This quarter I stood in front of 75 people and talked brand strategy. I climbed 2,000 metres through hail, lightning and thunderstorms. I landed 11 meetings in a city where I barely knew a soul in the industry, and I left one night in an ambulance and spent the rest of it in the ER on morphine.
And still, the moment I’ll remember most happened on the floor of a new apartment, surrounded by bubble wrap, unwrapping a chair I hadn’t seen in two years.
Let me explain.
Twenty-Four Months in Bubble Wrap
If you’ve followed these journals since the beginning, you’ll know I spent just over a year working remotely and travelling the globe, with my furniture and belongings in storage and my townhome on a long-term lease. I thought my belongings being in storage would last a few months once I got back from my travels. It ended up lasting ten. Ten months of living in limbo, in a temporary state.
Along the way I sold my townhome in North Van, spent two months trying to buy, pivoted to renting, and then FIFA hit and rentals became extinct. I was rejected from ten places. I was asked for so many supporting docs during my tenant application that I couldn’t meet any of the requirements. No landlord reference, no employer reference, no proof of pay stub (this requirement actually forced me to start paying myself), and no proof of a longstanding company (I was 4 months in). I couldn’t have looked sketchier on paper if I tried haha.
Then I found the right place, with some help from a great friend, and I finally moved in. (Yes, there was an ambulance in between. I’ll get to that.) Once I was back on my feet, I unwrapped everything. The Herman Miller pieces, the HAY dining set, the Muuto furniture, and all the little things I’d collected over the years. If you’re reading this and you’re a designer, you can imagine the pure joy of unwrapping every little designer piece of home décor. Everything was in mint condition after two years wrapped up, and I was a kid in a candy shop. Honestly? Pure bliss.
Here’s what I didn’t expect. I loved the minimalist life of living from a suitcase. Two years with almost nothing meant no maintenance, no morning outfit decisions, and total adaptability. But I also felt a lack of home, and a lack of belonging. I’m not a materialistic person, but the knick-knacks someone gifted me, the things I made, the pieces I saved for because they make me happy, all of that is what turns a space into a home. I’d been in limbo so long that I’d forgotten the feeling.
You already know this. I just needed to feel it again for myself. A space isn’t finished until someone’s life is in it. I can’t believe I forgot this feeling, especially as a designer by trade. But now it’s back, I signed a 1 year lease, and I couldn’t be happier <3
The Hike I Never Would Have Said Yes To (If I’d Known)
When I need to reset, there’s only one place I go, and it’s always the same: nature. I work long hours because the work doesn’t feel like work, but I’ve learned my body eventually asks for a break, and the mountains are where I find clarity when I need it and calm when I’m running low. So early this quarter, I laced up my hiking boots and headed into the Rockies with three friends from Kelowna.
It turned out to be the hardest hike of my life.
Here’s the funny part: I didn’t look at the terrain, I didn’t scroll through a single photo, and I didn’t research a thing before saying yes. It sounded fun, the group was wonderful, and I trusted that my body was fit enough to make it. That was all the data I needed. What I didn’t know was that I’d be climbing 2,000 metres over 65 km across three days, through blazing sun, then freezing cold, then hail, rain, thunderstorms, lightning and winds strong enough to make me question every decision that led me there. If I’d known, I honestly don’t think I would have gone. Or I’d have overanalyzed it and trained for so long that the trip never happened haha.
It made me think about the question someone asked me the other day: “Were you nervous when you decided to launch your business?” I laughed, because nerves genuinely never crossed my mind or body. I had so much going on that nerves never had a chance to show up. I did make some calculations though, it wasn’t all chaotic. I knew I had savings, I gave myself an 8-month runway to make something happen, and I had a checklist where I had no idea how I’d accomplish 98% of the items. I figured I’d ask people along the way and find the answers as I went. In the beginning, being resourceful matters more than being ready.
Naivety really is bliss sometimes. Back to the hike: I made it back in one piece, barely able to walk for a day, but I returned to my desk more inspired than I’ve felt in months, reminded that we can do far more than we think when we stop overthinking it. I’m not saying skip the research. I’m just saying: don’t let the research talk you out of the adventure.
Eleven Meetings and a Purple Convertible
I paired that trip with my second business trip to Kelowna, because I’d decided it was time to expand into new markets. It’s fun, it’s low risk since I have friends there to stay with, and once I nail the playbook, I can rinse and repeat it in markets that cost far more to enter.
So I tried something a little unconventional. I created an AI video of myself and the entire Spaces Uncovered team (face cloning involved), manifesting my first business trip, with a glossy purple convertible as the star of the show. The goal was layered: position us as tech-forward and leading edge, show that we can deliver AI services (the main offering I wanted to introduce in Kelowna), and break the ice in a way that felt like us. Instead of a cold email that gets lost in an inbox, I wanted warm introductions and real conversations.
