JLUX Designs, LLC

Virtual connections that feel like real life.

The JLUX Designs Blog

Why The Intrepid Collective VIP?

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In the four years that I’ve worked every day with entrepreneurs to design meaningful organic content on both their websites and social media, one thing popped up over and over and over again:

“I don’t want my picture on the website.”

“I’ll create that—but let me lose ten pounds first.”

“Let’s just use a stock photo for this post, I don’t need to be in it myself.”

“It will look like I’m bragging if I’m in the video, let’s just showcase my clients.”

I could go on, but you get the idea. Visibility was a major stumbling block in getting quality content created and posted for almost all of my clients.

It was a struggle for me as well. Perfectionism shows up in many different ways, and often it shows up as a result of our not wanting to do the things we feel weakest in—such as public speaking, or being in front of the camera instead of behind. Our expectations of what we should look like, where we should be at in our careers, or what others might think of us if we put ourselves out there keeps us paralyzed. It often happens when we really want to be creating, sharing, and helping others.

My own journey out of paralysis and into action-taking flow only took off when I began to take the lessons on mindfulness and meditation I learned as part of my yoga teacher training and apply them to my work routines.

When I started my day with yoga and mindful meditation, I was able to flow directly into a creative mode without stopping to worry about the things that usually held me back. I was centered, serene, and ready to show up for myself in bigger and better ways.

I brought those revelations to the women in my mastermind, The Intrepid Collective, and they wanted more! We were all hungry for a lifestyle that supported the work we were trying to create. If we nurtured our bodies and our minds in the same holistic way that we were working to nurture our business communications, we learned that things began to fall into place in magical ways.

Amy, one of the members, said it best, “I love the overall flow of the Intrepid Collective. Once a month Learn & Grow sessions; followed by scheduled, intentional co-work time; and then our one-on-ones to answer any specifics. Through our time together, I am more comfortable being visible on social spaces and more authentically intentional about my messages. I am loving the momentum.”

 “I love the overall flow of the Intrepid Collective. Once a month Learn & Grow sessions, followed by scheduled, intentional co-work time and then our one-on-ones to answer any specifics. Through our time together, I am more comfortable being visible on social spaces and more authentically intentional about my messages. I am loving the momentum.”

Amy, intrepid collective member

As I took a look at the feedback, and my own journals, it became clear to me that The Intrepid Collective needed a new level—one that offered lifestyle support as part of the weekly offerings, as well as the content creation support. The VIP level was born!

I’m so excited to share this special Mastermind with entrepreneurs who have a mission to connect authentically and make the world a better place for their clients. My heart is full, knowing that my own journey and struggles have led to me being able to forge a path that others can follow—one that might just be a little simpler, clearer, and more fun than my own!

Revisioning

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The Redesign of JLUX Designs

A new logo for a new vision.

When I started JLUX Designs, LLC in 2017, I was excited to FINALLY go independent. I was so ready to flex my creative voice. I’d been working in corporate for a decade, so everything I created was defined by a well-established brand standard, designs were constrained by need to adapt for 21 languages, and my team worked FAST—we didn’t have much time to envision new creative concepts. Working in that environment began to feel gray and lifeless from my viewpoint.

I was stifled in that world, so stepping out on my own felt like taking a deep breath in and letting out a scream of joy. My brain was overflowing with ideas, potential, and hope.

As I look back now, I see that the choices I made for my branding were direct expressions of those feelings of finally being uncaged. I went for a full-on rainbow of color! I love that I was able to create that brand, and I still love the color scheme and the logo I’ve used for the last 4 years…

With this perspective, I see what I created as a reaction to my past as opposed to working well as defining my future—who I serve, what I do, and what I’m all about.

My original logo.

Over the last couple of months, I took this into account as I evaluated the plan for 2021-22. It was time to evolve the brand to reflect the possibilities to come. I put myself through my own brand strategy sessions that I run for my clients to learn what I really wanted to communicate.

Here’s my vision board:

My passion, defined in imagery, color, and fonts!

