthdays. It was a retreat on a private island in Desolation Sound. I had planned to work two of the five days. The generator at the retreat was malfunctioning. I took it as a sign.
I sat by the ocean with my iPad and just wrote — not a to-do list, not a strategy doc, but what I actually want from this life. The people around me that weekend had built real, lasting wealth from the ground up. And almost all of them said the same thing: the moment you start a business, you have to decide what you’re actually building toward. Travel? Freedom? Family? Presence? A team that runs without you? Then design your life and systems around that answer from day one.
I’m not working harder than I was as an employee. I’m working the same hours. But I’m thinking harder. And every task I take on now, I’m asking one question: is this genuinely mine to do, or should I buy this time back? Is this project or client going to lead to the life I want to live, or is it quietly steering me away from it? Is the location of this new job taking me to places I want to travel and experience with people and cultures I want to surround myself by?
Q3 Is About Slowing Down Further to Speed Up
Two things: gratitude and measurement.
Every conversation I’ve had since launching has come through inbound interest, warm introductions, AI search engines, or LinkedIn — zero cold outreach so far. And these aren’t random inquiries. These are dream clients. Companies I would have pitched aggressively in a past life, now reaching out to me first. That tells me the content and brand are working, and it genuinely stops me in my tracks sometimes when I think about it. I want to honour that by being an exceptional partner to the people already in my world. Treat them like gold. Make the work fun. Tell them I’m grateful for them. Enjoy this part.
Next I want to measure everything. If I want to scale, I need systems — and right now most of those systems live in my head. I want to automate, but I can’t tell you with 100% confidence what exact parts of my day need automating. So I’m going back to tracking every 15 minutes of my work, logging what I’m doing, what tools I’m using, filming it on Loom. Its almost like when I was working on billable hours as an Interior Designer, but with even more documentation including the software I’m using along each task. Not to hand it off yet. Just to understand it clearly enough to eventually let AI take it over.
Six months in. A lot less pain than Q1. WAY more stability. A lot more peace. A lot more clarity about what this is becoming.
We’re just getting started.
Curious on why the past quarter was so frantic? Give it a read here