And honestly? My little AI convertible ad worked better than I ever imagined. It led to 11 meetings with top companies from my dream client list. I was so committed that I went twice in one month, and I plan to nurture every one of those relationships, because I genuinely loved the people I met. I’m confident work will come from it, based on the excitement in every room about what we’re doing at Spaces Uncovered to help developers promote their buildings before they break ground.
Check out the AI video Ad here
The Idea I’ve Been Carrying for Ten Years
This quarter I made the first real moves on something I’ve wanted for a very long time: an events brand.
Spaces Uncovered Collective Inc. is the parent company, and I chose the word collective on purpose. It’s a gathering of creative talent from around the world, all connected by storytelling, and a collective of people who shape our built environment. One day I want to build a corporate retreat venue of my own, with the income helping fund development and education in underdeveloped communities around the world. But before I build the space, I want to host the moments that will one day fill it.
So this quarter, UNCVRD events was born, the events arm of the Collective.
Event planning is my love language, and I’ve been creating experiences for people for ten years. What’s new is the intention. Every event I’ve hosted in the past was a beautiful one-off, not connected to anything bigger. Now they are. UNCVRD is about uncovering new relationships and opportunities in unconventional places that inspire, always for the community of people who shape our spaces and who deserve to connect somewhere other than a crowded bar with a drink in hand.
Here’s where we’ve started:
- Event one: a hike to the shed and the trestle bridge, ending with a celebratory beer and a view that made every step worth it.
- Event two: the industry’s first-ever Dragon Boat Vancouver Cup. Three companies (Edge Construction, Heritage Office Furnishings and North American Rail Products) offered to sponsor out of the blue, which I’m still so grateful for. We raised support for Minerva BC, a charity that helps grow women in leadership, and watching the industry paddle in sync for a cause that matters is a feeling I won’t forget.
- Up next: our first AI Masterclass, co-hosted with my in-house AI engineer and built specifically for our industry. It’s still a baby of an idea, but the launch campaign is rolling out, and it will go into full force in Q4.
Check out our Events page here
The First Person Outside Me to Carry Our Name
Somewhere between the events, the unpacking and the airport gates, the work kept growing, and I’ll admit that’s the part I’m proudest of. This quarter, new companies joined the Spaces Uncovered Collective: a flooring dealer in the USA, a flooring dealer in Canada, and a large Canadian general contractor.
Every one of them is proof of the hypothesis I test every single day, which is that I only want to work with companies that help shape our spaces. I want to grow slowly and on purpose, with owners I’d happily spend a Saturday with, and my core value is GET HYPE for a reason. I get genuinely excited before every client meeting, because I love the people I’m serving.
As the work ramped up, I realized I couldn’t carry it all by myself, and I didn’t want to. So this quarter I decided to take my very first contractor to almost full time, starting in Q4. She’s young, fierce, extremely intelligent, and she constantly challenges the status quo.
I also gave her a @spacesuncovered.com email address, a real one with her name on it and not a white-labelled alias. She’s the first person I’ve ever done that for, and it’s my way of saying I trust her with our name. It’s a small detail, but it’s one of my favourite moments of the year.
The Goal on My Phone Screen That I Might Miss
There’s a goal on my iPhone screen saver that I see every single day: five public speaking opportunities in my first year of business.
I’ll be honest with you. It’s already October, I’ve only done three, and I’m not sure I’ll make it to five. But I’ve learned that a goal is worth chasing even when the finish line is uncertain, because the chase is what changes you.
And the three I’ve done were all bigger than I ever expected. First came the NAIOP/CREDA gala, then Mirage’s event in collaboration with DDA. The third was my biggest yet: 75 people at the CSMPS symposium, where I spoke on brand strategy and how to be seen before the RFP drops, for 45 minutes! Standing in front of a room full of people who shape our spaces, sharing what I’ve learned the hard way, was one of those moments where I felt exactly where I was meant to be.
I’m so thankful that people keep opening the door for me. Every one of those invitations felt like a quiet vote of confidence from an industry I love.
All of it builds toward a bigger dream: a TEDx stage in five years. It sounds terrifying right now, and I’m okay with that. I’m collecting reps the way some people collect miles, one stage at a time, hoping that by the time that dream arrives it won’t feel daunting, but like a place I’ve been walking toward all along.
The Day 692 People Got an Email I Didn’t Write
Before I tell you about my desert experience, I owe you the other side of this quarter. I don’t want to write only about the wins, so let me tell you about the week I’d rather forget.
It started with a bad day. I was distracted, a little frazzled, and not fully on the ball. Then an email landed in my inbox from a developer, inviting me to RSVP to an end-of-summer party. And here’s the thing: I have never said no to a summer party in my life. Whoever wrote it knew exactly what they were doing, because it was the perfect ask at the perfect moment, and they got me good.