Authentic connections are my cornerstone

It all started with my clients. My vision for working with entrepreneurs is founded in developing authentic relationships. I work to create a collaboration that feels like going out to coffee with your best friends—only a coffee date that ends with beautiful communications for your brand.

I’ve used this photo several times in my social media and newsletters over the last year, and I kept coming back to it because it really captures that feeling. So this became the image that I began the vision board with.

Stoke the Creative Fire

The mission of JLUX Designs is to give voice to your vision, and to hold space for that vision as we create the perfect communications that turn your audience into clients. It’s an alchemy of sorts, and to me holding that vision is like tending the fire. It’s my sacred calling, and it uses all my innate skills, as well as the skillset I’ve developed over my 20 year career.

Embody joy, creativity, wisdom, & intuition

I used gemstones as visual representations of the qualities I want JLUX Designs to embody.
Citrine = manifesting dreams, activating your imagination and will, envisioning what you want, and having the persistence to see it through.

Amethyst, Labradorite & Blue Sapphire = Intuition, Discernment, Discovering Truth, and Wisdom

Rainbow Moonstone = Joy and Positivity

Take up space

I get my best ideas when in nature. I chose to represent this with the Northern Lights and the beach because they included all of my favorite nature colors: blue, purple, green, and pink.

I also chose these expansive images as a way to represent the concept of “taking up space”. I firmly believe that as entrepreneurs, we must be comfortable with visibility, and with taking up space in the world. I help my clients to get comfortable with showing up.

There are no rules…

Finally, a bit of magic!

One particularly bad day long ago, a friend left me a tiny unicorn on my office door with an encouraging message, and thus began a tradition of people who work with me bringing me unicorn things.

I love this, and I’m not sure how it became such a thing, but it makes me feel like people see the special magic I try to create for them! Unicorns represent infinite possibilities, and one of my creative mantras is: “There are no rules.” That’s really all a creative person could ask for…so it’s now part of my brand!

And there you have it! The new brand gives me so much life! I am so proud of it, full of joy, and excited to share all the new things that come with it: like this monthly blog, the VIP level of Intrepid Collective, retreat experiences, and new social media resources. I can’t wait for you to experience it all!

Creative Communications in Times of Crisis

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Picture it. The year is 1990, and I am a 10-year old kid–scrawny, scraped knees, bowl cut with bangs, rocking a typical outfit of neon floral jams and a Minnie Mouse souvenir t-shirt that my parents picked up at an orange stand in Florida on the way to my grandparents’ pastel colored Orlando bungalow. I have an 8-year old sister, a 6-year old sister, and a brand new baby brother.

This particular summer, a man has attempted to abduct a child in our town. It was the typical “get into my van; I’ve got candy” scenario, and the kid ran home to tell her parents but the town is still abuzz with the incident. My mom, worried because the man hadn’t yet been caught, lays down ground rules for me and my sisters while playing outside. She sequesters us to the area of the yard where she can see us from the windows while she takes care of our baby brother.

This was a massive restriction for us, because like most kids growing up in the 1980’s and 90’s, my parents sent us outside for most of the summer to play unrestricted as long as we came in by dinner time. We lived on the edge of town–in the country really–with a giant lot that included woods and a creek. Those areas were not visible from the house. They were also obviously the best places to play.  

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The Hodson Girls and their crew from 1990. Yes, we are piled up in the back of a pickup truck.

For a few days, we contented ourselves with putting on a talent show on the front steps, and playing “tennis” with books and a tennis ball against the side of the house. We rode our bikes in small circles and roller skated. It got boring really fast.

We decided this called for action. We didn’t want to spend our entire summer cooped up in the side yard in view of our mom!

What was the plan that we figured would expedite our quest for freedom? Why, catch the bad guy, of course!  

I know, I know…but we were inspired by our childhood heroes: scrappy and resourceful Kevin from Home Alone, the crime solving Nancy Drew, and the mystery cracking crew from Ghost Writer. We knew that what this crime needed was a group of smart, resourceful kids with a fool-proof plan!

