You might have noticed a change from my name to Studio 333 lately, and it’s time to tell you all about it.
The Struggle
When you’re a designer, you are taught to question everything, have meaning behind decisions, and to figure out the strategy behind what you do. I’ve mentioned struggling with my brand, my business, on social media several times over the past six months and I finally figured out what the problem was!
As a brand designer I was really struggling with who I am versus who my brand should be and the difference between those two.
Originally when I first stopped my DIY blog, A Crafted Passion, I was open to trying a bunch of little things and services. I knew I wanted to be in the online marketing space, but I didn’t know exactly what that looked like. So I said yes to lots of things while I figured out what I really enjoy doing and what people were asking for. I made my company my name because it seemed like the easy answer.
So now that I’ve been doing this for almost a year full-time, I have a much better idea of what I enjoy doing and what I want to do more of. And with that come some changes. I decided that I was getting stuck on my business being my name because I felt like it had to be me…all of me.
I struggled as a mom blogger with that. I felt like I needed to show all aspects of my life. When I went the DIY route, I felt like I needed to show all the DIY stuff, but still include the mom stuff and the daily life and everything. And I think that’s where I have struggled…trying to figure out what to share and what not to share on social media and on my website.
And I realized it was because I was getting hung up on my name being the brand. My business is not all of me. That’s not who I am. That’s not who the business is. It’s not all of me. I am not an influencer. It does not need to be all-encompassing.
I want to be a design studio. I want to help people with their branding, with their brand strategy, figuring out how they can grow their business and market their business in this online world we live in and I felt like I was getting held back by my name. And so with that has come a lot of trying to figure out what that name should be and what I wanted and who my brand is. And so with all that to say I am changing my business to Studio333.
Why Studio 333?
When my grandparents met in college they went to a small little Bible college in Kansas and boys and girls could not mix. They would meet in the library to study and across from the library they would hold up three fingers for…
I love you.
And that’s how 3-3-3 became a thing.
Last year my grandpa died right when COVID was starting after a 10-year battle with Alzheimer’s and it was really tough, but we saw it coming. Then in January very suddenly my grandma went downhill. We were very close and it was a very special two weeks at my mom’s house.
It reminded me how important and special family is. And that is the heart of why I do what I do. My grandparents were serial entrepreneurs and have crazy stories of starting multiple companies, going bankrupt, and now growing senior living communities that now all of their five kids are involved with. I worked there and many of my cousins have worked there too and we get to change people’s lives, both the residents and our staff. And it’s just such a good reminder of who we are at our core and what’s important to us.
It reminded me how important and special family is. And that is the heart of why I do what I do. My grandparents were serial entrepreneurs and have crazy stories of starting multiple companies, going bankrupt, and now growing senior living communities that now all of their five kids are involved with. I worked there and many of my cousins have worked there too and we get to change people’s lives, both the residents and our staff. And it’s just such a good reminder of who we are at our core and what’s important to us.
Family is so important and I am so grateful for the relationships I had with my grandparents.
Whenever we would leave my grandparent’s house growing up, we always honked three times for I love you. When I was working at our retirement home before I had my oldest my grandma would be eating breakfast in the morning in the dining room and I could see her and she would look over, smile, and just hold up three fingers. It was just a thing that we always did.
And so when we were brainstorming names and Justin mentioned Studio 333, we just knew that was it.
It’s just a reminder of why I do this business and it’s generic enough that it can grow with me. It can change as the business changes—as I change. And I am just so excited for this new step.
I am busier than ever with client work and projects and I am so excited working every day and I love what I’m doing. I love that my kids know what I’m doing and that mommy gets to help pay for a good education and vacation and fun trips and going out for ice cream and, you know, little things like that. Things that maybe we wouldn’t have been able to do if we didn’t have the extra money from my job.
And honestly, guys, I am a better mom when I am working. Maybe there will be another season in life where that’s not the case, but for now with depression and anxiety and all the things and COVID and this crazy year we’ve lived in and all the deaths we’ve had in our family…it has just been a lot. I was not handling mom life very well, and I needed a break and I didn’t want my kids to see all the bad sides of me because I couldn’t pull it together. So now I get to do both things. And when I’m mom, I play with the kids more and I get down on the ground with them having fun and playing. Taking them to activities and doing stuff and not trying to squeeze the work in if they’re not right on my lap.
So anyways, all that to say, thanks for sticking around!
If you have any design needs or looking to get your online business off the ground, I’d love to hop on a call with you and see how we could work together! I want to help more modern entrepreneurs get their business out there, make a difference, share their passions, their dreams, their lives, and reach their big, scary goals.
Fill out my contact form or email me at hello@amanda-garvin.com.