I didn’t check the sender, and I didn’t look closely at the domain path. I just clicked. The second the page loaded, I knew. It’s a sinking feeling I wouldn’t wish on anyone, because you realize it’s too late while the page is still loading.
In ten minutes, 692 of my contacts received an email pretending to be me. For about two weeks, my domain authority was in pieces, my email marketing was crippled, and the clients and network I’d spent a year building trust with were suddenly getting messages from someone who wasn’t me.
Almost as fast, my phone was lighting up with calls from the industry, 50 of them within those same ten minutes, each person telling me I’d been hacked and that someone was impersonating me. I’m grateful for every one, and it was also so overwhelming. I kept trying to answer them all, which pulled me away from the one thing I needed to do: secure my accounts. I’d always had an IT team, so I had no idea what the first step was. I was completely paralyzed.
Then one friend from the industry called and said, “I assume this is your first company hack. Let me help you.” He walked me through the first five steps to lock everything down, and I’ll never forget how steadying that was. After him, more people from the industry reached out, offering me an hour of their IT teams because they knew I didn’t have one of my own. My developer team jumped in too. The industry I serve showed up for me before I even knew how to ask.
Even now, the aftermath lingers: emails keep landing in junk, and I’ve spent around 35 hours with Microsoft trying to fix it.
And that same week, everything collided. The hack landed in the same two days as something personal I’d been working toward for 366 days, and by coincidence it was also moving day. All my work struggles and personal struggles arrived at once, with so much anticipation around finally settling down and finally getting that personal goal across the finish line. So I unpacked my entire U-Haul, and then, minutes later, I was taken away in an ambulance haha. Apparently everyone in my building saw it on camera. At least I left in style: I couldn’t walk, so they wheeled me out in my Aeron chair instead of the stretcher. If you’re going to have a week like that, you might as well do it in good ergonomics. I spent the rest of the evening in the ER on morphine and an IV, instead of enjoying my first night in the home I’d worked so hard to get.
Here’s what I think happened. The second I crossed the finish line and unloaded the last box, my body simply gave out. A year-long adrenaline rush ended in one afternoon, and I self-destructed. I may not feel stressed, but my body clearly carries it, and I had six hours of excruciating pain to prove it.
So I’m taking a few lessons from this week:
- Spread out the milestones when I can, instead of stacking the biggest moments of my year into the same 48 hours.
- Build real ways to de-stress, and take the time to decompress properly.
- Learn to recognize the signs earlier, so the next warning doesn’t have to be this loud.
So why share this? Because nobody posts about the week their business was hijacked and their body quit on them. But if you own a company, work for one, or even just have an inbox, take it from me: slow down before you click, even on your worst day, and slow down before your body makes you. And when someone you know gets hit by something like this, be the person who calls and says, “Let me help you.”
The Week I Realized I’d Built the Life I Was Looking For
I’d like to tell you I took my own advice right away and slowed down. The truth is that my body had made the decision for me, and I was still recovering when the quarter drew to a close. So when a friend invited me last minute to his investment property in Arizona, it felt like exactly what I needed.
The round trip flight was $250 CAD. I looked at my calendar, saw no in-person meetings for a week, and said “heck yes” before I could talk myself out of it.
I took one day off, made the most of the stat holiday, and worked remotely the other three days. The rest of the time I soaked up the desert: a side-by-side ride to Sedona with red rock in every direction, salsa dancing, hiking, river tubing and golf. I even took a nap by the pool, which I never do because sleeping bores me, but after the month I’d had, I was so tired that I surrendered happily.
Sitting there with my laptop in the sun, I realized this trip is exactly why I’m shaping the company the way I am. The workshops, strategy meetings, events and networking all happen in person, where the best relationships are built, and then every so often I get the freedom to work from somewhere beautiful for a week or two. I’ve already lived the 100% remote, digital nomad life, and I know now it’s not for me full time.
This is the balance I was searching for, and I feel lucky to have found it in year one.
Until Next Quarter
If you’ve made it this far, thank you. I know that was a long one.
Looking back on this quarter, I’m struck by how much of it was about coming home. Home to my own space, with my favourite things around me again. Home to the mountains, which still reset me better than anything else. And home to the people I get to build with, the ones who picked up the phone when I needed help and made the long days feel like the best kind of work.
Q4 brings the AI Masterclass, more UNCVRD events, and two more stages to find. And if you’re a designer, engineer, contractor, supplier or developer, this is your invitation: come to an event, tell me what you’re building, or just say hi. I’d genuinely love to hear your story.
Here’s to Q4: bigger stages, bolder gatherings, a little more rest, and more spaces worth uncovering.
Until next quarter,
Alexa
Curious about the previous quarter? Check it out here