Here was the plan: We gathered our red Radio Flyer wagon, some rocks, and a few jump ropes. We identified the very edge of our “safe zone” and marked it off with some sidewalk chalk. Next to this chalk line were two very climbable trees. Anne and I, as the two oldest and therefore strongest, climbed the tree with our arsenal of rocks. Julia (at age 6) was obviously the bad guy bait. We had her walk up and down the chalk line with the wagon, saying very loudly, “I’m all alone, I’m all by myself.” (Under a blanket in the wagon was the collection of jump ropes.)

We figured that the bad guy would drive by and see our irresistible 6-year old sister, broadly declaring her unmonitored status, and would have to take his kidnapping opportunity. When he attempted to grab her, we would knock him out with the rocks, and then tie him up with the jump ropes, throw him in the wagon, and cart him to our mom who would call the cops! Freedom achieved!

We worked at trying to trap the bad guy for 3 days before we got bored and moved on to other things. At some point, our restrictions were lifted and we were allowed to play where we wanted, but I can’t remember if the man was caught, or if the town just decided he’d moved on.

As an adult, I now see that our plan was ridiculous. But I am still proud of the problem solving skills that we developed and the creativity we displayed in our efforts to return to our normal childhood routine.

I see that same creative spirit rising up in people throughout the world now, in these unprecedented times of quarantine and coronavirus. Creativity and ingenuity rule the day once again! We’re throwing out the playbooks that don’t hold up in times of crisis and figuring out new ways of doing business.

One of the things that has changed most abruptly for businesses is the ways in which we attempt to connect with our clients and customers–communication styles change in the midst of crisis because they have to. Our normal marketing methods and sales strategies ring hollow when basic survival is the main goal of your day (especially if survival means trying to work from home with a 6-year old jumping off the couch arm onto your laptop. SHOUTOUT to my niece, Fiona Quinn!)

So, what are the new rules of communication? How can you continue to develop relationships between your brand and your audience when nothing is “normal”?

Here are my tips for creative communication strategies over the next few months:

  1. Get creative! Show some love, and identify with the struggle.
    Repeat after me: IT IS OKAY TO BE HUMAN! Let people know about your own struggles as a company. Let people know how you’re pivoting, where you’re coming up against frustrations, and what you’re learning. You might come up with something that would seem dumb in any other circumstances (like videos of your employees’ kitchen dance moves) but everyone is making stuff up as they go right now. Show everyone you’re just rolling with it like they are!  
  2. Connect with core values.
    What’s important to your brand and the people you serve? Check in on your values and make sure the decisions you’re making in the face of crisis are still aligned with who you are. Don’t panic–and you’ll be proud of whatever happens when all of this madness blows over.  
  3. Check your tone, and PIVOT like Ross on Friends!
    Make sure that any messaging you had in the works for the next quarter is still appropriate considering the tough times people are going through. Evaluate language, images, and timing. Do you need to adjust thing in order to ring true right now?  
  4. Turn off the bots.
    If you can, this is the time to talk to your customers and clients one on one. We are all craving human connection. We’re all dealing with frayed nerves. Choose to be a little less efficient and get on the phone or answer the emails personally. Let people know that they’re important. Listen to what they need. You never know–your next big business growth idea might come from meeting the needs of your existing clients.
  5. How can YOU help?
    What special skill does your business bring to your clients that could help others during these difficult times?
    This one is so important. We’re all facing loss of income, plans for growth crumbling around us, failure to meet our projections, and even the possibility of shuttering our businesses. The good thing is the fact that it’s happening to all of us–it’s not just your business. Do what you can to ease the burden of this for your employees and your clients or customers. I know that people are watching. We’re making choices on who we’re going to support with our own limited funds based on what we’re seeing from you. We see the companies who are taking a hit on their own profits in order to support the community in some way, and those are the companies we’re going to work with and buy from.

Keeping this last tip in mind, I want each of you to know that I’m available to help you craft the right messaging for your audience over the next quarter. If you’d like to set up a free strategy session to talk about your plans, shoot me an email at jane.p.lockhart@gmail.com and we’ll set up a time to talk. You can use this time to make your business relationships thrive, and I’m glad to help!